as we move into chapter two, and then three, it is necessary to look into the history and...

REVELATION

CHAPTER 2

As we move into Chapter two, and then three, it is necessary

to look into the history and

circumstances of each city,

Verse 1

as a whole, so that we may better understand the

circumstances of each church and the message that

they are receiving.

It will become evident that the

cities were largely pagan and that the churches consisted of converted Jews

and pagans.

The Epistles tell us that there was much

dissension between the formerly Jewish Christians

and the formerly pagan Christians and that both were persecuted by both the pagans, who usually

held the positions of authority, and also by the

unconverted Jews.

A study of relativistic pagan society reveals a

life of brutal drudgery and a

hopelessness for any thing better -

EVER!

This was only relieved by the

"RELIGIOUS" celebrations which

involved much drunken

debauchery, fornication and licentiousness.

This was the only relief in a life devoid of hope for purpose, fulfillment and joy.

This was/is the empty space in anyone's soul that can only be filled by the Spirit of God,

the Father, the Almighty.

The pagans resisted conversion because of their misunderstanding of the message of the

apostles which led them to disdain the perceived

aceticness of Christianity for the

''JOY'' of their pagan religious party-times.

All of the seven churches in

Chapter 2 & 3 were actual churches of John's day.

In what is to come, Christ lays bare the true state

of each individual church and this state can be

seen in the churches of history and in the state

of the churches of today.

We gain this understanding from the

fact that only seven churches were selected from the multitude that

existed in John's time and by the fact that, at the

close of each letter, there is a statement that the

Holy Spirit is speaking to the churches.

As we encounter the number seven applied to these churches we tend to focus on the

fact that seven is symbolic of

perfection, yet we will find that these

churches are far from perfect.

Seven is also a metaphor for

completion and, in considering the flaws of these churches, we find that Yehovah has

provided a ''COMPLETE'' list of

the sins of His people.

In our day this means that if

repentance isn't accomplished by

us, Revelation will be accomplished by

Yehovah.

We might also consider how

many of these sins fall into the

unpardonable category because they stem from

unbelief.

In each of these epistles we will

observe:

(A) That Christ always

describes himself by a characteristic suited to the circumstances of

each particular church regardless of whether the message promises

encouragement or terror.

(B)each epistle is directed to the angel or messenger of the church. These would

likely be the pastors because they are the mouth of God for the congregation.

Once again we see that revelation was written to be understood by all and to be

declared publically.

(C)each epistle is concluded with a promise of eternal glory and happiness for

victorious believers and a solemn call to every reader and hearer to

seriously learn and apply the contents of these letters to their lives.

Ephesus, the "LOVELESS"

church, would metaphorically represent the

church times up to 100AD.

verses 1-7, are a letter of

warning to the Church in the

city of Ephesus (which means "DESIRABLE").

Under Caesar Augustus, Ephesus became the capitol

of the Roman province of Asia,

which is presently the western portion

of Turkey.

It was known to be the

residence of John both

before and after his

internments on Patmos.

It is the city of the Seat of Diana (aka

Artemis), the "MOTHER OF THE

GODS". The Temple of Diana

was built in 480BC.

Christianity came to the city with Paul,

Aquila and Priscilla, as per Acts 18:18-19 & 19:10. Timothy had

charge of the church for a time according to

1 Timothy 1:3.

After this, the church became

the responsibility of John, upon his release from

Patmos.

The Revelation context of the

warning is about its

character of being a loveless church.

Is a clear indication that it is Jesus who is talking and taking action.

Verse 1

Is an indication that the faith formerly

held by this church, and the evangelism and works that faith had generated, have

been judged and approved by Christ.

Verse 2

Jesus commends them for carefully

discerning the lies and evil

deeds of false teachers and

rejecting them.

Is a commendation for patiently bearing

persecution for their faith and carrying on regardless. The word "FAINTED" means to grow weary and give

up.

