Letters to the 7 Churches of Revelation. Pt. 1 Introduction

Psalm 101:1-3 I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing. 
I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.

Good morning.  The Psalm above goes with our new study of the letters to the 7 Churches of Revelation.  David is longing for his LORD to come and he has resolved to walk before Him with a pure heart.  May this be our prayer in these dark days that we might live with great anticipation of Christ's return for His bride, the Church. 

I would like to take a break from our previous study on the work and person of the Holy Spirit and look at the first 3 chapters of Revelation.  Churches of 7 different cities received a letter from the Lord Jesus Christ through the Spirit guided writing of the Apostle John. 

The word "revelation" means an unveiling, an uncovering or a disclosure.  This word is most frequently connected with the 2nd coming of Christ for His church.  We see the Greek word carried over in the English word "apocalypse."

Webster's dictionary defines "apocalypse" as the expectation of an imminent cosmic cataclysm in which God destroys the ruling powers of evil and raises the righteous to life in a messianic kingdom."

Thus, John's writing is going to highlight the coming of Jesus Christ and reveal God's final and complete judgment upon all sinners who reject salvation through Jesus Christ.  However, our focus will be on the message to the 7 churches because we need to hear and heed what our Lord said.

John is writing about things that are going to come to pass soon and what he wrote was certified by an angel. There is a blessing for those who read the prophecy, hear it and keep it. 

Revelation 1:1-3 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: 
Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. 
It is good for us to look at the context of the letters and see what Christ had to say to those churches near the end of the first century AD.  The glorified Son of God had praise for most of the churches but He also pointed out serious problems that they needed to deal with or else they faced certain judgment.

This is a study of contrasts between the ancient world and the modern one in which we live.  It shows the profound influence pagan customs brought to bear against the early Churches, especially against the seven churches mentioned in Revelation.  It is also a study of how light from the gospel of Jesus Christ smote the heavy darkness that lay on pagan lands.

Many things separate the ancient and modern worlds from each other, including the quality, function and availability of their respective technologies, along with vast differences in their cultural makeup. 

However, both worlds share some common features that have remained constant over time.   The shared cultural components include man’s inherent sinfulness, countless webs of religious deceit spun by pagan institutions, explosions of false religion, all set in array against God’s promises of redemption. 

Therefore, this study is of vital importance for every serious Christian because God’s messages to the Seven Churches are timeless truths that may be applied in our lives.

The aging apostle introduced himself by reminding his readers that he is a brother and a companion in tribulation with all who suffer   for following Jesus Christ.   John tells us his location was on the isle of Patmos. 

The phrase "in the Spirit" means John is going to write verbally inspired scripture.

He hears a voice that sounded like a great trumpet.  Now, you know that a trumpet can make a really loud, attention grabbing sound and this was a "great" trumpet.  The sound was exceptionally loud and penetrating.  The words of this voice tell us who is speaking.  It is the One who is called Alpha and Omega, the first and the last.  It is the Lord Jesus Christ who is addressing John. 

Christ gives John a very specific mission: he is to write in a book all that he is about to see and these letters are to go to 7 specific churches.  The list of cities include Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.  Each of the cities were very prominent and they occupied places in modern Turkey. 

Revelation 1:9-11 I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. 

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, 
Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, 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. 

History tells us that the last years of John’s life were spent in Asia Minor, primarily in the region of Ephesus. 

John had a unique perspective of being alive when the Church of Jesus Christ was birthed (Acts). He saw great growth in the church along with the damaging emergence of false teachers.  He was able to expertly comment upon the truths the Church needed to anchor to as he neared the end of his life. 

The effectiveness of John’s ministry as he grew older cannot be doubted.  He served as a mentor to some of the greatest Church Fathers including Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna.  John was exiled to the island of Patmos for preaching the gospel during the time when Domitian reigned as the Roman emperor.  This would have taken place in approximately AD 90, when growing numbers of people were being persuaded to become Christians through John’s testimony, thus enraging the emperor. 

Imperial Rome designated Patmos (photo above) as a place where certain kinds of political dissidents were to be banished.  The punishment given to John was likely to work in a labor camp for the rest of his life, although we cannot be certain of the type of labor involved due to John’s advanced age. 

Situated in the Aegean Ocean near the coast of modern Turkey, Patmos offered a generally inhospitable environment that surely challenged the physical and emotional well being of the Apostle. 

Having fallen from official favor and facing discrimination for his beliefs, John was effectively cut off from his church network. However, it was in the midst of such extreme hardship that John experienced the grace of God in a remarkable way.

Bob