Revelation 2 - 3 Overview
Notes
Transcript
Pray with me.
If you are able, please stand for the reading of God’s word. In preparation of studying revelation 2 and 3, we will read Revelation 1:20-2:1
The mystery of the seven stars you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
“Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus: Thus says the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who walks among the seven golden lampstands:
This is the word of the Lord, please be seated.
What a stark image - Jesus Christ, in all his glory, walking among the seven churches, the lampstands. He’s there to bless, to secure, to encourage the faithful - and yet there is also an accountability. Look at the end of Revelation 2:5
Revelation 2:5 (CSB)
Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
Jesus is there to rightly and justly judge his people. And he says he will remove the lampstand.
So doing church well, faithfully, Biblically, really matters.
That begs the question - How are we to evaluate churches? By what metric or standard should we use?
One strategy that those who have started churches have used is to go visit multiple churches as a team with a notepad and to dissect everything: Was I greeted, how was the lighting, was the sermon engaging, hows the kids ministry, how likely would i be to come back, etc.
At the end, the team meets, and gives a sort of report card about what was good, bad, ugly and otherwise.
While there is some benefit in this for those starting a church and really wanting to make sure they are being missionally minded, there are some issues that come from this - at it’s face being that it’s very consumeristic - what can this institution offer me?
The fact is that most people evaluate churches in ways that perhaps are not the way Christ would evaluate them. And we start churches often times for reasons that are less than altruistic.
Recently Kyle Magstadt, whom most of you have met, but he serves as the associate superintendent for church multiplication in our Alliance District, recently he wrote a blog on how often times church plants and christian movements start on the wrong foot.
He writes that often times church plants start with their Ecclesiology, or thoughts about how to do church, before their missiology, what God wants us to do - and sometimes barely considers how our Christology, what we believe about Jesus, and how he should impact the Church.
How many churches have started just because people wanted a newer, hipper, church, or wanted more traditional music, without asking the questions of missiology, and Christology.
Instead, Kyle suggests and the C&MA tries to train church planters to start with Christology - who is Jesus and what is he like. What is he calling us to do? So Our Christology forms our missiology, which then ought to form our ecclesiology or how we do church.
I’d argue that is the only way to be faithful to the call of Christ on the heart of every believer. Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith. He is the cornerstone of the Church and as Revelation 1 asserts - JEsus Christ is among the seven lampstands which are the seven churches. Jesus is in the Church.
In world where it can feel like darkness is winning and the empire is kicking down the door, we need to remember that the only opinion that matters when it comes to any matter is the opinion of King Jesus.
That’s the world in which Revelation comes to us: the Christian church is near the end of the first century, Peter and Paul and most of the apostles have been martyred by the romans. Jerusalem had been sacked by the Romans. Paganism and worship of the emperor as God increased at a fever pitch. The world was so crooked for these people that it felt like compromise at some point was essential if they were to continue to exist. If they didn’t compromise in some way, surely they would be killed, or would found completely powerless with no one to protect them, or completely destitute with no financial means to care for themselves or others.
In the midst of that chaos, of the pressures of the world, the flesh, and devil, John receives the vision of Christ, and is told to write a letter to the seven churches and each letter is then recorded in chapter two and three.
These chapters, with the seven churches, are often times the only parts of Revelation that gets preached, and they are well loved.
Today we are going to do an overview of all seven, and then in subsequent weeks we will start working through each of the churches.
Let’s start with an overview of all seven, then move onto their form and structures, before diving into the broader content of them as we look for them to be interpreted for us today.
Chapters 2 and 3 contain the letters to the seven churches specifically in Asia minor, though some scholars argue that perhaps letter is not the best description of them as each section doesn’t contain the customary greeting and no customary conclusion. They are meant to be read as part of the whole work of Revelation. David Aune has suggested they be considered “Prophetic Oracles” as they functional similarly to how the Old Testament prophets addressed different regions at times, such as in Amos, remember though, that prophetic does not necessarily mean future predictive, but God’s word spoken into a specific situation.
Still others would characterize the “letters” as a sort of Imperial Edict, as if a king were declaring things to his subjects - and for sure there seems to be part of that.
What is perhaps most important is that these oracles, edicts, letters, however you want to categorize them, were written to seven real local congregations in Asia Minor. These cities were seemingly some of the most prominent. Each has it’s own character, their own history, architecture, situation. And each of the oracles will pick up on specific things to that city - all the while being beneficial to all who read it.
As we discussed few weeks ago - with the imagery of the churches being the seven lampstands, that image also brings up a universal theme - meaning while the content first needs to be read in and through the original context, it has church universal consequences. This is best demonstrated in at the end of the oracles there is a refrain: “let anyone who has ears to hear listen to what the Spirit says to the Churches.” While these sections had specific audiences in mind, they also had a much broader audience in mind - like us!
All said, I would follow Michael J Gordon here and suggest that perhaps the best title for these would be Pastoral/Prophetic Messages, keeping in line with the broader genre of the rest of the work.
