Indepth Study of Rev. 2 and 3

A Close Look at Revelation 2 and 3 With Q and A

Dan Corner

[Permission is granted to duplicate this article in its entirety,

but only without additions, alterations or omissions of any kind,

including the ministry name and address at the end.]

One of the most relevant sections of the entire New Testament for those of us who have found salvation years ago has to be Revelation chapters 2 and 3. The reason for this is that the Lord Jesus Himself, after His infinite work at Calvary, is directing his truths to such church people. Again, these addressees are not new converts, but instead people who have been engaged in the Christian battle for some time—in some cases, perhaps, many years. This is evident in that some did persevere various hardships and others were told to remember the height from which they fell, etc. The various spiritual conditions that they were in reflects, among other things, the intensity of the Christian warfare and various spiritual problems and attacks that can arise.

If Jesus Himself would speak to the people in local congregations in our day, who were saved for some time, we could expect that message, for the most part, to be like his messages to these seven churches. What you are going to read in this study is how Jesus viewed these congregations. Especially note the various things Jesus commended and condemned, as well as his remedies and recommendations for their problems and spiritual battles. It is also significant to notice the Lord’s absolute silence regarding many things that are exalted in modern-day congregations. This silence shows the real insignificance in God’s eyes of what many church people are futilely striving to obtain in our day.

After a close examination of these two chapters, the reader will have a much better understanding of what his own judgment before the Lord will be like to some degree. Now is the time to change every and all areas of your life that are out of kilter and need to be aligned to the Lord’s desires.

The Church at Ephesus

First on the list of seven is the church at Ephesus. (This is also the same church group to whom Paul wrote in the Epistle to the Ephesians):

To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 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. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 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 (Rev. 2:1-7, NRSV).

Observations

Verse 1 reads from the NIV:

To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands:

The seven golden lampstands are amplified by a preceding passage found in Rev. 1 and identified as the seven churches:

On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone “like a son of man,” dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest (Rev. 1:10-13).

Furthermore, the seven stars of Rev. 2:1 are identified elsewhere as the angels of the seven churches:

The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches (Rev. 1:20).

(Verse 20 also reinforces that the seven lampstands are the seven churches.)

To better understand what that means we should observe that the word angel in the Greek can also be rendered messenger. This has led many to understand this to be the pastor of that congregation.

Jesus’ Mini-autobiography

of Himself

To each of the seven churches, Jesus describes himself in a different way reflecting his vast influence and significance in God’s plan for mankind. In Rev. 2:1, he shows himself as the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands.

Next, the Lord usually identifies commendable features and virtues he has observed, if any exist. In the case of Ephesus, he cites eight of them. This is what the Ephesus congregation was like when Jesus described them here:

I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary (Rev. 2:2,3).

Dear reader, how many of those commendable virtues could the Lord say is alive in your personal life now? Ponder that list again and note what is cited as virtuous. Be stirred as you read over this list:

● Hard work

● Perseverance

● Couldn’t tolerate wicked men

● Tested those claiming to be apostles

● Endured hardships for Jesus’ name and

● Didn’t grow weary

(Of that list perseverance was mentioned twice, but only cited once above.)

They Tested Others

Jesus commended them for testing [Greek: scrutinizing; examining] those who claimed to be apostles but were false. How could they have done that? One way is mentioned in 2 Cor. 12:12:

The things that mark an apostle—signs, wonders and miracles—were done among you with great perseverance.

True apostles, besides preaching the true gospel, have signs, wonders and miracles as identifying marks. These words signs, wonders and miracles are found elsewhere in Scripture in reference to what Jesus did as he healed and performed various miracles:

Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know (Acts 2:22).

They were also alive in the ministries of the Twelve:

Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles (Acts 2:43).

The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade (Acts 5:12).

So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders (Acts 14:3).

Though we don’t have the specifics we do know those false apostles could and were identified as counterfeits. In our day, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) also commonly known as Mormons actually claims to have twelve living apostles, but you can be assured those claims are just as false as they were for the ones the Ephesians tested. (Please see our other information on Mormonism.)

