The Raven challenge!

[Raven]

Who is up to breaking out their New Testaments and having a chapter by chapter discussion on the book of Revelation?

Serious applicants only need apply!

(C'mon....help me out here....I need a diversion....BADLY!)

[telaquapacky]

Raven wrote: Who is up to breaking out their New Testaments and having a chapter by chapter discussion on the book of Revelation?

Serious applicants only need apply!

(C'mon....help me out here....I need a diversion....BADLY!)


Revelation 1:1-3

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw-- that is , the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.



Observations:

1. It reveals Christ. If a person doesn't know and love Jesus better after reading Revelation, they have missed the point of the book.

2. God gave it. It's God's word. It contains a lot of the words of Christ, who is God along with the Father.

3. Purpose: to show us what must take place. No whining! A lot of bad things will happen on earth leading up to the conclusion of all things. God is still in control. We don't have to worry, just trust Him no matter what happens. - Or as Jesus said in Luke 21:28, "When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."

4. "The time is near." Really? Really. John wrote it almost 2000 years ago, but God evidently always wanted His people to think and act as if Christ's second coming were going to happen during their lifetimes. Might as well. Ever throughout history, it has been as close as the day you die. Also consider Matthew 24:45 and onward, where the faithful servant is always ready for his Master to return, but the wicked servant says, "My master is staying away a long time," and does wickedly.

5. Blessed is the one who reads it. Revelation is not supposed to be a "horror story." Reading it is supposed to pull back the veil that separates what is seen from what is unseen and open our eyes to spiritual things that bless us and strengthen our faith. If it scares you or makes you back away from God, you have missed the point of the book.

Raven- you're super for starting this!:D

[Clint]

This is an interesting read on "The Day of the lord".

http://www.lionlamb.net/pub2005.htm

[Skeeter]

Love it...!!! but the worldly 'things' might come to an end but it says World without end, Amen.....but I love the book of Revelation....and it is NOT scary but I do have a hard time with the beast with the many horns...I just am not able to grasp what countries they are talking about...I think it must be Syria but don't really know....I have never been good with geography anyhow...and they change the names of the countries and lose me now....but would welcome a study of it.sounds like fun.

[telaquapacky]

Skeeter wrote: Love it...!!! but the worldly 'things' might come to an end but it says World without end, Amen.....but I love the book of Revelation....and it is NOT scary but I do have a hard time with the beast with the many horns...I just am not able to grasp what countries they are talking about...I think it must be Syria but don't really know....I have never been good with geography anyhow...and they change the names of the countries and lose me now....but would welcome a study of it.sounds like fun.Hiya, Skeeter! Of course you know "World without end" isn't from the Bible, but is a line from the Gloria Patri, a traditional worship response:

Glory be to the Father

And to the Son

And to the Holy Ghost

As it was in the beginning

It's now and ever shall be

World without end

Amen, Amen.

The churches I worship in don't like the GP (I've heard it used once in 25 years) probably because of the words "world without end" can be a little misleading. The original intent of the words probably did not mean the world mankind has built, which certainly wasn't here "in the beginning," but rather the world of God- that is, His kingdom.

To properly understand some of the beast symbolism in Revelation, it's necessary to go back to the Book of Daniel, where beast symbolism is used in prophetic vision, followed by a clear explanation, in some cases telling which exact countries are symbolized, and others can be extrapolated from history and other clues in the text. Daniel is the Apocalypse of the Old Testament, just as Revelation is the Apocalypse of the new. You can't understand Revelation without understanding Daniel, because it lays a foundation for what is seen in Revelation. The ten-horned beast is first seen in Daniel- and vital clues are given as to it's identity. I hope we take one part of Revelation at a time and avoid getting ahead of ourselves.

[Ted]

According to Achtemeier, Green and Thompson in "Introducing the New Testament; Its Literature and Theology" the book of Revelation is actually about the Roman empire>

"In these chapters we find a vivid description of the conflict between the messianic people on the one hand and the Roman Empire and the imperial priesthood on the other. Ther are five main characters.

1) A pregnant worman "clothed with the sun" and wearing a "Crown of twelve stars"( 12:1-31 represents Israel about to give birth to her son, the Messiah.

1) The woman's son, described in the language of Psalm 2as destined to rule all nations with a rod of iron, is the Messiah, Jesus.

3) A great red dragon with seven heads, seven crowns, and ten horns, identified as "that ancient serpent. . . the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world" is defeated by the heavenly hosts. Thrown down to the earth, it pursues the woman and child. But the child is snatched to safety, and the woman is provided a place of refuge from the dragon's onslaught.

4) A beast rising out of the sea, with ten crowns and blasphemous names on its heads, on of which "seemed to have received a death blow, but its mortal wounds had been healed." As noted above, this description makes used of the Nero redivivus legend to depict not only the reigning empereor but, through him, the Roman Empire. The assertions that it received tis power and authority from the dragon indicates the ultimately demonic character of Rome's oppressive and self-agrandizing power.

5) A beast that comes from the earth and tries to make people venerate the first.beast represents those who participate in the cult of the emperor, particularly in the eastern part of the empire where the seven churches of chs. 2-3 were located. "The mark of the beast" (13:17-18) is given to those who fall prey to the strictures of those who insist on veneration of the emperor as a condition for civil peace." p 581-582.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[Skeeter]

shoot...I am so far out classed in any of these discussions that I will simply read and listen a lot...and hopefully learn something by keeping my mouth shut. thanks a lot anyhow.

[Raven]

Skeeter, we are all in the same boat. You are never outclassed as long as you stick to the book. And your ideas and thoughts along with your participation are required for all of us to learn something. Thats the point of the thread!:-6

Ted, we're discussing what the scriptures say. Not what someone else wrote about them, but what THE SCRIPTURES say.

"Blessed are the people who hear this message, and do what is written in it. The time is near when all of this will happen."

This is the only book that comes with such a blessing! At the end it comes with a curse on those who try to change the wording of it! I dont know about you guys, but that makes this book pretty special to me.

Jesus Himself, gives an account of what MUST come to pass shortly. The poor little fella is on a prison island called Patmos. Funny that, God visits messages and visions throughout the bible on folks who are imprisoned for their faith.

But John seems quite explicit in telling us that this message is for His SERVANTS!

But what about the seven letters to the churches? They certainly werent the largest and most well known centers of the faith at that time. But they all had certain characteristics of the modern day church in them already. But why the letters first? Before the opening of the scroll. Does this represent the age of grace for the church? All throughout the book, God gives man chance after chance to repent of his wickedness. It clearly shows alot of mercy before judgement.

First Letter:

From John,

To the seven churches in the country of Asia:

Grace and peace to you from the One who Is, and WAS and is coming,

and from the seven Spirits before His throne, and from Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the faithful witness, the first among those raised from the dead.

He is the ruler of the kings of the earth.

He is the one who loves us, who made us free from our sins with the blood of His death. He made us to be a kingdom of priests who serve God His Father.

To Jesus Christ be glory and power forever and ever! Amen.

Look, Jesus is coming with the clouds, and everyone will see Him, even those who stabbed Him. And ALL peoples of the earth will cry loudly because of Him. Yes, this will happen! Amen.

The Lord GOD says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega. I am the who Is and Was and is coming. I am the Almighty."

I, John, am your brother. All of us share with Christ in suffering, in the kingdom, and in the patience to continue. I was on the island of Patmos, because I had preached the Word of God, and the message about Jesus. On the Lords day, I was in the Spirit, and I heard a loud voice behind me that sounded like a trumpet. The voice said, "Write what you see in a book, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicia."

I turned to see who was talking to me. When I turned, I saw seven golden lampstands and someone among the lampstands who was 'like a son of man'.

He was dressed in a long robe and had a gold band around his chest. His head and hair were like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were like bronze that glows hot in a furnace, and his voice was like the noise of flooding water. He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp double edged sword came out of his mouth. He looked like the sun shining at its brightest time.

When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. He put his right hand on me and said, "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last, I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys to death and to the place of the dead. So write the things you see, what is now, and what will happen later. Here is the secret of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and the seven golden lampstands:

The seven lampstands are the seven churches, and the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches."

[telaquapacky]

Forging ahead, Raven. I hope no one objects to me plodding along verse by verse. There are lots of hidden gems along the way.

Skeeter, parts of Revelation are over all our heads. Pretty soon I will be in over mine. Don't hesitate to share your thoughts.

Ted, I identify with much of what you've said so far. The scholar in you wants to give all the references, and go ahead if you want to. I'm sharing what I'm thinking about it wherever it comes from. We all get things from a variety of sources- it's what we retain that matters to us.

Revelation 1:4,5a

John, to the seven churches which are in Asia:

Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth...

Background:

John was in exile on island of Patmos when he wrote Revelation. All the other apostles had passed away. Roman law demanded that the goddess Roma, personifying the empire, and the emperor himself, be worshipped as gods. This the Christians and Jews would not do. So the Church, now in the second generation, faced the greatest external threat it had ever known, and needed a new revelation of Jesus Christ.

Revelation is a NT companion book to the OT book of Daniel. The first parallel is the condition of the Church at the time of John’s exile compared to the situation Daniel’s three compatriots confronted in Daniel chapter 3, where the emperor of Babylon commanded all his subjects to worship a golden image representing the empire, and his never-ending reign. Daniel’s friends refused, and faced death in a fiery furnace. The visions God gave to John in Revelation provided the Christians encouragement in their own burning trials. They were no doubt drawn to the Book of Daniel, which contains keys to decipher some of the symbolism in Revelation.

The Christians in John’s time found the book as relevant and exciting as Christians do today. In some ways they understood it better than we do, because they lived the experience of a persecuted Church. In other ways we may understand it better almost 2000 years later, because we have seen Revelation’s prophecies fulfilled in the history of the Church.

Observations from the text:

1. John the Apostle wrote Revelation as a “chain letter” to seven churches in the Roman province of Asia, to be read, copied and passed on. Here’s the first of many uses of the number seven in Revelation. Seven in Biblical numerology represents perfection or completeness. Though it was written to these seven churches, it speaks to the entire Church, everywhere and in every age.

2. “Grace and Peace.” John wrote, “Charis,” and “Shalom.” Charis is Greek for “grace.” It’s where the English word “Charismatic” comes from. Shalom is Hebrew for “peace.” Christians today forget how Jewish in character the early church was in the first century, especially in Asia, where it grew up around converted messianic synagogues, and gradually reached out to and began to admit Gentiles. The Greek-Jewish diversity of the early church meant that Jewish and Gentile Christians alike needed to overcome a lot of old prejudices and cultural differences to become a united body in Christ. Just as Jewish Christians greeted one another saying, “Shalom,” Greek Christians said “Charis.”

3. “Him who is and who was and who is to come” means God the Father, because of the throne context and because John is now referring to the trinity, which always names the Father first. (Although “who is and was and is to come” can also be said of Jesus – Hebrews 13:8)

4. “The Seven Spirits” means the Holy Spirit, manifested in various ways in various places, but consisting of one perfect whole. Elsewhere in Revelation the seven Spirits are portrayed as seven lamps (Revelation 4:5) and the seven eyes of the Lamb (Revelation 5:6). 1 Corinthians 12:4-11. explains spiritual gifts- the variety of ways the Spirit works through Christians.

5. “And from Jesus Christ.” Here John completes the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit to emphasize that this book is God’s Word, with contributions from all three. They all send their greetings in language everyone can understand and identify with. In Revelation, the whole Godhead is talking to the whole Church in every age.

6. “Faithful witness.” Jesus is the perfect representative to mankind of God’s mind, will and character (see Colossians 1:15-17 quoted below).

7. “firstborn from the dead” Jesus was not chronologically the first to be resurrected, but He is “first” because all others resurrected before or after Him gained victory over death only by virtue of and contingent upon His victory over death. They were raised by Christ, whereas Christ raised Himself- uniquely having life in and of Himself, and being the Source of all life (John 1:1-3; 5:24-26, 1 Corinthians 15:12-23, Romans 14:9). Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:23 that Christ is the “firstfruits.” This is something that thrilled Jewish Christians, because they knew that the day Christ was resurrected coincided with the Jewish ceremony of “firstfruits.” (compare Leviticus 23:10,11 to Mark 16:1-6) At the same moment that in the temple the priest waved the first sheaf of grain before God, Jesus, the firstborn of the resurrection was walking out of the tomb! All the Jewish ceremonies were prophetically symbolic of Christ. Christians who ignore the Old Testament miss a lot of information that could help them better understand the New Testament in general, and we will see, Revelation in particular. Without a thorough understanding of the Old Testament, Revelation is largely incomprehensible.



