|
Revelation
By Adam Bartlett
Chapter 3
The Church of Sardis
1: And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.
Jesus’ opening statement:
This church had a “good name,” or a “good reputation,” and appeared to be alive to human eyes. They seemed to have all the spiritual necessities to be a thriving church and the appearance to go along with it. God sees the inner spirit and He declared that this church was “dead.” To this group the Lord comes as the One having “the seven spirits of God,” and possessing the all seeing and all present Holy Spirit.
He is able to see through all this “busyness” and recognize that it was dead inwardly. How many churches today are in this same condition needing the all seeing Spirit to open their eyes to their dead condition? There are many churches today that have well known names along with influential and politically correct ministers. Unfortunately they have succumbed to marketing techniques and other gimmicks and compromised the gospel in the process. They have watered down the message to draw the crowds neglecting the consequences of sin and personal responsibility.
Jesus declared “I know thy works,” and that is the message to these churches today. You may have the vast crowds and the large auditoriums and man made monuments that in your mind pronounce your successfulness. God looks through all the glitter and the Spirit penetrates the heart of man and sees the reality of your condition.
There is a scripture that I believe accurately describes this type of person:
Matthew 7:
21: Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22: Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23: And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
It is hard to imagine how a person can get in this condition and not realize it and until the last 10-15 years I could not see how this could happen in our churches on such a large scale. Now it is like a tsunami that is sweeping over each church in its path and there are few that escape its path. I keep going back to the scripture that I sincerely believe leads to what we are witnessing today:
2 Thessalonians 2:
10: And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11: And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
You might not agree and think that this is too harsh to relate to individuals that are being spoken of in this scripture. I ask you to look at what Jesus says to them, He does not pacify them and say that it will all work out, just recite the Jabez prayer or follow the Purpose Driven concept. He says without hesitance that they need to change their ways or else. Those spoken of in the scripture above in Matt. 7 and 2 Thess. 2, are examples of people in the same condition and explains why they got that way.
They replaced the “Love” of the truth for what was more convenient and easy on them. It was a matter of taking the path of least resistance. Look at the list of accolades they tried to use to gain their acceptance in Matt. 7: 22, they had accomplishments that few Christians today can claim. It was not a matter of works, but heart. Their heart was not in the right place and their devotion was to “accomplish” rather than “establish.” They should have focused more on establishing their relationship with the Lord through their love of His Word rather than rely on their own efforts which replaced that love and devotion.
2: Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
3: Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
There was a need for revival in the things that were right with this church. It amazes me the way many churches have the wrong concept of what a revival is and what it is for. I have been in many churches where they bring in a guest evangelist to preach and with the hopes of many being saved. That is an evangelistic crusade not a revival! A revival is the bringing back to life that which was dead or dying. It is the renewing of the flame within and the zeal that once existed before it was thwarted by the cares of this world.
The very fact that the Lord emphasizes that it was “ready to die” should be a shuddering warning to each of us.
We look at ourselves and through the eyes of our personal inventory we are at ease with our spiritual condition. We need to be able to see our condition as the Lord does and know how close to death we really are. We need the attitude of David and ask God to search our hearts:
Psalm 139:
23: Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
24: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
I pray daily for the Lord to renew the flames and zeal within me and I can never let myself believe that I am where I need to be.
Jesus warns that they need to remember what they have learned and to hold fast to it. He also tells them they need to repent. Repentance rejuvenates the soul and cleanses the pride from our spirits. True repentance is not seen much nor is it emphasized in churches today as it should be.
Then He warns of what will happen if we do not keep watch and pay attention to our spiritual condition. We know that those that are seeking His face and will in their lives are constantly looking and waiting. It is hard to sneak up on them because they are on guard and recognize what is happening in the world and how it relates to His Word and the time we are in.
It is easy however to sneak up on those that are so embroiled in their “activities” that they have not made room for personal relationship. They have simply replaced the intimate relationship with performance. What makes this situation worse is that there is much more at stake than what these people realize. In the parable in Matthew 25 regarding the 10 virgins there were five that were wise and watching and there were five that were lazy and not paying attention. As a result the wise were granted access when the door was opened and the foolish were not.
You don’t have to be a professor of theology to understand that if they got left behind that there was only one option left. That is exactly what is facing us today and as Christians that are awake to the Spirit we need to be sounding the alarm to all the foolish virgins around us.
4: Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.
