First, allow me to freely admit that I do not have the education of those who have gone before me who have taken on the task of commenting on the Revelation. It is an almost entirely eschatological book, meaning it deals almost entirely with future events. I believe more of those future events have already occurred than do most expositors who attempt to comment on the Revelation. It is a historical fact the first three seals have already occurred. The fourth seal is in heaven, thus we cannot see it, therefore it may well have already occurred also. I have made it a point to avoid reading most books about the bible for the thirty-seven years I have been saved. I focus nearly all of my time on reading the bible itself. I don’t believe my understanding of the Revelation has been diminished one iota for my failure to read the comments upon it by those who have preceded me (John 16:13). It is the Holy Spirit who leads us into truth, not those Christians who have preceded us. That said, if anyone reads extensively, I’m confident he will find that everything the Holy Spirit has revealed to me about this book, He has already revealed to someone else, somewhere, at some time. I have read Hal Lindsey’s book, The Late, Great, Planet Earth; and I have read the commentary by Dwight J. Pentacost, Things to Come and a book by a post tribulation rapturist several decades ago. I read the entire Left Behind series written by Tim LaHaye and David Jensen. I have also read or listened orally to the pre-tribulation rapture arguments posed by John McArthur, Chuck Swindoll, David Jeremiah, John Hagee, and several others whose names escape me at the moment. While I have a great deal of respect and admiration for most the teaching of most of these pastor/teachers, I must declare that I am sorely disappointed at how poorly they interpret the book of the Revelation.
It’s safe to say that there have been hundreds of commentaries and bible studies written on the book of the Revelation to John the Apostle even in contemporary times. When I use the term contemporary, I refer to the past three or four decades, the time I have personally been a follower of Christ. Men like Hal Lindsey have written books like The Late, Great, Planet Earth which was an popular book in its time. Published around 1970, just two years before I got saved, it is only biased by brother Hal’s pre-tribulation mindset, which means he had to do a lot of stretching of time periods and concludes the Revelation was not written chronologically. I am sort of a post-tribulation theorist on the issue of the rapture, though not strictly speaking. I will argue in this book that the bowl judgments, the final judgments of God on planet earth consume about 45 days, occur right after the rapture of the church, and thus end the period we call the Great Tribulation. Technically, therefore, while I am a post-tribulation rapturist, the final judgments of God on planet earth do, in actuality, come after the rapture; so my understanding of the book really doesn’t fit into the pre, post, or mid-tribulation theories heretofore espoused.
If you are a new Christian, or an old Christian who has not personally read the Revelation numerous times, you will have trouble understanding any study on this book. The Revelation is written in a fashion intended by God to make it unintelligible to the casual observer. It is a book of types, metaphors, similes, and symbols like few others in our time. I believe it is purposefully clouded in symbolism, so the casual reader cannot understand it. It is a book that God intended only the generation that would see its fulfillment to understand it in its entirety (Dan. 12:4, 9, 10). Most of the symbols, types, metaphors, similes, and illusions to the antichrist have had countless partial fulfillments countless times in the past. John makes this clear with statements like, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.” (II John 1:7). The antichrist is a person; but the spirit of the anti-Christ has been with us since the resurrection and is stronger today than at any other time in history. Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, and the long line of popes, all manifested the spirit of the anti-Christ. These have all been men who wanted to establish a world wide kingdom with themselves as the head of it. The anti-Christ is every spirit that refuses to acknowledge Jesus as coming in the flesh and, of course, all that is meant by that coming. That said, it is clear that the Antichrist, the one indwelt by the devil himself, will appear in the final seven years of history as we know it, and make his final attempt to thwart the eternal plan of God in the final 3 ½ years of that seven year period.
As already indicated, I have made it a point to study God’s word without reading too many extra-biblical books by brothers I really do respect as conservative, knowledgeable expositors of scripture. My reason is that I simply want to hear God’s voice speaking to me as I read. While I know He has spoken to great multitudes before me, I can’t know what He has said to them until I know what He has said to me. This is the reason I have made it a point to prayerfully read His book from cover to cover many times each year. My theology is almost entirely based on what God has shown me from His word as I have read it countless times in the past thirty-five years. I have had just enough exposure to outside sources (books and lectures of brothers in Christ), to be confident my exegesis of scripture is sound.
I make absolutely no claim of exclusivity. I don’t believe there is any person on the planet nor has there ever been who alone knows what God’s word means. If God has not revealed to anyone else what He has revealed to me, I immediately suspect that I do not yet understand fully what He means. That said, I must say I believe even as I am writing that this commentary has some insights I have not yet heard anyone else proclaim. I have attempted to make that point clear where such teaching exists. After thirty seven years of studying God’s word, He continues to grant me new insights each day into its meaning. Please pay close attention to the grammatical structure of all I have written. I have attempted to be faithful to observe appropriate literary English protocol in every jot and tittle.
The following is an example of the kind of irresponsible preaching I have encountered regarding the Revelation. Riding home from a symposium on the United States Constitution one day, I heard a radio pastor limping through an almost comical exposition of the eschatological events. He made some rather amateurish errors in both the dissemination of information and in dealing with objections posed by listeners who ask why we should bother studying the Revelation if we’re going to be raptured before the tribulation begins. This pastor’s first error was the way he dealt with that question. The question, all by itself, is the strongest argument for the post-tribulation view of the rapture I know. It is a most obvious question, and one to which I have never heard a pre-tribulation rapture theorist provide an adequate answer. This radio broadcaster did exactly what every pre-tribulation theorists has done that I have ever heard deal with that issue. He stated that while he understood how difficult it is to accept that apparent problem, we should still study the Revelation because it’s part of God’s word, so we must try to understand it.
I fear it’s far too easy today to teach things not supported in scripture because far too many churched people spend so little time in the scriptures themselves searching them to see if what their pastors are saying is true. I find it hard to believe that so few believers today spend enough time studying eschatology to understand this book of the Revelation. It’s disconcerting to me that mainstream Christianity has swallowed the pre-tribulation theory hook, line, and sinker. It, like the theory of evolution, is filled with false assumptions, blatant contradictions, countless unanswered questions, and literally dozens of scripture verses about the end times that are ignored entirely.
It is perfectly logical to conclude if we are going to be gone during the tribulation, there is no reason to study the book of Revelation. Its threefold purpose as detailed in Chapter 1:3, to bless the one who reads, hears, and heeds the words written in it, is wasted on anyone who isn’t going to be here to experience the devastation that is described in it. The truth is, when those events described in the book come upon the earth, God’s people will endure them because they will know He described them in detail hundreds of years before they came to pass, thus proving He is in complete control of them. The thought that this book will suddenly begin making sense to people who aren’t saved when the tribulation begins without God’s prophets, evangelists, preachers, and pastor/teachers around to explain it is absolutely preposterous.
I often wonder how my pre-tribulation brethren who are preaching this theory are going to deal with the immense problem they have created when they discover the tribulation has started and they and the multitudes they have been teaching the pre-tribulation rapture theory are still here. Of course, if they are right (the odds of which are zero and none), my point will be moot. If they are wrong, it seems rather obvious to me, they will have created one of the most astounding crises with which the church has ever had to deal. Try to imagine, if you will, the great multitudes who did not bother to learn what God has in store for us during the tribulation because they believed they were going to be gone. Try to imagine what will happen when the number of people who believed these men of God all of a sudden come to realize that, on this incredibly crucial issue, they were wrong. Try to imagine the chaos that could erupt in conservative churches all over this planet. Just try to imagine the number of church goers today who would then join the world church referred to in the Revelation as Babylon the great, the mother of harlots. At least that might explain why there will actually be true believers who have joined themselves unwittingly to this false world church. These are true believers who will be temporarily overwhelmed upon discovering their conservative pastors in whom they had placed so much confidence, were wrong. Their response will be to seek understanding from those leaders of the false church who will appear at this time to have a better grasp on end time prophecy than their conservative pre-tribulation counterparts.
The second thing this radio pastor said had to do with his misunderstanding that all nation of the United Nations have an equal vote in U.N. resolutions. He made the absurd claim that the U.N. was unequally represented because all nations who are members of it—even the tiny ones who have only recently joined—have an equal vote in its resolutions. That is simply untrue. Five nations of the original United Nations have absolute veto power over all U.N. resolutions. Russia, the United States, China, France, and Great Britain must all agree to any U.N. resolution or it is immediately rejected. All anyone has to do is Google the U.N. to acquire this information. Clearly, all nations to the U.N. do not have an equal say in the passing of its resolutions. If that were true, there would be no reason whatsoever for nations like the United States to be a member. To this pastor I heard on the radio (I did not ever hear his name), I would say, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.” (James 3:1) To claim to be a teacher of the word and to make such incredibly inept error in one’s teaching is, to say the least, unfortunate. I fear this brother will have much for which to give account when he stands in the presence of our Lord.
Friday, March 5, 2010
The Introduction and Benediction (Revelation 1)
Chapter 1
John was exiled about 90 AD to the isle of Patmos, an island just off the coast of Asia Minor (current day Turkey). He was exiled for refusing to quit preaching, in Jesus, the forgiveness of sins and the resurrection from the dead. This prophecy was given him either during Nero’s or Domitian’s reign over Rome. History tells us that Nero wanted to refurbish an entire section of Rome so he set it on fire. When he was confronted about this dastardly deed, he blamed the Christians and began an all out assault on any who claimed to be followers of Christ. It was during this time that Paul was rearrested and thrown in prison for the second time and executed (the time he wrote II Timothy), and Peter wrote II Peter. If you read those two books knowing the historical background they will take on new meaning for you. John is told by the angel the Revelation he was receiving was to show His bondservants “the things that are soon coming.” The Revelation was communicated by His angel (probably Gabriel) to John. Finally, John speaks by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and says, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear and those who heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.” I have high-lighted the three verbs in the pronounced blessing to make sure we realize this is a three part blessing. The Revelation is the only book in the bible that promises a blessing for the one who reads, hears, and heeds its contents. I have read it more times than I care to mention, written two novels based on it, written a previous exposition on it, and am writing this study, in an attempt to inform and forewarn those who are really in Christ about the things that are soon coming upon us. For some reason, great multitudes of professing believers seem to think this book is only for a chosen few to read and understand. Think about it. If that’s true, God promised this incredible blessing knowing only a select few believers would ever receive it.
Certainly that’s possible. But I seriously doubt that was God’s intention. Certainly, on a world wide scale, out of billions of souls, many are called, but only a few are chosen. Among the chosen however, I believe it is the perfect will of God that all of His church read, hear, and heed the magnificent truths contained in this Revelation of Jesus, communicated by His angel, to the Apostle John, for the time is near.
1. Whose revelation is this? 1:1a
2. Who gave it to Jesus Christ? 1:1b
3. To whom was it to be shown? 1:c
4. What was it going to show them? 1d
5. By whom was this revelation communicated? 1e
6. To whom was it shown? 1f
7. To what did he testify? 1:2
a.
b.
c.
8. What are the three parts of the promised blessing? 1:3
a.
b.
c.
9. According to verses 4 and 5, from whom was the revelation?
a. Him . . .
b. from the seven . . .
c. and from . . .
10. How is Jesus described in 1:5
11. According to the last part of 1:5, what has He done?
12. What has he made us to be? 1:6a
13. To whom has He made us to be a kingdom of Priests? 1:6b
14. From where will Jesus appear when He comes? 1:7a
15. Who will see Him when He comes? 1:7b
16. Why do you suppose all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him when He returns? 1:7c
17. Alpha is the first letter in the Greek alphabet; omega is the last. What, about God, does this represent? 1:8
John begins delivering the prophecy addressing the seven churches of Asia (called Asia Minor today, currently Turkey). He identifies the source of the message as the triune God, “. . . from Him who was, is, and is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.” (1:4, 5) He briefly identifies Jesus, His ministry, and the position of the saints (made to be a kingdom of priests). He then explains how Jesus will return to the earth when He does so. He makes sure to include that the Jews will recognize Him as the one they pierced. Upon seeing the one they rejected, those who were not annihilated at Armageddon will mourn the fact they didn’t believe those who spoke of His return during the tribulation. Upon realizing the futility of the past seven years rejecting His authority, they finally realize He has come to hold them accountable. When He returns to begin His one thousand year earthly reign, those who have refused to acknowledge Him as the rightful heir to the throne of David will bemoan that foolish decision. Like the millions in our prisons today who never thought they’d get caught for their dastardly deeds, those who finally realize the Judge has come will not be happy campers.
In verse 8, the returning King identifies Himself for those who don’t yet know His link to God the Father (the Jews who rejected Him at His first coming). He is “the Alpha and the Omega, the Lord God, who is and was and is to come, the Almighty” (cf. v. 4). Some suggest verse 8 is God the Father speaking. That’s possible. Later (22:12, 13), the reference of Himself as the Alpha and Omega is clearly the Son, so the cross reference either establishes both the Son and the Father call themselves the Alpha and Omega, or this is statement in verse 8 is the Son.
18. Why was John on the Isle of Patmos? 1:9
19. What does John mean when he says he was “in the
Spirit on the Lord’s day?”1:10a
20. What did he hear, and from where was it coming? 1:10b
21. What was the instruction he got about what he was seeing? 1:11
22. What did John see when he turned around? 1:12-16
23. What did he do when he saw Him? 1:17a
24. What did “Him” do? 1:17b
25. What did “Him” say? 1:17c-20
In verses 9-20 John explains how he got onto the isle of Patmos, what he saw, and from whom he got this revelation. The historical records of the church indicate he was exiled for preaching the gospel during the time of great persecutions against Christians by Titus Flavius Domitianius (Domitian). Eusebius tells us the emperor Marcus Cocceius Nerva (AD 32-98), released him from Patmos about 96 A.D, the year Domitian was assassinated. He stated he was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day when he received this vision. Clearly he was transported into heaven (in the Spirit) on the first day of the week (Sunday), the day the early church began celebrating as the Lord’s Day. He saw Jesus, who was in the middle of seven golden lamp stands. (see Exodus 25:37) These lampstands foresaw, in the tabernacle built by Moses, the coming of the church age almost three thousand years before they existed. John was told to write to the seven churches of Asia Minor (Turkey), Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardus, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. He saw Jesus as, like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to his feet, wearing a golden sash, head and hair white, eyes like a flame of fire, feet like burnished bronze aglow, voice like Niagara Falls. He had seven stars (the angels of the churches) in his right hand, a sharp two-edged sword in his mouth (the word of God), his face shone like the sun.
John fell on his face like a dead man. Jesus told him not to be afraid. He explained to John that the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches of Asian Minor and the seven lamp stands are the seven churches. He was told to write a message to each of them beginning with Ephesus. These churches have a threefold importance for us to today. First, they were literal churches which existed when John wrote the book of the Revelation. They received this letter from John, thus realizing what they had to do to get their act straight if they didn’t want the judgment of God to come upon them. Second, these churches represent the seven phases the church has undergone historically since John wrote these warnings. And third, they represent the condition churches all over the world are in today. Today, in what I believe is the final few years of the church age, the apostasy, heresy, idolatry, immorality these churches were told to deal with is still rampant in churches around the globe. I have been in churches in the United States alone whose leadership and teaching was just like that described in these letters to the churches of Asia Minor.
It’s time for us to wake up and let the Holy Spirit of God revive our luke-warm spirits, setting them ablaze to do that to which we have been called. Before evangelism will ever take its correct place in churches in this country, there will have to be revival in hearts of its members. Our apathy has reached epidemic proportions. The number of people in churches across America today who do little more than attend church once or twice a week is incalculable. I suspect it would boggle all of our minds if we were able to discover how many people who call themselves “Christian” get every ounce of theology they have from the pastor/teacher of their local church. I recently heard less than 35% of the pastors preaching from pulpits across America today believe in the verbal, plenary, inspiration of scripture. Actually, research indicates 1% more of these preachers’ congregations believe the bible was inspired. Is it any wonder the rate of moral decline in this country is rising exponentially?
John was exiled about 90 AD to the isle of Patmos, an island just off the coast of Asia Minor (current day Turkey). He was exiled for refusing to quit preaching, in Jesus, the forgiveness of sins and the resurrection from the dead. This prophecy was given him either during Nero’s or Domitian’s reign over Rome. History tells us that Nero wanted to refurbish an entire section of Rome so he set it on fire. When he was confronted about this dastardly deed, he blamed the Christians and began an all out assault on any who claimed to be followers of Christ. It was during this time that Paul was rearrested and thrown in prison for the second time and executed (the time he wrote II Timothy), and Peter wrote II Peter. If you read those two books knowing the historical background they will take on new meaning for you. John is told by the angel the Revelation he was receiving was to show His bondservants “the things that are soon coming.” The Revelation was communicated by His angel (probably Gabriel) to John. Finally, John speaks by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and says, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear and those who heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.” I have high-lighted the three verbs in the pronounced blessing to make sure we realize this is a three part blessing. The Revelation is the only book in the bible that promises a blessing for the one who reads, hears, and heeds its contents. I have read it more times than I care to mention, written two novels based on it, written a previous exposition on it, and am writing this study, in an attempt to inform and forewarn those who are really in Christ about the things that are soon coming upon us. For some reason, great multitudes of professing believers seem to think this book is only for a chosen few to read and understand. Think about it. If that’s true, God promised this incredible blessing knowing only a select few believers would ever receive it.
Certainly that’s possible. But I seriously doubt that was God’s intention. Certainly, on a world wide scale, out of billions of souls, many are called, but only a few are chosen. Among the chosen however, I believe it is the perfect will of God that all of His church read, hear, and heed the magnificent truths contained in this Revelation of Jesus, communicated by His angel, to the Apostle John, for the time is near.
