The Seven Churches and Us

The challenge in examining ourselves is to examine ourselves, not as we see ourselves, but as God sees us. We often hold ourselves to one standard while God may hold us to another. This is true both individually as well as a congregation. As a congregation, we have successes; we have failures; we have challenges; and we have times of growth. In these times, we have to remind our selves this: that God knows our work and our hearts, that He cares about our work, and that He has standards against which our congregation is measured.

In Revelation 1:13, Jesus is pictured as being present among seven churches of Asia Minor. He walks in their midst. Throughout the next couple chapters, Jesus speaks to the strengths and challenges faced by these congregations. Often, we wish to be like the church of Philadelphia, but, had Jesus addressed us in this book, what might He have said to us?

Jesus’ Address to His Churches
Repeatedly, Jesus begins by affirming He knows these congregations. He knows their works, their deeds, their challenges, their tribulations. This paints a picture of a Savior, not one who is disinterested and uninvolved. Instead, through this, Jesus reassures them and us that He takes an active interest in our lives. He cares about us. He knows what trials we face.

Jesus also speaks to “him that overcomes,” in the letters, reminding us of the reward that lies ahead. Likewise, Jesus repeats, “he that has an ear, let him hear.” These days, we might say, “I know you can hear me, but are you listening?” He is making it clear that the words He shares are important to their spiritual survival. What, then, can we learn from those words, and how can we apply these letters to our own efforts as a congregation?

The Message to the Seven Churches

• To Ephesus, Jesus commends their efforts in keeping purity among their congregation. He knows they have endured in their work and have resisted evil. However, He chastises them for losing love in their service.
• With Smyrna, he contrasts their physical poverty with their spiritual wealth. He warns them of impending persecution and promises them reward should they endure.
• To Pergamum, Jesus praises them for holding to His word even in a place where Satan has a symbolic throne. He warns them, however, that there are those among them holding to false doctrines.
• With Thyatira, He speaks of their love and their ministry as well as their growth. He holds against them their tolerating a Jezebel among them, leading members of their congregation astray, and he calls for those that have succumbed to her influence to repent.
• To Sardis, Jesus says they have a good reputation, but He knows they are spiritually dead. He acknowledges, however, that even they have some among them whose robes remain white and pure.
• To Philadelphia, Jesus promises protection in times of tribulation to come. He knows they have remained faithful, and He encourages them to endure in the times to come.
• With Laodicea, Jesus criticizes the congregation for being lukewarm, uncommitted, and He warns He will dispense of them if they refuse to repent from their indifference. He admonishes them to see themselves as Christ sees them.

The Message to Us
We are probably most familiar with the letters to Ephesus and to Laodicea, but we can learn from the themes that run through all of these letters. We see Jesus commend, time and again, congregations’ endurance, their intolerance of false doctrine, their love. In contrast, a vein of indifference seems to affect many of these congregations’ efforts. They may have become unloving. They may have tolerated unscriptural teachings in some aspects. They may have been simply going through the motions.

We can relate to letter to Ephesus when Jesus calls on them to return to their first works. When we first obey the gospel, we may be full of energy and enthusiasm, but the cares of this world can wear us down. We can become comfortable with routine and forget the reasons behind those actions. Thyatira stands in contrast to Ephesus, whose later works are greater than their first. One congregation is praised for growing in their efforts while the other was dwindling. Which are we?

To Laodicea, Jesus encourages them to find their strengths. He asks them to find how they can be beneficial. He asks them to either be cold or hot, just as we all need cold refreshment at times and hot at others. We can be soothing or refreshing in different ways – a cold glass of water to some and a warm cocoa to others. Laodicea, however, is neither. They are uncommitted, but Jesus encourages them to simply get to work.

In these chapters, Jesus reminds us that He knows where we are and what we are going through, but the message is the same: “Get to work.” We can fall back on many excuses for lack of ministry, lack of growth, or lack of love, but Jesus calls on us to overcome those excuses. He reminds us to give ear to His word and endure with His promises set firmly before us.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Understanding the Term "Christian"

When you hear the term Christian, it probably elicits a response similar to one created by the terms Muslim, Buddhist, Jew, or Catholic. We have preconceptions and assumptions based on the label. It is a term that has been overused and misused to the point that some followers of Christ wish to dispense with the term altogether. In many ways, it has lost meaning and context because of the free way we use the word.

Literally, the word means, “that which pertains to Christ,” and it is used only three times in the entire New Testament. Each time this word is used, it says something different about our relationship with each other and with our savior. Acts 11 speaks to our relationship with one another. In Acts 26, Paul is speaking of our relationship with God, and Peter, in I Peter 4, speaks of our relationship with the world.

