Revelation 2:1-29<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u3000\u3000I had the blessing of studying the Book of Revelation in Bible Study Fellowship a few years ago. As we begin reading this in our GCBC devotions, I have gone back to my BSF study to review. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u3000\u3000In verses 2-11, the focus verse is 2:7 “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u3000\u3000Jesus commended and challenged the church in Ephesus in verses 1-7. He commended them for standing firm in the truth. Ephesus was a very important city in what is now Turkey. Most worshiped the false god Artemis. But Paul had taught the scriptures there for 3 years, and some had come to love Jesus and the truth of God’s Word.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u3000\u3000Jesus told the Ephesians He holds seven stars and walks among the lampstands. The stars may have represented the church leaders who cared for them, or special angels assigned to each church. The lampstands were the churches. With this picture, Jesus wanted them to know He is close to His people. He saw their needs and knew their hearts. Same is true today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u3000\u3000Jesus knew how hard they had worked. They kept going and did not give up even when people treated them cruelly. They did not tolerate false teachers. They understood that God’s Word teaches that Jesus’ victory at the cross wins for us not the freedom to<\/em> sin, but the power not<\/em> to sin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000They had one big problem though – they had left their first love. They did not love Jesus as much as they used to, which means they did not love one another like they used to. Jesus reminded them of how they first believed and told them to repent, stop drifting away and come back to Him. Verse 2:7 is a promise. It counters the opportunity Adam and Eve lost in the Garden of Eden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Jesus calls us to love Him and obey Him. What does He see in your heart? Does He see a love for His Word?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000In verses 8-11, Jesus praised the church in Smyrna. He told them He is the ‘First and Last who died and came to life again’. Most people in Smyrna had good jobs and food, but not the Christians because they did not honor the emperors, the kings as gods. They lost jobs and property when they refused to worship an emperor. Some were imprisoned and some killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000These Christians had shown courage, and they must show even more. Jesus said, ‘Do not be afraid’. He knew what was coming and He cared. He told them to ‘Be faithful, even to the point of death’. The 10 days probably meant a limited amount of time. Jesus was in control and would not let the persecution go on forever. Jesus promised the faithful believers a reward called the ‘victor’s crown’. We do not know exactly what this will be, but it will be wonderful and will mean a joyful life that lasts forever. Jesus also promised that those who overcome, or live for Jesus in courage, will not experience the second death – His final judgment on unbelievers at His return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Jesus knows our suffering and gives strength to overcome. Will we remember that Jesus knows what we are going through and wants us to keep trusting Him?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000In verses 12-17, Jesus commended faithfulness in Pergamum and rebuked false teachers. Some interesting information about Pergamum: It was an inland city about 65 miles north of Smyrna in the fertile valley of the Caicus River. Its library was second only to the library in Alexandria. Pergamum was so wealthy that many of the library’s 200,000 volumes were written on costly sheepskin – parchment, which takes its name from Pergamum. It was also a city of great medical knowledge and housed the temple of the false god Asclepius, the god of healing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000The Christians there were persecuted for believing in Jesus and not worshiping the Roman emperor and false gods. Jesus commended them for this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Jesus introduced Himself as the one with the sharp, double-edged sword as the Word is often pictured. One side of God’s word can ‘cut to the heart’ by showing us our sin. The other side reveals the healing truth of God. Pergamum’s problem was that many in the church said they were Christians, but were living like they were not Christians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Jesus promised three things to those victorious over Satan’s attacks and the temptation to ignore God’s Word – these apply to all His people throughout time: hidden manna, a white stone and a new name. The hidden manna probably means believers will have a special strength from Jesus. We do not know exactly what the white stone with a secret name on it means, but it is a very special gift. The stone may mean special access – through Jesus we are allowed access to His kingdom because His death on the cross paid our way. The new name seems to be something secret between Jesus and each believer. How exciting to someday know…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000God’s Word reveals truth and exposes error. Are we studying scripture to know what is true and false? When God reveals sin, will we repent?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Lastly, in verses 18-29, Jesus commended service in Thyatira and rebuked toleration. Jesus revealed Himself to this church as the Son of God, with blazing eyes and feet of bronze. He is Holy and Pure and He will judge those people who do not confess and repent. He praised the church for their acts of love and service – showing others the love of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000However, like Pergamum, they were allowing false teaching in the church – a woman called Jezebel was leading the people to worship idols. And her teaching was tolerated. The church needed to repent, or punishment would come. God is patient, but He does not tolerate sin forever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Jesus encouraged those who did not follow the false teaching to ‘hold on’ until He came. Those who were victorious over the temptation to follow false teaching would rule the nations with Him. This is an amazing promise to those who believe Jesus and do not ignore God’s Word. They will be part of Jesus’ kingdom and with Him when He returns to rule the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000Ignoring God’s Word results in disaster. What bad examples or influencers are we tempted to follow? Have you ever felt there is no choice but to do wrong? Are we calling out to Jesus for help and relying on His strength to obey God?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u3000\u3000In conclusion, Praise Jesus for His love and direction, and for offering us the solution to sin and the opportunity to repent.\u3000\u3000\u3000— Mary Mauderer<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Revelation 2:1-29 \u3000\u3000I had the blessing of studying the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3786","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-devotion-2019_2021"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3786","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3786"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3786\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3917,"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3786\/revisions\/3917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3786"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3786"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glorycbc.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3786"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}