Getting back to those signs, wonders and miracles, please know that when the antichrist comes to the forefront he too will do such:

The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved (2 Thess. 2:9,10).

They are called counterfeit because they are not from the power of God but from the power of the devil (Rev. 13:2). There will be real miracles performed by the false prophet (Rev. 13:13), who is associated with the antichrist. The point is: miracles can come from the devil as well as from God. This is vitally important to know. The sure test is examine one’s life (behavior) and doctrine with the Bible to see how close to God they really are.

“Yet I Hold This Against You”

In spite of all those outstanding qualitites, which he commended them for, Jesus held something against the Ephesians, who were saved by grace! What a surprise this must be to many. This, however, is not the Jesus that many have been taught who would not hold anything against one who was once saved. Again, such is not the real Jesus of the Bible and the one we will stand before on Judgment Day (2 Tim. 4:1):

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love (Rev. 2:4).

The fact that they forsook their first love shows the Lord addressed his message to those that were not new Christians. Again, that church group, with all those virtuous traits, forsook their first love over time. Dear reader, if we have or have not forsaken our first love is very important to Jesus. Furthermore, he is very much aware of our present condition regarding this. Please note their past first love didn’t make right their present state. Regarding this: How do you rate at this moment? Have you too forsaken your first love? If so, this is very serious and needs to be remedied. There are grave consequences for not changing.

Some people wrongly think that Jesus can’t see any Christian’s sins, faults, shortcomings, etc. They sometimes teach all that God can see is the blood of Christ or Christ himself when he looks upon the Christian, but that was clearly not the case here for the Ephesians (and the other churches which needed to change). Therefore, we should not be deceived by them into thinking this is the case with us either.

Jesus’ Remedy For All Who

Have Forsaken Their First Love

His spiritual prescription to remedy a forsaken first love is simply described as:

Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first (Rev. 2:5a).

They would not have to go to a Christian counselor or even talk over the clear meaning of what the Lord wrote with another who might be a friend or so-called pastor. Neither would they have to pray about it. It was apparent what he was saying and it was their choice to act on his directives or remain as they were. Those Christians could refuse, even though it was the Sovereign God’s will for them to do what was right.

The Lord then issued his own warning, if they would chose not to repent:

If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place (Rev. 2:5b).

An easy way to recall what Jesus taught is: Remember, Repent and Return.

Please note that Jesus told those who had been saved in the past that they now needed to repent. Repenting, therefore, is not a one-moment-forever act. Them forsaking their first love was sin, since repent means to turn from evil. Jesus could see that sin and he held it against them. The mere fact that he singled this out reflects its seriousness.

Similarly, we have Jesus’ teaching on this before he died on the cross:

Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment” (Mat. 22:37,38).

Also, comparable to that are these teachings:

Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me (Mat. 10:37).

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:26).

It should be apparent that God wants us to love Him first and it is very serious to sin in this way. In fact, this is a salvation issue, as we will see shortly. We also learn elsewhere that those who love God obey God:

If you love me, you will obey what I command (John 14:15).

Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me” (John 14:23,24).

After stating his displeasure and remedy, the Lord spoke in a commendatory way again:

But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate (Rev. 2:6).

Many would have a rough time imagining Jesus as hating anything, yet he himself stated he does! The early Christians at Ephesus also hated the practices of the Nicolaitans. It was to their credit to abhor such and not just be tolerant, as many in our day might wrongly think is being a Christian or Christ-like. Apparently, the Ephesians who judged the practices of the Nicolaitans as evil were commended for it. The truth is they weren’t very ecumenical.

Only For The Overcomers

The term overcomer is found especially in the book of Revelation and suggests a struggle. Elsewhere we read more about this struggle:

In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood (Heb. 12:4).

How to overcome any kind of evil is concisely stated in the following:

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Rom. 12:21).

A struggle suggests that there must be something to overcome. In this case, it was forsaking their first love (who is God). After one gets saved a spiritual battle is raging and the devil’s goal is to drive a spiritual wedge between the Christian and the Lord. He often tries to do this with sin involving other people and/or circumstances. Dear reader, if you have forsaken your first love, then you must overcome this sin to make the following salvation promise yours:

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 (Rev. 2:7).

