7 Churches of Rev. 2&3

[Old Timer]

Kenod, you may be correct. As I said in a previous post we will know for sure when the Lord returns and explains all things.

If we are, indeed, in the Laodicean stage then it would be wise if we took the warnings very seriously. Not only for ourselves but for the general "congregation" that we see around us.

[nanasimmons]

Another good ref. book on this subject is "Revelation/s Unveiled" by Tim LaHaye.One of my favorites .

[Christ's Free Servant]

I believe they were 7 literal churches, but I believe they also represent various churches of today, as well. The fact that they are in Revelation, which is a book of prophecy about End Times, leads me to believe that these seven churches represent 7 types of church in the last days, as well. I believe there is a Biblical principle here of examining our churches and our own hearts to see where we fit - which one is most like us/our church? I believe this type of examination is necessary in preparing our hearts and in preparing the church for Christ's return. Jesus is calling these churches to this type of self-examination and is calling them to repentance. I believe the Lord is calling the Church to repentance now.

[eric]

Well a lot of thoughts here and I agree with some of them that it was a message to all the local churches of that day, a wake up call if you like. I believe that only mentioning seven churches, which were probably the biggest gatherings at that time, the message would filter through to the smaller ones by word of mouth. I think, personally, it was a message warning all the saints to let them know what they should be doing if they want be overcomers to receive the various rewards mentioned at the end of all the letters.

[apothanein kerdos]

Honestly, considering Revelation was most likely written in Hebrew and is most certainly under a Hebrew mindset...I don't see a problem with the churches being literal churches, and symbolic of types of churches. I wouldn't, however, use it as time periods simply because if the world continues on for another 500 years it becomes hard to justify that. Likewise, the period of "Philadelphia" isn't exactly the best time for the Church.

[LadyRaven]

Honestly, considering Revelation was most likely written in Hebrew and is most certainly under a Hebrew mindset...I don't see a problem with the churches being literal churches, and symbolic of types of churches. I wouldn't, however, use it as time periods simply because if the world continues on for another 500 years it becomes hard to justify that. Likewise, the period of "Philadelphia" isn't exactly the best time for the Church.

However, some people believe the end is like next week or something, so they wouldn't have a problem with your problem

[eric]

AK, why would John write his gospel in greek and revelation in hebrew, since there is only a few years between each book, especially when the bible says all scripture is God breathed or inspired by God, depending on the version?

[apothanein kerdos]

AK, why would John write his gospel in greek and revelation in hebrew, since there is only a few years between each book, especially when the bible says all scripture is God breathed or inspired by God, depending on the version?

Because he probably didn't write the Gospel of John in Greek

There were only a few books, most of them Paul's epistles (along with Luke's Gospel and Acts), that were actually written in Greek. Of course, this is only theorized because of the audience it was written to (I mean, it is hard to say that Hebrews, written to Hebrews, was originally in Greek) and how the structure of it is, that we can tell in some (Revelation being the most prevelant) that the original composition was most likely Hebrew.

The thing is, this really doesn't take away from the Bible being inspired or God breathed. The reason being is that if one were to translate from Greek to Hebrew you would not lose much in translation, especially on vital facts. This is why the Septuagint (OT in Greek) is often used in translations, simply because it is not really a "lesser" translation.

[Christ's Free Servant]

Well a lot of thoughts here and I agree with some of them that it was a message to all the local churches of that day, a wake up call if you like. I believe that only mentioning seven churches, which were probably the biggest gatherings at that time, the message would filter through to the smaller ones by word of mouth. I think, personally, it was a message warning all the saints to let them know what they should be doing if they want be overcomers to receive the various rewards mentioned at the end of all the letters.

Sounds good to me!