I know thy works

Please Heavenly Father, bless us right now as we seek to read, and keep the prophecies in this book of Revelation, given to us by Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior through His servant, John. 

*******

Daniel and Revelation - by Uriah Smith-

Rev. 2-

Verse

8 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 art rich)

 and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not,

 but are the synagogue of Satan.

10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer:

behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison,

that ye may be tried;

and ye shall have tribulation ten days:

be thou faithful unto death,

and I will give thee a crown of life.

11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;

He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

The Church of Smyrna.--

It will be noticed that the Lord introduces Himself to each church by mentioning some of His characteristics which show Him to be peculiarly fitted to bear to them the testimony which He utters.

To the Smyrna church, about to pass through the fiery ordeal of persecution, He reveals Himself as one who was dead, but is now alive.

If they should be called to seal their testimony with their blood, they were to remember that the eyes of One were upon them who had shared the same fate, but had triumphed over death, and was able to bring them up from a martyr's grave.

Poverty and Riches.--

"I know thy . . . poverty," says Christ to them, "but thou art rich."

Strange paradox this may seem at first. But who are the truly rich in this world?--Those who are "rich in faith" and "heirs of the kingdom."

 The wealth of this world, for which men so eagerly strive, and so often barter away present happiness and future endless life,

Page 369

is "coin not current in heaven." One writer has well said, "There is many a rich poor man, and many a poor rich man."

"Say They Are Jews, and Are Not."--That the term Jew is not here used in a literal sense, is very evident.

It denotes some character which was approved by the gospel standard. Paul's language will make this point plain. He says: "He is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter, whose praise is not of men, but of God." Romans 2: 28, 29.

Again he says: "For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel; neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children." Romans 9: 6, 7

In Galatians 3: 28, 29, Paul further tells us that in Christ there are no such outward distinctions as Jew or Greek; but if we are Christ's, then are we "Abraham's seed" (in the true sense), and heirs according to the promise.

To say, as some do, that the term Jews is never applied to Christians, is to contradict all these inspired declarations of Paul, and the testimony of the faithful and true Witness to the Smyrna church. Some were hypocritically pretending to be Jews in this Christian sense, when they possessed none of the necessary characteristics. Such were of the synagogue of Satan.

Tribulation Ten Days.--As this message is prophetic, the time mentioned in it must also be regarded as prophetic. Since a prophetic day stands for a literal years, the ten days would denote ten years. It is a noticeable fact that the last and most bloody of the ten great persecutions of the Christian church continued just ten years, from A.D. 303 to 313, beginning under Diocletian.

It would be difficult to make an application of this language on the ground that these messages are not prophetic; for in that case only ten literal days could be meant. It would not seem improbable that a persecution of only ten days, or only a single church, would be made a matter of prophecy; and no mention of any such case of limited persecution can be found.

Page 371

Again, apply this persecution to any of the notable ones of that period, and how could it be spoken of as the fate of one church alone? All the churches suffered in them. Where, then, would be the propriety of singling out one particular group, to the exclusion of the others, as being the only one involved in such a calamity?

The Admonition.--"Be thou faithful unto death." Some have endeavored to base a criticism on the use of the word "unto," instead of "until," as though the idea of time was not involved. But the original word, achri, here rendered "unto," signifies primarily "until." NO argument, however, can be drawn from this for consciousness in death. The vital point for that argument is still lacking, for it is not affirmed that the crown of life is bestowed immediately at death. We must consequently look to other scriptures to learn when the crown of life is given; and other scriptures inform us fully.

Paul declares that this crown is to be given at the day of Christ's appearing (2 Timothy 4: 8); at the last trump (1 Corinthians 15: 51-54); when the Lord shall Himself descend from heaven (1 Thessalonians 4: 16, 17); when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, says Peter (1 Peter 5: 4); at the resurrection of the just, says Christ (Luke 14: 14); and when He shall return to take His people to the mansions prepared for them, that they may ever be with Him (John 14: 3). "Be thou faithful until death," and having been thus faithful, when the time comes that the saints of God are rewarded, you shall received a crown of life.

The Promise to the Overcomer.--"He shall not be hurt of the second death." Is not the language Christ here uses a good comment upon what He taught His disciples when He said, "Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell"? Matthew 10: 28. The Smyrna church members might be put to death here, but the future life which was to be given them, man could not take away, and God would not. Hence they were to fear not those who could kill the body, fear

Page 372

none of the things which they should suffer, for their eternal existence was assured.

The Meaning and the Time of the Church.--Smyrna signifies "myrrh," fit appellation for the church of God while passing through the fiery furnace of persecution, and proving herself a "sweet-smelling savor" unto Him. But we soon reach the days of Constantine, when the church presents a new phase, rendering a different name and another message applicable to her history.

According to the foregoing application, the date of the Smyrna church would be A.D. 100-323.

*******

Revelation Chapter 2

Verses

8 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 art rich)

 and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not,

 but are the synagogue of Satan.

10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer:

behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison,

that ye may be tried;

and ye shall have tribulation ten days:

be thou faithful unto death,

and I will give thee a crown of life.

