Letters from Jesus -  Part 1

Revelation 1:9-2:17 - Riley Boggs

The word theology comes from the Greek word theologia, which is 2 words combined together. The first word is Theos, which means God. The second word is Logos, which means word or study. So the word theology literally means to study God. When we say that we are studying theology, we are saying that we are trying to learn and understand the things of God. And this category, “theology”, is quite broad. Under the umbrella of theology are all sorts of smaller “ologies” that make up the larger category. For example, you have Christology, the study of Christ. You have missiology, the study of Christian missions. Sotierology, the doctrine of salvation, and so on. 

Throughout history the church has had times where they are strong in some of these areas and weak in some of them. And then, as time passes, it often switches around. Right now, I think the church in the United States has its strong spots and its weak spots, just like any other time. As a result of the sexual revolution in our country, the church has been forced to really think through anthropology, the study of man. The church has had to think through what it means to be created in the image of God, what it means to be fallen, and how that plays out in the practical details of our lives. This is why if you go to almost any kind of semi-healthy church, you will still hear this. From the fancy megachurch to the backwoods Bible thumpers, there is still the common message of inherent worth as we bear God’s image, and undeniable brokenness because of sin. That’s one of the places that I see the church in the U.S. stronger than maybe it has been in the past.

On the other hand, I think one of the weakest areas of the church in the United States right now is the study of ecclesiology. The fact that this word feels very unfamiliar to many in this room, I think, is proof that this is indeed one of the weaker areas of the church. This word, ecclesiology, also comes to us from the Greek and is made up of 2 words. The second word, like I mentioned a moment ago, is the word “Logos”, which means to study. The first word comes from the word “Ekklesia”, which is where we get the word “church”. So, put those together and we get that ecclesiology is the study of the church. And I believe that this is one of the areas that the church in the U.S. has the most room to grow.

Let me give you some examples of what I mean by this. If a group of Christian get together and sing worship songs, are they a church? No doubt that they are all a part of the larger church and are coming together. But, what’s the difference between believers doing that on a Thursday evening and what we are doing this very morning? Is there a difference? Or what about watching church online from home, and not actually attending? Is that okay? And what is this whole church membership thing? Is it a way to exclude people like a country club, or is that in the Bible?

These are all questions that I think the church has stumbled over in recent history, and as a result, lots of churches don’t really know why they do things a certain way. They are just doing what was demonstrated to them. The danger of this is that if people don't know why they are doing something, they are prone to abandon it for something else since all things seem equal. Hence the reason that ecclesiology, the study of the church, is so important. As the church, we ought to know the what and why behind the things we do. Not so that we can try to ascend to this high intellectual status, but so that we can stand firm in that which is true. That which is good and pleasing to our God.

Now we aren’t going to study ecclesiology this morning, per se, but we will be dealing with the things of the church. Things that Jesus Himself has written to the church at large. What we are going to be looking at this Sunday, and next Sunday, are the letters from Jesus to the church. Last week we looked at the overall structure of the book and discussed how we are to interpret the kind of literature that this book is, which is apocalyptic literature. And one of the things I mentioned was that this book is structured, I think, in seven groups of seven. It is seven perspectives of the same picture. The picture being the time between Jesus’ first and second coming. And the first group of seven is chapters 1-3, which are the seven letters to the seven churches. That is what we are going to be looking at this week and next week.

Another thing we discussed last week is how important symbolism is throughout this book, especially when it comes to numbers. The example of this we saw was  in verse 4. John says, “John to the seven churches that are in Asia.” We know that there are more than seven churches in Asia at this time and we know that this number 7 means complete, or full. And so we read this verse and realize that though each of the churches that are mentioned are real churches during this time, the intended audience of this book is not just these churches. No, the intended audience is the entire church, in between the 2 comings of Christ. Which means that audience includes us.

So this morning, we are going to dive into what Jesus has to say not only to these churches, but to us. And as we begin to look at these, I want us to consider the kindness of our Lord in giving us these. He was under no obligation to give us these words. And yet, because He loves us and cares for us, He has. He has given us these words to us, the church, so that we might be a church that glorifies God in all things. 

