Transcription of the Video: Mark of the Beast

When the Apostle John wrote to the church in Ephesus, a church that had the reputation of being very strong, he said to them, "I know your deeds, your hard work, and your perseverance. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name and have never grown weary." 

What's amazing about those words is that they were written to the people, the believers in Jesus, who lived in one of the most sophisticated, cultured, and pagan cities in the entire Roman empire. In fact, it was a city where persecution in the name of the emperor was being brought to bear on those believers. And yet, somehow, they persevered, they worked hard, and they never once grew tired. What was it about their faith that gave them such strength, such passion for Jesus in such an unlikely place?

The Romans called this place the Crown Jewel of Asia Minor. It's known by its name of Ephesus. It was an incredible city. It's located on the western coast of Turkey - what was Asia Minor in biblical times. In fact, the sea is very close here. Originally, the harbor came all the way just right up to the ruins there below us. Today, it's silted up and about four miles away. It was an extremely rich and beautiful and powerful place. It's amazing not only at the artistic beauty but the wealth, the opulence.

Up there where the slope houses - I guess they called it the heights of Ephesus where the wealthy people lived - the peristyle garden with magnificent columns and frescos (or frescoes) on the wall, running water, fountains right in the house, even one house with a hot and cold bath, and a kitchen, and toilets indoors, and just amazing things that were here back at the time in the Bible. 

Now at that time, the heart of the life and economy of this city was the worship of the goddess Artemis. Artemis was the fertility goddess. And she was worshipped by people who desired to participate in her gift of fertility. She was served by eunuch priests. They were originally called [curates? 00:02:41], and they served her here in this town. 

Now, way back in ancient history, back 600 B.C. or so, a temple was built to Artemis. It was destroyed and then rebuilt in the Greek period to become one of the seven wonders of the world. 

It originally had a reflecting pond out in front of it that was absolutely spectacular. The temple itself was 450 feet long, 220 feet wide, had more than 120 columns 60 feet high. Now, early on, this town became the protector, the defender, the center of Artemis worship. In Greek, it's called neokoros. It means this city, with its [curate? 00:03:27] priests and its Artemis temple was responsible for the purity of the worship of Artemis worldwide. So anything that had to do with Artemis had to come here, because this was the center (the heart) of where Artemis worship was.

And those early people discovered something. Since Artemis was thought to be so powerful and such a great protectoress of this city and of her temple, they could encourage people to deposit their money in the temple like a bank. Because after all, Artemis will protect your money. And they discovered as large amounts of funds came in, they could loan out those funds at fairly significant interest, make money in the process, and that made this town extremely wealthy and the center of thousands of people who came here to deposit money or to borrow money but also simply to acknowledge the fertility blessings of Artemis.

You can understand how these people thought that Artemis is the one who makes us successful and powerful and rich. And they were very protective of that.

Jesus, always in his ministry, the faith of the hearers. Faith in the Jewish context was not only what they knew or believed in their heart. But faith also had a side to it of persistent, intense, pursued-after what they believed.

So Jesus said to the woman who had tried for years to find healing, "Your persistence, your intense desire to keep going, your faith has healed you."

Or the Canaanite woman who brought her daughter and wouldn't take no for an answer but kept finding ways to say, "Jesus, please heal."

He said, "Your persistence, your intensity, your unwillingness to quit have kept you going." 

And here came Paul - this Jewish man (Saul you say in Hebrew). He was educated in the Torah, knowledgeable about Scripture and intensely passionate about Jesus, walking into the center of the focus of Artemis.

Paul arrived here at the end of his second missionary journey and also during his third missionary journey. Now, Paul came into this town and he went, first, to the synagogue, which is logical because that's the people he knew, that's the tradition he knew, and he knew the Scripture. And he began to teach and to show them from the Torah, from the prophets, from the writings how they were supposed to live. What's moral? What's immoral? I'm sure he also began to tell them about Messiah - Yeshua. 

The Bible tells us after several months, Paul left the synagogue and went to a certain lecture hall of Tyrannus. And there for two years, every single day - daily it says - he spoke the Good News. In fact, he spoke it so freely and so powerfully that all Asia, the text says, heard about it. And he was completely unapologetic that this is the truth. 

And he was completely comfortable putting that out in the public arena. He didn't spend his time, I don't think, attacking the views of other people so much. He simply went and spoke the truth without embarrassment.

And I think to myself how often I've been hesitant or ashamed to speak the truth as if somehow the wisdom and the truth of someone else is so much bigger because it's scientific or it has the support of the academic community or this degree or that degree, and all I have is the Word of God. 

This was the truth. And it had every right to compete in the marketplace with any other truth. And that's, I think, the faith we talked about that Jesus had instilled in those early followers.

After two and a half years, he ran into a huge problem because, you see, the truth has implications. And the folks of this town began to discover that if Paul's truth was the truth, it was undermining their truth. If this is God, and Yeshua is his Messiah, then who is Artemis? 

