No 14

(The Seven Churches in Revelation)

The Apostle John was banished to the isle of Patmos because of his testimony of Jesus Christ and heard a voice that he had not heard for some time. He heard these words spoken by Jesus: “I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea” (Rev 1:11). These seven churches were real churches at the time and were located in what is modern-day Turkey. Jesus had something to say to all of them and as you read the text in Revelation 2 and 3, He commended some and condemned others. Although the messages were actually for these 7 churches in Asia Minor at the time, they also represent the types of churches that have existed through the centuries – the messages can apply to churches of all ages. Ephesus – the loveless church; Smyrna – the persecuted church; Pergamos – the compromising church; Thyatira – the corrupt church; Sardis – the dead church; Philadelphia – the faithful church; Laodicea – the lukewarm church.