166 | TE010 | Transcending Eschatology | Part 10 | The Right Bookend & The 7 Churches
Date: August 21, 2023
Welcome back to our series on Eschatology - the study of End Time events.
Episode 1: The Doomsday Clock - We discussed our social and cultural beliefs about the End of Time. Typically based on science and entertainment.
Episode 2: The Flip Side - We dove into End Time beliefs that are based on spiritual or religious belief systems. And we looked at some of the major world religions.
Episode 3: Carrying the Torch - We discussed the history and origins of Christian Eschatology - and how it can be traced all the way from Adam and Eve to us today.
Episode 4: Choosing Sides - We discussed the high level categories most Christians fall into when it comes to eschatology.
Episode 5: Making It Plain - We jumped in to Bible passages that talk about the End of Time. Plain language that makes it easy to understand.
Episode 6: The Left Bookend - We moved into the adult pool and walked through seven stories in the Book of Daniel. We then walked through the first piece of Apocalyptic Prophecy.
Episode 7: Expanding on the Statue - We looked at Daniel's 2nd and 3rd dreams and how they simply build on the first one. We also introduced prophetic math, and we discussed the 1,260 Day Prophecy and the 2,300 Day Prophecy.
Episode 8: Daniel's 70 Weeks - We looked at Daniel's dream in Chapters 9 and 10. We refer to this as the 70 Weeks Prophecy and it is a very important one. Not just because of the information presented - but because of the various interpretations we see coming out of it.
Episode 9: Daniel's Final Vision - We looked and the way all of Daniel's visions are connected and how they grow in complexity. We also discussed all relevant time periods discussed in the Book of Daniel.
Today, we move to the Right Bookend - the Book of Revelation.
Today's Topic: Transcending Eschatology | Part 10 | The Right Bookend & The 7 Churches
John's Vision of Heaven
Onions Have Layers
You've Got Mail!
// CHAPTER 1: JOHN'S VISION OF HEAVEN
So here we are - making the big transition from Left Bookend to Right Bookend.
We spent 9 weeks discussing:
What eschatology is
What different world religions believe about the End of Time
We then narrowed it down to what Christians believe about the End of Time and the variations that exist
Then we discussed end times passages in the Bible that are written in pretty straightforward or "plain" language
And then we walked through the Book of Daniel
We read some amazing stories - each centering around the idea of worship. How worship is core to the Human Condition - and how we will try to find something to worship - even if that thing isn't the One who created us
Then we moved into the Apocalyptic Prophecy section of Daniel where we started to learn about the dreams or visions Daniel had during his life
Each was a bit strange on the surface
But then - each dream was interpreted by an outside source - Heavenly Beings that were sent to help Daniel understand what he was seeing
Inside of these dreams we learned a lot about the large, world civilizations that would exist from Daniel's day all the way to the End of Time
We learned about Babylon, Media & Persia, Greece and Rome
We also learned that Rome would be divided and that many kingdoms would exist from that point on
We learned about a power called the Little Horn that would rise up during this time and persecute God's true followers
And finally - we learned about a bunch of interesting time periods
We learned about the Day-year Principal - and how applying it seems to bring everything into focus
These time periods all come together into an amazing End of Time Timeline
A Prophecy Chart that fits together like a puzzle
Of course we also talked about the Historicists and the Futurists - and how each interpretation sees things differently:
Historicists typically apply the Day-year Principal across the board. They also believe that all of these dates and timelines occurred in the past - and that at this point we're simply waiting for Jesus to return
Futurists typically pick and choose when they apply the Day-year Principal. And they believe many of the time periods have not happened yet. They believe that some of the time periods were meant to be moved down to the end of time - and help make up time periods around the rapture, the reign of the antichrist and the eventual return of Jesus
And that brings us up to speed. Which means we're ready to move into the New Testament. In fact all the way to the end of the New Testament. The Book of Revelation.
And as we'll see - it makes total sense why it is the last book of the Bible.
Because it wraps up not only Apocalyptic Prophecy - but it is also the climax to the overarching story of the Bible.
Which is best described as a battle between good and evil:
It begins with the story of heaven
And the creation of our little planet
Then the origin of the Sin Virus
Satan's fall from heaven
Humanities fall into Satan's trap
How bad the world became when the Sin Virus took over
Jesus coming to Earth to save humanity
Jesus being killed and then raised from the dead
And then the climax - a final showdown between good and evil so God can right the wrong that happened on our planet
And that's what Revelation describes. But before we get too far down that road - let's join John as he gets a glimpse into the throne room of heaven...
