Revelation 2:12-17 12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ‘These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: 13 “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. 15 Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. 16 Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. 17 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”’ Yesterday we discussed the doctrine of Balaam and the destruction that holding to a doctrine contrary to the doctrine of God will bring. Today, we will discuss the Nicolaitans. Who were they? What did they teach? What was their malfunction? First let us breakdown the name Nicolaitans, it is composed of two parts, Nico-, which means "victory" or "to conquer" in Greek, and laos which means people, or more specifically, the laity; hence, the word may be taken to mean "lay conquerors" or "conquerors of the lay people." You see the Nicolaitans very aggressively taught that there were two distinct divisions in the church. The clergy and the lay people. They divided the church and thus were not of God. They were also very corrupt in their behavior. Early church writings have descriptions of them that range from unrestrained indulgence, to idol worshipers, to those who indulge in selfish desires like goats. The bottom line is they lived unrestrained lives. Please note that in verse 15 this is the second time Jesus uses the term "hate" when describing the practices and sin of the Nicolaitans. In 2013 how would you describe an unrestrained life. We discussed yesterday the doctrine of Balaam, who basically couldn't curse God's people so he corrupted them. He corrupted them with the following, The Marriage of The Church and The World. Basically, the church and the world mend into one. The old testament result in this was 24,000 dead. Go back and read what happened in Numbers 21-31, yes it is ten chapters but you can do this. I ask two basic questions: 1) what does an unrestrained life in 2013 look like? What does it look like when the church and the world are married? 2) What does a doctrine of division as the Niclaitans taught look like in 2013? How does division exist in the church? How does it get started? How does it end? Yes, I know that was more than two questions? I will expect the people of The Way to be able to discuss this on Wednesday night so do your homework. You have time, the bottom line, it is either important to you or not? I choose the first. It is important, so do it. Be prepared. Be happy. in fact be Happy happy Happy. Tomorrow we discuss what happens if we do not take corrective action. RAK CHAZAK, Brother David
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Revelation 2:12-17 12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ‘These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: 13 “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. 15 Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. 16 Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. 17 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receivesit.”’ As we continue through the churches we see here that Jesus is described to the Church at Pergamos as He who has the two edged sword. The Words of God are very sharp here. And He tells them to repent or else He will come and fight against them. I wonder if we hear Jesus when He tells us repent or I will come and fight against you. Think about this, if you are actively engaged in sin, you are inviting Jesus to fight against you. You cannot, you absolutely cannot, expect to sin free of charge. We all to often want to think of Jesus as fighting against the world. However, He will protect His house. Yes even if He has to do it from inside out. You and I need to be very careful when we thumb our noses at Jesus and pretty much say to Him, this is my sin and I am not going to stop. He will deal with this issue, verse 16 is very very clear in this matter. Repent or experience the fight you cannot win. First of all Jesus commends the church for maintaining their faith even though they live in the presence of Satan. As children of God our environment should not overtake us. We should be stronger than the influence around us. We should be the influence, we should not be under the influence. Although this church maintained the faith under very difficult circumstances, they were a church that compromised. They allowed the doctrine of Balaam, which is a stumbling block. Additionally they allowed the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. The doctrine of Balaam takes a good bit of study but I will give you scripture references and basically sum it up as idol worship and fornication. Just before the Jews entered the land of Canaan, they defeated the kingdoms of Og, king of Bashan, and Sihon, king of the Amorites. Consequently, Balak, the king of Moab, feared an attack from the Jews against his people. Balak hired the prophet, Balaam to curse the Jews, hoping to give his people an advantage if they were to war against God's people. Instead Balaam blessed the Jews and did not curse them (Num 23-24). Balak was furious, he fired Balaam. However, before Balaam returned