3:1And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. 3:2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. 3:3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. 3:4Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy. 3:5He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. 3:6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Revelation 3:1-6 KJV

30 miles South of Thyatira stands Sardis with its now partially corroded, but once impregnable steep sided acropolis.

King Croesus was here and famous for his riches, and here at this time Aesop told his politically meaningful fables.

Sardis fell to King Cyrus and the Persians in 546 B.C, two centuries later it fell to in 330 B.C. It fell to Alexander and Greece.

In A.D.17 IT Was destroyed by a earthquake, but Tiberius the Roman emperor rebuilt it and waved the taxes for 5 years.Thus began a affinity for Rome which lasted till the 11th century, It was captured by the Turks then destroyed in 1402A.D. by Tamerlane; only ruins remain.

This church had a "name" that is a good reputation and it appeared to be alive in human eyes yet God sees on the inside though alive they were dead.

Just because a church has a big building and has a lot of works going on , they have to ask themselves"are these works to glorify God or man"

Churches who talk about goodness without being good are like these.

This is a picture of the reformed church of 1517 to 1790 A.D.

The Reformation seeked to strengthen the things which remained, that are ready to die, the Western Catholic church of works and the Eastern church which no longer reached people.

Sardis was an excellent example of what Paul spoke of in [2Tim 3:5] they had a form of Godliness but denied the power thereof.

Perhaps the worst sin of Sardis was being complacency throughout the New Testament Christ tells us to watch!

The church should be a ongoing work, always studying, praying and working for the Kingdom of God!

Never stop learning what God has in mind for you, don't be afraid to ask questions and learn new things.

Don' accept traditions just because they have become habit, don't accept sin because it has become the "in thing to do"

Most of all don't compromise you morals for anyone!