Verse 3

Is a condemnation # for an intentional act of rebellion

against the faith (Jer 2:2 & Eze

16:8) and, thus, against Jesus.

Verse 4

Eph1:15-16, shows that some 30 years

before this time, this church was

commended for the strength of its love for Christ and their

fellow man.

This would indicate that this

congregation had turned inward, not

only against society but also

against each other.

In doing this, they have

turned away from the Great

Commission and it author.

This would mean that their righteous works

had faltered and failed and so their love for Jesus and His Gospel and even each other, had dried up entirely, hence the "LOVELESS"

comment.

Similarly, this could also mean that this

congregation had been distracted by the busyness of the

activities of the world around them to the

point that their ardent love for Jesus had

cooled due to neglect.

In our lives, we need to consider if our own love for the Lord has lost

its initial passion, if we too have been distracted by the busyness of the

world

perhaps a busyness that

Satan has strewn in our path for

just that reason.

Is a call to remember who they were those 30 years ago and to return to that state of affairs quickly before Jesus

removes their candlestick #,

extinguishing their light unto the world.

Verse 5

The verbs "REMEMBER", "REPENT" and "DO" are

the "first things" involved in re-birth and entering into the work

of the Great Commission, and in this

sense this warning takes the form of commandments.

Now that we know what the

candlestick represents, we can

see the seriousness of the

error and the warning.

Now that we know what the

candlestick represents, we can

see the seriousness of the

error and the warning.

This denunciation began to unfold

during the persecutions of the

emperors Decius Gallus and Valerian

and was completed to the letter by the Saracens and the

Turks.

The place has long been an uninhabited

ruin.

In our present day this could be taken as "DEPRIVE THEE OF

GOSPEL LIGHT": Bibles that are unread, Lord's

Days not kept, ministers not listened to, communions not

observed, liberties abused rather than

valued.

(see commentary on

Nicolaitans)(See Acts 6:5)

Verse 6

”And the saying pleased the whole multitude:

and they chose Stephen, a man full of

faith and of Holy Ghost, and Philip, and

Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and

Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:”

This hearing admonition is

repeated seven times in

Revelation.

Verse 7

The future tense indicates

the rewards still available for adequate repentance.

This tree of life is the one in

Eden and which will be found anew in the

New Jerusalem.

In this we see a direct challenge to the

temple of Artemis, which was a refuge

for criminals, because Jesus is saying that

He is the only effective refuge from

our sinfulness.

Of particular note is the

observation that Jesus is speaking yet He is saying

that the Holy Spirit is

speaking.

Just as the Bible repeatedly states that

God the Heavenly Father and Jesus are One, here we are finding that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are

One. We have confirmation from the mouth of our Lord and Saviour that the Holy

Trinity is a reality.

(Verses 8-11)Are a letter to the church at Smyrna.

(Myrrh means sweet-smelling). "THE PERSECUTED

CHURCH". It is a seaport city about 35

miles north of Ephesus and is called

Izmir today.

The city was one of many that were a

center of the imperial cult

(emperor worship) and it was also a

shrine to the goddess

"NEMESIS".

This Greek goddess was also know as

"RHAMNOUS" which is the spirit of divine

retribution, especially to those

who succumb to "HUBRIS": the

arrogance of the gods.

GREEK GODDESS KNOWN AS:

RHAMNOUS

This was a vengeful and remorseless goddess. The

Greek root word means "TO

RENDER WHAT IS DUE".

The Romans used the Latin name ''INVIDIA" for this goddess and

that word implies "LOOKING AT WITH AN

EVIL EYE" as in "TO LOOK AGAINST, TO

LOOK AT IN A HOSTILE MANNER".

It also implies "ENVY" which is

one of Christianity's

seven deadly sins (Pro 6:16; Gal

5:19-21).

We might want to give substantial reflection to

what we are encountering in this because God the Father Almighty does nothing by chance -

including choosing this particular church as an

example to all, for every day, given what we now

know.

