Smyrna, like Ephesus, was a sea-coast city with a natural harbor on the West side of the Aegean Sea. In terms of natural beauty, Smyrna was the "jewel" of all the cities in the region. Apollonius of Tyana mentioned the "crown of porticoes" which circled the summit of Mount Pagos in Smyrna, creating a particularly beautiful center point of the city.

   The Greek word smyrna is the same word translated "myrrh" in reference to an aromatic spice brought to Jesus by the Magi (Matt. 2:11), and used in His embalming (John 19:39). Smyrna is the only location of those mentioned for the seven churches, where there is still a city. The modern city of Izmir, Turkey is at the same site as Smyrna of the first century.

   Like all of the cities at the end of the first century, idolatry was rampant in Smyrna. Not only did they indulge in the Greek gods, such as Dionysius, the god of wine, but the citizens of Smyrna were at the forefront of Roman emperor worship. The first temple of Dea Roma, dedicated to the worship of the goddess of Rome, was constructed at Smyrna. There was also a temple to honor the Emperor Tiberius. This emphasis on worshipping the Roman emperor as "savior" and "lord," led to intensified persecution of the Christians who worshipped Jesus Christ alone as "Savior" and "Lord." Being a Christian in Smyrna at the end of the first century was not easy; in fact, it was risky!

   In addressing Himself to the Christians at Smyrna, Jesus identifies Himself as "the first and the last" (2:8), just as he had identified Himself to John earlier (1:17). Jesus is the beginning and the end and everything in between. He is the source of all things and the summation of all things. Why would Jesus identify Himself like this to the church at Smyrna? Religion has a tendency to think that everything begins and ends, starts and finishes, with their religious activities and program. There is always an inherent self-sufficiency to religious thought, wherein all activity is considered in the context of their own self-effort. Jesus wants Christians to understand that all activity that can be called "Christian" must have its derivation and destination in Him.

   Jesus goes on to explain that He "was dead, and has come to life" (2:8). The risen Lord Jesus who is addressing these Smyrnean Christians identifies Himself as the same Jesus who was historically crucified at Golgotha and subsequently rose from the dead three days later. Religion so quickly loses the connection between the historical Jesus and the eternally risen Lord Jesus. Some interpreters focus on the historical Jesus and fail to understand the resurrected Christ in His spiritual form. In so doing they often have no concept of the believer's resurrection out of spiritual death and the dynamic of the resurrection-life of Jesus Christ in the Christian. Other religious aberrations have denied the historical elements of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, relegating them to mere "myth-stories," and focus on a spiritualized and subjective, existential experience with the Spirit of Jesus. Jesus says that he "was dead, and has come to life," and all that He does now by His Spirit is connected to and based upon what He did then! He is the risen Lord Jesus! Christianity recognizes that everything issues forth from the resurrection. Ever so subtly, some have religiously emphasized the cross and the crucifixion death of Jesus rather than the resurrection, making Jesus into a martyr-model, and encouraging masochistic self-crucifixion amongst Christians rather than living by the resurrection dynamic of Christ's life. The death on the cross was the remedial act whereby Jesus took our deserved death, but the resurrection is the basis of the glorious restoration of God's life to man, life out of death. The Christians at Smyrna apparently needed to be reminded of the risen Lord Jesus.

   The observations that Jesus makes about the church at Smyrna are found in verse 9. The all-knowing Christ says, "I know..." this about you. There is not anything He does not know about us! Of the Smyrnean Christians, Jesus says, "I know your tribulation and your poverty." There was much pressure upon the Christians in Smyrna to capitulate to the Roman emperor religion. Their poverty probably was a result of being economically ostracized and boycotted for their obstinate refusal to recognize Caesar as lord, ever affirming that "Jesus is Lord." This was in addition to the pressures brought to bear upon them by Greek religion, regional religions, Jewish religion, etc.. They knew well the tribulation and the poverty that can be imposed by religious oppression.

   Religion has a tendency to look at the observations that are made of the believers in Smyrna, and conclude that they were obviously not "right with God." Religion reasons, "Are you having trials, troubles, temptations, tribulations? Then you are not 'right with God.' Are you poor, deprived, economically disadvantaged, merely middle-class? Then you do not have enough faith to realize and enjoy the prosperity that you deserve and which is your 'divine right,' which can be demanded of God in faith." The religious "health and wealth" gospel could never accept the "tribulation and poverty" of the Christians in Smyrna. Yet, Jesus does not fault the Smyrnean Christians for such; He merely observes that this is the situation in which they find themselves, and encourages them to recognize another perspective of prosperity.