8. “ruler over the kings of the earth” Planet Earth is engaged in a great controversy over who’s in charge- Christ or Satan. In Genesis 1:26, God originally made Adam (and by extension mankind) ruler over all life on earth. Satan claimed that by making Adam and Eve sin in the Garden of Eden, he had in effect made them turn sovereignty of the earth over to him (Matthew 4:8,9). By living a human life without sin- obedient even to death on the cross for our sins, Christ reversed what Adam had done, defeating Satan’s claim to dominion over the earth, and restoring life to us. This is why Christ is symbolically referred to as the “second Adam.” (1 Corinthians 15:22,45; Romans 5:15-19, Colossians 2:15, Revelation 11:15)

One day all people will recognize Christ as the King of kings (Philippians 2:10,11, Revelation 5:13;19:16). But, whether or not He is presently recognized as ruler over the kings of the earth, God through Christ always has from the beginning, overruled the affairs of earth for the completion of His eternal purpose (Daniel 2:21,22, Ephesians 1:10). All leaders on earth, whether they acknowledge or obey God or not, are putty in His hand, bringing about all “what must soon take place,” mentioned in Revelation 1:1.

Colossians 1:15-17

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

[Ted]

Raven:-6

I thought that was precisely what I was doing.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[Clint]

It is interesting that The Revelation begins by reminding the reader, once again, of the Sovereignty of God. Unless we accept His Sovereignty we cannot begin to grasp what He is about to reveal. The Bible is offensive to us in our human condition. It is offensive because it shatters our mental image of who God is. We cannot mold Him into the image we have of Him, it has to be the other way around.

Telaquapacky and Raven, thank you for a very thorough revelation of what God has shown you thus far. I find little to add and nothing to argue with.

I like the comments regarding the continuity of the Bible. The “Old Testament” was not replaced by the “New Testament”. Jesus didn’t come to destroy Judaisim or the Torah. He came to make them complete.

Telaquapacky and Raven, your comments to Skeeter remind me of how each of us, when we speak from our understanding of God to others, add a little more paint to the image He wants us to see of Him.

[Raven]

I love the fact that the Lord chose seven churches that bear a striking resemblance to our 'modern' ones!

"Write this to the angel of the church in Ephesus:

"The One who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven lampstands says this: I know what you do, how you work hard and never give up. I know you do not put up with the false teachings of evil people. You have tested those who say they are apostles but really are not, and you found they are liars. You have patience and have suffered troubles for my name and have not given up. But I have this against you: You have left the love you had in the beginning. So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first. If you do not change, I will come to you and take your lampstand from it's place. But there is something you do that is right: You hate what the Nicolaitians do as much as I.

Every person who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.

To those who win the victory, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life which is in the garden of God."



Now each of the seven letters has a different greeting, a different criticism and a different promise.



Any list of the major cities of the ancient world would have to include Ephesus. This bustleling city boasted a population of 250,000. A thriving business community, and an active religious culture. Not to mention one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. (Temple of Diana) The temple dedicated to the Roman goddess diana was truly an architectural marvel. It also symolized the pagan worship that went on in the city. The apostle Paul started a church in Ephesus, and John had worked in the city for almost 30 years before being shipped off to Patmos.

"You have patience and have suffered many troubles for my name and have not given up. But I have this against you: You have left the love you had in the beginning."

Jesus was talking to some people who had done some great things for Him. They had worked hard and persevered; but in all that, they had somehow lost their first love for Him.

You probably know people like that They go to church all the time, wear christian t-shirts, and scream "Jesus" really loud at concerts. But they are missing a passion for Him.

The Lord wants you to be known as a person who loves Him. He'd rather have you be known as a humble, gentle lover of God, than as the most eloquent preacher who just sounds good. Hold on tight to your love for Him. When other people walk away from an encounter with you, they should know one thing; that you have a fiery fervent love for God that will not quit. Your service for God is made great because your love for Him is great. Keep your passion burning!

[Clint]

Amen Raven.

To me the letter to the churches is the most important part of The Revelation. We should spend significant time looking at the warnings and the approval found there.

(3:14)"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this: (15)'I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.(16)'So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.

To often today we act like Laodiceans. We think the safe ground is the middle ground. We include everything rather than to seem extreme or radical. Yeshua is inclusive but on his terms. He would that all be saved and all are elected for salvation. Sadly, not all will accept his terms. They would rather please men that God.

We (the congregation of believers) have become soft. We are too often lukewarm and He is clear about what He will do to those who are lukewarm. We need to be about finding out what it is He wants and conforming to His ways. The Revelation cross-references frequently with the "Old Testament".

James says: (2:12) Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom,

We cannot ignore the law even tough we are not saved by it. The way to know his ways is to know the law he and his Apostles lived by. The law He wrote.

[chonsigirl]

I remember in Bible studies that the Laodicean church was supposed to mean the church that exist today, meaning us and our times. That we need ever to be watchful, and observant, not lukewarm.

[Skeeter]

The last church that I attended has gone overboard with appreciation of their new "coffee bar"....and when talked to them about it they declared that " Everyone is doing it...we have to keep up." What a bag of balogna....where does church dicipline and love and compassion come in...just after the coffee?..I like coffee as well as the next one but when it is in competetion with the sermon and the word of Jesus..I think that it needs to be re-thought...and if it is thought that that sort of thing has to be replicated because others do it leaves a lot of sermons to be preached.

[Raven]

hehehehe we can discuss Laodicia, but not yet.....it's further up the list! Next one up to bat is.......

"Write this to the angel of the church in Smyna:

"The One who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again, says this:

"I know your troubles and that you are poor, but really you are rich! I know the bad things that some people say about you. They say they are jews, but they are not true jews. They are a synagogue that belongs to Satan. Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer for ten days. But be faithful even if you have to die, and I will give you the crown of life.

Everyone who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. Those who win the victory, will not be hurt by the second death."

[chonsigirl]

You must be faithful, even until the end. Christian martyrs still die today in our world, they are our examples and whom we should be praying for daily.

[telaquapacky]

I wanted to edit my last post but was unable to. It's taken me a few days to be able to get back to FG.

In my last post, I commented on verse 1:5, the words, "Faithful witness." I wanted to expand on that a little before going on:

6. “Faithful witness.” Jesus is the perfect representative to mankind of God’s mind, will and character. Jesus came to earth not only to live a perfect life and to die for mankind; Jesus came to show us the Father- He came to show us that God is not the harsh, cruel, unloving person that men have made Him out to be. I John 14:8-11 Jesus asked Philip, “How can you say to me, ‘Show us the Father’? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” From the beginning, God the Father has been on trial in the court of human opinion, and Jesus has come as the ultimate Character Witness on God’s behalf. When you or I appear in court to bear testimony, to establish our credibility, we may be asked to swear that we will tell the truth, with our hand on a Bible (is that done anymore?). Jesus forever established the credibility of His testimony about the Father by giving His life, and shedding His blood. Note that the word here, translated “witness” is the Greek word, “martus-“ martyr. His most eloquent and powerful witness of God’s love was that He died for you. Revelation reveals Jesus, and Jesus reveals the Father.

Revelation 15b

To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,

“To Him who loved us”

Jesus loves us. Of all the disciples, John had the strongest sense of Jesus’ love, In his own gospel, John referred to himself as “the disciple Jesus loved” five times: John 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20 1 John 4:19. We would be wise to consult John to learn more about the love of Christ. What does the author of Revelation say about love in other books he’s written?

1 John 4:19 says, “We love Him because he first loved us.” Love cannot be forced or compelled- only by love is love awakened. 1 John 4:11,12 says, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” Jesus set the example- because He loves us, we ought to love one another.

Not only should His love for us make us love one another, it should awaken a love in us that results in our obedience to Him. John 14:23, 24 says, “Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.” John 14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Our motivation for keeping the Ten Commandments should always be love, because the first four commandments describe love for God, and the last six commandments describe love for our fellow human beings. Keeping them only “because it says so,” or going through the motions without your heart in it, isn’t love, and really isn’t the kind of obedience that pleases God. That would be legalism- what Paul described as keeping the letter of the law, but not the Spirit of the law (We’ll see this in the letter to the church at Ephesus). Genuine love and obedience comes from God living in us, from Jesus and the Father making their home in us. It’s a cycle. Jesus loves us. We love Him. He lives in us. We obey Him. These repeat as we are more and more filled with Christ and obey Him more and more- “from glory to glory.” This is Christian growth. You may say I have gone off-topic going from “Jesus loves us” to “Keep the Commandments,” Not at all! The verses above are all written by John, and they show that in the mind of the author of Revelation, the love between us and God, and our obedience to Him are inseparably linked, just as “Jesus loves us” and “We should love one another.”

I asserted in verse 1:1 that the Book of Revelation is primarily given by God to help us know and love Jesus better. I believe that though Revelation foretells the future, it does so only as a vehicle to accomplish the primary objective, which is to help us know and love Jesus better, and to trust God more. All throughout the book, the love Jesus has for us in giving His life for us, and the love we return to Him by worshiping Him, loving one another, and keeping God’s Word, are a background theme that repeatedly surfaces in Revelation. If we miss this, we miss the spirit of Revelation.

If all a person wants out of Revelation is an entertaining, titillating, fortune telling novel, there are tabloids at the supermarket check-out stand that will suffice for that.

“And washed us from our sins in His own blood.”

Some people really don’t like this concept. Critics of Judeo-Christianity claim it is a barbaric religion because of the shedding of blood. And when you think about it, it is sort of weird and icky. When was the last time you really wanted to get something clean, and went looking for some blood to clean it with? But we are not talking about cleaning barbecue sauce off a pair of jeans. Depending on what kind of Christian background you come from, we’re either talking about cleaning the mind of the guilt of sin, or cleaning away the penalty for sin, or cleaning the heart of the habit of sin. In any case, the point here is- it’s about cleaning a person’s life of sin. You can’t clean barbecue sauce off a pair of jeans using blood, but according to the Bible, you can cleanse a life with blood- in fact, it’s the only effective cleansing agent. Leviticus 17:11 says, “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one's life.” Jesus gave His life for ours, and that involved the shedding of blood. Hebrews 9:22 says, “And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.”

Now, why did the Jews shed the blood of animals in their sacrificial system? Obviously the blood of animals cannot cleanse the life of a human being (see Micah 6:7,8). They were never meant to. The point of the animal sacrifices was, just as all the Jewish ceremonies- they pointed to the ministry of Christ in types and symbols. The animal sacrifices were all symbols of Christ giving His life for us. That’s why John quotes John the Baptist calling Jesus “The Lamb of God.” (John 1:29,36). And it’s why Jesus is symbolized as a Lamb 27 times in the Book of Revelation.

Why was blood required? The ancient idol worshippers sacrificed animals (and sometimes their own children) to mythical gods whom they believed were angry and needed to be appeased. Do the bloody sacrifices of Christ, and all the symbolic animals sacrificed before Him indicate to us that God is like an angry pagan deity? Did God represent Himself to the Jews as an angry God who wanted to carve out a pound of flesh and see some blood before His anger could be placated because of our sin? Was Christ’s blood shed to appease His own Father? I believe the exact opposite. It was not that God required the blood- God gave the Blood. He gave His only Son. He gave Jesus’ life to us because He loves us. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Just maybe it wasn’t God who required the blood in the first place. Maybe, since God is on trial in the court of human opinion, it was you and I who needed to see the blood of God’s only Son to be convinced of His love and trustworthiness, to be won over to faith in Him.

The worthiness of Christ because He shed His blood is a theme we’ll see again in Revelation 5:6,9.

Romans 5:6-8

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

[telaquapacky]

Revelation 1:6-8

…and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

We’re still in the prologue of Revelation, and John is strongly emphasizing the gospel.

”(Jesus) has made us kings and priests”

This is echoed in Revelation 5:10 and 20:6. Other NT verses are 1 Peter 2:5,9. Look at the parallel between 1 Peter 2:9 and Exodus 19:5,6.

1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

Exodus 19:5,6

Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

Notice that the Lord told His people in Moses’ day, “you will be” (future) a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. And He said to His people in Peter’s day, “you are.” (present) In Revelation, our time, “he has made us.”(past- it’s been this way since Calvary) This is the principle of the universal priesthood of believers. This is the ideal that God always held out for His people- it’s not something that originated in the Christian Era. The Levitical priesthood was symbolic of the ministry of Christ and His followers. Once Christ appeared, Hebrews 7:12 tells us that the law establishing the Levitical priesthood changed. Now all true believers are priests of God, and Jesus is our High Priest. Does your church have a priest? Better have more than one- I hope the pews are filled with them!

As a prophetic aside, 2 Peter 2:9 also says, “You are a chosen generation.” Who is included in this generation? Every Christian from the very first convert, to the very last convert before Jesus comes are all part of one generation, because that’s whom Peter was writing to (See 2 Peter 3. He was writing to people living at the end times as well). The word “generation” in the Bible does not always mean one group of people born about the same time in history. To those of you who have been looking at Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:34 “I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. I recommend that you leave behind the mistaken notion that Jesus’ statement there gives any clue as to the year He will come again. Hal Lindsay made that error in “The Late Great Planet Earth,” when he suggested that Jesus could come 40 years after 1948, when Israel was reinstated as a nation. 1988 passed without Jesus coming, and another futile attempt to set dates bit the dust!

to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Wow! Sounds like the ending of the Lord’s Prayer. These “Amens” must mean we are getting close to the end of the prologue of Revelation, and we’ll soon move on to the next section, the Seven Churches.