Will all those who actually enter God’s kingdom eat food in that paradise environment? Clearly, the answer is yes. They will eat fruit from the tree of life, which was first mentioned in Genesis:

And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:9).

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” (Gen. 3:22).

After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life (Gen. 3:24).

Only the overcomer will have the right to eat from the tree of life and live forever, according to Rev. 2:7. The same kind of person is described elsewhere as the man who does the will of God (1 John 2:17). In Romans we read of a corresponding truth:

To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life (Rom. 2:7).

Immortality in that verse refers to being in God’s presence throughout eternity future. (Please know that even the vast majority of souls who are thrown into the lake of fire will exist forever and will never be annihilated, even though they will be separated from God’s loving and holy presence.) Immortality, therefore, does not mean conscious existence forever, since even the wicked dead will exist forever.

Many wrongly put down a new Christian in his zeal for the things of God as being without wisdom and the like. However in Revelation 2, the Lord exalted their actions and stated, in part, remember and do the things you did at first as the remedy for all who have forsaken their first love. God wants all Christians to be like new converts with their first love being Him with that burning enthusiasm for spiritual things manifested in obedience, love for God’s word, love for people, witnessing, etc.

Can You Remember the Height

From Which you Have Fallen?

If you are only a church goer, but have never been truly saved and, therefore, radically changed by the power of God, you would have nothing to remember regarding your changed behavior and freedom from sin’s slavery. If that be the case, you are still spiritually dead and lost and need for the first time to make peace with God. This could be the case even though you have been water baptized, read the Bible, pay your tithe and regularly pray. For your own soul’s sake, turn from all of your idols now to serve God. All, 100%, of your faith for salvation must be in Jesus. Church membership, lodge membership, Mary, water baptism, keeping the Saturday Sabbath, etc. has never brought about forgiveness of sins and will not for you either. Remember, to have salvation you must be willing to submit to the Lord Jesus and unashamedly follow (obey) him now in this wicked society in which we live. Are you willing to do this? There should be no hesitation regarding this. Your soul is your most valuable possession. No sin or person is worth going to the lake of fire over.

Repeated Truths

To all seven churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3 we observe the following pattern:

●Jesus describes himself, in the form of mini-autobiographies with each being different from the other six.

●Jesus said: “I know (certain details)” such as: their deeds, you cannot tolerate wicked men, afflictions, where you live, you have little strength, etc.

●Jesus gives his thrilling promises only to the overcomer. The word overcomer means to conquer, prevail, get the victory. Never forget: the Christian is in a life or death battle, fight, and war against sin and spiritual deception. This battle will determine where he spends eternity.

Elsewhere in the Bible, the term overcome, or a form of it, is found:

He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death (Rev. 21:7,8).

(To note what the overcomer inherits, please read carefully the first several verses of Revelation chapter 21.) Some other Scriptures with overcome in it are the following:

They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death (Rev. 12:11).

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Rom. 12:21).

These Scriptures prove that after the initial overcoming (1 John 2:13,14), which occurs at the point of getting born again, there are these other things which can happen over time that a Christian must also overcome, according to Jesus (and his apostles) to enter God’s paradise kingdom. One such example, as already shown, is forsaking your first love.

What was Observed?

1. Jesus was not just automatically pleased with the Ephesians (or any of the other church groups) just because they had previously come to a saving faith in the past and had gotten born again. This in itself is a vital-but-neglected truth in our day. This seems, in part, to be what certain people critically need to know who were at one time saved, but have since lost what they once had over time.

2. The Jesus of the Bible holds certain things against those who have already been born again, even though they have many commendable virtues! Besides forsaking their first love, others were tolerating false teachings that lead his servants into sin:

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love (Rev. 2:4).

Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans (Rev. 2:14,15).

Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols (Rev. 2:20).

Of the first four churches Jesus held one or more things against three of them! This is the real Jesus of the Bible that you will face at the Judgment, but is not the Jesus that is commonly preached in our dark day. If you are like many who need to change, humble yourself now and do what Jesus said. By doing so you will show yourself to be spiritually wise. Tomorrow might be too late.