Revelation opens with a prologue. 3 verses that explain some very important information:
Explains that the information in this book was given by God to Jesus - then Jesus gave it to an angel who brought it to John:
I don't know why I find that fascinating - I just do
It's as if God was the only one who knew this information - and at some point decided to bring Jesus into the loop
If God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are One - what we call the Trinity - it seems like they would all know the same things
But I'm not going to dwell on that for long - as there are many things I don't think we'll fully understand until we get to heaven and God explains them to us
It says that this information is about events that must soon take place:
Interesting because we believe John received this information and wrote it down before 100AD
If that's true - here we are almost 2000 years later
Which makes you wonder - what does "must soon take place" mean?
Seems like that ship has almost sailed...
God blesses those who read this book, those who listen to the message and those who obey - or do what it says to do
Why? Because the time is near...
Again with the soon to happen stuff...
But that's what it says...
And that's it for the prologue.
// 2. ONIONS HAVE LAYERS
After that short prologue, we dive right into the vision John had. The dream the angel was told to show him.
John starts by explaining that what he is writing is for 7 of the Churches in Asia.
And to give credibility to his writings - he explains who he got the info from. Using phrases like:
"The One who was, who is, and who is still to come"
"The first to rise from the dead"
"The ruler of the kings of this world"
"The One who freed us from our sins"
"The One who is coming, and every eye will see Him - even the ones who pierced Him"
"The Alpha and the Omega - the Beginning and the End"
"The Almighty One"
How's that for reference?
I'm writing you some stuff - but it came from this Guy - and you don't want to mess with this Guy...
From there John tells us a bit about his life situation.
Apparently things weren't going so well for him at the time.
He was a prisoner on the Isle of Patmos in Greece. Incarcerated for being a Jesus Freak... Shoutout to DC Talk and their popular album from the mid 90s...
And that's where John found himself. Locked up for the remainder of his life on an Island in the Aegean Sea. Though some believe he made it off the island and died living in Ephesus.
But regardless - he wrote the letters while on the Island. And would have given them to a messenger who would have had to take a boat to the mainland - which today, is the country of Turkey.
The messenger would then walk along one of the more traveled roads - stopping along the way to deliver the letter to each of the 7 identified churches along that somewhat circular route.
Just for funsies - here are the 7 Churches and their modern day equivalents in Turkey:
Ephesus - Now lies in ruin - but near the city of Selcuk
Smyrna - Now lives within a city called Izmir
Pergamos - Now referred to as Pergamon is near the city of Bergama
Thyatira - Now lives within a city called Akhisar
Sardis - Lies in ruin near the city of Sart
Philadelphia - Now lives within the city of Alesehir
Laodicea - Now lies in ruin near the city of Denizli
So there you have it. The 7 Churches.
But why these 7? There were hundreds of cities, hundreds of churches to choose from - why these 7?
Glad you asked...because for me, this is yet another example why I just can't view the Bible as a work of fiction.
There are just too many connecting elements. Too many pieces that fit together for it to be written for entertainment purposes - much less written to become a document meant to confuse and blind millions of people into living a lie.
The Bible is like an onion - with layer after layer of complexity and complication.
Yes - there are human writers who can weave a good tale. But why is it that we read these books one time and then move on?
Why do we watch a really good movie once, or even multiple times because it's that good. And yet that's where it ends. We don't change our life because of it. We don't use it as the manual for all future decision making. Right?
And yet the Bible is just that. It is the onion that has everything within it. Our origin story, the battle between good and evil, how to live a solid life, how to treat those around us, how to escape the curse placed on us, and how it all plays out in the end - even if we don't always agree on the details...
Now I know - there are a few other contenders for this honor. The Quran, the Book of Mormon, the teachings of Buddha, the teachings of Confucius, etc. etc.
And some of those have loyal followers - dedicated to reading, understanding and living their lives based on that knowledge.
But to me - this doesn't decrease my belief in the Bible. It actually strengthens it - because it shows that humanity is always searching for Truth. And that it's out there somewhere.
Little nod to the X-Files there for those of you who know - you know...
But back to the 7 Churches.
From everything I've read - the 7 Churches can be viewed from at least three different vantage points. Three unique peels from the onion so to speak:
Onion Peel #1: The prophetic or historical interpretation:
Small tangent before we discuss the actual interpretation...
I want to start by saying I don't think this is a universally accepted interpretation...