And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him

Why would anyone mourn because Jesus is coming? Here is a clue to a symbol that will appear again and again. In Revelation, when you hear anything pertaining to the earth, it signifies the people who are not saved. To them, the second coming of Jesus will definitely not be good news. If you have a Bible program on your computer, and you search in Revelation, the words, “tribes of the earth,” or “inhabitants of the earth,” (depending on the version you are using) you get seven references, Revelation 6:10; 8:13; 11:10; 13:8,14; 17:2,8, and they all refer to the lost. For example, in Revelation 6:10, the souls of Christian martyrs under the altar, depicted in the fifth seal, ask, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” The answer comes in Revelation 8:13, in the fourth trumpet, an eagle cries out in a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!” And Revelation 13:8 tells more about the inhabitants of the earth: “All who dwell on the earth will worship him (the beast v. 13:4), whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord,

“who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

This is a New Testament version of an Old Testament name for God. Of course, in the Hebrew Old Testament, you won’t find the Greek “Alpha” and “Omega,” the first and last letters in the Greek alphabet. But this is what you will find:

Isaiah 44:6

“Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel,

And his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:

‘I am the First and I am the Last;

Besides Me there is no God.”

Compare that reference to this one

Isaiah 43:10.11

“You are My witnesses,” says the LORD,

And My servant whom I have chosen,

That you may know and believe Me,

And understand that I am He.

Before Me there was no God formed,

Nor shall there be after Me.

I, even I, am the LORD,

And besides Me there is no savior.”

Now, get a load of what Peter said under the power of the Holy Spirit:

Acts 4:10-12

“let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone. ’ Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

The Lord who spoke through Isaiah in the Old Testament said plainly that only He was the only Savior, and there would never come another Savior after Him. But Jesus used the same language and claimed that He was the only Savior. Jesus Christ is no usurper. The LORD who was speaking to Isaiah and all the prophets was this same Jesus! Here in Revelation 1:8, Jesus clearly says that He is the LORD of the Old Testament. He was LORD in the beginning, and He will be LORD in the end. That’s what Alpha and Omega means. “The one who is, and who was and who is to come.” Jesus always was LORD. He wasn’t “promoted” after Calvary. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8)

I cringe when I hear people say, “I like Jesus- but the God of the Old Testament- I don’t like him. He was mean and cruel.” Jesus has news for you. “Before Abraham was, I AM.” (John 8:58) Jesus is identical in mind, will and character to God the Father, and their purposes are identical- and they are equally loving. See, this is why when I read the Old Testament, I always find a redemptive, loving reason why the Lord had to do or allow all those things to happen that seemed so harsh. Finding fault with the LORD’s actions in the Old Testament is not trusting God- it is judging Him. If you didn’t like what Jesus did in the Old Testament, you are definitely not going to like what Jesus is about to do in Revelation- IN OUR FUTURE! Prepare to meet the Eternal, Living God in the Person of His Son, Jesus Christ!:D

193

[Ted]

The problem with the Old Testament is that it contains many theologies and not just one. We must read the OT in light of the NT. If we see in this Yeshua of Nazareth the fullness of God then we clearly do not see in Jesus some of the terrible things presented in the OT as coming from God.

In fact if we put together all of the things from the OT concerning God as displaying a unity we end up with a God with a Multiple Personality disorder. Clearly this is not God. The God of Num. 31 even seems to not only condone but encourage the actions that we now refer to as war crimes. No, this is not from God.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[Raven]

I asserted in verse 1:1 that the Book of Revelation is primarily given by God to help us know and love Jesus better. I believe that though Revelation foretells the future, it does so only as a vehicle to accomplish the primary objective, which is to help us know and love Jesus better, and to trust God more. All throughout the book, the love Jesus has for us in giving His life for us, and the love we return to Him by worshiping Him, loving one another, and keeping God’s Word, are a background theme that repeatedly surfaces in Revelation. If we miss this, we miss the spirit of Revelation.


Amen to that brother!



As a prophetic aside, 2 Peter 2:9 also says, “You are a chosen generation.” Who is included in this generation? Every Christian from the very first convert, to the very last convert before Jesus comes are all part of one generation, because that’s whom Peter was writing to (See 2 Peter 3. He was writing to people living at the end times as well). The word “generation” in the Bible does not always mean one group of people born about the same time in history. To those of you who have been looking at Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:34 “I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. I recommend that you leave behind the mistaken notion that Jesus’ statement there gives any clue as to the year He will come again. Hal Lindsay made that error in “The Late Great Planet Earth,” when he suggested that Jesus could come 40 years after 1948, when Israel was reinstated as a nation. 1988 passed without Jesus coming, and another futile attempt to set dates bit the dust!
Lindsay tried it again with '1980's: Countdown to Armageddon.' Why these attempts to predict what is unpredictable, who can tell. But we were warned against them. (Thats in a later chapter)

I cringe when I hear people say, “I like Jesus- but the God of the Old Testament- I don’t like him. He was mean and cruel.” Jesus has news for you. “Before Abraham was, I AM.” (John 8:58) Jesus is identical in mind, will and character to God the Father, and their purposes are identical- and they are equally loving. See, this is why when I read the Old Testament, I always find a redemptive, loving reason why the Lord had to do or allow all those things to happen that seemed so harsh. Finding fault with the LORD’s actions in the Old Testament is not trusting God- it is judging Him. If you didn’t like what Jesus did in the Old Testament, you are definitely not going to like what Jesus is about to do in Revelation- IN OUR FUTURE! Prepare to meet the Eternal, Living God in the Person of His Son, Jesus Christ!


But God is not some mamby pamby, love and kisses kind of God. He is HOLY above all things. And personally, thats the only kind of God worthy of worship. Yes He is VERY harsh at times. People tend to forget the ONE time he accepted a human sacrifice. Remember the passage of Joash's daughter? He blindly made an oath to God sacrificing the first thing he saw upon his return from a victorious battle, to the Lord. His daughter was the first out the door to greet him. ONLY THEN, did he realize his folly. And God held him to his oath, and He accepted her sacrifice. God will NOT be mocked!

[Raven]

Ted wrote: The problem with the Old Testament is that it contains many theologies and not just one. We must read the OT in light of the NT. If we see in this Yeshua of Nazareth the fullness of God then we clearly do not see in Jesus some of the terrible things presented in the OT as coming from God.

In fact if we put together all of the things from the OT concerning God as displaying a unity we end up with a God with a Multiple Personality disorder. Clearly this is not God. The God of Num. 31 even seems to not only condone but encourage the actions that we now refer to as war crimes. No, this is not from God.

Shalom

Ted:-6


Ted, you're a pharisee. I fear you'll never get it.

[Clint]

Raven wrote:

But God is not some mamby pamby, love and kisses kind of God. He is HOLY above all things. And personally, thats the only kind of God worthy of worship. Yes He is VERY harsh at times. People tend to forget the ONE time he accepted a human sacrifice. Remember the passage of Joash's daughter? He blindly made an oath to God sacrificing the first thing he saw upon his return from a victorious battle, to the Lord. His daughter was the first out the door to greet him. ONLY THEN, did he realize his folly. And God held him to his oath, and He accepted her sacrifice. God will NOT be mocked!


It comes down to worshiping an image doesn’t it? People conjure up an image in their mind that represents God to them, and then they worship that image. If God doesn’t measure up to their image they say it isn’t their god. They are right... God isn’t their imaginary god.

If I create an image of God in my mind and that image is actually God, it is then that I should have a problem with who God is. If I am able to understand Him, He is on my level and no one to be worshiped.

“My god wouldn’t do that”, is evidence that the person saying it is worshiping an image of their own making.

[Ted]

Revelation has an interesting approach to the unconditional love and grace of God. "If you don't believe in me and follow me you're gonna burn." Put more bluntly "Shutup and do what you are told or die." A very interesting approach to God's Grace.

Apparently God has written His law in our hearts. Thus we know right from wrong. We are born with the sense of morality.

Also, apparently we see in Jesus the fullness of God. Fullness means to me the totality as best as we can understand it.

Now if we look at the law we are told that murder is a no no. We have never, anywhere seen Jesus either commit murder or ask that someone else do it.

We may not understand God fully but we do understand that He is opposed to murder and injustice that in fact He favors compassion and distributive justice.

The story of Joash's daughter is revolting and does not reflect in any way the Nature of God as He has revealed Himself to us. Neither does the story in Num. 31.

When we attempt to interpret and understand the Bible without consideration of how and why it was written, and the style in which it was written we do indeed lean on our own understanding. We do indeed and have done so created God in our image: almost like the gods of Greek mythology.

As for my being a Pharasee---ROTFL.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[telaquapacky]

Revelation 1:9-10

I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet.



“Tribulation and kingdom and Patience”

“patience” is here translated from a Greek word, “hupomone” (pronounced Hoop-om-on-ay), which means, “patient endurance.” In John’s mind, citizenship in Christ’s kingdom automatically comes with tribulation, and requires patient endurance. In Revelation 13:10, hupomone refers to the patient endurance of God’s people throughout the hostile reign of the beast, the antichrist. In Revelation 14:12, it refers to their patient endurance when they suffer persecution as a result of refusing to accept the mark of the beast. Here in Revelation 1:9, John talks about the tribulation and kingdom and patient endurance “that are ours in Jesus-” using the present tense. The Church in John’s day was suffering the same kind of persecution the Church will face in the end times, and needed to have the same patient endurance.

What Does Tribulation Mean to Me as a Christian?

Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:12, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” If you really follow Jesus, there will be some consequence to pay for going against the majority. So where do we fit in? In Europe and America, we live in a time and place that is like the eye of a hurricane- it is a temporary time of peace and religious toleration and freedom between two eras, past and future, of intense persecution and difficulty for the True Christian. Only two hundred years ago in Europe and America you could be persecuted for your religious beliefs and practices. In Europe the Roman Inquisition burned, imprisoned, tortured or confiscated the property of anyone who held or taught beliefs at variance with Rome. In Protestant, colonial America, religious non-conformists were publicly whipped, confined in stocks for abuse and humiliation, or expelled back to England, where they could be tortured and imprisoned. That was past. Revelation Chapter 14 also predicts a future time of persecution under the mark of the beast just before Jesus comes again. So- there was persecution from John’s time up until about 200 years ago, and there will be persecution in the times ahead- and here we are in the middle- the eye of the storm. Passengers, fasten your seat belts- there’s turbulence ahead.

We will find that much of Revelation is the story of one religious group persecuting another. It is not Roman Catholic vs. Protestant, as if you could label one the “bad guys," and the other the “good guys.” Protestants and Roman Catholics alike have been guilty of persecuting non-conformists, and pursuing “Righteousness by compulsion,” an “in-Gods’-face” repudiation of the Righteousness by faith that is essential to our salvation in Jesus Christ. But there is one common denominator to identify the “bad guys” of Revelation. That is the unholy union of Church and State. Church-state cooperation is required to legally and systematically persecute people for their religion. At the risk of overgeneralization because there’s more to it than this, but to press the point more forcefully, here’s a simple equation to explain part of my belief regarding the antichrist powers in Revelation:

Church + State = Antichrist

Besides the historic battles between Roman Catholics and Protestants, Christians of all stripes have taken their lumps from Communists, Atheists, Muslims and others. Satan hates Christ and will use anyone he can to destroy His Church- even using well-meaning Christians to destroy each other. How do you sort out the “good guys” from the “bad guys” so you can know what side to be on? There’s a principle I call “Revelation in a nutshell:” The True Church is among those being persecuted (not everyone who is persecuted is the true Church). But the ones doing the persecuting (or going along with it) are always, with no exceptions, the False, and the LOST.

This provides a clue: watch who is seeking to utilize government to create an environment favorable to forcing their beliefs and/or practices on other citizens. Watch out for any church or evangelist who demonizes the principle of Separation of Church and State. They may start out with very praiseworthy and godlike goals, like reducing abortion, or defending family values. They may some day evoke the war on terror to persuade us to accept laws that single out a certain religious groups. But once the force of law is used this way, and religious leaders are empowered to restrict liberty of conscience, they become blind to the evil of it. They only see what they perceive to be advantages to the mission of their church, doing what they think God wants them to do- while in reality, they have become servants of Satan. If this is the political direction your church is heading in, your continued membership and support of that church may be hazardous to your salvation. You may end up sitting in a pew, singing “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” with the 666 (spiritually) stamped on your forehead or hand. The message of Revelation is “Come out of her, my people.”

Revelation 18:3,4

For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

On the island of Patmos

Some believe the Romans used Patmos as a prison mining camp. According to tradition, the Romans tried to boil John in oil, but miraculously, the boiling oil affected John like tepid bathwater. In any case, they exiled him on the island of Patmos. He may have been under Roman guard. The Romans may have carefully scrutinized John’s outgoing mail for seditious content. Imagine what they thought when they saw Revelation. It may have appeared to them like the ravings of a madman. Perhaps they thought it was harmless, and let it go to the mainland, and to the churches without censoring any part of it. God works in mysterious ways.

