Seven(Intro)

Introduction:

Hey and goodmorning all of God’s Children! So Glad to be in the house of the Lord with you this morning! Being able to worship the Lord next to you, and celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior and even more rejoicing about what that means for us!

Hey I’m Emanuel Lead Pastor here at Ignite and just thankful that you all joined us this morning! I hope that you have felt loved and more so, I hope you have come to experience the Presence of the Lord this morning!

We take this part of our service and we want to invite our ushers to come forward, as we continue in the heart of worship to our King Jesus. We offer a time to give, we do this two different ways here. First with our ushers here at the front, and the second way is online. You can scan this QR code and it will take you right to our online giving portal. Tithley.com. If you wouldnt mind join us in prayer this morning.

(Call on one of the ushers today)

Announcements

Chili Cook off sign up is live.

$20 Chili Admission

$5 to join us and taste

$Tip for each vote for your best chili!

This Year’s Chili cook off is a fundraiser to raise money for missions!

Speaking of Missions we have some great opportunities that are coming up for our body to give back. One that I am super excited about is a Short Term Missions Trip. This will only cost you a day of your time! In the coming weeks you will get more information on what we are doing and where we are going! But were super excited for this partnership that has come our way and the opportunity about being the Church!

Youth Convention: If you have a teenager that is interested in joining us for youth convention this year! Please please please, get with Brother Todd or Sister Carly at the end of service today. We have just a few days to get anyone signed up that wants to be a part of that.

Ignited Groups have officially kicked off.

Yesterday I know our Ignite Life & Health kicked off

Today BRB. Bowlers Reading Bibles is meeting at 6pm Anchor Lanes..

Get plugged in, get excited…were a church that walks with purpose….and each of those announcements…things happening now, things happening in the future….are with purpose.

But the direction comes from the Word of The Lord.

So Lord this morning lead us, call us into where you are!

Hey before we dive into this message I wanna say, I noticed some of you take notes, so i wanna share this…

This is a series that were kicking off today, but its going to be different.

Its one of those topics where….some people leap for joy because were diving into it…others roll their eyes…but most just simply get overloaded.

Im going to do my best to carefully give simply what the Lord is showing me.

I’m telling you this because…were going to be splitting this series up.

Doing a week or two hear, tkaing a break and coming back to it…but I know I can be ocd when it comes to keeping stuff like this together. I use to sit under a pastor who would say and next week were going here, and would never ever hear about that passage again…and im like…oh well.

So if you are one of the note takers…as much as this may mess with your ocd.Id say take your notes today…and plan for 7 more sermons to go behind it! Reserve 7 more pages is what I’m saying okay…..

Sermon:

If you have your bibles this morning open up to Revelation 1.

Not many things in the news catch my eye. I dont care much about the litigations that are going on right now with some famous people, not to interested in the what ifs, or the whats new. However when the worlds eyes are facing towards Israel. I keep my eyes out and ears open.

Many verses tell us to do so.

Matthew 24:42 “42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming.”

Luke 21:36 “36 Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man.””

what gets my attention specifically right now is this passage….

Matthew 24:6–8 “6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. 7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. 8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.”

Is this speaking of today.

Why yes. Yes it is.

Where are we starting:

Where are we landing:

What net are we throwing out?

Who will be brought in?

Were going to break down the 7 Churches mentioned in the first few chapters of revelation.

What are these churches?

Are they talking about Times, or specific churches?

Do they mean anything to us? And if so..what do we watch out for?

You know this has always fascinated me the book of revelation, but the only thing I think I get sometimes is the fact that Jesus and John are in it! Outside of that…my thoughts are always growing on it!

But when it comes to the 7 churches there is much for us to learn.

Are we apart of one of these churches? If so, what do we learn and know about these?

Church facts

45,000 denominations world wide.

7,590 active churches in South Carolina.

over 400,000 churches in america

4 million active/known churches worldwide

2.6 Billion Christians in the world

Revelation 1 NIV

1 The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near. 4 John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. 7 “Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” 9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” 12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. 15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. 17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades. 19 “Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. 20 The mystery of the seven stars that 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.

