The first death is when we die from old age, an accident, a disease or from something bad happening.Jesus promises the faithful church in Smyrna that if they remain faithful the second death could not hurt them (Rev. He has all power over death and the grave (Rev. We have no reason to fear death if we follow Jesus. Jesus doesn’t want us to be afraid of death. He can raise them from the dead! Jesus Has Power Over Death He reminds them that if they are faithful even unto death, he will give them a crown of life (Rev. Secondly, death is only temporary if you follow Jesus. So why does Jesus tells these brave Christians not to be afraid of what they would suffer? For one thing, He knew what it was like to suffer and have people hate you. Smyrna sounds like a scary place to be a Christian. What a rough and tough place to be a Christian! Nothing to Fear – Really?! Some would even be put in prison or killed for their faith (Rev. Jesus gently told them they would face more persecution. The church in Smyrna had experienced persecution and poverty (Rev. It was just that some Jews in Smyrna were not worshipping the true God, even though they claimed to. There was nothing wrong with being a Christian Jew. Now remember that many of the early Christians, including John, still identified themselves as Jews too. Jesus describes these so-called Jews as belonging to the “synagogue of Satan”. If that wasn’t bad enough, there were some Jews in Smyrna who were also very mean to Christians, accusing them of not believing in God and not being loyal to the government. Emperor worship was a wide-spread practice. Once a year every Roman citizen had to burn incense on the altar to Caesar. However, the life of a Christian in Smyrna was quite difficult. Smyrna was a rich and beautiful city in John’s time.

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