The early church father Polycarp, a disciple of John, was

martyred here.

Under the Emperor Diocletian, the

church as a whole, endured the 10 days (prophetic

years - v10) spoken of in Daniel,

especially in light of Rev 2:10.

“Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you

into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten

days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of

life.”

This occurred from 303-313AD

and totally ended when Constantine

became a "CHRISTIAN".

This church is commended for being a persecuted church and this would make it a metaphor for the church of Jesus Christ in the times of 100-

313AD.

This church is notable for the fact that there is no reproof in

the letter.

Is an unmistakeable indication that it is Jesus who is speaking.

Verse 8

Tells us that Jesus has judged# the

faith, and the works that faith has generated, and found them

acceptable.

Verse 9

While they were poor in outward

circumstances and in spirit, they were

rich in faith and thus were heirs to God's kingdom and

glory.

There is also mention of those who call

themselves "JEWS BUT ARE NOT", rather, they

are Jews who have rejected Christ, or possibly apostate

Christians who were also referred to as Jews

by the pagans.

Formerly pagan Christians were also erroneously called Jews. ''CHRISTIANS WHO ARE NOT'' are something we have

become very familiar with.

Obviously, they would/do gather in the synagogues of Satan as they were not God's people

and thus the house is not Yehovah's

either.

Equally so, there are ''CHURCHES'' that are churches of Satan for the same reason.

The fact that Jesus calls the Jews this

is also a foreshadowing of

the upcoming permanent split

between the Jews and Christians.

Tells the people of this church not to fear the

upcoming tribulations as Jesus would be

with them.

Chapters 10 & 11

There were specifics given as to these

tribulations and the time frame of 10 prophetic days

(years) and that there would be great

reward for all who stood-fast to Him.

The second death is always

Hell (also James 1:1-12).

Salvation is a free gift to the worthy, those who accept

Jesus as Lord, Master and

Saviour,

but the rewards spoken of here and elsewhere in the Bible are earned by

the quality of our service to the LORD God through works and the enduring

of tribulation for the faith. These rewards are

also spoken of in scripture as "CROWNS".

A letter to the "COMPROMISING

CHURCH", the church at Pergamum

(meaning elevation or to lift up the self over

the divine), also known as Pergamos.

(Verses 12-17)

It was located about 45 miles

north of Smyrna.

It had one of the finest libraries of antiquity and was the place where

parchment (writing material made of animal skins) was

first used.

At one time, it was the capitol of the

Roman province of Asia. It was the location of the

Temple of Zeus and the Babylonian

Priesthood.

This priesthood was driven out of Babylon by the Medo-Persians and they took with them the Palladium

Stone, the Dagon vestments, the title Pontifex Maximus (the bridge between

Heaven and Earth),

the keys (subsequently claimed by the

popes to be Peter's keys to the

leadership of the church) and miter

of office.

The last pontiff king of

Pergamum, Attalus III,

bequeathed the title and

vestments to Rome in 133BC.

In 378AD, the Emperor Gratian refused the title and office and it

was subsequently seized by

Damascus, the Bishop of Rome.

Esubeus, a heretical "CHURCH FATHER"

who later lived here, re-wrote parts of the

Bible under the direction of the pope, to diminish Christ to

equality with the pagan gods.

Metaphorically, this would place events like those described here of Pergamum,

between 313-583AD in church history, a

period of compromise and corruption.

Consider again that the

foundation of all unpardonable sin is unbelief in the known nature of

Yehovah.

In knowing and believing Yehovah,

there is NO possibility of denying or

compromising one's faith. A knowing person just wouldn't have the

nerve.

unmistakeably describes the speaker as Jesus.

This city was one of few that had

been granted the "RIGHT OF THE

SWORD" by Rome.

Verse 12

This meant that the civic leaders could sentence

criminals to death by the

sword and carry out the sentence.

