Revelation - Chapter 2

Revelation - Chapter 2

The Apostle John continues with his letter to the churches in what we know of as chapter 2 of the Book of Revelation.  John is quoting Jesus who is addressing the pastors of the seven churches in Asia Minor in which the apostle has oversight.  These are Jesus' words to the Church then, but these same words are to the Church even today.  

The City of Ephesus

Rome was the highest seat of political power in the Roman world that surrounded the Mediterrean Sea for many centuries.  During Bible times, Ephesus was the largest city in Asia Minor and the second to Rome as the highest political seat of power.  Ephesus, a large port city of a population of over 250,000 people, rested on the coastline of the Aegean Sea.  Fifty miles out into the Aegean Sea was a penal colony island called Patmos where the Apostle John, the overseer over the churches in Asia Minor, was taken as a prisoner for being a Christian.  It was here where he wrote this letter to the seven churches in Asia Minor, which we know as the Book of Revelation. 

Most of the Roman world consisted of Gentile pagan idolatry.  Many of the pagan cities had chief gods or goddesses, and in this region of the world goddesses were prominent.  Ephesus was a leader in paganism worship, having the name of Diana, the goddess of fertility, as their head goddess, which simply was another name for the Greek goddess Artemis.  She was despicted as having many breasts as a sign of her sexual fertility.  Her large statue rested in the temple that lay at the edge of the city which was dedicated to the goddess Artemis.  It was here where the people of Ephesus and surrounding areas came to congregate, do their banking, and worship their gods, which included prostitution and sexual orgies as a part of their pagan worship. 

The Apostle John came to Ephesus with Mary, the mother of Jesus, as he was charged with taking care of her per Jesus' instruction as he lay dying on the cross.  We know they came to Ephesus sometime before 41 A.D. because Mary died in that year, and it is historically and traditionally known that Mary did live in Ephesus until her death.  The brick house below, located outside of the city of Ephesus is "traditionally" known as Mary's house, after Mary, the mother of Jesus.  "Traditionally' means that it is presumed this house was occupied by Mary, but not known as a fact.  The house is still there today as part of a tourist attraction.  

Many people had come to Christ over the decades in Ephesus because of the ministries of the Apostle John and Paul and other missionaries.  While the Apostle Paul remained only a few years, with other missionaries coming and leaving, the Apostle John lived in Ephesus and developed several churches throughout Asia Minor.  Eventually, John became the overseer of all of the churches in Asia Minor.    

All churches in the 1st century met in the homes of one of the congregants who had a larger home. 
In Asia Minor, many of the Gentiles had larger homes - some being villas - compared to the small crowded Jewish homes of Jerusalem.  Often they met in the courtyards of the homes for worship, which could house many people. The larger the church became and a new pastor could be trained, the church would then break off into branches of the same church.  As such, there could be more than one church in a city.

The Church at Ephesus
The Carnal Church

The golden lampstands are the seven churches
The seven stars are the pastors of the seven churches

The Apostle John now addresses the pastor (or pastors) of the first church - the Church at Ephesus:

Rev 2:1 amplified  “To the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Ephesus write:  “These are the words of the One who holds [firmly] the seven stars [which are the angels or messengers of the seven churches] in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands (the seven churches):

We need to be reminded that John was commanded to write down three things:  (1)  What he sees in his vision of what Jesus is telling him, (2)  A message to each of the churches of which Jesus spoke, and (3) The things which are to come.

As the Apostle John saw in his vision, Jesus was walking amongst the seven churches, holding the pastors of these churches in His hand, meaning He is the One Who has authority over the pastors of all the churches.  The pastors, as the undershepherd, was and is spiritually responsible for all believers within their church and answerable to God. 

Jesus began by speaking out to John to the first church - the Church at Ephesus.  As instructed, John began to write down what he saw in his vision and what Jesus was saying to the churches - the first one being the Church of Ephesus.

² ‘I know your deeds and your toil, and your patient endurance, and that you cannot tolerate those who are evil, and have tested and critically appraised those who call themselves apostles (special messengers, personally chosen representatives, of Christ), and [in fact] are not, and have found them to be liars and impostors; ³ and [I know that] you [who believe] are enduring patiently and are bearing up for My name’s sake, and that you have not grown weary [of being faithful to the truth].

