Sermons on Revelations (Page 2)

Christ’s Message to the Church: Wake up church!

We have been looking at the seven churches in Revelation; seven churches to whom Jesus sent seven letters through the apostle John. We have looked at Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira and today we will look at Christ’s message to Sardis.
Sardis was a very wealthy city in Turkey. It was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia in the 7 century BC. It was known for its crafts and artistry. This was the first city where silver and gold coins were made. Sardis became an important Persian city after it was conquered by Cyrus the Great in 6th BC. By the first century Sardis passed into the hands of the Romans. Sardis was conquered twice due to its lack of watchfulness.

Christ’s Message to the Church – Thyatira

We have been going through a series on the seven churches in Revelation. Revelation 2-3 are letters of Jesus to seven particular churches in Asia Minor (Turkey). Jesus told the apostle John to write on a scroll what he saw and send the message to those seven churches. We have covered thus far, Ephesus, Smyrna, and Pergamum; today we will look at the church in Thyatira.

Thyatira is mentioned in Acts 16:11-15 While Paul visited the city of Philippi there was a woman there named Lydia from the city of Thyatira.

Christ’s Message to the Church – Pergamum

Revelation 2 and 3 are letters from Jesus to seven churches in Asia Minor. We have already looked at the church in Ephesus and Smyrna, today we’ll look at the church in Pergamum or (Pergamos) Pergamum was one of the most prominent cities of Asia, located in the western part of Asia-Minor, about 45 miles north of Smyrna and about 20 miles from the Aegean Sea. Pergamum was very wealthy, the center of emperor worship with many temples devoted to idolatry. Here was the magnificent temple of Esculapius, a pagan god whose idol was in the form of a serpent. Greco-Roman god of medicine. (Bible.org:studies on Revelation)
Read text. Rev.2:12-17
Title of Christ. Him who has the sharp, double-edge sword. Rev.1:16 (John’s vision of Jesus) The word of God is described by the author of Hebrews as a double-edged sword. Hebr.4:12 (For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Jesus is the one portrayed by John here and also in Rev.19:12 (Jesus strikes the nations with the sword that comes from his mouth). This is judgment.

Jesus’s Message to the Church – Smyrna

Last week we started a sermon series on the seven churches of Revelation. A lot of times when people read this book, they don’t realize it contains seven letters by Jesus sent to seven churches in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). Each of these seven churches was unique, each had its own struggles and issues to deal with. For instance, the church in Ephesus Jesus commanded to repent since they had forsaken their first love. The church was not as loving as it used to be. The church we’ll look at today is Smyrna.

Christ’s Message to the Church

The book of Revelation is a fascinating book, it’s the only book in the Bible that promises a blessing to the readers. (Rev.1:3). Within this book we find seven letters written to seven churches in the province of Asia Minor. Why these seven? We don’t know, but the messages we find in these letters is relevant to the churches today. The church is to represent Christ in this world, but sometimes churches go through many issues and may be distracted from their main mission as Christ’s agent in the world. Through the messages Jesus sent to these churches you get to learn what God expects of his church in this world. What does Jesus expect of his church today? We find answer to this question in our study of the seven churches of Revelation.