11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;

He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Most of us use wikipedia nowadays, and on wikipedia I was able to find this-

'The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman empire.[1] In 303, the Emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding the legal rights of Christians and demanding that they comply with traditional Roman religious practices. Later edicts targeted the clergy and ordered all inhabitants to sacrifice to the Roman gods (a policy known as universal sacrifice). The persecution varied in intensity across the empire—weakest in Gaul and Britain, where only the first edict was applied, and strongest in the Eastern provinces. Persecutory laws were nullified by different emperors at different times, but Constantine and Licinius's Edict of Milan (313) has traditionally marked the end of the persecution.[2]

Christians had always been subject to local discrimination in the empire, but early emperors were either too reluctant to issue general laws against them or, at least in the 3rd century (see Crisis of the Third Century), too caught up with more immediate issues to do so. It was not until the 250s, under the reigns of Decius and Valerian, that such laws were passed. Under this legislation, Christians were compelled to sacrifice to Roman gods or face imprisonment and execution.[3] When Gallienusacceded in 260, he issued the first imperial edict regarding tolerance toward Christians,[4] leading to nearly 40 years of peaceful coexistence. Diocletian's accession in 284 did not mark an immediate reversal of disregard to Christianity, but it did herald a gradual shift in official attitudes toward religious minorities. In the first fifteen years of his rule, Diocletian purged the army of Christians, condemned Manicheans to death, and surrounded himself with public opponents of Christianity. Diocletian's preference for autocratic government, combined with his self-image as a restorer of past Roman glory, presaged the most pervasive persecution in Roman history. In the winter of 302, Galerius urged Diocletian to begin a general persecution of the Christians. Diocletian was wary, and asked the oracle of Apollo for guidance. The oracle's reply was read as an endorsement of Galerius's position, and a general persecution was called on February 24, 303.

Persecutory policies varied in intensity across the empire. Where Galerius and Diocletian were avid persecutors, Constantius was unenthusiastic. Later persecutory edicts, including the calls for universal sacrifice, were not applied in his domain. His son, Constantine, on taking the imperial office in 306, restored Christians to full legal equality and returned property that had been confiscated during the persecution. In Italy in 306, the usurper Maxentius ousted Maximian's successor Severus, promising full religious toleration. Galerius ended the persecution in the East in 311, but it was resumed in Egypt, Palestine, and Asia Minor by his successor, Maximinus. Constantine and Licinius, Severus's successor, signed the Edict of Milan in 313, which offered a more comprehensive acceptance of Christianity than Galerius's edict had provided. Licinius ousted Maximinus in 313, bringing an end to persecution in the East.

From <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocletianic_Persecution> '

303AD to 313AD -  Ten years and this is HISTORY!

Can we rightly divide the word of truth as we use HISTORICAL FACT to comprehend?

10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer:

behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison,

that ye may be tried;

and ye shall have tribulation ten days:

be thou faithful unto death,

and I will give thee a crown of life.

What an amazing prophecy! The single greatest period of the most intense killing of Christians - anywhere from 10,000 to 100,000 murdered, martyred while remaining FAITHFUL unto death!

John wrote this BEFORE it happened. John was LONG dead by this time, but the words of this prophecy were not dead, but alive with truth!

And to have the prophecy to the second church applicable today, we know that our Savior knows our works, our every action, He knows our every tribulation, our every bit of poverty. Our Savior comprehends the life we live in the flesh with all its hardships and He knows how incredibly RICH we can be in the SPIRIT, in HIM even when we are extremely poor in the ways of the world. This is truth.  Our Savior also knows every single person who claims to be His but aren't. He knows who we truly follow in our heart of hearts He knows.   No, we aren't to fear all we are called to suffer because we KNOW a crown of life awaits us! That second death which brings final everlasting destruction upon the wicked will NOT be felt by those who are HIS and this is our HOPE today, the SAME hope they had in the past.

May we be found HIS and not satan's!  May we all receive a crown of life when our Savior returns for us! May we all realize every single pain we suffer now is truly temporary to eternity with our LORD JESUS CHRIST!

All in HIM, always!

Amen.

Leaving their first love

Please Lord, bless us as we continue our study. We are reading, help us to hear, teach us to hear, to understand all You would have us understand. By Your will!

*******

From the book - Daniel and Revelation - by Uriah Smith

The Angel of the Church.--

The angel of a church must denote a messenger, or minister, of that church.

As each church covers a period of time, the angel of each church must denote the ministry, or all the true ministers of Christ during the period covered by that church. The different messages, though addressed to the ministers, cannot be understood to be applicable to them alone, but are appropriately addressed to the church through them.

The Cause of Complaint.--

"I have somewhat against thee," says Christ, "because thou hast left thy first love." "Not less worthy of warning than departure from fundamental doctrine or from Scriptural morality, is the leaving of first love.

The charge here is not that of falling from grace, nor that love is extinguished, but diminished. No zeal, no suffering, can atone

Page 365

for the want of first love." The time never should come in a Christian's experience, when, if he were asked to mention the period of his greatest love to Christ, he would NOT say, The present moment.

But if such a time does come, then he should remember whence he has fallen, meditate upon it, carefully call up the state of former acceptance with God, and hasten to repent and retrace his steps to that desirable position. Love, like faith, is manifested by works; and first love, when it is attained, will always bring forth corresponding works.

The Admonition.--

"I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent."

The coming here mentioned must be a figurative coming, signifying a visitation of judgment, inasmuch as it is conditional.

The removal of the candlestick would denote the taking away from the church of light and privileges of the gospel, and the committing of these advantages to other hands, unless the church should better fulfill the responsibilities of the trust committed to it.

It would be the rejection of them by Christ as His representatives, to bear the light of His truth and gospel before the world. This threatening would be just as applicable to individuals as to the church as a body. How many who professed Christianity during that period came short and were rejected, we do now know, but doubtless many. Thus things would go on, some remaining steadfast, some backsliding and becoming no longer light-bearers in the world, new converts meanwhile filling up the vacancies made by death and apostasy, until the church reached a new era in her experience, marked off as another period in her history, and covered by another message.