On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit

The day John received the visions of Revelation was a day John regarded as special to the Lord. Some say that this was Sunday, because the majority of the Christian Church today considers Sunday sacred as a weekly memorial to the resurrection of Christ. However, there is abundant evidence from Scripture that the earliest Christian churches kept the Seventh-day Sabbath, as did their Jewish forebears. Bible days begin and end at sunset. The Bible Sabbath begins at sunset on Friday and ends at sunset on Saturday. It was during the Sabbath hours, either on Friday evening, or Saturday, that John received the visions he related in the Book of Revelation.

What day does the Bible say is the Lord’s Day?

In Matthew 12:8, Mark 2:28 and Luke 6:5 Jesus called Himself the “Lord of the Sabbath." It follows logically that the Sabbath is the Lord’s holy Day. Luke 4:16 tells us that it was Jesus’ custom to attend the synagogue on the Sabbath. There is no point of God’s law Jesus disputed more often with the Scribes and Pharisees than the proper observance of the Sabbath- particularly in John’s gospel. The point John made forcefully in his gospel was- who is the authority on how the Sabbath is to be kept- mere men, or the One Lord who gave the law to begin with? This goes back to one of the basic themes in Revelation- the Great Controversy on earth as to who is in charge- Christ or Satan? A part of this Great Controversy is: who is Lord and Law-giver for the Church- Christ, or mere men?

I discussed the eternal, unchanging Lordship of Christ in my last post. There are 15 places in the Old Testament where the Lord calls the Seventh day “my Sabbaths.” (Exodus 31:13; Leviticus 19:3,30;26:2, Isaiah 56:4,5; Ezekiel 20:12,13,16,20,21,24; 22:8,26; 44:24) There are seven places where the Lord calls the Seventh day “A Sabbath to the Lord” (Exodus 16:23,25; 20:10; 31:15; 35:2; Leviticus 23:3; Deuteronomy 5:14; Isaiah 58:13,14) The Bible speaks for itself. The Seventh-day Sabbath is the only day Scripture says is the Lord’s Day. There is no mention anywhere in Scripture of Sunday being the Lord’s Day, or any change being made in the Ten Commandments to replace the Sabbath with Sunday.

John’s receiving the visions of Revelation on the seventh day fits the pattern of sevens revealed all throughout Revelation. It also fits the symbolic meaning that God has given this day in Scripture. As a special day of our resting in what God has accomplished for us in His plan of Salvation, the Sabbath is a Biblical sign of righteousness by faith- not by works. As the Lord’s Day, the Sabbath emphasizes the deity of Christ, and identifies Him as our Creator, Savior and Lord.

The Sabbath is a Biblical sign that Jesus is our Creator

Exodus 20:8-11

"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

The above reference is the fourth commandment. It is still God's law. God wrote the Ten Commandments in stone to make them last. In the New Covenant, He writes them on the hearts of believers to make those same commandments dear to us in a personal way (Hebrews 8:10).

The fact that God is our Creator is the most important reason why we worship Him, therefore, it is most important that we honor God as Creator in the way that He specifically tells us to honor Him as Creator.

Revelation 4:11

"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."

Revelation 14:7

He said in a loud voice, "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water."

Jesus is our Creator. When Christians keep the Sabbath, they acknowledge the full deity of Jesus, because they worship Him as our Creator.

John 1:1-3

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

John 1:10

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.

Hebrews 1:1

In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.

The Sabbath is a Biblical sign that Jesus is our Lord and our God

Ezekiel 20:20

Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God."

Jesus wants us to know and believe that He is our Lord and our God.

John 20:28, 29

Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!" Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

Romans 10:9

That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

(see also my comparison of Isaiah 43:10, 11 and Acts 4:10-12 in my last post)

The Sabbath is a Biblical sign that Jesus is our Savior- the one who makes us holy.

By keeping the Sabbath holy, Christians confess that we are sinners saved not by our own works, but by God's grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

Ezekiel 20:12

Also I gave them my Sabbaths as a sign between us, so they would know that I the LORD made them holy.

Exodus 31:13

"Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy.

In other words, the Sabbath was always a sign between God and His people that they could not make themselves holy- only He could accomplish that. The following Scriptures show that Jesus makes the people holy. Jesus then is the Lord who makes us holy, the Lord of whom the Sabbath is a sign- the Lord of the Sabbath.

Hebrews 13:12

And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.

Ephesians 5:25,26

... Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,

God told His people in the Old Testament that the Sabbath is a sign to identify their Creator, their Savior- that is, the one who makes them holy, and their Lord, so they would know who He was; so there would be no case of mistaken identity, no worshipping false Gods. The apostles taught that Jesus is our Creator, our Savior, and our Lord; and that we rest in His complete and perfect (7!) work and trust not in our own works. The Book of Acts reveals that the apostles began the Christian Church by trying to persuade Jews and Bible-believing Gentiles to accept Jesus as their Messiah. All the first Christians were Jews and Bible-believing Gentiles. The apostles based the credibility of their teachings solely on the Bible that the people had, which was the Old Testament. They said, “Don’t believe us unless what we say is consistent with Scripture.” In Acts 17:11 they commended the Bereans for checking out the Scriptures for themselves.

How could the apostles have gotten the Christian Church started if they had told these Bible-believing people, “Oh yes, Jesus is your Creator, Savior and Lord, but now He wants you to forget the Sabbath and honor Him on the day the Romans worship their sun god...” This would have destroyed their Biblical credibility and undermined everything they were trying to teach about Jesus. If the holy day of Jesus were Sunday, He could not be the Lord of whom the Sabbath is the sign given by God in Scripture- not Creator, nor Lord, nor Savior. It is impossible that the churches the apostles started were Sunday-keeping churches. Therefore it is clear that the Lord’s Day John is referring to in Revelation 1:10 is not Sunday, but the Sabbath.

This may seem unimportant to you now, and you probably prefer not to think about it, but it will surface later in Revelation in a way that will be very important to you.

It may also seem like I have gone far off on a tangent, but the message of the Sabbath, that Jesus is our Creator, our Lord, our Savior, the one who makes us holy by His blood- are central and essential to the message of Revelation. Perhaps it is because the significance of the Sabbath has been lost, that the modern church has such a difficult time understanding and accepting the message of Revelation.

268

[Ted]

That certainly is one view but not the only one.

The book of Revelation is about the Roman Empire of yesteryear not about some time hundreds if not thousands of years in the distance.

Revelation 14:7 "He said in a loud voice, 'Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come'"

The writer of Revelation as did many of the apostles inlcuding Jesus thought that the second comming was imminent, like in hours or days if not minutes. Clearly the quote above shows that this "John"? thought that the end of times had arrived then.

Like I said before "Revelation" presents and interesting view of the Risen Christ that is not consistent with the life and teachings of Jesus, when read literally or as some distant prediction.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[telaquapacky]

Ted wrote: That certainly is one view but not the only one.

The book of Revelation is about the Roman Empire of yesteryear not about some time hundreds if not thousands of years in the distance.

Shalom

Ted:-6You have a point. I have an old habit with Revelation of focusing on it's historicist and prophetic aspects because they are the most interesting to me. lately I have been persuaded that Revelation is mainly (but not exclusively) a document relating to it's own time and place. I'm trying to present a more balanced view, but please have "patient endurance" toward me because I am still learning.

[Ted]

telaquapacky:-6

We are all still learning and ultimately God is the truth. We as humans continue to use our imperfect language and conceptualization abilities in discussing the ultimate reality which is far beyond our meagre words.

Perhaps we will all ultimately have some small fraction of the truth. That being said I have placed all my trust in Almighty God as manifest in Yeshua of Nazareth.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[Clint]

My friend is going to climb a mountain and when he gets to the top he is going to say; “I have climbed the mountain”.

John is speaking about what will be said at the top of the mountain. Keeping things in context is an essential part of reading the Bible. In Rev. 14:7 he is telling about what will be said in the future.

[telaquapacky]

Clint wrote: In Rev. 14:7 he is telling about what will be said in the future.Of course, but that Revelation is about the future or about the present or about the past are not mutually exclusive. All Scripture has general applicability to both it's own time and ours, and some, what we call end times prophecy has special applications to the last days. This is why the Bible is a supernatural book. Revelation is especially strong in this regard. Take for example the seven churches. Of course, there were more than seven churches in Asia Minor. But the particular churches God chose John to write to, and the order in which they were presented, even their geographical positions, worked together in such a way that even as John wrote letters specifically geared to the experience and concerns of each church in his day, each was also a prophetic object lesson for history that would follow. I was only sharing with Ted that the contemporary nature of Revelation is something that we who are reading it today often ignore, because we are more concerned with the applications to our own time. When people in John's day read Revelation, every chapter had special significance to them (which is lost to us) as much as it does to us.

Compare this to Daniel, where in Daniel 12:4 he was told by the angel "But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." The last part of Daniel had no contemporary significance at all- it was a closed book. Revelation is different- it's an open book: Revelation 1:3 "Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near." A person cannot take to heart something that can't be understood, and has no significance to their time and place. What's supernatural about it, is that the same words prophetically detail the times leading up to and past ours- in a special way, we can take it to heart too.

Most commentators I am familiar with divide Revelation into a historical half and an escatological (end times) half. I want to talk about that when I talk about the structure of Revelation.

[Ted]

Actually, nothing in "Revelation" is about anything in the distant future. However, if one chooses to read it thus then go for it.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[telaquapacky]

The book of Revelation can be divided into ten parts:

1: Prologue

2. Seven Churches

3. Seven Seals

4. Seven Trumpets

5. Great Controversy

6. Seven Last Plagues

7. Fall of Babylon

8. Millennium

9. New Jerusalem

10. Epilogue

There is an interesting symmetrical pattern imbedded in this organization.

There is a literary form in Hebrew poetry called a “chiasm,” where, instead

of the flow of logic going, “a,b,c” or “a,b,c,d.e,” like western thinking, a

chiastic form would go, “a,b,a’,” or “a,b,c,b’,a’.” Whereas in western

rhetoric, the argument builds step by step in a straight line to a conclusion

with the most important part at the end, Hebrew rhetoric often has the

most important part in the middle, with a stepwise build up in the first half,

and a stepwise return down at the end that in some ways recapitulates

the build up, but in reverse order. In a chiastic arrangement, the first

statement has parallels to the last statement. The second statement

parallels the second-to-last statement, and so on. In Revelation,

there are chiastic parallels between the Prologue and the Epilogue;

between the Seven Churches, and the New Jerusalem; between the Seven

Seals, and the Millennium, and so on. I’m including a chart showing some

symbols and word concepts that appear in each section, so you can see

how they have mirror-image parallels in opposite sides of the book. Not all

of them have the same kind of symmetry but are symmetrical in other ways.

Below is a chart I made called, "Chiastic Structure of Revelation." I left

off the Prologue and Epilogue to conserve space. Peruse it and notice the

chiastic and symmetrical parallels. It might convince you that things don’t

just appear at random in the book, but that there is an intelligent design.

You can download the chart into your Windows Paint program, and print out

a hard copy for yourself, so you don’t have to scroll back and fourth. I

adapted it from a book about Revelation (one of many I own) by C. Mervyn

Maxwell, entitled, "God Cares," published by Pacific Press Publishing Assn.

The web address to access this chart is http://tinypic.com/dwxvmw.gif.

377

[Raven]

I myself had made a few of those. I think the trumpets are actually more proof of God's great mercy. After each, man is given a chance to repent. But he doesnt. The bowls are the actual judgements on unrepentant mankind. The letters are the last reference to the existing churches. The rest of the book refers to saints.

Sorry.....I may be jumping ahead a bit.

But the book of revelation runs concurrent with the olivet discourse. I also found that interesting because it was His disciples, again, to whom he was speaking.

[telaquapacky]

Raven wrote: I myself had made a few of those.Share some with us! (I made the above one using Windows Paint, and posted it on tinypic.com, then linked it into here) Raven wrote: I think the trumpets are actually more proof of God's great mercy. After each, man is given a chance to repent. But he doesnt. The bowls are the actual judgments on unrepentant mankind. Excellent observation, Rave! I should change the chart above in the trumpets to say, "Severe Calamities Warn the World to Repent." and in the plagues to say, "Supernatural Judgments Punish the Unrepenting World." That would be clearer. Wow! So 9-11, the Tsunami, the London Train Bombing and our Gulf State Hurricane disasters are trumpets blowing, warning the world to repent and for the saints to prepare for the time of trouble. I should post an edited CHIASTIC STRUCTURE chart later. (Don't we revelation enthusiasts love charts)

A prophetic writer whom I highly respect said that "the last movements will be rapid ones." For many years, we've been expecting a rapid succession of severe calamities as God tries harder to get our attention toward the end, and it is turning out that way. This same writer almost a hundred years ago saw a vision of great buildings in New York collapsing in flames. People who don't see God's mercy in the trumpet calamities don't realize and won't admit to what extent this world is in rebellion. But with the plagues, the gloves come off and the real punishment starts. The Trumpets hurt everyone, believers and unbelievers alike (though some are spared for a purpose). But I believe the saints will not be harmed by the plagues, but that the world will blame the saints for the plagues and try to harm them.

