JANUARY 1983-VOL. 15 NO. 1

SEVERAL TIMES THROUGH THE YEARS WE HAVE STARTED ON A SERIES OF MESSAGES, TO DEAL WITH ALL SEVEN CHURCHES OF REVELATION CHAPTERS 2 & 3, BUT FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER, WE NEVER SEEMED TO BE ABLE TO COVER THEM ALL WITHOUT GETTING STOPPED. I HOPE TO BE ABLE TO GO THROUGH ALL 7 THIS TIME, AND LET THESE TAPED MESSAGES REPLACE ALL THE OTHERS WE NOW HAVE. FOR QUITE SOMETIME NOW, THE LORD HAS BEEN DEALING WITH ME CONCERNING THESE CHURCHES AND THE MANY BEAUTIFUL THINGS THAT ARE PORTRAYED BY THEM, THAT ACTUALLY AFFECT THE VERY HOUR OF TIME WE ARE NOW LIVING IN. NATURALLY WE UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE LIVING IN THE LATTER PART OF THE LAODICEAN CHURCH AGE THAT WAS PORTRAYED BY THE LITERAL CHURCH AT LAODICEA, DURING THE FIRST CENTURY OF CHRISTIANITY, AND CERTAINLY THERE ARE MANY THINGS TO BE SAID ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR SPIRIT THAT IS NOW RUNNING RAMPANT IN OUR DAY, BUT WE ARE GOING TO START WITH THE CHURCH AT EPHESUS, AND GO STRAIGHT THROUGH.

EPHESUS

In the first chapter, we see Jesus Christ portrayed as the high priest, holding the 7 stars in His right hand, and standing in the midst of the 7 golden candlesticks. That is how the apostle John saw Him in the vision given to him, there on the isle of Patmos. Then he was told that the stars in the right hand of Jesus portrayed the angels of the seven churches, (The word angel, carries a dual, or twofold meaning) and the seven candlesticks represent the seven churches of Asia. Now there were other Gentile churches at that time, for these were not the first churches of Gentile origin. In Paul's first and second missionary journeys, there were established, churches at Iconium, Lystra and later, at Philippi, Galatia, Thessalonica, Corinth, and so forth. Therefore what we want to understand, is that the Lord Himself chose these seven particular churches for the purpose of conveying a twofold meaning, which we will see as we study the words written to each one, and make proper application by the direction of the Spirit of God. First, let us get the geographical setting. All seven of these churches were situated in Asia, which today is the country of Turkey. Some of them were in coastal cities, which means that they were in the sea trade routes, but not all of them. Those in the seaport cities did have the greater advantage though, because of the commercial trade, and so forth, and Ephesus was one of them. Ephesus was the capital city, a seaport city, and a famous city. It was also a city of much pagan worship, and a city where there was a large Jewish colony, but the city does not even exist today, and neither do any of these others. I have never been there, but I have seen pictures of these various sites, and they are all archaeological ruins today. Two thousand years ago, they stood as flourishing metropolitan cities though, and Ephesus stood at the forefront of them all.

PAUL PREACHED AT EPHESUS

It was on Paul's 3rd missionary journey, that this door was opened for the gospel at Ephesus. We will not try to be exact, as to the years of Paul's ministry there, but rather, we will just say that it was somewhere around 54-56 A.D., give or take a year or two. Actually all seven of these churches were established from the gospel fire that burned at Ephesus for three years while Paul was preaching there. He did not travel around to all seven cities, and establish a church as some may believe. It was the gospel message being preached at Ephesus that did the traveling to these other cities. It traveled in the hearts of hungry souls that came to Ephesus from all the regions round about to hear Paul preach. Now some who want to be contentious, claim that there is a contradiction in the Bible concerning the length of time Paul preached at Ephesus, but as for myself, I see no contradiction. In Acts 19:8, we find that he preached 3 months in the Jewish synagogue, and in verse 10, two years in the house of Tyrannus, and in verse 22, we find that he stayed in the area yet a while after that, probably in a pastoral capacity, so I see no reason whatsoever to dispute the three years mentioned in 20:31. But one thing is sure; Ephesus is where the revival fires burned, and all those other churches were established as a result of that revival. Paul may have gone later, to some of them, but if he did, the churches were already established. In the Old Testament tabernacle, one flame of fire lit all seven candlesticks, and that flame was never to go out, so here, we are allowed to see the reality of that type, as all seven of these candlesticks (churches) are lit from one Holy Ghost flame that burned at Ephesus. The scripture tells us that all they which dwelt in Asia, heard the word of the Lord Jesus Christ preached during the time Paul stayed at Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. But what we are dealing with primarily, is what the aged apostle John was instructed to write to these seven churches some 40 years later, which is 30 years beyond the death of the star messenger to the first age, Paul. By this time, (96 A.D.) John is an old man, the only one of the original apostles of Jesus Christ that is still alive. He had been loyal to the original revelation of truth that was imparted to them at the beginning, and the reality of it was still burning in his heart when he was put out there on that little island away from the main society of people. But he was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and Jesus appeared to him, giving him a commission to write what he was allowed to see. Then, to the angel of these seven churches (the angel of each church) he was to write a specific letter, or message. This is why I said the word angel carries a twofold meaning, for it applies both to the angel messenger to each church age in the dispensation of grace, and also to the individuals who pastored those 7 literal churches that set the type for the church age conditions.