The Nicolaitanes.--

How ready is Christ to commend His people for whatever good qualities they may possess! If there is anything of which He approves, He mentions first. In this message to the church of Ephesus, after first mentioning their commendable traits and then their failures, as if unwilling

Page 366

to pass by any of their good qualities, He says that they hated the deed of the Nicolaitanes, which He also hated.

In verse 15 the doctrines of the same characters are condemned. It appears that they were a class of people whose deeds and doctrines were both abominable in the sight of Heaven. Their origin is involved in some doubt. Some say that they sprang from Nicholas of Antioch, one of the seven deacons (Acts 6: 5); some, that they only attribute their origin to him to gain the prestige of his name; and others, that the sect took its name from one Nicholas of later date. The latter theory is probably more nearly correct. Concerning their doctrines and practices, there seems to be a general agreement that they held to a community of wives, regarded adultery and fornication as matters of indifference, and permitted the eating of things offered to idols. (See Clarke, Kitto, and other commentators.)

The Summons to Attention.--

"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." This is a solemn manner of calling universal attention to that which is of general and most momentous importance. The same language is used to each of the seven churches.

Christ, when upon earth, made use of the same form of speech in calling the attention of the people to the most important of His teachings. He used it in reference to the mission of John (Matthew 11: 15), the parable of the sower (Matthew 13: 9), and the parable of the tares, setting forth the end of the world (Matthew 13: 43). It is also used in relation to an important prophetic fulfillment in Revelation 13: 9.

The Promise to the Overcomer.--

To the victor it is promised that he shall eat of the tree of life that grows in the midst of Paradise, or in the garden, of god. Where is this Paradise? It is in the third heaven. Paul writes, in 2 Corinthians 12: 2, that he knew a man (referring to himself) caught up to the third heaven. In verse 4 he says that he was caught up into "Paradise," leaving only one conclusion to be drawn, which is that Paradise is in the third heaven. In this Paradise, it seems, is the tree of life. There is but one tree of life brought to view in

Page 367

the Bible. It is mentioned six times, three times in Genesis, and three times in the Revelation; but it is used every time with the definite article "the." It is the tree of life in the first book of the Bible, the tree of life in the last; the tree of life in the "Paradise" (the term used for "garden" in the Greek translation of Genesis) in Eden at the beginning, and the tree of life in the Paradise of which John now speaks, in heaven above.

If there is but one tree, and that was at first upon earth, it may be asked how it has now come to be in heaven. The answer would be that it must have been taken up to the Paradise above. There is no possible way that the identical body which is situated in one place can be located in another but by being transported there bodily. That the tree of life and Paradise have been removed from earth to heaven there is a very good reason to believe.

On commentator remarks on this point:

"The act of God in appointing the cherubim 'to keep the way of the tree of life' (Genesis 3: 24) in the garden of Eden, likewise appears not only in an aspect indicating judicial severity, but also in one which conveys a promise full of consolation. The blessed abode from which man is expelled, is neither annihilated nor even abandoned to desolation and ruin, but withdrawn from the earth and from man, and consigned to the care of the most perfect creatures of God, in order that it may be ultimately restored to man when he is redeemed. (Revelation 22: 2.)

The garden, as it existed before God 'planted' or adorned it, came under the curse, like the remainder of the earth, but the celestial and paradisaical addition was exempted, and entrusted to the cherubim. The true (ideal) Paradise is now translated to the invisible world. At least a symbolical copy of it, established in the holy of holies in the tabernacle, is already granted to the people of Israel, after the pattern which Moses saw in the mount (Exodus 25: 9, 40); and the original itself, as the renewed habitation of redeemed man, will hereafter descend to the earth. (Revelation 21: 10.)" [6]

Page 368

To the overcomer, then, is promised a restoration that will include more than Adam lost. Not to the overcomers of that state of the church merely, but to all overcomers of every age is the promise made, for in the great rewards of heaven there are no restrictions. Reader, strive to be an overcomer, for he who gains access to the tree of life in the midst of the Paradise of God, shall die no more.

The Time of the Church.--

The time covered by this

first church may be considered the period from the resurrection of Christ to the close of the first century, or to the death of the last of the apostles.

*******

We can but imagine the tree of life in all its glory given to it by God. By the grace of our LORD and SAVIOR alone will be partake of that tree! We must not LEAVE our FIRST LOVE of CHRIST.

First human love we know doesn't always mean forever love. Not many people find a first human love and remain with that first love throughout their lives.  Human love is so incredibly different from the love of Christ. Human love has placed upon it condition after condition after condition even as we might say there are none. There is so much in the human frail, sinful flesh that is not loving. The spiritual war of flesh and spirit interferes with our ability to love as we should. Only through Christ can we love even remotely as He would have us love.

Please….save us.

All through Jesus Christ our Lord, now and forever!!!!!!!

Amen.

The first church of Revelation 2

We continue… we seek a blessing, we seek knowledge, we seek comprehension, we seek the Holy Spirit's power in us all through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior!

*******

Daniel and the Revelation by Uriah Smith

Page 361

Revelation Chapter II

The Letters of Jesus to the Churches

In the first chapter, the prophet outlined the subject of the seven churches, represented by the seven candlesticks, and the ministry of the churches, represented by the seven stars.

He now takes up each church particularly, and writes the message designed for it, addressing the epistle in every case to the ANGEL, or the MINISTRY, of the church. (((God's people))))

Revelation 2:1-7

Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write;

1 These things saith He  that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; 2 I know thy works, and thy labor, 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: 3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. 4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 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. 6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate. 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.

