Being a kingdom person Being a kingdom person. Matt.18:1-4 By: Ysrael De la Cruz We began to talk about the kingdom of heaven. Jesus inaugurated this kingdom when he came to earth and began preaching “repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt.4:17) We talked about that the Sovereign reign of Christ is…
Today we will look at the
church in Philadelphia, one of the seven churches to which Jesus sent messages
through the apostle John.
Philadelphia is known as
“Alashehir (city of god, exalted city). This city was very syncretistic, from
Anatolian and Hellenistic practices. Its patron deity was Dionysus, god of wine.This city was almost destroyed in 17AD by an
earthquake that devastated Sardis and nearby cities.The population of the city was small due to
the constant earthquakes; this caused people to move outside the city.Philadelphia became a missionary center for
spreading the Greek language and customs into eastern parts of Lydia and Phrygia.
Some believe disciples of
Paul planted this church there.
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.
We have been going through a series on the seven churches in Revelation. Revelation 2-3 are letters of Jesus to seven churches in Asia Minor (Turkey). Jesus told the apostle John to write on a scroll what he saw and send it to those seven churches. We have covered thus far, Ephesus, Smyrna, and Pergamum; today we will look at the church in Thyatira.
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…
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). (Rev.1:11) 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 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.
Maybe you have heard people say that they love Jesus, but don’t like the church. There are people who think they can have a relationship with Jesus apart from his church. They want to love Jesus and believe in him but don’t want anything to do with the church. The sad reality is that according to the Bible, this sentiment goes against God.
Last week we talked about God giving leaders in his church for the purpose of building it up. When we talked about the nature of the church we said besides being global, it is also local. We are told in the book of Acts how these local congregations came about. Paul and Barnabas were apostles and they traveled preaching the good news of Jesus. They established churches in every city they went. These churches were led by a group of elders. Acts 14:23 (They appointed elders in every church. With prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed
Last week we started a series on the church, why the church matters. It matters because it belongs to Christ, he bought it with his own blood. We learned that the church is made of those people who profess faith in Christ, they recognize Jesus as their Lord. Jesus promised eternal destiny for his people, the church.
Maybe you have heard people say that they love Jesus, but don’t like the church. There are people who think they can have a relationship with Jesus apart from his church. They would just love Jesus and believe in Jesus but don’t want anything to do with the church. Nevertheless, When we go through Scripture and study the church of Jesus Christ, we will then understand that Christ’s church matters.