1. Whose revelation is this? 1:1a
2. Who gave it to Jesus Christ? 1:1b
3. To whom was it to be shown? 1:c
4. What was it going to show them? 1d
5. By whom was this revelation communicated? 1e
6. To whom was it shown? 1f
7. To what did he testify? 1:2
a.
b.
c.
8. What are the three parts of the promised blessing? 1:3
a.
b.
c.
9. According to verses 4 and 5, from whom was the revelation?
a. Him . . .
b. from the seven . . .
c. and from . . .
10. How is Jesus described in 1:5
11. According to the last part of 1:5, what has He done?
12. What has he made us to be? 1:6a
13. To whom has He made us to be a kingdom of Priests? 1:6b
14. From where will Jesus appear when He comes? 1:7a
15. Who will see Him when He comes? 1:7b
16. Why do you suppose all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him when He returns? 1:7c
17. Alpha is the first letter in the Greek alphabet; omega is the last. What, about God, does this represent? 1:8
John begins delivering the prophecy addressing the seven churches of Asia (called Asia Minor today, currently Turkey). He identifies the source of the message as the triune God, “. . . from Him who was, is, and is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.” (1:4, 5) He briefly identifies Jesus, His ministry, and the position of the saints (made to be a kingdom of priests). He then explains how Jesus will return to the earth when He does so. He makes sure to include that the Jews will recognize Him as the one they pierced. Upon seeing the one they rejected, those who were not annihilated at Armageddon will mourn the fact they didn’t believe those who spoke of His return during the tribulation. Upon realizing the futility of the past seven years rejecting His authority, they finally realize He has come to hold them accountable. When He returns to begin His one thousand year earthly reign, those who have refused to acknowledge Him as the rightful heir to the throne of David will bemoan that foolish decision. Like the millions in our prisons today who never thought they’d get caught for their dastardly deeds, those who finally realize the Judge has come will not be happy campers.
In verse 8, the returning King identifies Himself for those who don’t yet know His link to God the Father (the Jews who rejected Him at His first coming). He is “the Alpha and the Omega, the Lord God, who is and was and is to come, the Almighty” (cf. v. 4). Some suggest verse 8 is God the Father speaking. That’s possible. Later (22:12, 13), the reference of Himself as the Alpha and Omega is clearly the Son, so the cross reference either establishes both the Son and the Father call themselves the Alpha and Omega, or this is statement in verse 8 is the Son.
18. Why was John on the Isle of Patmos? 1:9
19. What does John mean when he says he was “in the
Spirit on the Lord’s day?”1:10a
20. What did he hear, and from where was it coming? 1:10b
21. What was the instruction he got about what he was seeing? 1:11
22. What did John see when he turned around? 1:12-16
23. What did he do when he saw Him? 1:17a
24. What did “Him” do? 1:17b
25. What did “Him” say? 1:17c-20
In verses 9-20 John explains how he got onto the isle of Patmos, what he saw, and from whom he got this revelation. The historical records of the church indicate he was exiled for preaching the gospel during the time of great persecutions against Christians by Titus Flavius Domitianius (Domitian). Eusebius tells us the emperor Marcus Cocceius Nerva (AD 32-98), released him from Patmos about 96 A.D, the year Domitian was assassinated. He stated he was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day when he received this vision. Clearly he was transported into heaven (in the Spirit) on the first day of the week (Sunday), the day the early church began celebrating as the Lord’s Day. He saw Jesus, who was in the middle of seven golden lamp stands. (see Exodus 25:37) These lampstands foresaw, in the tabernacle built by Moses, the coming of the church age almost three thousand years before they existed. John was told to write to the seven churches of Asia Minor (Turkey), Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardus, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. He saw Jesus as, like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to his feet, wearing a golden sash, head and hair white, eyes like a flame of fire, feet like burnished bronze aglow, voice like Niagara Falls. He had seven stars (the angels of the churches) in his right hand, a sharp two-edged sword in his mouth (the word of God), his face shone like the sun.
John fell on his face like a dead man. Jesus told him not to be afraid. He explained to John that the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches of Asian Minor and the seven lamp stands are the seven churches. He was told to write a message to each of them beginning with Ephesus. These churches have a threefold importance for us to today. First, they were literal churches which existed when John wrote the book of the Revelation. They received this letter from John, thus realizing what they had to do to get their act straight if they didn’t want the judgment of God to come upon them. Second, these churches represent the seven phases the church has undergone historically since John wrote these warnings. And third, they represent the condition churches all over the world are in today. Today, in what I believe is the final few years of the church age, the apostasy, heresy, idolatry, immorality these churches were told to deal with is still rampant in churches around the globe. I have been in churches in the United States alone whose leadership and teaching was just like that described in these letters to the churches of Asia Minor.
It’s time for us to wake up and let the Holy Spirit of God revive our luke-warm spirits, setting them ablaze to do that to which we have been called. Before evangelism will ever take its correct place in churches in this country, there will have to be revival in hearts of its members. Our apathy has reached epidemic proportions. The number of people in churches across America today who do little more than attend church once or twice a week is incalculable. I suspect it would boggle all of our minds if we were able to discover how many people who call themselves “Christian” get every ounce of theology they have from the pastor/teacher of their local church. I recently heard less than 35% of the pastors preaching from pulpits across America today believe in the verbal, plenary, inspiration of scripture. Actually, research indicates 1% more of these preachers’ congregations believe the bible was inspired. Is it any wonder the rate of moral decline in this country is rising exponentially?
Letters to the Churches (Revelation 2 and 3)
Chapter 2
As I previously indicated, these seven churches were actual churches which existed at the time John wrote the Revelation. There is no implicit or explicit biblical justification for believing otherwise. I will however focus on the secondary fulfillment of this prophecy to the churches. As I already suggested, all of the problems they faced, false teaching, false believers, idolatry, lusts of the flesh, and immorality, are problems we still face today. What we have perceived to be our greatest blessing, the freedom to worship without government interference, has become the church’s Achilles Heel. Lack of persecution has made us soft and lackadaisical.
We have become like the lukewarm church of Laodicea. Actually, calling us luke warm would probably be exaggerating the temperature of our commitment. As a nation that claims to be Christian, it seems to me that most churches (local bodies of believers) in America are overwhelmingly apathetic. I engage people in conversation regularly, who know very little about Jesus and even less about the gospel. And most of those who profess to know Him aren’t aware we are a spiritual battle in America for the souls of our children in our public schools.
I live in a small rural community of about 5,000 residents in Montana. I teach high school history. Every year, when I begin my history classes we read from a textbook that assumes we all believe planet earth has been around for billions of years. Recently, I wrote a letter to the editor of our local paper about the absurdity of such an approach to education. I indicated our textbooks are indoctrinating our children, not educating them. I pointed out that teachers in public education have the obligation to present both the Creation Theory alongside of the Theory of Evolution as explanations for the existence of man. I explained they are both theories and the whole point of education was to present both sides of an argument when there is more than one possibility.
A local resident responded, questioning both my veracity and my sanity. I responded to his response, expressing my dismay that he would attack me personally without bothering to address the point in question. One person, from the entire community, mention that he appreciated my willingness to defend my faith. Evolution is most assuredly a doctrine; and it is also most assuredly the doctrine of demons. It’s a doctrine, the main goal of which is to discredit the doctrine of creation. I have thirty-five or forty Christian friends in this community. Out of all of them, only one commented on the editorials. I find it disconcerting to realize that the majority of people who call themselves Christians in America are either apathetic or they are afraid to speak out against this continuous onslaught by the devil and his unholy angels against God and His word. I t seems most churches in America are filled with Laodiceans. But let’s begin the church at Ephesus.
To the Church at Ephesus
Jesus begins His address to the church at Ephesus describing Himself as, “the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the one who walks among the seven golden lampstands.” It is worth noting that all of these churches were located in what is today a Muslim nation, Turkey. Paul had a special place in heart for the church in Ephesus. In Acts 19 we read of his encounter with the first group of disciples in Ephesus. These disciples had heard John’s teaching, but had not realized that Jesus had actually come, lived a sinless life, died for the sins of mankind, resurrected from the dead, and had ascended into heaven. When Paul clarified the rest of the gospel for them, they were immediately baptized in the name of Jesus, Paul laid hands on them, and they began speaking in tongues, thus verifying his apostolic authority (Acts 19:6).
Contrary to what some preach, Acts 19:6 doesn’t support the entirely false doctrine that all believers should have the gift of tongues. It was clearly and simply a testimony to Paul’s apostolic authority. It means nothing more than that. Those who would distort the scriptures interpret this verse with no concern for its context. I deal thoroughly with the issue in book on the spiritual gifts. It’s available for anyone who wants to learn more about the subject.
It was in Ephesus that Paul took those disciples out of the local synagogue into the school of Tyrannus where he taught them for two years (Acts 19:9). It was in Ephesus that the seven sons of Sceva attempted to mimic Paul by casting out a demon (Acts 19:13-16). The demon jumped Sceva’s sons, stripped them naked, and caused them to flee the house naked. It was in Ephesus that books of sorcery, worth fifty thousand pieces of silver (approximately fifty thousand day’s wages), were burned (Acts 19:19). The first letter to Timothy was written to him while he was pastoring churches in Ephesus (I Tim. 1:3). It’s difficult to imagine a group of born-again believers sitting under the teaching of the Apostle Paul would lose their first love. Yet the list of their accomplishments is most impressive.
1. How does Jesus describe himself to the church at Ephesus? 2:1
2. List the positive things that were going on at Ephesus. 2:2, 3, 6
3. What does Jesus have against the Ephesian church? 2:4
4. What three things does Jesus tell the Ephesians they must do to resolve their problem? 2:5a
a.
b.
c.
5. What does He promise to do if they don’t heed His warning? 2:5b
6. What were Jesus final words to the church at Ephesus? 2:7 (see also 22:1, 2)
The church at Ephesus was filled with people who toiled and persevered; they didn’t tolerate evil men; they tested those who called themselves apostles. They endured. But they had lost their first love. They no longer adored the One who died to set them free. They forgot they were redeemed sinners who were once doomed and determined to spend eternity in hell. They’d forgotten God saved them from the law of sin and death. Though they hated the deeds of the Nicolaitans (they despised immorality and wickedness), they needed to return to their first love, Jesus. I Corinthians 13 comes to mind where we are told without love nothing we do is of any eternal significance.
Maybe some of us need to take a moment and think about what life was like before Christ. Sometimes we get caught up in lits many challenges and forget what’s really important. Sometimes our love for Jesus takes a back seat to our lust for life. I recall a story about a man who was told he needed heart bypass surgery that would cost $50,000. He replied, “Do you really think I’d pay $50,000 for you to keep me out of heaven for a few more years?” Perhaps our love for Jesus can be measured by how much we’d be willing to pay to keep us out of heaven.
To the Church at Smyrna
I have been in churches that were very much like the Smyrnan church. They are filled with poor people who are rich in faith. They are also inhabited by those who are religious fanatics but spiritually bankrupt (they think they are spiritual Jews, but they are not). These foolish fanatics were Satan’s pawns (they were a synagogue of Satan). This church, which was ruled by spiritually bankrupt ideologues, had a few in it who were the faithful and true. Those few were admonished to take courage, even though they would soon experience imprisonment for a while, “ten days”. This crew of corrupt church leaders were admonished to repent. Jesus warned that He would make war with them using the matchless word of God to defeat their doctrine of immorality and idolatry. He ended His encouragement to the faithful in Smyrna with the words, “He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.” (Rev. 2:11) This second death, of course, is the eternal death that will be experienced by those false church leaders and members of congregations who have spent decades going to church pretending to be saved.
7. How did Jesus describe himself to the church at Smyrna?
8. List Smyrna’ accomplishments. 2:9
9. What did Jesus call the false Jews? 2:9
10. What does Jesus warn the faithful followers of Christ at Smyrna were going to have to endure? 2:10
11. What was His promise to those who were faithful until death? 2:10
12. What were Jesus’ final words to the church at Smyrna? 2:11 (see also Rev. 20:4-6)
This admonition to the leaders of the church at Smyrna is a solemn warning to church leaders today who are willing to sacrifice the purity of God’s word for the approval of men (James 3:1). I have personally spoken to countless pastors and elders who readily admitted they were willing to compromise God’s word rather than see members of the congregation leave. One actually had to audacity to suggest I’d understand the need to compromise when I became more spiritually mature. He was part of that 35% of pastors in America who don’t believe in the verbal plenary inspiration of scripture. He was more interested in filling pews with church members who tithed than building warriors who could storm the gates of hell and snatch lost souls from the flames.
Notice, in Smyrna God didn’t bother telling those who were a synagogue of Satan to repent. It seems those teachers had stepped over the line. They would find no room for repentance (Heb. 6:6; 12:17). Jesus’ stern warning to teachers comes again in His words as recorded in Luke 17:1, 2,
“Indeed, it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.”
Beloved, we can’t afford compromise the clear teachings of scripture. Those issues about which there is no clear teaching of scripture (i.e., dancing) are certainly issues that require tolerance for differences in understanding and application. But by their very nature, issues that are clearly taught in scripture divide the sheep from the goats (Matt. 25:33). The clear implication of verse 11 is that these compromisers (liars) will be seriously hurt (they will spend eternity in hell) by the second death. Both those who follow false doctrine and those who teach it will spend eternity in hell. Pesonally, I’m convinced those who preach it will have an especially dismal place to spend eternity. They’ll have the hellist place in hell to spend eternity. I believe there is an especially disgusting place in hell reserved for those who teach false doctrine and especially those who claim to be preachers of the word who refuse to teach the whole counsel of God. Their reward will be according to their deeds. I believe they’ll find themselves in the deepest most despicable recesses of the eternal lake of fire for all of forever.
To the Church at Pergamum
I have also been in churches like the one in Pergamum, which, like the Ephesian church, preached the doctrine of Balaam. Balak, the king of the Midianites (Numbers 22-24), tried to get Balaam—a non-Jewish prophet, the son of Beor at Pethor—to curse 600,000 Hebrew warriors as they camped beside his kingdom. The story is a little hard to follow. God tells Balaam not to go with Balak’s messengers, but then tells him to go. On the way, He nearly kills Balaam. Balaam told Balak he couldn’t curse those God blessed (Israel) We don’t discover until we get to the New Testament this Gentile prophet helped Balak plan a strategy that would get Israel to commit lewd acts against the revealed will of God. Realizing he couldn’t curse those whom God blessed, he told Balak they could get Israel to be a curse unto themselves if he could get them to eat unclean food and commit acts of immorality with the Midianite women (II Pet. 2:15; Jude 1:11; Rev. 2:14). While we don’t sacrifice food to idols in America in the strictest sense, there are many similar ideas inherent in the act that are part of our culture (see explanation page 23 re: Jezebel). I’ve known several churches that had members living together out of wedlock whose pastors avoided teaching on the topic of morality for fear of offending them.
When pastors know members of their congregation are indeed practicing any kind of immoral act and refuse to confront them as instructed by Paul in I Corinthians 5 and Jesus in Matthew 18:15-20, they are, by implication, teaching that immorality is not an offense against God.
13. How does Jesus describe himself to the church at Pergamum? 2:8
14. What were their accomplishments? 2:13
15. What things did they need to fix? 2:15
16. What was the solution to their problems? 2:16
17. What did Jesus warn them He was going to do if they failed to heed His warning? 2:16b
18. What were Jesus’ final words to the church at Pergamum? 2:17
The church at Pergamos was in the very heart of Satan’s kingdom. It was probably very much like our central city churches in America which are fighting the good fight for the souls of lost creatures. While they were holding fast to the doctrine of God in one sense, in another, they, like the church of Smyrna, had those in their midst who were teaching the doctrine of immorality and idol worship. Like some contemporary televangelists preachers who have been caught up in their own immorality, those leaders preach holiness while living unholiness. They preached the doctrine of slavery to Jesus while worshipping the idols of lust, immorality, and wealth. And it appears these leaders of the church in Pergamum had sufficient control over the local fellowship that church discipline as defined in I Corinthians 5 and Matthew 18 was out of the question. Therefore, those who were faithful to the word were promised the hidden treasure of manna, a white stone, and a new name, the significance of which only its recipients would comprehend.
To the Church at Thyatira
I have been in corrupt churches like the one in Thyatira. It’s difficult to imagine a church with the long list of accomplishments as described in these verses would tolerate a Jezebel, but that’s exactly what this one did. Just try to imagine you’re the visitor in one of these churches. You go to your first adult Sunday school class and have an incredible time of fellowship and learning from a senior citizen who seems to love God with all his heart and to knows His word well. People share experiences where they were faithful through trials and tribulations and you’re even more impressed. You learn the church has a pantry they use to feed the poor and downtrodden. Wow! You think this just might be the church you’ve been looking for all your life. Sunday school ends, you go into the main sanctuary for church and there she sits. The senior pastor gets up and she begins to preach. Jezebel has entered the room.
19. How does Jesus describe himself to the church at Thyatira: 2:18
20. List her accomplishments? 2:19
21. What did they need to fix? 2:20
22. Did Jesus kill Jezebel immediately? 2:21a
23. Did Jezebel respond to her warning? 2:21b
24. What did Jesus say He was going to do to for her failure to repent? 2:22a, 23
25. What did He threaten to do to her bedfellows unless they repented? 2:22c
26. What was the long term purpose of Jesus’ punishment of Jezebel? 2:23b
27. What was Jesus’ promise to those who did not abide in Jezebel’s teaching? 2:24-28
25. What were Jesus final words to the church at Thyatira? 2:29
Jesus had numerous praises for this church. He knew of her deeds, love, faith, service, and perseverance. He even noted that her current deeds were greater than when they began the church in Thyatira. Her problem was that she tolerated the false prophetess, Jezebel, who taught heresy. This woman Jezebel taught two false doctrines rampant in many of today’s churches: 1. Immorality, as strange as it may seem, is alive and well in many of today’s churches. The number of pastors, elders, and deacons who have been divorced and remarried is reaching epidemic proportions. And the number who are having adulterous affairs with members of their congregations is embarrassing. One would be too many, but it seems the rising accounts of unfaithful spouses in pastors households knows no bounds.
