The Revealed Message to the Churches
John shares seven messages from Jesus, addressed to seven representative churches in Asia Minor. These messages set the stage for the rest of the book. They reveal the struggles Christians were facing, how some were compromising the faith, and how others were being loyal to the Lamb. Pay special attention to the fact that the churches who seem to be rich are actually poor; and those who seem to be poor are actually rich. Just as first-century Christians received both reassurance and rebuke from these messages, we need to do the same. (Scripture: Revelation 2:1-7)