Now the letters do not begin until the start of chapter 2. Before that we get a whole bunch of contextual information that is very important. In verse 9 John starts by saying, “I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.” Now there are few things already that I need us to see and understand before going on. First, I want you to see that John says he is a “partner in the tribulation and kingdom.” The reason that I want you to see that is because that immediately pushes against this idea that there is a future 7 year tribulation to come. John doesn’t say that he will be or that he might be in the tribulation. He says, right here, right now, he is a partner with other believers in tribulation.

This word tribulation simply means suffering. John is saying that he is currently sharing in the suffering that other Christians are experiencing. But John is suffering, experiencing these tribulations in a specific way. You can see it in the latter half of verse 9. John has been exiled by Roman officials to the island of Patmos because of his faith. He had refused to bow the knee to false worship and as a result he had been kicked out of the mainland of Asia Minor onto a nearby  small rocky island. This is why he can say that he is partnering in the tribulation.

It’s from this island that John receives these visions that he records here in the book of Revelation. You can see this in verse 10. He says, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying, ‘Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches...’”, and then the seven churches in Asia are listed. Now I love the way that this sets up because right now we technically don’t know who is speaking to John. All we know is that John is on an island, in the Spirit, on the Lord’s day, and a voice commands him to write down the vision he is about to see and send it to the church. Then boom, verse 12, the vision begins. And it begins by revealing to us who the One speaking and giving the vision is, and it’s Jesus. 

What follows is this complex and beautiful vision. Starting in verse 12 John writes, “Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, 15 his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.”

Now there’s a lot to parse out here. Within this are all sorts of symbols that are best understood when you trace back the Old Testament reference. We’re not going to go look at each of them, but I do want to trace one of them back so that you can get a sense of what is happening at large. Specifically I want you to see what is happening in verse 14. In that verse Jesus is described with white hair, like wool, like snow. When you hear that, it’s important that you remember the rule we established last week, which is, we should interpret symbolically, unless forced to interpret literally. When we read that, we aren’t supposed to think that we are getting a literal picture of what Jesus looks like, that He has white hair like wool or snow. No, this is a reference to Daniel 7:9. You don't have to turn there, but I will read it for us. In Daniel 7, Daniel receives this vision and this is what it says in verse 9. “As I looked, thrones were placed and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool…”

Now this isn't the only OT reference being used here in this vision. All of these descriptions of Jesus are symbolically being used to create a picture for us of who Jesus is. Not what He looks like, but who He is. And really I think there are 4 things. I think Jesus is giving this vision so that we might see that Jesus is God, Jesus is the King, Jesus is the priest, and Jesus is the judge. If you were to trace back all of the symbolism being used here, that is what is being conveyed. Jesus is the Ancient of Days, meaning He is eternal. He has always been, He will always be. He is everlasting to everlasting. He is God. He is the One who rules, as a King. He is the One who intercedes, as our High Priest. He is the One who will come to bring justice, as the Judge of the world. This is the picture being painted for us here in verses 12-16.

Then in verses 17-20 we see John’s response to what he is seeing. John falls at his feet. He is overwhelmed by what he is seeing. But then Jesus reaches down, lays His hand on him, and speaks. He says, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.” Do you see what is happening here? Jesus is explaining the vision a bit more, which we will see again in verse 20. But not only that, He is telling John, and us, how it is that all of these things are true of Him. In other words, He is saying that the reason that He is the King and the Priest and the Judge is because of something that happened. What is it? What event happened that made all of this happen? It is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. It is there that He defeats death and sin and establishes Himself firmly in all of these roles.

He receives all power on heaven and Earth as the King, He makes provision for the sinner by His self-sacrifice as the Priest, and promises to establish justice once and for all as the Judge. This is who Jesus is. He is far greater, far better, far more glorious than we can even imagine. And in this vision that John is receiving, He is giving us a glimpse of who He is and He is telling us the way in which it has happened. 