Jesus told his listeners all divorce is repugnant to God (Matt. 19:8). Under no circumstance does He define it as a good thing. There are three circumstances however, under which God accounts the separation legitimate: 1. Adultery; 2. desertion by an unbeliever; 3. death.
Adultery (Matt. 5:32; Mark 10:11)
In Matthew 5:32 and Mark 10:11 Jesus makes it clear the sin for which God has clearly stated it is acceptable for the offended believer to divorce the offending spouse is adultery. I believe Ephesians 5:22-33 and I Corinthians 6:18 will help us understand why this is so. Ephesians 5 tells us that the relationship between the husband and wife is a type of the relationship between Christ and His church. I Corinthians 6 tells us that immorality is the dumbest sin of all sin. These two biblical truths place adultery at the top of God’s list of disgusting sins. He doesn’t want His children to be a party to such unholiness, so He tells them they can divorce themselves from one who has breached the covenant of trust he made when they were united in Christ.
There are some who teach it is not essential one to divorce an adulterous spouse. Certainly there is ample evidence to suggest adultery can be forgiven and the marriage covenant continued. My counsel goes something like this: I can forgive the act without continuing in the relationship with the one who committed it. I believe adultery so taints a relationship that both parties are better served by severing the ties of the marriage covenant. I don’t believe in our human bodies and with our human minds we can ever function effectively as a believer of the gospel once such an act has been perpetrated against us. If you believe otherwise, I am sure you have God’s blessing to do whatever He leads you to do. If children are involved, it complicates the situation even more. Weighing the effect the divorce will have on them against the affect of continuing to live with the adulterous spouse is an important consideration. Even the age of the children may determine whether or not one chooses to stay married to the adulterer. The pain that goes with being so betrayed is something that takes most people years to overcome, though a person can begin healing immediately when God’s abundant grace and mercy leads the way.
Desertion by an Unbeliever (I Cor. 7:10-16)
This one is interesting. God knew there would be those who would be converted whose spouses would not. He also knew the converted spouse would always be in a position to bring the unbeliever into a covenant relationship with Him as a result of the believer’s testimony in that relationship. Thus, as long as the unbeliever doesn’t choose to leave the relationship, the believer is instructed to remain. If the unbeliever leaves, the believer is instructed he or she no longer has the responsibility to honor the covenanted vows of marriage. The reason is blatantly obvious. The believer has no control over the life of the unbeliever who chooses to leave a relationship. Thus, through no fault of his/her own, the relationship ends. In that instance, the believer is told he/she is free to remarry as long as he/she marries a believer.
It’s difficult to comprehend the number of people I’ve personally known whose lives have been destroyed by multiple marriages. I’ve known women who have had four or five children and some of them don’t even know for sure who the father is of some of them. I’ve known men who made good money but lived like paupers because they had to pay most of what they earned on alimony and child support. The consequences of the “divorce on demand” philosophy we have fathered in America has wreaked havoc on family life. I strongly suspect the number of dysfunctional families far outnumbers traditional, nourishing, loving two parent homes, even among members of the local church. If we don’t get a handle on the problem in the local church, I fear it will eventually be our undoing. It appears America is coming apart at the seams. Therefore, I reiterate, unless the unbeliever leaves, the believer is commanded to remain in the relationship.
Death (I Cor. 7:39; Rom. 7:1-3)
While this one should be obvious, for some it isn’t. There are some who pine for decades over the loss of a loved one. Such pining is tragic, unbiblical, and unproductive. When a Christian dies, he goes to be with the Lord. That should be a cause for celebration for those left behind. It’s both logical and biblical for the one left behind to grieve for a few weeks, maybe even a few months. Beyond that, it’s counter productive for one to continue to grieve the loss of a loved one. Such grief is usually the result of self-centered egotism that is only heightened by the believer’s loss of a loved one. Life does not end for anyone who still breathes when a loved one goes to be with our heavenly Father. If your spouse dies and you are still at an age when your sexual drives need to be satisfied, you definitely should remarry. I pray if I die before my beloved wife, she celebrates my departure and moves on with her life. She’s already nearly sixty, so whether or not she would choose to remarry is certainly not a mandate. It would be strange indeed for her to mourn my physical death for long while I am in heaven rejoicing with Jesus.
Immorality covers everything from masturbation to adultery. Masturbation, watching triple X rated movies, homosexuality, lesbians, pre-marital sex even by those who vow they are in love, prostitutes, and whores all fit into this category. Please forgive my blunt use of terms, but we have so perverted bible terminology it is nearly impossible to make the appropriate connection sometimes. Masturbation is unbiblical for two reasons: 1. it requires the one doing it to visualize himself with an unknown counterpart having sex with that person for the one masturbating to reach the desired level of sexual gratification. 2. It is self-gratification. Sex, as ordained by God is only acceptable when it is engaged by a man and a woman who have taken the vows of marriage and whose goal is to bring pleasure to the other person (Matt. 5:28; I Thes. 4:3-8; I Cor. 7:1-5).
Homosexuality is a blatant disregard for God’s intended role for sex. His word makes it abundantly clear in Romans 1:27 that both homosexuals and lesbians are committing indecent acts for which they will burn in hell if they do not repent (see also Gal. 5:19, 20). Homosexuality is not an alternative lifestyle; it is a direct affront to the holiness of God. It is a perversion of all that is holy. It is an act that will send those who practice it into eternal hellfire and damnation.
Any form of pre-marital sex is prohibited in scripture. If you are a woman of God reading this, do not allow your male friend to convince you your love for him hinges on whether or not you have sex with him before you are married. If that’s true, your love for one another is incredibly shallow. God calls you to save yourself for that one person He has chosen to share your love. When he comes along, you’ll have no trouble recognizing him. He’ll not pressure you into dishonoring your body so he can experience a fleeting moment of ecstasy.
The number of church goers who are living together out of wedlock is staggering. In 1998 one of the most respected televangelist preachers of conservative churches in America got divorced. He told his congregation before the divorce he would resign his position if he wasn’t able to fix his marriage. When the divorce was final he, all of a sudden, had a vision. He then told his congregation that God had spoken to him in that vision and told him He would move him to another church when He was good and ready. Apparently, not wishing to argue with God, the congregation allowed him to remain on as the senior pastor.
I suggest any pastor, elder, or brother in Christ who knows such a condition exists and doesn’t address it as instructed in Matthew 18 and I Corinthians 5 is teaching by example that immorality is acceptable. And it seems logical and biblical any pastor who has gone through a divorce needs to step back from full time ministry for a time of deep reflection, prayer, and re-evaluation of his calling. A divorce for desertion or adultery shouldn’t disqualify him for pastoral ministry; but it does take a period (sometimes long, sometimes short) of spiritual rehabilitation before a man who experiences it should be allowed to resume pastoral duties.
The reference to eating food sacrificed to idols, was a literal reference in its original context. I suggest for us today it could include anything one indulges daily that feeds his body, soul, and spirit in such a way as to make a separation between himself and God. For example, the number of men in America who feed their souls overwhelming doses of football for at least six months of the year is ever increasing. NASCAR, the NBA, the NHL, boxing, wrestling, and professional baseball are the religions of choice for millions of Americans who also profess to be followers of Christ. Most are faithful church goers until the season of their favorite sport rolls around. Recently, I heard a highly respected conservative televangelist, confess on national television and in front of some three or four thousand members of his church that he’s addicted to Chicago Bulls basketball. He said it in such a light hearted fashion it made most of his audience laugh. God forgive us for thinking such foolishness is the least bit comical.
We in America are eating food sacrificed to idols in this figurative sense in epic proportions today; and the truly sad thing is our universal refusal to understand why so many of these events are often scheduled on Sunday mornings. We prefer to call this addiction to sports stress relief, relaxation, or a little time for ourselves. Of course all of these labels are created to appease the minds of those who don’t wish to call them sin. Excuses are always worth what you pay for them. He who is a liar from the beginning has made this one so very palatable. Few sports are inherently evil, but spending more than a very occasional amount of time once in while watching them is at best bad stewardship of one’s time; and we’re supposed to be “redeeming the time because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16; Col. 4:5). Furthermore, missing the opportunity to grow in the faith or minister one’s gift to watch 30 seconds of a sporting event is most assuredly a complete waste of time. When they began paying twenty-two year old boys millions of dollars to play a game, I figured that one out without any help. Gorging oneself on hours of any professional sport is very much like the sin of eating food sacrificed to idols.
It seems when a person spends inordinate amount of time viewing or participating in sports, his love for Jesus begins growing cold (Is. 59:1-3). He discovers the power and joy he once had fellowshipping with God in his local church begins waning. After an extended period of such foolishness, one’s love for Jesus will grow cold; he’ll find himself glibly following the ritual of occasional church attendance, feigned love for the brethren, praying over meals, saying an occasional, amen at something the preacher says, and he may even take the opportunity to teach a class for a few Sunday mornings or lead a connections group once a week in someone’s home.
I knew a man who regularly missed church during the high school girl’s basketball state playoffs. He had committed himself to lead music in his local church, but during the playoffs, he was often gone. By attending those games and allowing his children to play in them, he was inadvertently teaching them church attendance wasn’t as important as basketball playoffs. One of two things was true in that brother’s life. Either the preaching and teaching in his local church was so lackluster and powerless that he really believed he wasn’t missing much, or his confession of faith was sorely lacking in substance.
I’ve taught bible studies for decades and have discovered that few who attend them are willing to spend any time at all during the week preparing for the coming study. As a teacher in the public school system, I expected teens to treat public education with such disdain. We seldom had anything significant to teach them, so it’s little wonder the average teenaged boy or girl doesn’t take what we teach seriously. But, when one who professes to be a Christian, doesn’t think it’s important to study a given lesson daily in preparation for class, I have to wonder if that brother has any kind of relationship with Jesus to begin with.
Jesus describes four different reactions people have to the gospel (Matt. 13). There are some who are compared to the rocky soil, a metaphor of the one who receives the word with joy, but has no firm root, so that when the temptations of the world come along, he easily yields to them and falls away from the pure love and doctrine of Christ. While his body is at most of those events in the life of the church that make him appear to be saved, he continually gorges himself with food sacrificed to idols. And those who don’t repent will suffer the same fate as Jezebel. They will be thrown onto a bed of sickness and into a time of great tribulation. If you are one who has been deceived into thinking a few hours a week feeding your soul with sports is harmless, I challenge you to start spending equal time each week studying to show yourself approved unto God. It’s not likely His eternal kingdom will be filled with many who gorged themselves with food sacrificed to idols. Jesus won’t play second fiddle to the NFL, NASCAR, the NBA, or any other god.
God promises to the members of the Thyatiran Church that each of them will receive from Him according to their deeds. Those who hold fast until He comes, he who overcomes and keeps His deeds until the end, will receive authority over the nations to rule them with a rod of iron. The promise of the morning star is a promise that the one who endures will finally know Jesus in all His fullness at that time. He is the bright and morning star (cf. Rev. 22:16 with II Peter 1:19).
To the Church at Sardis
In chapter 3 John addresses the last three churches, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. Of course, I trust everyone realizes there were no chapter divisions in the original writings. If it helps you remember these churches in the order they are addressed I use the letters E S P T S P L to help me remember them. I just find grouping the first letters of each church in groups of three makes them easier to remember.
God’s reprimand of the church at Sardis is rather pointed.
1. How does Jesus describe himself? 3:1a
2. What are their deeds? 3:1b
3. What is Jesus’ warning? 3:2, 3
4. What is the only redeeming words Jesus has to Say about this church? 3:4
5. What does “they have not soiled their garments” mean?
6. What does “they will walk with me in white,” mean?
7. What three promises does Jesus make to those who overcome? 3:5
a.
b.
c.
8. What are Jesus’ final words to the church at Sardis? 3:6
He knows this church has a reputation it is alive when in actuality it is dead. He warns them to wake up and strengthen what remains, remember what they have received and heard and keep it. It is clear the church at Sardis had, at one time, received good teaching. Verse 4 indicates some were still abiding in that teaching. Those received the promise that they will walk with Jesus in white, for they are worthy. The phrase “he who overcomes” is used numerous times in scripture. It is a reference to those who have made a profession of faith that was genuine. All of scripture makes it abundantly clear that anyone who does not overcome only fails to do so because the Holy Spirit has never regenerated his dead spirit, thus they have no power to overcome.
This church was like the hundreds in America today which are packed with healthy, wealthy, and prosperous men and women who, like the Pharisees to whom Jesus spoke, appear to be religious, but inwardly they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness (cf. Matt. 23:27, 28). Each week the pastors of these infamous churches make sure to have famous personalities entertain their congregations before they deliver sermons filled with possibility thinking and the, I’m okay, your okay psycho-babble begun by Dr. Robert Schuler and Norman Vincent Peal. It seems most of these preachers of the health, wealth, and prosperity doctrine have memorized only one verse in their entire lives which they quote without regard to its context. Of course, it never occurs to these wolves in sheep’s clothing to know the context of a verse. One isn’t concerned about such things when he is purposefully using God’s word to mislead the sheep. These would be prophets quote Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” as if it is a promise from God to obtain health, wealth, and prosperity. In actuality, it is a proclamation by Paul that in spite of the incredible trials, tribulations, and misery he has had to face, he is standing firm in the gospel because God has strengthened him to do so. He has learned to live in poverty, pain, anguish, and suffering with joy in his heart because God strengthens him. This biblical truth is the antithesis of what the health, wealth, and prosperity preachers would like the whore mongering goats they call sheep to believe.
And the reason it is so important for them to get their disciples to believe such foolishness is that they can then convince these fools all they have to do is give money to their ministries and God will enable them to “do all things” (i.e., get rich) as a reward for their faithfulness. The real tragedy is that occasionally one of their followers does actually get rich, which only serves to perpetuate the lie. I sometimes wonder how many of the famous people they have entertain their goats even care or know how utterly ridiculous they appear as they stand beside these wolves in sheep’s clothing talking of how God has blessed them so.
Beloved, if you are a follower of any preacher who has convinced you God wants you healthy, wealthy, and prosperous, run as fast as your feet can carry you out of that church to one that is preaching that we must bear our cross daily if we wish to be a follower of Jesus. We must die to the lusts of the flesh each and every moment of this life before we can live to Christ. That is the gospel preached by Jesus, Peter, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Jude, James, and the writer of Hebrews. It is not a gospel of prosperity; it is a gospel of self-sacrifice and humility. And such a life can only be lived by one who is indwelt and empowered by the Holy Spirit of God almighty.
Dying to the self daily does not necessarily mean one will have to suffer physically, emotionally, or economically each and every day he follows Christ. Paul makes it clear he experienced times when he had more than enough to meet his own personal needs and he also experienced times when he didn’t have the bare necessities (Phil. 4:11, 12). The point is that a believer doesn’t need to make sure he is in a place where he suffers for Christ. Jesus has not called any of us to take the vows of a nun or a priest of the Catholic Church. He has not called anyone to go to a convent to live a life separated physically from the world. As a matter of biblical fact, Paul teaches the exact opposite of that idea in I Corinthians 5:9-11. It is categorically absurd to think that anyone can be a warrior for Christ while locked up in a place where he has no contact with the outside world. We can’t be lights shining in the darkness if we are hiding under a table.
I counsel inmates at the local county lockup facility on a regular basis who think what they need to do when they get out of jail is to move to some other city where they will not have to deal with the people they hung around with who helped them get into trouble in the first place. I suppose there are times when such a move is warranted, but I suggest that unless the prior acquaintance poses a physical threat to one’s health, the counselee needs to seriously consider God’s promises as found in places like I Corinthians 10:13,
“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”
It isn’t the temptation that gets anyone into trouble; it is when one yields to that temptation, to do something he knows is displeasing to God that he falls into sin. And beloved, temptation is present in every nook and cranny of every city, suburb, or podunk town in the world. If a woman is being physically abused by her husband, it might well be necessary for her to move to an area where he can’t find her so he can’t physically abuse her. God may choose to protect her from such a threat right where she stands, but he might also choose to move her to another location. He spoke to Jacob and told him to move back home because his father-in-law meant to do him harm (Gen. 31).
I think great wealth is usually more of a curse than a blessing. It is the rare man or woman who can live meekly when he makes over a million dollars a year. Such people are rarely rich in faith. Jesus taught on more than one occasion that those who live in luxury during this life will not do so in the life to come (Luke 16:25). In America, I think we have lost sight of what true poverty is. The overwhelming majority of the world’s population would be thrilled to live at the economic level we have labeled poverty in this country. I’m actually embarrassed when a missionary writes me personally and asks for a $50 donation to help him meet his minimal needs for a rather extended period of time. I can easily spend $50 on one meal at a local restaurant. Beloved, we need to wake up in America and smell the burning souls of sinners who are going to continue burning for all eternity if we don’t reassess our priorities and begin living sacrificial lives. There is little point in sharing with others about the atoning work and sacrifice of Christ on the cross for the sins of mankind while we continue living self-indulgent lives (James 2:14-16).