Also, remember that I said that religious people will persecute other religious people? (post #26) The Trumpet calamities are making the church-state theocrat people think that the world is so wicked that they need to take legislative action to make society more holy so all these calamities will stop. Watch the televangelists call for more legislation in the wake of these disasters. But their religious legislation is sin in itself, and will add sin to sin, and call down upon them severe judgments- they will not be spared the plagues. Another function of the Trumpets, besides warning the world to repent, is to stir the Beast and the False Prophet, who are religious and secular world superpowers, into bringing upon the world the last great test- the mark of the Beast.

Yes, we are getting a bit ahead, but it's hard to resist, and an excusable indulgence. We will revisit these points as we go along, and they'll become clearer.

406

[Raven]

I think the televangelist thing is all part and parcel of the endtimes false religion. Take for example, the quote from 2Timothy 3:1-9 "Remember this! In the last days there will be many troubles, because people will love themselves, love money, brag, and be proud. They will say evil things against others and will not obey their parents or be thankful. They will not love others, will refuse to forgive, will gossip and will not control themselves. They will be cruel, will hate what is good, will turn against their friends, and will do foolish things without thinking. They will be conceited, will love pleasure instead of God, and will act as if they serve God but will not have His power. Stay away from those people. Some of them go into homes and get control of silly women who are full of sin and are led by many evil desires. These women are always learning new teachings, but they are never able to understand the truth fully. Just as Jannes and Jambres were against Moses, these people are against the truth. Their thinking has been ruined and they have failed in trying to follow the faith. But they will not be successful in what they do, because as with Jannes and Jambres, everyone will see that they are foolish."

If you dont recognise the names of Jannes and Jambres, dont be suprised. They are not mentioned in the old testament at all. According to Jewish tradition, they were the names of the egyptian pharoh's court magicians. When Moses was trying to persuade the king of egypt to let the israelites go, he performed a series of miracles to demonstrate God's power. Jannes and Jambres were able to copy some the miracles. But when it came to reversing them, they couldnt do it.

I think this almost sums up where we are in the scheme of things! LOL!! I'll be glad to share my charts!

[Clint]

Isn't it amazing. TV's spiritual rock stars don't use 2 Timothy 3: 1-9 in context. Niether will you see them quoting James 2:3 unless poor people are their props for "fund raising". It's crazy. They have to make their shows more and more exciting so they get further and further from the truth and people wanting their ears tickled get more and more interested.

[telaquapacky]

Raven wrote: I think the televangelist thing is all part and parcel of the endtimes false religion. Couldn't agree more.

Raven wrote: If you dont recognise the names of Jannes and Jambres, dont be suprised. They are not mentioned in the old testament at all. According to Jewish tradition, they were the names of the egyptian pharoh's court magicians. When Moses was trying to persuade the king of egypt to let the israelites go, he performed a series of miracles to demonstrate God's power. Jannes and Jambres were able to copy some the miracles. But when it came to reversing them, they couldnt do it.That's very interesting. That reminds me of the Satanic Trinity in Revelation 16:13,14

Revelation 16:13,14

13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.

14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

Three is the number of the Trinity, it usually symbolizes God. But here is represented a Satanic trinity-Satan is masquerading as God. Why do these spirits come out of the mouths of the dragon and beast and FP? They are not only Satanic miracles, but false teachings. When it says "the kings of the whole world," the word, "world" pertains to the ones who are of the earth, the unsaved, or the worldly- and this may include worldly Christians. If I were to put Revelation 16:13, 14 in my own words, I would say, "I saw Satan work through three powerful entities in the world, masquerading as if he were God, to deceive the world's people and their leaders that his teachings were from God, so that they would enter the great conflict at the end of time on Satan's side instead of on God's side."

Here's how it relates to Jannes and Jambres: Why did John see frogs? Pharaoh was not impressed with the ten plagues at first, because his magicians were able to make their rods turn to snakes just as Moses did. They were able to duplicate the waters turning to blood. They were also able to duplicate the plague of frogs. But with the plagues after that, Jannes and Jambres were left behind. The frogs were the last counterfeit miracle Pharaoh's magicians could do. In Revelation 16:13,14, they are Satan's last counterfeit miracles to deceive the world.

[telaquapacky]

Long but worthwhile reading, I promise

Introductory Sanctuary Scenes

Revelation 1:11 begins the introduction to the seven churches. Then verses 12-20 describe a scene where John turns around and sees Jesus. Notice the way Jesus is dressed, and notice the golden lampstands. Most modern Christians would think the wardrobe and the lamps were merely nice design touches for a visit from Jesus. But to Jewish Christian readers, a deeper significance stands out. Jesus is here dressed as the high priest in the sanctuary! And the lampstands are one of the prominent furnishings in the holy place of the sanctuary (Exodus 25:31). In other words, the visions of Revelation open to John with a scene of Jesus in the holy place of the sanctuary (on earth, because John turns around- it doesn’t say, “come up here” like it does later).

This scene is actually part of another important structural feature in Revelation. This is the first of seven scenes that parallel the Old Testament tabernacle- also called the sanctuary, that introduce seven prominent sections in the Book of Revelation. Each one has meaning that may escape you if you aren’t familiar with the symbolism of the sanctuary. Before I continue, I should bring anyone up to speed who is not acquainted with the tabernacle/sanctuary and the symbolism employed there. The writer of Hebrews 4:2 stated that the Jews had the gospel preached to them in Old Testament times. How is that? It was taught to them through the sanctuary! Asaph acknowledged this in Psalm 77:13, “Thy way, O God is in the sanctuary.” Has God’s way- that is, the way of salvation changed? No. What has changed is the way the plan of salvation is taught. In our day, the gospel is taught by Jesus. In Old Testament times, it was taught by the sanctuary. Most of them didn’t get it, but that’s not our problem (we have other problems!:o). But we can look back if we care to, at the sanctuary and see the remarkable symbolic parallels to the ministry of Jesus and the plan of salvation.

The Sanctuary

On Mount Sinai, God showed Moses a pattern to follow to make a tabernacle to serve as a sanctuary, or dwelling place for Him so He could dwell among His people. The tabernacle was a two-room tent, surrounded by a courtyard fenced in by sheets of white linen. The tabernacle and all it’s furnishings were made so they could be disassembled and transported as the Israelites moved from camp to camp on their 40-year wilderness journey. The tabernacle was not a church as you or I know it, because it was never intended for worshippers to gather inside on pews (It wasn’t very big- only big enough to park a large RV inside). Only the priests- all male descendents of Aaron, ministered in the tabernacle. There were 24 divisions of priests, who took turns ministering in the temple all throughout the year. Later, to replace the tabernacle of the wilderness journey, Solomon built a permanent structure for the sanctuary- Solomon’s Temple. Do a Google on “Sanctuary” or “Tabernacle.” You’ll find diagrams and descriptions and save me the effort. I have toured a full scale replica of the tabernacle four times in the past twelve years. Every time I learn something deeply spiritual and meaningful to my life in Christ. If it ever comes to your town, do see it.

The two rooms of the tabernacle were called the “holy place” and the “most holy place.” In the holy place there were only three pieces of furniture- the seven-branched lampstand, the altar of incense, and the table of showbread. The lampstand was pure, hammered gold, and the altar of incense and table of showbread were acacia wood covered with gold. The tabernacle was always oriented so that it opened to the east, with the most holy place at the west end. Entering the holy place, you would always have the table of showbread on the north, to your right, the altar of incense directly in front of you (with the curtain behind it), and the seven-branched lampstand to your left, on the south. The daily ministry of the priests included keeping the lamps burning constantly, feeding the altar of incense with burning coals and incense, keeping two stacks of fresh loaves of bread on the table of showbread, and prayers and ministrations relating to the daily sacrifice.

Behind the altar of incense there was a curtain that separated the holy place from the most holy place. Whenever the Israelites moved and set up a new camp, the tabernacle would have to be moved in pieces and set up again, and there would be an inauguration service. After the sanctuary was inaugurated, the most holy place was so sacred that only the high priest could enter, and only once a year, on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.

In the most holy place stood the ark of the covenant. The ark of the covenant had three items inside: the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, Moses’ staff, which budded, and a jar containing a portion of manna that fell from heaven on the wilderness journey. Where was the law of Moses? It was written on paper, outside the ark, by the side. The ark was made of acacia wood, covered with gold. It’s lid was called the “mercy seat.” The ark was not only a chest, but a throne. Above the ark appeared the presence of God in a ball of fire called the shekinah glory. On the lid/mercy seat were two solid gold figurines of angels called cherubim with their wings outspread to overshadow the lid/mercy seat and partially surround the shekinah glory.

Outside the tabernacle was the court. Two pieces of furniture stood in the court. One was the altar of burnt offering, also called the altar of sacrifice. It was like a very large barbecue covered with bronze. The other feature was the laver- a washing basin with a fountain made all of bronze. All of these furnishings, and all the materials and designs of the wilderness tabernacle were constructed according to exact specifications God had given to Moses. God even hand picked by name, the Hebrew artisans He wanted to do the decorative artwork. The description of the tabernacle begins in Exodus chapter 25.

If you were an Israelite on the wilderness journey, you would relate to the tabernacle/sanctuary in a number of ways. First, you would constantly be aware of the presence of the Lord. While you were camped, you knew the shekinah glory was there in the most holy place. You knew that the priests were there at the altar of incense praying for you, and mingling your own prayers with the smoke of the incense that would drift over the curtain into the most holy place before the throne of God. When you were traveling, the presence of the Lord was even more evident. He would lead the people from place to place in a pillar of smoke by day, and a pillar of fire by night. There was no agnosticism on the wilderness journey! You didn’t have the excuse of “I dunno.” You knew there was a God and what He expected of you. You were either obedient or disobedient- that’s it.

Another way an Israelite related to the tabernacle/sanctuary was through the daily sacrifice. We all sin, and when you or someone in your family sinned, the male head of the house (sorry, they were quite paternalistic in those days, and God was meeting them where they were) would come to the colorful woven curtain-door of the outer court with an animal for a sin offering. The sin offering was usually a lamb, but could be goat or a ram, or even an ox, if you were rich enough, or a couple of pigeons or turtledoves if you were poor (unlike the U.S. “Justice” system, money was no advantage or lack thereof an obstacle). Now, put yourself in the role of the penitent sinner coming to the gate of the tabernacle. You wait your turn until a priest greets you. Under his supervision, you place your hand upon the animal’s forehead and confess your sin specifically. You are not confessing to the priest, but to God. You are in symbolic effect transferring the guilt of your sin to this innocent substitute- it symbolizes your Sin Bearer. The forehead is where your frontal lobe is- the seat of intention. It is now as if that animal, not you, had willfully disobeyed and disappointed God. The priest presents a very sharp knife. The penalty for sin is death. Now that animal must die in your place. Who is going to slay the animal- the priest? No. That’s not his job (at least not at this moment). He hands the knife to you, and swallowing hard, you hold the animal’s head and slit it’s throat. Perhaps you and the priest are holding the animal down while another priest catches the blood in a golden bowl. You watch the life ebb out of this unfortunate creature, and it makes you think about what your sin cost, the way Adam and Eve realized what their sin cost, when God had to kill an innocent animal to provide clothing for them when they sinned- and they watched the first death ever of a living thing- because of what they had done. The point of this is that God did not demand that blood. You did. That’s what it took to get through to you what sin is. Your duty is finished- now you can go home. How often did you have to do this, and how serious a sin required this? It was between you and God, a matter of whenever your heart prompted you to, although some specific sins called for specific offerings, because someone was badly in need of an object lesson and an attitude adjustment.

What happened to the blood? The animal was roasted on the altar of burnt offering. The priest dabbed the blood on the four horns at the corners of the altar of burnt offering. Then he walked over to the laver and set down the golden bowl of blood. He washed his hands and feet at the laver- a priest could die if he entered the holy place of the sanctuary without washing. Why so severe? Reverence. What’s it worth to teach the people of God proper respect for their Creator? This was religious boot camp. If you wished to be the chosen people it came with the territory. Why would a conscientious, sincere priest wish to disobey anyway? (My own guess is that some priests made a lot of errors that God in mercy overlooked- if God went strictly by the Book in everything, we probably would all be dead) Inside the holy place, the priest also dabbed the blood of the sacrifice on the horns at the corner of the altar of incense, and he sprinkled the blood on the floor before it. You can imagine that after a while the place started getting rather bloody- I’m not aware of any instructions to clean it. What is going on here? What the sanctuary service is illustrating is that God is not the “Not In My Back Yard” kind of God with respect to our sin. As the blood carries the guilt of the sins into the sanctuary, God is taking the sins of the world upon Himself. Meanwhile a stream of sin comes from God’s people and defiles God’s temple. That can’t go on forever.

