If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Welcome to the conclusion of this section! Let’s pray together:

Father, The study of the letters to the seven churches reveals the wonderful riches of the prophetic book of Revelation. Please grant us Your Holy Spirit, so that the global picture may help us to fully understand the seven letters. We ask You, above all, to help us to put into practice the invaluable counsels Jesus gives us in these letters. In His name we pray. Amen.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Revelation 1:11	Comments
What you see, write in a book, and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia; to Ephesus, and to Smyrna, and to Pergamos, and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.	In this lesson, we will draw the main parallels between the letters to the seven churches. These parallels will help us to discover some important messages which can go unnoticed when each letter is studied separately. Though the letters present a local application, we will linger over their prophetic application.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Revelation 1:19	Comments
Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter.	Following the pattern of Daniel’s prophecies describing the succession of earthly kingdoms, the letters describe the succession of the seven stages of Church history, between the first and the second coming of Jesus.
Daniel 2:39,40
After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Revelation 1:1	Comments
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to Him, to show to His servants things which must shortly come to pass.	Keeping in mind each one of the stages of Church history, let’s start by quickly reviewing the content of each section of the seven letters.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
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Revelation 22:10

Comments

And [the angel] said to me, «Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.»

In our lesson «The Book of Revelation», we have seen that this book presents a mirrorlike organization, in which its historical part (first part of the book) correlates with the eschatological part (second part of the book). In this mirrorlike organization, the letters to the seven churches (chapters 1 to 3) perfectly correlate to the section describing the reward granted to the churches (chapters 21 and 22). Let’s look at this together.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Revelation 1:1,3	Comments
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to Him, to show to His servants things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John. (...) Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein. For the time is at hand.	By looking more closely at the seven letters, we continue to find many more amazing messages about the «things which must shortly come to pass», thus filling with zeal and hope the hearts of those who study Revelation.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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	Summary of the Seven Letters
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	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Revelation 2:7

Comments

He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit said to the churches. «To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the tree of life.»

In addition to describing the condition of the seven local churches and the seven stages of Church history between the first and second coming of Jesus, the seven letters are also addressed to each one of us: «He that has an ear, let him hear.» They reveal seven spiritual states a Christian can experience during his life. Then, they give the best advice and encouragement for each one of those spiritual states.

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Revelation 1:1	Comments
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to Him, to show to His servants things which must shortly come to pass.	Each one of the letters to the seven churches gives us a valuable message which strengthens our confidence by its prophetic application, but also guides us in our Christian progress by its personal application. But the book of Revelation still holds in store a lot of surprises for us, as we will see in the next section about the seven seals. Don’t miss it!

	If I Were Told the Future	Lesson 29
	Summary of the Seven Letters
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Let’s pray:

Lord, We sincerely thank You for giving us the book of Revelation, and for these seven letters You sent to Your Church. By their prophetic application, they strengthen our confidence in Your inspired Word. By their personal application, they are a source of vital counsels and encouragements, whatever our present spiritual condition may be. May Your Holy Spirit continue to guide us, as we now tackle the study of the seven seals of Revelation. In Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

 The test of Lesson 29 is waiting for you!