To the Church at Philadelphia
The Philadelphian church (3:7-13) is the second church that is lauded as faithful in all things. Jesus had nothing corrective to say to the church at Smyrna; and he has nothing corrective to say to this church at Philadelphia.
9. How does Jesus describe himself? 3:7
10. What is Jesus putting before the Philadelphian church? 3:8a Discuss what “the open door mean.” cf with opening comment to this church
11. What are the Philadelphian church’s good deeds? 3:8b
a.
b.
c.
Once again we see this reference to those who are a “synagogue of Satan.” 3:9a cf. 2:9
11. What is Jesus going to do to those liars? 3:9b
12. What special promise did Jesus make to the Philadelphians, and why? 3:10
13. What were Jesus parting promises to the church at Philadelphia? 3:11-13
It is interesting to note that Jesus knows her deeds (II Chron. 16:9; Heb 5:15; 12:1, 2; I Pet. 3:10-12). He acknowledged that this church was relatively powerless. It is also noteworthy that He praised her for keeping His word, and not denying His name. It is especially interesting to me that Jesus did not praise this church because it was overflowing with superstars from Hollywood or some professional sport jock. Not even one gladiator is mentioned. This church’s commendation comes from the simple fact that she is keeping the word and not denying His name. God’s warning to any pastor/teacher who may be reading this is that you keep the word and do not deny His name. Nothing you do as a pastor/teacher is more important than that you preach and teach God’s word faithfully and in its entirety. Do not allow anyone to suggest you ignore any part of God’s revelation so you can remain politically and culturally correct.
Democracy promotes tolerance of homosexuals, lesbians, and the idea that women can do anything a man can do. God’s word does not. God’s word teaches men and women can be forgiven of any sin against God but the sin of blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. But it does teach homosexuals, lesbians, liars, murderers, thieves and everyone else who has violated the clear teaching of God’s word are all going to hell when they die unless they repent (Gal. 5:19-21). These activities are not alternative life styles; they are not cultural norms; they are sin; and before anyone practicing them can be follow Jesus, he must repent of them, confess Jesus as Lord and God, believe God raised Him from the dead, be baptized for the forgiveness of his sins, take up his cross, and carry it daily (Acts 3:38, 39; Rom. 10:9).
In verse 9 Jesus addresses a group that apparently has been claiming to the church at Philadelphia that they are Jews. They are not only not converted Jews, but they are not Jews of any kind. It appears the only synagogue they have ever attended was specifically gathered to learn how to deceive church members. Thus, they are called the synagogue of Satan. Of course, the other possibility is that those Jews who had rejected Jesus as the Messiah were now just as bent on destroying Christianity as was the emperor of Rome. They were therefore referred to as the synagogue of Satan. Either of these are possible interpretations of the text. Either way, Jesus promises the time will come when these false converts will come and bow down at the feet of the true followers of Christ. He closes with, what I believe is proof positive this particular group will be supernaturally protected during the tribulation. “Because you have kept the word of my perseverance, I also will keep you from (in) the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”
The Greek word translated here “from” is en. It can be translated “in” or “from” depending on the context. I deal with this point later. The translators of the NAS demonstrate their pre-tribulation rapture bias here when they translated the word “from.” In this particular case, the context does not make the choice clear. What is clear is that historically, God has kept His chosen safe “in” the midst of the outpouring of His judgment on towns or nations (see Genesis and Exodus). He moved Noah and his family into the ark before the flood (Gen. 6), righteous Lot from Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19), before raining down fire and brimstone upon it, and he divinely protected Israel when He poured out His wrath on Pharaoh in Egypt (Ex. 6-12). The most important point of all for us to recognize here is that the church has been undergoing persecution since its inception. The thought that God would remove it during the time of its greatest perse-cution is nonsensical. We have always been God’s light shining in the darkness. And during planet earth’s darkest hour, we’ll be its brightest light.
Jesus finishes His address to the church at Philadelphia with some astonishing promises,
He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name. (v. 12)
I’m not sure any of us can fully grasp the magnitude of these statements. This may sound trite, but just imagine you are the CEO of Microsoft. As such, you are a highly respected leader. You have the responsibility to travel world wide to meet with those over whom you have charge. While your job pays well, you have no real life. You work 80-100 hours a week not counting the time spent traveling. If one really thinks about it, such honor is not something the average person would covet. Now imagine you are the CEO of Christ’s Home for Children in heaven.
You need no pay because, absolutely and without limitation, anything you want or need is at your fingertips. You live in a mansion that makes the house at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. (the White House) seem insignificant. Hundreds of servants wait on your every need daily. No matter where you go, everyone knows who you are because you have your corporate seal clearly pasted on everything you own. You have just entered the eternal abode of those who have kept the word and have not denied Jesus’ Name. Oh yeah, one final requirement exists for membership in this exclusive club. You will have had to have overcome the evil one; and one can only overcome the evil one when he has been transformed by the blood of Christ (II Cor. 5:17; Titus 3:5).
To the Church at Laodicea
The seventh church in Asia Minor to whom Jesus spoke was in Laodicea. I believe this church also represents the condition of the world church (currently calling itself The World Counsel of Churches) in the final hours of history. It is an ecumenical movement trying to get all protestant and Catholic churches worldwide to join hands and “fight the good fight” together. Of course, the idea is a good one. The problem is the liberal churches involved don’t accept the basic tenets of conservative, reformed theology. They just want everyone to get along. Theological correctness is inconsequential to this group. The major problem with that kind of unity is that it’s not unity at all. The apostle Paul put it this way, “Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever?(II Cor. 6:15) Those who preach a different gospel aren’t a part of us who preach the gospel as it is presented in God’s word. Therefore, we should not be joining with them in any endeavor which claims to represent Christ.
1. How does Jesus describe himself in 3:14?
2. What does He know about the church at Laodicea? 3:15a
3. What is His wish for this church? 3:15:b
4. What is He going to do with this church and why? 3:16
5. What is the theological position of the church at Laodicea? 3:17
6. What is Jesus advice to this church? 3:18
7. What is Jesus’ admonition to this church? 3:19
8. What is Jesus’ promise to those who hears his voice and opens the door? 3:20
9. What is His promise to the overcomer? 3:21
This church is neither hot nor cold. In other words, it hasn’t an ounce of feeling. It is lifeless when it comes to things of God. For this reason, Jesus warned He is going to spit that church out of Him mouth, indicating the distain and disgust with which He views her. Look at the description of the great harlot who sits on many waters of Revelation 17. It matches the description of this church in Revelation 3, accept of course, in Revelation 17 we get a great deal more detail. The leaders of this church think they are rich and have need of nothing because they perceive worldly wealth as a clear sign of God’s blessing. A huge majority of televangelists today preach this foolishness. They prance about on stage wearing $1,000 Armani suits, diamond jewelry, expensive shoes, and ties that make them look like clowns in a circus claiming they have the very power of God emitting from their hands or the cloths they touch. I actually saw Jezebel on TV yesterday. She calls herself Joni (not Ericson-Tada). She was wearing enough makeup to start her own outlet and enough diamond jewelry to blind anyone watching. She bragged about how many people she was able to lead to Christ daily because she was no longer in the pulpit preaching; she said she is now preaching in the streets where the real sinners are.
These false prophets jump up and down on stage, scream and shout until they’re hoarse, sweat profusely, shout the name of Jesus to the rooftops, and promise healing to anyone who will give a few dollars to their ministry. They smack people on the head and knock them to the floor claiming these poor lost souls have been slain in the spirit. They peddle the gospel like a whore in Harlem on Saturday night. They sell prayer cloths, bones upon which they have spit, pieces of the original cross, chips of stone from the original grave of Jesus, and sweat they claim came from the cloths in which Jesus was wrapped. I imagine it’s possible someone actually gets saved watching these performing acts of the local circus, but I’ve never met anyone who has, so I’ll reserve judgment until such time as I actually see some fruit from their foolishness. I urge any reading this study not support such incredibly ungodly performances. Jesus words, as found in Matthew 7:21-23, are an apropos description of these wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing,
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’”
Jesus advises this poor, blind, and naked church to buy from Him gold that has been refined by fire. This, of course, is a reference to eternal truths that cannot be changed by any earthly decree. The white garments are those garments given to the faithful and true, those who overcome. Obviously, there are some in the Laodicean church who would be saved. Jesus told them to buy eye salve for their eyes so they could really see what it is they were missing. He closed his comments to this church with two important admonitions. God disciplines those He loves, and they must repent of their apathy if they are to demonstrate they are members of those chosen to inherit eternal life.
It’s at this point we encounter a verse that’s quoted out of context more often than not. Of course, there is a sense in which it is an open invitation from the King of kings for anyone who wants to repent of his sins and become a part of God’s chosen few. Contextually, however, it’s an invitation to those who have been “in” the church for a long time who have never been “of” the true church. These are people who have only given lip service to the doctrine of salvation. The late Bill Bright, of Campus Crusade for Christ, started the most contemporary group of those who misquote this verse, though I am sure it was quite unintentional on his part. In his eagerness to convert millions to the faith, he perpetrated the doctrine of praying “the sinner’s prayer,” for a salvation that was without the lordship of Christ, a salvation without repentance. Again, I don’t believe that was his intention (he does mention repentance, albeit rather casually, in his tract), but the result of his ministries all over the world have been great multitudes who actually believe there are two options for getting saved.
I was continually astounded as a new Christian at the number of people (which included multitudinous pastors) who believed these two options were actually biblical. They believed, as a direct result of the gospel as presented in the Four Spiritual Laws they could ask Jesus to be their Savior one day and perhaps later decide if they wanted Him to be their Lord. I worked with Bill Bright at Campus Crusade for a short time right after I was converted. I believe he and his wife Vonnette were sincere in their attempts to evangelize and disciple Christians. Unfortunately, I have concluded after 38 years of an intense study of God’s word they were apparently sincerely delusional. It seems that a few years before his death, Dr. Bright met with a large contingent of church leaders (the World Church movement) who decided at that meeting, all of a sudden, after two thousand years of heresy and millions of dead martyrs later, Catholics were, all of a sudden, born-again brothers and sisters in Christ.
While I don’t believe Dr. Bright will lose his salvation for proclaiming such foolishness, God’s word makes it clear their will be loss of reward for deeds done in the flesh which are not in perfect alignment with the proclaimed will of God (I Cor. 3:8-15; II Cor. 5:10; Rev. 22:12, 19; James 3:1). Dr. Bright’s lack of theological understanding will never be an acceptable excuse for misleading millions. The Pope is the earth’s most prominent example of that which we call the spirit of the anti-Christ. His claim to be in the direct lineage spiritually to the Apostle Peter is absurd, the Catholic doctrine about the Pope’s ability to be inerrant when speaking as the leader of the universal church is even more absurd, the exaltation of Mary is pure idolatry, and the Catholic Church’s crusade to kill millions of reformed Christians in the past centuries all provide ample reason to question the sanity of anyone who calls himself a conservative Christian who at the same time fails to see the apostasy and heresy propagated by this Mother of Harlots.
Several years ago, I was asked to apologize to the congregation of a small non-denominational church where I was filling in as the interim pastor. It didn’t surprise me that the leaders of this tiny church were so uninformed about bible doctrine. I was a little surprised they actually had the nerve to come to my house privately and address the issue. They advised me I would have to recant that point if I wanted to continue preaching in their church. I informed them I would never compromise exposing apostasy and heresy and suggested they needed to repent for their own apathy and ignorance of God’s word. When they refused, I went to the church the next Sunday morning, stood up during the sermon that was being given by one of them, and rebuked him and the rest of the church leaders in the presence of all according to the admonition of I Timothy 5:20.
That was not a pleasant thing to do, but I believe scripture makes it clear we cannot allow unbiblical teaching to continue in a church if we have ever had a position of leadership in that church. In general, when an elder or pastor/teacher teaches false doctrine, the bible tells us two or three must approach him and seek to get the problem resolved according to the principles of Matthew 18 and I Timothy 5. That, of course, is what those church leaders had attempted to do with me. The problem with their course of action was that I was not teaching false doctrine. And the congregation of that church was so ill taught, I was unable to find anyone with a basic understanding of church discipline and courage enough to go with me to confront those church leaders.
There is no salvation if you are not willing to take up your cross (crucify the flesh daily) and follow Jesus. Any gospel that declares anything else is the other gospel Paul was describing in Galatians 1:6, 7, and in II Cor. 11:4. These, so called gospels, are not really the gospel at all. They are the doctrines of demons. Any teaching that claims the authority of scripture must not violate the clear meaning of scripture. If it does so, it‘s false doctrine. Like the subtle doctrine of evolutionists who would have us believe in a kind of creation evolution for instance. Not wanting to offend the atheists with the truth, they compromise enough of the teaching of Genesis to fit the theory of evolution between Genesis 1:1 and 2; unable to figure out how Noah got dinosaurs on the ark, they swallow any theory that makes such knowledge moot; not believing in the supernatural, they deny the virgin birth; failing to believe that a dead person could resurrect, they quickly believe those who claim to have discovered the bones of Jesus in His original grave; and not believing in the verbal, plenary, inspiration of scripture, they pick and choose what they want to teach.
Jesus finished His comments to the seven churches of Asia Minor with the words, “He who overcomes, I will grant him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” Of course, He’s not finished speaking to the churches. The entire book of the Revelation is a message to the churches. But, now that He has addressed them about the condition of their individual congregations, He reveals to them the things which are yet to come.
As I previously indicated, these seven churches were actual churches which existed at the time John wrote the Revelation. There is no implicit or explicit biblical justification for believing otherwise. I will however focus on the secondary fulfillment of this prophecy to the churches. As I already suggested, all of the problems they faced, false teaching, false believers, idolatry, lusts of the flesh, and immorality, are problems we still face today. What we have perceived to be our greatest blessing, the freedom to worship without government interference, has become the church’s Achilles Heel. Lack of persecution has made us soft and lackadaisical.
We have become like the lukewarm church of Laodicea. Actually, calling us luke warm would probably be exaggerating the temperature of our commitment. As a nation that claims to be Christian, it seems to me that most churches (local bodies of believers) in America are overwhelmingly apathetic. I engage people in conversation regularly, who know very little about Jesus and even less about the gospel. And most of those who profess to know Him aren’t aware we are a spiritual battle in America for the souls of our children in our public schools.
I live in a small rural community of about 5,000 residents in Montana. I teach high school history. Every year, when I begin my history classes we read from a textbook that assumes we all believe planet earth has been around for billions of years. Recently, I wrote a letter to the editor of our local paper about the absurdity of such an approach to education. I indicated our textbooks are indoctrinating our children, not educating them. I pointed out that teachers in public education have the obligation to present both the Creation Theory alongside of the Theory of Evolution as explanations for the existence of man. I explained they are both theories and the whole point of education was to present both sides of an argument when there is more than one possibility.
A local resident responded, questioning both my veracity and my sanity. I responded to his response, expressing my dismay that he would attack me personally without bothering to address the point in question. One person, from the entire community, mention that he appreciated my willingness to defend my faith. Evolution is most assuredly a doctrine; and it is also most assuredly the doctrine of demons. It’s a doctrine, the main goal of which is to discredit the doctrine of creation. I have thirty-five or forty Christian friends in this community. Out of all of them, only one commented on the editorials. I find it disconcerting to realize that the majority of people who call themselves Christians in America are either apathetic or they are afraid to speak out against this continuous onslaught by the devil and his unholy angels against God and His word. I t seems most churches in America are filled with Laodiceans. But let’s begin the church at Ephesus.
To the Church at Ephesus
Jesus begins His address to the church at Ephesus describing Himself as, “the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the one who walks among the seven golden lampstands.” It is worth noting that all of these churches were located in what is today a Muslim nation, Turkey. Paul had a special place in heart for the church in Ephesus. In Acts 19 we read of his encounter with the first group of disciples in Ephesus. These disciples had heard John’s teaching, but had not realized that Jesus had actually come, lived a sinless life, died for the sins of mankind, resurrected from the dead, and had ascended into heaven. When Paul clarified the rest of the gospel for them, they were immediately baptized in the name of Jesus, Paul laid hands on them, and they began speaking in tongues, thus verifying his apostolic authority (Acts 19:6).
Contrary to what some preach, Acts 19:6 doesn’t support the entirely false doctrine that all believers should have the gift of tongues. It was clearly and simply a testimony to Paul’s apostolic authority. It means nothing more than that. Those who would distort the scriptures interpret this verse with no concern for its context. I deal thoroughly with the issue in book on the spiritual gifts. It’s available for anyone who wants to learn more about the subject.
It was in Ephesus that Paul took those disciples out of the local synagogue into the school of Tyrannus where he taught them for two years (Acts 19:9). It was in Ephesus that the seven sons of Sceva attempted to mimic Paul by casting out a demon (Acts 19:13-16). The demon jumped Sceva’s sons, stripped them naked, and caused them to flee the house naked. It was in Ephesus that books of sorcery, worth fifty thousand pieces of silver (approximately fifty thousand day’s wages), were burned (Acts 19:19). The first letter to Timothy was written to him while he was pastoring churches in Ephesus (I Tim. 1:3). It’s difficult to imagine a group of born-again believers sitting under the teaching of the Apostle Paul would lose their first love. Yet the list of their accomplishments is most impressive.
1. How does Jesus describe himself to the church at Ephesus? 2:1
2. List the positive things that were going on at Ephesus. 2:2, 3, 6
3. What does Jesus have against the Ephesian church? 2:4
4. What three things does Jesus tell the Ephesians they must do to resolve their problem? 2:5a
a.
b.
c.
