The Hope of the Church

Last week we studied the church in Ephesus and Laodicea who were giving in to the cultural pressures around them. They were churches that were warned because there was compromise and a lukewarm commitment. But when Jesus writes to the churches of Smyrna and Philadelphia, He doesn’t warn them; he encourages them to stay strong. Even when the world seems relentlessly harsh, Jesus calls us to persevere. In the face of persecution—Jesus is the Hope of the Church.