Acts 11

In Acts 11:19, numerous disciples scatter in the face of persecution, following the execution of Stephen. They teach Christ as they travel, and many turn to Christ in baptism. We see Barnabas and Saul in Antioch, and here the followers of Christ are first called by the term Christian. Here, it calls attention to the relationship the disciples had to one another. These are people who had left Judaism, who were persecuted, who were disowned by their communities and their families. All they have is each other, and they rely on each other in their travels.

We are not all-sufficient; we are not islands. John 13:34 records Jesus telling His disciples to love each other, and this love is one demonstrated in service, in reliance, in cohesiveness. Galatians 6:9-10 reminds us to work good toward all, and Paul says this goodwill is especially targeted toward fellow Christians. We are told to prefer one another, to honor one another, to bear each other’s burdens. Our love for one another as Christians serves as a testimony to our relationship with each other in Christ.

Acts 26

In Acts 26, Paul is defending his actions before politician after politician. He stands before these dignitaries and speaks of the gospel to them. He speaks of self-control and righteousness, and he recounts his conversion. Starting in verse 19, Paul begins pressuring Agrippa about his faith and his willingness to respond to the gospel call. Where Festus recoils, Agrippa admits, in verse 28, that Paul almost persuades him to become a Christian.

Paul is speaking of having a right relationship with God. Paul knows Agrippa identifies with the things he testifies about, and he also knows that Agrippa is aware his relationship with God is not right. Agrippa sees Paul’s devotion to the living God, and Paul invites him to have that same relationship, a relationship we should also have when we wear the name of Christian.

I Peter 4

In I Peter 4:12, Peter addresses the trials and persecutions Christ’s followers will face in this world. He calls us “blessed” if we are reproached for the cause of Christ, and he calls on disciples to not suffer as troublemakers or as criminals but as Christians. He reinforces the concept that we are in the world but not of the world. That separation from a lost and dying world will earn friction.

As Christians, we are no longer content to live in darkness. We are no longer willing to compromise our morals based on God’s word. Because of how are light will reflect upon those who disagree with us, we will face hardships because of our faith. Think of Hebrews 11 and the trials faced by those numerous examples cited therein. Some overcame great odds while others were mocked, tortured, neglected, mistreated, or even murdered. God, however, provides something better. Those examples could overcome, and we can too.

Conclusion

The term Christian is used sparingly in the New Testament. It is unique and special. It speaks to the relationship we have with each other, with God, and with the world. If our lives do not reflect those relationships, then we should not wear that precious name so casually. Our salvation is in Christ. Our lives are defined by His words and His example. Our interactions with our brothers and sisters as well as the world are defined by that relationship with our Savior. We are Christ’s. We are Christians. We should be working every day to live up to that name.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Changing Hearts, Changing Direction

Repentance is more than something God requires of us. It is something He desires from us and something He helps us come to. In Leviticus 26:14-16, God begins a passage about the consequences the children of Israel would pass should they not uphold the law He set before them. Verse 40, however, changes tone, and God begins speaking of the forgiveness available to those that confess their sins and repent. Their humility has the ability to turn God’s judgment from them.

Repentance in the Old Testament

II Samuel 14, Absalom having killed his half-brother for sexually assaulting his sister, we have a wise woman speaking to Joab and David. She tells a story of two sons, one murdering the others, and she pleads for the bloodshed of vengeance to stop. She says, in verse 14, that God does not always exact justice, but instead seeks ways to restore the outcast. It is a lesson forgiveness, and it is a lesson about the repentance God desires from us.

After Joshua and his contemporaries die, we see the children of Israel turn aside to adultery in Judges 2:11. They sin in God’s eyes, but, time and again, God would raise up a savior to reconcile those who turned from Him. Yes, God’s word is full of warnings of the consequences of sin, but we also see a God who always wants His people to return to Him. He longs for us to repent, and He longs to forgive us.

In Amos 4, the prophet condemns the blatant idolatry in Israel. He goes through the signs and miracles as well as the consequences they have seen for their abandonment of God. He enumerates these things, revisiting a common phrase: “Yet you have not returned to Me.” He has given time, reason, and opportunity to repent, but His people continue to reject Him.

Understanding Repentance

In context of these Old Testament passages, we can understand Acts 17:30, where Paul says God now calls all to repent. Also, Luke 3:8 records John the Forerunner calling on the people to bring forth “fruits of repentance.” Luke 13:3-5 has Jesus reinforcing the imperative nature of repentance, and II Peter 3:8-9 reassures us that God wishes for all mankind to come to repentance. From His dealings with the people of Israel to the New Covenant under Christ, God’s foremost desire remains the same – that all of us abandon our sins, turn from them, and be reconciled to His love.

