UNDERSTANDING THE BOOK OF
REVELATION
A VERSE BY VERSE ANALYSIS OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION
By
REV. FESTUS ASOPURUCHUKWU EKENYERE
Copyright © 2007 FESTUS A. EKENYERE UNDERSTANDING THE BOOK OF
REVELATION
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other without the written prior permission of the publisher.
National Library of Nigeria Cataloguing in Publication Data EKENYERE, Festus Asopuruchukwu, 1959
-Understanding the book of Revelation
1. Bible N. T. Revelation 11 – 111 – criticism, interpretation, etc.
I. Title
BS 2825.2 .E36 2007 228 ISBN 978-33875-5-3 AACR2
FOREWORD TO THE FIRST EDITION
The book of the Revelation is one of the most mysterious books of the Bible. Every saying there is shrouded in mystery, which needs to be unfolded for the benefit of born-again Christians. Pastor Festus Ekenyere has made a very serious attempt at unfolding the past, the present and the future of the Kingdom of God, which John the divine saw in the island of Patmos.
The book is now in your hand. Read it and understand the secret, which many commentators have failed to unfold about the book of Revelation. May the Almighty God give you an insight into understanding the Lordship of Jesus Christ, who is the Redeemer of mankind. Calvary blessings to you and all yours in Jesus’ name.
Most Rev. Professor B. A. Idahosa
DEDICATION
THIS EDITION IS DEDICATED TO PROPHET MOSES ELIJAH OMAH
AND THE
SAINTS OF THIS LAST GENERATION WHO ARE STRIVING TO MAKE HEAVEN.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
grace upon my life. This is a burden that only HIM could lift; an insight HIM alone can give. Therefore to HIM be glory and honour forever and ever.
The fatherly counsel of Professor Frank C. Carew of the Department of
Education, University of Maiduguri, added the needed impetus, which made this work a reality. I so much cherish the professional touch you put to my works especially this one. The good Lord will take you to higher grounds. Amen.
I appreciate the support of every member of our Church – FAITH
RECONCILIATION CHAPEL INT’L, Maiduguri. Your presence in the ministry has kept me always on my feet. I feel elated pastoring you. Thanks for your prayers.
Now to my nucleus family, which I owe a great deal of gratitude for their understanding. I have to sit on the computers for virtually all the hours of each day paying little or no attention to the home. The work became so tedious as I worked on six other books at the same time. I appreciate the patience of my wife, Pastor Mrs. Glad, my son K. C. and my daughter Peace. You are special to me. God will reward your patience.
I so much appreciate all my friends and admirers for their numerous contributions in cash and in words of encouragement. Your association has tremendously strengthened me. We will reign together with CHRIST!
OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION FROM UNGER’S BIBLE DICTIONARY
I. Introduction and salutation…..…... (1:1-8) II. “The things which you have seen” The glorified Christ ………(1:9-20)
III. “The things which are”: The seven churches….(2-3) A. The apostolic church: Ephesus ………...2:1-7
B. The persecuted church: Smyrna………….. 2:8-11 C. The worldly church: Pergamum …………2:12-17 D. The pagan church: Thyatira. ……….2:18-29 E. The Protestant church: Sardis…….…………3:1-6
G. The apostate church: Laodicea ……….….3:14-22 IV. “What must take place after these things”:
the Great
Tribulation and the second coming of Christ. (4-22) A. The church in heaven with Christ………4
1. Loosing of the seven-sealed book …………..5 B. The Great Tribulation ……….6:1-11:19
1. The seven seals………..6: 1-8:1
2. The seven trumpets ………8:2-11:19 C. The seven performers during the Great Tribulation.12-13
1. The woman: Israel………...12:1-2 2. The red dragon: Satan ……….12:3-4 3. The male child: Christ ……….……12:5-6
4. Michael, the archangel, wars with the dragon... 12:7-12
5. Satan’s persecution of the woman, Israel.12:13- 16 6. The remnant of Israel ………12:17
7. The Beast out of the sea: political power and a person ……13:1-10 8. The Beast out of the earth: Antichrist .13:11-18
D. The latter part of the Great Tribulation……….. 14 E. The seven bowls ………...15-16
F. Judgment of ecclesiastical and commercial Babylon ….17-18 G. Christ’s second advent……… 19
H. The Millennium.20
I. Eternity unveiled.21-22
1. The new earth ……….…….21:1 2. The new Jerusalem………21: 2-27 3. The new river ……….….22:1-7
V. Epilogue, final instructions and invitation (22:8-21)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Foreword to the First Edition……..……...iii 2. Dedication ………iv
3. Acknowledgment………..…..v
4. Outlines from Unger’s Bible Dictionary.…vi 5. Table of Contents …..………...viii 6. Preface to the First Edition. ……….1
7. Preface ………...8
8. Chapter one……….20 Verses………...9
9. Chapter two………...29 Verses…….…...30
a. The Church in Ephesus ……….………...30
b. The Church in Smyrna………..…………38
c. The Church in Pergamos ……….43
d. The Church in Thyatira ……….………..49
10. Chapter three …..……22 Verses …….…56
a. The Church in Sardis………..………….56
b. The Church in Philadelphia……….62
c. The Church in Laodicea………..67
11. Chapter four….……….11 Verses……….74
a. Old Testament Examples of Rapture………76
12. Chapter five.…..……….14 Verses……....87
13. Chapter six………..……17 Verses……...94
a. Great Tribulation Contents……….…..98
b. The Seal Judgments ……….99
14. Chapter seven …..……..17 Verses …….108
15. Chapter eight …..……...13 Verses…..…114
a. The Trumpet Judgments……….116
16. Chapter nine ...…………21 Verses …....121
17. Chapter ten ….….………11 Verses…....130
18. Chapter eleven …...……..19 Verses…...136
19. Chapter twelve ……..…..17 Verses …...148
20. Chapter thirteen …..…….18 Verses …..159
21. Chapter fourteen .………20 Verses …...181
22. Chapter fifteen ……..…….8 Verses ..…191
23. Chapter sixteen ……..…...21 Verses ….196 a. The Vial Judgments………197
24. Chapter seventeen ..……..18 Verses ..…208
a. Mystery, Babylon the Great………208
b. The Origin of Babylonian Religion …………...209
c. Babylonism in Romanism ………..214
d. The Mysteries Exposed ……….221
e. The Great Whore ………...239
25. Chapter eighteen…..……..24 Verses ….252 26. Chapter nineteen ..……….21 Verses ….263 27. Chapter twenty…..……….15 Verses ….276 28. Chapter twenty-one .…….27 Verses ….286 29. Chapter twenty-two …..….21 Verses …296 30. Summary ……….….305
31. Holy and Eternal Invitation. ………..…313
32. Your Position Now……….…..316
33. BIBLIOGRAPHY………318
34. LIST OF OTHER BOOKS………….…320
I believe this is one of the simplest books ever written in terms of
grammatical expression. I tried to avoid the use of heavy theological, historical and grammatical terminologies. Therefore, if you are expecting heavy terminologies from the Book of Revelation via Understanding the Book of Revelation, please bear with me. My purpose of writing this book is to see that everybody, no matter how poorly educated or highly placed, will come to the knowledge of the plans of God revealed in the Book of Revelation. I call this book a layman’s handbook.
