A Gentle Ramble Through the Bible - Class 186

             

             
     

Letters to the Churches (Part 1)

I used to wonder why Revelation begins with these seven letters to the churches in Asia. The letters seemed like unnecessary appendages hanging off the beginning of the book before you got to the real story.


I don't think that anymore. Now I understand that these letters are foundational for grasping John's message in Revelation. He defines terms here. He sets up the coded language and imagery he'll use later on.


The part I missed is the part the Roman Empire missed. I was reading Revelation like a Roman would.


The preface to the apocalypse is a set of letters, one for each of seven churches in Asia Minor where John ministered. The letters aren’t addressed to the churches, but to each of their angels. We’ll spend a little time pondering the significance of that.


Each letter praises the churches, chastises them a bit, and then gives each one a promise. There’s a lot of war language used--victory and overcoming and laurels of reward. We’ll think about that a bit as well.


We cover Revelation 2:1-11.

A free Study Guide is available. A video version of the class is available on YouTube. More info at EversBibleClass.com.

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