Just to barely scratch the surface of the symbols in the sanctuary service, the sacrificial animal was a type, or symbol of Jesus. So was the high priest. The altar of burnt offering was a symbol of the cross. The outer court ministry symbolizes what we call in salvation jargon, “Justification.” Once the blood is shed, you are forgiven, or as some say, “absolved.” That’s all some people want. As long as we take the shallow view that sin as merely a commodity to be bought and sold, people are contented to continue to sin without a second thought, and let Jesus bear the penalty. But the sanctuary did not stop there. Evidently there is more to salvation than mere forgiveness.

Was the blood ever cleansed from inside the sanctuary? Yes. On the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, the sanctuary was ceremonially cleansed. The high priest was to offer certain sin and burnt offerings for himself and his family. Then two goats were brought to the door of the tabernacle. The priest drew lots for the goats, so at random, one was selected as the Lord’s goat, and the other was the Scapegoat, also called azazel. The Lord’s goat was sacrificed- the only animal ever sacrificed with no sin pronounced over it’s head. Then the priest carried the blood of this goat in a golden bowl toward the most holy place. On the way, he picked up a censer, and charged it with coals and incense from the altar of incense. Then, the high priest drew back the end of the curtain and entered the most holy place. (sweeping epic suspense music should be playing in your head right now) Now, the priest offered before the fiery presence of God, the blood of the innocent goat, and sprinkled it’s sinless blood on the mercy seat. The smoke from the censer shielded the priest’s fearfully reverent, averted gaze from the awesome and potentially lethal radiance of the Lord’s shekinah glory. Friends, this was serious business. Outside, and all day, the people searched their souls for any cherished sin or attitude of impenitence before God. As they met one another in the street, they would kindly wish one another that God would blot their sins out of His books of remembrance, and not blot their names out of His book of life. This is really important to understand, because Revelation mentions the book of life, and you have no concept of what it means unless you learn to think like a Jew- and then apply this to gospel Christianity. Everyone in the camp of Israel knew that on this day their salvation was at stake- that’s what it means in Leviticus 16:31 where it says that “ye shall afflict your souls.” When the high priest’s ministry in the most holy place was finished, he went out of the tabernacle. Now, the sins of the whole year that had been transported into the sanctuary, in blood, were cleansed from the sanctuary. What happened to them? The priest placed his hand on the forehead of the scapegoat, and transferred all the collected sins to that goat. Next, a physically fit and able man would take the goat by a leash and lead it out into the wilderness where it would be abandoned and die. The scapegoat symbolized Satan.

Besides the Day of Atonement, there were other ceremonial Sabbaths in the Law of Moses. Each of them centered around the sanctuary and had prophetic, symbolic relevance to the ministry of Christ.

We can think of three temples God has had on this earth. One was the tabernacle in the wilderness. Another was Solomon’s Temple, the third was the temple rebuilt by Zerubbabel, and adorned by Herod. But in a more spiritual sense, God has had these three temples- three dwelling places on the earth – one was the tabernacle/sanctuary, the second was the person of Jesus, the third and ultimate is Christ dwelling in His Church- in us, through the Holy Spirit. This is the true Church. It is not any denomination (nor is it any “non-denominational” church) It is the body of Christ on earth- His people in whom He lives by the Spirit. Notice that in each of these three earthly temples (sanctuary-Jesus-our hearts) God draws nearer and nearer to us. Oh, how He loves you and me!:-4

1 Peter 2:4,5

4 As you come to him, the living Stone--rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him--

5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:16

Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?

By the way: some prophecy buffs read 2 Thessalonians 2:4 about the Antichrist, “He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.” And they are looking for Solomon’s temple to be built again on the temple mount in Jerusalem so that this prophecy can be fulfilled so that Jesus can come again. I think this is an inappropriately literalist interpretation of this scripture. All it would take is some religious leader setting himself up in the Christian Church as if he possessed the prerogatives and authority due to God and Christ alone, to fulfill this prophecy. If I am correct in this interpretation, then, anyone pushing the literalist interpretation may actually be smoke screening the true identity of Antichrist, and serving the purposes of Satan in helping to deceive the whole world. Sobering thought! (not to mention it could lead to some calamitous and needless military adventures against the Palestinians)

Just one more thought about the sanctuary. There is an earthly sanctuary, and there is also a heavenly sanctuary. Read the book of Hebrews and you’ll see that the tabernacle was not only a symbolic object lesson of Jesus’ mission and God’s plan of salvation, but there is a real temple, with a most holy place in heaven where God actually dwells- His throne room of which the tabernacle/sanctuary on earth was only a symbol. After Jesus ascended to heaven, He went to the sanctuary in heaven to enter His high priestly ministry in our behalf- that’s where He is right this minute. One thing we will notice is that Revelation shows us scenes in the sanctuary on earth, and also scenes in the sanctuary in heaven. I hope you agree that getting a sense of what the earthly sanctuary was all about helps us understand those scenes in Revelation, and Jesus’ high priestly ministry for us now.

Coming back to Revelation 1:12- this is the first sanctuary introduction. It shows Christ standing among the seven lampstands. The lampstand in the earthly sanctuary represents Christ, the light of the world. Christ also told us, His Church, in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:14, ”You are the light of the world.” And so this sanctuary introduction sets the focus of the following section of Revelation- the Letters to the Seven Churches. He addresses his Church, the people He has appointed to be in his place the “light of the world.” He walks among them as one who sees and knows them. In each letter He says, “I know your deeds,” or “I know your afflictions,” or “I know where you live.” He also walks among them, as the earthly priest did, to keep their lamps supplied with oil, the Holy Spirit, and to trim their wicks to keep them glowing brightly, ministering to them with His tender loving care. We are indeed His prized possession, bought and redeemed with His precious blood.

462

[telaquapacky]

I wanted to focus on some features that run through the letters to the seven churches before throwing in my two cents about each one verse by verse.

7 Part Format

Each letter follows a similar pattern and structure with seven main parts:

1. Address to church’s angel

2. Description of Jesus.

3. Encouragement and praise – “I know your situation.” (exception: Laodicea)

4. Censure: telling the church what is weak and needs to be improved (except Smyrna and Philadelphia)

5. Statement of exhortation encouraging the church to change it’s ways in the area that it is weak.

6. Promise to the overcomer: “To him who overcomes I will give…”

7. Appeal to hear the Spirit.

Chiastic Parallels

I described Chiastic Parallels in an earlier post (with the big, colorful chart which I’ll have to replace in a later post when the site that is hosting it for free dumps it in a few weeks). The letters to the seven churches are particularly intriguing because of the design of a seven-branched lampstand. (My following post, for now, has a picture of one of these lampstands) The lampstand used in the temple, has a central stem, out of which the other lamps branch out in three tiers. The first and last are on the lowest tier, the second and sixth are on the middle tier, and the third and fifth are on the top tier. In the same way, there are parallels between churches one and seven, two and six, and three and five. This is a literary form is often found in Hebrew poetry and rhetoric in the Old Testament, and where I come from we call it a Chiasm.

One and seven, Ephesus and Laodicea both are censured for lovelessness and legalism.

Two and six, Smyrna and Philadelphia depart from the 7-part format in that neither receives any censure. Neither is asked to repent of anything, whereas all the other churches have something to repent. Smyrna and Philadelphia both have to contend with what Jesus calls the “Synagogue of Satan,” who “say they are Jews, but are not,” and who blaspheme.

Three and five, Pergamum and Sardis don’t have much good said about them, and seem to be in decline.

Thyatira, in the middle, is divided into two sections, and is twice as long as the other letters.

Relevant Characteristics of Jesus

The characteristics of Jesus mentioned in the prologue in chapter 1 are repeated in the seven churches, but scattered among the churches in such a way that each church is given a description of Jesus that is relevant to that church’s spiritual need and circumstance.

To Ephesus, Jesus is the One who holds the seven stars and is among the seven golden lampstands. This is a repeat of Revelation 1:16,13,20. Ephesus was faced with false teachers and false doctrine. Their greatest spiritual need was light (stars, lamps), which is the Biblical metaphor for spiritual truth.

To Smyrna, Jesus is the First and last, died and came to life (vv 1:17,18). Smyrna was faced with persecution and death. Jesus comes with the promise of resurrection.

To Pergamum, Jesus has the sharp, double-edged sword (vv 1:16). Pergamum was another church threatened by false doctrines. Hebrews 4:12 says that the word of God is “living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Pergamum needed to get back into the sword of God’s truth, the Scriptures.

To Thyatira, Jesus is the Son of God, 1:6 whose eyes are like blazing fire (v 1:14) and whose feet are like burnished bronze. (v 1:15). Thyatira is a church that is in danger of being seduced into apostasy by Jezebel. They need spiritual discernment and perception- eyes like blazing fire. They are too tolerant of error- they are what you might call spiritually “wishy washy.” They need to stand firm for truth, as if they had feet of burnished bronze.

To Sardis Jesus is shown as Him who holds the seven spirits of God (v.1:4) and the seven stars.1:16,20 Sardis is a church that is spiritually asleep and needs to be awakened and revived by the quickening spirit of God. They started enough of a work to give them a good reputation, but they have not followed through- they have unfinished business. That’s why they see Jesus who holds the seven stars- seven representing completeness and perfection, and the star-church symbolism reminding us of the role of each church as a servant in Christ’s hand, under His supervision. Jesus doesn’t do things half-way, nor should His servants.

To Philadelphia Jesus is shown as the One who is holy and true (this is a mystery- the only characteristic not found in chap 1 but looking ahead to Revelation 6:10), who holds the key of David. (v 1:18) What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. Perhaps because Philadelphia has endured, and though they had little strength, they held onto Jesus and kept His word, that put them in a position where Jesus could open to them something that He couldn’t open for anyone else. Maybe a gift of prophecy? That would explain the forward reference to verse 6:10, and the key of David metaphor. Keys open up things previously locked.

To Laodicea, Jesus is shown as the Amen, (said to praise Jesus in 1:7) the faithful and true witness, (v 1:5) the ruler of God's creation (v 1:5). The Laodiceans have an unrealistic picture of themselves as being rich in spiritual things, while they are actually spiritually blind, naked and poor. What they think of themselves is not something you would say "Amen" to. They need the faithful and true witness to show them their true condition and lead them to repentance. This is because they have not submitted themselves to Christ as Lord of every aspect of their lives- They don't fully recognize Jesus as Ruler of God’s creation.

No church gets all of Jesus. Each church is shown a unique facet of who Jesus is. This shows that Jesus meets people where they are, and there is not only one right way to be a Christian. Otherwise we would all be like identical gingerbread boys and girls, cut out with a cookie cutter and decorated by machine. Like the seven churches, each of us can portray to the world some special character quality of Jesus that no one else can do as well. Think about what particular characteristic of Jesus your church family is most excited about, and what kind of unique Christian witness does your church show to the community around it?

Jesus Knows Us

“I know your works…” The good news is that Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves, and He still loves us. There is no reason for us to hide from Him, but we can be totally open and honest with Jesus, and in doing this, be open and honest with ourselves. We religious type people have a lot of pretensions. Jesus sees through us and makes us willing to take off the mask we use to hide our imperfections.

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Here, as long as tinypic will host it, is a picture of the seven-branched candlestick I was talking about in my last post:)

[Raven]

Ah yes.......the menorah. The reason the Jews celebrate Hanukah. The festival of lights. In the time of maccabees, the first abomination of desolation was commited by a roman emperor, slaughtering a pig in the temple. After the destruction of just about everything holy to the jews, the maccabean revolt brought jerusalem back into jewish hands. After cleansing the temple, they lit the menorah, but didnt have enough oil to keep it lit. God miraculously kept the oil from running out for eight days. Thus the eight day celebration of the festival of lights. Hanukah. The whole story may be found in what we call the apocrypha. 1st and 2nd maccabees. God always prepares us for what is to come, if we look to see what he has already done. We can only do what we have seen of the Father.:-6

(not to mention it could lead to some calamitous and needless military adventures against the Palestinians)


"and when you see jerusalem encompassed about by enemies, RUN!!" Brings chills to you, doesnt it?



They don't fully recognize Jesus as Ruler of God’s creation.


Perhaps thats one of the reasons the angel in revelation flys with the admonition to worship God, the creator. More and more people today refuse to believe that God was the creator of all.

[Raven]

I'm going to add a few interesting tidbits about the cities sent these amazing letters.

Pergamum was the capitol of Asia-not the continent of Asia, but the roman province of the same name. The city, located about fifty miles north of Smyrna, was known for it's cultural and scientific communities. Pergamum boasted a library of about 200,000 volumes and a famous medical center. The city also offered a wide variety of pagan worship opportunities. In addition to it's three temples dedicated to roman emperors, Pergamum was home to temples for the pagan goddess Athena and the god Zeus.