The Church at Smyrna

One of the two church groups that had nothing derogatory stated about them was Smyrna. This is what the Lord Jesus said to them:

And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of the first and the last, who was dead and came to life: “I know your affliction and your poverty, even though you are rich. I know the slander on the part of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Beware, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison so that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have affliction. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. Whoever conquers will not be harmed by the second death” (Rev. 2:8-11, NRSV).

Jesus described himself here as the first and the last, who was dead and came to life. Jesus’ title of first and last is equated with Alpha and Omega (Rev. 22:13) and implies his deity. He also stated that he was aware of their afflictions, which can be translated: afflicted, (-tion), anguish, burdened, persecution, tribulation, trouble.

The Smyrna Christians were also poor in the natural, but rich spiritually. This is a deathblow to some who teach if you are rich spiritually you will have financial prosperity. They didn’t. Moreover, regarding the materially poor, we read elsewhere:

Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? (James 2:5)

According to these Scriptures, one can be rich in faith and love God, yet be poor in material things. Paul would be a specific example of this too:

To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless (1 Cor. 4:11).

Paul wrote of himself and other Christians:

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men (1 Cor. 15:19).

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Rom. 8:18).

Furthermore, the Smyrna Christians, who had been suffering, were told in advance that more suffering was coming their way:

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 persecution for ten days (2:10).

Christian Sufferings

and Persecutions

As with the Smyrna Christians, sufferings and persecutions are typical for all real Christians with no exception:

For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him (Phil. 1:29).

Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us (Rom. 8:17,18).

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2 Tim. 3:12).

Remember the words I spoke to you: “No servant is greater than his master.” If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also (John 15:20).

There is no need to worry about these things, according to the Lord:

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (Mt. 6:34).

Jesus’ personal message to the Smyrna Christians didn’t include repentance, like most of the other seven church groups, but did include a message to be faithful. In other words, these faithful, afflicted and poor Christians were told to continue to remain faithful, even through suffering that was in their future. This life for the Christian will never be a paradise, but its pains and sufferings can’t compare with Heaven’s joy.

Notice how Paul and his co-laborers handled persecution:

When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it (1 Cor. 4:12).

They simply had to endure that wave of persecution knowing that this goes with being a true Christian and there is a reward for such who remain faithful (Mt. 5:11,12; etc.). But in spite of any or all the trouble, persecution and afflictions that will come to Christians for being godly, the Lord Jesus’ message remains the same:

Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death (Rev. 2:10,11).

Jesus promised them, and other overcomers, the crown of life, if they are faithful to the point of death.

Their Faithfulness To God

The Lord also told them what they will not get for their faithfulness to God, that is, they won’t be hurt by the second death. The second death is another name for the lake of fire:

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death. (Rev. 21:8).

The implication of Rev. 2:10,11 is if those faithful Christians didn’t remain faithful to the end of their lives they would be hurt by the second death. Such a fact decimates the heretical teaching of eternal security (sometimes called the perseverance of the saints) for it shows that those Christians could still miss the kingdom of God. Rev. 2:10,11 is a lake of fire warning to Christians, which would be irrelevant and impossible, if it couldn’t happen to them. [It is similar to the multiple hell warnings the Lord gave the disciples (Mt. 10:28; 18:8,9; Lk. 12:4,5; Mk. 9:42-47; etc.).]

Also, Jesus spoke of faithfulness, but it wasn’t God’s faithfulness to them but instead their needed faithfulness to God to enter God’s kingdom. Please know one’s spiritual condition at the end of his life is what determines his destiny. The crucial issue, therefore, is not if one was ever saved, but is he saved when he dies—for many that get saved are not saved later. If he has forsaken his first love and/or is not faithful to Jesus and doesn’t repent by the time he goes the way of all the earth, he is no longer saved. Do not be deceived by those declaring the empty teaching of eternal security:

For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them (Eph.5:5-7).

In Review

●There was no indication that the pain and problems of the faithful Christian life would lighten for those at Smyrna. Jesus told those afflicted Christians there would be suffering in their future, but sin was not the reason for their sufferings, as some might falsely accuse, as was done in Job’s day. With no exception, all Christians are referred to in the following passage:

“We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said (Acts 14:22).

