![]() The faithful at Smyrna, in contrast, would be untouched by any negative consequence on that day. Yet at the final judgment, some Christians will experience a sense of loss, despite their eternal salvation, when Jesus rebukes their unfaithfulness (see Matt 25:28-30 1 Cor 3:15). Because the recipients of this letter were already Christians, they could not be separated from God. That’s why Jesus says nothing negative about this church.Ģ:11 To never be harmed by the second death refers to enjoying a sense of full gain when Christ separates believers from unbelievers at the end of history. To those who refuse to compromise when faced with persecution, there is no condemnation. ![]() While such circumstances might make them feel poor, they actually were rich due to the coming reward for their spiritual endurance ( 2:10). Christians at Smyrna would be thrown into prison as a test of their faith, and the church would be afflicted ( 2:10). Some who claimed to be Jews were actually a synagogue of Satan because they were doing the devil’s work, slandering believers ( 2:8-9). Letter to the Church in Smyrna ( 2:8-11)Ģ:8-10 Christ acknowledges that the church in Smyrna is a faithful congregation undergoing persecution. All believers will go to heaven, but those who do not lose passion for Christ in this life will experience a special place of intimacy with the Lord. The tree of life was a special tree in the garden of Eden (see Gen 2:9), and here it represents a special level of intimacy with God in heaven. The one who conquers the temptation to push Christ to second place will be granted to eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God. In this message to the Christians at Ephesus, Christ appeals to anyone who has ears, referring to the person who heeds this spiritual principle being articulated. We must work out this position of being a conqueror in the experiences of our everyday lives in order to have special intimacy with Christ in the kingdom. In 1 John 5:5 we read, “Who is the one who conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” If by believing in Jesus we are conquerors, then why in these letters to the churches are we still exhorted to conquer? Well, John is addressing the contrast between our legal status (our declared position in Christ) and our experiential reality. The Greek verb translated as “conquers” is nikao, and it means to be victorious in the midst of, over, in, or through whatever circumstances are illegitimately holding a believer hostage. In each case, he addresses individual believers with the words “ to the one who conquers” ( 2:7, 11, 17, 26 3:5, 12, 21). They needed to remember the primacy of relationship over performance, to repent of their spiritual departure, and to repeat prioritizing intimate fellowship with God (see Luke 10:38-42).Ģ:7 At the end of each letter, Jesus gets personal, directing his remarks to individuals in the church rather than the church as a collective. The Ephesians hated the practices of evil people, but that positive did not outweigh their loss of passion for Christ ( 2:6). If our church’s activity is about us rather than about Jesus, he’ll remove his presence from it. ![]() If the church failed to repent, Christ would remove its lampstand ( 2:5)-that is, put out its light. Duty had replaced devotion.Ģ:5-6 The remedy was to remember how it used to be when the church was excited about Jesus and return to that attitude. Yet there was not passionate pursuit of an intimate relationship with Christ in the church. As with romantic love between a man and a woman, first love always involves passion. They had correct doctrine, but not a correct heart. There were a lot of positive things happening in this church.Ģ:4 But Jesus shifts from patting them on the back to rebuke: You have abandoned the love you had at first. Moreover, the Ephesian believers persevered amid hardships for the sake of Christ’s name ( 2:3). They tested everything by the Scriptures and rightly found that some so-called apostles did not teach pure doctrine. He also knew they did not tolerate evil people ( 2:2). Jesus knows what’s going on.Ģ:2-3 Because of this, he could say, I know your works, your labor, and your endurance. Letter to the Church in Ephesus ( 2:1-7)Ģ:1 Jesus reminds the pastor ( angelos, “messenger” see 1:20) of the church in Ephesus that he holds pastors in his right hand and walks among churches. Christ’s message to each church in chapters 2–3 represents an aspect of his plan during the church age for every properly functioning church-represented by the numeral seven, the number of completion. And although we don’t know when he will return, we do know how we are to function in the church in the meantime. The return of Christ is imminent-it could happen at any time. ![]() ![]() Letters to the Seven Churches ( 2:1–3:22) ![]()
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