Studies in Revelation: Messages to the Churches

Why write this Revelation to seven churches in Asia Minor? They weren’t the only churches in the region. They were perhaps the churches that John had some relationship with. The most likely reason is that they represented seven kinds of church that there might be. Maybe not exhaustively, but generally.

To each church Jesus tells John to address a letter to the angel of the church. This has led many commentators (me, at one point) to conclude that these angels are humans who can receive a letter, the leaders of these churches or at least the ones in each church who read to the congregation. The word “angel” means messenger. But it seems more likely that these are angels assigned to each church by Christ, and though we don’t see them sitting and reading this letter, they do know the content of it.

Jesus identifies himself to each church using some of the imagery of his visional appearance to John with some exceptions. He does not identify himself as the one with white hair, with a voice like rushing waters, and with a face shining like the sun, but he does use all the other parts of that vision and adds some of the descriptors John had for him in the first chapter apart from the vision (the one who holds the seven spirits, the one holy and true, the Amen, the faithful witness, and the ruler of creation).

Church	Image of Jesus	Commend-ation (“I know…”)	Comdemn-ation	Charge	Warning if charge not heeded	Promise to Over-comer
Ephesus	holds seven stars, walks among the seven golden lamp-stands	your deeds, hard work, and perseverance, that you cannot tolerate the wicked, that you have tested false apostles, that you have endured hardships for my name and not grown weary; you hate the practices of the Nicolaitans	you have forsaken your first love	Repent and do the first things	I will remove your lampstand	right to eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God
Smyrna	First and Last, died and came to life again	your afflictions and poverty (though you are rich), slander of false Jews	NONE	Don’t be afraid of what you are to suffer	NONE	life as a victor’s crown, you won’t be hurt by the second death
Pergamum	him who has the sharp sword	you live where Satan has his throne but you remain faithful, did not renounce my name, faithful witness Antipas killed	some among you hold teaching of Balaam and Nicolaitans	repent	I’ll come with a sword and fight against the ones who are condemned	I will give you hidden manna, a white stone with a new name
Thyatira	Son of God whose eyes and feet blaze	your deeds, love, faith, service and perseverance, that you are doing more now than at first	You tolerate Jezebel	[to support-ers] repent; [to those who don’t tolerate Jezebel] hold on to what you have until I come	I will cast Jezebel on a bed of suffering and make adulterers suffer if they don’t repent, strike her children dead	I will give authority over the nations, give the morning star
Sardis	holds seven spirits and stars	your deeds; you have a few people who are not soiled	you are dead, your deeds unfinished in sight of God	Strengthen what remains and is about to die, remember what you have received and heard, hold it fast, repent	if you don’t wake up, I will come like a thief	you will walk with me, dressed in white; I will never blot your name out of the book of life, I’ll acknowledge your name before God
Philadel-phia	holy and true, holds the key of David, who opens and none can shut	deeds, little strength but have kept my word, not denied my name	NONE	hold on to what you have	NONE	I will make the synagogue of Satan fall down at your feet; I will keep you from the hour of trial; make you a pillar in the temple of my God, write on you the name of God and city of God, write on you my new name
Laodicea	the Amen, faithful and true witness, ruler of God’s crea-tion		you are lukewarm, say you are rich but are poor	buy from me gold, clothes, salve; if anyone opens the door to me, I will come in	I’m about to spit you out of my mouth	sit with me on my throne

We may characterize these seven types of church:

• High performance church with no genuine love for Jesus
• Persecuted church thriving with Christ’s life
• Persecuted church flirting with false doctrine
• Weakening church morally
• Dead church with only a few believers
• weakening church resisting opposition
• Lukewarm church needing Jesus