There are a few in every church that are true, sincere, committed, and want more than anything to see the whole church seek after God aggressively. God will always have His remnant among those that are foolish regarding their spirituality. We must wonder sometimes if He has not kept us there so that we can be that light that is so desperately needed in each situation. Many churches would be dead, dried up and blown away as the chaff is in the wind if it had not been for the faithful few that remain.
Remember the story of Elijah feeling sorry for himself thinking that he was the only one left that really loved God and served Him. God let him know that there were still seven thousand that were His that Elijah was unaware of.
Regardless of the situation we are in we must remain faithful to what we know to be right and true and know in our heart that God still has others like us out there going through the same turmoil.
The most important thing for us to remember while we are in these situations is that we can never, ever compromise because of the pressure. We can never fail to stand for the truth and let our voice be heard. We can never be passive when a stand needs to be made in the name of truth.
Continue to be the light even if you think you are the only one. You might very well be in that particular situation but He has left you there for a reason so burn as bright as you can.
5: He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
6: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
He always gives a chance for repentance and return, “He that overcometh.” How grateful we should be that He gives us so much grace and patience. He gave Nineveh a second chance because they repented and He does the same with individuals. However, there comes a time when we cross that line and trample His grace and spurn His patience.
When that time does come, which is not known to man, then we have forced the judgment upon us. Anyone that chooses to read the Bible objectively and honestly through the spirit will know what this verse is indicating. He would “blot” out a name that did not “repent” and “overcome.”
Only He knows when that line is crossed but it is very obvious that all patience is exhausted before that point is reached. It is clear though that once that point is reached your name can and will be blotted out of the book of life. I know many eternal security believers claim that this verse is saying that He “would” not do it and He is reinforcing that point.
I disagree because if it were not possible then I fail to see the reasoning for even mentioning it. We also have to read it in context of what is being said; Jesus is giving strong warnings to those that are not in the right condition and saying that He will come against them. He is saying that they need to repent and if they don’t then it will happen to them as a thief in the night. This is not indicative of someone reinforcing a positive position to them. It does however agree with His other warnings as well as the following scriptures alluding to the same point.
Moses alluded to this very thing in:
Exodus 32:31-33
31: And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold.
32: Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.
33: And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.
It is pretty clear by this scripture that it agrees with what we are looking at here in Revelation. True, it is the Old Testament but the subject and context are the same. It is also verified by Jesus in:
Matthew 10:
32: Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
33: But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
It is a terrible warning for the many we see everyday that are taking their spiritual condition lightly. It is a serious matter and even more so for those that have been enlightened and are taking for granted the gift they have received.
The Church of Philadelphia
7: And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;
Jesus’ opening statement:
Jesus states that He is coming to this “church” as the one that is holy and true. Just as He told the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4:23; He is searching for those that are hungry, true, and seeking with a heart of worship. When He finds these individuals He will open doors of opportunity to them because He knows that they will be faithful and use it to glorify Him. In these situations man will not be able to withstand nor thwart their efforts because He has opened that door for them.
He will also shut doors at times because it is necessary to His plan and even though we might not know what that is nor see it at the time we know that it is right. He also will shut the door so that the enemy cannot interfere with the work He ordains. We know that this will not happen all the time in our walk, but there will be times that God will open certain doors for us and close certain ones also.
We need to be good spiritual stewards and take advantage of the opportunities that are opened to us when they are there.
He mentions the “Key of David” and many relate this to the fact that He is the Messiah of the lineage of David and will reign on his throne forever as promised. I do not dispute that fact but offer this suggestion along with that. Since He is speaking to this particular group of people because of their dedication, love, hunger, and faithfulness could it be possible that His reference to David was in that capacity.
After all it was David that wrote the biggest collection of love psalms to God from in most intimate and inmost being. Could it be because like David, this group refused to allow circumstances to keep them from true worship and adoration regardless of the turmoil in their lives? I believe that because of what He says about these people that it could very well be just that.
We notice that in each of the other churches aside from Smyrna Jesus exposed some serious issues with them that needed immediate attention. This is another reason I believe these seven churches represent the complete spectrum of what you find in churches today. There are the few “Philadelphia’s” in each church and they are faithful to their God.
8: I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.
9: Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
This was a group of Christians that would not deny the Word or the Lord who is that Word. They had little strength but with all their effort and what was in them they still chose to proclaim the truth. Because of their undying faithfulness God opened a door for them that would not be shut. Looking at the condition of the church today it is hard to imagine how most would make it though any type of resistance or persecution for the sake of the Gospel.
