The Seven Churches of Revelation 2-3

Ephesus (Rev. 2:1-7)

1. Compliment – You work hard, endure persecution, call out false teachers, and disagree with the Nicolaitans who promote Gnosticism. (2, 3, 6)
2. Complaint – Your love for God and others has taken a back seat to doctrinal purity. (4)
3. Warning – Repent or lose your opportunity to be a lampstand. (5)
4. Promise – Those showing love while doing this purifying work will be rewarded with eternal life. (7)
5. The Point - Doctrinal accuracy and works of service cannot make up for an unloving heart. 

 Smyrna (Rev. 2:8-11)

1. Compliment - You are financially poor, but spiritually rich. (9)
2. Complaint - Not really towards the church, but towards the devilish people outside the church, who were slandering them.  (9)
3. Warning - Persecution is coming. Endure it. (10) 
4. Promise - Be faithful to death, and I will award you a victor's crown. (10)
5. The Point - Right-standing Christians must remain faithful in persecution.

 Pergamum (Rev. 2:12-17)

1. Compliment - You have remained faithful to Christ in an evil place. (13)
2. Complaint - You Christians don't participate, but you tolerate the teaching of Balaam and the Nicolaitans. (14-15)
3. Warning - Repent and be intolerant of such false teachers, or they will die. (16)
4. Promise - Be victorious in this cleansing work, and I will reward you. (17)
5. The Point - Tolerance of sin can cause you to lose loved ones and put you in danger of the discipline of Christ.

 Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29)

1. Compliment - You are growing in good deeds, love, faith, service, and perseverance. (19)
2. Complaint - You tolerate and follow a false teacher who is leading believers to sin. (20)
3. Warning - I am going to punish her and all of her followers. (21-23)
4. Promise - If you are victorious in dealing with her and continue to grow spiritually, you will rule in my Millennial Kingdom with my authority and my glory. (26-28) 
5. The Point - Tolerance of false teaching can negate the rewards for spiritual growth.

 Sardis (Revelation 3:1-6)

1. Compliment - You have a reputation in the community for doing good works for the Lord. (1)
2. Complaint - You are close to completely dying without finishing your job. (1-2)
3. Warning - Repent, remember your calling church, and wake up!  Or I will end you myself. (3)
4. Promise - If you are victorious in this, I will dress you in white, you will live with the assurance of my salvation, and I will present you to my Father and His angels in Heaven. (5) 
5. The Point - Believers need to work for the glory of the Lord. 

 Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13)

1. Compliment - Despite being weak, you have kept God's commands, His name, and done good works. (8)
2. Complaint - Your deeds were weakening. (8)
3. Warning - I will make your slanderous enemies bow before you and testify that I love you. (9)
4. Promise - If you remain faithful, you will receive rewards. (12)
5. The Point - Persevere and remain faithful all the way until the end. It will be worth it. 

 Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22)

1. Compliment - There is no compliment here.
2. Complaint(s) – 
   • You are lukewarm, and it makes me sick. (15-16)
   • You are rich but ignorantly arrogant. (17)
   • Despite all I have given you, you are still poor, naked, and blind. (18)
3. Warning - Repent, or I will discipline and rebuke you. (19-20)
4. Promise - If you repent, you will rule with me. (21)
5. The Point - Quit playing around! Repent or get punished: believers in discipline and unbelievers in Hell.

Seeing Jesus

Revelation 1:9-19

 Notice that:

1. John was one of us. (9)
2. John was given a task while worshipping. (10)
3. John mentioned seven churches. (11)

 Jesus:

1. Was in the center of seven lampstands. (12)
2. Appeared human. (13)
3. Wore a long robe and golden sash. (13)
4. Had white hair and flaming eyes. (14)
5. Had feet that looked like bronze. (15)
6. Had a voice louder than the ocean. (15)
7. Was holding seven stars. (16)
8. Used words that cut like a sword (16)
9. Had a face that shines like the sun. (16)

 How did John respond?

1. He fell down, scared to death. (17)
2. He had to be assured by Jesus. (17-18)
3. He did what Jesus said. (19)

This Prophecy is For Real!

Revelation 1:1-12

 Four approaches to interpreting the book of Revelation.

1. Preterist approach 
2. Historicist approach
3. Idealist approach 
4. Futurist approach

 Notice the prophecy.

1. The prophecy is God's. (1)
2. The prophecy is for the servants of Jesus. (1)
3. The prophecy tells of what will happen. (1)
4. The prophecy was communicated to us by John. (1-2)
5. The prophecy intends blessing. (3)

 Notice the initial characters.

