Verse 1) UNTO the angel of the church of Eph’-e-sus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candelsticks; Remember from chapter one; The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven candelsticks are the seven churches which were in Asia at that time. It seems as if every church had, or has it’s own angel watching over it. Jesus was holding the seven stars in his right hand ( the seven angels of the seven churches), and the seven candelsticks are the seven churches. Jesus has a message for the church at Eph’-e-sus.
Verse 2) I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: Jesus said, that they were not putting up with false teachers and false apostles, which was a good thing, because they knew the Word.Do you, or does your church put up with false teachings, or false apostles? Do you search the scriptures daily to see if these things be so, or do you just blindly follow some Pastor, and say, ” We pay him to do that , and tell us the way”? “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)
Verse 3) And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. They have been working for the Lord patiently, and have not fainted, or given up.
Verse 4) Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because tho hast left thy first love. This is the main sin that any Christian can commit. We should always love the Lord first in our hearts. “Jesus said unto him, THOU SHALT LOVE THE LORD THY GOD WITH ALL THY HEART, AND WITH ALL THY SOUL, AND WITH ALL THY MIND.” ( Matthew 22:37).
Verse 5) Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. Jesus tells them to repent and turn back to him quickly. All of these lessons that Jesus is telling to all these churches, we should each apply to ourselves.
Verse 6) But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Ni-co-la-i-tanes, which I also hate. The deeds of the Ni-co-la-i-tanes are a bit of a mystery. Some scholars attribute their deeds to abstaining from having marital relations as the Catholic Priests do today. Jesus said he hates this.”Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:” (1 Timothy 4:1-4). Jesus loves children, and wants his people to have children.How can a Priest or teacher counsel or teach anyone about raising a family, when they themselves never have had children?
Verse 7) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. You over come by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ. “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”( Revelation 12:11).
Verse 8,9) And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty,( but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. The church at Smyrna was made up of people that were poor, but Jesus tells them they are rich spiritually. The Jews persecuted the Christians. Jesus tells them they are not Jews but followers of Satan. “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”( Romans 2:28,29). If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your savior, then you are a spiritual Jew in the eyes of God.“And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:29)
Verse 10) Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. Jesus promised the Christians at Smyrna a crown of life for enduring the Roman persecution.
Verse 11) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. The second death is the Great White Throne Judgment. Saved believers will not have to go through this. It is called the second death. “ And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” ( Revelation 20: 11-15). If you are only born once you will die twice. If you are born twice ( or born again, John 3: 1-8) then you only have to die once, unless you live until the rapture, and then you don’t have to die at all. The unsaved dead will be resurrected at the Great White Throne Judgement and judged according to their works. There are different levels in Hell where they will be assigned. The worst being the Lake of Fire, where the devil and the Anti-Christ and the False Prophet will be there.
Verse 12-17) And to the angel of the church in Per’-ga-mos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name. And hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein An’ti-pas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth. But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Ba’-laam, who taught Ba’-lac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nic-o-la’-i-tanes, which thing I hate. Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. He that hath and ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden man’-na, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it. Jesus is speaking to the angel, and, or the leader in the church of Per’-ga-mos, and to all the people in the church. The sharp twoedged sword is also found in Revelation 19:15 “And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron:and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” (Hebrew 4:12) “For the word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The doctrine of Ba’-lam refers to Numbers Chapters 25, and 31:16. Ba’-lam advised the Children of Israel to seek after Midianite harlots and heathen gods. Evidently there was a large following of people in Pergamos who were following the doctrine of Balam. Jesus tells the church to be overcomers and they will get to eat of the hidden manna and get a white stone with a new name written in it. We don’t know for sure what the hidden manna is or what the white stone is for but we do know this. “But as it is written, EYE HATH NOT SEEN, NOR EAR HEARD, NEITHER HAVE ENTERED INTO THE HEART OF MAN,THE THINGS WHICH GOD HATH PREPARED FOR THEM THAT LOVE HIM.” (I Corinthians 2:9). Some things we will just have to wait until we get to Heaven to fully understand.
Verse 18-24) And unto the angel of the church in Thy-a-ti’-ra write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass; I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first. Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jez’-e-bel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacificed unto idols. And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thy-a-ti’-ra, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. Jesus has some good things to say about this church, but he is very mad about this woman named Jez’-e-bel. Thy-a-ti’-ra was famous for it’s great temple Artemis, another name for the goddess Diana. She was introducing the same foul practices as Jez’-e-bel the devilish wife of king Ahab to the Christians at Thy-a-ti’-ra. ( I Kings Chapter 16). Jesus called her teachings the deep things of Satan.
Verse 25-27) But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: And HE SHALL RULE THEM WITH A ROD OF IRON; AS THE VESSELS OF A POTTER SHALL THEY BE BROKEN TO SHIVERS: even as I received of my Father. Be faithful unto death and you will rule and reign under the King of Kings Jesus Christ.
Verse 28,29) And I will give him the morning star. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. Jesus said he was the bright and morning star. ( Revelation 22:16).
Say this prayer to be saved: Jesus, I want to know you, and to live forever in Heaven, I know I have made mistakes and done bad things- and I am sorry. Please forgive me. I know I don’t deserve it, but I accept your love and I accept you as my Saviour. I believe you died on the cross for my sins ,and rose from the dead. Please come into my heart and life and fill me with your Holy Spirit and give me peace. Amen.
I enjoyed reading through this information on email.
Perhaps my biggest dilemma or concern is how to come to grips and even understand the various denominational churches that currently exist.
There is only one Lord but so many churches seem to have rules and regulations.
Even the Uniting Church where I attend requires “Members” or “Members in association” to elect new Elders only if they obtain a 70% vote.
For me “whether you believe it or not” I had a clear word from the Lord some years ago telling me to resign my membership in order that membership would be held lightly in this place. This word came to me when a minister spoke on circumcision and I saw clearly that circumcision of the heart is what God is concerned about.
I feel that the Uniting Church and even its ministers are imposing rules and regulations on folk which God has never demanded.
Paul in Galatians 3 verses 1-6 sums up the error of relying on law rather than the Spirit
If I am in any way wrong in my thinking please let me know.
Graham Byrne
Dear Graham Byrne, Please read “Which Church Is The True Church, And Where Is The Kingdom Of God?” which you will find under the Categories list on the left side of the home page in “Living for Jesus”, then type in I hope you have been able to research and read other teachings through http://www.answersintheword.com