THUS SAITH THE LORD TO EPHESUS

Time wise, (96 A.D.) if the Lord is going to speak to these churches while some of the old patriarchs are still alive, concerning the things that they had been harassed by, it had to be done at this time. Jesus had spoken the seven parables recorded in the 13th chapter of Matthew, to lay right over the words written to these seven churches, and to exemplify conditions that would exist in seven different periods of the grace age, but these parables do not portray the great persecutions of Satan, against the church; they only show his deceptive tactics during the time when the spirit of Antichrist and the Spirit of God are running parallel. On the other hand though, these letters to the seven churches do speak of certain persecutions, and you will find that they identify with a specific age of time, which we commonly refer to as, the church ages. We are looking at the message to Ephesus first, so notice how it begins, Revelations 2 verse (1) "Unto the angel of the church at Ephesus write; These things saith He that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven gold candlesticks." Now this was written to the ANGEL of the church of Ephesus, and we know it could not have been written to Paul, for he had been dead for about 30 years at that time, so that means that whoever was in the place of leadership in the church at Ephesus at that time was faced with the responsibility of leading them to take heed to these words from the Lord, or perish. Which they eventually did. In 96 A.D., when they received this letter, they were living in an interval of time which proved to be the beginning of a transition from the first age to the second. The first age did not just suddenly end, and the second age begin; it occurred during an extended transition period while the spirit of Antichrist was sowing tares among them. Little by little the church of Ephesus was slipping away from its former estate, so the Lord gives them a fair warning, and it is up to the pastor (the angel) as to how they will react. As we have said already, this church stands out from the rest, because this is where the Holy Ghost fire fell that eventually ignited a gospel fire in the others. No doubt, the church at Ephesus was the strongest work that was established in that area, and no doubt had a very large congregation both of Jews and Gentiles. In the writings of the Antinicean Fathers, it is brought out how many of the saints from Jerusalem, traveled to these churches, giving their testimonies concerning the things they had seen and heard during the time when Jesus walked among them. Therefore I would be prone to believe that the church at Ephesus was the main one that they went to. Naturally that being the case, every evangelist, or apostle, or whatever they might have called themselves, headed straight for Ephesus. How do I know that? Simply because verse 2 reveals it. Notice when the Lord had to say to them, "I know thy works." We will take this one step at a time, and try to see what each thing pertained to.

WORKS OF FAITH

The first thing mentioned is their works, and I want you to know assuredly that He was not talking about how many times they had painted the church building, nor how many new roofs they had put on it. The works mentioned, would be works of faith. If a brother, or a sister needs a coat, see that they get one. If they need food for their table, see that they get it. Anywhere Christianity has ever flourished in any spiritual depth, there was both the rich and the poor in the assembly, and the needs of the truly needy were always met. This is one of the ways that God puts our faith to the test. The true faith exemplified by the Lord Jesus Christ will always respond in the affirmative to such needs among brethren. Do not ever allow yourself to think for even a moment, that the Lord just chooses the rich to be saved, and lets the poor go to hell. That is the farthest thing from the truth. Genuine faith is not based upon our station in society, but our surroundings will definitely put our faith to the test and genuine faith will always be compassionate. Then statural growth enables us to couple wisdom with our compassion. There was a situation in the early church that has caused much debate among Gentile Christians down through time, but you must remember, those who did this were all Jews, and Jews have always followed these practices for survival. I am talking about Acts 4, where all those that owned excess property sold it, and brought the money to the apostles for distribution among those that were needy. Many Gentiles have interpreted that to mean that those who owned houses and land sold everything they had, and divided the price of it among the needy. I assure you, that such a practice as that would not work for very long, for there will always be a tomorrow; therefore there always has to be some who have more than they need, in order for there to be help for the truly needy. That was simply a situation where those saints who owned real estate in excess of what they needed for themselves, sold it, and gave the profit to be used for the needs of others who were less fortunate, and God blessed that effort. The Jews did it like that, but when the gospel came to the Gentiles, another method was set up for helping the poor, and those poor saints at Jerusalem received help from them. (I Corinthians 16:3) Therefore let us look upon this word works, as something other than physical labors. Then let us notice that after works, He (Jesus) also mentioned the word labor. "I know thy works, and thy labor.)