Believe it or not, I have to be sincere to myself first before extending my sincerity to you. This book is born out of the trouble and worries I personally had in my spirit concerning what the future holds as a faithful born again Christian. I have spent hundreds of hours studying the Book of Revelation and making prophetic researches. I very much respect other people’s points of view in this regard.
The word “Revelation” is translated from the Greek word “Apokalupsis” which means, “uncovering, exposing, unveiling, revealing or making known”. This means that the things recorded in this book are not mysteries. They can be known. His children can know God’s plan. Amen.
A lot of people have applied so many methods of interpretation to the Book of Revelation. Such as – The Preterist Interpretation; The Continuous Historical Interpretation; The Spiritualist Interpretation and The Futuristic Interpretation.
In brief, let us have a fair knowledge of the method of interpretation applied by other interpreters. First, the Preterists believe that the things
recorded in the Book of Revelation are events happening at the time of its writing and as such can only be understood clearly by the saints of that age. They also believe that it was written as a comfort to the church at that time which was passing through persecutions.
Second, the Continuous Historians believe that the things written in the Book of Revelation cover the entire church history from the time of John the beloved until this day.
Third, the Spiritualists never believe that the Book of Revelation contains any historical fact whether past, present or future. They believe that the
recordings portray Christian principles of divine government on earth alone. The fourth school of thought that holds the Futuristic method of
interpretation sees the recordings in the Book of Revelation as God’s special and greatest revelation of the future, beginning from John’s day. We however, believe that the Book of Revelation is God’s perfect knowledge of the past, present and the future.
Jesus said to John, “Write the things which thou hast seen (past), and the things which are (present), and the things which shall be hereafter (future)” – Revelation 1:19. This is the divine key of interpretation given by our Lord Jesus and we accept it as the correct method of interpretation. Praise the Lord!
In our investigation, we will discover the present position of the Church of Jesus Christ; the meaning of the word – ‘Rapture’; the events that make up the ‘Great Tribulation’; who the Antichrist is; the Unholy trinity, and the Battle of Armageddon. We will also find out what the Mystery Babylon of Revelation chapter 17 and Babylon the great of chapter 18 are. The terms Millennium, and New heaven and New earth, holy Jerusalem, eternal life and everlasting punishment are among other subjects to be covered in the course of our study.
Views concerning the controversial ‘Rapture’ in relation to the time it will take place will be expressed. Some people believe in mid-tribulation rapture while others believe in post-tribulation rapture. But from scriptural position, I do not believe in any of these two.
Understandably, we may disagree on a few positions but on the basis of God’s word, we will find several common grounds of agreement. The Spirit of God will
help us to agree. My larger interest, which cannot be compromised, is my belief that Jesus is the Son of God who came into this world to save sinners of which I was the chief. He was raised crucified; died and was buried; on the third day He was raised by God the Father; He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God; He will come back again to take us home. The Word of God binds us together in Christ.
I admit that the word ‘Rapture’ is not in the Bible and that does not becloud its Christian use. It is as important as any event that will happen to a Christian. The word is taken from the Greek word, ‘Harpazo’ or the Latin word ‘Rapio’, which means to be caught up; or in English, ‘Rapture’. This is found in the book of I Thessalonians chapter 4, verses 16,17 – “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up (Harpazo) together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” This is the evacuation of Christians from the planet earth to meet the Lord in the clouds.
The Post-tribulationists base their assertion on Matthew chapter 24, Mark chapter 13, and Luke chapters 17 and 21. That is all right. But can be patiently take a fresh look at these chapters?
In Matthew 24:3, we read, “Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” Please note that the second advent of Christ is going to be in two parts – first, is the rapture (I Corinthians 15:51,52; I Thessalonians 4:16,17 and Revelation 4:1 plus other
passages of the scripture) and second, His revelation (Matthew 24:30; 25:31; Acts 1:11 and Revelation 19:11-16) to mention but a few. The disciples of our Lord Jesus were asking of the signs or events, which must take place before His coming (i.e. His revelation). No sign or event before the rapture! All signs mentioned in the gospels point to the coming of our Lord Jesus to establish His Kingdom here on earth.
At this point, I would like us to consider the following words, Mystery, Church and Rapture. A mystery is some thing that is not exposed, a secret,
something that is hidden or unknown. I would like us to understand the time or age when our Lord made these comments to His disciples. At that time, even the church in its New Testament revelation was a mystery not to talk of rapture. What do you think would have been the reaction of His disciples if He had told them that His body would be known as the Church?