And there’s a reason that Jesus has begun the vision with this glorious mighty picture of Himself. It’s because everything that follows must be understood in light of who Jesus is and what He is doing right now for His people, for the church. And that’s the first point I want you to see this morning… 

1.) Jesus is over and among the church (1:9-20)

After telling John to write down these things in verse 19, Jesus then explains a bit of the symbolism He Himself used just a moment ago. He says, in verse 20, that the lampstands mentioned in verses 12-13 are symbolic, and they are a reference to the church. And so if you take that understanding and go back to and reread, what do you have? You have Jesus, the Son of Man, in the midst of the church. And then what we discussed in verses 14-16 is establishing that Jesus, the Son of God, is over the church. That’s exactly what Jesus wants us to see and know and remember here. That is, that He is over and among His people from the moment He left, till the time He returns.

He has not left us in the dark. He has not left us to figure it out on our own. He is over us, as the Mighty King and Judge. He is among us as the One who can sympathize with our weaknesses and temptations, and who daily intercedes on our behalf as Priest. This is how vision begins. The most encouraging, hope-inspiring, reminder that we could ever have. That as the people of God, the One who died for us is over and among us.

And I won’t do this every Sunday, but I do want you to just note how a literal reading of this causes you to miss the beauty and encouragement that is intended here. Regardless of whether or not you take this to be literal past tense or literal future tense, you miss it the same. This picture of Jesus and what He is doing for us is supposed to uplift those who are walking with Christ right now until He comes again. This is why He says in verse 17 to “Fear not.” This book isn't supposed to scare us, it’s supposed to comfort and encourage us. 

Now I don’t want to spend much more time here. I sort of worked through that whole point before actually telling you what it is I think is being said. I want to spend the rest of the time looking at what it is Jesus has to say to the church, through His letters to the first 2 churches referenced here. From this understanding that Jesus is over us and among us, we are supposed to lend an ear to hear what He has for us. That’s what is happening in each of the seven cycles in this book. 

I do, however, want to briefly say before we dive into the first 2 letters that I could spend a whole Sunday morning on each of these. There is a lot going on in each of them. But, the way that I am approaching this book, like I’ve said, is from a higher perspective. Actually, I’ve mapped it out and the plan is to preach through the whole book in 20 sermons, so 18 after today. The reason I’m doing this is because I want us to see the big picture of this book. And after we finish going through it, if you want to do deeper dives into each passage, you’ll certainly find yourself more confident to do so. With that being said, let’s dive into the letters.

Each of these letters more-or-less have the same structure. You have the addressee followed by the identification of Christ. Then you have Jesus saying, “I know” and evaluating the church. After that there is a promise or warning followed by a promise “to the one who conquers”, and then finally an exhortation to listen. This is the basic structure you’ll find in each of these letters.

So, what I want to do for the rest of our time this morning is look at each of these letters one at a time. I’ll read the letter, try to explain what is being communicated, and then see how we can best apply it.

The first letter, starting in verse 1, says this, “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands. ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false.3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. 6 Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’”

The first thing we have to address is the first line where we read, “to the angel of the church of Ephesus…” Each letter begins like this saying, “to the angel”. Commentators are split on who exactly these angels are. Some think they are the pastors of the churches, some think that they are literal angels. Personally, I think they are actual angels. The reason I think this is because of what Jesus says in the last verse of chapter 1. He says, “the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches.” Which means that earlier in the vision where He was holding the seven stars, we are to take that to mean that he holds the angels of the church in his hand.

I read a previous pastor's comments on this and he pointed to the story in the Gospels where Jesus is tempted by Satan in the wilderness. After Jesus experiences that temptation and Satan leaves Him, it says, “and behold, angels came and were ministering to Him” (Matthew 4:11). Now we often don’t think of angels in that way, but we should. I think what is being conveyed here in the beginning of this vision, and the beginning of each of these letters in particular, is that God has placed angels over His church so that they might minister and protect them. And so each of these letters are addressed to the angel that is over each particular church, which we are to understand as being representative of the angels overseeing the whole church.