The Church of Ephesus.--Some reasons why the messages to the seven churches should be regarded as prophetic, having their application to seven distinct periods covering the Christian age, have been given in the remarks on Revelation 1: 4. It may be added here that this view is not new. Thomas Newton says, "Many contend, and among them such learned men as More and Vitringa, that the seven epistles are prophetical of so many successive periods and states of the church from the beginning to the conclusion of all."

Thomas Scott says: "Many expositors have imagined that these epistles to the seven churches were mystical prophecies

Page 362

of seven distinct periods, into which the whole term, from the apostles' days to the end of the world, would be divided."

Although Newton and Scott do not themselves hold this view, their testimony is good as showing that such has been the view of many expositors.

Two of them say:

"The earliest commentator on the Apocalypse, whose work has come down to us, was Victorinus, Bishop of Pettau, or Petavium, who died a martyr in the year 303. He was the contemporary of Irenaeus, and a man of piety, diligence in setting forth the teachings of the Scriptures, and vigorous in his perceptions of the meaning of the sacred writers. Most of his writings have been lost, except some fragments. His comments on the Apocalypse survive, in a text less pure than we could wish, but sufficiently giving the substance of his views. In his Scholia in Apocalypsin, he says that what John addresses to one Church he addresses to all; that Paul was the first to teach that there are seven Churches in whole world, and that the seven Churches named mean the Church Catholic; and that John, to observe the same method, has not exceeded the number seven.

"What Victorinus means, is that Paul, in writing to seven Churches, and to seven only, intended to have it understood that all the Churches of all time are comprehended in seven; and that, in the same way, the seven Churches in the Apocalypse are meant to comprise all the Churches in the world: that is, the Church Catholic of all ages. This was also the view of Tichaenius, of the fourth century; Arethas of Cappadocia, and Primasius of Adrumetum, in the sixth; and Vitringa, Mede, More, Girdlestone, and a large body of divines, of later periods."

"Mede expounded the Seven Epistles as prophetic of the Seven Ages of the Church, so that all good should there be prophesied of themselves and all evil of Rome (see Trench, l.c., p. 228). Later will Vitringa expounded the Epistles on

Page 363

the same principle; and he writes (pp. 32-36): 'Existimo Spiritum S. sub typo et emblemate Septem Ecclesiarum Asiae nobis . . . voluisse depingere septem variantes status Ecclesiae Christianae . . . usque ad Adventum Domini'; adding--'demonstratur illas Prophetice non Dogmatice esse exponendas.'

"Mede ('Works,' Advert., ch. x, p. 905) states his opinion more fully as follows:  'If we consider their number being Seven, which is a number of revolution of times, or if we consider the choice of the Holy Ghost in that he taketh neither all, no nor the most famous Churches in the world, as Antioch, Alexandria, Rome. . . . If these things be well considered, may it not seem that these Seven churches, besides their literal respect, were intended to be as patterns and types of the several Ages of the Catholic Church a principio ad finem? that so these Seven Churches should prophetically sample unto us a Sevenfold successive temper and condition of the whole visible Church according to the several Ages thereof. . . . And if this were granted . . . then surely the First Church (viz., the Ephesian state) must be the first, and the Last be the last. . . . The mention of false Jews and the synagogue of Satan, &c. (Apoc. ii) in the Five middle ones, will argue that they belong to the times of the Beast and Babylon. And for the Sixth in special was have a good character where to place it, viz., partly about the time the Beast is falling, and partly after his destruction, when the New Jerusalem cometh.' "

It appears from the authors above cited, that what has led commentators of more modern times to discard the view of the prophetical nature of the messages to the seven churches, is the comparatively recent and unscriptural doctrine of the temporal millennium. The last stage of the church, as described in Revelation 3: 15-17, was deemed to be incompatible with the glorious state of things which would exist here on this earth for a thousand years, with all the world converted to God.

Page 364

Hence in this case, as in many others, the Scriptural view is made to yield to the more pleasing. The hearts of men, as in ancient times, still love smooth things, and their ears are ever favorably open to those who will prophesy peace.

The first church named is Ephesus. According to the application here made, this would cover the first, or apostolic, age of the church. The definition of the word "Ephesus" is "desirable," which may well be taken as a good descriptive term of the character and condition of the church in its first state. Those early Christians had received the doctrine of Christ in its purity.

They enjoyed the benefits and blessings of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. They were noted for their works, labor, and patience. In faithfulness to the pure principles taught by Christ, they could not bear those that were evil, and they tested false apostles, searched out their true characters, and found them liars. That this work was done by the literal and particular church at Ephesus more than by other churches of that time, we have no evidence. But this work was carried on by the Christian church as a whole, in that age, and was a most appropriate work at that time. (See Acts 15; 2 Corinthians 11: 13.)

Act 15:1  And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.

Act 15:2  When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

Act 15:3  And being brought on their way by the church, they passed through Phenice and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles: and they caused great joy unto all the brethren.

Act 15:4  And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them.

Act 15:5  But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.

Act 15:6  And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.

Act 15:7  And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

Act 15:8  And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;

Act 15:9  And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Act 15:10  Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

Act 15:11  But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.

Act 15:12  Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.

Act 15:13  And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:

Act 15:14  Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.

Act 15:15  And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,

Act 15:16  After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:

Act 15:17  That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.

Act 15:18  Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.

Act 15:19  Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God:

Act 15:20  But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.

Act 15:21  For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

Act 15:22  Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:

Act 15:23  And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia:

Act 15:24  Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment:

Act 15:25  It seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

Act 15:26  Men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Act 15:27  We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who shall also tell you the same things by mouth.

Act 15:28  For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;

Act 15:29  That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

Act 15:30  So when they were dismissed, they came to Antioch: and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the epistle:

Act 15:31  Which when they had read, they rejoiced for the consolation.