Church was a mystery to the Lord’s early disciples when He was physically with them. In fact, He made mention of the word “Church” twice in all the gospels – Matthew 16:18 and 18:17. – “ And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it… And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a
publican.” Church as a body of Christ came into existence when our Lord Jesus had been glorified and after the Pentecost. And by definition, the church is the body of believers filled with the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
If the Lord did not speak much about the Church before His glorification, how then do you think He was speaking about the events prior to the rapture in Matthew, Mark and Luke? The word ‘Rapture’ came into being because of the
existence of the Church. Without the Church, there is no rapture. Therefore, the Lord was answering the question as it was asked by His disciples – “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and the end of the world?”
However, we His present disciples are not ignorant of when the rapture will take place or its meaning. The Lord said: “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit, when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth; for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew unto you things to come.” – John 16:12,13.
believers (the Church) and their evacuation (Rapture) when He said unto His
disciples “but ye cannot bear them now.” In other words, the Lord was saying that they could not understand what He was about to tell them. Nevertheless, He said, “the Spirit will show unto you (us) things to come” – including the rapture.
The Spirit has come and exposed the mysteries unto us from the Epistles and the Book of Revelation. Apostle Paul speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said, “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he (the Church) who now letteth will let, until he (the Church) be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked (Antichrist) be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming” – II Thessalonians 2:7,8. This and other passages in the Epistles teach us that the Church will be taken out of the earth when the inhabitants of the planet earth will undergo the Great Tribulation. For more clarification on pre-tribulation rapture please read my book – ‘RAPTURE AND THE GREAT TRIBULATION’.
In order to understand the sequence of future events, one must believe in the divine arrangement of the Book of Revelation, which is by chronological order. After the Lord’s message to the Churches – Revelation chapters 2 and 3, the next event is the rapture, which can happen any moment from now. In Revelation chapter 4, verse 1, we read “ After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in
heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be
hereafter.”
The Lord Himself said, “ Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” – Luke 21:36.
The thing that shall come to pass is the wrath of God or the Great
Tribulation, which takes effect from Revelation chapter 6, while the Church has been raptured in Revelation chapter 4, verse 1.
Now, do I say that the Church will not or never pass through tribulation? Don’t misunderstand me please! What I am saying is that the Church will never pass through the great tribulation, which is the wrath of God. The Church is passing through tribulations now. The recent Kaduna State religious disturbances in Northern Nigeria, which claimed many lives and church buildings was one of such tribulations. Christians everywhere are passing through several forms of
tribulation, trial and affliction. But the Great Tribulation mentioned by our Lord Jesus Christ in the gospels, which starts from Revelation chapter 6 will take place only after the Rapture.
These brief observations outline the three positions, which may differ from yours, but the love of Christ is our binding fold even if minor differences exist. The truth is that, God will not allow us to suffer His wrath with unbelievers.
My main reason for writing this book is to inform my readers and the entire world that the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ is at hand. It can be NOW!
I pray that whatever may be your belief, provided you are a born again Christian, you will be raptured whenever the time comes. If you are not born again, I pray that you will after reading this commentary.
Let us now proceed with open heart and read this book that may well be a spiritual turning point in your life.
God richly bless your reading with deeper revelation and edification. F. A. EKENYERE
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
So many things have happened in the last few decades. We have added some terrifying vocabularies to our list of words thereby enlarging our diaries. We have seen tremendous advancement in the world of technology and more horrifying natural and man-made disasters since the first edition of this work was published in 1990.
From Asian Tsunamis to Avian Flues; Hurricane Katrina to the plague of terrorists; Global village to global warming, etc., etc. All these call for a proper review of the first edition of the book – UNDERSTANDING THE BOOK OF REVELATION.
Apart from the review of some verses, emphasis is laid on the signs of His imminent return and the rapture of the church. My research work on the Mystery Babylon of Revelation chapter 17 is an interesting part of this edition. It added colour to the work!
It is an enlarged and more promising masterpiece fit for theological
seminaries, Sunday school and Bible study classes. Have a wonderful study period.
F. A. EKENYERE
CHAPTER ONE
We begin the study of the book of revelation from here. This chapter deals with the glorious vision of John the beloved, the description and titles of our glorified Lord Jesus Christ.
It is a general preface to the whole book and contains (a) an inscription, which declares the originality and design of the whole book, (b) the blessed results of taking due regard to the contents and (c) the glorious appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ to the apostle John and the divine method of interpretation. Let’s go through the verses with open heart.
VERSE 1
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.”
The understanding of this first verse will be exceeding important in the course of our study. Observe here the order of divine revelation – God gave it to Christ, and Christ through an angel communicated it to the churches. But it must come through the instrumentality of a human agent so, the apostle John was chosen. We know that angels are God’s messengers and ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation. As they are messengers of Christ, so the ministers are the messengers of the churches. As they receive from heaven so they deliver to the churches. Let us consider the following –
REVELATION: - As I said earlier, revelation is taken from the Greek word “apokalupsis” i.e. to show openly or act of making known. I would like us to recognize also that the word is in singular not plural. So many people have made the mistake of interpreting it as ‘revelations’. There is only one revelation here, and that is of our glorified Lord Jesus Christ, which Jehovah God gave Him. The book gains its value from its origin, not from the identity of John the
apostle.
SERVANTS: - This is a plural word and not singular. This means that God gave our Lord Jesus Christ the revelation to show unto His people (the Church), things, which must SHORTLY come to pass. The word “shortly” in the original language
means, “Rapidity of action once it started”. We therefore must be careful since the signs pointing to His return are beginning to appear with alarming frequency. Here we notice the subject matter of this revelation – “the things, which must shortly come to pass.
VERSE 2
“Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.”
To place more importance on the recognition of John to whom the vision was shown, the Bible points out that John bore record of the word of God and of the testimony of Jesus Christ.
The word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ are the special marks of a true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. Apostle John “His servant” was an
eyewitness to most of the works and words of Christ and he did always testify from that point of view.