LABOR OF LOVE AND PATIENCE

Again I want to say, let us keep the application on the spiritual side, realizing that the labor referred to here is the weight and pressure of dealing with ridicule, persecution, and all the other problems that can develop among a large assembly of people. You who have walked with the Lord for quite a few years will readily identify with the weight upon the souls of those who have the responsibility of dealing with problems that arise in the church. In the eyes of God, this kind of labor produces the same affect upon a person, as if they had carried shingles up a ladder all day to re-roof the church house. You do that for 8 hours, and I assure you , you will be worn out. But you will be just as worn out if you battle with spiritual forces all day long. In that first age, Christians were constantly harassed by Jews, as well as just plain ungodly men. Satan was trying to destroy every fellowship of saints, and at the same time, God was building in them spiritual character that would be able to stand up under any and all kinds of pressure. Through the pressures of everyday life, God's children are moved to take on more of the stature of Jesus Christ.

(INSERT GOD'S LIGHT RAY PICTURE HERE )

Therefore the next term referred to here (patience) just naturally follows works and labors of faith. This patience is a attribute of God, and I am sure that you will readily agree, that many people are born into this world, and go through life, never having an ounce of patience. If you want your children to learn to exercise patience in this life, do not wait until they are a year and a half or two years to start teaching it to them. Not just patience, but whatever other traits you desire to see in them. When they get to be two or three years of age, and follow you around in a store, Mommy I want this, Mommy I want that, and have a tantrum every time you say no, you have waited too long to start your training, you already have a wildcat on your hands. Furthermore if you let them get by with such behavior, the day will come when they may tear your arm off, or something worse. I only use these natural illustrations to stress a point of truth, spiritually, because in everything, there is a natural and also a spiritual to be considered. Those who conduct themselves properly in the natural will have less trouble with their spiritual behavior than one who just runs wild and carefree in the natural. But we are looking at the word patience here, spiritual patience, that God desires to instill in every son and daughter of His. This is the kind of patience that helps us endure the many attacks of the devil, until God shows us what to do about it. One thing is sure, whatever God allows the devil to do to His children, will accomplish something in their statural growth if they learn to wait upon the Lord to show them how to handle the situation, and that is especially true, in the church. What did James say? James, Chapter 1, verse (2) My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; (3) Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. (4) But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." In other words, spiritual patience is knowing how to wait upon the Lord, and that of course, will take you right to Isaiah 40 verse (31) "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." So you see, God allows certain things to come upon us, as His means of cultivating certain spiritual attributes that He desires us to possess. Therefore as He sent this letter to Ephesus, He acknowledged these attributes by saying, "I know they works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which evil." In the various epistles, which were all written before this Revelation letter, the saints were always instructed on how to deal with evil. This was before the tares even got in the assemblies. The saints in that early age, were saints that would take discipline. Let us look into Paul's letter to the Hebrews, and see what he said to them on this matter of God's chastening, and its affect on true sons and daughters of His. In Hebrews chapter 12 verse (5) "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked of Him; (6) For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." So there definitely does come a time in all our lives when God has to take us across His spiritual knee, and spank us. Oh, Bro. Jackson, God never has to spank me. If any of you feel like that, then maybe we should read a little farther. Verse (7) "If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? (Notice now) (8) But if ye be without chastisement, whereof ALL (not just some, but all) are partakes, then are ye BASTARDS, (illegitimate children-tares) and NOT SONS." In other words, if you just simply cannot take correction, chances are very great that you are not a child of God at all. You do not have the nature of the heavenly Father in you, or you would not run from Him when chastening time comes. Very plainly stated, I might run from my neighbor, but I would never run from my father, and you can make your own judgement as to why you will not stand still and take correction. I will not judge you. One thing is for sure though; it does not help the least bit, just to keep on hiding from the truth. It takes truth to set a son of God free.