Revelation 1:1 NIV

1 The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

What does the word revelation mean.

apokálypsis, ap-ok-al'-oop-sis: uncovering: appearing, what is coming. a laying bare, or making naked.

A revelation is a disclosure of truth, concerning divine things before they are (Seen) known.

1 Corinthians 2:10 NIV

10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

Paul even said in EPHESIANS

Ephesians 3:3 “3 As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me.”

Today My prayer is that of which Paul had for the Church in Ephesus.

Ephesians 1:17 “17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.”

Alot of people fail at reading the entire bible because of the difficult passages, or rather books.

Like that of Leviticus filled with laws

or Ezekiel filled with historic symbolism with hints of prophetic implications

Job a book of deep philosophical questions about suffering….our favorite topic right

Proverbs these riddles or (MASHAL:māšāl: in hebrew) of which most interpret for fleshly meaning but they go so deeper than that!

But none harder to read then that of Revelation

This symbolic language and apocalypic writing style that confuses so many.

The world’s greatest theologians and doctrine experts argue over the interpretation of these books!

While I am not a man of comlex nature I do find it an appropriate time to for some of you for the first time ever to introduce revelation to you.

While understanding some of its complexity, I intend to keep this series tightly related to the gospel. The depth and meaning will however be revealed throught the Holy Spirit in your heart!

Today in this Revelation’s opening statement I want to bring your attention to whats happening on earth in particual with John the Apostle.

On earth. Vs 9-10

Revelation 1:9–10 NIV

9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,

Background on John

John the Apostle was stranded on the island of patmos.

This was a sentence of death by banishment.

Yet this isnt rome’s first attempt at killing John the Apostle.

Florens Ter-tullian claims that John was subjected to the punishment of being burned in a vat of oil. This was a Form of execution used to kill in a gruesome and public way. Basically saying….Nobody should follow in these footsteps.

While rome had long thought of Christianity as a wrecking ball to the roman goverment. They tried and sentencened John to be executed in a Vat of Boiling oil….but it did not successed.

They must have not heard that Jesus had a purpose for him

With this miracle for John, and weather this happened or not..what we do know is that Rome then sought for a lesser punishment…Silence.

Revelation 1:9 NIV

9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.

Revelation 1:10 NIV

10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,

John was in the Spirit.

It’s important to know what this means.

John is in exile….he has been banished from his home, family, friends, no contact, no facebook, no x to keep up with the details. No complete exile in the middle of the sea!

John shows us a few things with this first…..

The things of this world are temporary, but the things of the Spirit last forever!

Isolation may visit you for a moment, but the Spirit of God never leaves you!

John sought and found the Holy Spirit…and remained in Him!

Even in terrible time of His life! He sought the Holy Spirit.

My friends dont ever choose to sit in what was meant for a moment.

Israel got trapped floating around the desert because God knew they would never be ready for the next moment.

Are you getting trapped in what you should have walked through!?

Some people failed once a buisness collapsed, a class was failed, a dream didnt work out and instead of letting go of that moment, you sat down in defeat.

Some body offended you, a church hurt them, a friend disappointed you and instead of letting go of offense, you held onto it and the offense took hold of you.

Maybe youve gone through a painful divorce, a betrayal, or a loss and what was meant to be a moment of grief became a lifetime of bitterness.

Dont build a permanent residence inside of a temporary season

we have got to choose that what God says to pass through, we will not settle in!

this same thing happened with ezekiel…

Ezekiel was a prophet in exile and said…..Eze 3 12

Ezekiel 3:12 NIV

12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the Lord rose from the place where it was standing.

Even in this midst of exile…or isolation the Spirit WILL not abandon you.

Jeremiah 23:23–24 NLT

23 Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord. “No, I am far away at the same time. 24 Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord.

John was in the Spirit!

He was in a place where it was all about the Lord!

He was in prayer.

Would you say that your prayer life is deep like this? Would you say your prayers are done in the Spirit, or like most times the church prays today, would you say you are just asking for in the flesh.

Another reason this is so significant

John was in such a deep avenue of prayer, he didnt see things he planned to, but rather that the Spirit wanted him to.

Notice, it was the Lord’s Day. The day we come together to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus!