Among the gospel writers, John was the only one who saw Jesus as the Word of God – John 1:1. In a common sense, the term “word” points to the means by which men communicate with each other. When a personality becomes “the Word of God”, it means that the Sovereign God communicates to mankind (and indeed to all His
creation) through that personality. This is exactly what John saw in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and he did testify it. As a Jew, he was familiar with “the Word of God” in the Old Testament especially as it applied to the Messiah. One of such passages that has a direct bearing to John 1:1-3 is Psalm 33:6 – “By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.”
The Holy Spirit expounded this fact through the apostle Paul when he said that Jesus “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or
powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Colossians 1:15-17.
John started bearing record of the Word of God when he said – “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father.) Full of grace and truth.” John 1:14. Take note of the phrase – “and we beheld his glory” … Look at the closing remark of his gospel account – “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.” – John 21:25. In other words, he could not publish all that he saw Jesus did and said. In the beginning of his
epistle he said – “THAT which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life: (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.” – I John 1:1-3.
What a record bearer! Your personal encounter with Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour can be determined by the way you witness about him to others. So you can be described by your activities. What are you known for? The apostle John was known as one “who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and all things that he saw.”
VERSE 3
“Blesseth is he that readeth, and they that hear the word of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.”
Some people, including ministers of the gospel in the orthodox historic churches believe that the Book of Revelation is a difficult book to understand. God is the God who cannot lie – Titus 1:2. If He should promise a special blessing to him that readeth, and they that hear and keep those things written therein; if they are unable to understand what was written, what use is it? The book is
therefore understandable and can be properly interpreted.
The main reason why the readers and hearers are encouraged to keep that which they have read and heard is that Christ’s return is at hand. Believers today need not waste their time doing, that which is unprofitable to the effort of the gospel of Christ. Well, if you are not a believer, you have to, after studying the Apocalypse. Christ is coming soon. Philippians 4:5 states: “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand”. I Peter 4:7 declares: “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” Revelation 22:20 states, “He which testifieth these things saith, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” There are other scriptures that bear witness that Christ’s appearance can be even now. Therefore, if you are ready, you can join me in looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ - Titus 2:13. Praise the Lord!
VERSE 4
“John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from Him which is, and which was, and which is to come, and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne.”
John began delivering the message of his vision foremost to seven local churches located in a land called Asia or Turkey (according to the Living Bible). Before I proceed, I would like us to understand that seven is God’s number of perfection. It does not mean that there were only seven churches in existence by then, but this number represents seven different stages in the history of God’s people through the Church age. We shall study the stages in chapters 2 and 3.
Grace be unto you, and peace, is God’s kind of greeting found in books of the New Testament, mostly the Epistles. One may ask, why not peace before grace. The answer is not far fetched. Jesus is the Prince of peace; therefore, no human being without Jesus can have peace. John 3:16 declares: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” God gave His only begotten Son because Romans 3:23 says – “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”. God first shows His unmerited favour and love called “Grace” to any sinner before the person can experience peace. This grace is publicly shown on Calvary tree and is freely bestowed upon all who believe and receive Christ. “But as many as received Him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on
his name” – John 1:12. My dear friend, this is a gift of God to all mankind. “For by grace are ye saved through faith: and that not of yourselves: IT IS A GIFT OF GOD… not of works, lest any man should boast” – Ephesians 2:8,9. God is calling you now; tomorrow may be too late.
You see, when God has forgiven your sins because of His love for you, peace follows. Repent, accept Jesus and then have peace with God. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”. - Romans 5:1.
The greeting or salutation is from Him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before His throne; Verse 5 adds – “and from Jesus Christ, …” This as we can see is from the entire Trinity. “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one”. – I John 5:7. First the Father which is, and which was, and which is to come; second, from the seven Spirits which are before His throne. This description presents the Holy Spirit in all of His
holiness. Read Isaiah 11:2 and Zechariah 4:2-6.
VERSE 5
“And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.”
Our Lord Jesus Christ is described in this verse as:
a) The faithful witness because of His acceptance to redeem mankind (this He did faithfully). He faithfully represented the Father physically on earth. Read John 14:10,11, Colossians 1:15.
b) The first begotten of the dead because He was raised by the Spirit of God (Romans 1:4; 8:11) unto immortality (I Timothy 6:16). Lazarus and others raised by Jesus Himself were not first begotten because they were raised only to die again (which they did). Christ was raised from the dead so as to show light unto the people, and to the Gentiles (Acts 26:23). So that in all things He might have the pre-eminence (Colossians 1:18)
c) The Prince of the kings of the earth because the kings of the earth shall make war with Him and He shall overcome them for He is the Lord of lords and the King of kings (Revelation 19:16). This is in the future when Christ shall
establish His millennial reign.
Jesus loves, and His love for us took Him to a place, which is called Calvary; there He was crucified (Luke 23:33). We are washed from our sins in His own blood. “But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out BLOOD and Water” – John 19:34. “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without the shedding of (Christ) blood, is no
remission.” – Hebrews 9:22. Christianity revolves around the crucifixion and the Blood of Jesus Christ.
VERSE 6
“And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
We recognized in verse 5 that Jesus loved us to such an extent that He washed away our sins and now had made us kings and priests unto God and His
Father. “Priest” is the title of every believer. The Bible teaches us that a child of God should come boldly to the throne of grace without human intermediary. “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace, to help in time of need” - Hebrews 4:16. This is because, “Ye also as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices… But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy
nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” I Peter 2:5,9. Praise the Lord for such a wonderful calling. I believe that from the point of view of
salvation, all souls are equal, but from the point of view of missionary strategy and responsibilities, they are not.
VERSE 7
“Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.”
John envisions the Lord’s return to the earth that will occur in chapter 19 as we study along. In the same line he also saw as – “Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with tem thousands of his saints” – Jude 14. This great event is described as the “revealing or
revelation” of Christ because every eye shall see Him. Please note that this is different from the rapture (which will occur before the revelation of Christ). Matthew 24:27 states: “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”
“And they also which pierced him” – who were those which pierced Him? They were the Jews – i.e. the Israelites. Zechariah 12:10 declare, “… They shall look upon me (Christ) whom they have pierced.”