APOSTOLIC MINISTRY

Coming back to Revelation 2:2 now, we read, "I know how thou hast tried them which SAY they are apostles, and are not, hast found them liars." Saints, right there is an important word placed within this letter to the Ephesus assembly, and it is the only one that contains this word apostle. Why would that be? First of all, this is the church where Paul, the first church age messenger stood. While reading in the Antinicean Father's writings, I read where Polycarp, who sat at the feet of John, wrote to the Philippian church, around 100 A.D., just a few short years after the Revelation letter was written, reminding them of the things that had been taught by the great apostle Paul. As you read those records, it becomes obvious, that Ephesus was a church where whoever claimed to be an apostle, eventually showed up there, because they knew that God always sent His true apostles to that church when He wanted to impart to them further truth. As I have already said, Ephesus stood out in the forefront with the gospel message. They had been taught well, so they had a true revelation of the doctrine of Christ. That is why they were able to detect, and expose those false apostles that showed up there, trying to make a name for themselves. They just simply gave them the word test. All of God's true apostles believed and taught the same doctrine.

(INSERT GOD'S FORGIVENESS PICTURE HERE )

They taught that God is one, that baptism should be administered to believers in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that all believers should be baptized for the remission of sins of the flesh, and none of them sought to elevate themselves above the others. They were laborers together, working in a great building for God. When Paul wrote the first Epistle to the Corinthian church, he rebuked them because of divisions among them, saying, "Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul? Some of you say, I am of Paul; and others, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but it was God that gave the increase. (He went on to say) He that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are laborers together with God: Ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon." When Paul referred to himself as a wise master builder, and how he had laid the foundation, he knew that he was the apostle to the Gentiles, and that it was his revelation of the word of God, that these churches were founded upon. Every last one of them was established upon the revelation that he had preached to them. But as time passed God used other men to minister to them further truth for their spiritual growth, and not one of those God sent men ever preached anything contrary to what Paul preached. They were all laborers together on God's great building, (the church) which is redeemed souls, and not wood, stone and bricks. In later years, many Gentile ministers would feel led to go to Jerusalem, and minister to the Jewish saints, just as the Jewish apostles would go to the Gentile churches, and this brought about a condition whereby those who just claimed to be apostles had opportunity to get their foot in the door, and explains why the Lord spoke of how Ephesus had tried them, and found them to be liars.

FALSE PROPHETS - FALSE APOSTLES

Very early in His 3½ year earthly ministry, Jesus warned, (Matthew 7:15) "Beware of false prophets, which shall come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits." He was speaking of a future condition that would exist as the devil began his program of sowing tares among the good crop of God. This Antichrist spirit was portrayed in the 13th chapter of Matthew, when Jesus spoke those 7 parables, all pertaining to a future condition. In the 7th chapter of Matthew, Jesus pursued the thought all the way to the end time saying, (22) "Many will come to me in that day saying, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name cast out devils, And in thy name done many wonderful works? (23) And I will say unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." Satan's deceptive agents always appear to be very meek and humble, for that gains them the confidence of many people, but inwardly they are as ravening wolves, ready to devour the flock of God. Even as early as 90 A.D., when John wrote the little epistles, he could see that spirit working then. As he spoke of those that were Antichrist agents, he said, (1st John, verse 19) "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us." I can just see some of those fellows as they would jump on the back of an old camel, and head for some of those churches such as we are reading about in our text scriptures. Coming into those churches, the first thing they would say is, "I am an apostle. I have just come from Jerusalem. I have been with Peter and the other apostles there, and I have been in the upper room, and ETC., ETC. That is exactly how some of these modern day preachers carry on after they have been to Jeffersonville, Indiana, and saw where the prophet to this age lived and preached, and after they have been to the cemetery where he is buried, and to the Spoken Word Publishers, to get an armful of books. After they do that, they feel that they are ready to circle the globe, straightening out the revelation of the bride of Christ. Most of them, find out just enough to make a fool out of themselves. Brothers and Sisters: It doesn't matter whether you ever get to Jeffersonville, Indiana, or not, the thing that really makes the difference, is whether you get true revelation of the word of God, or not. If you never get a revelation in your spirit from the Spirit of God, you will never be anything that God will accept. Without that, all your labor is vain, and you have no eternal reward coming to you. Over the years, many of these fellows have tried to gain access to this pulpit, to promote themselves, but the Lord has always allowed us to detect them, and put them to flight, just like the church at Ephesus did, with those that troubled her. I have known of various assemblies that were constantly in an uproar, simply because they let every self ordained preacher that happened to pass their way, get into the pulpit and preach his version of the message to this age. But, Bro. Jackson, How do you know who to let in? Are you not afraid of turning away someone who has a true message from the Lord? Let me just remind you of something else that the apostle John wrote. It is found in 1st John 4:1. "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." Now Saints, John was not referring to a smoky mist over in the corner of the church building; he was referring specifically to preachers, or as in his day, self appointed apostles. How do you detect them? The same way the church at Ephesus did; you just simply find out if they are preaching the same revelation that the apostles of Jesus Christ preached. Now do not misunderstand me. They do not have to use the same verbal words, but one thing is sure, no true man of God will ever preach a contrary doctrine, and the others cannot preach very long without it. Besides that, they will usually give themselves away by the way they talk, even before they ever get into the pulpit to preach. Nevertheless, Ephesus tried them by this means and weeded out the false ones, and the Lord acknowledged it. Let us look at it like this, Ephesus knew that she had been established by a true apostle, and their minds were resting upon the fact. However, they had learned to respect the men that came from Jerusalem, and Satan knew it, and took advantage of it. He just got him some men who were already desiring to make a name for themselves, and made apostles out of them.

