Revelation Part 2

Jerry underwood

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Revelation part 2

"THE CHURCHES"

Rev 1:11 It said, "Write in a book everything you see, and send it to the seven churches in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea."

INTRODUCTION

Last week we talk about Revelation starts off with a vision of Christ, and how we cannot see the future if we don't first see Christ clearly.

But tonight our next stops is at the Churches before moving to the future, the Church cannot hope for a future if it doesn't live right in the present!

There is yet no unfolding of the future in the book, no revelation of tomorrow until the Churches have a clear understanding of what it means to be the Church TODAY!

These 7 Churches which represent all Churches everywhere needed some guidance about how they lived NOW before being given promises of what tomorrow would hold.

How often we love prophecies about the future and avoid the need of living for God in the present … this won't do in the book of Revelation, God addresses the needs of the Church now before moving on to tomorrow … so should we!

Rev 2:2 "I know all the things you do. I have seen your hard work and your patient endurance. I know you don't tolerate evil people. You have examined the claims of those who say they are apostles but are not. You have discovered they are liars.

Rev 2:9 "I know about your suffering and your poverty—but you are rich! I know the blasphemy of those opposing you. They say they are Jews, but they are not, because their synagogue belongs to Satan.

Rev 2:13 "I know that you live in the city where Satan has his throne, yet you have remained loyal to Me. You refused to deny Me even when Antipas, My faithful witness, was martyred among you there in Satan's city.

Rev 2:19 "I know all the things you do. I have seen your love, your faith, your service, and your patient endurance. And I can see your constant improvement in all these things.

Jesus said I Know in Revelation 3:1,8, 15 also

"I KNOW YOU"

Seven Churches! Each Church is addressed the same, "I know

God is very much aware of each Church situation and health.

We may wonder sometimes if God cares about us or our Church, but be assured that He does! Nothing had escaped His notice, concern, or praise.

These 7 Churches each were unique, and each had strengths and weaknesses, and each needed direction from God.

God always has something to say to His Church.

God is anxious for His Church to be all that it can be.

Each Church and each believer had to face both good and bad times, it would be how they handled both that would determine their future and often wealth and success was more dangerous than failure and poverty!

Their individual situations were quite diverse, but their responsibilities were the same, no matter in good or bad times they were to remain faithful to God.

It was the few Churches in poverty that had the best things said about them, and the wealthiest of the 7 Churches that had the harshest things said about them.

God is not nearly as concerned about the Church's material wealth as He is about it's spiritual wealth!

God has some important things to share with each of these Churches and the believers that were a part of them, messages we still need to hear!

Again understand we are not show the future until we get the present correct.

Rev 2:1 "Write this letter to the angel of the church in Ephesus. This is the message from the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven gold lampstands:

Rev 2:3 You have patiently suffered for Me without quitting.

We see Spiritual Conflicts!

1. EPHESUS was a second generation Church, its founders had been hard working, had established a thriving growing Church but now a new generation had grown up in the Church that did not have the same passion as the founders!

Ephesus was the city of LOVE! One of the 7 wonders of the ancient world was in this city, the temple of LOVE to Artemis or Diana.

But the very name "EPHESUS" means "Desirable" yet the desire to serve the Lord in this Church had been lost!

Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

In the CITY OF LOVE the Church had lost its FIRST LOVE!

The city was steeped in LUST while the Church didn't even have LOVE anymore!

They needed to do 3 things:(1. "Remember the height from which you have fallen."(2. "Repent"(3. "Redo the things you did at first"

Restoration was the idea here, restoration to the same first passion that caused their testimony to exist in the first place!

It is too easy for any Church to lose it's passion for Christ and ministry … God help us that it doesn't happen here!

2. SMYRNA - This was one of the poorest of the 7 Churches.

Rev 2:9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

It was a large city, and trade guilds were important, but to be a part of one you had to worship idols in the pagan temples.

Because Christians would not compromise their standards they were kicked out of the trade guilds and were left largely to poverty.

BUT, Jesus said He knows their "poverty, that they are rich!"