I dont know when your last birthday party was, but it would be absolutely terrible if you went to celebrate someones birthday and never acknowledged them. Said a nice thing to them. you know what, it would be terrible to go to someone’s birthday party and ask them for a gift. When you should be celebrating them in your life, you rather suppliment there existance with your needs.

That was just a random thought, it has nothing to do with the way we come to church today in the year 2026.

But it is shown here, the evidence that John was celebrating Jesus! Because he was blessed enough to say, he was in the Spirit.

Where Jesus is being lifted up, the Spirit has been drawn into, rather than next to.

2 Corinthians 3:17 NLT

17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

So on earth..

John was praying.

He was in the Spirit

He moved on from, Lord why has this happened to me thought, and now he is just seeking God!

But lets talk about what is happening in Heaven.

Revelation 1:3–5 NIV

3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near. 4 John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood,

So John is writing, what The lord Jesus has perscribed for John to write.

When it says John’s name, its just showing the author, but the words are that of Jesus. So Jesus is the source of this revelation

John starts by Saying, A basic biblical hello from

Jesus: who is, who was, and who is to come.

This is Jesus and in direct correlation with

John 1:1 NIV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

The first promise we get from John in any of his letters is the Deity of Jesus in that above verse. Jesus has always been.

But here in revelation….John is going beyond the Sovereignty and Eternity of God, and now especially for the Christian, a Hope and Assurance of our Jesus. That He is coming back!

but then Rev adds this greeting from another…or rather 7 more.

7 More spirits…

Who are these spirits and why is it important for us to know this?

Well this comes from a prophetic message given to us in isaiah 11 2

Isaiah 11:2 NIV

2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—

Revelation 1:1–3 NIV

1 The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

This is a Revelation from Jesus Christ..

this is in of itself huge.

75% of Jews even to this day look at those who believe in Jesus as a negative thing. and with a 2/1 Margin saying that believing in Jesus is disqualifying from the faith.

Joshuafund.com & The Times of Israel gives these stats.

Half a century ago fewer than 2000 jews believed in Jesus as the Messiah.

In 1999: 125,000 Jews beleived in Jesus. and as of (2022) 1.2 Million Jews across the world believe in Jesus as the messiah mostly made up of increasing numbers in millineials.

Yet even still only 28% of the jewish population have even heard about Jesus coming as the Messiah.

Why do I ramble on about these statistics.

Authentic conviction is unshakable

Because the fact that Jesus has not only shown himself to John, but has taken John into these visions shares the True Nature of Jesus Christ! He has been raised to Life again!

not only that but Jesus is King, in His throne room, with the Holy Spirit.

And not only that!

But the Character of Jesus doesnt change from the new testament earthly Jesus who once lived…No He is the same his love for you is compounded into His very being! He was there when the world was created for you and me!

He went before us, when He was born into this very world we live in, Jesus breathed the same air we breath, experienced betrayal!, Had real tears, grew hungry, was beaten for sins he didnt even commit! experienced a brutal death, of which was meant for you! Became unrighteous not out of his own will, but for yours!

While He had done no wrong and never decieved anyone..still took the penalty for sin.

This is the God we serve!

That Jesus King over it all, would decide to leave His own power and authority, His own will and comfort, to get dirty for you!

The fact that Jesus gave us the book of revelation is the Fact and testimony of His love for you! His care for your soul!

Jesus says Watch! Be mindful, Be alert of these things!

But do not be afraid…for the earth groans, and the heart-aches, Have no Fear for Our God will release the Day that our Savior Triuphs into this world one more time….and as the thunder and lightning hits the ground in the east and flashes across the sky to the west…it will be this way when the Son of Man comes.

Jesus’ Showing up in Revelation 1….With the same Mindset of Obedience to God, with Love for His people, and a message of preperation and strength!

This Brings a man with the most hardended of hearts to the understanding.

My friends I pray the Gospel that was just shared moved your hearts!

I pray that you decided to hear the Words of God, for He promises you will be blessed by them! You will hear and understand!

Truth always presents itself.

Thats why the bible says Light will always give over what is happening in the dark.

Luke 8:17 NLT

17 For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.

Heres the thing.

Jesus, by revealing the book of revelation,

Jesus testifies to His resurrection and beckons us to repentance and intimacy with Himself!