Revelation 2:1-29

John begins writing to the seven churches represented in his vision of Christ.  Each church has its unique strengths and weaknesses.  Many have tried to interpret these churches as being representative of the church in various stages of history.  While certainly many of these correlations can be made, it seems more likely to me that John was writing about literal churches that had these specific problems.  I believe that the reality is that these same strengths and weaknesses have always existed in the church at every point in history including today.  With that in mind, we will all do well to make sure that we are following the strengths represented here and avoiding the weaknesses.

EPHESUS: TRUTH WITHOUT LOVE: Christ commends the church in Ephesus because they have stood strong in the faith and defense of the truth.  False doctrines have always been propagated in and around the church and far too often the false teaching end up infecting the life and doctrine of the church.  Ephesus was able to stand strong against these attacks from within and without.  However, they no longer demonstrated the same love that they had in the beginning.  The hardness required to refute false teaching had spread into their hearts and they had grown cold in their love for God and for one another.  Unfortunately, this is an all too common tendency in many churches today.  They stand strong on the fundamentals of the faith and will fight vigorously to defend any variance of doctrine.  The problem is that we take our fighting too far and often end up fighting over trivial issues and fail to demonstrate the love of Christ to others and often grow cold in their demonstrations of love for Christ.  We must always remember that truth and love must walk hand in hand.

SMYRNA: TESTING WITH PERSEVERANCE: Christ commends this church for having faced the testings and persecutions of their day without wavering.  Unfortunately Christ lets them know that things are about to go from bad to worse and that their suffering and persecution will only intensify in the days to come.  In essence, Christ tells them to prepare to die for their faith.  I think that it is significant that this is the only church without a “but.”  They are the only church that Christ says nothing negative about.  His only exhortation is for them to persevere in what they are doing and not be discouraged by fear.  Typically, believers who suffer the most are the holiest believers in their walk before Christ.  Suffering and sanctification are usually very close companions.  We must always be very careful not to become discouraged or fearful in the face of suffering so that God’s sanctifying work in our lives might be complete.

PERGAMUM: TRIALS WITH COMPROMISE: Christ also commends this church for facing trials with conviction and courage.  Men were being killed in their midst and they faced constant threats that seem to come from the very pit of hell.  They stood firm and did not deny Christ in any of these trials.  However they did not remain zealous in all of their teachings and doctrines.  They were willing to compromise with those who encouraged practices and beliefs that became stumbling blocks in the lives of the church.  They allowed their standards of Biblical doctrines to be compromised because they gave ear to those who were promoting false teachings.  Christ calls them to repentance and warns them that He will bring about judgment and suffering because of their compromise with false teachings.  It is important that we realize that not all suffering is due to our sin but that there are times when, as believers, God does judge us with suffering in order to purify us from sinful practices and beliefs in our lives.  We must always be sure to identify the source of our suffering and ask for wisdom to discern if we are suffering at the hand of Satan because of our convictions or and the hand Christ because of our compromise.

THYATIRA: TOILS WITH TOLERANCE: Christ recognizes this church for it abundant love and faithful service.  They truly demonstrated the key virtues that God longs to see in every church.  God wants us to demonstrate His love for the lost as well as to our brothers and sisters in Christ.  He has called us to have a strong faith that allows us to persevere in the face of persecution.  He has also saved us so that we might actively serve Him and one another as a demonstration of a genuine and active love.  However some in this church became very tolerant of sinful and immoral practices.  They may have seen the law of love and liberty as a license to live according to the lusts of their own flesh.  Christ gives a very stern warning that these immoral practices and idolatry will be punished with sickness and disease that will bring about great suffering on those who practice such sinful behavior.  Churches must not be tolerant of immoral practices within the membership.  Letting people continue in sin is not a demonstration of true or godly love.  We must never allow our love for people make us become tolerant of immorality or leave us open to practice the lusts of our own hearts.