5. What does He promise to do if they don’t heed His warning? 2:5b
6. What were Jesus final words to the church at Ephesus? 2:7 (see also 22:1, 2)
The church at Ephesus was filled with people who toiled and persevered; they didn’t tolerate evil men; they tested those who called themselves apostles. They endured. But they had lost their first love. They no longer adored the One who died to set them free. They forgot they were redeemed sinners who were once doomed and determined to spend eternity in hell. They’d forgotten God saved them from the law of sin and death. Though they hated the deeds of the Nicolaitans (they despised immorality and wickedness), they needed to return to their first love, Jesus. I Corinthians 13 comes to mind where we are told without love nothing we do is of any eternal significance.
Maybe some of us need to take a moment and think about what life was like before Christ. Sometimes we get caught up in lits many challenges and forget what’s really important. Sometimes our love for Jesus takes a back seat to our lust for life. I recall a story about a man who was told he needed heart bypass surgery that would cost $50,000. He replied, “Do you really think I’d pay $50,000 for you to keep me out of heaven for a few more years?” Perhaps our love for Jesus can be measured by how much we’d be willing to pay to keep us out of heaven.
To the Church at Smyrna
I have been in churches that were very much like the Smyrnan church. They are filled with poor people who are rich in faith. They are also inhabited by those who are religious fanatics but spiritually bankrupt (they think they are spiritual Jews, but they are not). These foolish fanatics were Satan’s pawns (they were a synagogue of Satan). This church, which was ruled by spiritually bankrupt ideologues, had a few in it who were the faithful and true. Those few were admonished to take courage, even though they would soon experience imprisonment for a while, “ten days”. This crew of corrupt church leaders were admonished to repent. Jesus warned that He would make war with them using the matchless word of God to defeat their doctrine of immorality and idolatry. He ended His encouragement to the faithful in Smyrna with the words, “He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.” (Rev. 2:11) This second death, of course, is the eternal death that will be experienced by those false church leaders and members of congregations who have spent decades going to church pretending to be saved.
7. How did Jesus describe himself to the church at Smyrna?
8. List Smyrna’ accomplishments. 2:9
9. What did Jesus call the false Jews? 2:9
10. What does Jesus warn the faithful followers of Christ at Smyrna were going to have to endure? 2:10
11. What was His promise to those who were faithful until death? 2:10
12. What were Jesus’ final words to the church at Smyrna? 2:11 (see also Rev. 20:4-6)
This admonition to the leaders of the church at Smyrna is a solemn warning to church leaders today who are willing to sacrifice the purity of God’s word for the approval of men (James 3:1). I have personally spoken to countless pastors and elders who readily admitted they were willing to compromise God’s word rather than see members of the congregation leave. One actually had to audacity to suggest I’d understand the need to compromise when I became more spiritually mature. He was part of that 35% of pastors in America who don’t believe in the verbal plenary inspiration of scripture. He was more interested in filling pews with church members who tithed than building warriors who could storm the gates of hell and snatch lost souls from the flames.
Notice, in Smyrna God didn’t bother telling those who were a synagogue of Satan to repent. It seems those teachers had stepped over the line. They would find no room for repentance (Heb. 6:6; 12:17). Jesus’ stern warning to teachers comes again in His words as recorded in Luke 17:1, 2,
“Indeed, it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.”
Beloved, we can’t afford compromise the clear teachings of scripture. Those issues about which there is no clear teaching of scripture (i.e., dancing) are certainly issues that require tolerance for differences in understanding and application. But by their very nature, issues that are clearly taught in scripture divide the sheep from the goats (Matt. 25:33). The clear implication of verse 11 is that these compromisers (liars) will be seriously hurt (they will spend eternity in hell) by the second death. Both those who follow false doctrine and those who teach it will spend eternity in hell. Pesonally, I’m convinced those who preach it will have an especially dismal place to spend eternity. They’ll have the hellist place in hell to spend eternity. I believe there is an especially disgusting place in hell reserved for those who teach false doctrine and especially those who claim to be preachers of the word who refuse to teach the whole counsel of God. Their reward will be according to their deeds. I believe they’ll find themselves in the deepest most despicable recesses of the eternal lake of fire for all of forever.
To the Church at Pergamum
I have also been in churches like the one in Pergamum, which, like the Ephesian church, preached the doctrine of Balaam. Balak, the king of the Midianites (Numbers 22-24), tried to get Balaam—a non-Jewish prophet, the son of Beor at Pethor—to curse 600,000 Hebrew warriors as they camped beside his kingdom. The story is a little hard to follow. God tells Balaam not to go with Balak’s messengers, but then tells him to go. On the way, He nearly kills Balaam. Balaam told Balak he couldn’t curse those God blessed (Israel) We don’t discover until we get to the New Testament this Gentile prophet helped Balak plan a strategy that would get Israel to commit lewd acts against the revealed will of God. Realizing he couldn’t curse those whom God blessed, he told Balak they could get Israel to be a curse unto themselves if he could get them to eat unclean food and commit acts of immorality with the Midianite women (II Pet. 2:15; Jude 1:11; Rev. 2:14). While we don’t sacrifice food to idols in America in the strictest sense, there are many similar ideas inherent in the act that are part of our culture (see explanation page 23 re: Jezebel). I’ve known several churches that had members living together out of wedlock whose pastors avoided teaching on the topic of morality for fear of offending them.
When pastors know members of their congregation are indeed practicing any kind of immoral act and refuse to confront them as instructed by Paul in I Corinthians 5 and Jesus in Matthew 18:15-20, they are, by implication, teaching that immorality is not an offense against God.
13. How does Jesus describe himself to the church at Pergamum? 2:8
14. What were their accomplishments? 2:13
15. What things did they need to fix? 2:15
16. What was the solution to their problems? 2:16
17. What did Jesus warn them He was going to do if they failed to heed His warning? 2:16b
18. What were Jesus’ final words to the church at Pergamum? 2:17
The church at Pergamos was in the very heart of Satan’s kingdom. It was probably very much like our central city churches in America which are fighting the good fight for the souls of lost creatures. While they were holding fast to the doctrine of God in one sense, in another, they, like the church of Smyrna, had those in their midst who were teaching the doctrine of immorality and idol worship. Like some contemporary televangelists preachers who have been caught up in their own immorality, those leaders preach holiness while living unholiness. They preached the doctrine of slavery to Jesus while worshipping the idols of lust, immorality, and wealth. And it appears these leaders of the church in Pergamum had sufficient control over the local fellowship that church discipline as defined in I Corinthians 5 and Matthew 18 was out of the question. Therefore, those who were faithful to the word were promised the hidden treasure of manna, a white stone, and a new name, the significance of which only its recipients would comprehend.
To the Church at Thyatira
I have been in corrupt churches like the one in Thyatira. It’s difficult to imagine a church with the long list of accomplishments as described in these verses would tolerate a Jezebel, but that’s exactly what this one did. Just try to imagine you’re the visitor in one of these churches. You go to your first adult Sunday school class and have an incredible time of fellowship and learning from a senior citizen who seems to love God with all his heart and to knows His word well. People share experiences where they were faithful through trials and tribulations and you’re even more impressed. You learn the church has a pantry they use to feed the poor and downtrodden. Wow! You think this just might be the church you’ve been looking for all your life. Sunday school ends, you go into the main sanctuary for church and there she sits. The senior pastor gets up and she begins to preach. Jezebel has entered the room.
19. How does Jesus describe himself to the church at Thyatira: 2:18
20. List her accomplishments? 2:19
21. What did they need to fix? 2:20
22. Did Jesus kill Jezebel immediately? 2:21a
23. Did Jezebel respond to her warning? 2:21b
24. What did Jesus say He was going to do to for her failure to repent? 2:22a, 23
25. What did He threaten to do to her bedfellows unless they repented? 2:22c
26. What was the long term purpose of Jesus’ punishment of Jezebel? 2:23b
27. What was Jesus’ promise to those who did not abide in Jezebel’s teaching? 2:24-28
25. What were Jesus final words to the church at Thyatira? 2:29
Jesus had numerous praises for this church. He knew of her deeds, love, faith, service, and perseverance. He even noted that her current deeds were greater than when they began the church in Thyatira. Her problem was that she tolerated the false prophetess, Jezebel, who taught heresy. This woman Jezebel taught two false doctrines rampant in many of today’s churches: 1. Immorality, as strange as it may seem, is alive and well in many of today’s churches. The number of pastors, elders, and deacons who have been divorced and remarried is reaching epidemic proportions. And the number who are having adulterous affairs with members of their congregations is embarrassing. One would be too many, but it seems the rising accounts of unfaithful spouses in pastors households knows no bounds.
Jesus told his listeners all divorce is repugnant to God (Matt. 19:8). Under no circumstance does He define it as a good thing. There are three circumstances however, under which God accounts the separation legitimate: 1. Adultery; 2. desertion by an unbeliever; 3. death.
Adultery (Matt. 5:32; Mark 10:11)
In Matthew 5:32 and Mark 10:11 Jesus makes it clear the sin for which God has clearly stated it is acceptable for the offended believer to divorce the offending spouse is adultery. I believe Ephesians 5:22-33 and I Corinthians 6:18 will help us understand why this is so. Ephesians 5 tells us that the relationship between the husband and wife is a type of the relationship between Christ and His church. I Corinthians 6 tells us that immorality is the dumbest sin of all sin. These two biblical truths place adultery at the top of God’s list of disgusting sins. He doesn’t want His children to be a party to such unholiness, so He tells them they can divorce themselves from one who has breached the covenant of trust he made when they were united in Christ.
There are some who teach it is not essential one to divorce an adulterous spouse. Certainly there is ample evidence to suggest adultery can be forgiven and the marriage covenant continued. My counsel goes something like this: I can forgive the act without continuing in the relationship with the one who committed it. I believe adultery so taints a relationship that both parties are better served by severing the ties of the marriage covenant. I don’t believe in our human bodies and with our human minds we can ever function effectively as a believer of the gospel once such an act has been perpetrated against us. If you believe otherwise, I am sure you have God’s blessing to do whatever He leads you to do. If children are involved, it complicates the situation even more. Weighing the effect the divorce will have on them against the affect of continuing to live with the adulterous spouse is an important consideration. Even the age of the children may determine whether or not one chooses to stay married to the adulterer. The pain that goes with being so betrayed is something that takes most people years to overcome, though a person can begin healing immediately when God’s abundant grace and mercy leads the way.
Desertion by an Unbeliever (I Cor. 7:10-16)
This one is interesting. God knew there would be those who would be converted whose spouses would not. He also knew the converted spouse would always be in a position to bring the unbeliever into a covenant relationship with Him as a result of the believer’s testimony in that relationship. Thus, as long as the unbeliever doesn’t choose to leave the relationship, the believer is instructed to remain. If the unbeliever leaves, the believer is instructed he or she no longer has the responsibility to honor the covenanted vows of marriage. The reason is blatantly obvious. The believer has no control over the life of the unbeliever who chooses to leave a relationship. Thus, through no fault of his/her own, the relationship ends. In that instance, the believer is told he/she is free to remarry as long as he/she marries a believer.
It’s difficult to comprehend the number of people I’ve personally known whose lives have been destroyed by multiple marriages. I’ve known women who have had four or five children and some of them don’t even know for sure who the father is of some of them. I’ve known men who made good money but lived like paupers because they had to pay most of what they earned on alimony and child support. The consequences of the “divorce on demand” philosophy we have fathered in America has wreaked havoc on family life. I strongly suspect the number of dysfunctional families far outnumbers traditional, nourishing, loving two parent homes, even among members of the local church. If we don’t get a handle on the problem in the local church, I fear it will eventually be our undoing. It appears America is coming apart at the seams. Therefore, I reiterate, unless the unbeliever leaves, the believer is commanded to remain in the relationship.
Death (I Cor. 7:39; Rom. 7:1-3)
While this one should be obvious, for some it isn’t. There are some who pine for decades over the loss of a loved one. Such pining is tragic, unbiblical, and unproductive. When a Christian dies, he goes to be with the Lord. That should be a cause for celebration for those left behind. It’s both logical and biblical for the one left behind to grieve for a few weeks, maybe even a few months. Beyond that, it’s counter productive for one to continue to grieve the loss of a loved one. Such grief is usually the result of self-centered egotism that is only heightened by the believer’s loss of a loved one. Life does not end for anyone who still breathes when a loved one goes to be with our heavenly Father. If your spouse dies and you are still at an age when your sexual drives need to be satisfied, you definitely should remarry. I pray if I die before my beloved wife, she celebrates my departure and moves on with her life. She’s already nearly sixty, so whether or not she would choose to remarry is certainly not a mandate. It would be strange indeed for her to mourn my physical death for long while I am in heaven rejoicing with Jesus.
Immorality covers everything from masturbation to adultery. Masturbation, watching triple X rated movies, homosexuality, lesbians, pre-marital sex even by those who vow they are in love, prostitutes, and whores all fit into this category. Please forgive my blunt use of terms, but we have so perverted bible terminology it is nearly impossible to make the appropriate connection sometimes. Masturbation is unbiblical for two reasons: 1. it requires the one doing it to visualize himself with an unknown counterpart having sex with that person for the one masturbating to reach the desired level of sexual gratification. 2. It is self-gratification. Sex, as ordained by God is only acceptable when it is engaged by a man and a woman who have taken the vows of marriage and whose goal is to bring pleasure to the other person (Matt. 5:28; I Thes. 4:3-8; I Cor. 7:1-5).
Homosexuality is a blatant disregard for God’s intended role for sex. His word makes it abundantly clear in Romans 1:27 that both homosexuals and lesbians are committing indecent acts for which they will burn in hell if they do not repent (see also Gal. 5:19, 20). Homosexuality is not an alternative lifestyle; it is a direct affront to the holiness of God. It is a perversion of all that is holy. It is an act that will send those who practice it into eternal hellfire and damnation.
Any form of pre-marital sex is prohibited in scripture. If you are a woman of God reading this, do not allow your male friend to convince you your love for him hinges on whether or not you have sex with him before you are married. If that’s true, your love for one another is incredibly shallow. God calls you to save yourself for that one person He has chosen to share your love. When he comes along, you’ll have no trouble recognizing him. He’ll not pressure you into dishonoring your body so he can experience a fleeting moment of ecstasy.
The number of church goers who are living together out of wedlock is staggering. In 1998 one of the most respected televangelist preachers of conservative churches in America got divorced. He told his congregation before the divorce he would resign his position if he wasn’t able to fix his marriage. When the divorce was final he, all of a sudden, had a vision. He then told his congregation that God had spoken to him in that vision and told him He would move him to another church when He was good and ready. Apparently, not wishing to argue with God, the congregation allowed him to remain on as the senior pastor.
I suggest any pastor, elder, or brother in Christ who knows such a condition exists and doesn’t address it as instructed in Matthew 18 and I Corinthians 5 is teaching by example that immorality is acceptable. And it seems logical and biblical any pastor who has gone through a divorce needs to step back from full time ministry for a time of deep reflection, prayer, and re-evaluation of his calling. A divorce for desertion or adultery shouldn’t disqualify him for pastoral ministry; but it does take a period (sometimes long, sometimes short) of spiritual rehabilitation before a man who experiences it should be allowed to resume pastoral duties.
The reference to eating food sacrificed to idols, was a literal reference in its original context. I suggest for us today it could include anything one indulges daily that feeds his body, soul, and spirit in such a way as to make a separation between himself and God. For example, the number of men in America who feed their souls overwhelming doses of football for at least six months of the year is ever increasing. NASCAR, the NBA, the NHL, boxing, wrestling, and professional baseball are the religions of choice for millions of Americans who also profess to be followers of Christ. Most are faithful church goers until the season of their favorite sport rolls around. Recently, I heard a highly respected conservative televangelist, confess on national television and in front of some three or four thousand members of his church that he’s addicted to Chicago Bulls basketball. He said it in such a light hearted fashion it made most of his audience laugh. God forgive us for thinking such foolishness is the least bit comical.
We in America are eating food sacrificed to idols in this figurative sense in epic proportions today; and the truly sad thing is our universal refusal to understand why so many of these events are often scheduled on Sunday mornings. We prefer to call this addiction to sports stress relief, relaxation, or a little time for ourselves. Of course all of these labels are created to appease the minds of those who don’t wish to call them sin. Excuses are always worth what you pay for them. He who is a liar from the beginning has made this one so very palatable. Few sports are inherently evil, but spending more than a very occasional amount of time once in while watching them is at best bad stewardship of one’s time; and we’re supposed to be “redeeming the time because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16; Col. 4:5). Furthermore, missing the opportunity to grow in the faith or minister one’s gift to watch 30 seconds of a sporting event is most assuredly a complete waste of time. When they began paying twenty-two year old boys millions of dollars to play a game, I figured that one out without any help. Gorging oneself on hours of any professional sport is very much like the sin of eating food sacrificed to idols.
It seems when a person spends inordinate amount of time viewing or participating in sports, his love for Jesus begins growing cold (Is. 59:1-3). He discovers the power and joy he once had fellowshipping with God in his local church begins waning. After an extended period of such foolishness, one’s love for Jesus will grow cold; he’ll find himself glibly following the ritual of occasional church attendance, feigned love for the brethren, praying over meals, saying an occasional, amen at something the preacher says, and he may even take the opportunity to teach a class for a few Sunday mornings or lead a connections group once a week in someone’s home.
I knew a man who regularly missed church during the high school girl’s basketball state playoffs. He had committed himself to lead music in his local church, but during the playoffs, he was often gone. By attending those games and allowing his children to play in them, he was inadvertently teaching them church attendance wasn’t as important as basketball playoffs. One of two things was true in that brother’s life. Either the preaching and teaching in his local church was so lackluster and powerless that he really believed he wasn’t missing much, or his confession of faith was sorely lacking in substance.