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world (John 16:33).

Please remember, this world now for the Christian is not his home, but a spiritual war zone. In contrast, the future for the faithful beyond the grave could not be brighter—a peaceful, joyful, musical, righteous, paradise, eternal kingdom in God’s presence with no pain of any kind forever.

●Jesus also told them persecution was coming.

Thus far we have observed that the Smyrna congregation was in better spiritual shape than the first of the seven—Ephesus. This truth is very important for it refutes a prevalent but false understanding of Revelation chapters 2 and 3, that is, each church group represents a particular time period in church history. Such is also known as a dispensational interpretation of Scripture. The same faulty interpreter wrote:

The church of Ephesus represents the apostolic period of the church (AD. 30-100).

The church in Smyrna finds its counterpart in the age of martyrs of the church in the second and third centuries.

Such an interpretation would suggest that the Apostolic period of the church represented by Ephesus was more sound than all others, but that is definitely refuted by the Scriptures themselves, since the church at Smyrna was a better church than the one at Ephesus! Hence, it is illogical to believe that the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 have any reference to the various church ages starting from the first to the last, as many have been taught. Such a faulty understanding about these being various church ages also tends to neutralize the relevancy of Rev. 2 and 3 for us today, and therefore, is spiritually dangerous and must be rejected. It should be apparent that Jesus told all seven church groups:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

So it wasn’t a single message to a single church but it was to all of the churches [plural]. This also shows the relevancy of the Lord’s message to them to be also for us today.

The Church at Pergamum

Jesus spoke the following to the third church group:

And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword: “I know where you are living, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you are holding fast to my name, and you did not deny your faith in me even in the days of Antipas my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan lives. But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling-block before the people of Israel, so that they would eat food sacrificed to idols and practice fornication. So you also have some who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Repent then. If not, I will come to you soon and make war against them with the sword of my mouth. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give a white stone, and on the white stone is written a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it” (Rev. 2:12-17, NRSV).

Jesus has the sharp two-edged sword. He also knew where Satan’s throne was, that is, right in that same location where there was a Christian congregation.

Many people wrongly think Satan is now in hell, but that is not true. Other Scriptures show he currently prowls throughout the earth looking for Christians to devour:

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1 Pet. 5:8).

Jesus said to those at Pergamum:

I know where you are living, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you are holding fast to my name, and you did not deny your faith in me even in the days of Antipas my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan lives (Rev. 2:13, NRSV).

Where Satan was there were also false doctrine and severe Christian persecution to martyrdom. The devil proliferates false doctrine and is, in fact, the original false teacher:

“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman (Gen. 3:4).

It is also stirring to know that demons have produced certain false doctrines:

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons (1 Tim. 4:1).

These are things that we as Christians must know about and be on guard regarding.

Faithful Antipas

The only time we read of Antipas is here. He is called a faithful witness just like Jesus is called (Rev. 1:5). Antipas died a martyr like other faithful servants (John the Baptist, Stephen, James, etc.). Imagine the pressure on Christians living in the city of Pergamum to renounce their faith just around the death of Antipas. Jesus said they did not, and made note of that. This too is important to the Lord, that is, that we die physically if we have to, to remain faithful to him. (We might be tested to this degree before our life is over like many have been throughout the centuries.)

The Lord also stated he had a few things against this church group and they were related to false doctrine! They were advised to repent of these things just like something we would recognize as a sin:

Embracing and/or tolerating people with such false doctrine is sin, even though most would never recognize it as such. It makes no difference how rich or poor they are. If they are going to bring such grievous false doctrine with them and try to communicate that in the congregation they should not be tolerated. A church congregation is supposed to be where spiritual truth can be found:

If I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim 3:15).

You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine (Titus 2:1).

Who was Balaam?