SATAN'S DECEPTIVE TACTICS

In 2nd Corinthians 11:13-15, we find Paul writing to these Corinthian saints, saying, (13) For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. (14) And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. (15) Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works." The respect that the church at Ephesus had for apostles, made them a prime target for Satan to bombard with his tare sowing false apostles, and he no doubt kept them coming. Now Saints, please do not get the idea that those fellows could not preach anything at all like the apostle Paul preached, for that is wrong. As much as 90 percent of it could have been exactly right, but saints that have been taught properly will catch enough from that other 10 percent to know that there is something wrong. After each episode where one of those false apostles would get into the church and preach, they would just have to do some spiritual house cleaning to clear the atmosphere, but the point is, they took it patiently. They did not become frustrated and disillusioned, and throw up their hands. They labored under the pressure of that constant harassment, and with patience, they continued their works of faith, but 40 years of this, did have a certain effect upon them, which we will see a little later.

THE MODEL CHURCH

As we read Revelation 2:3, we find patience and labor both mentioned again. Notice, (3) "And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast labored, and hast not fainted." That word borne is associated in this case with carrying responsibility. We could say, with patience they had labored under the weight and pressure against them because of the name of Jesus, and they did not faint (give up) along the way. They endured all their trials, and kept that name of Jesus Christ, a fire in their souls. So in their patience, they had been loyal to that name. Brother, this was a tested church. They were attacked by every Satanic spirit the devil had to throw at them. Why so with them any more than the others? Because this was to be the model church. They had to have every opportunity to set an example in overcoming the constant attacks of the enemy of our souls. This is how our perfection is wrought. Brothers and Sisters, listen to me; We have passed through an era of economics like no other generation has ever known. We will have no acceptable excuse when we stand before the Lord, if we do not hold on to what He has committed to our spiritual understanding, and life accordingly. It doesn't matter whether we have a car to drive, no whether we have all the modern conveniences in our home or not; it is what we do with that revelation in our soul that determines whether we come out victorious or not. I am afraid that some who gauge spiritual wealth and happiness by how easy the Lord makes it for them to live, are going to come up short in that day. When the going gets hard, we should not give up; that is what the word faint pertains to. In Luke 18:1, Jesus said, "Men ought always to pray, and not to FAINT." In 2nd Corinthians, Paul used the word, so let us read about two verses from chapter 4, just to catch the word, verse (16) "For which cause we FAINT not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man (spirit) is renewed day by day. (17) For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." That one verse alone lets us see that these afflictions and trials will work for our spiritual benefit, if we will just not give up (faint) before we come out on the other side. In Galatians 6:9, Paul said, "And let us not be weary in well doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." No matter how many preachers may have told the church at Ephesus, It would be all right to baptize using the titles instead of the name Jesus, they knew that Paul had re-baptized the original 12 disciples among them, because they had not been baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, according to Acts 2:38. Therefore they held true to that name, and labored to keep it alive among them. Now I believe you can see what these terms actually apply to, so let us move onto verse 4, and find out what the Lord had against the church.