   Jesus says to them, "you are rich." Not materially or monetarily rich, but spiritually rich. The abundance of life does not consist in possessions (Luke 12:15); "the man who lays up treasure for himself is not rich toward God" (Luke 12:21), Jesus had previously proclaimed. "Lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven" (Matt. 6:20). The apostle Paul wrote of "having nothing, yet possessing all things" (II Cor. 6:10). The writer to the Hebrews mentions their having "accepted joyfully the seizure of their property, knowing that they had a better possession, and an abiding one" (Hebrews 10:34). What kind of riches did the Christians of Smyrna have? The "riches of God's grace" (Eph. 1:7,18; 2:7), the "unfathomable riches of Christ" (Eph. 3:18); spiritual riches rather than physical riches.

   Religion does not understand the spiritual riches in Christ. They are "banking on the wrong things." Because of misplaced religious teaching, many Christians have "sold themselves short," thinking themselves to be bankrupt, when in reality they are spiritually rich in Jesus Christ. Jesus says to the Christians of Smyrna and to Christians of every age, "You are rich."

   The Smyrnean Christians were also suffering persecution at the hands of religionists of another kind. Jesus refers to "the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan" (2:9). Religion of every kind tends to be persecutive toward Christians. Why is this so? Because religion is the devil's playground. Religion is Satan's diabolic parody of the relationship between God and man through Jesus Christ. That is why religion will always "bad mouth," speak evil of, and blaspheme Christianity. Satan is a slanderer. He is the "accuser of the brethren" (Rev. 12:10). The very name "Satan" means adversary or opponent.

   The Jewish religion likes to play upon people's sympathies with a persecution complex that portrays them as always having been "victimized." They have, no doubt, been persecuted at different times in their history, but they have doled out religious persecution on others as well, and those who claim to be Jews are still doing so today.

   Those who were persecuting the Christians in Smyrna claimed to be Jews. They probably were Jews by all outward criteria of race and religion ­ tithing members of the local Jewish synagogue. But Jesus indicates that they were not really Jews. What does the word "Jew" mean? Originally it referred to those of the tribe of Judah, one of the sons of Jacob. The name means "to the praise of God." Later the word became the designation of all Israelite peoples. Although the physical, racial Jews of the old covenant were to be the pictorial prototype of the "people of God," they were unfaithful and failed, as a whole, to believe in the Messiah, God's Son, Jesus Christ. It was to Jewish religionists that Jesus explained that they were not of their father, Abraham, as they claimed to be, but "You are of your father, the devil" (John 8:44). Despite his previous pride in Jewish heritage (Phil. 3:4-6), Paul explained to the Romans that a real Jew was one who was so spiritually. "He is a Jew who is one inwardly" by the "circumcision of the heart" (Rom. 2:28,29). These persecutive Jews in Smyrna claimed to be Jews, but they were not real Jews, not spiritual Jews. They were not real "People of God" or they would not be persecuting God's People, the "People of God's own possession", the "chosen race" (I Peter 2:9,10), the people who are now true Jews spiritually, that is Christians.

   These so-called "Jews" in Smyrna were not functioning "to the praise of God," which can only take place "in Christ" under the new covenant. Their synagogue may have read the Torah every Sabbath, but Jesus says it was a "synagogue of Satan." Satan was functioning in these religious people as he does in all religious people. Their gathering place was the dwelling place of Satan. Satan is the adversary of all that God does in Jesus Christ. He is the source of all religion and the blasphemous attacks of religionists against those who are "in Christ." The Christians in Smyrna were being blasphemed by these religious, racial Jews, who were spiritual non-Jews, whose activity was being energized by the devil.

   In response to their situation, Jesus commands the Smyrnean Christians to "fear not" and to "be faithful" (2:10). These two commands constitute a negative and a positive admonition positioned together, as seen elsewhere in Scripture (cf. Rom. 12:2; Eph. 5:18). To obey the positive command is to fulfill the negative and make the negative a moot issue. Religion, of course, tends always to emphasize the negative commands, stressing the performance of abstinence and suppression.

   Jesus tells the Christians of Smyrna, "Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days" (2:10). Decades earlier Jesus had told the twelve disciples, "Do not fear those who can kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body" (Matt. 10:28). In his epistle, John wrote, "perfect love casts out fear" (I John 4:18). Since God is perfect love (I John 4:8,16), when He is functioning in us by the grace of Jesus Christ, we have nothing to fear; we are safe "in Christ." He is the basis of our security.