I’ve taught bible studies for decades and have discovered that few who attend them are willing to spend any time at all during the week preparing for the coming study. As a teacher in the public school system, I expected teens to treat public education with such disdain. We seldom had anything significant to teach them, so it’s little wonder the average teenaged boy or girl doesn’t take what we teach seriously. But, when one who professes to be a Christian, doesn’t think it’s important to study a given lesson daily in preparation for class, I have to wonder if that brother has any kind of relationship with Jesus to begin with.
Jesus describes four different reactions people have to the gospel (Matt. 13). There are some who are compared to the rocky soil, a metaphor of the one who receives the word with joy, but has no firm root, so that when the temptations of the world come along, he easily yields to them and falls away from the pure love and doctrine of Christ. While his body is at most of those events in the life of the church that make him appear to be saved, he continually gorges himself with food sacrificed to idols. And those who don’t repent will suffer the same fate as Jezebel. They will be thrown onto a bed of sickness and into a time of great tribulation. If you are one who has been deceived into thinking a few hours a week feeding your soul with sports is harmless, I challenge you to start spending equal time each week studying to show yourself approved unto God. It’s not likely His eternal kingdom will be filled with many who gorged themselves with food sacrificed to idols. Jesus won’t play second fiddle to the NFL, NASCAR, the NBA, or any other god.
God promises to the members of the Thyatiran Church that each of them will receive from Him according to their deeds. Those who hold fast until He comes, he who overcomes and keeps His deeds until the end, will receive authority over the nations to rule them with a rod of iron. The promise of the morning star is a promise that the one who endures will finally know Jesus in all His fullness at that time. He is the bright and morning star (cf. Rev. 22:16 with II Peter 1:19).
To the Church at Sardis
In chapter 3 John addresses the last three churches, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. Of course, I trust everyone realizes there were no chapter divisions in the original writings. If it helps you remember these churches in the order they are addressed I use the letters E S P T S P L to help me remember them. I just find grouping the first letters of each church in groups of three makes them easier to remember.
God’s reprimand of the church at Sardis is rather pointed.
1. How does Jesus describe himself? 3:1a
2. What are their deeds? 3:1b
3. What is Jesus’ warning? 3:2, 3
4. What is the only redeeming words Jesus has to Say about this church? 3:4
5. What does “they have not soiled their garments” mean?
6. What does “they will walk with me in white,” mean?
7. What three promises does Jesus make to those who overcome? 3:5
a.
b.
c.
8. What are Jesus’ final words to the church at Sardis? 3:6
He knows this church has a reputation it is alive when in actuality it is dead. He warns them to wake up and strengthen what remains, remember what they have received and heard and keep it. It is clear the church at Sardis had, at one time, received good teaching. Verse 4 indicates some were still abiding in that teaching. Those received the promise that they will walk with Jesus in white, for they are worthy. The phrase “he who overcomes” is used numerous times in scripture. It is a reference to those who have made a profession of faith that was genuine. All of scripture makes it abundantly clear that anyone who does not overcome only fails to do so because the Holy Spirit has never regenerated his dead spirit, thus they have no power to overcome.
This church was like the hundreds in America today which are packed with healthy, wealthy, and prosperous men and women who, like the Pharisees to whom Jesus spoke, appear to be religious, but inwardly they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness (cf. Matt. 23:27, 28). Each week the pastors of these infamous churches make sure to have famous personalities entertain their congregations before they deliver sermons filled with possibility thinking and the, I’m okay, your okay psycho-babble begun by Dr. Robert Schuler and Norman Vincent Peal. It seems most of these preachers of the health, wealth, and prosperity doctrine have memorized only one verse in their entire lives which they quote without regard to its context. Of course, it never occurs to these wolves in sheep’s clothing to know the context of a verse. One isn’t concerned about such things when he is purposefully using God’s word to mislead the sheep. These would be prophets quote Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” as if it is a promise from God to obtain health, wealth, and prosperity. In actuality, it is a proclamation by Paul that in spite of the incredible trials, tribulations, and misery he has had to face, he is standing firm in the gospel because God has strengthened him to do so. He has learned to live in poverty, pain, anguish, and suffering with joy in his heart because God strengthens him. This biblical truth is the antithesis of what the health, wealth, and prosperity preachers would like the whore mongering goats they call sheep to believe.
And the reason it is so important for them to get their disciples to believe such foolishness is that they can then convince these fools all they have to do is give money to their ministries and God will enable them to “do all things” (i.e., get rich) as a reward for their faithfulness. The real tragedy is that occasionally one of their followers does actually get rich, which only serves to perpetuate the lie. I sometimes wonder how many of the famous people they have entertain their goats even care or know how utterly ridiculous they appear as they stand beside these wolves in sheep’s clothing talking of how God has blessed them so.
Beloved, if you are a follower of any preacher who has convinced you God wants you healthy, wealthy, and prosperous, run as fast as your feet can carry you out of that church to one that is preaching that we must bear our cross daily if we wish to be a follower of Jesus. We must die to the lusts of the flesh each and every moment of this life before we can live to Christ. That is the gospel preached by Jesus, Peter, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Jude, James, and the writer of Hebrews. It is not a gospel of prosperity; it is a gospel of self-sacrifice and humility. And such a life can only be lived by one who is indwelt and empowered by the Holy Spirit of God almighty.
Dying to the self daily does not necessarily mean one will have to suffer physically, emotionally, or economically each and every day he follows Christ. Paul makes it clear he experienced times when he had more than enough to meet his own personal needs and he also experienced times when he didn’t have the bare necessities (Phil. 4:11, 12). The point is that a believer doesn’t need to make sure he is in a place where he suffers for Christ. Jesus has not called any of us to take the vows of a nun or a priest of the Catholic Church. He has not called anyone to go to a convent to live a life separated physically from the world. As a matter of biblical fact, Paul teaches the exact opposite of that idea in I Corinthians 5:9-11. It is categorically absurd to think that anyone can be a warrior for Christ while locked up in a place where he has no contact with the outside world. We can’t be lights shining in the darkness if we are hiding under a table.
I counsel inmates at the local county lockup facility on a regular basis who think what they need to do when they get out of jail is to move to some other city where they will not have to deal with the people they hung around with who helped them get into trouble in the first place. I suppose there are times when such a move is warranted, but I suggest that unless the prior acquaintance poses a physical threat to one’s health, the counselee needs to seriously consider God’s promises as found in places like I Corinthians 10:13,
“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”
It isn’t the temptation that gets anyone into trouble; it is when one yields to that temptation, to do something he knows is displeasing to God that he falls into sin. And beloved, temptation is present in every nook and cranny of every city, suburb, or podunk town in the world. If a woman is being physically abused by her husband, it might well be necessary for her to move to an area where he can’t find her so he can’t physically abuse her. God may choose to protect her from such a threat right where she stands, but he might also choose to move her to another location. He spoke to Jacob and told him to move back home because his father-in-law meant to do him harm (Gen. 31).
I think great wealth is usually more of a curse than a blessing. It is the rare man or woman who can live meekly when he makes over a million dollars a year. Such people are rarely rich in faith. Jesus taught on more than one occasion that those who live in luxury during this life will not do so in the life to come (Luke 16:25). In America, I think we have lost sight of what true poverty is. The overwhelming majority of the world’s population would be thrilled to live at the economic level we have labeled poverty in this country. I’m actually embarrassed when a missionary writes me personally and asks for a $50 donation to help him meet his minimal needs for a rather extended period of time. I can easily spend $50 on one meal at a local restaurant. Beloved, we need to wake up in America and smell the burning souls of sinners who are going to continue burning for all eternity if we don’t reassess our priorities and begin living sacrificial lives. There is little point in sharing with others about the atoning work and sacrifice of Christ on the cross for the sins of mankind while we continue living self-indulgent lives (James 2:14-16).
To the Church at Philadelphia
The Philadelphian church (3:7-13) is the second church that is lauded as faithful in all things. Jesus had nothing corrective to say to the church at Smyrna; and he has nothing corrective to say to this church at Philadelphia.
9. How does Jesus describe himself? 3:7
10. What is Jesus putting before the Philadelphian church? 3:8a Discuss what “the open door mean.” cf with opening comment to this church
11. What are the Philadelphian church’s good deeds? 3:8b
a.
b.
c.
Once again we see this reference to those who are a “synagogue of Satan.” 3:9a cf. 2:9
11. What is Jesus going to do to those liars? 3:9b
12. What special promise did Jesus make to the Philadelphians, and why? 3:10
13. What were Jesus parting promises to the church at Philadelphia? 3:11-13
It is interesting to note that Jesus knows her deeds (II Chron. 16:9; Heb 5:15; 12:1, 2; I Pet. 3:10-12). He acknowledged that this church was relatively powerless. It is also noteworthy that He praised her for keeping His word, and not denying His name. It is especially interesting to me that Jesus did not praise this church because it was overflowing with superstars from Hollywood or some professional sport jock. Not even one gladiator is mentioned. This church’s commendation comes from the simple fact that she is keeping the word and not denying His name. God’s warning to any pastor/teacher who may be reading this is that you keep the word and do not deny His name. Nothing you do as a pastor/teacher is more important than that you preach and teach God’s word faithfully and in its entirety. Do not allow anyone to suggest you ignore any part of God’s revelation so you can remain politically and culturally correct.
Democracy promotes tolerance of homosexuals, lesbians, and the idea that women can do anything a man can do. God’s word does not. God’s word teaches men and women can be forgiven of any sin against God but the sin of blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. But it does teach homosexuals, lesbians, liars, murderers, thieves and everyone else who has violated the clear teaching of God’s word are all going to hell when they die unless they repent (Gal. 5:19-21). These activities are not alternative life styles; they are not cultural norms; they are sin; and before anyone practicing them can be follow Jesus, he must repent of them, confess Jesus as Lord and God, believe God raised Him from the dead, be baptized for the forgiveness of his sins, take up his cross, and carry it daily (Acts 3:38, 39; Rom. 10:9).
In verse 9 Jesus addresses a group that apparently has been claiming to the church at Philadelphia that they are Jews. They are not only not converted Jews, but they are not Jews of any kind. It appears the only synagogue they have ever attended was specifically gathered to learn how to deceive church members. Thus, they are called the synagogue of Satan. Of course, the other possibility is that those Jews who had rejected Jesus as the Messiah were now just as bent on destroying Christianity as was the emperor of Rome. They were therefore referred to as the synagogue of Satan. Either of these are possible interpretations of the text. Either way, Jesus promises the time will come when these false converts will come and bow down at the feet of the true followers of Christ. He closes with, what I believe is proof positive this particular group will be supernaturally protected during the tribulation. “Because you have kept the word of my perseverance, I also will keep you from (in) the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”
The Greek word translated here “from” is en. It can be translated “in” or “from” depending on the context. I deal with this point later. The translators of the NAS demonstrate their pre-tribulation rapture bias here when they translated the word “from.” In this particular case, the context does not make the choice clear. What is clear is that historically, God has kept His chosen safe “in” the midst of the outpouring of His judgment on towns or nations (see Genesis and Exodus). He moved Noah and his family into the ark before the flood (Gen. 6), righteous Lot from Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19), before raining down fire and brimstone upon it, and he divinely protected Israel when He poured out His wrath on Pharaoh in Egypt (Ex. 6-12). The most important point of all for us to recognize here is that the church has been undergoing persecution since its inception. The thought that God would remove it during the time of its greatest perse-cution is nonsensical. We have always been God’s light shining in the darkness. And during planet earth’s darkest hour, we’ll be its brightest light.
Jesus finishes His address to the church at Philadelphia with some astonishing promises,
He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name. (v. 12)
I’m not sure any of us can fully grasp the magnitude of these statements. This may sound trite, but just imagine you are the CEO of Microsoft. As such, you are a highly respected leader. You have the responsibility to travel world wide to meet with those over whom you have charge. While your job pays well, you have no real life. You work 80-100 hours a week not counting the time spent traveling. If one really thinks about it, such honor is not something the average person would covet. Now imagine you are the CEO of Christ’s Home for Children in heaven.
You need no pay because, absolutely and without limitation, anything you want or need is at your fingertips. You live in a mansion that makes the house at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. (the White House) seem insignificant. Hundreds of servants wait on your every need daily. No matter where you go, everyone knows who you are because you have your corporate seal clearly pasted on everything you own. You have just entered the eternal abode of those who have kept the word and have not denied Jesus’ Name. Oh yeah, one final requirement exists for membership in this exclusive club. You will have had to have overcome the evil one; and one can only overcome the evil one when he has been transformed by the blood of Christ (II Cor. 5:17; Titus 3:5).
To the Church at Laodicea
The seventh church in Asia Minor to whom Jesus spoke was in Laodicea. I believe this church also represents the condition of the world church (currently calling itself The World Counsel of Churches) in the final hours of history. It is an ecumenical movement trying to get all protestant and Catholic churches worldwide to join hands and “fight the good fight” together. Of course, the idea is a good one. The problem is the liberal churches involved don’t accept the basic tenets of conservative, reformed theology. They just want everyone to get along. Theological correctness is inconsequential to this group. The major problem with that kind of unity is that it’s not unity at all. The apostle Paul put it this way, “Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever?(II Cor. 6:15) Those who preach a different gospel aren’t a part of us who preach the gospel as it is presented in God’s word. Therefore, we should not be joining with them in any endeavor which claims to represent Christ.
1. How does Jesus describe himself in 3:14?
2. What does He know about the church at Laodicea? 3:15a
3. What is His wish for this church? 3:15:b
4. What is He going to do with this church and why? 3:16
5. What is the theological position of the church at Laodicea? 3:17
6. What is Jesus advice to this church? 3:18
7. What is Jesus’ admonition to this church? 3:19
8. What is Jesus’ promise to those who hears his voice and opens the door? 3:20
9. What is His promise to the overcomer? 3:21
This church is neither hot nor cold. In other words, it hasn’t an ounce of feeling. It is lifeless when it comes to things of God. For this reason, Jesus warned He is going to spit that church out of Him mouth, indicating the distain and disgust with which He views her. Look at the description of the great harlot who sits on many waters of Revelation 17. It matches the description of this church in Revelation 3, accept of course, in Revelation 17 we get a great deal more detail. The leaders of this church think they are rich and have need of nothing because they perceive worldly wealth as a clear sign of God’s blessing. A huge majority of televangelists today preach this foolishness. They prance about on stage wearing $1,000 Armani suits, diamond jewelry, expensive shoes, and ties that make them look like clowns in a circus claiming they have the very power of God emitting from their hands or the cloths they touch. I actually saw Jezebel on TV yesterday. She calls herself Joni (not Ericson-Tada). She was wearing enough makeup to start her own outlet and enough diamond jewelry to blind anyone watching. She bragged about how many people she was able to lead to Christ daily because she was no longer in the pulpit preaching; she said she is now preaching in the streets where the real sinners are.
These false prophets jump up and down on stage, scream and shout until they’re hoarse, sweat profusely, shout the name of Jesus to the rooftops, and promise healing to anyone who will give a few dollars to their ministry. They smack people on the head and knock them to the floor claiming these poor lost souls have been slain in the spirit. They peddle the gospel like a whore in Harlem on Saturday night. They sell prayer cloths, bones upon which they have spit, pieces of the original cross, chips of stone from the original grave of Jesus, and sweat they claim came from the cloths in which Jesus was wrapped. I imagine it’s possible someone actually gets saved watching these performing acts of the local circus, but I’ve never met anyone who has, so I’ll reserve judgment until such time as I actually see some fruit from their foolishness. I urge any reading this study not support such incredibly ungodly performances. Jesus words, as found in Matthew 7:21-23, are an apropos description of these wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing,
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’”
Jesus advises this poor, blind, and naked church to buy from Him gold that has been refined by fire. This, of course, is a reference to eternal truths that cannot be changed by any earthly decree. The white garments are those garments given to the faithful and true, those who overcome. Obviously, there are some in the Laodicean church who would be saved. Jesus told them to buy eye salve for their eyes so they could really see what it is they were missing. He closed his comments to this church with two important admonitions. God disciplines those He loves, and they must repent of their apathy if they are to demonstrate they are members of those chosen to inherit eternal life.
It’s at this point we encounter a verse that’s quoted out of context more often than not. Of course, there is a sense in which it is an open invitation from the King of kings for anyone who wants to repent of his sins and become a part of God’s chosen few. Contextually, however, it’s an invitation to those who have been “in” the church for a long time who have never been “of” the true church. These are people who have only given lip service to the doctrine of salvation. The late Bill Bright, of Campus Crusade for Christ, started the most contemporary group of those who misquote this verse, though I am sure it was quite unintentional on his part. In his eagerness to convert millions to the faith, he perpetrated the doctrine of praying “the sinner’s prayer,” for a salvation that was without the lordship of Christ, a salvation without repentance. Again, I don’t believe that was his intention (he does mention repentance, albeit rather casually, in his tract), but the result of his ministries all over the world have been great multitudes who actually believe there are two options for getting saved.
I was continually astounded as a new Christian at the number of people (which included multitudinous pastors) who believed these two options were actually biblical. They believed, as a direct result of the gospel as presented in the Four Spiritual Laws they could ask Jesus to be their Savior one day and perhaps later decide if they wanted Him to be their Lord. I worked with Bill Bright at Campus Crusade for a short time right after I was converted. I believe he and his wife Vonnette were sincere in their attempts to evangelize and disciple Christians. Unfortunately, I have concluded after 38 years of an intense study of God’s word they were apparently sincerely delusional. It seems that a few years before his death, Dr. Bright met with a large contingent of church leaders (the World Church movement) who decided at that meeting, all of a sudden, after two thousand years of heresy and millions of dead martyrs later, Catholics were, all of a sudden, born-again brothers and sisters in Christ.
