Sadly, it is very common for those who call themselves Christians to spend a lot of time bragging about their own special place with God while calling others names like Laodiceans to say that their faith toward God is lacking in zeal and sincerity, as if we could know the heart of another person. Today I would like to begin by looking at a scripture which introduces a third category of people that we need to ponder when it comes to Christianity in the present time, besides Philadelphians and Laodiceans. We find this third group mentioned in Revelation 3:9. Revelation 3:9 introduces this category of “believers” that are far worse than Laodiceans, and it reads: “Indeed, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie—indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.”

This verse is telling us something very important. For one, it tells us that all who consider themselves to be Jews—or believers—are not in fact considered believers by God. We may use this scripture to point to other people and say that their professions of faith are not sincere, but let us point the finger back at ourselves. Do we know what puts someone, according to the biblical standard, in the synagogue of Satan? Do we know what standard God judges for the genuineness of our faith? If we do not understand God’s standards, how can we be so confident in our own understanding that we know the will of God completely? Let us take the time today to see what the Bible says about the synagogue of Satan, so that we can make sure that we have nothing whatsoever to do with it.

The Synagogue of Satan

What is the synagogue of Satan anyway? There are only two references in the Bible by name to the Synagogue of Satan, and not coincidentally they both occur in the two churches of Revelation that have nothing bad said about them by God: Philadelphia and Smyrna. Since we are already in Revelation 3:9, let us look at it again and see what it says about the Synagogue of Satan. Revelation 3:9 reads: “Indeed, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie—indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.” Here we see that the essential core of the synagogue of Satan, people who keep the seventh day Sabbath and who consider themselves to be a part of the spiritual Israel, but are self-deceived, is that of lying. These people lie to themselves and to others and show hatred toward the genuine people of God. Therefore God will force these people to worship at the feet of the ones they have hated and reviled, so that they know God loved those they hated and cursed. How humiliating is that? The brethren of Philadelphia will be worshipped by their enemies, and they will be in the family of God while their former enemies are human beings facing God’s judgment.

The only other direct reference to the synagogue of Satan is in Revelation 2:9-10, in talking about the Church of God in Smyrna. Revelation 2:9-10 reads: “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Here we see that the congregation of Smyrna had to suffer great persecution, and that the devil would throw them into prison, probably thanks in large part to the blasphemy and hostility of the synagogue of Satan, but we also see that God would give them eternal life and bless them for their loyalty. Here again in Smyrna we see a congregation with no criticism by God and the promise of eternal life, while God promises judgment to those who are wicked and self-deceived.

God Gave Them Over To A Debased Mind

Revelation is the only place where the synagogue of Satan is named, but there is another passage that graphically describes the mindset of those whom God gives over to Satan, and other passages that fill in more details. By understanding the context of Romans 1 and 2, we see that the Bible explains a great deal about the qualities of those who are a part of the synagogue of Satan. Let us therefore understand what the Bible says so that we may not be a part of those who say they are Jews and are not. Let us therefore now spend the rest of our time today in the book of Romans to see how it describes the behavior and mindset and judgment of those who say they are Jews, believers, and are not.

Romans 1:28-32 gives a chilling picture of the mindset of those who are delivered over to Satan. It also describes sins that we all struggle against as Christians, reminding us all of our continual need for God’s mercy as well as an ongoing relationship with God so that we grow in righteousness and struggle against these tendencies and habits. Romans 1:28-32 reads: “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, strife, deceit, evilmindedness, they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.”

Let us take a minute to reflect deeply on what this passage is telling us. First of all, let us note the long list of sins here. Are we sexually immoral—whether in actions or in thoughts? If so, we face the eternal judgment of God, unless we repent. Are we malicious, treacherous liars who whisper slander and evil rumors, hiding behind false identities while we try to tear down others because we covet their titles and positions? If so, we face the eternal judgment of God, unless we repent. Are we unable to discern between lies and truth, between slander and honesty, and are unforgiving of those who have made mistakes and have sincerely repented of them? If so, we face the eternal judgment of God, unless we repent. Are we rebellious and disobedient, seeking our own selfish ends and refusing to listen to those who are in authority over us? If so, we face eternal judgment, unless we repent. All of us should have something on that list that we struggle with in our lives. Speaking personally, I know there are a few items on this list that I have often struggled with. What about you?

This is important for us to reflect on, because we need to understand that without the grace of God, all of us are under judgment. No one, apart from Jesus Christ, who died for our sins, has ever walked this earth blameless and sinless. We all fall short of God’s standard, every single one of us. It is only through the graciousness of God, in providing us with His Holy Spirit, that we can walk righteously before God and other people. We ought therefore to be thankful, and develop God’s spirit within us so that we can discern the difference between fellow strugglers against sin and those who wallow in it like pigs in the mud, to give encouragement and show mercy to the one and to give rebuke and warning to the other.

There is an organization in the United States and other countries called Alcoholics Anonymous for those who struggle with an addiction to alcohol. I myself do not have this addiction, but several members of my close family have struggled with it, and so it is an addiction that I am very sensitive to. In a sense, we are all addicts to sin. We may all have different sins that we struggle with, and we may tell ourselves that these sins are not as serious as the ones we see other people struggle with, but we deceive ourselves when we think this way. All sin is worthy of eternal death, if we do not repent of it before God. We are all addicts, just as the addiction to alcohol manifests itself in many different ways. Some alcoholics drink rum and coke, others champagne, others beer, others fruity cocktails, but we are addicts all the same, no matter our sin, and so long as we live in this flesh we are never fully recovered. We all continually have to struggle against something, developing our self-control and spiritual maturity in some way. We are always on the road to godliness, on the road to Christian maturity. We only arrive when we are resurrected into eternal life, and none of us have gotten there yet.