To better understand the teaching of Balaam we should learn something about Balaam. He was an Old Testament character, who was a sorcerer. We first read about him when Balak, the king of Moab, unsuccessfully tried to get him to come to him and put a curse on the Israelites because he was fearful he would be defeated by them. The second time Balak tried the same, Balaam refused but afterwards went. What happened, in part, is concisely summed up here:

When Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, prepared to fight against Israel, he sent for Balaam son of Beor to put a curse on you. But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you out of his hand (Josh. 24:9,10).

According to Deuteronomy, Balaam did try to put a curse on Israel, but it didn’t work:

However, the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loves you (23:5).

Unfortunately, the scenario doesn’t end here. According to the Lord, Balaam taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality (Rev. 2:14).

Regarding the Moabite women, who were used by Balak to lead the Israelite men into sin, we read the following:

They were the ones who followed Balaam’s advice and were the means of turning the Israelites away from the LORD in what happened at Peor, so that a plague struck the Lord’s people (Num. 31:16).

Israel was a nation set apart and holy before God and no curse could come upon them. God was behind them and they would continue to advance forward. However, Balaam taught Balak to accomplish his evil desires by getting Israel to sin, which caused a plague sent from God to strike them.

Peter comments on Balaam and what he did for money, when he was describing false teachers in first-century Christianity:

They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness (2 Pet. 2:15).

The same false teachers that Peter referred to are mentioned by Jude and were people who changed grace into a license for immorality (Jude 3,4). In verse 11 we read:

They have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error. . . .

From all of this you can better understand the kind of people that were tolerated in the congregation at Pergamum and why Jesus held this tolerance against them.

The Teaching of The Nicolaitans

Pergamum also had people in it that held to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. The Bible doesn’t give details about this doctrine, but some think it originated with Nicolas, who was one of the Seven along with Stephen and Philip, the evangelist:

What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them (Acts 6:5,6, NRSV).

If what some think about Nicolas is true, then this same man, who was once filled with the Holy Spirit and wisdom (Acts 6:3) became a doctrinal apostate and his poisonous teachings and practices spread throughout the churches in Asia Minor.

It is apparent that Jesus hated their practices, as did the Ephesians. Do you remember Jesus commending the Ephesians for this?

But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate (Rev. 2:6).

Note: The people at Pergamum were the opposite of the ones at Ephesus regarding the teachings of the Nicolaitans and the Lord wanted this corrected and repented of.

To ponder how Jesus felt about those teachings at Pergamum is devastating to the idea that doctrine is not important. This especially indicts the doctrinally tolerant ecumenical church crowd. The reason sound teachings are so important is because people behave in accordance to what they accept as truth. Jesus’ promise to the overcomers at Pergamum was unique:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it (Rev. 2:17).

We have no other information about this hidden manna in a future age and/or the white stone with a new name written on it. Everything has not been revealed regarding the future for the overcomer described in the book of Revelation, but we can all rest assured it is wonderfully exciting!

The Church at Thyatira

Next, we read about the church in Asia Minor located at Thyatira:

And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These are the words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze: “I know your works—your love, faith, service, and patient endurance. I know that your last works are greater than the first. But I have this against you: you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet and is teaching and beguiling my servants to practice fornication and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her fornication. Beware, I am throwing her on a bed, and those who commit adultery with her I am throwing into great distress, unless they repent of her doings; and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am the one who searches minds and hearts, and I will give to each of you as your works deserve. But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call ‘the deep things of Satan’, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden; only hold fast to what you have until I come. To everyone who conquers and continues to do my works to the end, I will give authority over the nations; to rule them with an iron rod, as when clay pots are shattered—even as I also received authority from my Father. To the one who conquers I will also give the morning star. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.” (Rev. 2:18-29, NRSV).

Notice what Jesus commended them for:

I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first (2:19).

Did you notice the Lord mentioned their deeds before their love and faith? Afterwards, he similarly mentioned that they were doing more at that moment than when they were first saved. In contrast, in our apostate day, good deeds and service to God have almost been preached against by those stressing the counterfeit grace associated with eternal security (or the perseverance of the saints). Also, notice what is stressed from these Scriptures:

Show yourself in all respects a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, gravity (Titus 2:7).

Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work (Titus 3:1, NSRV).