Christians who refused to

compromise with paganism often met this fate.

Jesus showing up with a sword would

be a direct challenge to the authorities and their presumed right to judge Christians.

Jesus is clearly stating that only

He has the authority to

judge# Christians.

Jesus makes positive mention of a martyr named An'tipas (the name means anti-

pontiff and we need to think about that) who

died either at the imperial cult temple or

the temple of Zeus.

Verse 13

Given the relativistic flexibility of the pagans, the one temple may have

served both deities.

again refers to the deeds of the Nicolaitans and

Baalamites.

Verse 14-15

Jesus condemns the church as a

whole for its acceptance of the

teachings of Balaam and the

corruption prevalent in the

church because of it.

In 2 Peter 2:15-16 and Jude 11, this

points to false teachers who do their deeds for

fame and fortune, a sin readily

observed in this day.

From our knowledge of

events recorded in this letter, we

come to realize that COMPROMISE

is regarded by Jesus as A GREAT

EVIL!

COMPROMISE can only lead to spiritual

fornication.

COMPROMISE is an unpardonable sin

because its foundation is unbelief regarding

Yehovah.

The sin they taught was

COMPROMISE with pagan traditions,

especially the eating of foods

sacrificed to idols.

This is the spiritual

fornication that God

condemns# so severely.

We have had a look at the massive pollution of

Christianity, at the hands of Constantine

and the CC, when pagan traditions were

adopted/blended in to the reality of Jesus

Christ and His ministry.

This was nothing other than blatant

compromise. Symbolically, it is

the sowing of mixed spiritual

seed (Lev 19:19).

This seems to be especially so in the CC

timings of the Sabbath(Isa 56:6-7), the Nativity and the

Crucifixion.Deu 12:1-4 is an unmistakeable

prohibition of such practices.

This is much more clearly stated in

the Hebrew scripture: ''YOU

SHALL NOT WORSHIP

YEHOVAH YOUR GOD IN SUCH

WAYS.''

We need to carefully study the full context

of this event to understand the power of its condemnation of

adopting pagan practices into the worship Yehovah

Almighty.

We need to carefully consider how totally unacceptable this is to Him. We are not looking at a trivial sin, this is a major

offense to Our Heavenly Father.

I don't think I would care for Jesus to be

hating what I was up to, yet, just as in that

time, people today don't seem to be considering the consequences.

They lack adequate fear of the LORD

God Almighty.

is a call for sincere repentance to

occur quickly, the rewards of

accomplishing this and the

consequences of not doing so.

Verse 16-17

Jesus warns the Baalamites that

He will wage war against

them with the sword of God's

Holy Word.

The "HIDDEN MANNA", which was the manna

hidden within the Arc of the

Covenant as a memorial to the

time in the wilderness,

as it is spoken of here refers to the

sufficiency of Jesus Christ for all of a

believers needs, just as manna was

sufficient for the needs of the Hebrews

in the desert.

In many societies, then

and now, voting is often done with coloured

stones.

A black one signified death and/or rejection

while a white stone reflected

innocence and/or acceptance.

Such a stone was often used as an

invitation to a special feast: in this instance the

end times wedding banquet with Christ

(Rev 19:7-9/Matt 22:11-13).

Coloured amulets worn around the

wrist or neck signified

belonging to a particular group

or person.

Those fortunate enough to

receive a white stone from

Christ receive a reward beyond

measure.

The "ENGRAVING OF A NAME" refers to the Hebrew custom of

engraving the names of the tribes of Israel upon the stones worn on the shoulders and breast of

the high priest (Exo 28:10-11).

The "NAME THAT NO MAN KNOWETH..."

refers to the nature and value of that

"NEW NAME" (child of God) which the Lord

bestows upon all who love Him (Gen 32:28;

1 Jn 3:1)

are the message to the "CORRUPT CHURCH", the

church at Thyatira, meaning: "THE SWEET SAVOUR OF LABOUR;

SACRIFICE AND CONTRITION" which is a Satanic teaching that

works alone bring salvation.

