UNFOLDING THE BOOK OF REVELATION CHAPTER 2: VERSES 1 TO 11. SATAN THRONE IS IN TURKEY.
The seven churches were located in Asia, which was the headquarters of Satan where his throne is Revelation chapter 2: verse 13. God placed the seven early churches there to fight evil with good.
Out of the seven churches, two were obeying the Word of God, and five were living in disobedient The Lord commanded them to repent, but Jesus had also commended all the seven churches to obey the voice of the Holy Spirit otherwise He will blot out the name out of the book of life, and only the overcomers will not see the second death. What is the second death?
Revelation chapter 21: verses 7 to 8 The lake which burns with fire and brimstone. He who overcomes [the believers that abide faithfully in Jesus Christ and obey the voice of the Holy Spirit] will inherit these things plus eternal life with Jesus, but the unbelievers will be burned forever John chapter 15: verses 4 to 6. And I will be his God and he will be My son. But as for the cowards and unbelieving and abominable [who lack character and personal integrity and practice or tolerate immorality, and murderers, and sorcerers with intoxicating drugs, and worshipers of idols and occultists who practice and teach false religions and all the liars who knowingly deceive and twist the truth, their part will be in the lake that blazes with fire and brimstone, which is the second death].
God said my people (believers) will perish because of lack of knowledge. Matthew chapter 7: verses 21 to 26. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, (believers) Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name? And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].’
So, everyone who hears these words of Mine and obeys them will be like a wise man [a far-sighted, spiritual, and sensible man] who built his house on the rock. These seven letters were written for the benefit of all churches throughout this dispensation of grace to the rapture, revealing spiritual conditions in local churches and individuals in churches, so that the individual in any church in any generation may be warned and profit by the failures of the seven churches.
The Church of Ephesus had started losing the first love that they had in winning souls for the body of Christ, Jesus told them to repent and be like they were before, and if they don’t repent, He will remove the church. He congratulated them for hating the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which was a sect of Gnostics who practiced and taught impure and immoral doctrines, such as the community of wives, that committing adultery and fornication was not sinful, and that eating meats offered to idols was lawful. This was similar to the doctrines of Balaam and Jezebel of Thyatira. And Jesus told them to be an overcomer so that they could eat of the tree of life.
Smyrna: The Poor Church That Was Rich Spiritually in the Eyes of the Lord, in a rich city in Turkey called Ismir. Jesus brings no criticism against the church at Smyrna; He, instead, comforts them by assuring them that He was acquainted with their situation Isaiah chapter 53: verses 2 to 4. They are going to be persecuted for the faith they have in Him. No matter what experiences we as God’s people may have, our Lord identifies with us because it was through His suffering He learned perfect obedience. The Lord’s victory over death should inspire confidence within the body of Christ.
Jesus says this to each of the seven churches. We cannot escape the penetrating vision of the Lord; we may fool some members of the church. But the Lord knows our works; we cannot fool Him. Jesus knows whether or not we, individually, are being fruitful in every good work. He knows whether or not a local church is busy teaching the lost and edifying saints. The church at Smyrna was not having an easy time, the members were persecuted, possibly because they refused to compromise with a sect in Smyrna that professed Judaism, Jesus told them you say you are Jews, but you are not but are of the synagogue of Satan. He forewarned His faithful followers not to fear that they were about to suffer even greater tribulation: “The devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, they were about to experience the testing of their faith to the fullest extent. Jesus reassures them to remain faithful even unto death because there is a crown of life waiting for only the overcomers.
My brothers and sisters trust only in the Word of the Holy Spirit, Jesus made it clear that only those who remain faithful will overcome the second death. Jesus’ faithful followers will always have persecution “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you…If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you…In the world, you will have tribulation…”(John chapter 15: verses 18 to 20; And also chapter 16: verse 33). We must reconcile ourselves to the fact that it has never been popular to be a faithful follower of Christ. It should not be a great source of concern to God’s people if we are scorned and ostracized because of our convictions and unpopular views. When one understands and obeys what the Bible teaches and begins to talk to others about this simple, so easily understood message, the tribulation begins.
After the facts of the gospel were proclaimed in Acts chapter 2, and Peter told his audience to repent and be baptized (verse 38), about three thousand gladly received the word and were baptized (verse 41). When they obeyed the gospel, God added them to the church (verse 47). As we read the book of Acts, we find it wasn’t long before they began to be persecuted. The apostles were imprisoned; Stephen was stoned to death; the disciples were scattered everywhere; James was killed; and Paul was persecuted. Trust me all who believe in Jesus today will be persecuted when there are more unbelievers now than before. Try to turn on a flashlight in the dark, then you will see how many bugs that come against the light, you are the light of the world, my friend, evil will come against you.
My brothers and sisters Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of darkness in this world, and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, the breastplate of righteousness in place, and your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given to me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. Finally, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Please meditate on this scripture John chapter 14: verse 27. Shalom.
APOSTLE PAUL 100% LOVE.