Well you can imagine Paul scratching his head and saying, "Sorry to tell you this. But Artemis is a figment of your imaginations." And so, a certain Demetrius decided that what Paul was saying threatened the whole belief in Artemis which then threatened the whole economy of all of this. The implications of the truth undermined their whole lifestyle. 

The book says, "A certain Demetrius said to people, 'This guy is teaching that our god isn't a god.'" So a crowd gathered, rushed into the theater down there. We know from ancient times that on a regular basis in this town, Artemis had a procession. It would be led by the [curates? 00:08:32], the priests of Artemis. Behind them, all the lesser priests. And behind them, all the celebrants and pilgrims and everybody who was in town for Artemis. They would come around the corner, through the Magnesian Gate, come here along the edge of what's called the basilica. They would pass a building over there called the Prytaneum. You can see the two columns standing out in front. 

The Prytaneum was where the sacred fire of Ephesus was kept. It's like the town hall. The sacred fire was a testimony to who the town thought was their protector. In "blank" we trust, the fire said. 

Well they found in that Prytaneum two statues of Artemis that had been buried many centuries after. And so the Ephesians were saying, "In Artemis we trust."

The procession would go past the Prytaneum, down the street here to the corner where the Hercules Gate is, down [curate? 00:09:25] street - people were dancing and singing and praising Artemis - make a right turn by the library. They would enter the theater. There would be speeches given by the priests. There were celebrations and dancing and expressions of fertility. And then they would sit in the theater and acclaim the goddess.

"Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. We love her. She loves us. And look what she's given us." 

Now scholars have wondered if Paul didn't find himself in the middle of such a procession. Because when Demetrius spread the word that Paul had been undermining the whole business, the crowd rushed into the theater. Now you have to see that theater. It seats 24,000 or 25,000 people. It's spread out in three tiers. There's a beautiful stage. The acoustics are fantastic. The view is spectacular. Imagine that place filled with 25,000 people, all chanting in unison, "Great is Artemis. Great is Artemis. Great is Artemis." 

Finally, the crowd was calmed down and there were some speeches. And the mayor finally said, "Hey, you're going to be in trouble. If you stir up a riot, the Romans will come and take away our goddess and our town and our freedoms." So Paul escaped with his life. 

I thought to myself, "When was the last time I spoke the truth so lovingly, so clearly, and so without fear that the implications of the truth were an offense and people go worked up enough to chant, 'Great is Artemis of the Ephesians,' for two hours?" And I wonder if I have the intensity, the passion, the faith of Paul?

And the other thought I had is when you speak of God and of Jesus, there are always implications. You don't need to undermine and put down and attack others. All you need to do is speak the truth. And the implications of the truth are powerful. And so Paul, with intense courage, faced intense opposition. I honor him and his little group of believers.

The second part of the story comes sometime later, and it involves John. Now scholars believe that John arrived here probably around late 60s or early 70s AD. Although that's tradition, no one knows for sure. 

At the time John was writing or soon would write the Book of Revelation, the Roman Emperor was Domitian. Now Domitian was the first of the emperors to really demand his own worship. He wanted to be called "Lord and God" even by his wife. Because he believed he was divine. 

Now in Ephesus, apparently, the people approved, because they built huge structures to Domitian. A whole series of ruins and arches sticking up to a great height, that was the harbor bath gymnasium. But what's unusual is that it's built in three pieces. There are really two gymnasia and one bath, making it similar to a bath gymnasium complex of Zeus on Mount Olympus in Greece. And in the middle was a large hall called the [Verulanus? 00:13:15] Hall. And in [Verulanus? 00:13:17] Hall stood a statue of Domitian. So if you came by sea, it was clear that this town was saying, "Domitian is the king of the gods like Zeus."

But the Jewel of Domitian is where we're sitting. It doesn't look like a whole lot. It almost looks like a field, and maybe there's something appropriate about that. But when Domitian decided to become a god or to be honored as a god, the Ephesians donated this place as the center of his worship in the whole world. 

Now what they did is they started at the hill over here and they built an open flat area. It's about 220 feet wide this way and about 300 or 325 feet wide this way. But they needed a little bit more space. So what they did is extended the end of this platform. And to hold that platform up, they put a series of columns. And that platform went all the way to those columns, like an overhang. But what's intriguing to me is that the top part of the column is carved in the figure of one of the Roman Greek gods. 

So this whole platform stood on the backs of all the Roman Greek gods. In the middle, they built a temple. It actually was a medium size temple. It's about 40 x 60. It faced the Agora. In front of it was a magnificent horseshoe shaped altar. The carving is beautiful on that altar. It stood here out in front of that temple. So there's a large temple here facing this way with columns around it in the typical Greek style. There was an altar in front of it where the offerings were being made.