Verses 18-29

This concept is spoken to directly in v19 "AND THE LAST TO BE MORE THAN THE FIRST" because the

church had come to supplant salvation by

faith alone with salvation by works - as is

found in many liberal imitation churches today.

The city was noted for its many trade guilds and for its wool cloth and

dyeing industries, in particular the royal colours of

purple and crimson

(the official colours of the

Catholic Church through the Middle Ages) made from

madder roots.

It was also known for the "BURNISHED

BRONZE" metal (a special alloy of copper and an unusual silvery

zinc that was only ever produced in this

city) often used to describe the luminous

quality of Christ.

The first Christian convert here was Lydia (Acts 16:14-15), a merchant of purple linens.

It was the site of the temple of Apollo, which

also had an altar to many female goddesses, who was a sun god

the round communion wafers

of the Catholic Church are

identical to those used by pagans

when communing with the Egyptian

sun god Osiris,

but all sun gods are the same sun

god and worshiped basically the same

way, pointing to the common origin

of Nimrod.

The city was located about 35 miles south

east of Pergamum.

is a confirmation that it is Jesus

who is speaking. The ''EYES LIKE UNTO A FLAME

OF FIRE'' denote judgement.

Verse 18

The ''FEET ARE LIKE FINE BRASS''

denotes steadfastness and

a ''CAN'T BE MOVED FROM HIS POSITION''

attitude. Fixed like a statue.

is confirmation that our

Trinitarian God is all knowing -

omniscient.

Verse 19

Their former faith was judged and

found to be sound but that no longer matters because a serious fault has

been found. Salvation possibly

lost.

The ''LAST BECOMING MORE THAN THE FIRST'' is once again pointing out the tendency to

focus more on works and the busyness of the

world than on the faith which alone saves us.That saving faith then

produces works.

to ''SUFFER'' in this sense means ''TO TOLERATE''.

Verse 20

In this instance the condemnation is for tolerating the false

teachings of this false ''PROPHET''. Yeshua does not seem to be

happy about such things.

indicates that even false

teachers are given a limited time to repent.

Verse 21

Hopefully, within any given

''CHURCH'', there will be at least a single voice of

protest and that voice is ignored at the false teacher's

peril.

we have heard the expression

''YOU HAVE MADE YOUR

BED, NOW LIE IN IT!''. Here

we are!

Verse 22

The false teacher and her followers are in

the same trouble and under the same

condemnation. The only escape is

immediate repentance.

The children spoken of are

those who follow this

Jezebel (in this context - a

mother harlot).

Verse 23

In the context of the historical church, the

children are the apostate

denominations of the apostate

mother church (RCC).

The word "REINS" used

here relates to the mind -

"THAT WHICH CONTROLS".

Jesus is going to punish those

who follow false teachers

such as Jezebel, just as He will punish

her.

This, again, is an appropriate place to

consider the prohibition of Deu 12:4. Yehovah is

highly specific as to how, and where, He is

worshipped.

speaks of a split in this

church which is essentially a battle within the church

between God and Satan.

Verse 24

This is a battle that is going on within churches

even today.

The "DEPTHS OF SATAN", meaning the deep things of Satan

spoken of in this verse, is found in the occult practices and

initiation rites of secret societies even

into this day.

Like many present day false teachers offering up "THE DEEP THINGS

OF CHRISTIANITY", they are actually offering up

the deep things of Satan using Christian words and thoughts

(wolf in sheep's clothing?).

These deep things of Satan are the depths of occultism in practice. Jesus promises those

who reject such things that there will be no additional burdens

(tribulations) placed upon them, which is an

indication of the Rapture.

speaks of the second coming and

the need to hold fast to the true

doctrine of Christianity until

then, as well as the rewards for doing

so.