Act 15:32  And Judas and Silas, being prophets also themselves, exhorted the brethren with many words, and confirmed them.

Act 15:33  And after they had tarried there a space, they were let go in peace from the brethren unto the apostles.

Act 15:34  Notwithstanding it pleased Silas to abide there still.

Act 15:35  Paul also and Barnabas continued in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.

Act 15:36  And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do.

Act 15:37  And Barnabas determined to take with them John, whose surname was Mark.

Act 15:38  But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work.

Act 15:39  And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus;

Act 15:40  And Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God.

Act 15:41  And he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.

2Co 11:13  For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.

Revelation 2 :

1 These things saith He  that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; 2 I know thy works, and thy labor, 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: 3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. 4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 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. 6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate. 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.

*******

There are thousands of years of history between the birth of Christ's church and now. Throughout these thousands of years many have come up with their thoughts on this prophecy. We are now among them. We will continue to read what the various scholars have had to say, and while we are doing that we must pray for the Holy Spirit to open our hearts to the TRUTH as it is found in our Savior.

So far comprehending that the first church, the first people of Christ, were had been cautioned to keep to their first love. They were commended for hating those who were deceitful.  I don't want to get into this too much just yet because we aren't finished reading what Uriah Smith wrote on it all. 

Hoping not to overload us too much I will pause here and by the grace of GOD continue more on this tomorrow!

Please Father, please bless us! We need Your blessing like never before!

All through the GRACE and MERCY of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Amen!

Seven Stars-Seven Angels, Seven Candlesticks-Seven Churches

Read and be BLESSED.

Amazing isn't it? We have learned that those who read this book of Revelation and the prophecies within are blessed.  We may not comprehend the whole of the blessing but we are blessed. Being blessed doesn't mean you become invincible in this world. Being blessed doesn't mean your life will be one of ease with limited heartache and hardship. Being blessed isn't something materialistic.  Let me correct myself, being blessed isn't all those things but they can be a part of a blessing.  Some of the people who have suffered the most are also the most blessed. We who don't suffer as they have, might not consider them blessed, but our idea of being blessed is what is skewed. The blessing we long for is the blessing our Savior came to give to us, the gospel message, the good news that we can be one with God through His sacrifice. We can have eternal life through His redeeming grace! This is the blessing we need more than any other blessing. This is the blessing those who suffered the most horrific of tortures, understood they would receive.

We are BLESSED when we read this book of Revelation and we cannot let ourselves forget this as we study. We might not comprehend the full extent of the hows and whys of the blessing but God speaks only the truth and it is truth that those who read, those who hear, and those who keep the things in this book are BLESSED. May we be blessed!

Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Revelation 1:11-18

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.

12 And I turned to see the voice that spake with me.

And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;

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.

14 His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire;

15 And His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters. 16 And He had in His right hand seven

Page 358

stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in His strength.

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: 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 expression, "I turned to see the voice," refers to the person from whom the voice came.

Seven Golden Candlesticks.--These cannot be the antitype of the golden candlestick of the ancient typical temple service, for that was but one candlestick with seven branches.

That is ever spoken of in the singular number.

But here are seven, and these are more properly "lamp stands" than simply candlesticks, stands upon which lamps are set to give light in the room. They bear no resemblance to the candlestick of the ancient tabernacle.

On the contrary the stands are so distinct, and so far separated one from another, that the Son of man is seen walking about in the midst of them.

The Son of Man.--

The central and all-attractive figure of the scene now opened before John's vision is the majestic form of the Son of man, Jesus Christ.

The description here given of Him, with His flowing robe, His hair white, not with age, but with the brightness of heavenly glory, His flaming eyes, His feet glowing like molten brass, and His voice as the sound of many waters, cannot be excelled for grandeur and sublimity.

Overcome by the presence of this august Being, and perhaps under a keen sense of all human unworthiness, John fell at His feet as dead, but a comforting hand is laid upon him, and a voice of sweet assurance tells him not to fear.

It is equally the privilege of Christians today to feel the same hand laid upon them to strengthen and comfort them in hours of trial and affliction, and to hear the same voice saying to them, "Fear not."

But the most cheering assurance in all these words of consolation is the declaration of this exalted one who is alive forevermore, that He is the arbiter of death and grave.

I have, He says, "the keys of hell, hades, the grave and of death."

Page 359

Death is a conquered tyrant. He may gather to the grave the precious of earth, and gloat for a season over his apparent triumph. But he is performing a fruitless task, for the key to his dark prison house has been wrenched from his grasp, and is now held in the hands of a mightier than he. He is compelled to deposit his trophies in a region over which another has absolute control; and this one is the unchanging Friend and the pledged Redeemer of His people. Then grieve not for the righteous dead; they are in safekeeping. An enemy takes them away for a while, but a friend holds the key to the place of their temporary confinement.

Revelation 1:19-

Verse 19 Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter

A more definite command is given in this verse to John to write the entire Revelation, which would relate chiefly to things which were then in the future.

In some few instances, events then in the past or then taking place were referred to; but these references were simply for the purpose of introducing events to be fulfilled after that time, so that no link in the chain might be lacking.

Revelation 1:20-

Verse 20 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.

To represent the Son of man as holding in His hand only the ministers of seven literal churches in Asia Minor, and walking in the midst of only those seven churches, would be to reduce the sublime representations and declarations of this and following chapters to comparative insignificance.

The providential care and presence of the Lord are not with a specified number of churches only, but with all His people; not in the days of John merely, but through all time. "Lo, I am with you alway," said He to His disciples, "even unto the end of the world."

*******

Prophecy.

Seven Stars- ANGELS of the Seven Churches.