I came across a number of articles (the links are in the show notes) that describe the 4 Interpretations of the Book of Revelation:
These will sound familiar - but with some added information based on the fact that we're just talking about the Book of Revelation:
Idealist: Believes apocalyptic prophecy is neither historical or futuristic - it is simply a work of fiction - symbolically presenting the battle between good and evil
So an Idealist would probably be ok reading the book once or twice for encouragement - but would not find it useful for much else
Preterist: Same as before - the Preterist believes that everything written in apocalyptic prophecy has already taken place
So similar to the Idealist - reading the book a few times would be fun for historical perspective
But since nothing is prophetic - talking about the future - there is little reason to spend much time in the Book of Revelation
Historicist: Similar to what we discussed earlier - a belief that much of apocalyptic prophecy can be traced to events in the past - but that the prophecies also describe the future - and what is to take place at the End of Time
Futurist: Similar to the Historicist in that they do believe some things have been fulfilled in the past - but most is yet to come
One time prophecy is split apart so that one week of years can be moved to the End of Time
The Day-year Principal is not applied consistently - and the time prophecies that are measured in days vs. years are also moved to the End of Time
Another thing we haven't really talked about is how the nation of Israel plays into End Time events:
Idealists, Historicists and Preterists don't believe Israel plays a major role in prophecy:
The belief is that Israel was God's chosen people for a time and a season
But when Jesus came as the Messiah - they chose against Him and from there Israel gave up that special place in history
The gospel went from there to the entire world through the Christian faith - the faith that believes in Jesus and His second coming
Now - I don't think any of these groups oppose Israel playing a role
In other words - if we get to the End of Time and God has a special plan for them based on their history - I think we would all understand and be supportive
It's just that we don't read this in prophecy anywhere
So this is where Futurists really take off from Historicists:
There was a huge movement back in the 1830s that provided a new approach to Bible prophecy
We refer to this as Dispensationalist - and it has become the fad if you will
Made popular by the Left Behind series of books and movies
And part of the Dispensational interpretation involves Israel
First, they believe there is a distinct difference between two covenant people: Israel and the church. God set aside Israel to work through the church. But will one day restore Israel and His covenant with them to fulfill to them all of the unfulfilled Old Testament Promises
Second, The Kingdom was delayed. The Jews rejected Jesus’ offer of the kingdom so the kingdom offer was withdrawn from Israel for a time. Jesus will physically return to earth and set up a 1000-year kingdom to reign from David’s throne in Jerusalem
Finally, Israel must rebuild the temple, reinstate the priesthood, and reinstitute animal sacrifices. During that time the antichrist will make a seven-year peace treaty with Israel but break it in the middle of the tribulation when he walks into the temple and causes the sacrifices to cease
So you can see how this adds a whole new wrinkle into the interpretation of the End Time events
And the last thing - something I only learned in one of these articles is the break in the actual Book of Revelation between history and the future
Futurists believe that the only historical piece of the book is in Chapter 1
Chapters 2-3 is talking to the church that exists right now
And Chapters 4-22 is all future events at the End of Time
Okay - like I said - small tangent - but I think it will be super helpful as we move forward. Because once we get through the letters to the 7 Churches there will always be two interpretations we'll need to jump back and forth between. The Historicist and the Futurist (or Dispensational) interpretations.
Again - I want to present both - just so we have all our ducks in a row.
Even though I haven't hid the fact that I lean Historicist.
So back to Onion Peel #1: The prophetic or historical interpretation
This is probably just a Historicist interpretation. But it basically suggests that each church represents a period of time throughout the history of the church. From the time of the early church to the End of Time. And here are the suggested time periods:
Ephesus: 31AD (or the death of Jesus) until 100AD (69 years)
The early church - full of passion and resolve
People embraced the teachings of Jesus
At one point they baptized 3000 people in one day
Smyrna: 100-313AD (213 years)
The persecuted church
During this time the church endured severe persecution
Pergamos: 313-538AD (225 years)
The opposite - during this time period the church became popular
Christianity was popular thanks to the conversion of Constantine
Thyatira: 538-1565AD (1027 years)
The church during the Dark Ages
Truth was shut down - and the Catholic Church attempted to snuff out any trace of dissenting Christian beliefs
The church was almost extinguished - but small pockets stayed true to the teachings of Jesus and that carried them through
Sardis: 1565-1750AD (185 years)
The Protestant Reformation
People became more and more outspoken about the issues they saw with Catholic teachings
John Wycliff, John Huss, Martin Luther, John Calvin and many more stood up for the truth and many were killed for doing so
But it led to the birth of Protestantism
Philadelphia: 1750-1844AD (94 years)
The revived church
During this period many churches went back to the original teachings
Prophecy was examined and new interpretations emerged
And many believed that they were living in the last days of earth's history
Laodicea: 1844-End of Time (179 years as of 2023)
The end time church
After the Great Disappointment in 1844 the church settled in for the long haul
This time period is said to be the last - ending with the second coming of Jesus
Now - why were these dates chosen?
Well - mostly because of the information written in each letter
When you read the letter for a specific church - it kinda lines up with a period of time in the life of the Big "C" church
Pretty bizarre if you ask me - the layers that we talked about before...
