Prone to wander

In a multi-part series on compromise in the evangelical church, Dr. Jeff Spencer examines biblical case studies to help believers expose and confront worldly thinking within the body of Christ. Part 1 compares the church at Pergamos with the moral decline of the modern church. Upcoming articles will tackle secular creep, worldview confusion, doctrinal decline, and leadership weakness.

In Revelation 2:12-17, Jesus speaks to the church at Pergamos, which was founded by John the Apostle in the majestic Roman capital of Asia. Often called the “finest flower of Hellenistic culture,” Pergamos was built upon a hill, from which the Mediterranean Sea could be seen 15 miles west. Of its grandeur, renowned archaeologist and New Testament scholar Sir William Ramsay stated, “Beyond all other cities in Asia Minor, it gives the traveler the impression of a royal city, the home of authority.”
The most distinguishing characteristic of Pergamos was its state-mandated religious culture. Many temples and altars built to ancient gods, such as Asclepios, Dionysus, Athena, and Caesar, lined the streets. The most prominent, the throne-like Great Altar, was built for sacrifices to Zeus. The constant smoke rising from sacrifices could be seen for miles around the valley surrounding Pergamos, a visible reminder that Zeus was king. It is no wonder that Jesus Himself noted that Pergamos was “where Satan’s throne is” (Revelation 2:13a).
Despite living in a culture where “Satan dwells,” Jesus noted that a few in Pergamos held fast to His name and did not deny Him, even when their leader, Antipas, was martyred before their eyes because he refused to renounce his faith (Revelation 2:13). The particularly brutal and theatrical nature of Antipas’ murder – slowly being roasted in a “Brazen Bull” – was certainly horrifying for his followers, who saw it all.
The large, hollow, bronze bull has been described as one of the most brutal torture mechanisms ever devised, and those living in areas in which it was utilized lived in fascination and fear of the metallic mammal who seemed to awaken and mimic an angry bull as those sentenced to this excruciating end perished in its sizzling belly. According to “The Brazen Bull: Killed by Own Creation” (posted to the website for The Classical Association in Northern Ireland, 9/8/24):
Condemned victims would be locked inside and a fire lit under the bull, roasting them to death. Its shape or [additional] acoustic apparatus converted the screams of the roasting condemned into the sounds of an actual bull. Furthermore, steam from inside the beast would emerge from the nostrils (it needed somewhere for pressure to be released to prevent it exploding) to add to the realism of the sculpture.

The Brazen Bull was a malevolently creative way to silence faithful Christians and warn others that they must abide by the mandatory, idolatrous will of the state. Consequently, not all believers in Pergamos remained faithful to Christ as their leader had. Some sought the safety of anonymity by immersing their lives into the secular culture. Others were drawn away from the faith by pleasures like prostitution and strong drink offered in the rituals of temple worship. In short, Pergamos was a city infested with spiritual and physical adultery, and some believers had fallen into that compromise, living in a Jekyll-and-Hyde-like duplicity, with feet in the church and hearts in the adulterous culture.
Jesus addressed this situation with powerfully pointed words and the call to repent. He charged compromising believers with holding to the doctrines of Balaam and the Nicolaitans (Revelation 2:14-15), teachings that produced prodigal behaviors God had addressed many times among His people. Not surprisingly, such behaviors are still present in the church.

The doctrine of Balaam
The story of Balaam, a polytheistic consulter of spirits known for his ability to pronounce blessings or curses, is found in Numbers 22-31. The Moabite king, Balak, fearing Israel as they passed through his land, hired Balaam to curse Israel. Three times Balaam tried, but the Lord would not permit it. In a devious move, Balaam advised King Balak to entice Israel with women who, through lust, would lead Israel into worshipping idols (Numbers 31:16). In other words, if he couldn’t curse Israel, Balaam would entice Israel to curse itself by denying God.
That is exactly what happened – Balaam’s plot led God’s people into physical adultery, which led to their spiritual adultery (Numbers 25:1-3).

The doctrine of the Nicolaitans
Though their precise identity and teachings are uncertain, some scholars believe the Nicolaitans were an early Gnostic cult of Christianity that claimed the mind was the important part of man, and the body was unimportant or even an illusion. Such a doctrine would lead to licentiousness, giving the body anything it wanted because the body, and what one does with it, is of
little importance. With the mind, one worshipped God, but with the body, one could worship pleasure.
These doctrines of the Nicolaitans and Balaam manifested in the church in Pergamos in similar and predictable ways. For example, believers were giving themselves over to the spiritual and physical adultery practiced in their idolatrous culture.
Simply put, some Christians in Pergamos, for whatever reasons – fear of social consequences or the inability to reject the temptations of the flesh – compromised the truth and exclusivity of their faith, a trend seen throughout Scripture.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it / Prone to leave the God I love. This classic line from the hymn “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” describes a battle as old as history and as new as today. And when Christians embrace the secular tides of modern culture, that compromise inevitably pulls local churches into the spiritual and moral decline that is all too common in America.

Editor’s Note: Jeff Spencer is a graduate of Southern Evangelical Seminary with a doctorate in apologetics. He is a professor of apologetics at Grace Evangelical Theological Seminary in Denton, Texas. He has also served as pastor of education, music, and youth in several different churches. He and his wife reside with their two overly-friendly Sheepadoodles in Tupelo, Mississippi.