Seven Golden Candlesticks- the SEVEN CHURCHES.

Symbolism. 

This is the introduction of the symbolism. We are SHOWN the symbolism.  Symbolism is necessary and the full comprehension of it is allowed as God reveals, as the Holy Spirit bring understanding.

Stars-Angels

Candlesticks-Seven Churches.

Seven- a number of perfection, of wholeness.

The seven angels, the seven churches- a representation of all God's angels, a representation of God's perfect church, His perfect people made perfect through Christ and Christ alone.

Please Lord, please help us to continue reading, to continue hearing, to continue keeping all the truth You entrust us with, all through the power of our Savior, our Lord, Jesus Christ now and forever!

Amen!

The Lord's Day

Rev 1:10  I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet

Though John was exiled from all of like faith, and almost from the world, he was not exiled from God, nor from Christ, nor from the Holy Spirit, nor from angels.

He still had communion with his divine Lord. The expression "in the Spirit" seems to denote the highest state of spiritual elevation into which a person can be brought by the Spirit of God. It marked the beginning of his vision.

"On the Lord's Day."--What day is intended by this designation? On this question four different positions are taken by various classes. On class holds that the expression "the Lord's day" covers the whole gospel age, and does not mean any particular twenty-four-hour day. Another class holds that the Lord's day is the day of judgment, the future "day of the Lord" so often brought to view in the Scriptures. A third view is that the expression refers to the first day of the week. Still another class holds that it means the seventh day, the Sabbath of the Lord.

To the first of these positions it is sufficient to reply that the book of Revelation is dated by John on the Isle of Patmos, and upon the Lord's day. The writer, the place where it was written, and the day upon which it was dated, have each a real existence, no merely a symbolical or mystical one. But if we say that the day means the gospel age, we give it a symbolical or mystical meaning, which is not admissible. Why would it be necessary for John to explain that he was writing in the "Lord's day" if it meant the gospel age? It is well

Page 354

known that the book of Revelation was written some sixty-five years after the death of Christ.

The second position, that it is the day of judgment, cannot be correct. Though John might have had a vision concerning the day of judgment, he could not have had one on that day when it is yet future. The word translated "on" is, en, and is defined by Thayer when relating to time: "Periods and portions of time in which anything occurs, in, on, at, during." It never means "about" or "concerning." Hence those who refer it to the judgment day either contradict the language used, making it mean "concerning" instead of "on," or they make John state a strange falsehood by saying that he had a vision upon the Isle of Patmos, nearly eighteen hundred years ago, on the day of judgment which is yet future.

The third view, that by "Lord's day" is meant the first day of the week, is the one most generally entertained. On this we inquire for the proof. What evidence have we for this assertion? The text itself does not define the term "the Lord's day;" hence if it means the first day of the week, we must look elsewhere in the Bible for the proof that that day of the week is ever so designated. The only other inspired writers who speak of the first day at all, are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Paul; and they speak of it simply as "the first day of the week." They never speak of it in a manner to distinguish it above any other of the six working days. This is the more remarkable, viewed from the popular standpoint, as three of them speak of it at the very time when it is said to have become the Lord's day by the resurrection of the Lord upon the first day of the week, and two of them mention it some thirty years after that event.

If it is said that "the Lord's day" was the usual term for the first day of the week in John's day, we ask, Where is the proof of this? It CANNOT be found. In truth, we have proof of the contrary. If this were the universal designation of the first day of the week at the time the Revelation was written, the same writer would most assuredly call it so in all his subsequent

Page 355

writings. But John wrote his Gospel after he wrote the Revelation, and yet in that Gospel he calls the first day of the week, not "the Lord's day," but simply "the first day of the week." For proof that John's Gospel was written at a period subsequent to the Revelation, the reader is referred to standard authorities.

The claim here set up in behalf of the first day, is still further disproved by the fact that neither the Father nor the Son has ever claimed the first day as His own in any higher sense than He has each or any or the other laboring days. Neither of them has ever placed any blessing upon it, or attached any sanctity to it. If it were to be called the Lord's day from the fact of Christ's resurrection upon it, Inspiration would doubtless have somewhere so informed us. But there are other events equally essential to the plan of salvation, such as the crucifixion and the ascension; and in the absence of all instruction upon the point, why not call the day upon which either of these occurred, the Lord's day, as well as the day upon which He rose from the dead?

Since the three positions already examined have been disproved, the fourth-- that by Lord's day is meant the Sabbath of the Lord--now demands attention. This of itself is susceptible of the clearest proof. When God gave to man in the beginning six days of the week for labor, He expressly reserved the seventh day to Himself, placed His blessing upon it, and claimed it as His holy day. (Genesis 2: 1-3.) Moses told Israel in the wilderness of Sin on the sixth day of the week, "Tomorrow is the rest of the Sabbath unto the Lord." Exodus 16: 23.

We come to Sinai, where the great Lawgiver proclaimed His moral precepts in awful grandeur; and in that supreme code He thus lays claim to His hallowed day: "The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God:. . . for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." By the prophet Isaiah, about

Page 357

eight hundred years later, God spoke as follows: "If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day, . . . then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord," Isaiah 58: 13.

We come to New Testament times, and He who is one with the Father declares expressly, "The Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath." Mark 2: 28. Can any man deny that that day is the Lord's day, of which He has emphatically declared that He is the Lord? Thus we see that whether it be the Father or the Son whose title is involved, no other day can be called the Lord's day but the SABBATH of the great Creator.

There is in the Christian Era one day distinguished above the other days of the week as "the Lord's day." How completely this great fact disproves the claim put forth by some that there is no Sabbath in the gospel age but that all days are alike! By calling it the Lord's day, the apostle has given us, near the close of the first century, apostolic sanction for the observance of the only day which can be called the Lord's day, which is the seventh day of the week.