While I don’t believe Dr. Bright will lose his salvation for proclaiming such foolishness, God’s word makes it clear their will be loss of reward for deeds done in the flesh which are not in perfect alignment with the proclaimed will of God (I Cor. 3:8-15; II Cor. 5:10; Rev. 22:12, 19; James 3:1). Dr. Bright’s lack of theological understanding will never be an acceptable excuse for misleading millions. The Pope is the earth’s most prominent example of that which we call the spirit of the anti-Christ. His claim to be in the direct lineage spiritually to the Apostle Peter is absurd, the Catholic doctrine about the Pope’s ability to be inerrant when speaking as the leader of the universal church is even more absurd, the exaltation of Mary is pure idolatry, and the Catholic Church’s crusade to kill millions of reformed Christians in the past centuries all provide ample reason to question the sanity of anyone who calls himself a conservative Christian who at the same time fails to see the apostasy and heresy propagated by this Mother of Harlots.
Several years ago, I was asked to apologize to the congregation of a small non-denominational church where I was filling in as the interim pastor. It didn’t surprise me that the leaders of this tiny church were so uninformed about bible doctrine. I was a little surprised they actually had the nerve to come to my house privately and address the issue. They advised me I would have to recant that point if I wanted to continue preaching in their church. I informed them I would never compromise exposing apostasy and heresy and suggested they needed to repent for their own apathy and ignorance of God’s word. When they refused, I went to the church the next Sunday morning, stood up during the sermon that was being given by one of them, and rebuked him and the rest of the church leaders in the presence of all according to the admonition of I Timothy 5:20.
That was not a pleasant thing to do, but I believe scripture makes it clear we cannot allow unbiblical teaching to continue in a church if we have ever had a position of leadership in that church. In general, when an elder or pastor/teacher teaches false doctrine, the bible tells us two or three must approach him and seek to get the problem resolved according to the principles of Matthew 18 and I Timothy 5. That, of course, is what those church leaders had attempted to do with me. The problem with their course of action was that I was not teaching false doctrine. And the congregation of that church was so ill taught, I was unable to find anyone with a basic understanding of church discipline and courage enough to go with me to confront those church leaders.
There is no salvation if you are not willing to take up your cross (crucify the flesh daily) and follow Jesus. Any gospel that declares anything else is the other gospel Paul was describing in Galatians 1:6, 7, and in II Cor. 11:4. These, so called gospels, are not really the gospel at all. They are the doctrines of demons. Any teaching that claims the authority of scripture must not violate the clear meaning of scripture. If it does so, it‘s false doctrine. Like the subtle doctrine of evolutionists who would have us believe in a kind of creation evolution for instance. Not wanting to offend the atheists with the truth, they compromise enough of the teaching of Genesis to fit the theory of evolution between Genesis 1:1 and 2; unable to figure out how Noah got dinosaurs on the ark, they swallow any theory that makes such knowledge moot; not believing in the supernatural, they deny the virgin birth; failing to believe that a dead person could resurrect, they quickly believe those who claim to have discovered the bones of Jesus in His original grave; and not believing in the verbal, plenary, inspiration of scripture, they pick and choose what they want to teach.
Jesus finished His comments to the seven churches of Asia Minor with the words, “He who overcomes, I will grant him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” Of course, He’s not finished speaking to the churches. The entire book of the Revelation is a message to the churches. But, now that He has addressed them about the condition of their individual congregations, He reveals to them the things which are yet to come.
John’s Vision of the Throne of God (Revelation 4 and 5)
Chapter 3
In Chapter four, John is called into heaven to the very throne of God. The comment by pre-tribulation rapturists that this is a veiled reference to the rapture of the church (see John McArthur’s Study Bible footnote p. 1968) is inept at best. There is no reference to any coming out of the tribulation until Revelation 15:2-4, which comes right after the true rapture of the church as described in Revelation 14:14-16.
1. After these things, what does John see? 4:1a
2. What did the first voice John heard sound like? 4:1b
3. To whom was that voice speaking? 4:1c
4. What did the voice say? 4:1d
5. In what condition was John transported to heaven? 4:2a
6. What eleven things did he see? 4:2b-8a
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j. four living creatures . . .
(4:7a) j1.
(4:7b) j2.
(4:7c) j3.
(4:7d) j4.
k.
7. How does John describe the four living creatures at this point? 4:8b
8. What do these living creatures not cease to say? 4:8c, 9a
9. What is happening simultaneously? 4:10, 11
.
Around this throne were twenty-four thrones with twenty-four elders sitting on them who had crowns on their heads. The twenty-four elders are most likely the twelve patriarchs of the Old Covenant and the twelve apostles of the New Covenant. Jesus promised the apostles they would sit on twelve thrones (Matt. 19:28). In front of the main throne was the sevenfold spirit of God (representing the Holy Spirit). Four living creatures full of eyes in front and back were in the center and around the throne. They are described as, like a lion, a calf, a man, and an eagle. They each have six wings. Their task is to proclaim, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God almighty, who was, is, and is to come.” night and day (4:8). While they do this, the twenty-four elders will fall down before God, worship Him, and throw their crowns before Him proclaiming, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created” (4:11).
In chapter 5 John sees the book of the Seven Seals in the right hand of God the Father. He hears a strong angel proclaim, “Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?” When it appeared no one was able, John began to weep (5:4). An elder told him to quit weeping because the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Jesus) and the root of David, was able to open the book (5:5). At this point, John sees a Lamb standing as if slain. Interestingly enough, this Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes (the seven spirits of God).
1. What did the Lamb do? 5:7a
2. Who was “Him who sat on the throne?” 5:7b
2. When the Lamb took the book, what did the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures do? 5:8-10
The Lamb took the book from God the Father, at which time the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before Him, each one with a harp and golden bowls full of incense (prayers of the saints), and sang a new song,
“Worthy are you to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom of priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
John’s attention was then diverted to a myriads and myriads of angels around the throne who were saying, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” Notice they were not singing. They were saying. It seems singing is a task apportioned only to man. The angels never sing; they only say.
It is at this point that we get some insight as to the time about which this vision is supposed to be. The phrase
“And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, ‘To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever,’” (5:13)
indicates the time of this vision is yet future. The key part of the phrase is “every created thing.” Obviously every created thing has not yet acknowledged the kingship of Jesus. Just as obviously, when He comes to establish His earthly kingdom (Revelation 20:11-14), every created thing will acknowledge His blessing, honor, glory, and dominion forever and ever.
In Chapter four, John is called into heaven to the very throne of God. The comment by pre-tribulation rapturists that this is a veiled reference to the rapture of the church (see John McArthur’s Study Bible footnote p. 1968) is inept at best. There is no reference to any coming out of the tribulation until Revelation 15:2-4, which comes right after the true rapture of the church as described in Revelation 14:14-16.
1. After these things, what does John see? 4:1a
2. What did the first voice John heard sound like? 4:1b
3. To whom was that voice speaking? 4:1c
4. What did the voice say? 4:1d
5. In what condition was John transported to heaven? 4:2a
6. What eleven things did he see? 4:2b-8a
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j. four living creatures . . .
(4:7a) j1.
(4:7b) j2.
(4:7c) j3.
(4:7d) j4.
k.
7. How does John describe the four living creatures at this point? 4:8b
8. What do these living creatures not cease to say? 4:8c, 9a
9. What is happening simultaneously? 4:10, 11
.
Around this throne were twenty-four thrones with twenty-four elders sitting on them who had crowns on their heads. The twenty-four elders are most likely the twelve patriarchs of the Old Covenant and the twelve apostles of the New Covenant. Jesus promised the apostles they would sit on twelve thrones (Matt. 19:28). In front of the main throne was the sevenfold spirit of God (representing the Holy Spirit). Four living creatures full of eyes in front and back were in the center and around the throne. They are described as, like a lion, a calf, a man, and an eagle. They each have six wings. Their task is to proclaim, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God almighty, who was, is, and is to come.” night and day (4:8). While they do this, the twenty-four elders will fall down before God, worship Him, and throw their crowns before Him proclaiming, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created” (4:11).
In chapter 5 John sees the book of the Seven Seals in the right hand of God the Father. He hears a strong angel proclaim, “Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?” When it appeared no one was able, John began to weep (5:4). An elder told him to quit weeping because the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Jesus) and the root of David, was able to open the book (5:5). At this point, John sees a Lamb standing as if slain. Interestingly enough, this Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes (the seven spirits of God).
1. What did the Lamb do? 5:7a
2. Who was “Him who sat on the throne?” 5:7b
2. When the Lamb took the book, what did the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures do? 5:8-10
The Lamb took the book from God the Father, at which time the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before Him, each one with a harp and golden bowls full of incense (prayers of the saints), and sang a new song,
“Worthy are you to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom of priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
John’s attention was then diverted to a myriads and myriads of angels around the throne who were saying, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” Notice they were not singing. They were saying. It seems singing is a task apportioned only to man. The angels never sing; they only say.
It is at this point that we get some insight as to the time about which this vision is supposed to be. The phrase
“And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, ‘To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever,’” (5:13)
indicates the time of this vision is yet future. The key part of the phrase is “every created thing.” Obviously every created thing has not yet acknowledged the kingship of Jesus. Just as obviously, when He comes to establish His earthly kingdom (Revelation 20:11-14), every created thing will acknowledge His blessing, honor, glory, and dominion forever and ever.
Six of the Seven Seal Judgments (Revelation 6 and 7)
Chapter 4
In chapters 6 and 7 we see the opening of six of the seven seals. There are two possibilities as to the time of these seals. They are either pre-tribulation occurrences or they are the beginning of the first 3 ½ years of the tribulation. I will attempt to show they are both. The first four seals (prophecies) have already been fulfilled, but they will be fulfilled again in a 3 ½ year period we call the first half of the tribulation. Revelation 11 introduces the two witnesses who will prophesy for the first 3 ½ years of the tribulation, so they have to be inserted here with these events. After 3 ½ years of the witness of the two olive trees (1260 days), they will be killed by the beast. So it seems the seal judgments occur at the same time that these two prophets prophesy. Another point that has been overlooked by many is the fact that the events described in the first four seal judgments do not necessarily have to occur one right after another. By that I simply mean that the bubonic plague of the 1300s was reported to have killed one forth of the world’s population (Rev. 6:8).
1. Who broke the first seal? 6:1a
2. What did his voice sound like? 6:1b
3. What did this angel say? 6:1c
4. Upon what was “he who sat upon it” riding? 6:2
5. What did he have? 6:2b
6. What was given to him? 6:2b
7. Finally, what did he do? 6:2c
The first seal pictures a white horse upon which is mounted a king with authority to wage war (vv 1-2). This is clearly not a reference to Christ. I’m sorry if you missed it, but Saddam Hussein was videoed numerous times riding through the streets of Baghdad on a white horse. And he definitely went out conquering and to conquer. We must not ever confuse the fact that Jesus rode the white horse in Revelation 19:11-16 with the illusion Satan wishes to create. When Jesus is mentioned in scripture, there is no confusion about his authority or identity, accept, of course, for the lost. He is the King of kings, and since His resurrection He is always pictured as such. Even when called the Lamb, He is described as the one with great authority.
11. Who spoke when the second seal was broken? 6:3a
12. What did this creature say? 6:3b
13. What was the color of the second horse? 6:4a
14. What as granted to the rider of this horse? 6:4b
a.
b.
15. What was given to this rider? 6:4c
The second seal pictures a red horse upon which is mounted one who is granted the power to wage all out war on all that is peaceful. Notice a great sword was given to him. This is likely a reference to nuclear weapons. It was not just a sword, but a great sword that was given to him. It seems this seal was first fulfilled in 1945 when we dropped the two bombs on Hiroshima on August 6th, and Nagasaki on August 9th. The figures of how many were killed vary. Somewhere between 140,000 and 200,000 died from these bombings. The United States had the infamous privilege of fulfilling the prophecy of the second seal.
11. Who spoke when the third seal was broken? 6:5a
12. What did this creature say? 6:5b
13. What was the color of the second horse? 6:5c
14.What was the color of the second horse? 6:5d
15. What did the rider of his horse have in his hand? 6:5e
16. What did this voice say? 6:6a
The third seal pictures a black horse upon which is mounted one who has been given authority to cause famine throughout the earth. I suspect the phrase, “and do not damage the oil and the wine,” is a command not to harm the saints (represented by the oil, ie. the Holy Spirit, and the wine, ie., the word of God). This prophecy has been fulfilled numerous times already. Certainly, the price of grain was fulfilled in the U.S. alone in the seventies.
1. Who spoke at the breaking of the fourth seal? 6:7a
2. What did he say? 6:7b
3.
The fourth seal pictures an ashen horse (probably a grey) upon which sat one who had authority to kill a fourth of the earth with death, famine, pestilence, and wild animals gone berserk. I already addressed this seal on page 35 in reference to the bubonic plague and subsequent famine in Europe.
The fifth seal breaks the pattern. When it was broken, John saw underneath the altar (the souls of those slain for the word of God and the testimony they had maintained, 6:9). Each of these saints was given a white robe and told to “rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and of their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.” (6:11) All of you pre-tribulation rapturists please note, these are the souls of “those who had been slain because of the word of God and because of the Testimony of Jesus which they had maintained.” Mercy, mercy, how can anyone conclude the church has already been raptured after reading this verse. It’s absolutely, unequivocally, clear that those who have already died as a result of persecution are awaiting the rest who will die during the tribulation before they get their reward. Persecution of saints is a fact of history. Interestingly enough, historically, when countries allowed the freedom for Christians to worship without persecution, the church enters a state of catatonia. Historically there has always been somewhere in the world where Christianity is illegal. When the saints are persecuted, they stand strong because that is a time when they must depend on the indwelling power of Holy Spirit of God to guide and protect them. There is soon coming a time when world wide persecution of Christians will again prevail. It will be at that time when the Holy Spirit of God will so pour out His power on the church that great multitudes will come to the saving knowledge of Jesus and will be killed for professing Him as Savior and Lord (Rev. 12:17).
At the opening of the sixth seal, there will occur a great earthquake, the sun and the moon will wane, and stars will fall from the sky. The sky will be split apart like a scroll, and entire mountains and islands will be moved out of their places. This cataclysmic event will be so intense that the inhabitants of the earth will hide in caves among the rocks of the mountains and pray the caves will collapse upon them for fear of the wrath of God (6:15-17). It is clear this seal (prophecy) has not yet been fulfilled. However, I strongly suspect it will not be long before it is fulfilled.
Chapter 7 begins with John describing four angles standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds, so that not even an ever so soft wind will blow on the entire earth, sea, or on any tree. In other words, it will be hot and there will be no relief from the heat. Not even the slightest breeze will blow anywhere on planet earth. Another angel appears from the east (the rising of the sun), having the seal of God and cries out with a loud voice to the four angels saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God (the twelve tribes of Israel) on their foreheads.” I think it is important here to note that this event will be preceded by the cataclysmic event described in Revelation 6:15-17. I also suggest that the cataclysmic event described in 6:15-17 indicates the coming seal judgments will not take the number of years be fulfilled that the seal judgments took. These events are God’s way of saying, “Beloved, look up for your redemption draweth nigh.” (Luke 21:58) John heard someone say there would be 144,000 with 12,000 from each of the twelve tribes of Israel sealed. It’s interesting to note that Ephraim and Dan are missing. Joseph had two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Joseph is included and so is Manasseh. Isaiah 7:8 explains why Ephraim is missing. The only explanation I can find for Dan being absent is found in Judges 17 and 18 which deal with Micah’s idolatry. You can read those accounts if you are especially interested. Anyway, the sealing of the twelve tribes indicates that these 144,000 Jews will be divinely protected during the tribulation (12:13-16).
In chapter 7:9-17 John describes a great multitude who come out of the great tribulation (v. 14), standing before the throne of the Lamb, clothed in white robes. These will have a special place in the kingdom. They will be personal servants to the Lamb. They will not hunger, thirst, or get hot in the sun ever again. It is important to note that they are already in heaven before the end of the tribulation. Verses 14 and 15 (for this reason), make it clear they are before the throne because they came out of the tribulation. It is abundantly clear they were not raptured into heaven; they entered heaven immediately upon dying during the tribulation. Again, these verses do not indicate they were raptured before the tribulation; they indicate they come out of the tribulation.
In chapters 6 and 7 we see the opening of six of the seven seals. There are two possibilities as to the time of these seals. They are either pre-tribulation occurrences or they are the beginning of the first 3 ½ years of the tribulation. I will attempt to show they are both. The first four seals (prophecies) have already been fulfilled, but they will be fulfilled again in a 3 ½ year period we call the first half of the tribulation. Revelation 11 introduces the two witnesses who will prophesy for the first 3 ½ years of the tribulation, so they have to be inserted here with these events. After 3 ½ years of the witness of the two olive trees (1260 days), they will be killed by the beast. So it seems the seal judgments occur at the same time that these two prophets prophesy. Another point that has been overlooked by many is the fact that the events described in the first four seal judgments do not necessarily have to occur one right after another. By that I simply mean that the bubonic plague of the 1300s was reported to have killed one forth of the world’s population (Rev. 6:8).