The saying is sure. I desire that you insist on these things, so that those who have come to believe in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works; these things are excellent and profitable to everyone (Titus 3:8, NRSV).

And let people learn to devote themselves to good works in order to meet urgent needs, so that they may not be unproductive (Titus 3:14, NRSV).

Doing good is a primary characteristic of a present tense Christian:

Who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good (Titus 2:14).

Ungodly Tolerance

Jesus went on and said to those at Thyatira:

Jesus referred to a female false prophetess and prominent teacher in that congregation that he called Jezebel. The original Jezebel was the most evil woman mentioned in the Bible. She killed the true prophets of God (1 Kings 18:4,13; 2 Kings 9:7), was an idolater and witch (2 Kings 9:22), promoted false worship and influenced her husband, Ahab, to be more evil than he already was (1 Kings 21:25).

She was also a manipulating, aggressive and controlling woman (1 Kings 19:2; 21:1-16; etc.). From this description we can better understand something about that false teacher at Thyatira whom the Lord called Jezebel. There must have been some striking similarities.

In Sin Because of False Teaching

The adverse influence of her teaching was that God’s servants were led into sexual immorality. This is an important point to remember. Some wrongly think that a true Christian can never be deceived by false teaching. This is powerfully refuted here.

Also, if the Christian is solely kept, strengthened, protected, etc. by God and Him alone, then no Christian ever would be led into false doctrine or fall prey to sin. Therefore, we can be assured that man has his responsibility to not be deceived, walk pure, etc. under grace. Such can not be legalism or a work’s salvation.

To compound the problem at Thyatira, that evil woman was being tolerated. Imagine that and this occurred when the Apostle John was still alive! She should have been expelled from that congregation and her teaching openly refuted with Scripture. Because this was neglected, much more spiritual harm was done by her than should have been. The sin here was a sin of omission. Tolerance (Gr.: let alone) of a false teacher misleading others into sin is very serious in the Lord’s eyes. This negligence and tolerance is very similar to what multitudes are doing with the popular eternal security teachers as they too lead God’s servants into various types of sin. Many lack the fear of God to mention and refute by name the false teachers of our day that are stumbling others into sin and evil is gushing out because of this leniency and sin. Many ministers are more concerned about their own ministry, reputation and/or pay check than they are about souls, which is reprehensible!

Two Groups

Within Thyatira

There were two groups within Thyatira: (1) The group that was adversely affected by that false prophetess, who committed the sin of adultery and (2) The other group that rejected her teachings and was apparently walking pure before God. It was to that second group that Jesus spoke these words:

Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets (I will not impose any other burden on you): Only hold on to what you have until I come (2:24,25).

Again, Jesus told the group not adversely affected by Jezebel to:

Hold on to what you have until I come.

It was their own Christian responsibility to hold on. This is what Jesus wanted them to know, even though they were saved by grace and justified by faith in Jesus. This simple but vital truth is not often heard in our hour, but is just as relevant now as it was back then. If you are a real Christian, hold on to what you have. Did you notice the other group within Thyatira wasn’t told to hold on? That is because they didn’t have anything left to hold on to, since they were now in sexual sin and therefore on the road to the lake of fire again:

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death (Rev. 21:8, NRSV).

Some take offense at Christians holding on, but it was the Lord Himself who commanded them to do this. It wasn’t some false teacher, but the Lord of lords himself. Such a teaching is as Christian as they come. Dear reader, if your theology doesn’t include (or allow for) this fact about Christian living and grace, then make the vital changes now. Whoever taught you that was not speaking the truth of God, even though he may be extremely popular.

The Promises

Please note who will be the beneficiaries of the promises. Again, they are the overcomers, as we saw with the other church groups in chapters 2 and 3. Notice the words—do his will to the end:

To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations—“He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery”—just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give him the morning star (2:26-28).

The overcomer will be given ruling authority over the nations and also the morning star. Elsewhere in Revelation we read of the morning star and learn that it is Jesus:

I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star (22:16).

(Amazingly, the Catholic church has wrongly given Mary the title Morning Star, as well as other titles/names, that uniquely belong to the Lord Jesus. Their Mary is not the Mary of the Bible.)