Source of the Pictures of this Lesson

Screen 1: Picture Collection «Corel Gallery Magic» by Corel, 1997, CD #7, Photo Library 2, 199023.PCD. Screen 2: MANISCALCO, Joe. In: «Revelation Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1986, lesson #5 («Sept Messages Particuliers de Jésus»), p.1. Screen 3: RUDEEN, Herbert. In: «Uncle Arthur’s Bible Book» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.273. Picture edited by Cyberspace Ministry. Used by permission. Copyright ©1945, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1968, 1996 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 4: Picture Collection «ClickArt 65,000» by Broderbund, CD #4, RELCR143.JPG. Table of Screen 4: «Cathedral of Bourges, front, France». In: «Collier’s Encyclopedia Deluxe 1998», Sierra Home. Screen 5: HARLAN, Russell. In: «Votre Bible et Vous» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.286. Used by permission. Copyright ©1959, 1987 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 6: GREENE, Nathan. «The Invitation». In: «Inspirational Fine Art», Hart Classic Editions (www.hartclassics.com), p.2. Table of Screen 6: In: «Revelation Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1986, lesson #2 («L’Etoile du drame de l’Apocalypse»), p.1. Screen 7: ANDERSON, Harry. In: «L’Espoir de l’Humanité» volume 2 (Ellen G. White), front cover. Used by permission. Copyright ©1962, 1989 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Table of Screen 7: In: «Revelation Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1986, lesson #2 («L’Etoile du drame de l’Apocalypse»), p.1. Screen 8: Photo by Betty Blue and Duane Tank. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (July 1990), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.7. Table of Screen 8: Mother Teresa. Photo from the Web site: «En dulce memoria de Madre Teresa 1910-1997» (http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Metro/9609/madre2.htm). Screen 9: In: «Histoire du Monde: Volume 8 - Réformes et Explorations» (STEFFENSEN, J.-L.), Les Éditions Maisonneuve, 1967, p.733. Table of Screen 9: In: WHITE, Ellen G., «The (New, Illustrated) Great Controversy», Laymen for Religious Liberty Inc., 1990. Screen 10: ANDERSON, Harry. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (September 1980), p.11. Used by permission. Copyright ©1962, 1990 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Table of Screen 10: JORDAENS, Jacob. «The four doctors of the Church» (17th century). In: «Illustrated Lives of the Saints» (McNEILL, John), Bison Books Ltd., 1995, p.15. Screen 11: In: «The Children’s Bible, volume 11», Golden Press, 1981, p.657. Table of Screen 11: RUIZ, Eduardo. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (April 1995), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.5. Screen 12: REMMEY, Paul. In: «The Bible Story, volume 9» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.181. Picture edited by Cyberspace Ministry. Used by permission. Copyright ©1957, 1985 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Table of Screen 12: JUSTINEN, Lars. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (November 1993), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.1. Screen 13: «The St. Daniel Monastery.» In: «Deluxe Compton’s Interactive Encyclopedia CD - 2000 Edition», Compton’s Home Library, 1999. Screen 14: In: «Revelation Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1986, lesson #1 («Une Aventure Avec la Prophétie»), p.1. Screen 15: «One-way mirrors cover a Toronto, Canada, building.» In: «Deluxe Compton’s Interactive Encyclopedia CD - 1998 Edition», Compton’s Home Library, 1997. Screen 16: PROVONSHA, Clyde. In: «God Cares, volume 2» (MAXWELL, C.Mervyn), Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1985, p.506. Table of Screen 16: PROVONSHA, Clyde. In: «God Cares, volume 2» (MAXWELL, C.Mervyn), Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1985, p.88. Screen 17: In: «The Watchtower» magazine (June 15, 1994), Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.10. Screen 18: MITOMA, Tim. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (March 1996), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.2. Table of Screen 18: STEEL, John. In: «La Sentinelle» magazine (March 1996), Pacific Press Publishing Association, p.4. Screen 19: In: «The Bible Story, volume 10» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.207. Used by permission. Copyright ©1957, 1985 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Table of Screen 19: DORÉ, Gustave. In: «La Bible de Gustave Doré», Lausanne, Edita, 1994, p.9. Screen 20: BOWER, Maurice. In: «The Living Bible Encyclopedia in Story and Pictures, volume 14», New York, H.S. Stuttman Co. Inc., 1968, p.1852-d. Screen 21: In: «Egermeier’s Bible Story Book» (EGERMEIER, Elsie E.), The Warner Press, 1963, p.484. Table of Screen 21: Photo by SPRINGER, Joel. In: «Adventist Review» (September 1996), p.17. Used by permission. Copyright ©1996 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 22: In: «Vous pouvez vivre éternellement sur une terre qui deviendra un paradis», New York, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, 1982, p.128. Screen 23: In: «Photo Gallery 5,000 volume 2» by Media Graphics International, 33_131.JPG.

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 The test of Lesson 29 is waiting for you!