In verses 2-7, however, is where we see the particular things addressed. Jesus has both positive and negative things to say about the church in Ephesus. Jesus first commends the church in Ephesus for the protection of the church. He says that they have toiled and patiently endured, and have made it so that they cannot bear with those who are evil. They have tested to see whether those claiming to be apostles are actually apostles or not, and seen to be false, they have dismissed them. This is a good and noble thing. They care about the purity of the church. They have appropriately put up defensive walls around the church so that false teaching and evil will not come in and wreak havoc.

But, it seems that in doing so, they have taken a few too many steps. Starting in verse 4 Jesus tells them that the one thing He has against them is that they have abandoned the love they had at first. What I think Jesus is saying here is that the church has become so defensive against that which is wrong, that they have lost the love they once had for image bearers are lost without a Savior. They have gotten really good at seeing what is false, but they have gotten really poor at loving their neighbor as themself.

And Jesus minces no words here. He says that they need to repent of their ways and go back to what they had done at the beginning. Not only that, but He says that if they refuse to repent, He will remove the lampstand from its place. That is, they will no longer be a part of the true church, but will have that light of Christ taken from them. No longer a lampstand. No longer a church.

Now before we get mixed up and think that this letter is specific to the church of Ephesus and we are simply onlookers, remember who this book is to and what the churches represent. Jesus is writing this to us, His people, as we await His return. And He is writing to us so that we might learn how to live in the meantime. So what is He teaching us? I think it is this, our second point…

2.) We must protect the church while continuing to love (2:1-7)

As the church, we should be a people who spend a lot of time discerning. It is a good thing to be able to detect falsehood and lies before, not after, it finds its way into the pulpit. We aren’t supposed to be blissfully ignorant people who think that everyone has our best interest in mind. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful”. Why? Because, “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” That is a present reality. And the devil doesn't come up to the front door with a name tag that says, “Hello my name is Satan”. He doesn't have red horns and a pitchfork and speaks in a deep scary voice. No, the enemy is an enemy of deception. 

We see Paul address this very thing in his second letter to the Corinthians. In 2 Corinthians 11 starting in verse 12 he says, “And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. 13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.”

Did you catch that? Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. That means that the enemy may not seem like the enemy at first glance. In fact, at first glance the schemes of the devil might seem like a good thing. Let me give you an example. The pro-choice movement often uses the phrase, “My body, my choice.” That phrase alone seems like a thing we can get behind to some degree. We agree that people ought to have bodily autonomy and be protected as such. But, what lies behind that phrase? The slaughter of millions upon millions of babies. Whose autonomy and protection has been taken from them by those who champion such a phrase. This is the way that the enemy often works. And Jesus, right here, is commending the church to hate that which is evil. He wants us to guard the church against falsehood and lies. He knows that throughout our time here, we must do this very thing and He is encouraging us to continue.

And at the same time, He is warning us that we cannot lose love. We cannot be so against things that we have entirely lost what we are for. We must be a people who discern and defend, and also be a people who love and show compassion. It is not an either-or, but a both-and. As the church, we cannot be like the man with a puffed up chest who strolls around, and barks, “What are you looking at?” Yes we are supposed to be on guard, but that doesn't mean that we get to abandon our Christ-likeness along the way. 

Jesus knows that this will be a temptation for us as we come into contact with one evil after another, and so He is reminding us to balance this well. Be on guard, protect the church, and do not abandon love. And He, in verse 7, exhorts us to hear this word, and reminds us that at the end of our obedience and perseverance is the life everlasting.

