Chapter Two
The Letters to the Seven Churches
The purpose of these letters was not only to warn the seven churches of the impending critical circumstances that would directly affect them; it was also to chastise them for their failings, praise them for their strengths, and encourage them to hold on to their faith. I suppose it may seem rather disconcerting to realize that as the people of God, we are always being weighed in the balances. This should remind us just as it did those of the seven churches of John's day, that Jesus is not only watching us, but is evaluating our conduct. If our congregation was to receive a letter from the Almighty like these churches did, what do you imagine he would say to us?
AS ALWAYS, JUDGMENT BEGINS WITH THE HOUSE OF GOD
I. To the Church in Ephesus, 1-7
A. “From the One who hold the seven stars in his right hand and the One who walks among or between the seven golden lampstands,” 1.
1. The right hand – symbol of authority over the seven stars.
As head of the Church, Jesus occupies the position of supreme authority. Thus, whatever he has to say to these Churches is of supreme importance and not subject to appeal.
2. “Walks among (or between) the seven golden lampstands. As God hath said, ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God and they shall be my people,’” 2 Corinthians 6:16.
“As God hath said,” – The words here quoted are taken substantially by combining three OT passages, Exodus 29:45; Leviticus 26:12; Ezekiel 37:27. They are not found in this exact word order in any one place in the Old Testament. Paul combines the substance of what occurs in these three Old Testament passages. This has covenant implications on two levels.
a. The repeat of the covenant itself – “I will be their God and they shall be my people.”
b. The symbolism of “walking among” recalls the act of covenant made between God and Abraham in Genesis 15:17-18 as God passed between the pieces of the sacrifices and made a covenant with Abraham.
Jesus presents himself to these seven churches as the God who has entered into covenant with them. He will be responding to each of these seven churches according to how they have kept or failed to keep covenant with God.
B. Praise from God to the Church of Ephesus, 2-3
“I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name's sake, and have not grown weary.”
1. Their status before the Lord is directly linked to their deeds and labor.
a. Ἔργα – deed, doing, labor, work. They were active, not lazy or lethargic. Their activity was such that it warranted praise from the Lord.
b. Κόπον – A stronger word than just works or deeds. This more aptly stresses labor that is characterized by troubles and weariness.
2. Intolerance for evil men – They were vigilant and watchful.
Intolerance is not generally regarded as a virtue. Yet, Jesus regards them highly for their virtue of intolerance. Intolerance requires:
a. Confrontation – We cannot afford to simply ignore it and hope it goes away or leave the problem for someone else to correct.
b. Disassociation – Do not allow yourself to be counted as their friend.
c. Resistance – Take action against them. Put them out of your midst.
d. Personal abstinence – Don't become a partaker of their evil deeds.
e. Acceptance of and adherence to a revealed standard of moral conduct.
f. The ability to know the difference between that which is good and that which is evil. This can only be derived from revealed knowledge.
3. Testing the false teachers
The rise and proliferation of false apostles in the first century was not only promised by Jesus in Matthew 24:5 and 23-24, it was also addressed in the epistles as a then present danger in the Church.
a. 2 Corinthians 11:13, “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.”
b. 2 Peter 2:2-15, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep…. 12 But these, like unreasoning animals, born as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling where they have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be destroyed, suffering wrong as the wages of doing wrong. They count it a pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are stains and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, as they carouse with you, having eyes full of adultery that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls, having a heart trained in greed, accursed children; forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;”
c. 2 Timothy 3:8, “Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith.”
d. 1 John 4:1, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”
e. 2 John 7, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the Antichrist.”
f. Titus 1:10, “For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:”
g. Jude 3-4, “...I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”
The ability to recognize a false apostle comes out of being able to distinguish the fake from the genuine article. Such men were exposed and expelled. The Church at Ephesus was the operating base for Paul so, they were well acquainted with the teachings and the works of an apostle. It would not have been difficult for them to quickly expose a false teacher. Paul met with the elders of the Church at Ephesus in Acts 20:18-21 saying. “I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”
He also charged Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:3 while Timothy was working in Ephesus, to “instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines.” Apparently, while Timothy was in Ephesus, this problem had already taken root and Paul was telling Timothy to confront this danger.
We have the same teaching of the apostles they had so, we should be equally able to distinguish between those who teach truth and those who teaches error, whether it be through simple well-intentioned misunderstanding on the part of the teacher, or out-and-out deception for some personal agenda.
[hmm... sounds reasonable 