to his place (Num 24:25), he gave Balak counsel (Num 31:16) that caused the wrath of God to come against Israel. He counseled Balak to let the daughters of Moab prostitute themselves with the Jews and to get them to eat the things sacrificed to idols (Num 25:1-3). The result of this doctrine was discipline at the Hand of God. Twenty four thousand Jews died in a plague that was a result of their sin (Num 25:4-9). First of all the Jews were forbidden to intermingle with the Moabites (Deut 23:3) and they certainly were not allowed to worship idols. Obviously Balaam’s counsel ran contrary to the command of God. The acceptance and/or compromise to allow this doctrine resulted in God dealing with His people. We have somehow developed this idea that we can sin and Jesus will not do anything about it. this is simply arrogance and evil deception, Jesus will deal with sin. We cannot allow doctrine in the church that runs contrary to the Word of God. We cannot compromise as the Church at Pergamos did, not just with the doctrine of Balaam but also the Nicolaitans. We will discuss them tomorrow. RAK CHAZAK, Brother Big Daddy Revelation 2:8-11 8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: 9 “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”’ In verse 10 Jesus commands the church in Smyrna not to fear the things they are about to suffer. Understand that in this life there will be persecution. We will have struggles, and hardship. We will have our faith tested and we will be attack by evil. There is a significance to the statement you will have tribulation ten days. You see there is a time limit on our sufferings. Jesus knows what we can handle and He strengthens us for the fight. He empowers our steps and He provides strength. We are His and He holds us and takes care of us. He is our protector. He carries us through the storm. However, He tells us to have the mindset that we will be faithful unto the death. For some of us that is exactly what will happen, we will be faithful unto the death and it is death that will reveal the greatest blessing ever imagined, being in the presence of Jesus. It will happen to all of us one day. Yes every knee will bow and every tongue will confess Jesus is Lord. Jesus then says that if we are faithful unto death He will give us the crown of life. Let us take a closer look at this crown. There are five crowns mentioned in the Bible given to followers of Christ regarding different aspects of our walk. Here Jesus says that those who keep the faith until death will receive the crown of life. He also mentions this same crown of life in James 1:12, Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. We will receive this crown when we proceed in God’s plan by enduring under trials and temptation. The believer who moves forward in God’s call and assignment in the face of difficulty, even martyrdom, will receive this crown. Let us understand: a) Testing and trials are part of the Christian life. It should be understood that when faced with test and trials many Christians turn back and do not continue on the path God has called them to run on. b) Jesus said we would have trouble: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) c) “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” (John 15:18) d) Paul writes to Timothy, “You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith , patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:10,11,12) e) The doorway to the next level towards fulfilling God’s plan is to endure hardships and persecution. f) The reward is for “persevering” and remaining “faithful”. The reward is not given for having great faith and getting delivered from the trial or test. g) We are faithful to the Lord in the trial. The Lord is faithful to reward us for enduring the trial. As the church in Smyrna were instructed to endure so are we. We must remain faithful and know that our Lord and Savior has for us the crown of life. RAK CHAZAK, Brother Big Daddy Revelation 2:8-11 8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: 9 “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”’ In verse 9 Jesus says 'I know your works, tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich).' He then says that He knows the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. We must apply this to our life today and ask the question are there those around us that claim to be one thing yet their life reflects nothing of the sort. Better yet look inside, are there things you have in your life that are not reflective of the Kingdom of God? What I am asking you is what does your life read. A story of the saving grace of Jesus Christ and how it leads you to be different than you were before. This church faced a people who claimed to be children of God but were not. They claimed an inheritance that was not theirs, in fact the scripture tells us they were of Satan. That statement puts a whole new light on the idea of claiming one thing and doing another. They were of the synagogue of Satan! I do not want any part of that. We must understand that Jesus expects us to proclaim to the world and anyone who will listen that