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| Welcome to this new chapter of Bible prophecy! Let's pray together: |
| Father, We heartily thank You for allowing us to study more deeply the prophetic book of Revelation. May Your Spirit guide us, He who inspired the content of this book to Your servant John. In Jesus Christ we pray. Amen. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 2 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:1,3 |
Comments |
| The Revelation of Jesus Christ,
which God gave Him to show His servants - things which must shortly take place. And He
sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John (...). Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near. |
Right from the first verse of Revelation, we discover
the purpose of this prophetic work: to reveal to us the «things
which must shortly take place». Moreover, a special blessing is granted to those who study this book. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 3 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:4,5 |
Comments |
| John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. | From the island of Patmos (near the coast of Turkey) where he was exiled, the apostle John entrusted the revelation he received to the seven major churches of Asia, where he had previously worked as a pastor. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 4 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:9-11 |
Comments |
| I, John, both your brother and
companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the
island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, (...) «What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.» |
On the orders of a powerful-voiced being, John sent a
letter to each one of the seven churches of Asia. Let's take a moment to locate those seven churches on the map. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 5 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
| Geographical situation of the seven churches of Asia: |
| These churches were
situated |~~~~######################## 1=Ephesus #### in Lydia, an ancient region |~~~~~~# 3 ##### 4 ########## 2=Smyrna ##### corresponding to modern Tur- |~~~~~# 2 ######### 5 ####### 3=Pergamos ### key. The sequence of the |~~~~~~############## 6 ##### 4=Thyatira ### seven churches is horseshoe- |~Aegean# 1 ## LYDIA ######## 5=Sardis ##### shaped, and represents the |~~Sea~~~############### 7 ## 6=Philadelphia order in which John would |~~~~~~~~~~~~################ 7=Laodicea ### have visited them from Pat- |~~~##~~~~~~~~~~~~~######################~~# mos, if he finally gained |~Patmos~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~## freedom. (In fact, John ma- |~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Damas#°### naged to return to Ephesus, |~~~Mediterranean~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~####### shortly before his death.) |~~~~~~~~Sea~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Jerusalem#°####### |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 6 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:12,13 |
Comments |
| Then I turned to see the voice
that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. |
Then, John saw the One who instructed him to send the
letters to the seven churches. Walking in the midst of the lampstands, this being is described in a gripping way. We can already guess who He is; indeed, His identity will soon be confirmed by His words... |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 7 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:17,18 |
Comments |
| When I saw Him, I fell at His
feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, «Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.» |
So, the powerful being is Jesus Christ Himself. |
Romans 6:9 |
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| Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 8 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:12,13,20 |
Comments |
| I saw seven golden lampstands,
and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man (...). The seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches. |
By letting the prophecy interpret itself,
we learn that the lampstands symbolize the churches. Standing in the midst of these lampstands, Jesus gives us the message that He will always be with us, until the end of the world, faithful to the promise He has made. |
Matthew 28:20 |
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| [Jesus said]: «And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.» |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 9 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:12,13 |
Comments |
| I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man. | By using the expression «Son of Man», John brings out the human nature of Jesus Christ, just as Daniel and Matthew did before. |
Matthew 24:30 |
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| All the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven. | |
Daniel 7:13 |
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| Behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 10 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:14 |
Comments |
| His head and His hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire. | But, by using the description of the Ancient of Days, who is God the Father, John also brings out the divine nature of Jesus Christ. |
Daniel 7:9 |
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| The Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 11 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:17,18 |
Comments |
| He laid His right hand on me,
saying to me, «Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.» |
A little farther on, John affirms once again the divinity of Jesus, quoting His expression «the First and the Last», attributed to God only. |
Isaiah 44:6 |
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| Thus says the Lord, the King of
Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: «I am the First and I am the Last; besides Me there is no God.» |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 12 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:16 |
Comments |
| Out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword. | Jesus, who is called «the Word» (John 1:1,14), appears with the Word of God in His mouth, ready to test our thoughts, words, and deeds. |
Ephesians 6:17 |
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| And take (...) the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. | |
Hebrews 4:12 |
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| The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 13 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
| «What you see, write in a book
and send it to the seven churches.» (Revelation 1:11) |
| Now, let's look at the seven letters. Each one follows an almost identical pattern. Here is their general outline, in five points: 1. Portrait of Jesus, according to the spiritual state of the church. 2. Praise, acknowledgement of the positive points. 3. Condemnation, identification of the negative points. 4. Correction, counsels to restore the situation. 5. Promise, encouragement to persevere. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 14 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
| A short look at the first letter shows the five points of the pattern: |
| 1. Portrait of Jesus, according to the spiritual
state of the church. «These things says He who holds the seven stars in His hand.» (REVELATION 2:1) 2. Praise, acknowledgement of the positive points. «I know your works, your labor, your patience.» (REVELATION 2:2) 3. Condemnation, identification of the negative points. «You have left your first love.» (REVELATION 2:4) 4. Correction, counsels to restore the situation. «Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works.» (REVELATION 2:5) 5. Promise, encouragement to persevere. «To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.» (REVELATION 2:7) |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 15 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:10,11 |
Comments |
| I heard behind me a loud voice,
as of a trumpet, saying, «(...) What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.» |
We have just seen that the message of Jesus was
addressed to the seven churches of Asia listed in these verses. However, Jesus' message is not only intended for those specific churches: its range is much more extended, not only in space, but also in time. Let's read the following verses. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 16 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:19 |
Comments |
| Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this. | Jesus shows that the letters to the
churches also have a prophetic value. Following the pattern of Daniel's prophecies, they will describe the seven stages of Church history, from the days of John until the end of the world. |
Daniel 2:39,40 |
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| After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 17 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 2:7 |
Comments |
| He who has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches. «To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life.» |
Besides describing the situation of the seven local
churches, as well as the seven stages of Christian Church history between the first and
the second coming of Jesus, these seven letters are personally addressed to each one of
us: «He who has an ear, let him hear.» They picture seven spiritual states that each Christian can experience throughout his life, and then they give us the appropriate advice and encouragements. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 18 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
Revelation 1:1 |
Comments |
| The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants - things which must shortly take place. | In fact, the very first verse of Revelation clearly
shows that this book is addressed to each one of us («to show His
servants»), and that it also has a prophetic range («things
which must shortly take place»). So we shouldn't be surprised that the seven letters also show this double application, both personal and prophetic. May the study of these letters help us to grow in our Christian life. |
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Lesson 21 |
Screen 19 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters |
| Let's pray: |
| Lord, We thank you for having given us the book of Revelation, especially the seven letters that You addressed to Your church. Through their prophetic value, they will strengthen our confidence in Your inspired Word. Also, through their personal application, they will be a source of advice and encouragement for us, whatever our spiritual state may be. May Your Holy Spirit guide us, as we study each one of these seven letters. In Jesus Christ we pray. Amen. |
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Introduction to the
Seven Letters