FORMALISTIC ROUTINE

In everything else, the Lord commended the church at Ephesus, but then told them that He had something against them. Notice what it was, as we read verse 4. "Nevertheless I have something against thee, because thou hast left thy first love." In reality, all the other things that they were commended for were built around the very thing that He is saying they have left. How can that be? I believe we can use a natural setting here, to illustrate the reality of this spiritual condition. It did not just happen there at Ephesus; it still happens. In the natural realm, a boy meets a girl; they fall in love, and after a period of time in which they have been dating and really getting to know each other, they get married, and start housekeeping together. Now all during the time while they were dating, they just could not see enough of each other, couldn't hardly stand to be apart until the next date. But we all know that life is much more than that carefree way you feel during your courting days. One day there is a marriage, and suddenly there is responsibility that neither of you have ever had. Your love for each other causes you to assume that new responsibility with great zeal and fervency. Everything is approached with real joy and expectancy as you look to the future together. That is also exactly how it is living for God. When we first come to know the Lord we just cannot seem to do enough for Him. Our new found love just keeps us on the mountain tops, spiritually speaking. But God does not allow us to remain on the mountain tops forever, so He begins to bring us down to reality of life, and lay some genuine responsibility upon us, which in the beginning we accept with true joy of heart, just like the newlywed couple in the natural. But over a process of time, life in the natural can become very routine. We still do the same things, but not with the same joy and fervency. You still kiss your wife goodbye when you leave for work, and she still meets you at the door with a kiss when you come home, but it has become just a routine to you. What causes such a change? A few misunderstandings, a few disappointments, added responsibilities, financial reverses, and all sorts of things. Saints, we all understand that this is part of everyday life we are talking about, but we should also understand, that no matter what happens, our love for our mate should always be considered above everything else, in the natural. It doesn't matter if you are 80 years old, you can still have that same love in your heart that you had when you were 20, and God is not pleased with any marriage that loses it. Neither is He pleased with any church that just goes through their formalistic routines week after week, and at the same time allows the fervency of their love for God to gradually fade into the background. When this is allowed to go on and on in a natural marriage, sooner or later, Satan sets a trap that eventually destroys the marriage. Then when you bring that same condition over into the spiritual realm, and allow it to go on and on without getting revived, somewhere down the road, Satan will have a trap set for you. So as we look to this condition at Ephesus, let me say this, If there was a need brought to their attention, they took care of it. If anyone was baptized, they made sure it was done according to Acts 2:38, in the name of Jesus Christ. If someone claimed to be something other than what they were, these saints would discern it. Whenever persecution and pressure was heaped upon them, they endured it with patience, but they had allowed themselves to fall into a formalistic routine to the extent that they were no longer motivated by the fire of that love for God which they started out with. They went to the assembly more out of habit and routine, than to meet and worship with their brothers and sisters in the Lord. Therefore in Revelation 2:5, the Lord says, "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, (be genuinely sorry) and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent." Now He did not say He would remove the star; He said He would remove the candlestick. Of course we know that the candlestick represented the power and presence of the Lord in their midst. Therefore they were being warned, and if they would not repent, the Lord would just move out from among them, and they could no longer do anything by the anointing of His spirit. Let me hasten to say this though, He was not telling them to be baptized again, as some folks interpret that term first works. He was merely telling them to repent of their motives, and to return to their former ways, when they were motivated by a genuine love that burned within their hearts. In other words, they needed a revival.

NICOLAITAN SPIRIT

After Jesus rebuked the church for losing its first love, He turns right around, and commends them again, (Revelation 2:6) saying, "But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate." He did not say that they had any tares, nor such like, in their assembly, but this does prove that they had been harassed by that Antichrist spirit for He says, you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. No doubt these spirits had begun to have an effect on certain ones' attitudes, and maybe even caused some others to even consider using some natural means to try and get rid of the confusion that was looming upon the horizon. Saints, any time a church resorts to carnal remedies, trying to deal with spirits that trouble them, they have shut God out of the picture, completely. God wants to be in the picture so he can teach us some wisdom and patience, as these things arise. Beyond that, there are some things God will not let you have to tolerate, for He will warn you ahead of time, so that you can head it off as it comes down the road. That is how some men's sins go openly before them. Whether God allows though, you can be sure it will serve a purpose in the redemption and restoration process of God upon this old planet. When this thing winds up, God is going to have some people perfected, and ready to rule with Jesus Christ in the Millennium. But those that will be perfected, will not be those that jump the gun and take things into their own hands every time a little something goes wrong. It is the responsibility of the ministry to make decisions as to what the church will, or will not allow. But many times, the ministry will have to wait upon the Lord longer than many think they should, in order to know what to do. This then, can bring about a carnal reaction from those who do not have patience to wait upon God's answers. Sooner or later, that brings about a strain between the laity and the ministry. It did not happen in the church at Ephesus, for they were very determined that the Holy Ghost was going to lead them. But we certainly do see it in the Pergamos church. It is a situation where the clergy is exalted above the laity to the extent that they rule them with fear tactics. No record has ever been found of any group or sect of people that were known as Nicolaitans; therefore we must conclude that the spiritual mention of them pertains to a spirit of the devil that caused the ministry to conquer the laity. You can still see that old spirit at work out here in various religious groups. Some people do not dare go visit their relatives once in awhile, without getting permission from their pastor. Saints, you know a situation like that is not ordained of God. God knows the hearts of all those who miss church services for whatever reason they miss, and He is the final one that they must answer to. Your preacher has no God given right to forbid anyone to miss church services, nor to rule over their lives with an iron fist. Furthermore God's true children do not need such supervision; they enjoy doing what they know to be right.