Jesus, as a wise communicator, sandwiched his message to the Church at Ephesus by commending them first of their good deeds before telling them of His charge against them.  He then finish with a commendation of a good deed - again - sandwiching His charge against them between positive affirmations.  That way, the receiver generally responds in a more favorable way. 

Good Deeds:

• The believers at the Church of Ephesus were enduring with patience
• They did not tolerate those who were evil
• As such, they examined and tested critically those who called themselves apostles, but found some to be liars and imposters. 
• As such, they stood for truth; however, because of fear and misinformed, they put up with their presence in the church thinking they had to endure for the name of Jesus.

The charge against them

⁴ But I have this [charge] against you, that you have left your first love [you have lost the depth of love that you first had for Me].

In spite of their good deeds, Jesus had this charge against the pastor and his congregants.  They left their first love - that love that they first had for Jesus when they accepted him in their heart.  In other words, while they were still displaying good deeds, which were commendable, their hearts were growing cold toward the things of Jesus.  While their faith still allowed them to discern the lies of the imposters, they themselves were spiritually declining in their faith.  Their thinking became carnal and fleshly, bringing on thought of returning back to the ways of their old life. 

Had these believers remained strong in their faith, they would not have put up with the imposters who were taking over the church.  Instead, the pastor would have applied church discipline to these imposters who were lying to the believers within the church.  Either they would have been corrected and the behavior stopped or they would have been asked to leave the church in hopes they would repent and turn from their sinful ways.

⁵ So remember the heights from which you have fallen, and repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God’s will] and do the works you did at first [when you first knew Me]; otherwise, I will visit you and remove your lampstand (the church, its impact) from its place—unless you repent.

Jesus knew their hearts and how they were falling in their faith.  While outward appearances may have remained the same, it was what was going on in their inner man that Jesus knew was changing.  As such, Jesus was asking them to repent of their downward carnal thinking and their sinful behavior before it was too late.  Carnality changes the thinking of believers and eventually it can lead a believer down the road of destruction to eternal hell.

How easily that can happen in our own lives.  Outside appearances may look the same, where we look and act the same, but we too have lost our first love that we once had for Jesus.  Oh, we definitely claim to be Christians, but we find ourselves not praying or reading our Bibles like we once did.  We have entered into what the Bible calls carnality.

Our relationship with Jesus lessens when carnal thoughts slip in and we find ourselves wanting to go back to our old life at times where we live by our flesh.   Carnality is very dangerous for any Christian.

⁶ Yet you have this [to your credit], that you hate the works and corrupt teachings of the Nicolaitans [that mislead and delude the people], which I also hate.

The imposters in Ephesus were people referred to as the Nicolaitans who were causing major problems within the Church.  In that, Jesus was commending them.  

Nicolas was one of the seven deacons from Acts 6:5 chosen to be a part of the early church.  He, however, later went into heresy by following the heretical
Doctrine of Balaam from the Old Testament (Num 31:16) in that they believed in sexual immorality and eating food offered to idols. 
These imposter in the Church at Ephesus were attempting to convince the immature Gentile believers that they could still be a believer in Jesus
while observing some of the pagan ways of their Gentile family or friends.  This could be very enticing to a Gentile believer who was walking in carnality.

^7a He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches...

For those willing to listen, believe, and act upon what the Lord is saying to the pastor and the churches, they will be an overcomer.

7b  To him who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God], I will grant [the privilege] to eat [the fruit] from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.’

To all overcomers, God will grant them the privilege of entering into the Paradise of God in heaven to eat from the fruit of the Tree of Life, meaning they will live forever with God.  If they failed to correct their ways, their carnality could easily drag them down the slippery slope into apostasy; therefore, becoming an unbeliever again and headed for hell as their eternal destination.

To the Church at Smyrna
The Suffering Church

⁸ “And to the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Smyrna write:  “These are the words of the First and the Last [absolute Deity, the Son of God] who died and came to life [again]:  ⁹ ‘I know your suffering and your poverty (but you are rich), and how you are blasphemed and slandered by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan [they are Jews only by blood, and do not believe and truly honor the God whom they claim to worship].

To the pastor of the Church at Smyrna, Jesus says:  "What I say comes from the First and the Last - I am the Son of God who died, rose, and came back to life.  I already am aware of your suffering and poverty, but in reality, you are the rich ones.  You know truth, you know who I am, and you belong to Me.  Those who claim to be Jews, even by blood, are not true Jews because they refused to believe in Me as their Messiah.  Because they blasphemed and slandered Me, they blasphemed and slandered you.  But know, they belong to the synagogue of Satan.  They are not of Me.  They are hypocrites who say they worship the One True God, but do not even believe and honor Him in their hearts.  What they do is simply a ritual ceremony and definitely does not from their heart."

