Monday 26th December

Revelation Chapters 1 - 3

REVELATION 1

Prologue

1 The revelation of 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 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.

Greetings and Doxology

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 the peoples of the 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.”

One Like a Son of Man

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 His head and hair were 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 out of his mouth came 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 behold 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 2

To the Church in Ephesus

1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

   These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: 2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

   4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 6 But you have this in your favour: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

   7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

To the Church in Smyrna

    8 “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:

   These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. 9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.

   11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.

To the Church in Pergamum

    12 “To the angel of the church in Pergamum write:

   These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. 13 I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives.

   14 Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. 15 Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

   17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

To the Church in Thyatira

    18 “To the angel of the church in Thyatira write:

   These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. 19 I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

   20 Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. 21 I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. 22 So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. 23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds. 24 Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets (I will not impose any other burden on you): 25 Only hold on to what you have until I come.

   26 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations—

   27 ‘He will rule them with an iron sceptre;
      he will dash them to pieces like pottery’—

   just as I have received authority from my Father. 28 I will also give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

REVELATION 3

To the Church in Sardis

1 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write:

These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. 6 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To the Church in Philadelphia

    7 “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

   These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9 I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.

   11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. 13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To the Church in Laodicea

    14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

   These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

   19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

   21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Commentary:

PSALMS 51:12

¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Comments

Submitted by ade.ojomo on Mon, 26/12/2011 - 1:02pm.

I heard a statement the other day that has given me further insight of how to relate to people.

“Jesus never condemned or criticised”. He spoke the truth into every situation and made a lasting impact.

The fear of being condemned or criticised sometimes makes us make decisions that are not in line with our core values just to save face. A recent interview conducted by the Harvard Business Review to the CEO of Starbucks – Howard Schultz highlighted that “You have to have a 100% belief in your core reason for being.

Howard was faced with a decision on whether to cut the Health Care costs of his company up to the tune of $300 million. A shareholder called him to advise him –

“You’ve never had more cover to cut health care than you do now. No one will criticize you”. His response highlighted below could only have been made because of his firm belief in what the company stood for.

“I could cut $300 million out of a lot of things, but do you want to kill the company, and kill the trust in what this company stands for? There is no way I will do it, and if that is what you want us to do, you should sell your stock”. What I stand for is not just to make money; it’s to preserve the integrity of what we have built for 39 years – to look in the mirror and feel like I’ve done something that has meaning and relevancy and is something people are going to respect. You have to be willing to fight for what you believe in.

The key scripture for today's G2R advocates the importance of taking a stand for Jesus Christ: Revelation 3 v 15 – 16:

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

Submitted by bunmi.olubode on Tue, 27/12/2011 - 2:11pm.

Approximately 12 months ago, we began a journey of discovery with the words “In the beginning God” and today, we begin the last book of the bible with the words “The Revelation of Jesus Christ”. It struck me that the whole bible is an integrated message about God and His son Jesus Christ our Lord and the Holy Spirit has carefully woven ‘sign posts’ pointing to Jesus Christ throughout the bible but culminating in the ultimate revelation of who Jesus Christ is.

It will seem to me that if anyone wants to know who Jesus Christ is, they need to read the book of Revelation. As if to encourage us to read the book, the Holy Spirit, through John tells us that there is a blessing for the person who reads and hears and keeps (to guard, to observe or to attend to carefully) the contents of the book - Rev 1:3

Notice that Rev 1:1-2 says “The Revelation (unveiling) of Jesus Christ”. The book is a single revelation of Jesus Christ not a collection of revelations as is sometimes pronounced. Also, this revelation was given to Jesus Christ by God to show to us his servants and John actually saw it (it was not a dream).

John was exiled on the island of Patmos when he had this amazing experience of being transported in the spirit to witness future events and to kick it off, the first thing he sees is The Lord Jesus Christ. John carefully describes what he saw and also records several titles of The Lord Jesus Christ some of which play a vital role in the letters to the seven churches. These descriptions and titles begin to intimate us with who Jesus Christ is. Firstly, John explains who Jesus Christ is to us (you and I - the church) – Rev 1:5-6 then he lets us know how The Lord Jesus Identifies Himself to us, the church – Rev 1:8, 11.

Verse 11 contains something that caught my attention; John is given some instructions “What thou seest, write in a book and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.” From now on, I would expect John to write what he sees and as expected, he presents an amazing description of the Lord Jesus Christ – Rev 1:12-16 (what he actually saw). But then in verse 19, John is told to “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter” and I suddenly understood what Chuck Missler means when he says the book of revelation gives an outline of itself (I paraphrase):

Section one: The things which thou hast seen – The description of the Lord Jesus Christ
Section two: The things which are – The seven churches
Section three: The things which shall be hereafter – The things that will happen after the church

Why is this of any importance? If I were to consider the outline, then the most important part of the book of revelation to me is the letter to the seven churches because we live in the church age or what some people say, ‘the dispensation of the church’. Also there are some tenses used in the letters, which indicate plurality, and as such I feel that the letters are applicable today.

