If you ever wondered how Jesus would speak to the Christians of our hour, if he would choose to do so in writing, it would be safe to assume it would be very close to Revelation 2 and 3! In those two chapters, the seven churches of Asia are addressed and five were told to repent! Only two were not told to repent, which is drastically different than the way many false prophets of our day would speak out a message supposedly from the Lord stating he is “pleased” with his children! The norm seems to be that the Lord Jesus is NOT pleased with most people, who were previously saved, if Revelation 2 and 3 is typical. Most would not have heard Jesus say to them, well done good and faithful servant!
Seven Churches Of Asia – Only 2 Not Told To REPENT
Sometimes silence can be deafening and shouts out a clear message. That is what we observe in Revelation 2 and 3. Not even once did the Lord Jesus ever mention the glorious paradise of God to be a “done deal” for any of them because they were previously saved! Remember that! Instead, he promised the crown of life, access to the tree of life, etc. only to “he who overcomes.” It is also crystal clear that none of them had already overcome in that sense. That is vitally significant in our day with the rampant HERESY of once saved always saved. Ponder the clarity of his statement:
Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. (Rev 2:10,11)
If once saved always saved was true, then Revelation 2 and 3 would have to be rewritten to include such a heretical concept, but it is never inferred! Furthermore, if once saved always saved was true then Jesus couldn’t have seen their sins, because of his blood and grace (as they want us to believe), but he did! He could see their sins so that means their future sins were not already forgiven before they committed them. Jesus also wanted the Christians to know they could still go to the lake of fire (or the second death), according to Rev. 2:10,11. They didn’t have their spiritual fire insurance, as some have been deceived to think is theirs. They would have to be faithful to the point of death to not be hurt by the second death. Their faithfulness to God was emphasized and not God’s faithfulness to man! Jesus never assured them the essence of his John 10:28 promise, that no man could pluck them out of his hands and they would never perish, especially since John 10:27 shows that wonderful promise is only for the continuous tense follower of Jesus. John 10:28 doesn’t apply to an obvious backslider or even a church goer who needs to repent, as shown here in Revelation 2 and 3.
Highlights From Revelation 2 and 3
Jesus’ teaching of repent to five of the seven churches of Asia in Revelation 2 and 3 are most stirring and relevant for us today.