Tag: Revelation 2-3

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Church—Why Bother? (Revelation 2-3)

georgepwood

Why bother joining a church filled with sinners who need to repent? I regularly hear people say, in effect, “Jesus is just alright with me,” to quote the Doobie Brothers. Very few, on the other hand say the same thing about the church. As far as they are concerned, the church is corrupt. “Christ? Yes! Church? No!” They like their Jesus neat. Now I understand this attitude quite well. In fact, I sympathize with it. Ever since the televangelist scandals of the late 1980s, I have been sensitive to the ways in which church leaders abuse their positions of power … Continue reading Church—Why Bother? (Revelation 2-3)

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The Fleas Come with the Dog (Revelation 2-3)

georgepwood

Perhaps you are ready to concede that the modern church is a sinful one in need of correction. But surely the early church was different! Surely the churches of the apostolic age were exemplary congregations, their holiness refined by the fires of martyr-making persecution! Well, no. With the exception of Smyrna and Philadelphia, Jesus Christ finds something to correct at each of the churches of Roman Asia: Loveless orthodoxy at Ephesus (Rev. 2:5), heretical teaching at Pergamum (2:14–15), sexual immorality at Thyatira (2:20–23), hypocrisy at Sardis (3:1), and spiritual apathy at Laodicea (3:15–17). The pages of the New Testament are … Continue reading The Fleas Come with the Dog (Revelation 2-3)

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Letters from Jesus (Revelation 2-3)

georgepwood

In Revelation 1, Jesus Christ appears in glory, standing in the midst of his churches. In Revelation 2–3, he writes letters to those same churches, filled with words of affirmation, correction, and promise.[i] Although originally addressed to churches in first-century Roman Asia, Jesus’ letters speak to issues faced by twenty-first-century American churches as well. Indeed, as John Stott points out, they identify “seven marks of an ideal church,”[ii] which make them perpetually relevant to each church in every age. Throughout Christian history, pastors have written letters of spiritual direction for entire congregations, as well as for individual seekers, converts, and … Continue reading Letters from Jesus (Revelation 2-3)