|
Revelation; the last book
of the Bible and the most compelling, and for most
readers very difficult to read or understand. In
fact most Christians would rather avoid reading this
book completely. It's amazing that many Christians
have an overwhelming fear of this book. Of course
most of this fear is due to the misunderstanding of
what Jesus is revealing to us in the writings. Let
us examine the meaning of the word Revelation, (also
known as Apocalypse).
The meaning according to the dictionary:
- the act
of revealing or disclosing; disclosure.
-
something revealed or disclosed, esp. a striking
disclosure, as of something not before realized.
The meaning according to the
Vine's:
-
apokalupsis "an uncovering" (akin to apokalupto;
see above), "is used in the NT of
(a) the drawing away by Christ of the veil of
darkness covering the Gentiles, Luke_2:32; cp.
Isaiah_25:7;
(b) 'the mystery,' the purpose of God in this
age, Rom_16:25; Eph_3:3;
(c) the communication of the knowledge of God to
the soul, Eph_1:17;
The book of Revelation was written by John (the
apostle), the brother of James and son of Zebedee.
John was one of the closest apostles to Jesus, and
loved Jesus dearly. In his role as witness to the
life of Jesus, he was banished to the island of
Patmos where he was in prison (95AD)( an island of
Greece)
Map shows
the location of the island of Patmos, and the seven
churches mentioned in Revelation 1-3.
 |
|
The Seven Churches |
Ephesus
The
Loveless Church |
Smyrna
The
Persecuted Church |
Pergamos
The
Compromising Church
|
Thyatira
The Corrupt
Church |
Sardis
The Dead Church |
Philadelphia
The
Faithful Church |
Laodicea
The Lukewarm
Church |
|
John introduces the
book as "The Revelation of Jesus Christ",
which God gave Him to show His
servants—things which must shortly take
place(Rev 1:1). Also in Rev. 1:1 John
explains that an
angel was sent to him to show him what was
to come, and instructed John to write to the
seven
churches what he was shown in the
spirit.(Rev. 1:11).
Does this book apply to this age, when
the seven churches mentioned here were 2000
years ago?
This is one of the main questions which goes
through a Christians mind, but if you
believe that the
rest of the Bible applies then why would
this book not apply? Also the symbolism in
Revelation seems
to confuse everybody. So let's start with
the symbolism: Note: The number 7 symbolizes
completion.
Depending on the particular Bible
translation ex: King James or New King James
Version, seven
candlesticks is mentioned in the Original
King James. In the New King James or other
newer versions
candlesticks is replaced by "lampstands".
|
Verse |
Symbolism |
Meaning of symbolism |
|
Rev. 1:4 |
the seven spirits |
seven angels of the 7 churches |
|
Rev. 1:12, 20 |
seven candlesticks (lampstands) |
The seven churches listed above |
|
Rev. 1:13 |
the Son of man |
Jesus |
|
Rev 1:20 |
the seven stars |
seven angels of the 7 churches |
|
|
|
|
Revelation 2-3:
God tells John exactly what to write to the
seven churches, and the first thing we
should notice is how God identifies himself
to each church. Next God let each church
know that he is
familiar with them personally. He identifies
to each church their weakness, strength, and
knowledge
of their works, tribulation, patience, and
most of all their flaws. He compliments, and
chastises them.
Below is a
comparison chart of the seven Churches:
|
|
Church |
Good |
Bad |
|
Ephesus |
cannot bear evil, test apostles |
Left their first love |
|
Smyrna |
faithful unto death |
none |
|
Pergamos |
hold fast to the name of Jesus, did not
deny God's faith. |
doctrine of Balaam,
commit sexual immorality, eats things
sacrificed to idols |
|
Thyatira |
faithful, patient, hard workers in the
faith. |
allowed Jezebel to teach
& seduce. sexual immorality, eats things
sacrificed to idols. |
|
Sardis |
none |
said to be alive, but is
a dead church |
|
Philadelphia |
Kept God's word, never denied Jesus |
none |
|
Laodicea |
none |
Lukewarm- neither cold
or hot |
What
was so important
about what John had written to these churches, and can we
see any
similarities
to the churches of today? Also let's remember that as believers
we are the church, not
the building in which we
go to
worship. With this in mind, ask yourself this
question:
"Which church am I?
|
Bible Quizzes