^10a Fear nothing that you are about to suffer. Be aware that the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested [in your faith], and for ten days you will have tribulation.

Jesus continues to say:  "Do not fear, even if the devil uses people to put you in jail to test your faith, remember, you belong to Me.  The promises I give to you, belong to you.  While the suffering may even go on for some time, it will be temporary."

11b Be faithful to the point of death [if you must die for your faith], and I will give you the crown [consisting] of life. 

Jesus continues:  "Even if you have to die for your faith, I have a special crown that awaits you in heaven.  Your eternity will be with Me, while those who kill you belong to Satan and are sealed to the Eternal Lake of Fire forever."

¹¹ He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God] will not be hurt by the second death the lake of fire).’

Again, Jesus gives them the promise of what happens to an overcomer.  If they understood what the Apostle John was saying, and let those words permeate their heart, they can be certain they will receive the promise given to them by Jesus.  They will never be hurt by the second death - meaning ending up in the Eternal Lake of Fire like those who persecuted them.  There is no second death to an overcomer in Jesus.

To the Church at Pergamum
The Compromising Church

¹² “And to the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Pergamum write:  “These are the words of Him who has and wields the sharp two-edged sword [in judgment]:  ¹³ ‘I know where you dwell, [a place] where Satan sits enthroned. Yet you are holding fast to My name, and you did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed (martyred) among you, where Satan dwells.

Here again, Jesus uses the sandwich approach to speak to the pastor at the Church at Pergamum who was responsible to God for the spiritual development of his church.  Pergamum, like other large pagan cities in Asia Minor was filled with idol worship and sexual immorality.  It was so evil to where Jesus called Pergamum Satan's throne. 

Jesus began by praising the pastor and his congregants at Pergamum because they did not deny their faith in the midst of the surrounding evils they faced.  Antipas, one of the faithful in that church was martyred for his faith.

¹⁴ But I have a few things against you, because you have there some [among you] who are holding to the [corrupt] teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, [enticing them] to eat things that had been sacrificed to idols and to commit [acts of sexual] immorality. ¹⁵ You also have some who in the same way are holding to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

Because sexual immorality marked the culture of the ancient Roman Empire, Pergamum, being a large city in Asia Minor, was filled with the vulgarity of a lot of sexual deviancies.  As such, the believers who were attempting to live by biblical standards of purity was considered strange.  As such, they were persecuted. 

Very much like the Church at Ephesus, Pergamum had believers in the church who supported the teachings of Balaam and the teachings of the Nicolaitans in that they were practicing acts of sexual immorality and eating food dedicated to idols.  Some even wanted sexual orgies to enter into the church in the same way the Gentile pagans had orgies in the temple of Diana.  By allowing sexual immorality and food sacrificed to the idols to come into the church, while still believing in Jesus as the Son of God, seemed to bring a compromise into the church where everyone "supposedly" could be happy and still get along with pagans in their society.  That however, was an abomination to God.

¹⁶ Therefore repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God’s will]; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war and fight against them with the sword of My mouth [in judgment].

Jesus is again commanding the believers at Pergamum to repent for allowing such behavior to enter into the Church.  And for those who submitted to that kind of blaspheme, stop immediately - repent - change your ways.  He gave them this command - Repent or else I will come to you quickly and fight against you with the sword of My mouth.

For it is the time [destined] for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us,
what will the outcome be for those who do not respect or believe or obey the gospel of God?
1 Peter 4:17 ampl

The sword in Jesus' mouth is His Word.  His Word can bring forth life, but it can also bring on death - eternal death in the Eternal Lake of Fire.  This is a very stern warning to the believers in Pergamum.

This is also a stern warning for the church today.  This spirit - the spirit of sexual immorality continues to grow in the church, and it brings on increased carnality, which leads to apostasy, which leads to death - eternal death.

¹⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God], to him I will give [the privilege of eating] some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone with a new name engraved on the stone which no one knows except the one who receives it.’

Again, for those who listen, truly hear and obey the words that come directly from Jesus through His Spirit will be overcomers. 

