NOTE: As you read the Book of Revelation ask the Holy Spirit to give you the insight and understanding He wants you to have. Then trust the Holy Spirit to honor your request. Our reading the NT in one year is not the format for an in-depth study of this book, thus I will not identify each and every symbol and reference. You may find it helpful to use a good study Bible, or one with good cross references, as there will be multiple cites of OT scriptures. Our goal is to get a broad view of John’s message without having to breakdown each and every verse. With the help of the Holy Spirit we will fulfill our goal.
Today we read the first four of the letters to the churches. In chapter one John overflows with adjectives describing his vision of Jesus. There are seven attributes described there and as Jesus addresses each of the seven churches one of those attributes is used. For Ephesus Jesus is alive and present with His church. For Smyrna Jesus is the One who triumphs over death and life, a reference that is picked up at the end of the letter when second death, or spiritual death, is mentioned. For Pergamum Jesus is the two edged Word of God, bringing both healing and comfort as well as judgment. For Thyatira (the longest of the seven letters to the city which was the smallest and least influential of the seven cities) Jesus is the One who can see beneath the surface and judge righteously.
The reference to the Nicolaitans is believed to be a reference to a gnostic group. The Gnostics believed in absolutes; God’s Spirit is good; everything else is bad. They believed it was possible for a human to migrate to God’s Spirit through a special knowledge. When that knowledge was obtained the person was free of the evil in the world. The gnostic then had no problem sinning because they believed sin could not adversely affect them. This may be what Paul had in mind when in Romans 6 he addresses those who believed they could keep on sinning because grace covers all sins.
My take away from chapter two: In Christ Church there is a lampstand in the chancel that burns 24/7. It is a reminder to me that Christ Church is not my church. It is Jesus’ church. It is a reminder to me that Jesus is fully aware of everything that is spoken and every action that is taken (or not taken) on every square inch of the church, and by every member of the congregation and every person who may come on the campus.
AND, it is a reminder to me that Jesus will not wait until the Second Coming to judge and discipline His church. Every time I see the lampstand I tremble because I know that as pastor Jesus holds me accountable for the conduct of His church.
What does today’s reading
reveal to you about God?
What does it reveal to you about yourself?
Think about what God wants you to do
or remember about this passage.
Does God want you to change
anything in your life?
2-Oct-11 Rev. 3:1-22
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