THE TREE OF LIFE

As we look back to the church at Ephesus for just a moment, and consider what the Lord said to her, we can well see why trials, tests and persecutions were allowed by the Lord in every church age. That is what produces a true soldier of the cross. One that has backbone, a strong faith, enduring love for God, and for others, and one that is trustworthy in the sight of the Lord. So let us notice this last verse to the church at Ephesus. Revelation 2:7 "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the CHURCHES; (churches-plural) To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God." In that symbolic language, to eat of the tree of life is to partake of the baptism of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is the life of the tree of life. The Holy Ghost is the seal of God whereby we are sealed unto the day of our redemption from this natural life, (Ephesians 4:30) and the Holy Ghost is the very substance of the new birth. Paul said, "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His." (Romans 8:9) Therefore let us conclude this part of the message by saying, The church at Ephesus was made up of true believers. They all had the Spirit of Christ, and they gave no place for the devil's ambassadors to work among them. But we must realize that by the time John was instructed to write these words to them, the first church age that they represented was on the threshold of passing on to the second age which was represented by the conditions prevailing in the church at Smyrna. Ephesus was pure, free from tares. The first church age was pure, free from tares, but the infiltration of tares among the body of believers after those original apostles passed off the scene, is actually what inaugurated the second age. He that overcometh has a promise of something to look forward to. That also lets us know, that in every age, no matter what the devil bombarded them with, there was always sufficient grace from the Lord for those true believers to overcome, and that is still true in our day. Just be sure you do not judge the whole of Christianity by what you may see someone doing who professes to be a Christian. You look into the book of Acts, and you will see what true Christianity is, for God's standards have never changed. What Christians were in the beginning, is what Christians will be at the end time. But those who live to see the coming of the Lord will have a deeper revelation of God's complete redemption process than those of the first age had. Not a different doctrine, just a deeper revelation.

SMYRNA

The Lord has no rebuke for the church at Smyrna. This church it seems, was a victim of much persecution, and poverty stricken as far as material wealth is concerned. But the Lord told them they were rich in those things that have eternal values. So let us continue reading, here in verse 8, and see what was said unto the angel (Pastor or leader) of this church. "And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead and is alive; (9) I know thy works and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou are rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan." As we said earlier, each of these 7 churches existed in the days when the apostle John was still alive. Also, the Lord specifically naming the churches in a certain order, and this was for a very specific reason, for as it turns out, the local conditions existing in each of the 7 churches, represented the general condition of an age of time that would fall within the scope of the grace age dispensation. Each one characterized a spirit that would correspond to the prevailing spirit of a certain period of time in following generations. Whatever that spirit of Satan did, or tried to do in those 7 churches, is exactly what he would be doing in the age of time that corresponds in numerical order to those churches. Smyrna was number two in the order given by the Lord; therefore her spiritual condition as well as the material wealth or poverty of the Christians in general, represented the general condition of that second church age, an age of tribulation, persecution, martyrdom, and much poverty. Let us understand also, that the general condition here in this church, reflected the overall picture of the whole city where it was located. In that day and hour, world travel was not like it is today. People did not run all over the world spreading their influence, and their material wealth, like they do today. Therefore the general conditions seen here, more or less represent the environment, or we will say the culture and general condition of the whole city of Smyrna, and Satan's influence is definitely seen here. Smyrna was definitely not a city where one would go with the thought of trying to amass a great fortune in a short time. Economic prosperity was limited to a great degree because this was not a city of great commercial trade, like some of the others were. This church, in this city, was the Lord's choice, to represent a certain spirit of Satan that would have its effect upon that second church age, after the tares began to get into the church universally and exercise their influence.

