WordWalk

The ancient city of Smyrna, located just thirty-five miles north of Ephesus, had a long and illustrious history.  The city enjoyed an accessible harbor, a prosperous economy, fertile fields, and close ties with Rome.  It was the site of numerous pagan temples, of a significant library, and of various landmarks of stunning Greek architecture.  Alexander the Great was determined to make Smyrna a model Greek city.  It boasted an advanced culture where art, philosophy, and religion flourished.  Caesar was worshipped as the supreme deity.

Within this city was a small band of Christ-followers, and they affirmed lordship only in Him.  This resulted in severe persecution: they were treated as outlaws, hunted as animals, tortured, burned alive, boiled in oil, fed to beasts, and drowned by weighed stones.  Their jobs were snatched from them and their homes were destroyed.

Jesus Christ is no stranger to pain.  He personally sent a letter of encouragement to these believers in Smyrna (there is no correction given to this assembly).  He emphasizes His encouragement in three statements of solidarity that begin with the phrase I know.  “I know your tribulation.”  This wording refers to slow stress and pressure that results in being smashed to death beneath the weight of an enormous boulder.  “I know your poverty.”  They were destitute, yet Jesus referred to them as being rich in matters of the kingdom.  “I know the slander that you endure.”  This was the unfair abuse leveled against them by religious Judaizers (which are referred to as “the synagogue of Satan.”)

The assembly in Smyrna is given two commands from Christ, and two names of Christ are mentioned to support their resolve.  They are told to “stop being afraid” and “keep on being faithful”; they were told this by the one “who is the First and the Last” and “who was dead and is now very much alive.”  Even the name Smyrna reflects the myrrh plant, which has to be crushed to give forth a sweet fragrance.  Myrrh is found throughout the Scriptures – especially in reference to the sacrifice of Christ, and here it is used in reference to the martyrs in this city.  Some referred to Smyrna as the crown of Asia Minor, but it is Christ who gives a crown to those who have suffered.  These are the overcomers who received the stephanus or the crown (wreath) of joy in ultimate victory.

_________________________________________________________________

Click HERE for a complete summary of all posts, pictures and videos in the “Seven Churches Journey.”

At WordWalk’s “gathering6” we affirmed how our God has transformed us into a community of believers with a purpose of partnering with others whose purpose is to take the gospel message of hope to the nations.

As of now we are privileged to have vital and tangible connections in seventeen different countries around the world.  We were encouraged as individuals informed us of opportunities in countries such as Ghana and Uganda, Haiti and Jamaica, Moldova and Kazakhstan, Mexico and the United States.

As we continue to explore possibilities, we are seeking to develop an aggressive strategy for growth through research and communication.

[Show as slideshow]

To the messenger of the assembly of Christ-followers at Smyrna (whose name reflects the myrrh plant, which releases its fragrance when crushed), write this at once.  This message is directly from the One who is the First and the Last, and the One who was crucified and is resurrected.  He is alive!

Jesus knows all about your difficult circumstances.  He understands what you are going through with absolute clarity and accuracy.  He sees your tribulation – the anguish, the affliction, the burden, and the persecution.  He sees your poverty, but He looks beyond that to the greater reality that you are possessors of wealth and greater riches.  He is also aware of the slander and the vilification that you encounter and endure from blasphemous pretenders who claim to be righteous Jews.  Actually, their assembly resembles a synagogue of Satan.

You are about to suffer.  Do not be surprised by this.  Being disciples of the Christ makes you outlaws in this culture.  These enemies of the cross will make every effort to diminish and denigrate God’s Word.  Satan will influence them to throw you into prison, but this only serves to strengthen you and to spread the message of the Kingdom.  This testing shows the genuineness of the Spirit within you.  All persecution has parameters.  Yours will last ten days (in history, this time period is from approximately AD 54-305, when ten crazed Roman emperors starting with Nero and ending with Diocletian, severely persecuted Christians).  Continue to be increasingly and intensely faithful, even if it costs your lives.  If you die a martyr’s death, Christ Himself will present you with the victor’s wreath.

Are your ears awake to attentively hear and listen to what the Spirit is saying to all of the local assemblies collectively as the Body of Christ?  For those of you who make the serious and intentional choice to overcome – to conquer, to prevail, to subdue, and to gain the victory by following instead of by fighting – know with assurance that you will not at all be hurt by eternal death.

Revelation 2:8-11, an expanded translation.

_________________________________________________________________

Click HERE for a complete summary of all posts, pictures and videos in the “Seven Churches Journey.”

The seven churches of Asia referred to in the book of Revelation were geographically identified assemblies of ordinary believers.  They each had various conditions of terrain, politics, and economics.  Each received their spiritual identity from Christ.  The messages to these churches train us in living a confident faith-life in the midst of a hostile environment through a process of affirmation, correction, and promise.  These come from the risen Christ, the Head of the Church.  This training takes place in seven areas: to love (Ephesus), to suffer (Smyrna), to tell the truth (Pergamum), to be holy (Thyatira), to be authentic (Sardis), to be missional (Philadelphia), and to worship (Laodecia).

