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The time had come. They bound and led him to the stadium. When they arrived, the place was filled with thousands who had come to watch him die. As his captors led him in through the archway, all of them heard someone say, "Be strong, Polycarp. Be a man!" But no one saw who spoke. Perhaps the words of John came into his mind as he faced his persecutors
"Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer...Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life...He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death." (Rev. 2:10-11)
John was told by Jesus to write those words to the church in Smyrna, sometime before he died in 95 AD.
How true they were for those who suffered in John's day and the centuries that followed. In fact, in 150 AD the Jews were still slandering Christians in Smyrna and some had betrayed this beloved disciple of John, Polycarp, who had become the bishop of Smyrna resulting in his martyrdom.
Somewhere along the way, perhaps in John's last years, he met Polycarp and discipled him in the Christian faith. Apparently, he mentored Polycarp well in how to be courageous in the face of death because of his faith in Christ. Many years later, Polycarp would stand strong in the face of persecution that threatened the lives of Christians everywhere at that time.
As Roman persecution of Christians became more intense in the world in which Polycarp lived, he had an impression that he would face it one day. He even told a friend about having a strange dream about it. In the dream, he saw himself being burned alive for his faith in Christ. Before long, his dream came true.
In due time, the opponents of his faith came for him because he held firm to his conviction that Christians worship Jesus, God's Son, and not Caesar. They intended to bring him and his testimony of Jesus to an end. When Polycarp heard that his oppressors had come in search of him, he responded simply by praying for God's will to be done. His prayer served as a striking prelude to the memorable testimony he bore as he faced his death unafraid and with complete confidence in Christ.
When they captured him, they never expected to see such an old man. He was quite elderly in their eyes. Perhaps he reminded some of them of their own fathers or grandfathers. Perhaps the notion of executing such an old man made some of them begin to reconsider what they were about to do to him. They never expected the treatment they received from him once they captured him. They probably didn't know what to do when he made arrangements for them to be given something to eat and drink while he spent some time in prayer. For two hours his executioners sat at his table and ate his food and listened as he talked with God. What they heard in his conversation with the Lord moved them deeply. According to the record of the event, some of them gave up on persecuting believers and became Christians themselves. Polycarp's act of kindness turned out to be as extreme as his age.
What do you think he must have said in his prayer to get that kind of response from his captors? And think about the confidence and compassion he demonstrated in his prayer and provision for them. No wonder that some of his captors couldn't go through with his execution.
But the time came for him to be taken to the stadium. As his captors led him into the stadium, all of them heard someone say, "Be strong, Polycarp. Be a man!" But no one saw who spoke. For that reason, many Christians believed that an angel had appeared to encourage Polycarp as he faced his death. And then, as he was brought forward, there was a great tumult when they heard that Polycarp had been arrested.
Therefore, when he was brought before him, the proconsul asked if he were Polycarp. And when he confessed that he was, the proconsul tried to frighten him with threats of a cruel death if he chose to hold on to his commitment to Jesus, but he couldn't strike fear in Polycarp. "Have respect for your age," and other such things as they are accustomed to say: "Swear by the Genius of Caesar; repent; say, 'Away with the atheists!'"
So, Polycarp solemnly looked at the whole crowd of lawless heathen who were in the stadium, motioned toward them with his hand, and then (groaning as he looked up to heaven) said, "Away with the atheists!"
But when the magistrate persisted and tried to cajole the old, faithful servant of Christ by promising to release him if he would disown Jesus, "Swear the oath, and I will release you; revile Christ."
Polycarp replied, "For 86 years I have been his servant, and he has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?"
With that testimony, Polycarp sealed his fate. The judge sentenced him to death, and his executioners decided to burn him alive. They piled up the wood for the fire and tied him to a stake in the middle of the woodpile. As he prepared to die, he prayed. He thanked God for the privilege of dying for him and for the honor of joining other martyrs who had laid down their lives for him as well. He went on to ask for God to be glorified in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ. When he finished his prayer, his executioners set the wood on fire.
According to the account of the story recorded in The Apostolic Fathers, the blazing furnace couldn't consume his body. Instead of the nauseating odor of burning flesh, the air was filled with the scent of precious perfume that permeated the stadium. Eventually life left him when a baffled and angry executioner stabbed him with a knife. Everything Polycarp had said about following Jesus throughout his life had been demonstrated in the way that he faced his death. All of the people he taught as bishop of Smyrna would have the lessons he passed along to them reinforced with the image of him praying for the people who would execute him. They would never forget the way he ended his long life as a loyal, faithful follower of his precious Lord.
His story reminds us of others who laid down their lives for Christ across the centuries. Even today, stories leak out of closed countries about Christians who suffer and die because they won't recant their allegiance to Jesus. Like Polycarp, they lay down their lives willingly.
In his portrayal of Jesus, John leaves us with a compelling image of Jesus as the First and the Last. As the one who was victorious over death, who died and came to life again. Jesus can sustain us even as he sustained those in Smyrna facing persecution. As John Stott puts it, "Before we were born, he was Alpha, and he will be Omega after we have died. Jesus' resurrection was a promise to those in Smyrna who would be "tested" for 10 days by others and would ultimately be exalted to eternal life with him to fulfill his purposes in history. Although some faced torture and death, they would be victorious and escape the second death. But it would be worth it.
I wonder how much is Jesus worth to us. For many Christians around the world it is a very real possibility they will join Polycarp and many others who have given themselves to Christ. We can count on Jesus, however, to be present with us in our times of trial. That's how we can think about him until he comes for us. Jesus walks with us while we face our own trials and tribulations. Because of him, our distinctive walk with God sets us apart from people around us. Our values don't always allow us to blend in with the crowd, and we have to face the trouble that comes from being different. But Jesus, walks with us along the way. We are not alone. When Polycarp walked toward his martyrdom, a voice called out to him to be courageous, but no one could identify the voice. It may have even been the voice of Jesus, encouraging him not to be afraid. For Polycarp, he came to give his servant what he couldn't give himself in his time of tremendous need.
Many other Christians have heard the voice of our Lord. No, they didn't stand before tribunals or courageously stake their claim in Christ and die because of their unwillingness to disown him. But they have stood in the face of great pain just the same. They have endured the torture of suffering associated with their bodies wasting away because of terminal diseases. They have agonized over the fate of the people they love at the hands of others who treated them with injustice. They have grieved their losses and for a long time heard nothing but silence when they asked God why they had to lose so much. None of these ever gave any impression that they stopped trusting him. Instead, they kept on whispering the verses they memorized as children, kept on humming the tunes of the hymns that sustained them, and kept on believing they looked forward to beholding the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, their Messiah. Somehow, they endured suffering for the sake of Jesus Christ. How can they be so resilient in the face of such torment? Jesus walks with them. And he walks with us. Either he takes our pain away, or he takes us away from our pain. After all, he knows what it's like. Amen.
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Rev. Charles Eldredge is pastor of Maitland Church of the Brethren, Lewistown, PA where he is currently serving in his 27th year. He graduated from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in S. Hamilton, MA.