26 miles south-east of Sardis, is modern-day Alasehir, which was originally named Philadelphia, the “city of brotherly love”.
In the first century, Jesus said that He had opened a door of opportunity in this city, even though it contained “the “synagogue of Satan.”
I imagine that the letter to the church brought great encouragement to a place that had only recently been destroyed by a massive earthquake and was still suffering from aftershocks.
Once again, Jesus stresses the importance to not be deceived by outward appearances. The church in Sardis may have looked good, but it was the church in Philadelphia, which was spiritually alive.
Nowadays, this is no longer true. All that remains of its Christian heritage are the ruins of a Byzantine church. Like Thyatira, it is a fenced-in area in the middle of a busy city.
There is even less information here than in Thyatira. A big banner reads “St John’s church”, and this is about it. Only on the way out do I see a tucked away sign that says something about the church ruins being from about 600 AD.
Outside the church ground is yet another minaret. Wherever we go, the general message is that Christianity is a relic of the past, just like paganism…