Repentance, however, is not simple fear. It’s not stopping doing something because we fear the consequences. Repentance is not sorrow over those consequences, nor is it necessarily only reformation. In II Corinthians 7:9, Paul expresses joy for the congregation’s repentance – not only because they felt sorrowful, not only because they stopped. He is filled with joy by their true repentance from those sins. He sees their desire to abandon their sin and truly, fundamentally change their lives. It is an action of mind, a function of our will, that resolves to quit sin.

Repentance in the New Testament

We see this in Acts 8 when Simon the Sorcerer offers money to obtain the gift of the Holy Spirit. He believes and is baptized in verse 13, but he slips back into his old ways in verses 18-19. He finally truly changes his heart in verse 24 when faced with having to change his heart and mind, leading to a change in direction.

In Matthew 21:28, Jesus asks His audience about two sons asked to work by their father. One refuses but later repents, going to work. One affirms that he will work but does nothing. The first was initially rebellious, but he changes. He changes his heart and mind, and he determines to do the work set before him.

Finally, Luke 15 records the parable of a son who demands his inheritance. He wastes this inheritance on frivolous living, but verse 15 shows him coming to his senses. He changes his heart and mind, and he returns to the father he once rejected.

Conclusion

Repentance is a change of heart and mind that results in a change in directions. We can all look at our own lives and see reasons and opportunities for repentance. We have seen the consequences of our own sins. He has opened doors of repentance for us, but we seldom recognize these opportunities for what they are. Back in Amos, the prophet calls on His people to prepare to meet their God. They were not prepared, but we can be. We can change our hearts and minds. We can change the directions of our lives, repenting from our sins, wholly abandoning them, and leaning of God for our salvation.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Spiritual Security

Note: This devotional was part of a song service centered around the song How Shall the Young Secure Their Hearts? It also contains references to other hymns if you pay attention and follow the readings.

What does it mean to us to feel secure? When we have a sense of security, we feel safe. We feel protected. We feel shielded from harm. We treasure our security. We value and protect it.

We wear seat belts to feel secure in our cars, have airbags and car alarms to increase that sense of security. We invest in GPS systems to make us feel secure in unfamiliar areas. We want to live in neighborhoods that make us feel safe. We install security systems to protect our homes. We even have a Department of Homeland Security to protect us on a larger scale, or we may give a special blanket to a young child to add a feeling of security in their small world.

We trust in these products, services, and infrastructures to provide a measure of security in the unpredictable lives we have while on this world. Those who seek Christ, however, seek a refuge greater than anything man can provide. More than seeking security for our bodies or our possessions, we look after Christ to secure our souls.

• Hebrews 6:17-19 refers to our hope in Christ as an anchor that secures us against the storms of this life and calls Him our refuge.
• Psalm 46:1-3 calls God a refuge and our strength in times of trouble.
• In II Timothy 1:8-12, Paul places the foundation of our hope and refuge in God's promises, His testimony, His word.

On what do you rely for security? How do you secure your heart? In what is your anchor fastened? Upon what foundation is your refuge built? Christ and His word are our strong foundation. He is the rock in which we can secure our anchor of hope. In Him, we can truly find that peace surpassing all understanding, that peace of mind that can only be found in spiritual security.

devotional by Robert Smelser

A Spiritual Checkup

How do we measure up? We have various standards we try to measure in our lives. How fit are we financially, physically? How fit are we as families? Along with these, we should also be measuring the fitness of our faith. Are we comfortable sitting in an average standard of faith? Are we spiritually unhealthy, or do we hold ourselves to a higher standard?

Romans 14:22-23 speaks to having a healthy faith, but how do we know where we stand? How do we measure up? How do administer a spiritual check-up?

Checking On Our Faith
I Peter 1:6-7 talks about the proof of our faith, enduring under trials as purifying tests. A new faith is full of life and vigor, but the trials and troubles of life can shake that faith. If our faith is only a mood or a feeling, it has no foundation. Rather, faith is commitment, and a committed faith more easily endures the tests of our lives. Truths that we grasp in the light of day do not have to be discarded during the dark times of our lives.

Romans 14:12 says each one of us will give an account to God. Our spiritual fitness is important our entire lives.