The Lord is coming for judgment and no sinner shall escape punishment hence “all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him”. John beheld the Lord’s victory and cried – “Even so, Amen.”
VERSE 8
“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”
This verse throws more light on the oneness of Christ with the Father. The apostle John had no problem understanding the “I am”. In his gospel, he recorded the seven outstanding “I am” passages, which many Bible scholars have seen as an expansion of Exodus 3:14, which says – “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” Consider these:
1. “I am the bread of life.” John 6:35 2. “I am the light of the world John 8:12
3. “Before Abraham was, I am” John 8:58
4. “I am the good shepherd” John 10:11
5. “I am the resurrection and the life John 11:25 6. “I am the way, and the truth and the life” John 14:6 7. “I am the true vine” John 15:1
Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet hence the Lord said, “I am the beginning and the ending of all things”. Note that “am” is a present tense verb. Christ always was and is. He was in the beginning and He created all things. He was not from the beginning, but IN THE BEGINNING. No body can give account of the beginning. Christ is the beginning! “All things were made by him: and without him was not any thing made that was made” – John 1:3. Read also Colossians 1:16,17, Hebrews 1:3 and Ephesians 1:10.
Jesus here describes Himself as – He which is, and which was, and which is to come, and adds the Almighty. These are the same terminologies used to describe the Father in verse 4. It is an expression of Christ’s oneness with the Father, “If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also and henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him” – John 14:7.
art in me, and I in thee … that they may be one, even as we are one” – John 17:11,21,22.
VERSE 9
“I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
Here, John realized that he was a human being, so, he quickly tried to let us know that he partook in the tribulation (not great tribulation) so as to be a partaker in the kingdom of Christ. Being on the Isle of Patmos was itself a
tribulation, “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: If we deny him, he also will deny us” – II Timothy 2:12.
John went to Patmos because of his testimony and confession that Jesus is the Son of God who was crucified and raised for the sins of the world. If that was the price John the apostle paid for being a Christian, what price have you paid? We live in a generation where no body wants to suffer for the sake of the kingdom. Christianity to some people is a “give-me-give-me” affair. Again, may I ask, what price are you paying for the gospel to reach to the unreached? The desire of
apostle Paul was, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and THE FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SUFFERINGS, being made conformable unto his death.” Philippians 3:10 (Emphasis mine).
I am not saying that every one of us who believed in Jesus Christ must be persecuted like the apostles. The truth remains that one way or the other we must offer an inconveniencing sacrifice. It may be through activities, giving our time, energy, money or even our life. Remember the words of the Lord in Luke 14:26,27 – “if any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and
children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not BEAR HIS CROSS, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.”
VERSE 10
“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet.”
The Lord’s Day in the text before us means the first day of the week – Sunday – a day of worship. I am therefore convinced that before John found himself in the Spirit, he must have been worshipping God (Living Bible confirms it).
May I at this point denounce the school of thought that holds strongly on the conversion of the Roman day of sun-god worship into the day of the Lord – Sunday. If the Roman sun god is worshipped on Sunday and the Christian believer worships on the same day, that does not mean a mere conversion of idol worship day to the day of the Lord. Remember, every day is the Lord’s. Apart from that, I would like to establish the fact why the first day of the week – Sunday – is tagged the Lord’s Day and a day of divine worship by the believer in Christ.
Firstly, it is important to note that Jesus is the Testator of the New Testament and His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension marked the end of the dispensation of Law and the beginning of dispensation of grace simultaneously. The sabbatical law ended on the cross because according to Ezekiel 20:10-13, the children of Israel could not keep the law. Jesus is the fulfillment of the law – Matthew 5:17. Besides, Hebrews 7:11-16 established it this way – “If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of
Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? For the priesthood being changed, THERE IS MADE OF NECESSITY A CHANGE ALSO OF THE LAW. For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the alter. For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe
Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.”
It is because “there is made of necessity a change also of the law,” that the Lord’s day was changed from Saturday (the last day of the week) to Sunday (the first day of the week). How did it happen?
It all began from the day of His resurrection. The writer of the gospel according to Saint Mark puts it this way – “Now when Jesus was risen early the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven
devils.” All the gospel writers agreed to the Lord’s resurrection on the first day of the week. On the same day, he appeared to the eleven apostles – v14, to the two on the way to Emmaus – Luke 24:13-15.
The next appearance of Jesus was a week later. “And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you”. – John 20:26. By the resurrection and appearances of the Lord on Sundays, the Lord’s Day of fellowship was consecrated.
In the book of Acts of the Apostles, I discovered that apart from the synagogue gatherings, the believers used to meet for fellowship on the first day of the week. An example of such gatherings is found in Acts 20:7 – “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.” Again the apostle Paul reminded the disciples of their responsibilities as they meet together for Sunday fellowship. It is written, “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.” I Corinthians 16:1,2. Now you understand why John was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.
All along, we have been introducing the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit and John the beloved. From now we are going to share or study the body of the vision. “Where there is no vision, the people perish…” – Proverbs 29:18.
VERSE 11
“Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.”
The voice confirms the speaker as the “Alpha and Omega” who we discussed in verse 8, as Jesus Christ. The first and the last, the eternal Christ hereafter instructed John to write in a book what he saw. What book? The Book of Revelation as we have it today.
Christ further instructed John to send the book to seven local churches in Asia or rather Turkey. Now, the question is – why are we in possession of the Book of Revelation? The answer is that, the seven churches as we learnt in verse 4, represent seven different conditions the church of Christ has found her self-in. The present condition of the church is not exempted. We shall get it clearer when we study chapters 2 and 3. God knows the beginning from the end and vice versa and has accordingly prepared His Word to lighten our way.
VERSE 12
“And I turned to see the voice that spake to me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;
As John heard the voice he turned to see the voice (amazing isn’t it to see a voice). Then surprisingly, he saw seven golden candlesticks. The same type of vision that was shown to Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, in the book of Zechariah, chapter 4, verse 2 “…and behold a candlestick
all of gold, … and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof.”