Those that are false professors and make trouble for those that are trying to do what is right will find themselves in a situation they will regret forever. There is a little confusion over this verse as to how people would come before other people and worship at their feet. I believe it is because of a misconception of what this being said. Isaiah 60:14 gives a key to understanding the concept of what is being said here.
14: The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
I do not believe that the indication in vs.9 is that they will be worshiping these individuals but that they will be worshiping Jesus at their feet. They will have to acknowledge to these individuals that they were right and that Christ was the only way and the worship will be toward Jesus.
It will still be a humbling experience to have these individuals at your feet. All those people over the years that you have witnessed to and maybe they scorned you and what you were doing. All those that laughed at you for your commitment to witness to the lost and evangelize whenever the opportunity arose.
Every Christian has some occurrence where individuals in the course of their walk have made it very difficult and maybe even mocked their faith.
Those are the ones that will melt in their haughtiness and be at your feet proclaiming that Jesus is Lord and acknowledging that you told them the truth and they refused it.
There are many that have been hurt by what they thought was a fellow brother or sister in the Lord. Many have been damaged by church, or a better term would be religion and people in the church. The individuals spoken of in this church “Philadelphia” are these individuals that have not given up regardless of the trials and assaults on their faith, but remain, weak but still there.
10: Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
This is probably one of the most debated single verses in the Bible because of its implications. This is one of the major verses used by those that believe in the Pre-tribulation theory. The claim is that this particular “hour” of temptation spoken of in this verse is referring to the tribulation period.
I agree that it is speaking of a part of the tribulation period, but not the complete time period. I believe that it is speaking of the time known as “The Great Tribulation” spoken of by Jesus in Matthew 24:21 and other places. One thing we know for certain is that it is describing a time that will affect the entire world at a specific time period. That leaves little doubt that it is certainly referring to the tribulation period.
It also lends support to the view I hold that these seven churches are a view of the church as a whole from the inception of the church throughout history till the end.
It also gives assurance to those of that time if they hold fast to their faith and do not give in to the pressure of the world that He will be there for them in that time of distress. It is very misleading to give the impression that if a person stays true to the faith that there will never be any persecution and even death in some cases. That is most certainly not taught in the Bible or this verse.
There are many, many examples of faithful men and women of God that have stayed the course and died as a result of their undying faith. This verse however is alluding to a specific time period and not individual incidents of persecution and trial. It is speaking of a time that has not happened since the beginning of time until then. It is speaking of a time when God will pour out His wrath on this earth and the inhabitants thereof.
That is why we are promised that He will keep us from that time, because we are not appointed to His wrath.
We will cover this in more detail later in the chapters that deal more directly with the tribulation events.
11: Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
Once again Jesus stresses the importance of holding onto what we have, which is our faith in Him. Then an interesting statement is added that “no man take thy crown.” Our salvation is subjective to us as individuals holding fast to our faith and not becoming as many of the examples we have seen in these seven churches. It is interesting how Jesus phrases this point; it is not Him that takes anything back but it hinges on two factors.
We can forfeit our place in Him by disobeying and rejecting the truth we have been given as our guide. We can also become entangled in false teachings and allow “man” to pull us away from the truth. When a person follows a false teaching they are essentially saying that they believe this man over the truth of God.
Therefore a person can lose their position with God in these ways but they are the ones making that choice. We must always keep in mind that Jesus is speaking to the seven “churches” and not the lost. He concludes each message to each church with the exhortation that those willing to listen should listen. If they have spiritual ears to hear then they better pay attention.
12: Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
13: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
It is interesting how that God has implemented natural things on this earth to relate to the spiritual things. What we do is in many ways a pattern that has a purpose to remind us of the heavenly things. When a man and woman marry it is the bride that takes on the name of the groom. We are the bride of Christ and when we do finally become spiritually united the Groom will give us His Name to bear for eternity.
He has named all the stars and now He will give us a new name and we will forever belong to Him and carry His name etched in us to proudly bear throughout eternity.
The Church of Laodicea
14: And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
Jesus’ opening statement:
This is the church that according to those that follow the time-line theory believe describes the church in our present era. Even though the description is a mirror image of what we see in the churches today I still cannot agree with the time-line theory.
Jesus appears to them as the “faithful and true witness” in contrast to their example. Many Christians that do not take their faith serious and follow some of the condemning patterns Jesus listed in these churches do not realize the damage they do to the Christian witness in general.
I know many people personally that claim to be Christian, yet curse just like the lost, do the things of the lost, and do not witness for Christ. They are actually doing harm to their witness and the Christian witness in general by their actions and they don’t even recognize it. Just as these Laodiceans, they see themselves as just fine and doing the right things.