After Jesus gave his warnings, promises, etc. to that single church group he made his teachings applicable to all the churches [plural]. But to recognize this truth you have to have a spiritual ear to hear:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches (2:29).

Because some teachers don’t have spiritual ears to hear, they will misapply, deny, avoid, etc. these precious salvation truths that Jesus gave in Revelation chapters 2 and 3 and consequently hurt others by their teachings.

Sardis

The fifth church group Jesus addressed is Sardis:

And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: “I know your works; you have a name for being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is at the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. Remember then what you received and heard; obey it, and repent. If you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you. Yet you have still a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes; they will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will not blot your name out of the book of life; I will confess your name before my Father and before his angels. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.” (3:1-6, NRSV).

Jesus told the majority, they were about to die [spiritually] and the reputation they had of being alive was bogus. They were spiritually asleep, as indicated by Jesus’ words of alarm—wake up. It was also their own responsibility to strengthen what was remaining.

The eternal security teachers love to stress it is God who will strengthen the Christian, but here we read it is God telling them to strengthen themselves. This same truth and the similar one that Christians are to strengthen each other are found throughout the New Testament:

But I have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers (Luke 22:32, NRSV).

Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers (Acts 15:32, NRSV).

And we sent Timothy, our brother and co-worker for God in proclaiming the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you for the sake of your faith (1 Thess. 3:2, NRSV).

Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees (Heb. 12:12, NRSV).

The majority in the Sardis congregation was both spiritually weak and asleep. The curative to awaken from spiritual sleep was:

Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent (Rev. 3:3).

That is how they would strengthen themselves and awaken from their spiritual sleep at the same time. They had apparently heard sound teachings, as implied in Jesus’ words:

Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard.

This shows that just hearing the truth is not enough, as shown elsewhere in Scripture. One must put into practice the word of God to benefit and we must continue to the very end. The Apostle Judas Iscariot also heard and received the truth, and was even saved for awhile, but didn’t continue to the end.

The abc’s of the Christian life are summed up in a single word—obey, as Jesus told them. The word obey, as used there, implies they were in disobedience, which is also indicated by Jesus telling them to repent.

This is very similar to what Jesus told the Ephesians, who forsook their first love:

Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first (Rev. 2:5).

If the majority at Sardis would chose not to do God’s will and just remain in their present condition, the following would apply:

But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you (Rev. 3:3).

It was their will to wake up or not. If they would make the wrong choice, and just do nothing, the Lord said he would come like a thief to them and they would not know at what time he was coming. Let’s go to a different book of the Bible which will help explain the seriousness of this:

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. When they say, “There is peace and security”, then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. So then, let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation (1 Thess. 5:1-8, NRSV).

Notice: Jesus is coming like a thief in the night to those in spiritual darkness. Those who are not in spiritual darkness will not be surprised by his coming as a thief. The majority at Sardis were going to die spiritually unless they acted upon Jesus’ remedy which included repentance. This was a salvation issue for them (and for us in our day).

The Unsoiled Few

At Sardis there was another group, though, that was unsoiled and in the minority:

Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches (Rev. 3:4-6).

As with Thyatira, Sardis had a second group of people within that congregation. Jesus only commended the few and that was because they didn’t soil their spiritual clothes like the rest. That is what caught Jesus’ attention about them. In other words, God wants us to be spiritually clean and he can tell when one isn’t.

Part of the promise is that the worthy will walk with Jesus dressed in white. (False teachings in our day would declare that no one is worthy, but Jesus contradicted that and said the spiritually unsoiled were worthy whereas the soiled by sin weren’t.)

This also proves that the future sins of a Christian are not automatically forgiven because the majority were soiled by their sins after getting born again. If their future sins would automatically be forgiven, that could not have happened.

Four Promises

To The Unsoiled

Concisely stated, those four promises for the overcomer are:

● walk with Jesus

● dressed in white

● never have his name blotted from the book of life

● have his name acknowledged by Jesus before the Father and his angels

That fourth promise to the overcomer is very similar to a different promise Jesus made:

And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God (Luke 12:8, NASB).