When Christ was on earth, He clearly designated which day was His day by saying, "The Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath day." Matthew 12: 8. If He had said instead, not that now be set forth as conclusive proof that Sunday is the Lord's day--Certainly, and with good reason. Then it ought to be allowed to have the same weight for the seventh day, in reference to which it was spoken.

*******

Note: The seventh day of the week is not Sunday, but Saturday. The Jews kept the Sabbath and STILL keep the Sabbath having NEVER changed the day God ordained and Jesus solidified as His day.

John was in the SPIRIT on the Lord's Day.

Just imagine- Jesus said that the Son of man is the LORD ALSO of the Sabbath.  Why would Jesus say this if He was doing away with the Sabbath?

Mar 2:23  And it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn.

Mar 2:24  And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?

Mar 2:25  And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him?

Mar 2:26  How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him?

Mar 2:27  And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

Mar 2:28  Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

Who said it was not lawful to pluck an ear of corn while they walked?  Man enacted restriction after restriction upon the moral laws of God. Those disciples and Jesus were simply walking and their walk took them through a corn field. They weren't out there to harvest the corn. They weren't out there to earn money. They were hungry and wanted a little snack. They weren't making a huge meal out of the corn. Yet the restrictions man had placed upon the Sabbath were so tight that the simple action of plucking an ear of corn was deserving a punishment for breaking the Sabbath.  It was a LIE. And Jesus set them straight.

He asked them if they hadn't read what David did.   David had a need. That need was hunger.  His companions were also hungry. He went into the TEMPLE and ate the SHEWBREAD- a sacred bread. David wasn't ordained to eat that bread, but he and his companions did eat it and they were not punished. The need was there, the real need and it wasn't done in any way to dishonor God.

The Sabbath was MADE for mankind. Mankind was NOT made for the Sabbath. The Son of man is LORD of the SABBATH. Jesus created the Sabbath, Jesus made this day very special.  The disciples were NOT breaking the Sabbath by doing something wrong. They were honoring the Sabbath with Jesus.

And if Jesus were going to outright disavow the Sabbath being kept at all, or if He were going to change the day on which it made for, He had EVERY opportunity to do so.  He didn't change a single LAW!

He ENHANCED them with LOVE, His love!

John knew what day it was, and that is was important to make mention of it in this most important Book of Revelation. 

John was in the SPIRIT on the LORD'S DAY.

What a blessing!  What a miracle! What amazing LOVE!

May we comprehend the blessings of the Sabbath, the holiness, in this amazing day we weekly are blessed to set aside for the worshiping of our God, of our Savior, of the Holy Spirit!

All through the love of Jesus Christ, our Lord, our Savior, now and forever!

Amen!

Every eye shall see Him

We are continuing our study on Revelation, may the Holy Spirit bless us in opening our understanding, in retaining all we need to retain, learning what we need to learn. Please Father, please guide us in all this. We need Your power, Your help, Your will in all of this because left to our own we can't comprehend anything.  In the name of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

*******

Revelation 1:7   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.

Here John carries us FORWARD to the second advent of Christ in glory, the climax and crowning event of His intervention in behalf of this fallen world.

Once He came in weakness, now He comes in power; once in humility, now in glory.

Page 349

He comes with clouds, in like manner as He ascended. (Acts 1: 9, 11.)

Act 1:9  And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

Act 1:11  Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

His Coming Visible.--

"Every eye shall see Him."

All who are alive at the time of His coming shall see Jesus.

We know of no personal coming of Christ that will be as the stillness of midnight or take place only in the desert or the secret chamber. He comes not as a thief in the sense of stealing in secretly and quietly upon the world. But He comes to take to Himself His dearest treasure, His sleeping and His living saints, Himself, whom He has purchased with His own precious blood; whom He has wrested from the power of death in fair and open conflict; and for whom His coming will be no less open and triumphant.

It will be with the brilliancy and splendor of the lightning as it shines from east to the west. (Matthew 24: 27.) It will be with the sound of a trumpet that will pierce to earth's lowest depths, and with a mighty voice that shall wake the sainted sleepers from their dusty beds. (Matthew 24: 31, margin; 1 Thessalonians 4: 16.)

He will come upon the wicked as a thief, only because they persistently shut their eyes to the tokens of His approach, and will not believe the declarations of His word that He is at the door.

To represent two comings, a private and a public one, in connection with the second advent, as some do, is wholly UNWARRANTED from the Scriptures.

"They Also Which Pierced Him."--

They also (in addition to the "every eye" before mentioned) who were chiefly concerned in tragedy of His death shall behold Him returning to earth in triumph and glory.

But how is this? They are NOT NOW living, and how then shall they behold Him when He comes?

There will be a resurrection from the dead.

This is the only possible avenue to life to those who have once been laid in the grave. But how is it that these wicked persons come up at this time, since the general resurrection of the wicked does not take place until a thousand years after the second advent? (Revelation 20: 1-6.) On this point Daniel says further:

Page 350

"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great Prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." Daniel 12: 1, 2.

Here a partial resurrection is brought to view, a resurrection of a certain group of both righteous and wicked. This takes place before the general resurrection of either group. Many, not all, that sleep shall awake-- some of the righteous, not all of them, to everlasting life, and some of the wicked, not all of them, to shame and everlasting contempt. This resurrection takes place in connection with the great time of trouble such as never was, which precedes the coming of the Lord. May not "they also which pierced Him" be among those who then come up to shame and everlasting contempt? What could be more appropriate than that those who took part in our Lord's greatest humiliation, and other special leaders in crime against Him, should be raised to behold His terrible majesty as He comes triumphantly in flaming fire to take vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not His gospel?