How can a person get to this point? I believe there are several problems that lead to this condition. They do not have a love for the Word as we mentioned earlier. They allow the world to influence them and never completely get it out of their lives. Their pride keeps them from seeing any personal need for repentance. They may have never experienced real true soul cleansing repentance.
Probably the most important factor which we see so prevalent in most all churches today is the lack of true unadulterated, uncompromising, hell fire and brimstone preaching that causes listeners to agonize of their condition before God and seek Him to change them. There is little if any teaching on holiness and seeking after God along with true and sincere worship.
Everything hinges around entertainment and therefore is superficial in its spiritual substance and basically worthless in developing or equipping a Christian. Even though this church is a very vivid description of our churches today the indictments in the other churches fit just as well.
15: I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16: So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.
There is little room for doubt that those spoken of in these verses are ending up in eternal torment. This should be a sobering warning for us to do all that we can to warn those that we know that may be in this condition. We are told that there are basically three types of those that call themselves Christians. Those that are “hot” being the ones that are on fire, so to say, and do all they can when they can. They are hungry and want to be all they can be and even though they know they are not perfect and make many mistakes their goal is to be what Christ wants in them.
Then we have the “cold” and I believe that these are those that are simply going through the motions and have probably never had a real relationship with God. They may have been in church all their lives or brought up in this atmosphere and this is all they know, but it is not real to them. They have neither spiritual power nor desire to be closer, they are happy with just the recognition of the title. To me these people are much like what envision the Pharisees and Saducees being like in Jesus’ day. They are drunk on the prestige they feel they possess. They are satisfied with status rather than substance.
Then we have the “lukewarm” which are those that may have at one time been genuine and hungry and sincere. They lost their first love as those of Ephesus and fell prey to many of the distractions of the enemy. They are in my mind the seed that fell among the thorny ground in Jesus’ parable in Matthew 13. In that parable that seed “became” unfruitful which means it was fruitful at first. It was the cares of the world and the attacks of the enemy to pull them away that caused this condition.
According to the lukewarm in this passage they see themselves as needing nothing and in their minds are spiritually sound. The enemy has blinded their eyes to the truth and they have lost their zeal and hunger because they were effectively desensitized by the process of “religion” instead of relationship.
Jesus gives all the warnings of the conditions of these seven churches because He cares for His bride. He wants all to be saved and these warnings were for our purpose so that we will not only recognize what is happening but that we will have His heart and warn those that are in these situations.
We need to encourage pastors and ministers that are willing to stand against the tide and speak on these subjects. We need to encourage those that don’t speak on these passages to do so. Time is too short for us to be concerned about hurting someone’s toes and in the process allow them to go to hell.
17: Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
How many Christians do we see today that have this mentality and are in this spiritual condition? How many have we warned about it? We should thank God everyday that we do see His truth and that we are not in this condition, but at the same time we need to ask God to give us the wisdom and boldness to speak to those that are.
I think it is interesting that the first thing mentioned is their concern for wealth and their thinking that in that wealth they need nothing, including God. They have essentially given up spiritual riches for the wealth of this world.
1 Timothy 6:
10: For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Notice that it is the “love” of money that is not just evil but the “root” of all evil. We have to have money to survive and there is also nothing wrong with having money. It is when we place a higher value on that money than should be, when we allow it to become our security instead of God. Most of us frequently hear the first part of this verse about the money being the root of all evil but we rarely hear the rest of it. This misguided love causes them to “err from the faith” and in the process bring upon themselves much sorrow.
The sorrow comes from the fact that they place their faith in a worldly power and in the process place their faith in God in jeopardy. They will never be happy and there will never be enough money to satisfy them. They become consumed with ways to make more and build their security in their wealth. In the process they slowly lose their moral and spiritual substance and are blinded in the process.
It is frightening to see all the churches today using this “prosperity” doctrine and even more frightening is the masses that swarm to it.
We all know that individuals are caught up on the get rich quick schemes and that is not surprising, but to see churches following the same pattern is critical.
Most churches and ministers for that fact base the level of success on the size of their buildings and crowds rather than the spiritual content. This is the era of the “mega-church” and they are getting their ideas from the corporate world. They are building the church like a business instead of a spiritual center.
They are using marketing techniques to get members instead of relying on the drawing power of the Holy Spirit. The reason for this is because the spirit is not a part of their services and therefore cannot be a part of the building process. They are using worldly methods and in the process implementing worldly morals and teachings.
It relates to the old phrase, “garbage in, garbage out.” Therefore it is not a big surprise that there are so many Laodiceans out there today.