   Religion, on the other hand, perpetuates fear. It motivates people with fear and shame and guilt. There is the continuing fear of having violated God's will, of having committed the "unforgivable sin," of not having done enough to please God. There is fear of the spiritual enemy and of his conspiracies, and of how Christianity is being bombarded and overcome. Religion plays off of these fears to get the people to do what the leaders want. Sometimes Christian people even have cause to fear their own church leaders, and what they threaten to do to them. Despite what religion does, Jesus says, "Do not fear..."

   Jesus tells the Christians in Smyrna that they are going to be tested for a brief period of time. It will be of limited duration. The pressure will be on for only "ten days" (a time period that can be taken literally or figuratively). The devil is going to cause some of the Smyrnean Christians to be cast into prison, probably at the instigation of some of his religionist agents. All of this will be an opportunity for these Christians to be "tested" and to demonstrate that Christ's life works even when the going gets tough. God does not promise Christians that there will always be easy and pleasant circumstances in life. He did not promise a rose garden, a red-carpet treatment, smooth sailing on the seas of life. Jesus said, "In this world you will have tribulation" (John 16:33), and Paul proclaimed that "through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:22).

   In the midst of these tribulations Christians are tested to see whether they will allow the character of Jesus Christ to be manifested in their behavior to the glory of God, to demonstrate that His life works, to express His sufficiency in the midst of any situation. James explains that "the testing of your faith produces endurance" (James 1:3), and says, "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, he will receive the crown of life" (James 1:12), which Jesus likewise here promises to those of Smyrna. Peter explains that Christians "though distressed by various trials...their faith, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (I Peter 1:6,7).

   Religion does not have the resources to handle hardship like this. Religion does not have the sufficiency of God's grace in Jesus Christ. So when the trials and the tough times comes, religionists often become pessimistic "doomsday sayers," fatalistic Stoics, or escapists seeking deliverance from all tribulation. Of course, there is the other religious extreme that thinks that the more one suffers the more "spiritual" that person is, so they masochistically seek suffering situations. Only in Jesus Christ do we have the sufficiency of God's grace for every situation that God providentially allows in our lives.

   "Be faithful unto death" (2:10), Jesus says to the saints in Smyrna. We can avoid fear, anxiety and worry by allowing for the receptivity of God's divine activity in Jesus Christ. Faith is the antidote for fear. We are to live in faith until we die, and particularly in situations that might take us unto the point of dying. The "sting of death" (I Cor. 15:55,56) is gone. Christians have the life of Jesus Christ, which is eternal.

   Religion knows nothing of this type of faithfulness. The religious concept of being "faithful" is being faithful in attendance at religious meetings, faithful in giving to religious causes, and faithful in serving where requested, i.e. faithful to the well-being of the organization and the human authorities thereof.

   Neither does religion understand the Christian having no fear of physical death. Religion attempts to avoid death or deny death. The Christian knows that Jesus has "rendered powerless the one having the power of death, that is, the devil" (Heb. 2:14), so we rest assured in the victory that is ours in Christ Jesus, delivered from any bondage to "the fear of death" (Heb. 2:15).

   This is why Jesus promises that faithful Christians "shall not be hurt by the second death" (2:11). Physical death for the Christian is just passing through an open door into continued eternal participation in Christ's resurrection-life (Rev. 20:6), with no fear of the perpetual absence of and separation from the life of God forever in the "second death." Only those who have refused to receive Jesus will experience the ultimate destruction in the "second death" of hell and the "lake of fire" (Rev. 20:14; 21:8).

   Christians will proceed to participate in the victory already won by Jesus Christ, realizing the consummation of that victory by the receipt of the victory "crown of life" (2:10). The Greek language has at least two words for "crown." The crown promised by Jesus to the Smyrnean Christians, and subsequently to all Christians, is not the royal crown (diadema), but the victory crown (stephanos). We already participate in Christ's life and Christ's victory, but the crowning consummation of such is yet to be experienced when we receive the imperishable victory wreath (I Cor. 9:25), the "crown of life" (James 1:12). Paul explains that "in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness...for all who have loved His appearing" (II Tim. 4:8).

   Religion usually has a mercenary and materialistic understanding of future, heavenly "rewards." They argue over how many and how valuable are the jewels they expect to receive in their royal crown (diadema), based on their religious performances. Such is not the kind of crown Jesus refers to in this passage. The crown Jesus refers to is the "crown of victory" for faithfully resting in, and participating in, Christ's victory.

   Jesus Christ urges the Christians in Smyrna and in every age and place to be spiritually discerning about what "the Spirit says to the churches" (2:11). The Spirit of Christ is cautioning the churches to "overcome" all tendencies to revert to naturalistic, diabolic religion. By faithful receptivity of Christ's life, we shall receive the "crown of life" (2:10) and "not be hurt by the second death" (2:11), functioning meanwhile by His sufficient life.