Lesson outline 1 in the series Letters to the Church
Tim Temple
The messages to the seven churches form the second division of the book
of Revelation as outlined in Revelation 1:19
- the things which are. They are, therefore, directly applicable to the
church today.
These messages have a three-fold importance:
Each has a primary association - a local and direct message to the
church in existence at that time and in that location.
Each also has a personal application - addressed to any one individual
who will hear the message ("he who has an ear let him hear") -
2:7,11,17,19;
3:6,13,22
Each also has "a prophetic anticipation" - a clear picture, in advance,
of church history from John's day to the present. Even the names of the
churches hint at this prophecy.
Ephesus (2:1) = desirable
(loving relationship with Christ by first Christians)
Smyrna (2:8) from myrrh,
associated with suffering (persecution under the Roman emperors)
Pergamos (2:12) = married
(acceptance of Christianity under Constantine)
Thyatira (2:18) = continual
sacrifice (rise of catholicism)
Laodicea (3:14) = justice by the
people (radicalism)
To each church the Lord offers (1) a complement; (2) a criticism;
(3) a correction, and (4) a challenge.
The Lord also offers a promise to individuals, referred to as the
"overcomers," within the churches, at the end of each message -
2:7;
2:11;
2:17;
2:26;
3:5;
3:12;
3:21
The important thing to remember is that any believer, in any stage of
church history, can be an "overcomer" - I John 5:4,5