Tens Steps to a Spiritual Checkup

• Understand Disagreements. Know that differences of opinions will exist. Titus 3:9 warns us against foolish controversies over minor disagreements. I Corinthians 12:25-26 reminds us to be united in our care for each other, and I Corinthians 1:10 warns us about divisions over disagreements.
• Balance Over Extremism. Romans 14 and Ecclesiastes 7:15-18 speaks to balance in our lives. The balance we have in ourselves will influence how we view others and how others view us.
• Accept Our Doubts. I Peter 2:1-3 invites us to always study, to always double-check our faith. II Timothy 2:5 encourages us to be diligent in our investigation of God’s word. We should always be seeking for answers.
• Be Understanding, Not Judgmental. Romans 14:10-13 warns against judgment used as an obstacle. We like to throw stones. We fall into a trap of judgmental standard. Jesus, in Matthew 7, warns us against judging more strictly than God does.
• Give and Receive Trust. We need to know each other in our shared vulnerabilities. We need to know how to give and accept help. Romans 15 admonishes us to bear each other, even during times of burden.
• Value Individuality. We all have different qualities we bring to God’s service. We use those qualities together, and Romans 12:6-8 encourages us to embrace our individual gifts and qualities.
• Serve from Love. We offer our service, not as an obligation, but as a joy because of our love for each other. Romans 12:10 calls on us to preference one another and to be devoted in service to each other.
• Be Strengthened By Trials. I Peter 4:12 reminds us we may suffer for our faith. These times can tear us down, but we can help each other survive and grow stronger. James 1:2-4 tells us these trials build up faithful endurance.
• Security is in God. From what do we derive our sense of security – our achievements, our job, our friends? Ephesians 6:6-7 reminds us that our goal is not to be great in man’s eyes. Rather, we seek respect in God’s eyes.
• A Foundation in Our Relationship with God. Instead of our faith being rooted in rituals, obligations, or social pressures, our faith must be rooted in a loving relationship with God. I John 4:7-11 speaks to the love God shows us and the love we should willingly share in return. We have a foundation of love between us, God, and our fellow man.

Conclusion
How do we measure up? How would God measure our spiritual fitness? Each day, we should be working up to God’s standard. Today’s home runs won’t matter in tomorrow’s game. How are we growing in faith? We should be going after our faith with our entire heart, and, if we are doing that, we can help each other with their spiritual fitness. Our foundation and our attitudes will determine the success or failure we have in measuring up to the Bible's standard of faith.

lesson by Mike Mahoney

Elijah and Discouragement

Through I Kings 18-19, Elijah experiences an emotional roller coaster. Elijah brings a drought to the land through God’s power, and, when he comes to see Ahab again, the king is very hostile toward Elijah. In turn, Elijah proposes a challenge: set up two alters, one to Baal and one to Jehovah, and Baal’s priests would pray for their God to consume their sacrifice in fire. Elijah would do the same. Baal’s priests cry out, dance, and cut themselves to no avail. Elijah then evokes God with a small, quiet prayer after having his alter deluged with water, and fire from God incinerates the sacrifice and alter.

The people enthusiastically turn to God, praising Him and killing the prophets of Baal. The drought ends. It is a monumental victory, but it is very short-lived. By chapter 19, Jezebel proclaims death on Elijah and promises his end within a day. Elijah flees beyond the political influence of Ahab and Jezebel, collapses by a juniper tree, and asks God to take his life.

Causes of Spiritual Discouragement
James 5 reminds us that Elijah is simply a man like you or me – subject to times of triumph and times of despair. He is no more a stranger to discouragement than any of us. We see him despairing his life, but God is there to provide the cure to Elijah’s discouragement, but how does a prophet as successful as Elijah go from such success into the depths of discouragement?

• Emotional Stress. Elijah feels the stress and strain of trying to convert a godless nation. The king and queen are set against him. He feels alone as we might when we see those we know and love rejecting God, when we feel that our faith is rejected at every turn.
• Exhaustion. Elijah does a great deal of traveling in I Kings 18 alone, before and after the strenuous events on Mount Carmel. He is also worn out from the constant pressure of resisting the pressures around him. Likewise, we are always over-booked and overextended. We don’t take time to be still, to pray, to feed on God’s word, and to meditate. Like Elijah, we just wear ourselves out.
• Great Accomplishments. Think about what Elijah accomplishes by the end of I Kings 18. How does he maintain that momentum? How can he top that? Elijah feels personally responsible for keeping the tide turned, and, when he cannot maintain that success, he feels a failure. The highs in our lives can lead directly into lows when we realize the difficulty in maintaining that momentum.

How then does this discouragement manifest itself in Elijah? First, he isolates himself in I Kings 19:3-4. “I just want to be alone.” However, it is not good for us to be alone in our discouragement. Then, Elijah loses perspective in I Kings 19:10 when he expresses he is the only one seeking God in Israel. He knows otherwise, but he pushes that knowledge out of his own mind in despair. Finally, Elijah descends into self-pity, and, when we pity ourselves, we become self-centered and selfish.