Jesus lets them know how He sees them for what they really are. I find it scary sometimes to ask God as David did to “search me and see if there is any wicked way in me.” I want to be what God wants me to be but sometimes I fear what may be in the way and having to acknowledge it.
It is not that I am afraid to deal with it, but it is the pride that does not want to allow me to experience the shame needed to experience real repentance. Jesus is dealing with their spiritual condition because that is what the most important issue is. It is only the convicting power of the Holy Spirit that will reach a heart in this condition. We should be praying for that power to reach those that we know in these conditions.
Jesus lists their spiritual condition in His eyes and this is what the Holy Spirit wants to reveal and will show them.
They are “Wretched.”
Because they thought they would find happiness in a worldly means and that it would fill their spiritual needs. They are wretched because they have resorted to the world to find what only God can supply. They are wretched because the exchanged the power of God for the power of money.
They are “Miserable.”
Because they will never find the peace and happiness they think they will. The enemy will never allow them to be satisfied with his methods. There will never be any spiritual joy and the spirit will continually convict and cause them to know the spiritual void.
They are “Poor.”
They are poor spiritually even though they may have the world’s wealth it can never give them what they need in the spirit. They will continue to struggle to gain more wealth because there will always be a void in their heart that the world cannot fill. It can only be filled by the Spirit.
They are “Blind.”
Blind because they cannot see what the enemy has transformed them into. There is no discernment in spiritual matters so they remain blind to their condition. They do not see the simple truths of God’s Word which will free them from their bondage.
They are “Naked.”
They have neither spiritual armor nor robe of righteousness that is required to make it as a Christian. They can fool man with their charade as a Christian and have the proper speech and actions but God sees the heart.
Jesus then counsels them to obtain the spiritual necessities to change their condition. It is interesting that He uses the phrase eyesalve to them because they were the place that produced the medicine and eyesalve to the region of their day.
It is much like when Jesus came to the disciples in John 21, when they had gone back to fishing instead of witnessing of Him. They had been fishing all night and caught nothing and He appeared on the bank and asked them if they had caught anything. They of course said no and then He instructed them to casts their nets on the right side of the boat. He was showing them what I believe was a lesson that their own efforts would never produce what the Spirit can. When directed by the Spirit they could not pull in all the fish, so when we listen to God then we will be spiritually successful.
As Laodicea, we will never obtain any spiritual ground or blessing following our own methods or that of the world.
Jesus was basically telling these Laodiceans, you have tried your ways, now put on the spiritual eyesalve and you will be able to see the futility of your efforts.
19: As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
20: Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
No one enjoys being rebuked or discipline but it is necessary in order for us to respect the authority that is necessary. The discipline is out of love and for our good even though we don’t understand it most of the time. As parents we know this firsthand with our children, that what we do is for their best interest. Therefore God’s interest in us as His children is much higher than we could imagine.
Just as He rebukes us as His children we that are spiritual are to do the same for our fellow brothers and sisters we may find in these conditions.
In Ephesians 5:11 we are commanded to expose the error and in Galatians 6:1 we are instructed to do it in the spirit of meekness.
Jesus then says to be “zealous” and repent. We are always under the impression which is a reality that we don’t know how long we have on this earth so we need to correct spiritual matters quickly as if there is no tomorrow. If we put procrastinate it generally leads to neglecting to get it done.
He stands at the door and knocks, that is the door of your heart. The Spirit will always be working on hearts until the individual grieves or rejects the Spirit to the point that God allows you to go the path you have chosen. No person knows where that line is but we do know that God’s patience is immeasurable and He extends it as long as possible. Notice that it is Jesus that is doing the knocking; He is constantly seeking and pursuing us. Much like the parable of the lost sheep in Matthew 18:10-14, He is very concerned about the one that has gone astray and will leave the ninety nine to go after the one.
Jesus is always actively inviting us to unite with Him but He will not force us to accept the invitation.
For those that have gone astray it is simply a matter of them “coming to their senses” as the Prodigal Son did in Luke 15:17-21, and turning back to the Lord. This of course comes with the prodding of the Spirit and the repentance of the individual.
21: To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
22: He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
Jesus finishes His message to these particular churches and ends it the same way it started with the gravest warning to Christians, to “hear” what He has to say.
Probably the biggest challenge to people caught up in spiritual error is to get them to actually hear the truth. The god of this age is blinding them and deceiving them and our best action is to pray for them fervently.
Back to Revelation Studies
Bible Headquarters
|