• Overcomers in Jesus will have the privilege of eating from the hidden bread of God's provision that comes from heaven. 
• Jesus will also give them a white stone with a secret new name engraved on the stone.  Only the receiver will know what that name is.

In the ancient world, a white stone was a sign of favor. 
It could be entrance into a place, acquital in a court of law, the winner, or a badge of friendship. 
In all ways, a white stone was the assurance of blessing. 

To the Church at Thyatira
The Corrupt Church

¹⁸ “And to the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Thyatira write:  “These are the words of the Son of God, who has eyes [that flash] like a flame of fire [in righteous judgment], and whose feet are like burnished [white-hot] bronze:

Jesus now turns His face to speak to the Church in Thyatira.  Here, he does not sandwich or mix His words, but is direct in his charge against the pastor and the church.  Jesus is now usurping His authority over them with strong accusations.  His eyes are like a flame of fire from His fierce anger, ready to judge righteousness, and His feet are white hot as of burnished bronze.

¹⁹ ‘I know your deeds, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your last deeds are more numerous and greater than the first. ²⁰ But I have this [charge] against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess [claiming to be inspired], and she teaches and misleads My bond-servants so that they commit [acts of sexual] immorality and eat food sacrificed to idols.

The spirit of Jezebel had made herself known within the church at Thyratira who claimed to be a prophetess.  She was teaching and misleading the true servants of God to commit acts of sexual immorality and eat foods sacrificed to idols. 

Spirit of Jezebel
Jezebel, along with her husband Ahab, instituted the worship of Baal and Asherah on a national scale in 1 and 2 Kings.
In addition, she violently purged the prophets of Yahweh from Israel.   
Most women do not want to be referred to as a Jezebel, for it describes someone who is utterly evil, conniving,
ruthless, domineering, power-hungry, and scheming in everything she did. 

 

This Jezebel woman called herself a prophetess; however, she was not.  She was also a false teacher, who was misleading many within the congregation in the church at Thyratira.  Many believed her lies.  More than likely, this woman was allowed to continue her behavior because she was extremely imtimidating and domineering.  The pastor was obviously very weak and allowed her to exert her will over him and the church.  Jesus was now calling the pastor, the "so-called" prophetess, and her followers out with charges against them.  

²¹ I gave her time to repent [to change her inner self and her sinful way of thinking], but she has no desire to repent of her immorality and refuses to do so. ²² Listen carefully, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her [I will bring] into great anguish, unless they repent of her deeds. ²³ And I will kill her children (followers) with pestilence [thoroughly annihilating them], and all the churches will know [without any doubt] that I am He who searches the minds and hearts [the innermost thoughts, purposes]; and I will give to each one of you [a reward or punishment] according to your deeds.

Jesus allowed time for her to repent, but she refused.  The punishment for an unrepentive person who had that spirit operating within her or anyone who was putting up with her within the church is given severely.  Not only will they get sick, it will be a sickness of great anguish and pain, followed by death.   Everyone will know who she is and that her punishment came from Jesus.

Jesus, as the omiscient God, is all-knowing - knowing every thought we have.  While some try to convince themselves that they are followers of Christ, God still knows their heart.  We may fool ourselves, but He knows the truth. No one will ever be able to stand before Christ at the Judgment and claim something with their tongue, but that their heart can’t hide.

²⁴ But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not explored and known the depths of Satan, as they call them—I place no other burden on you, ²⁵ except to hold tightly to what you have until I come. ²⁶ And he who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God] and he who keeps My deeds [doing things that please Me] until the [very] end, to him I will give authority and power over the nations; ²⁷ and he shall shepherd and rule them with a rod of iron, as the earthen pots are broken in pieces, as I also have received authority [and power to rule them] from My Father; ²⁸ and I will give him the Morning Star. 

For those in the church who were not connected with this prophetess or under her spell, Jesus did not come down upon them.  They were to remain strong until the time when Jesus comes at the Rapture of the Church.  "Remain strong," Jesus repeated, "and you will be an overcomer because of your faith and obedience.  When I come, I will rule with a rod of iron and you will have authority and power over the nations as you rule and reign with Christ."  Because I have received authority and power to rule over them from My Father, I will give you Myself, and you will rule and reign with me. 

²⁹ He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches.’

Again, Jesus is telling the pastor and the believers at the Church of Thyratira to listen and hear, heeding His warnings.  If they do, they will then rule and reign with Jesus when He comes back to earth.