He is our Lord and Savior, but He also expects that with that proclamation, we walk the walk. We must be forever searching and forever reaching for Him. I encourage you speak and proclaim Jesus is Lord. But before after and during your testimony walk like He is your Lord. If I tell you today that I love Jesus and have served Him for x years and He has guided me and directed me...But yesterday you saw me at the package store and I had a T-Shirt on with profanity and I was not real kind to the person that would not let me by on my way to buying a case. Now tell me again what Jesus has done for me and how much I love Him. I have a better one for you, you tell me how awesome your church service was and that you met with Jesus Sunday morning in such a powerful way. That same afternoon we have an employee meeting and you really don't want to be there. You begin the meeting whispering how stupid these meetings are and how you cannot stand your boss. He is this, and he is that. You then start talking about how bad you hate your job and that a couple of people there just make you sick. Well the meeting is over, you haven't heard a word that was spoken and guess what, neither have I. Oh yes I almost forgot your service on Sunday was so powerful and uplifting totally changed your life and your outlook on somethings...REALLY? Guess the preacher didn't preach on doing all that you do heartily unto the Lord. He must not of spoke about gossip. He couldn't have mentioned causing your brother to stumble. He certainly must not have covered let no unwholesome word proceed from thy mouth. No way He discussed not that which enters the mouth defiles the man but that which proceeds from it. Not a message on loving your brother. Certainly couldn't have been on considering it joy as you endure various trials. Are you feeling me? One minute we proclaim how awesome Jesus is and how powerfully He is at work in, around and through our life and the next minute we are over our head in sin. I know what you are thinking, man you are one of those "works" preachers. Guilty as charged. I believe that what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross displayed a love that I cannot comprehend. I believe that there was no amount of works I could do to be worthy of that beautiful gift; however, I believe that because of my surrender He changed me, and I now have a desire and a need to please Him. Thus fruit will be present in my life. You will see the new creation that he says comes. You will see the passing away of the old things and when you don't, it should be a red flag. All I am saying to you is PROCLAIM IT, THEN WALK IT. RAK CHAZAK, Brother Big Daddy Good Morning and I hope you are having a blessed day the blog is coming in just a few minutes but I wanted to go ahead and share a letter with you from Mitchell Dean. As many of you know he is my nephew and he is certainly on fire for the Lord. He needs our help in raising support for his ministry and the FCA in our area. He works with the schools from Opelika to Eufaula delivering the Word of God on a weekly basis to each of the schools in his area which include Smiths Station, and Phenix City Schools. FCA enables the Word of God to be preached and taught in our schools. Mitchell is investing in the lives of our young people and without our support this will not happen. He has written a letter explaining a little about what he does and how FCA ministers to our children. Please check out the link he has provided and if you are willing please provide financial assistance to him and his ministry. he is fighting the good fight and we can help him as he continues. May God bless you today and the blog is on the way! Brother Big Daddy God has called me to serve specifically with East Alabama Fellowship of Christian Athletes. I have served part time with FCA for the past three years and have now been presented the opportunity to come on full time. I’m working on building a Home Team of monthly supporters that will partner with me and the ministry of FCA to grow Christ Kingdom in our community. It’s incredibly exciting to join this awesome team and I’m looking forward to the many incredible opportunities in which I can continue to serve East Alabama. I’m asking that you would pray about joining me on this journey and partner with me financially in the way you feel led to give. The task of impacting athletes and coaches in East Alabama is too large for me alone. Please consider partnering with me to make a difference for Jesus Christ! Thank you and I covet your prayers as I pursue this opportunity. I have attached a link that will take you directly to my support page and if you have any questions feel free to contact me at Mdean@fca.org or 334-748-0675. https://my.fca.org/2362-dean-mitchell.aspx Mitchell Dean FCA Field Associate The Persecuted Church 8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: 9 “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”’ The church in Smyrna is addressed by Jesus with the characteristic from Revelation chapter one that He is the First and the Last, who was dead and came to life. Remember we discussed in