Rev 3:1-6 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Rev 3:1-6: 3:1-6 The letter to the church in Sardis warns Christians who are reputed to be spiritually alive (when actually dead) that without genuine transformation they face God’s judgment. 3:1 Sardis , nearly 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Smyrna on the southeast highway from Pergamum and Thyatira, was home to a large colony of prosperous Jews, called “Sephardic” after the city’s ancient name. Its fortified acropolis gave its inhabitants an overconfident sense of security. • a reputation for being alive—but you are dead: Other churches may have believed that the Sardian Christians comprised a dynamic church, but their secularism revealed their lack of spiritual life.

Summary for Rev 3:1-6: 3:1-6 ^a The letter to the church in Sardis warns Christians who are reputed to be spiritually alive (when actually dead) that without genuine transformation they face God’s judgment. 3:1 ^b Sardis, nearly 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Smyrna on the southeast highway from Pergamum and Thyatira, was home to a large colony of prosperous Jews, called “Sephardic” after the city’s ancient name. Its fortified acropolis gave its inhabitants an overconfident sense of security.

• a reputation for being alive—but you are dead: Other churches may have believed that the Sardian Christians comprised a dynamic church, but their secularism revealed their lack of spiritual life.
Summary for Rev 3:2-3: 3:2-3 ^c The church of Sardis needed to wake up or it would suddenly fall. The city of Sardis had fallen when the forces of Cyrus (549/546 BC) and of Antiochus III (189 BC) made unexpected attacks through a secret tunnel and caught the watchmen off guard. The same would be true of the Christians there if they did not meet the requirements of . . . God (see 20:12 ^d; Eph 2:10 ^e; Jas 2:20 ^f).

• as a thief: Like the invaders in the city’s history, Christ would come suddenly (see Rev 16:15 ^g; Matt 24:43 ^h; 1 Thes 5:2 ⁱ; 2 Pet 3:10 ^j).
3:4 ^k Soiled ... clothes represent an impure life (Zech 3:4 ^l), while white clothes depict purity (see Rev 6:11 ^m; 7:13-14 ⁿ; 22:14 ^o).

• Walk expresses how a person lives (see Gen 17:1 ^p; Pss 81:13 ^q; 82:5 ^r; Rom 8:4 ^s; Gal 5:16 ^t).
3:5 ^u Having one’s name recorded in the Book of Life (see 20:12-15 ^v; Dan 7:10 ^w) symbolizes having assurance of God’s acceptance and eternal life (see Rev 17:8 ^x; 20:12 ^y; Phil 4:3 ^z; see also Luke 10:20 ^aa). For God to erase a name implies condemnation and eternal death (see Exod 32:32-33 ^ab; Ps 69:28 ^ac).