We shall know the meaning of this vision in verse 20. VERSE 13
“And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle,”
Who is this Son of man, which John saw in the midst of the seven
candlesticks? In Daniel 7:13, Daniel declares: “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven …” Also in St. Matthew’s account, he records: “… but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head” – Matthew 8:20. Who is this Son of man that John even saw again in
Revelation 14:14? The same is He, which Nebuchadnezzar saw, and called Him the Son of God. “He answered and said, lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth man is like the Son of God.” – Daniel 3:25. Hallelujah! Who is this fourth man in the burning furnace? The devil even knows who He is “… there met him two possessed with devils … And, behold, they cried out, saying, what have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God?” – Matthew 8:28,29. Praise the Lord! We have got the message clearly. The Son of man in our text is the Son of God, who is no other person but out glorified Lord Jesus Christ.
The second of this verse describes His out-fit, which is like unto a high priest of the Old Testament. This shows that up till now Jesus is in heaven, doing the work of a priest, which is more or less the work of an intercessor. “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them … Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession” – Hebrews 7:25; 4:14
VERSE 14
“His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire.”
Daniel, in his days saw in a vision, the Ancient of days, the Eternal Christ, Jesus, the Son of God, and described Him as follows: “I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: His throne was like the fiery flames, and his wheels as burning fire.” – Daniel 7:9
The Lord’s righteousness has most of the times been likened to His
brightness or whiteness. Therefore, His description here shows that the Lord is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sin and made higher than the heavens – Hebrews 7:26.
Again, His eyes were as a flame of fire or rather “shut out fire” as in the translation from the Greek. This shows that Christ is righteously angry at the churches of chapters 2 and 3 concerning their sin.
VERSE 15
“And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as of the sound of many waters.”
The description of the Lord’s feet and voice in this text depicts judgment. Daniel saw the Lord in a similar vision – “… and his arms and his feet like in colour of polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a
multitude” – Daniel 10:6 VERSE 16
edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength”
As we will discover in verse 20, the seven stars the Lord had in His right hand are the angels of the seven local churches we discussed in verse 11 and which we are to study in detail in chapters 2 and 3.
The sharp two-edged sword that came out of His mouth is the word of God. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” – Hebrews 4:12. Paul, by the grace of God, advised us to use the two-edged sword in times of spiritual conflict. “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the
spirit, which is the word of God” – Ephesians 6:17.
A soldier cannot go to war without his weapons, therefore, “… as a good soldier of Jesus Christ “ (II Timothy 2:3) you must make sure that you have the sword every time, for you know not when the enemy will strike.
How can this be possible except we study the word (II Timothy 2:15), memorize the word (Psalms 119:11; 40:8; Isaiah 51:7) and meditate on the word (Joshua 1:8)?
Christ’s countenance here is described as “the sun shineth in his strength” because, there is nothing in heaven, on earth or under the earth that can be compared to our precious Lord’s glory. Praise the Lord! The same expression was given at the mount of transfiguration; “And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light” – Matthew 17:2. John beheld the glory of the Lord and trembled with fear.
VERSE 17
“And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:”
The glory of the Lord is incomparable and no man can behold it without falling face down. Peter, James and John beheld the glory in Matthew 17:6 and the Bible says, “They fell on their faces, and were sore afraid.” Saul beheld it also in Acts 9:4 as he was going to Damascus and the glory of the Lord shone round about him “and he fell to the earth …” In the text before us, John was not an exception. He beheld the glory and fell down, but, Jesus full of love and mercy laid His hands on him and said to him – Fear not, I am the first and the last”. What a comforting and encouraging voice!
VERSE 18
“I am He that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.”
The Lord wants us to remain courageous that is the reason why He described Himself as follows:
-(a) “He that liveth”: Christ lived in the beginning i.e. He was before the foundation of this world. “Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” I Peter 1:20. He said, ”Verily, verily I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” John 8:58.
(b) “And was dead:” The eternal Christ was made flesh and dwelt among us – John 1:14. Though He created the world – John 1:3, the world knew Him not and He was crucified. “And it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.” –Mark 15:25. Jesus, in order to fulfill that which was written, died on the cross of Calvary. “Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.” – Matthew 27:50.
(c) “And behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen:” Hallelujah! Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who by His Spirit raised our Saviour Jesus from the dead. Christ is alive forever more. The good news is that after the crucifixion and death of our precious Lord Jesus, He rose up again on the third day and ascended into heaven. “Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over Him.” – Romans 6:9. “So then after
the Lord had spoken unto them, He was received up into heaven and sat on the right had of God.” – Mark 16:19. Read also Acts 1:2,9 and Luke 24:51
Christ also has the keys of hell and of death. So many questions have been asked about the difference between hell and hell fire. So many people are confused by why Christ went to hell.
In Nigeria today, if one commits an offence and is arrested by the police, he is locked-up in a place called cell or maximum-security cell while investigation continues. Thereafter, if found guilty by the court of law and is sentenced, he will be taken to a prison yard. Therefore police cell (hell) is not the same as prison yard (hell fire or lake of fire). Hell fire is a place of everlasting punishment.
Hell or Hades is a place where the souls and spirits of ALL human beings went until the cross i.e. until Jesus went to preach the good news there. – I Peter 3:19.
The Bible teaches us that, Jesus took the key of hell from Satan and led captivity captive – Ephesians 4:8-10. In Matthew 27:52,53 the Bible records that the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection; and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Christ opened this part of hell (police cell) for the saints (i.e. believers or those who commit no offence) to enter into the third heaven shown in II
Corinthians 12:2.
Now, may I quickly say that hell has two different compartments, one for the wicked and the other for the righteous. Hay! Have you ever gone to any C.I.D. office or Police station in Nigeria? There are some suspects who are being detained behind he counter and some behind the bars with great suffering before the Commandant-General – Jesus Christ comes in and declares those behind the counter free. Hallelujah! That was why they were seen in the holy city. In the book of Luke chapter 16, verses 22 and 23, the Bible records that Lazarus the beggar died and was carried to the righteous compartment (i.e. a place of
comfort), and the rich man died and found himself in the wicked compartment (i.e. a place of suffering). At present the righteous compartment is empty because, all believers, whether dead or alive are seated in heavenly places. “And hath raised us up, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” – Ephesians 2:6. The compartment of the wicked is still full. This will be emptied on the judgment day when death and hell shall deliver the dead – Revelation 20:13.