Nothing negative about this Church … only praise and encouragement not to give in, even to the point of death … and a real crown awaits them!

This would have been the Church to complain, but they passionately lived for Christ in spite of the cost personally to them … can you say the same?

Christ promises them that they "would suffer for 10 days" - simply meaning that God would limit the time of their suffering, He is in control.

3. PERGAMUM - This was the Washington D.C. of Asia at the time.

Rev 2:12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

It was a political capital, and a large healing cult existed there, worship of Asclepius the healing god was big here, symbolized by a serpent wound around a staff (still the symbol of the healing profession in our country today!!).

There was a huge library here with over 200,000 volumes!

A huge altar over 40 feet high was in this city, today it has been moved to Berlin, Germany after being excavated!

Emperor worship was common here, and the pressures to compromise with the world were strong. The governor or Asia resided in this city, and he had a sword which symbolized his power of IUS GLADII which meant the "right of the sword" -- he had the power to execute anyone at his will!

Jesus however is a DOUBLE EDGED SWORD -- better and more powerful than the governor's!

Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Jesus,the one walking among the candlesticks is the Word of God.

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

John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

This was the way of Jesus saying "My authority is greater!" and the Church should not be afraid!

Rev 2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

The Church was doing well for the most part, but a few people were promoting the teachings of Balaam, these were the prophets in the Old Testament that encouraged Israel to compromise their commitment to God by breaking God's laws.

(1. The seeds of compromise with the world was beginning to take root in this Church.

Rev 2:16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

(2. They needed to remember whose "sword" was greater, the governor's or God's!

4. THYATIRA - This was a blue collar town, a very small town!

Ironically, the smallest of the 7 cities has the biggest message! God's value of a place is not determined by its size!

Textiles and small trade guilds were important in this town.

Unlike Ephesus which had good doctrine and teaching but lacked passion this blue collar Church had lots of passion but too little doctrine and teaching!

They were too easily led astray. In fact, their passions had driven them to live undisciplined lives, so much so that sexual immorality was too often the results of unbridled passions.

This was a Church that needed discipline for its desires.

Rev 2:20 "But I have this complaint against you. You are permitting that woman—that Jezebel who calls herself a prophet—to lead My servants astray. She teaches them to commit sexual sin and to eat food offered to idols.

Rev 2:21 I gave her time to repent, but she does not want to turn away from her immorality.

We live in a culture of passions that often ignores discipline - the Church cannot afford this mistake!

Rev 2:22 "Therefore, I will throw her on a bed of suffering, and those who commit adultery with her will suffer greatly unless they repent and turn away from her evil deeds.

Rev 2:23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am the One who searches out the thoughts and intentions of every person. And I will give to each of you whatever you deserve.

5. SARDIS - This was a horribly ungodly and immoral city.

It boasted of its worship of Cybele, a mother goddess that included some very debased and perverted worship practices of a sexual nature.

The city was on top of a steep hill, and so the city felt so secure thinking no one could capture them … the steep rocky hills would keep the enemy away!

(1. because of this they often failed to post guards and were several times overrun by the enemy!

(2. thieves often hid in the rocky cliffs and invaded the town at times.

Jesus said this to them:

Rev 3:3 Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to Me again. If you don't wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.

This fact sets the stage for God's comment to this Church that if they didn't get their act together "He would come as a thief!"

This Church at Sardis was not almost dead, IT WAS DEAD! This was the worst of the 7 Churches … its reputation was that it was alive, but they had already died!

Rev 3:1 "Write this letter to the angel of the church in Sardis. This is the message from the One who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars: "I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead.

God calls them to "WAKE UP"

Their false sense of security left them open to destruction, much like the city they lived in! A church can have God in it's name, but not in it's midst!

Rev 3:2 Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of My God.

God has almost nothing good to say about this Church, they are warned to turn around quickly before they are lost.

You could only worship at the local temple if you had clean clothes on, so God says to them,

Rev 3:4 "Yet there are some in the church in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes with evil. They will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.

Rev 3:5 All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before My Father and His angels that they are Mine.