At first glance, Revelation Chapters 2-3 seems like an odd segment of text. In Chapter 1 John sees Jesus in all his glory and in Chapter 4 John is transported into heaven! So what do we make of these seven letters? Some have taken the view that they represent not literal churches, but seven eras of Church History. Others see these letters as rhetorical devices used to present the problems that the rest of the Book of Revelation addresses. In our study of Revelation we will look at these churches as literal letters written by Jesus which show His passion for His Church!
Chapters 2 and 3 are not a pause in the story of Revelation; rather they show the impending persecution and the real life situations of Christians who are under threat of the Roman Empire.
I would encourage you to read through Revelation 2 and 3 and send in your questions!
3 comments:
Deb, you asked if Balaam is connected to Baal... Great question!
In the letter to the Capital city Pergamum, Jesus blasts this church for following the teaching of Balaam. What jesus is doing is going back to Jewish History and pulling out a story of the false prophet Balaam. You can read about him in Numbers 22-24. Balaam claimed to be a prophet, but in reality led the Jewish people away from God, and towards idol worship and immorality.
Moses wrote the book of Numbers some 1500 years before Jesus, so Jesus isn't saying that this Balaam was still alive and active! No, he is using the memory of what Balaam did at one time, and saying 'this is still happening today.' In some ways Jesus is using Balaam as a nickname to refer to the way that the Church in Pergamum is bending to their culture.
I'm curious what your thoughts are as to the meaning behind the letters all being written, not to the churches, but to 'the angel of each church'.
Pam, it is unusual, at least for our Western eyes, to read that Jesus wrote, 'to the angel's' at each Church! The word 'angel' is found 65x in Revelations, and each time with the same meaning: 'a heavenly being, a messenger.' There are a range of possible meanings, but I believe the best is that the angel guards over the church and is also identified with the specific city.
The presence of the angels reminds us that there are spiritual forces at work. They remind us that there is another reality that we don't see, but is present and active!
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