the address to each of the churches Jesus is described using one of the characteristics or descriptions of Him from Revelation Chapter one. The First and the Last, who was dead and came to life, is important to the church of Smyrna. Why? Well they, according to the scripture here, are about to be thrown into prison by the devil, that they may be tested. They are instructed to be faithful unto death and they will be given the crown of life. Being faithful unto death requires a faith in something greater than death. The address to them signifies Jesus is He who overcame death. He is encouraging these individuals and empowering this congregation with the fact that He is greater than anything they will face and He will supply their need. Take a look at what Jesus says here to the Church in Smyrna, I know your works, tribulation, and poverty. We need to understand something here, there is comfort in knowing that our Lord and Savior knows exactly what is going on in our life. Our struggles, He knows. Our labor and our works His eyes are on. Our poverty He understands and defines differently. The statement in verse 9, I know your poverty (but you are rich). The members at Smyrna were poverty-stricken people. Yet, Christ says they were spiritually rich. The contrast with Laodicea is significant. The Laodicean church assumed it was rich, but it was spiritually poor (3:27). Do you define your riches according to the world's definition or according to Jesus and His definition. You see our wealth and our concern about our wealth must be wrapped in our Spiritual condition. Money, fame, material possessions will not bring peace in your life. In fact, if not channelled in a direction for the Kingdom, they will simply bring about a distraction and a separation from Jesus Christ. Our money, fame, possessions should be about the glory of God. We were at Thunder on the beach this past week and these lovely older ladies, ladies of great wisdom I like to call them, were entering the restaurant, I was already at the table, but I noticed Luke opening the doors for them and they were talking with him. I thought they might have been asking him about his shampoo cause you know his hair, well let us just say it is full bodied. Anyway he came to the table and he had a small bag and a small booklet inside. The booklet was a beautiful letter written from God to us, every line was a scripture. Keith had one as well with a different track. These ladies were spreading the Gospel in Panama City during a bike rally. It was beautiful. Their resources were channelled. Their labor was channelled. Are yours? Are you rich or poor? Who do you allow to define your wealth, the world or Jesus? May we choose Jesus every time. RAK CHAZAK, Brother Big Daddy Revelation 2:1-7 “To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: 2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. 4 Nevertheless I have thisagainst you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. 6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”’ Jesus says to the church at Ephesus, 'I know your works, your labor, your patience and that you cannot bear those who are evil.' Jesus today knows our works, our labor, our patience, and he knows if we compromise with evil. The word "work" here means: 1) business, employment, that which any one is occupied, that which one undertakes to do, enterprise, undertaking. Jesus says, 'I know what you are undertaking, I know you are about My Father's business.' What would He say about you as an individual? Would He look at your life and say I know you are about spreading the gospel and discipling my children. I know you work diligently to make things happen for My Kingdom? He then says I know your labor. The word here for labor is "kopos" and it means: 1) a beating 2) a beating of the breast with grief, sorrow 3) labour a) trouble 1) to cause one trouble, make work for him b) intense labour united with trouble and toil Jesus says to the church at Ephesus, 'I know you are taking a beating, I know you are under intense labor and struggle and it is a good thing.' We must understand that as we walk powerfully in this world as children of God it will require our hand to be to the plow. It will require hard work. Plowing is hard work, but Jesus empowers us to do it. We have to get out there and be the surrendered vessel that He uses. We have to get off the couch and go to work. In closing this morning, I have one question, what are you compromising in your life. Be real and be honest. What have you said, I know what the Word of God says, but just not right now God, just not at this moment. I can't let go right now or I can't do it now, give me 6 months, give me a year. Jesus is not a Savior of compromise, He is a Savior of NOW, so let go and do it now. He is ready to walk with you through anything you face. Let Jesus say to you I know you cannot bear evil. You put aside sin when it is revealed to you! Trust Jesus today! He can and will empower your life. He will show you that He is the way, the truth and the life! He will be your Lord, your provider, your protector! RAK CHAZAK, Brother Big Daddy |