When someone mysteriously passes away, it's not uncommon for the coroner to perform an investigation.

We call this an autopsy.

The technical definition for an autopsy is a post-mortem exam to determine the cause of death.

Well, today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindall applies this process to a first century

church that's named in Revelation Chapter 3.

Jesus called Sardis a dead church. So how do our current day churches

avoid falling into this awful category? How do we heed the warning that Jesus

gave to Sardis? Chuck will provide practical answers in today's message

titled Autopsy of a Dead Church. We've been to four other towns and seen their churches and we're now turning the

corner and coming back down the other side of the circle and we've come to Sardis.

It's an impressive location.

King Crocious was their king and he became a byword for immense wealth.

It was here that gold and silver coins were first minted,

rich prosperous place.

About 17 a.D. a catastrophic earthquake leveled the city. Knowing the value of

the city and the beauty of it, the emperor released them from all taxes as they rebuilt the place.

And in rebuilding it, they became even more convinced of their impregnable location.

It will never be invaded by an army.

They are set for life and the church took its cues from the city and saw itself as being here forever and

the life we enjoy now will enjoy forever and it became like the city lazy and lethargic only to fall into the hands of more than one

captor from whom they really never learned their lesson. Now this brings us to the Persians. They

remembered back when Cyrus the King was the general if will, in charge of the marauding army and they were determined to take Sardis,

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