STAR MESSENGERS'S RESPONSIBILITY

Naturally the first application of the letter to the church at Smyrna was to the church itself right then, and there, and it was the pastor's responsibility to see that proper action was taken after receiving it. But beyond that local setting was an age of time in universal Christendom that these same conditions would exist; and therefore it becomes the responsibility of the messenger to that age to also take the necessary steps in applying these words from the Lord. Which in this case was Irenaeus. He was the generally accepted star messenger to the 2nd age. He held the true revelation of God's word up before them, to combat that spirit of Satan that was trying to destroy the church. Before going on though, let me just remind you once again that the conditions of these 7 churches, were conditions that existed in each particular church at the time of John's instructions from the Lord to write to them, which was 96 A.D. In 96 A.D. conditions were existing in these 7 churches, each church portraying a different condition spiritually and materially from the others, that somewhere during the following two thousand years would correspond to the general condition of an age of time, during which time, the angel messenger to that age of time commonly referred to as the church ages, would be stirred in his heart to stand against that prevailing spirit of Satan with a message of truth from the word of God. Therefore I am going to read to you, a few excerpts from church history, that I have with me, so that you may hear some of what was written, especially concerning this 2nd age. But first, let us notice what the Lord had to say to this church. "I know thy works". He said that to the church at Ephesus also, did He not? That lets us see that there definitely are certain works that the Lord looks upon, either good or bad, in every congregation of believers. That always reminds us of what the apostle James said about works. "Faith without works is dead." Our works are not what saves us, but they do go hand in hand with the faith we exercised for that salvation, and it is our works of faith that actually portray character and concern, and the general condition of our spiritual lives. But just as faith without works is dead, so also is works dead if they are not accompanied by a corresponding faith. Faith and works are as inseparable as the Spirit of God and the word of God. Without the Spirit to quicken it to our own spirit, the written word of God is just a dead letter, and those who claim to have the Spirit, and do not have the word of God to stabilize them, have nothing but wild fire, which always leads to trouble.

POVERTY VERSUS RICHES

Alright, besides their works, the Lord also spoke of their tribulation and poverty there at Smyrna. If they had tribulation, that means they had persecution and trials to deal with, and on top of that, a lack of material wealth, for that is where the term poverty is applied. Spiritually they were rich; for the Lord Himself said so. That is a completely opposite picture from Laodicea, the seventh church, and the seventh church age. It just goes to show what the effects of Satan's constant bombardment of truth are. Laodicea is the age of climax. Men have struggled for centuries, to climb the ladder of monetary success, and prestige, and we are living in the age where intellectual achievement has reached a peak, almost to the point of where God will actually allow it to go, before He calls an end to it all. We have put men on the moon, sent rockets into space to photograph Mars, Venus, and such like, and medical science itself has reached a great peak in trying to defeat a law of God set in affect when the first man and woman failed Him. They want to gain the supremacy over death. But they will never achieve their goal along those lines, for death is an appointment that every man has, and must keep. Only those who are lifted from this old earth by the Lord Himself will escape it, and those who are working so hard with their human efforts will not be among them. Nevertheless, intellectual achievement has ushered in an economic environment whereby the western world is living at its highest standard ever. That is why the Lord would say to the church at Laodicea, which is the church that corresponded to our age,(Revelation 3:17&18) (17)"Because thou sayeth, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: (18) I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire," and so forth. They were looking to their own self sufficiency more than to God who is the true provider of all that we have need of. It is Satan's goal, to get man with his human achievements to leave God out of the picture, and those who do so, no matter how rich they may be in this world's goods, in the eyes of God they are poverty stricken and naked, spiritually speaking. On the other hand, here were some people at Smyrna, probably just barely getting by, struggling to make ends meet, and on top of that, they were persecuted and abused, but because they had a strong faith, and a love for God that made them determined to stand, no matter what, the Lord said to them, "You are rich." They were laying up treasures in heaven, just like Jesus taught in the gospels, treasures that could not be corrupted, and that thieves could not break in and steal. Praise God! That is the kind of riches I desire. If we will just be loyal to God, true to His word, and love and respect each other, He will see to it, that we are cared for in this life. He never promised us great material riches, but He used the grass, the lilies, the sparrows, and such like, to show how God cares for His own, and how He will care for them in life.