But the most impressive part of it was a statue. And somewhere - probably along this side - stood one of the largest statues in the world. That statue was 27 feet high. And the head is huge. The arm in the museum is unbelievable. And if you came by sea, before you landed in the harbor, in the distance you could see that thing standing here. If you came by land, as you came around the corner by the Magnesian Gate to the basilica, on the platform stood Domitian and his family temple. 

I think the picture says, "I'm not only divine Domitian, but I am god of gods and lord of lords, the divine ruler of the world." And now, it wasn't simply a matter of if you don't sprinkle the incense, you can't go in the Agora. "But if you don't acknowledge me as you come by sea and you don't acknowledge me as you come by land, you pay with your life." 

And it may be that John was exiled in Patmos waiting for his execution because John said, "No. You are not god of gods and lord of lords. You're a human ruler to whom I owe my allegiance, according to God, as my government official. But you are not the king of the universe."

Domitian had a procession like Artemis - probably on his birthday. I'm not sure. But the Domitian parade would start maybe from this temple. I doubt they carried that 27-foot statue. That would be pretty tough to carry that through the city. But it would parade through the streets, the standards of the family going ahead, the priests of the town who now acknowledge the lordship of Caesar, all the pilgrims coming behind celebrating and dancing. Because this, after all, was their holiday. And Caesar's the one that gave them their wonderful economy. 

And all along the streets would be small altars. And as the procession moved, whenever they came to an altar, anyone who was standing either because you happened to be there or because you wanted to be part of it, and you were brought to the altar once a year and asked to say, "Caesar is lord."

Now, right down below here in the middle of Domitian Square was a Roman street altar to the emperor. Whenever I stand by that altar, I'm really moved. Because those early Christians had such passion of commitment and such courage that they would have stood there and said, "I can't. And I won't acknowledge the lordship of anyone but God." And I wonder how many, maybe even by that altar, paid the ultimate price. And I wonder whether I would have. But they did. 

So what do we take with us? I think there's a number of things. One, I want to take with me that boldness and that passionate faith that is unafraid to publicly live and speak for Jesus. I don't mean in a pushy, in your face. I mean a loving, caring, this is what I believe, and this is how I will live. 

In some ways, I don't feel I deserve to compare myself to these people who lived in this beauty and this power and put their lives on the line. Because I haven't had to do that. But I do want to learn from them that passion - John, Paul, those early believers. 

In the Book of Revelation, John writes, "I know your deeds, your hard work." And the Greek word means there, your constant, persistent toil. "Your persistence, perseverance," he calls it. He says, "You persevered and endured great hardships for my name and never got tired."

I want that for me, for our Christian community, for those who follow a tireless pursuit to live passionately, intensely for Jesus.

You know that as we've wandered through this place, we've asked ourselves where in the world did they get the courage and the passion to come here - ordinary people like us - and to make such a difference? This community was commended in the Book of Ephesians because they loved each other. And I think part of their tirelessness was their mutual love and support. 

In fact, John warns them in his book, "You've forgotten your first love." If you look at his epistle to the believers of Asia Minor in 1 John, you'll notice that first love doesn't mean who you love first of all. That's obviously God. But it means, if you are in God, what is the very first expression of love that you see? To love each other. And people, I think we need to be warned. In the culture we live in, we need to be consistently, publicly living for Jesus. But it will only happen if we, who believe in him, care about each other and about them.

And I worry that Christianity is so fractured and so divided and we spend so much time fighting each other over issues that may be important for the moment but don't matter here that we won't have the support and encouragement to passionately live for Jesus.

The third thing follows that. I noticed, and so did you, all over, the fountains. In fact, this is Domitian Square. It's a huge temple, a great fist in the air of this 27-foot monstrosity here with his curly hair. Right at the foot, they constructed a beautiful arch and a fountain called the Polio Fountain. And apparently, you were supposed to think as you entered this square and you stood and looked at the king of kings and the lord of lords, "Ah! Guess where I get my water from."

And it strikes me that if we, as followers of Jesus, would offer to the world we live in a fountain, they might learn to say, "Where is it in life that I find not Domitian but the community of Jesus?" How will you, how will I make that statement to my world?

The most poignant moment for me was a left turn off of this awesome [curate? 00:23:03] street and up a bunch of little steps. And just about at the top where the excavation stopped, a paving stone. And in the paving stone, a fish - it was sort of homemade; obviously not by an artist - and a little cross. No one knows the whole history but apparently, that was very ancient, maybe even John's time. And as I stood there and looked at that, now uncovered, it struck me that somewhere in this wealthy, rich, and powerful city was a person, a family, a community, I don't know, who wanted passersby to know in a quiet, unobtrusive way, who is Lord of Lords and King of Kings? Jesus the Messiah, son of God, Savior. 

How will we testify that the basis of our life is Lord of Lords and King of Kings? That, to me, is the message of Ephesus.