Purple was the color of choice for the citizens of Thyatira. The city, located about twenty miles southeast of Pergamum, was famous for the purple dye and cloth that was produced there. Because of Thyatira's focus on business and manufacturing, a number of trade unions were located there. We get the impression that when members of the union werent discussing business in their meetings, they were usually worshipping pagan god's or commiting sexual sin.

Sardis was what you might call a recovering city. Located about 50 miles east of Smyrna, the city of Sardis was destroyed by an earthquake in A.D.17. The roman emperor Tiberius helped rebuild the city. The citizens were so grateful that they built temples in his honor and made Sardis one of the centers for emperor worship in the Near East.

Philadelphia---no not THAT Philadelphia, was located about 75 miles east of ephesus. Like Sardis, Philly had been damaged by an earthquake in A.D.17. Today, the city is known as Allah-shehr, "the city of God." The ruins of many christian churches have been found there.

If purple was Thyatira's color, black was Laodicea's color. Located on the banks of the Lycus River, about 50 miles southeast of Philly, Laodicea was known for selling clothing made of black wool, produced by sheep of the region. The city survived until the middle ages, when it was destroyed by muslims during the crusades.

[telaquapacky]

Thanks for those neat observations, Rave! Don't mind me if I repeat any, or add some.

First, I wanted to throw in just a few more general notes about the seven churches.

A Declining Trend

As we go through the letters to the seven churches we see a progressive spiritual and moral decline. First, the number of people doing wrong increases. In the first three churches the troublemakers are in the minority- the majority of the members are faithful, but there are some in the crowd who are not. In churches four through six, however, the minority are God’s faithful people, and it seems that everyone else in the church is doing wrong. Finally when it comes to the Laodicean church, Jesus doesn’t have anything good to say about them. Secondly, the spiritual failures become more severe as we progress through the seven churches. Ephesus has merely left it’s first love. There still remains a lot of good to be strengthened. But when you get to Laodicea, the church is too messed up to realize how messed up they are, or even care.

Increasing Severity in Penalties

Christ’s warning to Ephesus is, “If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand.” After that, His warnings become more and more severe, until finally He tells the Laodicean Church, “because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

Increasing Promises of Reward

But even though the churches decline, each successive church is promised greater rewards if they overcome. This reminds me of Romans 5:20, that where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more.

1. Ephesus- one promise: overcomers promised the tree of life.

2. Smyrna- two promises: the crown of life, and to escape the second death.

3. Pergamum- three promises: the hidden manna, a white stone, and a new name.

4. Thyatira- four promises: authority over the nations, to rule them with an iron scepter, to dash them in pieces, and the morning star.

5. Sardis- five promises: to walk with Jesus, be dressed in white, He’ll not blot their names out of the book of life, He’ll acknowledge their names before His Father, and He will acknowledge them before His angels.

6. Philadelphia- six promises: to be kept from the hour of trial, to be a pillar in the temple, to never leave the temple, the name of God will be written on them, the name of the city of God will be written on them, God’s own new name will be written on them.

7. Laodicea-only one promise, but that promise is the greatest of all, and includes all the other 21 promises combined: to sit with Christ on His throne.

Three Possible Ways to Read the Seven Churches

Preterist: Some say the letters to the seven churches had specific relevance to the churches in their time and place. Certainly this is true, because the letters are addressed specifically to those churches, and say things that have local significance unique to those churches. For example, the Laodiceas are told they need eye salve so they may see. Ancient Laodicea was famous for it’s medical school, where an effective eye ointment was manufactured. Pergamum is told, “I know where you live--where Satan has his throne.” Pergamum was then the seat of government for the province of Asia, It also had the great temples of Zeus and Athena, as Raven mentioned.

Idealist: Some say the letters to the seven churches were meant to be read in an idealist way in that they contain timeless truths for God’s people in every age. This is certainly true, because the section opens up saying “Let everyone who has an ear listen to what the spirit says to the churches.” In other words, listen not just to what the Spirit says to your own church. There is something in each of these churches that can admonish and encourage you, and has some meaning for your own church family. Even if they are messages specifically to each church in it’s own time, they still have relevance to us just as any account of what happened to God’s people in the past does. In 1 Corinthians 10:11, Paul said about the experience of Israel in the Exodus, “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.” Surely the spiritual experience of the early church is no less instructive or cautionary to us than the experience of Israel.

Historicist: Some say the letters to the seven churches are to be read from a historicist viewpoint- as predicting seven successive spiritual ages the Church passes through from Calvary to the second coming of Christ. There evidence from a comparison to Church history that the historicist reading of the letters to the seven churches is also valid. They metaphorically tell the history in advance of the Christian Church. The letters were certainly not written exclusively for this purpose. But when you think that there were more than seven churches in Asia Minor (what about Troas, or Colosse?)- why were these particular seven churches chosen? These seven churches spiritually represent all churches throughout all time. As it happens, Church history for the past 2,000 years shows seven distinct ages or phases of development:

1. Apostolic

2. Persecution

3. Church-State union and compromise

4. Medieval, dark ages

5. Reformation

6. Great Second Advent Reawakening

7. Mediocre “Pop Spirituality,” Nominalism, Commercialism (the Church of Today!)

We'll see as we study them how the seven churches correlate to these seven ages of Church history.

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Revelation 2:1-4

To the angel of the church of Ephesus write,

1 ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: 2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

Check out this link below and look at some panoramic pictures of the ruins of Ephesus.

http://www.sailturkey.com/panoramas/ephesus/

The Challenge of Living in a Town That’s “Too Cool.”

Wow! What a place, huh? The word Ephesus meant “desirable.” It must have made Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills look like Rotten Row. And Ephesus also had the great temple of Diana, or Artemis- one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. But for a Christian, living in Ephesus must have had a lot of challenges. First, there probably were a lot of really fun pagan festivals that you would have had to exclude yourself from. Popular thought was that it was not only your religious duty but your civic duty to take part in worshipping the gods they believed brought rain and prosperity and fecundity. Worship of a fertility goddess in ancient times did not mean merely crooning some devotional songs or lighting candles. There were sex acts involved. There was fleshly temptation to overcome if you were so inclined, and the peer pressure of your neighbors to overcome if you were not so inclined. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 4:4 that your pagan neighbors think you’re a weirdo because you don’t do the things they do. Everyone thought you were not only stupid, and a stick in the mud, but they also thought you were uncaring about the future of your community.

Another challenge was a philosophical one. Among the pagans were intellectuals who were profoundly learned in Greek philosophy, and if you didn’t really know your stuff, they could make you look stupid. Peter said in 1 Peter 3:15 to always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have.

How the Ephesian Church Lost Their First Love

The early church had a very different kind of witnessing experience than we do today. How often today do you meet someone who has never heard the gospel of Christ, and knows nothing about it? Not very often. The well has been thoroughly poisoned. Nowadays, everybody is an “expert” on Christianity, and knows (i.e. thinks they know) all they care to know about God and about Jesus. That was not so in the first century.The early church had an acute awareness that when they witnessed to someone, that might be the only gospel that person will ever hear. They had to have their facts and their doctrine straight. Like most churches in Asia, the church began with a core group of Jews, and a few Bible-believing Gentiles or Gentile converts to Judaism who all converted to the Way as a result of the apostles’ preaching. Scriptural orthodoxy was important to them. As new converts came in, fresh out of paganism, the church had to educate them in the true faith. There was always the danger that an intellectual convert with a strong personality and wise in their own eyes would come in and try to bring strange new doctrines into the church. Jesus had warned them of this. So the believers in Ephesus were constantly battling to maintain doctrinal purity- and that was good. Here Jesus commends them that they “cannot bear those who are evil,” and that they tested false apostles and exposed them. This is not an easy job for a church. Orthodoxy carries a burden with it, and a spiritual hazard. Orthodox believers can become very defensive. I imagine that if you were to visit the Ephesus Church one Sabbath, around the year 65, you might not be welcomed easily but warily. The brethren might even ask you sly questions at the door to see what side you stood on, of various doctrines. In their burden for orthodoxy they lost the love for their fellow man.



1 Corinthians 13:1,2 “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” Now, you’re probably thinking, “So if you’re going to err, err on the side of love.” I think that living as we do today in an age that Christianity is so diverse and widespread, love is practically the only common denominator we have. Before you can share the truth, you have to love the person you are sharing it with. And you have to keep on loving them whether or not they accept it. But Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesian church in Ephesians 4:15 that we should speak the truth in love. It isn’t love if you don’t share the truth. We should do the one without leaving the other undone. Our Christian witness should be balanced, both loving and Biblically sound. Jesus’ critique of the Ephesus Church is that they were unbalanced, not combining truth with an equal measure of love.

Christ's Warning to the Ephesian Church

You can’t share Jesus without love. The Ephesian Church risked losing their mission, and their ability to be a light for Jesus That’s why Jesus warned them that if they did not return to the joyful love that the truth gave them when they first accepted it, He would remove their lampstand.

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Revelation 2:6,7

6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

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

You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans

Christians are not to hate people. God doesn’t hate people, He loves them, because all people are His children in the sense that they were made by His own hand. But God hates what some people teach and practice, and if we are loyal to God, we will hate the same things God hates. God hates sin because sin destroys us. Even in our own lives, it is impossible for us to overcome our own sin until or unless we hate it. What were the Nicolaitans doing that God hates? It wasn’t merely that they were sinning. Basically, they taught that you could love sin and love God too. Irenaeus was a second century church leader. He wrote that the Nicolaitans were a heretical sect of Christians who thought it was okay to practice adultery, and to eat things sacrificed to idols. In my last post, I mentioned how sexual immorality and idolatry was the norm for the pagan culture at the time. The Nicolaitans were people who claimed to be Christians, but who lived no differently than the pagans around them. Evidently they thought that faith in Jesus released them from obedience to the Ten Commandments. That’s called antinomianism. John, the author of Revelation doesn’t have anything friendly or nice to say about that brand of theology- he hated it. Jude also hated antinomianism.

1 John 2:4-6

4 The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.

Jude 1:4

4 For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.

So the Nicolaitans were people who claimed to know Christ, but by their actions they denied Him. They were antinomians.

He who has an ear,

To have an ear means to care to hear what God says to us. The voice of God’s Holy Spirit can be a very faint voice indeed. The more we pay attention to of the voices of the world, voices of confusion, of doubt, of temptation- the fainter and fainter the voice of God becomes, until we may reach a state in which we cannot hear God speak at all.

let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches

Let the Spirit speak to you, and then follow what he says. The Ephesians care enough to hear God’s voice in keeping proper doctrine, but they need to listen more closely to what the Spirit can teach them about love. Romans 5:5 says, “…God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” As human beings, everything we do relying on our own strength or wisdom is imperfect and incomplete. Only through the power of the Holy Spirit, can we be doctrinally pure, obedient and loving toward others.

I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God

This is another chiastic parallel from the early part of Revelation to the last part. In Revelation 22:14 comes the fulfillment. What is so special about the Tree of Life? Genesis 3:22 tells us about it.

Genesis 3:22

22 And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever."

This is very clear. Without access to the tree of life, man does not live forever. This tree of life was in the Garden of Eden. After Adam and Eve sinned, God evicted them from the garden, and posted an angel guard at the gate of the garden with a flaming sword to keep them from returning and gaining access to the tree of life (Genesis 3:24). Without the tree of life, they were doomed to grow old and die. But in Revelation 2:7, God promises to give us the right to eat of that tree and live forever in paradise. The promise those who overcome sin is that everything that was lost in the fall will be restored.



A Historicist View of the Letter to the Church at Ephesus

If we were to view the letters to the churches as describing seven eras in the history of the Church, Ephesus would symbolize the Apostolic era, about 31-100 AD. It covers the first couple of generations of the Christian era. History shows that the early church had a great beginning, but by the end of the first century there were problems. This often happens in movements. When the people who started the movement die, and succeeding generations take over, they become complacent, lose the original enthusiasm, and partly forget the goals and purpose the movement had in the beginning. Like Ephesus, they lose their first love.

What is the cure for complacency? Sore trials. In the next letter, the letter to the church in Smyrna, we’ll see that God allowed His church to go through some severe trials so that their faith could be purified.

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Revelation 2:8,9

8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write,

‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: 9 “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan

Smyrna, now called Izmir in Turkey is one of the few cities of the seven churches that is still a living city. Smyrna was founded about 1200 B.C. Beautifully situated along the Aegean seacoast, about 30 miles north of Ephesus, it was extolled by ancient peoples for it’s marvelous location. They called it the “Ornament of Asia.” It was also the birthplace of the great Greek poet, Homer. The link below goes to a page on interesting old postcards of Smyrna. One of them shows the tomb of Polycarp- probably not the same Polycarp who posts here on FG, although the two have some things in common.

http://smyrnialbum.s5.com/photo_album_9.htm

These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life

The manner in which Jesus presents Himself to each of the seven churches is always related to the needs of that church. To the church persecuted by imperial Rome, Christ reveals Himself as the timeless, all-powerful One in heaven and on earth, the one who suffered and died and who lives, never to die again. To people about to die for their love for Him, He promises them the resurrection and eternal life.