The Form and Structure of the messages are telling in and of themselves. In your bulletin is included a breakdown of the structures adapted from Gorman’s in his book Reading Revelation Responsibly.
There appears to be 5 parts to each pastoral prophetic message, though some messages are missing certain parts. Feel free to refer to the chart in your handout.
Each message will start with a command to write to the angel of the church in _____ insert church here.
Look at the first part of chapter 2 verse 1 as an example
Revelation 2:1 (CSB)
“Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus:
The idea of writing to the angel has perplexed many scholars and readers of revelation. What exactly is going on here?
the greek work here for angel means literally messenger, so some have posited that perhaps John is writing to the pastor or elder or messenger to each congregation, others that in keeping with the apocalyptic stylings of Revelation, it’s meant more literal - an angelic being of each church demonstrating that the congregations in the physical world and deeply connected and tied to the spiritual realities of the Cosmos. I agree with the latter suggestion, that angel means angel here, partly because no where else in the work of Revelation does the word mean anything else but angelic being.
After the command to write to the angel of the church comes a description of Christ, then a commendation - or what they are doing well, then a condemnation - or what they are NOT doing well. Next is a challenge or exhortation, concluding with a promise to the overcomer, or conquerors.
Beale points out that the promises found at the end of the messages overtly anticipates the end of the book of Revelation and the final paradisal vision. You’ll notice on the handout the references to the final chapters of the book.
This indicates that the book is one whole and intentional work, with these pastoral prophetic messages really serving as the lens and context for the rest of the book.
It’s also possible, if not likely, that the book or letter was sent and would have been circulated amongst the seven churches - meaning all of them would have read all of the messages along with the whole.
So when we look at the content of the seven messages, there are some profound implications when we consider them from a 10,000 foot view, or taking them all in together and looking at what stands out.
There are a lot of authors and scholars who do this well like GK Beale Scot McKnight and Michael Gorman, but Tim Dwyer’s work on the seven messages is fantastic.
He writes that from a western American perspective on church, we have a lot of things going on, and churches that have a diversity of strategies, polities, and programs and architecture. We have mega churches with thousands of people who attend, a book store and a pastoral staff that outnumbers small universities. You have rural churches where the pastor is probably related with most of the people who attend. You have churches in countless communities trying to refocus and recapture the fire they had when they started. And its to those types of churches that when we read the messages to the seven churches three questions come at us hard, like two quick jabs and a left hook.
First, do we hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches? This question will get emphasized at the end of each message: “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.” Churches and christians are constantly grinding at times - get the program going, bring in consultants, vision cast and prepare, attend conferences - but in and through it all, perhaps despite it all, are we hearing what the Spirit of God is saying? Perhaps instead of trying to manufacture or force a worship experience or a sense of revival we need to just get quiet before the Lord, hear what the Spirit is saying, then do that.
Second, are we encouraging people to join in as conquerors and overcomers, or merely to pray a prayer in order that they feel they have access to heaven? Revelation will time and time again point to the authentic Christian as the one who is uncompromising and faithful to the end. It describes disciples as conquerors battling in light of eternity. It does NOT teach a faith that encourages slipping into church on occasion when it’s convenient. When our eyes are open to the spiritual realities around us, it should make the idea of a slacker christian incomprehensible. Dwyer writes that we are embedded with Christ in the Body of Christ spreading the mission and message of Christ.
Third, what works are we still called to do? or What work is there left for us to do and are we doing it? there is a fascinating work in Revelation 3:2
Revelation 3:2 (CSB)
Be alert and strengthen what remains, which is about to die, for I have not found your works complete before my God.
What a fascinating concept - I have not for your works complete. This reminds me of Ephesians 2:10, where Paul says we are God’s workmanship, created in the Christ Jesus FOR good works, WHICH God PREPARED ahead of time for us to do. Or Also Colossians 4: 17 where Paul writes this
Colossians 4:17 (CSB)
And tell Archippus, “Pay attention to the ministry you have received in the Lord, so that you can accomplish it.”
There can be a spiritual apathy in the western church. Or almost a monastic idea - let’s just pull away form the world and wait till Jesus comes back - but revelation seems to suggest that we are still needed in God’s plan - so we need to remain pure form the idolatry of the world, while radically engaging with the lost to do the work of Christ. What works are we still called to do?
These three questions when taken seriously lead to a flurry of more questions - are our eyes open to the Spirit, or are we just sleeping through life? Are our times of worship merely well done and trendy and exciting, or are they genuinely worshipful? Are we avoiding the hard things in our walks? Are we lethargic in the faith? Are we content with just the minimum instead of embracing the maximum?
Perhaps we could summarize all of the questions as: Are we actually hungry for God, his righteousness and kingdom? Or do we just want to be entertained and spiritually medicated and put on hospice as we wait until Jesus comes back?
As we survey all the messages some other key themes come out.
There is a heavy emphasis on Churches and pure doctrine, or teaching. The idea is that they need to teach pure doctrine, protect the doctrine, allow it to advance in the lives of believers, and starkly - to resist false doctrine, recognizing that the effects of false doctrine has drastic consequences.