We need not to be afraid of death any more because Christ has the key of death, “… that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” – Hebrews 2:14,15. We are delivered from this bondage the moment we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour.
VERSE 19
“Write the things which thou hath seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;”
As I said earlier on, this verse throws more light on the pattern of
interpretation and gives us the order of the Book of Revelation, which is written as the events happen. We immediately recognize the three tenses – the things that thou hath seen (past tense), Chapter 1; the things, which are (present tense) Chapters 2 and 3; the things, which shall be hereafter (future tense) Chapters 4 through 22 with chapter 12 as a parenthesis.
“The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven Churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven Churches.”
This verse is self-explanatory. Seven candlesticks represent the seven Churches we discussed in verse 11, here and their angels are the seven stars seen in the right hand of the Lord.
Matthew 5:14 declares – “Ye are the light of the world.” This verse is not talking to unbelievers but to those who have accepted Jesus as their personal Lord and Saviour. The combination of believers, which are portrayed here as the light of the world is called the Church or the body of Christ, and Christ, is the head. “And He is the head of the body, the Church: …” – Colossians 1:18.
The angels of the Churches are represented with seven stars because of their brightness, which portrays holiness. Understand that the Pastors or Ministers in charge of these Churches can represent these angels.
CHAPTER TWO
Chapters two and three deal with the epistles to the seven churches. This is the second part of the book of Revelation (“the things which are”) according to the order given in Chapter one verse nineteen.
These letters were written to seven literal, local churches mentioned in chapter 1:11. Though these letters were written to these churches situated in seven different cities in Asia, they are also applicable to seven individuals in the church, seven stages the church will go through before the eternal age or even seven different churches in this generation. Whichever way you view the letters, they were from our glorified Lord Jesus Christ so, let us take some time to analyze them.
THE CHURCH IN EPHESUS VERSE 1
“Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith He that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks.”
Historically, the Church of Ephesus existed from approximately 30AD to 100AD, and was known as the Apostolic Church. The Church of Ephesus was a famous church planted by the apostle Paul – read Acts of the Apostles Chapter 19. Apostle John who had his house there later oversaw the church. At the time this letter was written, Timothy was the sole pastor and bishop. It is interesting to note that
the angel or messenger to whom the epistle was addressed to was one with such an excellent spirit who was zealous for the work of the ministry yet the epistle contains such rebukes as we will see later.
According to our study of Chapter 1 verse 13-16, we discovered that the sender of this epistle was our Lord Jesus Christ “that holdeth the seven stars in His hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks.” Let us examine the two parts of this title individually –
i. “He that holdeth the seven stars in His hand”
As we learnt in Chapter 1 verse 16, the stars in the hand of the Lord are the angels or ministers of the local churches. In this text, the messenger of the Church of Ephesus. What a comfort and assurance to learn that the Ministers of the Lord are under His special care and protection. Matthew Henry says, “it is the honour of God that he knows the number of the stars, calls them by their names, binds the sweet influences of Pleiades and looses the bands of Orion; and it is the honour of the Lord Jesus Christ that the ministers of the gospel, who are greater blessings to the church than the stars are to the world, are His hand.” Without infiltration or present day pollution, a true minister of the gospel is an instrument in the hands f the Lord.
ii. “Who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks”
Chapter 1 verse 20 reveals that the seven golden candlesticks are the seven
churches. Again, it is a thing of joy to know that the good Lord cares, loves and walks or dwells in the midst of His people. Matthew Henry again puts it this way – “Christ is in an intimate manner present and conversant with His churches; He knows and observes their state; He takes pleasure in them, as a man does to walk in his garden. Though Christ is in heaven, he walks in the midst of His churches on earth, observing what is amiss in them and what it is that they want. This is a great encouragement to those who have the care of the churches, that the Lord Jesus has graven them upon the palms of His hands.” How I wish the church will understand this point clearly and stop mechanizing the anointing. We need to
depend solely on Him. “… and your life is hid in Christ in God.” – Colossians 3:3. This is the believers’ security!
VERSE 2
“I know thy works, and thy labour and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil; and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars,”
One special thing we will learn from most of the letters written to the seven churches through their angels is that our Lord Jesus used a system of
communication known as sandwich communication. He first of all commends them for whatever good He finds in them before scolding them for their sins.
This verse confirms the good beginning of the church of Ephesus – see Acts 20:17-21,29-31. Because of this warning, the church initially tried to judge righteously and tried every spirit, prophet and apostle to see if they were of Christ. Unfortunately as we will discover, this same church relaxed and
subsequently lost its first love.
So many believers today thing that it is a sin to judge. They hold on the text, which says, – “Judge not, that ye be not judged” – Matthew 7:1. Yes! This is true, it simply means that we should not judge a person as far as character and motives are concerned. But, we are to judge the person if his doctrine is
heretical or his life is full of wickedness. It is written- “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment” – John 7:24. Amen! I John 4:1 declares: “Beloved believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” The church initially practiced these scriptures and found so many prophets and apostles as
liars. In these last days, we are to hold onto these same scriptures prayerfully; “For there shall arise false christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” – Matthew 24:24.
A close look at the this church from the book of Acts reveals the truth in Hebrews 4:13 – “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” The Church of Ephesus was therefore commended for:
a. Their diligence in ministry: “I know thy works, and thy labour,” The Lord takes note of our every-day labour in the vineyard. He has also promised to reward us accordingly.
b. Their patience in labour: “thy labour and thy patience,” Understand that Timothy, who pastured this church had this admonition from apostle Paul – “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” – I Timothy 2:3. Being diligent is one thing, being patient is another virtue essential in the work of the ministry.
c. Their true zeal against evil: “how thou canst not bear them which are evil;” Again, this zeal is traceable to the epistle of Paul to the Church of Ephesus. He said to them, “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness, but rather reprove them.” – Ephesians 5:11. They held unto these words and “tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars.”
