Be faithful until death.
—Revelation 2:10
Polycarp was born in Smyrna in 69 A.D. and died there in 155 A.D.
The apostle John’s letter to the church in Smyrna—which included the words, “Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life”—was read to the church in Smyrna when Polycarp was twenty-seven.
Polycarp took those words to heart. He was an old man when zealots fiercely loyal to Rome demanded that he renounce his allegiance to Christ. “Reproach Christ and I will set you free,” said the proconsul.
Polycarp replied: “Eighty and six years have I served him, and he has never done me injury. How then can I now blaspheme my King and my Savior?”
And with that, he went to his death: stabbed with a sword and burned at the stake.
You’ve found something to live for
if you would be willing to die for it.