Curing Discouragement
We can relate to the causes and effects of discouragement we see in Elijah’s lives. How do we move on, though? We can begin by looking at the way God brings Elijah out of his despair.

• Get Up. In I Kings 19:5-8, the angel twice instructs Elijah to rise. Verses 11-15 record God twice giving Elijah direction to “go.” God tells the prophet to get up and take positive action. Sometimes a small shift in the right direction makes all the difference. When we are down in the depths of discouragement, the first thing we should do is get involved in positive service.
• Grow Up. I Kings 19:11-13 records God drawing Elijah’s attention to His presence in the quiet things. He reminds Elijah to spiritually grow up and stop looking for God in his own way. Paul makes the same admonition in I Corinthians 3:1-3 when he calls for Christians to grow out of physical jealousies. Sometimes, we simply need to work to maturation.
• Gird Up. Toward the end of I Kings 19, God reminds Elijah there is still work to be done, and he will need help to do it. We need to be able to accept help. We need our own Elisha to help us change our outlook at times. I Peter 1:13 calls on us to gird our minds for action in God’s service.

God has given us reason to trust and hope in Him. We are no strangers to discouragement and struggles, but we can always look up to Him who loves us and created us. As Romans 8:31-39 reminds us, nothing can separate us from God’s love. None can oppose us when God is with us. We can take confidence in our God and face our discouragements with the knowledge that He is with us.

lesson by Tim Smelser

Miracles & Spiritual Needs

Isaiah 61 is a prophecy of hope and redemption. It is a passage of spiritual healing and promise of a Redeemer. Selections from this chapter are read from by Jesus in Luke 4:16, and He tells those listening that these verses are fulfilled in Him. He heals the blind and the lame. He gives comfort to those in grief. He proclaims the year of the Lord. In all of this, His focus remains intent upon the spiritual needs of the people He came in contact with every day.

In Matthew 9:35-38, as He is teaching and performing miracles, we see Jesus’ compassion on those around Him and the urgency He feels for their souls. While healing their bodies, He recognizes their need for spiritual healing. We know of Jesus weeping over the state of Jerusalem in Luke 13:34, their rejection of Him and their denial of their own spiritual sickness. He cares for the people, not just for their physical troubles, but for their souls and their need to be spiritually healed.

Spiritual Healing in Physical Miracles
John 9 records the apostles wondering over sin leading to blindness, and Jesus redirects their attention to where they should be focused – on doing God’s work, on being a light in this world. When the events surrounding the healing of this blind man draw to a close, Jesus addresses the man’s spiritual needs in verses 35-41. Yes, he heals the man’s blindness, but He is first concerned about the man’s soul.

In Mark 2, some friends bring a paralyzed man to Jesus, so determined to reach Jesus they lower him through the roof of the house Jesus is in. Before healing the man, Jesus proclaims his sin forgiven. Jesus then heals him of his physical ailment to demonstrate His authority over spiritual ailments.

John 5:6 has Jesus approaching another paralyzed man, this one wishing to find healing within waters believed to have healing powers. Jesus asks the man, “Would you be whole?” Jesus then both heals the man of his paralysis and, in verse 14, He tells the man he is now whole, instructing him to sin no more. In making the man whole, Jesus heals both body and soul.

In John 11, Lazarus is ill and dies before Jesus makes it to his home. As Jesus approaches the home, Lazarus’ sister Martha comes out, despairing that Jesus had not arrived soon enough. In the conversation to follow, Jesus calls Himself the source of all resurrection and life. Any who believe on Him will live eternally.

The Gratitude of the One
In Luke 17:11, ten lepers cry out to Jesus for mercy. Jesus tells them to go present themselves to the priests, and, as they journeyed, they find themselves healed. Ten cry for mercy. Ten are healed, but only one returns to give thanks and glory to God. Nine are interested in what God can do for them. One recognizes what he now owes God for deliverance. He recognizes the spiritual implications of the miracle that healed him.

We come to Jesus unclean, blind, crippled, and dead in our sins. Jesus says to each of us, “You are healed. You are cleansed. You are alive.” What do we do then? Do we go on living our lives for ourselves, or do we understand the deeper spiritual devotion we now owe? Jesus shows His glory in us. Now it is ours to demonstrate His works in our lives. Will we be like the nine who go their own ways, or will we be the one who returns to praise and honor His name, gladly willing to serve and obey?

lesson by Tim Smelser