The response of the church is, "Even so, Amen." Though this coming of Christ is to the wicked a scene of terror and destruction, it is to the righteous a scene of joy and triumph. This coming, which is with flaming fire, and for the purpose of taking vengeance on the wicked, is to recompense all those who believe. (2 Thessalonians 1: 6-10.)

Every friend and lover of Christ will hail every declaration and every token of His return as glad tidings of great joy.

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.

Here another speaker than John is introduced. In declaring who He is, He uses two of the same characterizations,

Page 351

"Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending," as are found in Revelation 22: 13, where according to verses 12 and 16 of that chapter, it is plainly Christ who is speaking. We conclude, then, that it is Christ who is speaking in verse 8.

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.

The subject here changes, for John introduces the place and the circumstances under which the Revelation was given. He first sets himself forth as a brother of the universal church, their companion in the tribulations of the Christian.

In this passage John evidently has reference to the future kingdom of glory. He introduces the thought of tribulation as part of the necessary preparation for entry into the kingdom of God. This idea is emphasized in such scriptures as:

"We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." Acts 14: 22.

"If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him." 2 Timothy 2: 12.

 It is true that while here in the flesh, believers in Christ have access to the throne of grace. This is the throne of the kingdom of grace into which we are inducted at conversion, for He "hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son." Colossians 1: 13.

But at the second advent of the Saviour, when the kingdom of glory will be inaugurated, then the saints, members of the kingdom of grace here, redeemed from this present evil world, will have access to the throne of His glory. Then tribulation will be over, and the children of God will bask in the sunlight of the presence of the King of kings throughout eternity.

The Place of the Writing.--

Patmos is a small, barren island off the west coast of Asia Minor, between the island of Icaria and the promontory of Miletus, where in John's day was located the nearest Christian church. It is about ten miles long, six miles wide at its greatest breadth. Its present name is Patmo. The coast is high and consists of a succession of capes, which form many ports. The only one now in use is a deep bay sheltered by high mountains on every side but one,

Page 352

where it is protected by a projecting cape. The town attached to this port is situated upon a high, rocky mountain rising immediately from the sea. About halfway up the mountain on which this town is built there is shown a natural grotto in the rock where tradition says that John had his vision and wrote the Revelation. On account of the stern and desolate character of this island, it was used under the Roman Empire as a place of banishment. This accounts for the exile of John there. The banishment of the apostle took place under the emperor Domitian about the year A.D. 94; and from this supposition the date assigned to the writing of the Revelation is A.D. 95 or 96.

The Cause of Banishment.--

"For the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ." This was John's high crime and misdemeanor. The tyrant Domitian, who was then invested with the imperial purple of Rome, more eminent for his vices than even for his civil position, quailed before this aged but dauntless apostle. He dared not permit the promulgation of the gospel within the bounds of his kingdom. he exiled John to lonely Patmos, where, if anywhere this side of death, he might be said to be out of the world. After confining him to that barren spot, and to the cruel labor of the mines, the emperor doubtless thought that this preacher of righteousness was finally disposed of, and that the world would hear of him no more.

Probably the persecutors of John Bunyan thought the same when they had shut him up in Beford jail. But when man thinks he has buried the truth in eternal oblivion, the Lord gives it a resurrection in tenfold glory and power. From Bunyan's dark and narrow cell there blazed forth a spiritual light, through the Pilgrim's Progress, which for almost three hundred years has built up the interests of the gospel. From the barren Isle of Patmos, where Domitian thought he had forever extinguished at least one torch of truth, there arose the most magnificent revelation of all the sacred canon, to shed its divine luster over the whole Christian world until the end of

Page 353

time. How many will revere the name of the beloved disciple, and thrill with delight at his enraptured visions of heavenly glory, who will never learn the name caused his banishment!

Verily those words of the Scriptures are sometimes applicable to the present life, which declare that "the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance," but "the name of the wicked shall rot." (Psalms 112: 6; Proverbs 10: 7.)

*******

So much truth!

Do we believe it?! Do we comprehend it?!  We have to ask ourselves these questions.

Our Savior will return in the clouds- THE SAME WAY HE LEFT.

Every eye shall see him-  DO we know how this happens?  In our world of technology today it's easy to comprehend, IF that is how it's done. If NOT, our GOD has the ability to give visions to any He chooses and a vision of an occurring event is NOT beyond our GOD.

Some who PIERCED Jesus when He was in the flesh on His way to the second death WILL see His return. Again who are WE to question HOW God does what He does?
 

Miracle after miracle can take place. I PERSONALLY know of miracles that have occurred in my life. Events that had there NOT been divine intervention would have transpired so very differently. Things we might call coincidence etc but in truth GOD'S hand is working in our lives.  Even in TRAGEDIES God's hand can be witnessed. There may be horrific grief and rightly so, but through that grief the working of God can be seen. We are tried in FIRE and no fire, no purification by fire is without pain, without agonies.

These truths of Christ's return are just that- TRUTHS!

These truths are necessary for US to know and one reason could be,  we need to know because the deceiver will use everything in his power to deceive us, to keep us from the TRUTH. The deceiver will give us partial truths. The deceiver will give us all the truth but 1% of it, and when he keeps that 1% of truth, he allows us to be deceived and in that deception when we accept what is a lie, then we are aligned with the Father of lies, Satan. When we align ourselves with Satan we leave the God of NO GUILE, we leave the God of TRUTH!

Please LORD keep us in YOUR TRUTH, all of it!

In the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ!

Our Lord, our Savior, now and forever!

AMEN!