1. Who broke the first seal? 6:1a
2. What did his voice sound like? 6:1b
3. What did this angel say? 6:1c
4. Upon what was “he who sat upon it” riding? 6:2
5. What did he have? 6:2b
6. What was given to him? 6:2b
7. Finally, what did he do? 6:2c
The first seal pictures a white horse upon which is mounted a king with authority to wage war (vv 1-2). This is clearly not a reference to Christ. I’m sorry if you missed it, but Saddam Hussein was videoed numerous times riding through the streets of Baghdad on a white horse. And he definitely went out conquering and to conquer. We must not ever confuse the fact that Jesus rode the white horse in Revelation 19:11-16 with the illusion Satan wishes to create. When Jesus is mentioned in scripture, there is no confusion about his authority or identity, accept, of course, for the lost. He is the King of kings, and since His resurrection He is always pictured as such. Even when called the Lamb, He is described as the one with great authority.
11. Who spoke when the second seal was broken? 6:3a
12. What did this creature say? 6:3b
13. What was the color of the second horse? 6:4a
14. What as granted to the rider of this horse? 6:4b
a.
b.
15. What was given to this rider? 6:4c
The second seal pictures a red horse upon which is mounted one who is granted the power to wage all out war on all that is peaceful. Notice a great sword was given to him. This is likely a reference to nuclear weapons. It was not just a sword, but a great sword that was given to him. It seems this seal was first fulfilled in 1945 when we dropped the two bombs on Hiroshima on August 6th, and Nagasaki on August 9th. The figures of how many were killed vary. Somewhere between 140,000 and 200,000 died from these bombings. The United States had the infamous privilege of fulfilling the prophecy of the second seal.
11. Who spoke when the third seal was broken? 6:5a
12. What did this creature say? 6:5b
13. What was the color of the second horse? 6:5c
14.What was the color of the second horse? 6:5d
15. What did the rider of his horse have in his hand? 6:5e
16. What did this voice say? 6:6a
The third seal pictures a black horse upon which is mounted one who has been given authority to cause famine throughout the earth. I suspect the phrase, “and do not damage the oil and the wine,” is a command not to harm the saints (represented by the oil, ie. the Holy Spirit, and the wine, ie., the word of God). This prophecy has been fulfilled numerous times already. Certainly, the price of grain was fulfilled in the U.S. alone in the seventies.
1. Who spoke at the breaking of the fourth seal? 6:7a
2. What did he say? 6:7b
3.
The fourth seal pictures an ashen horse (probably a grey) upon which sat one who had authority to kill a fourth of the earth with death, famine, pestilence, and wild animals gone berserk. I already addressed this seal on page 35 in reference to the bubonic plague and subsequent famine in Europe.
The fifth seal breaks the pattern. When it was broken, John saw underneath the altar (the souls of those slain for the word of God and the testimony they had maintained, 6:9). Each of these saints was given a white robe and told to “rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and of their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.” (6:11) All of you pre-tribulation rapturists please note, these are the souls of “those who had been slain because of the word of God and because of the Testimony of Jesus which they had maintained.” Mercy, mercy, how can anyone conclude the church has already been raptured after reading this verse. It’s absolutely, unequivocally, clear that those who have already died as a result of persecution are awaiting the rest who will die during the tribulation before they get their reward. Persecution of saints is a fact of history. Interestingly enough, historically, when countries allowed the freedom for Christians to worship without persecution, the church enters a state of catatonia. Historically there has always been somewhere in the world where Christianity is illegal. When the saints are persecuted, they stand strong because that is a time when they must depend on the indwelling power of Holy Spirit of God to guide and protect them. There is soon coming a time when world wide persecution of Christians will again prevail. It will be at that time when the Holy Spirit of God will so pour out His power on the church that great multitudes will come to the saving knowledge of Jesus and will be killed for professing Him as Savior and Lord (Rev. 12:17).
At the opening of the sixth seal, there will occur a great earthquake, the sun and the moon will wane, and stars will fall from the sky. The sky will be split apart like a scroll, and entire mountains and islands will be moved out of their places. This cataclysmic event will be so intense that the inhabitants of the earth will hide in caves among the rocks of the mountains and pray the caves will collapse upon them for fear of the wrath of God (6:15-17). It is clear this seal (prophecy) has not yet been fulfilled. However, I strongly suspect it will not be long before it is fulfilled.
Chapter 7 begins with John describing four angles standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds, so that not even an ever so soft wind will blow on the entire earth, sea, or on any tree. In other words, it will be hot and there will be no relief from the heat. Not even the slightest breeze will blow anywhere on planet earth. Another angel appears from the east (the rising of the sun), having the seal of God and cries out with a loud voice to the four angels saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God (the twelve tribes of Israel) on their foreheads.” I think it is important here to note that this event will be preceded by the cataclysmic event described in Revelation 6:15-17. I also suggest that the cataclysmic event described in 6:15-17 indicates the coming seal judgments will not take the number of years be fulfilled that the seal judgments took. These events are God’s way of saying, “Beloved, look up for your redemption draweth nigh.” (Luke 21:58) John heard someone say there would be 144,000 with 12,000 from each of the twelve tribes of Israel sealed. It’s interesting to note that Ephraim and Dan are missing. Joseph had two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. Joseph is included and so is Manasseh. Isaiah 7:8 explains why Ephraim is missing. The only explanation I can find for Dan being absent is found in Judges 17 and 18 which deal with Micah’s idolatry. You can read those accounts if you are especially interested. Anyway, the sealing of the twelve tribes indicates that these 144,000 Jews will be divinely protected during the tribulation (12:13-16).
In chapter 7:9-17 John describes a great multitude who come out of the great tribulation (v. 14), standing before the throne of the Lamb, clothed in white robes. These will have a special place in the kingdom. They will be personal servants to the Lamb. They will not hunger, thirst, or get hot in the sun ever again. It is important to note that they are already in heaven before the end of the tribulation. Verses 14 and 15 (for this reason), make it clear they are before the throne because they came out of the tribulation. It is abundantly clear they were not raptured into heaven; they entered heaven immediately upon dying during the tribulation. Again, these verses do not indicate they were raptured before the tribulation; they indicate they come out of the tribulation.
The Trumpet Judgments (Revelation 8 and 9)
Chapter 5
In the beginning of chapter 8 we see the breaking of the seventh seal, which is the introduction to the trumpet judgments. There is silence in heaven for thirty minutes. It’s difficult for us to imagine complete silence in heaven for a half hour. Myriads of myriads of angelic beings, the four living creatures, so many martyred saints they can’t be counted (7:9), Jesus and God the Father on their thrones, and the seven angels waiting to get their trumpets to inaugurate the next seven judgments. Yet, not a creature was stirring. There was complete silence.
In verse 3 we see another angel appear who is holding a golden censer. He has a whole lot of incense given to him (representing the prayers of the saints), that he adds to the incense already on the altar that is before the throne of God. This same angel fills his censer with fire from the altar and throws it to the earth; “and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake”. Remember, a great earthquake ended the seal judgments (6:12).
In chapter 8 we see the first trumpet angel send hail and fire, mixed with blood to the earth, destroying one third of it, one third of the trees, and all of the green grass. When the second angel sounds, something that looks like a great mountain, possibly an asteroid, is thrown into the sea, killing one third of the fish and mammals living in it. The third angel’s focus is on the fresh waters of the earth. He sends a great star to the earth which apparently breaks into millions of pieces and lands in the waters of the earth, polluting them, making them bitter, unpalatable. The fourth angel’s focus in on the sun, moon, and stars. He strikes them in some fashion that causes them to darken and lose a third of their light. Imagine that during the day, one third of the available light that has been enjoyed by the earth’s inhabitants for centuries has disappeared. I’m not sure how we can measure such things. I know there are instruments that can measure the amount of light our electronic devices emit, so I am quite certain the concept exists, but personally, I can’t imagine what it will be like on planet earth with one third of the light we now enjoy gone.
Verse 13 of chapter 8 is truly scary. John looks, but he hears an eagle flying in midheaven (that’s the place we call space), “saying with a loud voice, ‘woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth (a reference to unbelievers), because of the remaining blasts of the trumpets of the three angels who are about to sound!’” In contemporary language, they are indicating that what we have read so far is insignificant when measured against what is about to come. All of the destruction and death heretofore reaped on planet earth was only a prelude to what is coming. It was the tip of the proverbial ice berg. When the fifth angel sounds, a demon, referred to as a star which had previously fallen to the earth, is given the key to hell where myriads of demons have been locked up waiting for this day to come. When the demon opens this bottomless pit, smoke, like the smoke of a furnace rises, and from the smoke rises demons who look like locusts. The locust looking demons, have a rather unique power. They can sting a man, inflicting such pain that he will cry out for death, but death will not come. It seems that with the agonizing pain will come paralysis, because the people stung by these locusts will not even be able to commit suicide, thereby acquiring relief from the agony and the pain of the sting (9:6).
Verses 7-11 indicate these locusts looking creatures may be quite large. It also seems this first assault will focus on Israel. Note, they were not allowed to harm those Jews who had the “seal of God on their foreheads.” (cf. 9:4 with 7:4-8) Our military has had helicopters for a long time that John may well be describing here. Of course he was using the only language he had available to him to describe what he was seeing. His description of the crowns like gold and the hair like that of a women are a little difficult to reconcile, but the rest of his description fits some of our military helicopters to the tee. I suppose the key phrase here has to do with the sound of their wings, which John describes as “like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle.” That is exactly what one of our military helicopters sounds like. And we have had chemical weapons for decades that have the ability to inflict enormous pain and paralyze people at the same time.
It seems their leader, called the angel of the abyss (possibly Satan, though not necessarily), acquires this chemical weapon and uses it on Israel first and then moves to those nations throughout the world which allow Israelis to live peacefully within their political boundaries. Imagine hospitals all over the world filled with victims of this nerve gas assault. And then imagine that there are two more woes coming that are going to be worse than this one. Also imagine that the first woe is sufficiently cataclysmic as to dwarf all of the previous seal and trumpet judgments.
So, when I suggested hospitals around the world will be filled with the victims of this chemical assault, I was probably being an optimist. It is most likely there will not be sufficient space in the hospitals around the world to house the number of victims who will be afflicted by this nerve gas. It is quite likely many will lie in the streets, slowly dying of the pain, unable to get food or water to sustain them in their pain. As they slowly die from malnutrition, the stench of death from their rotting bodies will add to the incredible horror already being faced by any who have not inhaled the paralyzing gas.
Now, to add to this horror, the next angel sounds, releasing the four angels at the river Euphrates, politically the current location of the nations of Iraq and Iran, who have been waiting for the hour and day and month and year to kill a third of mankind (9:13-15). There have been countless books written which attempt to indicate exactly who these specific nations are. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the current president of Iran, is bragging almost daily that he will start world war III, which he believes will usher in the Muslim messiah. Ezekiel 37 and 38 are often quoted indicating they are an alliance of nations including Russia, Iraq, China, and Iran. That is certainly possible. Today, these nations have more in common than they did even twenty years ago.
I don’t believe it is as critical for us to identify the nations as it is to realize they will be going after all those in the people of the world who are not their allies and who were not affected by the nerve gas they already released. It is important to understand that this two hundred million man army will kill a third of what is left of mankind. They will use fire, smoke, and, what John calls, brimstone, which proceeds out of their mouths. There need be no debate about whether or not this military is riding on horses. It is not likely. John had no words to describe current military weapons or their delivery systems. Great soldiers rode horses into battle in John’s time. Whatever a soldier was using to deliver destruction to his enemy was a horse to John. Certainly, what he describes does not fit the description of any horse I have ever ridden.
A contemporary tank has power in its mouth (the top front part of the machine) and in its tail (possibly a machine gun mounted on a turret at the rear of the tank). These tanks can fire fifty caliber explosive devices from the barrel and when they hit their target, they would certainly appear to a man living 2,000 years ago to be fire, smoke, and brimstone. In verses 20-21 we discover that those left on the planet still do not repent of their ungodly ways. They are not moved to repentance even when it appears likely all they have worshipped and done will soon cease to exist.
In the beginning of chapter 8 we see the breaking of the seventh seal, which is the introduction to the trumpet judgments. There is silence in heaven for thirty minutes. It’s difficult for us to imagine complete silence in heaven for a half hour. Myriads of myriads of angelic beings, the four living creatures, so many martyred saints they can’t be counted (7:9), Jesus and God the Father on their thrones, and the seven angels waiting to get their trumpets to inaugurate the next seven judgments. Yet, not a creature was stirring. There was complete silence.
In verse 3 we see another angel appear who is holding a golden censer. He has a whole lot of incense given to him (representing the prayers of the saints), that he adds to the incense already on the altar that is before the throne of God. This same angel fills his censer with fire from the altar and throws it to the earth; “and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake”. Remember, a great earthquake ended the seal judgments (6:12).
In chapter 8 we see the first trumpet angel send hail and fire, mixed with blood to the earth, destroying one third of it, one third of the trees, and all of the green grass. When the second angel sounds, something that looks like a great mountain, possibly an asteroid, is thrown into the sea, killing one third of the fish and mammals living in it. The third angel’s focus is on the fresh waters of the earth. He sends a great star to the earth which apparently breaks into millions of pieces and lands in the waters of the earth, polluting them, making them bitter, unpalatable. The fourth angel’s focus in on the sun, moon, and stars. He strikes them in some fashion that causes them to darken and lose a third of their light. Imagine that during the day, one third of the available light that has been enjoyed by the earth’s inhabitants for centuries has disappeared. I’m not sure how we can measure such things. I know there are instruments that can measure the amount of light our electronic devices emit, so I am quite certain the concept exists, but personally, I can’t imagine what it will be like on planet earth with one third of the light we now enjoy gone.
Verse 13 of chapter 8 is truly scary. John looks, but he hears an eagle flying in midheaven (that’s the place we call space), “saying with a loud voice, ‘woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth (a reference to unbelievers), because of the remaining blasts of the trumpets of the three angels who are about to sound!’” In contemporary language, they are indicating that what we have read so far is insignificant when measured against what is about to come. All of the destruction and death heretofore reaped on planet earth was only a prelude to what is coming. It was the tip of the proverbial ice berg. When the fifth angel sounds, a demon, referred to as a star which had previously fallen to the earth, is given the key to hell where myriads of demons have been locked up waiting for this day to come. When the demon opens this bottomless pit, smoke, like the smoke of a furnace rises, and from the smoke rises demons who look like locusts. The locust looking demons, have a rather unique power. They can sting a man, inflicting such pain that he will cry out for death, but death will not come. It seems that with the agonizing pain will come paralysis, because the people stung by these locusts will not even be able to commit suicide, thereby acquiring relief from the agony and the pain of the sting (9:6).
Verses 7-11 indicate these locusts looking creatures may be quite large. It also seems this first assault will focus on Israel. Note, they were not allowed to harm those Jews who had the “seal of God on their foreheads.” (cf. 9:4 with 7:4-8) Our military has had helicopters for a long time that John may well be describing here. Of course he was using the only language he had available to him to describe what he was seeing. His description of the crowns like gold and the hair like that of a women are a little difficult to reconcile, but the rest of his description fits some of our military helicopters to the tee. I suppose the key phrase here has to do with the sound of their wings, which John describes as “like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle.” That is exactly what one of our military helicopters sounds like. And we have had chemical weapons for decades that have the ability to inflict enormous pain and paralyze people at the same time.
It seems their leader, called the angel of the abyss (possibly Satan, though not necessarily), acquires this chemical weapon and uses it on Israel first and then moves to those nations throughout the world which allow Israelis to live peacefully within their political boundaries. Imagine hospitals all over the world filled with victims of this nerve gas assault. And then imagine that there are two more woes coming that are going to be worse than this one. Also imagine that the first woe is sufficiently cataclysmic as to dwarf all of the previous seal and trumpet judgments.
So, when I suggested hospitals around the world will be filled with the victims of this chemical assault, I was probably being an optimist. It is most likely there will not be sufficient space in the hospitals around the world to house the number of victims who will be afflicted by this nerve gas. It is quite likely many will lie in the streets, slowly dying of the pain, unable to get food or water to sustain them in their pain. As they slowly die from malnutrition, the stench of death from their rotting bodies will add to the incredible horror already being faced by any who have not inhaled the paralyzing gas.
Now, to add to this horror, the next angel sounds, releasing the four angels at the river Euphrates, politically the current location of the nations of Iraq and Iran, who have been waiting for the hour and day and month and year to kill a third of mankind (9:13-15). There have been countless books written which attempt to indicate exactly who these specific nations are. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the current president of Iran, is bragging almost daily that he will start world war III, which he believes will usher in the Muslim messiah. Ezekiel 37 and 38 are often quoted indicating they are an alliance of nations including Russia, Iraq, China, and Iran. That is certainly possible. Today, these nations have more in common than they did even twenty years ago.
I don’t believe it is as critical for us to identify the nations as it is to realize they will be going after all those in the people of the world who are not their allies and who were not affected by the nerve gas they already released. It is important to understand that this two hundred million man army will kill a third of what is left of mankind. They will use fire, smoke, and, what John calls, brimstone, which proceeds out of their mouths. There need be no debate about whether or not this military is riding on horses. It is not likely. John had no words to describe current military weapons or their delivery systems. Great soldiers rode horses into battle in John’s time. Whatever a soldier was using to deliver destruction to his enemy was a horse to John. Certainly, what he describes does not fit the description of any horse I have ever ridden.
A contemporary tank has power in its mouth (the top front part of the machine) and in its tail (possibly a machine gun mounted on a turret at the rear of the tank). These tanks can fire fifty caliber explosive devices from the barrel and when they hit their target, they would certainly appear to a man living 2,000 years ago to be fire, smoke, and brimstone. In verses 20-21 we discover that those left on the planet still do not repent of their ungodly ways. They are not moved to repentance even when it appears likely all they have worshipped and done will soon cease to exist.
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