VERSE 3
“And hast borne, and has patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.”
This is a continuation of the Lord’s commendation to the church of Ephesus. They laboured and probably were hated for the sake of the Lord. “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake; But he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” – Matthew 10:22.
I believe that one of the reasons why this church failed was that, at a time; they were active and became preoccupied with programmes to the extent that they forgot to have sweet fellowship at the feet of Jesus. No time again to read their Bible, and no time for prayer. Many people have failed even today because of this reason. Be careful lest your activities deprive you of have communion with God.
Let’s hear the result – VERSE 4
“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.”
The Scripture says, “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” – I Corinthians 10:12. The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect Judge. He takes notice of the good in us as well as our shortcomings. We must always watch and pray because there is a traitor in the camp.
We live in a decaying generation where evil multiplies in rapid proportion and as a result, the love of many for the kingdom is waxing cold. The church of Ephesus was charged for their decay and declension in holy love and zeal. They left their first love even though they did not forsake God completely; but that initial fervency was no more.
This evil is prevalent in the lives of God’s people today. You can observe in most people the warmth of their affections toward Christ, heaven and the church when they first gave their lives to Christ. These warm and lively affections tend to fade away with time if adequate precautions are not taken to preserve them in constant spiritual practices. God is not happy with His people when they grow cold and weak toward Him and the affairs of His kingdom. So, He finds a means of making
them sensible to that fact. This is exactly what happened to the church of Ephesus. We must be vigilant!
VERSE 5
“Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, 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.”
The Lord gives a wise counsel to the backsliding church/Christian who have lost their first love. There are so many people today who are in the church but little do they know that they are on their way to hell. How then would some one know that he has lost his first love? Simple! You can know this when you compare your present love for God and His kingdom business with your former state. When you consider how zealous you are doing the service of the Lord the first time you gave your life to Him and how reluctant you are now. If you are the sincere type, you will definitely know whether you have left your first love or not.
If you have, then the Lord’s counsel is that you must repent. You must be grieved and sorrowful for the sin of decay and declension. You must be able to confront self and subdue the flesh. You must be humble enough to confess this sin to the Lord and receive grace to forge ahead.
It does not only end in repentance, you must be prepared to “do the first works.” This means you must trace your steps back and recover your first zeal and begin to do again those works that brought such tremendous joy to your soul and glory to the Lord. You must ask God for revival earnestly and be very watchful as you run the race diligently.
The Lord’s counsel is enforced by a severe threatening, should it be neglected – “or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy
candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” When the presence of the Lord is not in a church or among the people, there is emptiness and darkness. In such a gathering, the grace, anointing and love of the Lord cannot be made manifest. In fact, the real church will be non-existent. It really happened to the church at Ephesus. After the conquest of Mohammedanism, the church at Ephesus became non-existent. Pray that it will not happen to you or your church.
VERSE 6
“But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.”
The question is – Who were the Nicolaitanes and what was it about them that made the church of Ephesus and God to hate them? The term Nicolaitane comes from two Greek words, which, means “Victory over the laity”. It has got to do with the exaltation of the clergy over the laity or laymen. Clergymen were power-drunk and position-drunk. It is type of religious dictatorship that allowed little or no freedom to its members. Are you still confused? What I mean is that the
Nicolaitanes are those Pastors who lord it over their members. The Bible says, “Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.” – I Peter 5:3.
VERSE 7
“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the spirit saith unto the churches; to him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.”
What a sandwich communication! The conclusion of the letter to the church of Ephesus is almost the same with the others. The Lord enforced His counsel with a call to diligence – “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto
the churches.” By this call, we understand that the written words of God are spoken words of the Holy Spirit to all churches of all ages. Also by implication, we understand that the primary purpose for our hearing faculties is to assimilate the word of the Holy Spirit. Therefore if we fail to make proper use of our
faculty of hearing, on he last day, we would have wished we never had a capacity of hearing any thing at all.
Another way the Lord enforced His counsel was by the promise He made to the overcomer. The question therefore is, who is an overcomer? An overcomer is he that trusts in the merits of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, enduring and walking in the footsteps of the Lord till the end. The apostle John says, “Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God.” – I John 5:5.
The promise is the gift of eternal life. This is made possible because the overcomer will eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. This is what Adam would have had if he had not failed in his trial, he would have eaten of this tree of life and then lives forever. But he did not keep the commandments of God, he did not endure to the end; he failed and was cast out of the garden. The Bible says, “And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” – Genesis 3:22-24. The angels that keep guard over the tree of life will one day receive a command to give way for the overcomers to have access to it. The overcomers – those who persevere in their Christian trials and fought the good fight of faith to the end of time. Hallelujah! They will have what Adam could not get.
THE CHURCH IN SMYRNA VERSE 8
“And unto the angel of the church of Smyrna write; these things saith the first and the last, which was dead and is alive;”
The church of Smyrna, was the second to be addressed. Historically, the Smyrna church existed from approximately 100 A.D. until 313 A.D. A persecuted Church.
Again, according to our study of chapter 1, verse 11, we discovered that the first and the last here is no other person but our Lord Jesus Christ, which was dead (crucified) and is alive (resurrected). Let’s hear what He has to say. VERSE 9
“I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not but are the synagogue of Satan.”
No matter the condition in which you find yourself as a Christian, the Lord knows about it. He takes perfect cognizance of all the works and conditions of men.
The Smyrna Church suffered great persecution. They faithfully performed works in the name of Jesus and this brought severe persecutions and poverty (materially). The Lord knows about all and He said “but thou art rich”. Their riches (rewards) were laid up for them in heaven. Your riches as dedicated and relentless Christian are laid up for you in heaven. I am talking of riches, which
