Chapters 2 and 3 may be the most well known section of Revelation
At least two of our favorite quotations are found here
- what’s the theme of these chapters? Answer: “Church Repairs”
• in chapter 1 Jesus appears in a form not found in the Gospels
• in his right hand he held seven stars–which represented the angels of the seven churches
◦ in scripture, the hand represents power, control, and ownership
- so in these two chapters, Jesus acts as General Contractor has the seven churches in his hand
• he will tell each church what repairs need to be made
If you notice, reading the letters we are still on earth
- we aren’t taken to heaven until chapter 4
• but these letters build a stage on which the drama is played out
• this is a threshold we must cross to get to the heart of Revelation
- it begins with a self-examination – that's the prerequisite for going forward