I say this not so that any of us feel bad about where we are, but to recognize that we are all in the same boat together facing the rough waters of a wicked and corrupt world. None of us has any room to brag or to think ourselves better than anyone else. But we are all created in the very image and likeness of God, so none of us has the reason to feel downhearted and depressed about it either. Just like a butterfly has to fight to break through the cocoon before it is able to fly away, so we too have to struggle in the flesh to become like God and Jesus Christ and to develop the wonderful and beautiful gifts that God has given us to show to the world for all time as His beloved children. We all have that opportunity for salvation, and so we all face the struggle against sin and corruption here and now while we are on this earth.

The Name Of God Is Blasphemed Among The Gentiles Because Of You

What kind of reputation do we have as members of the Church of God among unbelievers? Does it matter to God what kind of name we give Christians through our conduct? Absolutely. Paul himself makes that very plan in Romans 2:17-24. Romans 2:17-24 helps us to understand the serious problem when those who claim to be believers do not show a pattern of godliness in their behavior. Paul speaks of this as follows: “Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God, and know His will, and approve the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in the law. You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? You who say, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who make a boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? For “the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because you,” as it is written.”

This is serious business. Do we dishonor the name of God because of our ungodliness? Do people curse God because of the bad example they see from those who call themselves Christians, who call themselves members of the Church of God, who brag about how they alone have God’s truth and keep God’s laws? Among the biggest burdens we have as Christians in reaching out to the world around us is the bad example of Christians, who believe they are saved by God and then commit all manner of sins and unrighteousness. I still hear stories about the bad name that the Church of God received from all of the people in the past who would stock up on alcohol during the Feast of Tabernacles, so that it was called the Feast of Booze instead of the Feast of Booths. If we do not live according to the law, how do we expect that God is going to let us teach the law to others?

We had better examine ourselves very closely before we brag about our righteousness. So many people love to have followings so that they can be someone important, guiding people and telling them how to live their lives, what kind of brown sugar and brown rice and brown flour that they should have in their pantries, pretending to be ministers of God while living corrupt lives of drunkenness and immorality in private. Paul is very blunt though. Those who preach that others should not steal, do they rob congregational bank accounts, steal Passover glasses, and steal cattle? Do those who preach about the sanctity of marriage from the pulpit stay faithful to their wives? We may talk well as Christians, but the reputation of God’s way rests on the way we actually live. How well do we live compared to the standards we preach? I believe we could all stand to improve. Let us start with ourselves and work from there.

Whose Praise Is Not From Men But From God

Now let us come to the heart of the question I asked at the beginning of this message. How does one become a part of the synagogue of Satan, so that we can avoid it like leprosy? We find the answer in Romans 2:25-29. Romans 2:25-29 tells us who is and who is not a “Jew,” or believer, in the eyes of God. And it is precisely that question that determines who is a member of the Church of God and who is in the synagogue of Satan instead. Romans 2:25-29 reads: “For circumcision is indeed profitable if you keep the law; but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. Therefore, if an uncircumcised person keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? And will not the physically uncircumcised, if he fulfills the law, judge you who, even with your written code and circumcision, are a transgressor of the law? For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.”

What Paul is saying here is very plain. It is not outward membership in a church organization, or physical appearance, that makes one a believer. Many Jews considered themselves righteous merely because a piece of skin was cut from their penises when they were eight days old and too young to know better, and considered Gentiles to be unrighteous because of that piece of skin. God looks at the heart. Over and over again in Deuteronomy, in the Law of God that the Jews and that many members of the Church of God claim to love so well, Moses and God sigh and command Israel to put the words of God in their heart and in their soul, as in Deuteronomy 11:18, and instead we merely hang a plaque of the Ten Commandments on our wall and do not reflect about them in our hearts and minds. It is obedience to God’s way, not merely possession of His word or intellectual knowledge of His laws, that counts with God. Those who walk in God’s ways by His Spirit, regardless of what organization they attend or what tribe or nation they belong to, are spiritual Jews, and they alone. What matters is not what others call us, but what God calls us. Let us therefore not brag of our ancestry, or in our knowledge of God’s ways, but rather let our praise come from God when we enter into His Kingdom as His beloved sons and daughters.

All too often people desire the praise of men. They make themselves teachers and create their own organizations so they can make sure to have their own following, to feel like they are someone special to the world. God does not care about such business; He looks at our heart, to see if we are truly humble and truly desire to live and walk according to His ways. He gives wisdom and strength to those who ask Him for it, not those who trumpet their faith loudly and wear it like a garment in public, only to take it off when no one is around. The synagogue of Satan is made up of those who claim to be Jews, claim to be believers, brag about their knowledge of God’s way, but do not live God’s way in their lives. Let us not be numbered among that congregation.

Conclusion

Today we have explored the problem of the synagogue of Satan. Not all of those who keep the seventh day Sabbath, as the Bible commands, are a part of the Church of God. Not all who clam to be Jews, or believers, actually are. Some of them are instead congregations of Satan. We know from Revelation that there is promised to be strife and enmity between the Church of God and the synagogue of Satan. We also know, from the book of Romans, that it is obedience to God and not bragging about our knowledge of God’s laws that makes one a genuine believer of God. For it is doers of the law, that is, those who obey, and not hearers of the law, or those who only sit in church and hear God’s word preached, that are justified. Let us therefore resolve to live the laws of God, so that we may receive the blessings of eternal life as God’s children and so that we may not be counted as members of the synagogue of Satan.