Letter to the Church of Sardis | Revelation 3:1-6

After the Dark Ages (Church of Thyatira – 600-1500AD) was the Protestant Reformation period from 1500-1700AD. From this time period the church benefitted from a number of concrete doctrinal and foundational truths that were re-established for Christendom. However, the revival of the church was short-lived because they continued the error of establishing state churches all over Europe. So, those in the “visible church” were members by virtue of infant baptism and not personal faith. Hence, they only had a “name” that they were alive, but were really “dead”.