Daily Scripture Reading Revelation 2:1-17
Throughout church history there has been a pattern that a church starts out faithful to God, but then over time it compromises with the culture and gradually backslides. New churches are planted in response to the regression, but then those churches also follow the pattern and eventually walk away from true doctrine. This has happened so many times over the centuries that now there are countless denominations, many of which no longer proclaim Biblical truth.
The 2nd chapter of Revelation contains letters that were written to some of the 1st century churches in Asia. Some of those churches were already backsliding, and the warnings issued to them are applicable to us today.
Rev. 2:1 ¶ “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ¶ This is what the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says:
The 19th chapter of Acts tells us Paul spent two years in Ephesus preaching the gospel, yielding much fruit. He was so successful that the artisans who depended on idol worship started a riot opposing Paul. This tells us the church at Ephesus was vibrant at one time.
The pronoun “One” refers to Jesus.
Rev. 2:2 ¶ ‘I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot bear with those who are evil, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false;
Rev. 2:3 and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, you also have not grown weary.
This reinforces the idea that the church in Ephesus had a good history.
Rev. 2:4 But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
The text does not specify their first love. I assume they either left their focus on Jesus, their commitment to proclaiming the gospel, or their dedication to teaching the Bible.
There are many churches today who have also left their first love. When they were founded, they were intent on preaching the resurrection and Lordship of Jesus. They knew how to truly lead people to salvation. But then they were contaminated by the culture, and now they are more concerned with comfort and getting along with the world than they are with faithfully proclaiming the truth.
Rev. 2:5 Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first. But if not, I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place, unless you repent.
Look at the word “lampstand” and notice that Jesus threatened to remove the lampstand of Ephesus. We see in Rev. 1:12 that John saw a vision of Jesus amongst seven lampstands. Rev. 1:20 tells us the lampstands represent the seven churches. When Jesus threatened to remove the lampstand of Ephesus, He was saying that if the church in Ephesus did not repent, then He would stop considering the church in Ephesus to be a church.
This is a stark warning to modern churches who have lost their zeal for proclaiming Biblical truth. It is possible that many organizations which consider themselves to be churches are no longer churches in the eyes of God.
Rev. 2:6 Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
Rev. 2:7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.’
Rev. 2:8 ¶ “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ¶ This is what THE FIRST AND THE LAST, who was dead, and has come to life, says:
The church in Smyrna is only mentioned in the book of Revelation.
Rev. 2:9 ¶ ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
Ponder the words “poverty (but you are rich)”. The church in Smyrna did not have many material possessions, but their Christianity and hope for the future made them spiritually rich.
Humans are naturally inclined to measure wealth and success by material possessions. However, this line reminds us that true wealth is in heaven, and anyone who is a believer is rich no matter their economic circumstances.
Rev. 2:10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Rev. 2:11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will never be hurt by the second death.’
Rev. 2:12 ¶ “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ¶ This is what the One who has the sharp two-edged sword says:
The church in Pergamum is only mentioned in the book of Revelation.
Rev. 2:13 ¶ ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is; and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
The phrase “where Satan’s throne is” tells us Pergamum was a very idolatrous/Satanic city.
Rev. 2:14 But I have a few things against you, that you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality.
When the Israelites came out of Egypt, they were given the Mosaic Law, part of which commanded them to be different than the surrounding nations and worship only Yahweh. Balaam taught Balak that the key to defeating Israel was to deceive them into adapting to the culture and worshipping false gods.
Rev. 2:15 So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
The Bible does not define the teaching of the Nicolaitans, but the context indicates the Nicolaitans believed it was okay to adopt cultural practices that were contrary to the Bible.
This happens today. The Bible tells Christians to be different than the world, but many Christians ignore that command and compromise Biblical standards in order to be get along with the world. They think they are being effective witnesses, but conforming to the world is strictly forbidden by God and is sin.
Rev. 2:16 Therefore repent. But if not, I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.
Rev. 2:17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, to him I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it.’
Throughout church history there has been a pattern that a church starts out faithful to God, but then over time it compromises with the culture and gradually backslides. We see in the 2nd chapter of Revelation that this pattern was already happening in the 1st century AD. The primary tendency that needs to be avoided by churches is the tendency to adapt to the culture.
In what ways is your church adapting to the culture?
When outsiders look at your church, do they see people who are living a lifestyle that is clearly different than the lifestyle of most people in your community?
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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”