What we need to take seriously about this layer - is the fact that if it's true - we're living in the End Times
We are the Church of Laodicea
Onion Peel #2: The local context interpretation:
This layer suggests that each letter was meant for that specific church:
In other words - the letter to Ephesus was actually for the Christians in Ephesus at that time
The letter matched the type of people in that church and addressed the things they were dealing with
I won't go into detail here because we'll see it in the next Chapter - as we read the letters themselves
Onion Peel #3: The extended personal interpretation:
This layer suggests that each letter can be read by any church, or any Christian at any time throughout history:
In other words - there have been and will be Ephesus type churches from 31AD all the way to the End of Time
And, there will be people who act the way the Ephesus Christian did throughout the same period of time
Again - we'll walk through each letter and what was said to each church
But this layer suggests that every Christian and every Church can be one of the 7 Churches at any given time
So there you go. The letters to the churches have a prophetic purpose, a local purpose and a personal purpose.
// 3. YOU'VE GOT MAIL!
So now we understand the context for the letters and what each church represents. A time period in church history, a specific church in John's day, and a way of thinking that any church, or person could fall into from time to time.
So let's get to those letters and see what they say...
Now - you might call me lazy - but I'm not going to read each letter.
This episode is going to be a fairly lengthy one to begin with - so I'll let you read through them on your own time.
It's a pretty fast read: Revelation 2&3. Check it out if you have time.
What I'm going to do is summarize each in this way:
The name of the church and it's nickname - or the thing it was known for
The positive
The negative
The reward for the overcomer
Ephesus: The Passionless Church
Patience, good works and they resisted false teachings
They left their first love - lost the passion they had and their love for each other and the church
The ability to eat from the tree of life
Smyrna: The Persecuted Church
Rich in spiritual things
One of the churches that did not receive a reproof - nothing negative listed
Not being harmed by the second death
Pergamos: The Popular Church
Many are holding tightly to the faith and have not denied that they believe in Jesus
You've allowed false doctrines to creep in
The ability to eat hidden manna, and will be given a white stone with a new name on it
Thyatira: The Compromising Church
The church understood charity, service and faith - and they were working toward those things daily
They harbored Jezebel - which basically means they allowed false teachers into their midst and they led people astray
Authority over the nations, a ruling rod and the morning star (not sure what that means but sounds pretty cool)
Sardis: The Dead Church
The only good thing about the church at this time was that there were a handfull of people who stayed true and held on
You say you're alive but you are dead - you're way off track - but you can turn around and come back
Their names will not be removed from the Book of Life - but they will be celebrated before God and the angels
Philadelphia: The Missionary Church
You have kept My word and not denied My name
This is the only other church where Jesus gave no reproof - nothing negative to say about Philadelphia
Being protected from the Last Days, becoming pillars in God's temple, will never have to leave, and will have the name of God on them
Laodicea: The Lukewarm Church
The sad thing about Laodicea is that there was nothing good to say - no positive traits listed
Lukewarm - in need of nothing - indifferent. He uses words like, "wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked."
Eat a meal together, and eventually sit with Him on the throne
And that's it. The 7 Letters to the 7 Churches.
There is a lot more we could discuss - but for now - these are my two takeaways.
If the churches represent time periods - and I believe they do - it's pretty chilling to read the last two:
To the Church in Philadelphia: It flat out says, "Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world. I am coming soon."
Friends - what else could that mean? The next church is Laodicea - the last one mentioned - suggesting it is the church of the End Times
The one that will experience a time of testing and struggle we can't even comprehend
And then there is the description of Laodicea:
Which can't be more obvious
This is us!
Indifferent, lacking for nothing - especially in the US. We act like things are difficult - but we all know it's just First World Problems
We're lukewarm - floating through life with no passion for the things that really matter
Distracted by politics, global warming, drama in the entertainment industry, etc. etc.
But if it's true - if we're the Church of Laodicea - we will need to wake up and see things for what they are.
Only then will we hold onto the things God asks of us, go to dinner with Him, and eventually sit down on His throne beside Him.
Let's Land the Plane:
Friends - the Letters to The 7 Churches have always wrecked me. As I read them I picture the Christians in those churches in John's day. I picture the church throughout history - and what they faced. And I stop to evaluate my own life. Where am I Ephesus? Where am I Laocidea. And how can I be more Smyrna and Philadelphia - churches where Jesus had nothing negative to say.
What a start to the Right Bookend. The last book in the Bible. And the climax to a story that is quickly wrapping up.
Thank you so much for checking things out. And if you're a regular - thanks for being along for the ride.
Love getting to do this with you.
Next time we look at a few more Sets of 7. You know 7 is a pretty popular number in the Book of Revelation...
So come on back in a week or two and we'll keep this train moving.
Until then - have a great week- and as always, keep Transcending Human!