Let me explain. Each letter starts with “Unto the angel of the church”, church here is singular, but in concluding, the letters say “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches”, churches here is plural. This to me seems to indicate a wider application or to put it another way, there are seven types (or groups) of churches and each church today will find a letter applicable. In addition, we believers make up the church and the letters use the phrase “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches” which to me implies an individual therefore, the letters will apply to the individual as well.

The letters themselves are very interesting and have a structure to them.

In each letter, the Lord Jesus Christ chose a title or description of Himself which ties in with the admonition and promise for that church
There is a ‘What you do well part’
A what you don’t do so well part
A message of repentance
A promise

Letter to Ephesus
Ephesus has some good said about it – Rev 2:2-3, something bad (forgotten first love) – Rev 2:3, told to repent or else they would lose the lampstand – Rev 2:5, a promise for those who endure – Rev 2:7.

It is interesting to compare Paul’s letter to the Ephesians which is a letter written to a church operating in its apostolic gifts (at that time) to Jesus’ letter to them in Revelation. Also, if we consider the literal application of the letter to the church at Ephesus, we can ask the question, where is the church of Ephesus now? This is a warning to all churches and individuals when we neglect our relationship with God.

Key points: Devotion not doctrine and do not neglect priorities

Ephesus is sometimes called the Apostolic Church or the Loveless Church

Letter to Smyrna
Smyrna has some good said about it – Rev 2:9, nothing bad said, no repentance needed and a promise for enduring – Rev 2:10.

Key points: Hold on in the face of satanic oppression.

Smyrna has been called the Persecuted Church

Letter to Pergamos
Pergamos has some good said about it – Rev 2:13, some bad (doctrine of Balaam), told to repent or else Jesus will fight against them with the sword of His mouth – Rev 2:16 and a promise for those who endure – Rev 2:17.

What is the doctrine of Balaam? Balaam taught the people of Moab to seduce the men of Israel into marriage and ultimately into idolatry – Num 25:1-2, 31:16

Key points: Avoid and reject spiritual compromise with the world.

Pergamos is sometimes called the Married Church or the Compromising Church

Letter to Thyatira
Thyatira has some good said about – Rev 2:19, something bad – Rev 2:20, told to repent or be cast into the great tribulation, a promise for enduring – Rev 2:26-28.

Jezebel is allowed to teach and seduce the people of God. Jezebel connotes paganism and idol worship and is probably best understood by reviewing the story of Ahab and Elijah – 1 Kings.

Key points: not to tolerate paganism or idol worship.

Thyatira is sometimes called the Corrupt Church

Letter to Sardis
Sardis has nothing good said about it – Rev 3:1, mostly bad said about it – Rev 3:1-2, told to repent or else Jesus will come on them as a thief – Rev 3:3 and a promise for those who overcome – Rev 3:5.

Sardis represents a church that has a name but is dead. Its doctrine and devotion are dead or dying and without care, the remaining aspects or relationship with God will die. There is the admonition to watch and strengthen that which remains or else they will be surprised by Jesus’ coming. In the Sardis church, religion has become more important than relationship (devotion and doctrine).

Key Points: be watchful (the wiles of the devil, temptation, the second coming of The Lord Jesus Christ, false teachers and Christs etc.) and strengthen (build up) the little that is left.

Jesus Christ called Sardis the dead church.

Letter to Philadelphia
Philadelphia has some good said about – Rev 3:8, nothing bad said about it, no repentance needed and a promise for enduring – Rev 3:10-12.

The church in Philadelphia with a little strength, kept his word and did not deny his name. These are a people who obey the word and will of God and do not deny Jesus Christ regardless.

Key points: keep doing what you are doing and Jesus will keep you from the time of temptation (tribulation) to come upon the whole world. Verse 11 is a key verse that came to my attention, “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.” This implies that the person of the Philadelphia church already has a crown because Jesus admonishes, hold fast so you don’t loose your crown.

Philadelphia is sometimes called the Missionary Church or the Faithful Church

Letter to Laodicea
Laodiceans have nothing good said about them – Rev 3:15, mostly bad said – Rev 3:15-17, told to repent or and Jesus will spew them out of His mouth – Rev 3:16 and a promise for those who overcome – Rev 3:21

The Laodicean church was indifferent or double minded, a people with material wealth and this affected their relationship with God. There are those who express the view that The Laodicean church were ruled by the people and as such popular opinion and political correctness ruled making the church devoid of a relationship with the Spirit of God – basically an empty shell.

The Laodicean church is sometimes called the Lukewarm Church or the Apostate Church.

Thinking over Jesus’ letters to the seven churches, I ask myself the following questions. Where do I fit in, where does my church fit in and how does this apply today?

I wish we all (and by His Grace, I will) pay close attention to the words of our Lord Jesus Christ when he says “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches” and carefully do all the good said about each church and diligently get rid of all the bad.
And so from the Ephesians take on doctrine mixed in with devotion (love God and my neighbour) not neglecting God’s purposes, from Smyrna; endurance through persecution and satanic oppression, from Pergamos; no spiritual compromise nor conformity with the worlds ways, from Thyatira; zero tolerance of Idolatry in the heart or otherwise, from Sardis; watchfulness, diligence and building up my faith, from Philadelphia; keeping Gods word and not denying His name and from Laodicea; being hot and on fire for God.

SO HELP ME GOD!