Verse 25 - 26

To the members of the church who do

persevere in the face of temptation and

persecution, and who judge all according to their works and act

accordingly,

Jesus offers to share the right to rule the nations

with Him (Ps 2:9; Isa

14:12).

speaks of how Jesus will be dealing with# the

apostate - the violence and anger involved in cleaning house with

such a tool as a rod of iron

(Ps 2:8-9).

Verse 27

Peter tells us that when

Jesus returns He will clean

His own house first

(1 Pet 4:17).

The imitation churches might

want to meditate on this.

This is an action similar

to Jesus clearing the

temple during His ministry on

earth.

is most probably a reference to

Jesus being the light of the

world, as this is often a reference to Jesus Himself.

Verse 28-29

When we evangelize and live lives that

reflect Christ, we become a light

unto the world as well.

Jesus' anger was because of the

church accepting the teachings of Balim through

compromise with the pagans.(Rev 2:6).

Often this compromise was not necessarily willing but was

more an indication of the

weakness of their faith.

They lacked the understanding of the Gospel required to be strong and stand fast

and so they compromised to stop the congregational infighting and the persecution from

without.

We continue to see this in this day when

people who know that false teaching is

occurring yet they refuse to stand up and be counted for

Christ - just to avoid the controversy.

PARALLEL HISTORY

In AD 451, the Catholic Church

held the "Council of Ephesus" at which

time the title of "Mother of God"

was bestowed upon Mary.

We can never lose sight of the FACT that God pre-existed Mary.

Her role, while magnificent, was only as the mother of the human incarnation of the Son of God, our

Emanuel, Jesus Christ.

He pre-existed with God the Father, Mary was never totally and

completely Jesus' mother. The Catholic title is errant. Their worship of her is an abomination.(Exo

20:1-5)

REFLECTIONS:

No church on earth is without its flaws,

errors and weaknesses. Far too many have

glaring iniquities and false teachers.

Perfection commences in Heaven but the

striving for perfection should

be a life long vocation.

It is a wondrous state of affairs, and a greater

mercy, that Jesus Christ communicates His

warnings, directions, and encouragements to all who call themselves

Christian, whether pastor or congregant.

We have just seen this in

Revelation and the warnings remain just as

valid in this day.

Jesus' own characteristics, which we are to emulate, and His parables, teachings and commandments of the

Gospels and Revelation, which we are to learn

from and adapt to, answer exactly every question a seeker will

encounter.

Jesus has a critical and

divine acquaintance

with each seeker and

their concerns.

Jesus immediately takes kind and loving notice of the graces,

services and sufferings for His sake and how diligently His followers oppose what

is evil and perform what is good.

Graciously, Jesus dwells among those

who are truly His and those who are

diligently seeking Him; and He supports, furnishes and directs

those who are His ministers;

He begins and assists all that

concerns them in time and eternity; and He lives for

them as their risen and exalted Redeemer.

With tender compassion Jesus reminds us of the

deviations and irregularities in our beliefs and faith and He unfailingly calls

each of us to repentance and

reformation.

May God grant to all the wisdom

and determination to heed the call!

The multitude of promises Jesus has

made to all who would but listen, encourages all to faithfully wrestle

against every known sin in themselves

and in others.

Spiritual and Heavenly are the

delights He bestows upon those who heed and sure is

their security from eternal damnation.

If only we remain faithful to Christ,

infinite is the glory, acceptance, pleasure,

excellence in endeavour, and power over evil

opposers, that will be our reward.

For those who refuse to heed the warnings of Jesus, awful are the threats He has made

and tremendous are His judgements upon

imposters, hypocritical professors and

obstinate sinners!

No boast of deep and devilish

understanding, no power in deceiving His people nor in

the persecution of His people - no power at all -

can screen the perpetrators of

these things from the righteous and

destructive judgement of Jesus

Christ.

Now is the time for every soul on earth to hear and to fear and to do

no more evil.