In the first chapter of Revelation, John is given a vision from God. In Revelation 1:12-13 John writes that within the vision, he saw seven golden candlesticks and the Son of man in the middle of the candlesticks. According to verse twenty, each one of the seven golden candlesticks represent a church in Asia Minor. The names of the seven churches are as follows: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. There is much detail given in Revelation chapters two and three about these seven churches and the way they conduct themselves. Under the inspiration of God, John encourages these churches in the areas that they are doing right, and he rebukes these churches in the areas that they are doing that are sinful and …show more content…
Harold Wilmington writes in his book, “Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible”, that each church represents seven different time periods in history. Ephesus represents the Apostolic age dating from 30-300 A.D. Smyrna represents the martyred church dating from 100-113 A.D. Pergamos represents the compromising church dating from 314-590 A.D. Thyatira represents the time when the Roman Catholic's tried to suppress the church dating from 590-1517 A.D. Sardis represents the reformation church dating from 1517-1700 A.D. Philadelphia represents a revival church from 1000-1900 A.D. Lastly, Laodicea represents the worldly church from 1900 A.D. – the …show more content…
In Revelation 2:1, Jesus tells the church at Ephesus that they are in His right hand. What an amazing promise that not only is the Jesus in the middle of the churches, but also to know that the churches are in His the right hand! In Revelation 1:12-16, John see's Jesus in His glorified body in the apparel of a High Priest in the mist of His Churches. Jesus tells each church that He knows their ways. He wants them to be as pure as the gold of the candlesticks in this allegory. He also wants His churches to be light bearers by shining the Light of Christ in every age of history. For those churches that “overcometh” their sinful ways and follow Christ, Jesus promises that the overcomers will be rewarded for their faithfulness. What an awesome Master we serve who wants to be involved and reward’s us when we overcome sin! God is