I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich)

The name “Smyrna” means “myrrh,” the herb that was used in embalming the dead. It was a name uncannily appropriate to symbolize the painful experience through which the Church there had to pass because of imperial persecution. Smyrna was not a fun place to live if you were a Christian. When Jesus says, “I know your poverty,” the Greek word is ptocheia, which means being reduced to begging- absolute destitution. Though stripped of all worldly possessions, the spiritual riches they had more than compensated for their material poverty. They were true followers of their Master, who “for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9) The church of Smyrna enriched the world more than any other church because they were “sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” 2 (Corinthians 6:10). The testimony of their martyrdom was the seed of the gospel.

I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not,

The word, “blasphemy” in this version (some versions say “slander”) is from the Greek word, blasphemia, which comes from a root word that means vilification. Evidently, the believers in Smyrna were getting it from both sides. The Romans were saying that the Christians in Smyrna were enemies of society to justify their persecution. But what may have hurt even more was the slander of the unbelieving Jews. The Book of Acts records that the earliest persecution came from the synagogues (see Acts 13:45; 14:2; 16; 17:5,13; 18:5,6,12) The Jews accused the Christians of falsifying the Scriptures. Here Christ is saying that these “Jews” who are accusing the Christians of religious fakery are themselves the ones who are fakes.

The New Testament Definition of True Judaism

Here in Revelation 2:9 and later in verse 3:9, we see people “who say they are Jews, but are not." Unless we wish to skate over the surface of these verses, we need to examine what it means to be a true Jew according to the New Testament. There is a popular misconception that whatever Judaism is, it’s not Christianity- that one cannot be both a Jew and a Christian. Some people mistakenly think all Jews reject Christ as Messiah, and deny His Divinity. With this misconception comes a revisionist history of the Church. Some imagine that the Apostles turned to the Gentiles because they completely failed to evangelize the Jewish people. They think that the church began as predominately Gentile with just a few members of Hebrew descent who had to recant their former Jewishness. They picture the early church as being altogether different from the Jewish synagogue, and the religion of Christ rinsed clean of any taint of Judaism. But a careful study of Scripture shows the Jewish origins of the Christian Church.

The first expansion of the church happened on the day of Pentecost when the apostles, empowered by the baptism of the Holy Spirit won three thousand Jews to Christ. In the weeks following this, Acts 2:46 tells us that “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.” Acts 5:20 tells us that when the Sanhedrin arrested the apostles and threw them in jail, and an angel released them, the angel told them to "Go, stand in the temple courts and tell the people the full message of this new life." The temple courts became not only the meeting place of the startup Church, but also the primary center of evangelism. At first, there was no outreach to Gentiles at all, and Gentiles were in fact prevented from joining them because Gentiles weren’t allowed in the temple courts. Acts 11:19, 20 tell us that It wasn’t until the persecution and scattering of Messianic Jews from Jersualem after the stoning of Stephen that individual Christians, namely from Cyprus and Cyrene, began to reach out to Gentiles.

Paul, himself, who was the apostle to the Gentiles (Romans 11:13, Galatians 2:8, 1 Timothy 2:7) was an accomplished Rabbi. Acts 22:3 tells us that Paul was a student of Gamaliel, a respected member of the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin gave Paul the authority to spearhead the persecution of Christ’s followers, and he probably would have become a member of the Sanhedrin if he had not had an encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. Paul was a super-Jew who was also a super-Christian. If anyone knows what it means to be a Jew and a Christian, Paul knows. What does Paul tell us about it?

Romans 9:6

It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.

What’s Paul saying? He’s saying that there is nothing wrong with the Old Testament. There’s nothing wrong with the religion that God gave to His people before Christ. They were given everything they needed to build a saving faith around- and of course, many did. Read about them in Hebrews 11. We would do well to follow their example. But many Jews never did get the point God was trying to teach them. The Scriptures weren’t the problem. The problem was people’s lack of faith. Then Paul makes this observation: just because someone is of Jewish descent, that doesn’t mean they are children of Israel. Ethnically Jewish, maybe, but not spiritually Israel.

Who is spiritual Israel? According to Isaiah 41:8, Israel is the seed of Abraham. Paul uses this metaphor two ways in the Book of Galatians. In Galatians 3:16, Christ is the seed of Abraham. Then Paul develops another “in Christ” argument that climaxes in Galatians 3:29, where Paul says, “…if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” By the New Testament definition, spiritual Israel is all who are in Christ, including both Jews and Gentiles. Spiritual Israel is the Church. But only those who are in Christ. “Not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.”

Ephesians 2:12,13

12 Remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.

13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

Here’s another example of Paul’s definition of the Church as spiritual Israel. When you were separate from Christ, you were not part of spiritual Israel. Now that you are in Christ, you are part of spiritual Israel. Does that mean that a Gentile who converts to Christ becomes an honorary Jew? Nope, sorry. Once a Gentile, always a Gentile. But, you are a Gentile seed of Abraham, through Christ, and are of spiritual Israel. The converse is true. If you are born a Jew, and you have not accepted your Messiah, you are not spiritual Israel.

And another example: Romans 11:17-22 describes Israel as an olive tree. Christ is the root. We are the branches. The Jews who rejected Christ were broken off. The Gentiles who accepted Christ were grafted in.

So the New Testament definition of True Jews is, you’re a true Jew if you have become a Jewish Christian. A Jew who has not accepted Christ, may say they are a Jew, but the New Testament says, “No.” So the people in Revelation 2:9 who say they are Jews but are not, are Jews who have not come to accept and worship their Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Here’s another example. The “circumcision” is a code word for Jews. Here in Philippians 3:3, Paul makes it plain. The only true Jews are those who glory in Jesus Christ.

Philippians 3:3

For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh”

Shattering some Israel delusions

One reason people mess up interpreting end times prophecies concerning Israel is that they make the mistake of looking at that little powder keg in the Middle East, and think those prophecies pertain to that country. Nope. Might as well look at Lichtenstein (ends in “stein"- maybe they’re Jewish!) If you tried hard enough and had a lively enough imagination, I’ll bet you a nickel you could find a number of ways that the prophecies concerning Israel were fulfilled by Lichtenstein. But what we should learn from Paul’s writings is that the identity of spiritual Israel carries over to the prophecies of Israel. End time prophecies concerning Israel now pertain to Christians worldwide, not to the nation of Israel. Another thing. In Romans 11:26 Paul said that all Israel will be saved. This has prompted some enthusiasts of Bible prophecy to concoct wild scenarios whereby all the Jews will somehow all come to Christ and be saved. They didn’t read the whole paragraph. In Romans 11:26, Paul had just finished building the metaphor of Israel as an olive tree, with Christ as it’s root, believers as the branches, and all the unbelieving Jews broken off! Bible prophecy does not predict any universal acceptance of Christ by the Jews. It just won’t happen.

but are a synagogue of Satan

Why were the unbelieving Jews who slandered the Smyrna Christians called the “synagogue of Satan?” Satan is the accuser. They joined Satan by becoming accusers of the brethren. We ought to be careful when we start accusing other believers of doing wrong. If they are wrong, they ought to be warned. The Ephesus church was commended for exposing wrong doctrine and warning those who were wrong. But better be sure you're sure, and sure you're motivated by love. If you accuse someone of wrongdoing who is innocent, or do it maliciously, you are playing the part of Satan, the accuser.

Another aspect of this is, the Jews who rejected Christ couldn't follow where the Spirit of God was leading them from their old understanding of the Covenant (which was legalistic and inaccurate) to a new understanding of the Covenant. God may be leading us to a new understanding different from the one we learned from Momma's knee. We need to be careful not to resist the Spirit of God when He reveals new light to us. Otherwise, we might find ourselves in the Synagogue of Satan. We all have a lot yet to learn.

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[telaquapacky]

Smyrna – The Persecuted Church, Part 2

Revelation 2:10

10 Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.



Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer

This is the closest Jesus comes to any censure of the Smyrna church. “Don’t be afraid.” They had a lot of things to worry about. But nothing happens to us that God does not allow for a purpose. It isn’t that God carelessly allows Satan to hurt people. But God knows how to work everything out so that in the end it happens for our greater benefit- if we respond in faith.

What is Faith?

Faith is more than clicking the heels of your ruby slippers together three times and saying, “I believe in Jesus;” more than a mere intellectual assent to some set of doctrines and more even than the emotional experience that makes tears come to your eyes, or makes you wave your arm when you sing a particularly moving hymn in church. Faith is living by what is unseen rather than what is seen, so that your loving trust in God and devoted obedience to Him will pass any torture test Satan, other people, or the difficulties of this life will dish out. That’s the faith that separates those who will inherit eternal life from those who will not. Faith knows when to say, “Don’t worry, what you’re afraid of isn’t gonna happen,” and when to say, “It will be bad, but God will get us through this.” We should view the little trials and tests we encounter in life not as problems, but as opportunities to develop Christlike faith and character. Read Hebrews 11. Here are some other verses that relate to that:

Romans 8:28

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

1 Peter 1:6,7

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

James 1:2,3

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

Philippians 4:6,7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

How the Future Trials Differ From Our Trials Now

If we were to read the letter to the Smyrna church in an idealist sense (that it contains timeless truths for God’s people in every age) we could learn that we don’t have to worry or fear the things that Revelation says are coming soon. Some of us understand Jesus’ predictions of the condition of the earth and of the return of persecution under the mark of the beast, just prior to His second coming, and we see some very troubled times ahead. Jesus tells us, just like the Smyrna church, that we don’t have to give in to fear. Those who will be privileged to be alive and in Christ on this earth on the day Jesus comes will first pass through some very grievous trials indeed. When those last trials come, it will be too late to develop character and faith. That’s why we should welcome the smaller trials we face now to develop the character and faith that will bring us victoriously through the test of the very last days. If you are right now in some very difficult times that sorely try your faith, maybe God is preparing you to stand through the time of trouble. Be glad! God doesn’t pick the strong to endure hardship. He enables the weak to endure hardship in His strength.

Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested

The first Roman emperor to have an official policy and procedure for dealing with Christians was Trajan (A.D. 98-117). He wrote to Pliny the Younger, his governor of Bithynia and Pontus in Asia Minor, not to hunt Christians out, but if anyone was brought before Roman officials for other offenses and it so happened that they were also Christians, they were to be executed unless they recanted. The Jews knew that by accusing Christians of minor offenses and then outing them as Christians, they could get them executed. In addition, Christians were often blamed and then executed in large numbers when there were natural calamities like earthquakes, famines and storms because Pagans supposed that the Christians brought these troubles upon society by refusing to worship the gods. So Trajan’s policy was a passive persecution by the empire in that it allowed local authorities to use their discretion. This regulation of Trajan stayed in place until Constantine issued his edict of toleration in A.D. 313. So for two centuries Christians lived under the constant threat that they could be arrested at any time for their faith. Their well being depended to a large extent upon how well they got along with their Pagan and Jewish neighbors, who could either leave them in peace or complain about them to the authorities. They were also at the mercy of the various local administrations under which they lived.

A Historicist Reading of the Letter to Smyrna

As the Church grew in numbers and expanded throughout the empire, many Romans saw the writing on the wall. They knew that the way of Christ was fundamentally incompatible with the Roman way of life, and they realized that if Christianity continued to spread at the rate it was going, it would take over and destroy the Roman way of life. In the 240’s, when they celebrated the millennium of the founding of Rome, Romans decried the decadent state of the empire in comparison to it’s glorious past, and they blamed Christianity. It was decided that the church should be destroyed in order to save the empire. In A.D. 250 Decius decreed the universal suppression of Christianity by torture, death and the confiscation of property. This policy lapsed with the death of Decius in 251. It was revived by Valerian in 258, but reversed again at Valerian’s death, by his son Gallienus. The worst period of persecution was a ten year period under Diocletian and Galerius from 303 to 313. If we view the letter to the church at Smyrna in a Historicist sense, representing a period in Church history following that represented by the letter to Ephesus, then Smyrna would represent the church from A.D. 100 to 313.

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[Ted]

I do think that we ought to remember that the only scriptures the early church had was the Torah. That was the "Bible" of the day.

It is also interesting to note that there was considerable disagreement within the early church between Paul and James, the Brother of Jesus and Peter. Neither James not Peter could accept Paul's definition of Jew or Israel

I think we must also be very cautious of what we do with Paul and the others. We must not make them into infallible human beings. Paul wrote many letters and some attributed to him were written after his death. He did not realize that he was writing what would later become "scripture."

Paul made many mistakes in his life and suffered as a result of those mistakes. He was extremly short tempered with those who disagreed with him and this often got him into trouble such as being beaten or stoned.

Shalom

Ted:-6

[Ted]

Paul was even in disagreement with John the Baptist over the meaning of Baptism.

Shalom

Ted