Jesus in the messages will want more then just good doctrine - but also holy lives, pure lives. Uncompromising virtue. These messages don’t promote a moralistic therapeutic deism - where God is really there just to take care of me when things are wrong, and wants me to just live a mostly moral life and otherwise stays uninvolved in my life. No - The Church is to be uncompromising in it’s pursuit of Jesus and his mission.
Whats exceptionally uncomfortable for many when you consider the chart, is that the only two churches that receive commendation without condemnation are Smyrna and Philadelphia - these churches were the poor churches from the least powerful cities. We will see that economic and political power can have a corrosive effect on the church.
As we look at all the messages we will see the emphasis on different trade guilds, and emperor cults and worship. By participating in such practices, or at least being warm to them, other churches apparently had more “influence, power, and wealth” in terms of the broader culture, but lead to lukewarmness and other theological compromise.
Even in our day, churches that gain the most money with the biggest congregations who have the best facilities and celebrations hosting politicians and other influential people, those churches tend to be the ones that can be seen as successful, or the pinnacle of what we are trying to be like. And yet they can also be the ones with the most accommodation to the world, with fabricated revivals, and fat pocket books.
Smyrna and Philadelphia refused to participate in these ways, and suffered for it in their cities - yet gained the approval and love of Christ. In their lacking, they were found gaining Jesus - the ultimate gain.
So Revelation will ask us the uncomfortable questions of whether wealth dampens our spiritual fire. Does wealth add to our blindness of the true realities at play in our world.
Where are we putting our hope and our treasure? Where do we put our security? What are we striving for?
One book i was reading today on this issue of wealth talked about a friend who said: “They say that money can’t make you happy, but I’d love to try it out for a bit and find out for myself.”
It’s important to remember that scripture says that it’s the LOVE of money that is the root of all evils, equally important to remember is that money is really easy to love. Our culture, like a lot of empires, celebrates wealth, and power, and influence - heck ask young people now a days what they want to be when they grow up and one of the more common jobs is “influencer!” Are we influencing culture, or is culture influencing us?
I know many people who are believers who also have enjoyed successful business lives and done well financially, and also are dedicated to the mission of God, give and give more, invest, and are a blessing to the kingdom without compromise.
Money in and of itself is not bad - and in fact God can use for a whole lot of good. But our desire for more influence power and wealth can lead us to some unholy decisions and internal conflict. Our culture generally conflates money and influence and we generally desire it more and more as a mark of success.
There is a lot we can glean, just from looking from a high view over these seven messages to the seven churches. From the structure, to the over arching themes that come out
As we look at all seven messages at a 10,000 foot glance, and as we enter in to the next months as we work our way in and through them, Let’s ask our question:
So what?
It’s important to remember that all the churches would have been able to read the other churches message - which could have been quite embarrassing. repeated phrase at the end of those with ears to listen to what the Spirit says to the churches, this should give us a principle for interpretation, which Craig Keener Calls: “Iff the shoe fits.”
He writes the basic principle for applying this letters to ourselves and others today thus seems to be: if the shoe fits, wear it. To whatever degree our lives or churches reflect symptoms analogous to any of the churches the risen Lord addresses in these letters, we must take heed to “What the Spirit says to the Churches”
So we should see how easy it can be for churches to reflect the values of the world they find themselves in if they are not vigilant and steady in Christ.
We need to be wary about doctrinal purity, but also personal holiness. What you believe and how you live matters. We ought to work on having the best theological orthodoxy - and the best most righteous lives. When we find ourselves in error, we ought to repent. When we find ourselves in sin, we ought to repent.
Because our influence in the world, our reputation in the eyes of the crowds pale in importance when compared to the penetrating burning gaze of Jesus Christ.
Part of that means we ought to be cognizant of how power influence and money can numb our senses and even make us blind to what God may be calling us into. Christians have tried to make sense of this many different ways with different ethics. One of my favorite resources is Craig Blombergs Neither Poverty Nor Riches. May God keep us from the dangers on both side of the spectrum - and keep us fully dependent on him.
This section is showing us JEsus walking amongst the churches, the lampstands and revealing the truth. We need to listen.
a Lot can be said about how we can do church how we should do church. what we prefer. What genre of music. What style of preaching. What we should wear. What liturgies to use. should we find a church we are happier with or more content in.
Tim Dwyer writes this in response to this section of scripture:
“How content are you with your church? How satisfied are you? People make decisions to stay or go based on such questions. Is my church an old-people’s church or a hipster church? Am I happy simply because I fit the demographic? Rev 2-3 says that such questions are irrelevant. The question is how satisfied is Jesus, the Lord of the church? Is the church carrying out His mission, focused on His word, working for His glory?”
Are we hearing what the Spirit is saying to the churches?
Would God give us ears to hear and faith to believe. Would he lead us into obedience and faithfulness. Would we be awakened to the reality of JEsus Christ. Would he be revealed to us as we work with Him to raise the spiritual temperature of south eastern South Dakota.
Please stand with me as we pray.