Revelation 2:12-17 To Pergamum: All-out war against carnal indulgence

Revelation 2:12-17 It is a challenge to understand what Jesus meant when He said that Satan's throne was in Pergamum, and that he dwelt there. Perhaps we should not look for an explanation in the recorded history and culture. Satan's kingdom, like God's kingdom, is not necessarily visible to the eye, nor perceived by those who are not sensitive to spiritual things. Satan's throne could easily have been his locus of authority in his kingdom but had little to do with Roman rule or Greek culture. Perhaps it was revealed a bit in the martyrdom of Antipas, Jesus' faithful witness. Jesus commends them for holding fast His name and faith in that day, but immediately turns to warning them against the Nicolaitan heresy, which He compares to Balaam's teaching.

          A brief review: Numbers 22-24 records the unsuccessful effort of the Moabite  kings to hire Balaam to curse Israel. Numbers 25 records that immediately after Balaam blessed Israel, the Israelites began to be seduced by the Midianite women, and to join them in their pagan worship. This led to a plague on Israel as the Lord judged those who did this. Later, in Numbers 31, we learn that Balaam was killed along with the Midianite kings, which sort of implies he was living among them. What this passage in Revelation adds is that Balaam, after failing to curse Israel for hire, told the Midianites that God's blessing would be removed, and they would be cursed by Him, if they became participants in idolatrous immorality and sacrificed to idols. In other words, he could not curse them with supernatural power, but he so desired the wages offered by Balak that he used his understanding of spiritual things to help devise a worldly plan to defeat Israel and frustrate God's plan for Israel.

          Jesus compares this to the Nicolaitan heresy. What is the connection between Satan dwelling there and the practice of brazen indulgence? Jesus obviously knew that the church needed spiritual power to overcome evil, and that immorality drained that power out of the church.

          How does this relate to us? The doctrine of grace stands in direct opposition to the concept of works. We cannot earn our salvation; the unmerited favor of God is a free gift. (Ephesians 2:9) But it is a misrepresentation of grace to use it to justify or permit a lifestyle of sin. The point of God's favor is that He saves us from sin, but not just from judgment for it. He delivers us from its power. In fact, He supernaturally empowers His people to overcome sin. The Nicolaitan heresy attempts to disregard and contravene this dimension of salvation. And Jesus hates it.

          Jesus warns that He will make war against those who do not repent with the sword of His mouth. (See also Ephesians 5:17, Revelation 1:16 & 19:15,  and Hebrews 4:12) This would be the word coming from the word. As both the incarnation of God in flesh, and as the things spoken by God, the Nicolaitan heresy as described is the enemy of God. And people who embrace it become God's enemies. We shall see later in Revelation the final end of God's enemies. (Revelation 20:11-15) It is the very essence of God, His nature and character, that fleshly indulgence wars against (Galatians 5:17).

          What of the new name written on the white stone, and the hidden manna? We have earthly names given by our parents that are used by others to address and identify us. God has a name for us that only He knows. When God gave names to people in the Scripture, for example renaming Abram to Abraham, Jacob to Israel, or gave names before birth to John the Baptist and Jesus, these names conveyed the essence of that person's nature and calling. And so we can infer that those who overcome (the devil, false teaching, fleshly indulgence) will be recognized and called by God according to the role that God has prepared for them. The hidden manna speaks of food that the unspiritual do not know anything about. (See John 4:32-34) It is doing the Father's will, and being about His business. The significance of the white stone is left as an exercise for the reader.

          The Pergamites were living in a spiritual battleground. As are we all. But the modern world seems to exacerbate the conflict. There is no place for noncombatants in this era.