Ephesus was a bustling city on the coast of the Aegean Sea, well known for its commerce, religion, and philosophy.  It was the leading port of Asia Minor, and four major trade routes ran through it.  It was the gateway to Asia.  The city’s Roman Temple of Diana (called Artemis in the Greek), the pagan goddess of  fertility, was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Paul founded the church at Ephesus, and he spent three years there teaching and witnessing.  The church was also served by Timothy, Tychicus, Aquilla, Priscilla, and by the apostle John.  Some put the events of church history alongside the seven church letters and observe how they parallel the prophetic history of the church.  In doing this, Ephesus would parallel the Apostolic Period of the church from AD 30-100.

The church at Ephesus was commended for having strong doctrine and solid moral behavior.  Those who rejected the truth or taught strange ideas were not comfortable in this congregation.  But slow, imperceptible, and significant erosion occurred. Their passion and fervor became cold and manifested itself in mechanical orthodoxy.  Doctrinal and moral purity, undiminished zeal for the truth, and disciplined service, are not substitutes for loving Christ.  Those who overcome must do so in truth and in love.   

_________________________________________________________________

Click HERE for a complete summary of all posts, pictures and videos in the “Seven Churches Journey.”

Ephesus, your assembly is representative of the birth and early years of God’s community, the Church.  From disciples and apostles and from Acts to the epistles, a foundation was established.  

You existed in a secular culture of commerce, religion, and philosophy… yet you thrived.  Your opportunities were manifold, and your influence was strong.  This message to you is from Jesus Christ Himself.  He is the Head, the ultimate authority, of all of the assemblies in your immediate periphery and around the world.  He initiated them in His providence, and walks among them to provide for them and to preserve them as they proclaim His Kingdom.  They are not the Light, but they display light as they are the candlesticks and lampstands.

Jesus Christ knows with absolute clarity and accuracy your works and deeds, your labor and hard work, your patience and perseverance, and your steadfast and hope-filled endurance.  You do not tolerate or endure those aggressive and/or deceptive ones who are evil and who practice evil.  Pretenders find no comfort or acceptance in your gatherings.  You examine and test those who claim to have the spiritual authority of apostles; they find themselves exposed as false and as liars.

You have persevered and endured hardships of all kinds, yet you are steadfast and persistent.  Your fortitude is on display for the sake of the Name of Christ and His Kingdom.  Through this persecution and stress, you have not grown weary.  You never seem to wear out.

Every assembly needs to be in a state of constant reformation.   As for you, your relationship with Christ has drifted.  It has eroded slowly and imperceptibly.  You are no longer desirable; you leave much to be desired.

You have no idea how far you have fallen; how far you have wandered.  When you no longer delight in Christ, duty compensates, and you will crash into your own inadequacy and insufficiency.  Your fervency will dissipate, weakness and infidelity will appear; discontent will turn to gloom, pessimism, and subtle despair.  You fail to recognize and challenge your deficiency.  It takes the form of a critical spirit, of drudgery and depression, of pessimism and cynicism.  You desperately need to remember, recollect, rehearse, and retrace your memory back to where this all started.  And when you discover it, waste no time in repenting.  Change your mind about the direction you are headed and focus on keeping yourselves in love with Christ.  Refusal to do this will result in your removal of your influence and opportunities as a Kingdom assembly.  Your light will diminish and eventually disappear.  This is an urgent matter! 

You do have this in your favor.  You detest and despise the deeds of the Nicolaitans.  They exercise unwarranted authority and control over the assemblies by allowing themselves to be exalted to celebrity status.  This spawns all kinds of strange ideas and practices.  Jesus Christ hates this also.

Are your ears awake to attentively hear and listen to what the Spirit is saying to the local assemblies collectively as the Body of Christ?  For those of you who make the serious and intentional choice to overcome – to conquer, to prevail, to subdue, and to gain the victory by following instead of fighting – Jesus will give the privilege to eat from the Tree of Life which is in the very center of the Paradise of God.  Having and appropriating this sustenance produces completeness and wholeness.  This is where you want to be!  Revelation 2:1-7, an expanded translation.

 (click to expand map)

_________________________________________________________________

Click HERE for a complete summary of all posts, pictures and videos in the “Seven Churches Journey.”

The “Seven Churches Journey” will begin Sunday, September 2nd and continue through December 2nd. There will be blog posts, presentations, dramatic readings and more!

The Seven Churches of Asia, under the shepherding and administrative care of the apostle John, were geographically identified assemblies of ordinary believers.  We have come to understand how they summarize all churches. Each of them existed under conditions of terrain, politics, and economy.  They all received their identity from Christ, yet no church exhibited the wholeness of Christ.  The common task of each of the churches was to come together deliberately to uncover their ears so that the sounds of God’s Word would be heard accurately and believingly.  Each church received direction with affirmation as well as motivating promises. Most of them received corrective discipline.  Sin fragments us, separates us, and sentences us to solitary confinement.  Gospel restores us, unites us, and sets us in community.  The life of faith revealed and nurtured in the biblical narratives is highly personal but never merely individual: always there is a family, a tribe, a nation, the Church.  This is where God’s love and salvation are revealed and experienced.”