1. The global church of Jesus (4)
2. The Triune God. (4-5)
3. The Kingdom (6)

 Notice the Promises.

1. Jesus is coming! (7)
2. Every eye will see Him. (7)
3. The people on Earth will wail. (8)
4. You have God’s word on this. (8)

End times prophecy can be scary and confusing. It's unnerving to consider the social, physical, and spiritual turmoil that will occur during that time. It is also uncomfortable for most churches and Christians to discuss spirit realm events and beings. However, we cannot understand the end times prophecies without getting into the uncomfortable and often ignored passages of the Bible.  This podcast episode is the introductory sermon for a series covering the book of Revelation. Let's dig into the scriptures and see why God clues us in on as we approach His coming. 

The Godly Man – His Protection

1 Timothy 6:1-2; 20-21

 Show honor to those in authority:

1. To all authorities (1)
   1. To protect the reputation of God
   2. To protect the teaching of the scriptures
2. To Christian authorities (2), 
   1. To protect the benefit of the fellow Christian.
   2. To protect your relationship with them.

Guard God’s deposit.   

1. Protect the truth. (20)
2. Protect conversations. (20)
3. Protect the Kingdom (21)

 The Applications for the godly man:

1. Express and earn honor.
2. Establish the role of a protector.
3. Encourage truth-in-love conversations.
4. Embrace men of faith.

 The Applications for everyone else: 

1. Endorse godly men.
2. Endure the protection of a godly man.

The Godly Man – His Provisions

1 Timothy 6:17-19

 The Conviction of the Godly Rich:

1. Be humble. (17)
2. Trust God for provisions. (17)

 The Instruction to the Godly Rich: 

1. Do good things with your wealth. (18)
2. Convert wealth to work. (18)
3. Share your wealth. (18)

 The Compensation for the Godly Rich:

1. Heavenly savings (19)
2. A secure fund (19)
3. An eternal retirement (19)

 Application for the Godly Man:

1. Prioritize God’s plan.
2. Pursue Godly purposes.
3. Proliferate God’s retirement plan.

 Application for everyone else:

1. Accept the conversion.
2. Encourage the conviction.
3. Join in on the accumulation. 

The Godly Man – His Promise

1 Tim. 6:12-16

 Paul felt the need to remind Timothy to:

1. Fight for faith (12)
2. Live with eternity in mind (12)
3. Remember your call and promise (13)

 Keep your promises because Jesus:

1. Will come again when the Father sends Him. (15)
2. Has the highest authority. (15)
3. Will assign immortality (16)
4. Knows the truth (16)
5. Limits who will see Him (16)
6. Will be honored (16)
7. Will be in charge forever (16)

 The application for a godly man:

1. Remember your promises.
2. Keep your promises.
3. Rest in His promises.

 The application for the rest of us:

1. Don't put a godly man in a predicament. 
2. Hold a godly man accountable.
3. Remind a godly man of these promises.
4. Help a godly man keep his promises.

The Godly Man – His Pursuits

1 Timothy 6:3-11

 Flee these things.  

1. Contradictory doctrine and ungodly instruction: (3)
2. The trap of wealth (9-10)

Pursue these things: (11)

1. Righteousness 
2. Godliness 
3. Faith 
4. Love 
5. Steadfastness 
6. Gentleness 

 The outcome of pursuing the right things: (6-8)

1. Godliness 
2. Contentment 

 Application for the Godly man:

1. Evaluate what you are pursuing.
2. Enjoy contentment.

 The application for everyone else:

1. Pray for your man's godliness.
2. Praise his pursuits that are within the guidelines of godliness.

Be On Guard

1 Timothy 4

1. Guard your faith (1-5)
2. Guard your interests (7-10)
3. Guard your reputation (12-15)
4. Guard your friends (6, 11, 16)

To every young person listening, vow to the Lord to guard your doctrine, passion, reputation, and friends. Pray that the Holy Spirit will set your mind to this work. To every parent, grandparent, and guardian listening, vow to stand between your children and the world until they are old enough to consistently make right spiritual decisions for themselves. This is the call to prayer today.

The Godly Woman – Her Wisdom

Proverbs 31:10-31

1. Her wisdom is beneficial. (18)
2. Her wisdom is confident. (21, 25)
3. Her wisdom is shareable. (26)
4. Her wisdom is God-given. (30)

 The Takeaways for the godly woman:

1. Be wise and confident with what God gives you. 
2. Share your wisdom and faith.

Application for everyone else:

1. Learn from the wisdom of godly women in your life.