In fact, that seems to be the theme of the second letter we are going to look at. The letter to the church in Smyrna. Let me read this letter for us.“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. “‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’”

The church in Smyrna, put simply, is suffering. They are impoverished. They are slandered. They are imprisoned. They are put to death. To this church, Jesus has no warning or critiques, only encouragement. And what He tells them is this, our third point…

3.) We must endure tribulation remembering the purpose and the reward (2:8-11)

Jesus knows that for His people, for the church, the time between His first and second coming will be characterized by sufferings. He knows this for 2 reasons, the first being that He is God and He knows all things. But secondly He knows this because He has called a people to follow in His likeness, and He knows how He was treated here on Earth. He was reviled, slandered, and eventually put to death. And so now, He writes to those waiting for His return and tells them, tells us, that we must endure tribulation, or sufferings, remembering the purpose and the reward.

I love the way He begins this letter by saying, “I know”. He begins them all like that, but that phrase in this letter specifically is so comforting. He is saying to the Christian who is suffering on every side, “I know.” It reminds me of the child who is embarrassed or hurt and runs to their parents crying. And through tears they are trying to explain it all to their parents, and the parents just hug them and say, “I know. You don’t have to explain it all. I know.” That is what Jesus is saying to the church. He knows.

The church in Smyrna was impoverished and they were being slandered by those who claimed to be Jews, but were not, they were just very evil. They were about to be imprisoned, and some even put to death. Despite this, Jesus tells them not to fear and be faithful. The message is the same each and everyone here today. I don’t know the ways you have or the ways that you will suffer in this life. But what I do know is that it is incredibly important that during those times, you remember these 2 things. 

First, Jesus wants you to remember that your suffering is not purposeless. He says that some of those in the church will be thrown into prison for 10 days. This 10 days is a representation of a time of testing, which you Jesus makes clear. I don’t know if anyone here will ever be imprisoned for their faith. But what I do know is that you will experience suffering and it will be meant for testing. You will never experience hardship and pain, and it have no purpose. Even if it is a direct result of your sin, it is not purposeless. If you experience suffering because of your sin, that is actually a grace. It means that God is not handing you over to your sin and allowing you to be entirely numb to it. He is making it so that you don’t want to sin. He is using it to refine you, to draw you closer to Him.

And when you suffer not because of your sin, but just because the world is broken, that too has purpose. It always has a purpose. God uses all of our pains and suffering to draw us in. To cause us to love and trust and obey Him more and more. He uses it as a witness to the nations so that others might trust in the Risen Lord. We don’t always know the purpose, but that does not mean there isn’t one. It always, undoubtedly, has a purpose that is for our ultimate good. We must trust Him in that.

The second thing that Jesus wants you to remember amid suffering is the reward that lies ahead. Jesus says at the end of verse 10 that those who are faithful unto death will be given the crown of life. That is, Jesus has promised that all of those who trust in Him and persist in faith will be granted eternal life. And the reason that He can make that kind of promise is because of the first point we talked about. Jesus is over and among the church. He is sovereign over it all, and as such, He is going to ensure that all of His people are rewarded for their faithfulness. And He wants us, He’s calling us, to remember this while we are experiencing suffering. In those times of tribulation, cast your mind on what will come so that you might stand firm. This is what Jesus is encouraging His church to do while they await His glorious return.

In every one of these letters the phrase, “the one who conquers” is repeated, followed by a promise. In the first letter the one who conquers will be granted to eat of the tree of life in paradise. In the second letter the one who conquers is promised that they will not be hurt by the second death. That is, on the day of judgment they will have nothing to fear.

If I’m honest, that is intimidating. I don’t know if I will be one who conquers. In the face of intense suffering, maybe death, I cannot be sure that I will be strong enough. When things are easy, I find myself weak and doubting and lacking trust. How will I find myself somehow stronger when things get hard? I know I am not alone in feeling this way.

Well the answer is that it is not our strength that will make us ones who conquer. In Romans 8 starting in verse 35 Paul says this. “35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’” Sounds like the church in Smyrna. Sounds like the experience of Christians throughout history in many places at many times. 

He continues, “37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We will ones who conquer because of Jesus Christ, the Risen Reigning King will see that it is so. He bought us, He loves us, and He has promised to carry and strengthen us until His return. Until then, let us be faithful. Amen.