The Seven Churches and the Last Pope

                                  


                 A Walk Into The Future

The Island Of Patmos in the Mediterranean Sea just off modern day Turkey. This is where John received his revelation from God when he wrote the book of Revelation while been held in prison.

      Map of Asia Minor showing the location of the seven Churches.

In this study I would like to take a walk through history, although for John the author of Revelations this was a walk into the future of the church age. John is writing to the churches in Asia Minor which is modern day Turkey. he is, as you would, grading them on their performance. But judging by the amount of times he says, " He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches"  I believe there is more to what John is saying than writings to these churches

The Church Age, (which I believe began at the stoning of Stephen, the first martyr. when the Jews who stoned Stephen blocked their ears to Gods truth and God accepted the people that were not his people. and will end at the event we call the rapture when Christ will meet his church in the air). This church age has seven well defined periods, or eras. And each church era is represented by a church. The order of the churches is not coincidental either. they are in the order that one would travel would you want to visit them, starting at the port city of Ephesus. Further evidence that this is a prophetic writing and not merely letters to seven churches is the fact that only in the first church does John mention the apostles who were still alive at the time. After much studying, I have come up with the following dates for these church era`s. 

• Ephesus - The Apostle and Post Apostle Church  35ad - 200ad
• Smyrna  - The Persecuted Church                    200ad - 325ad
• Pergamos - The Lax Church                            325ad - 500ad
• Thyatira  -  The Neglectful Church                    500ad - 1000ad
• Sardis - The Powerless Church                         1000ad - 1300ad
• Philadelphia - The Revived Church                   1300ad - 1910ad
• Laodicia - The Materialistic Church                   1910ad - Rapture 

 Now lets study each church age, beginning with Ephesus. 

Revelations Chapter 2

   The Church of Ephesus ( 35ad - 200ad )

¹ Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;

² I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:

³ And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.

⁴ Nevertheless I have [somewhat] against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

⁵ Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

⁶ But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

⁷ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

Ephesus, which means "the desired one" was an important coastal city. This church was started by Paul. In Acts 18-20, we read of how Paul came to Ephesus and preached in the synagogue for 3 months despite much opposition. Acts 19:20 says “So mightily grew the Word of God and prevailed.” This was a Church that through the years had been blessed with great pastors. Paul had been there for two years, Timothy followed Paul, and it is believed that the Apostle John himself followed Timothy.


This was the church period that saw the word of God been taken from Judah to all parts of the known world, and given to the Gentiles, as prophesied. All of the apostles except for John had paid with their lives preaching the Gospel, and John despite many attempts on his life died in prison on the island of Patmos. 


Jesus Identifies himself as holding seven stars (angels to protect the churches)walking among the seven golden candlesticks (seven churches providing light to the world)

The root of the word Nicolaitans in verse 6, comes from Greek nikao, to conquer or overcome, and laos, which means people from which the word laity comes from. The two words together means the overcoming of the lay people which refers to the earliest form of what we call a priestly order or clergy which later on in church history divided people and allowed for leadership to lord power over the lay people. Shepherds serve the sheep but the wolves that clothe themselves with so-called leadership and spiritual authority serve themselves, thinking that they serve God, Early church leaders were established as overseers, not a ruling hierarchy. Here we see the first signs of man trying to control Gods church but it was rejected by the early Christians, which received praise from God.


Despite the fervent evangelism of this church they were chastised for replacing worship with works, and told to repent and come back to their first love.

The Church Of Smyrna ( 200ad - 325ad )

⁸ And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;

⁹ I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and [I know] the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but [are] the synagogue of Satan.

¹⁰ Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast [some] of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

¹¹ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

The name Smyrna refers to Myrrh. In order for the fragrance to be released it must be crushed, this refers to the crushing of the church through persecution by the Roman Caesars that lead to the greatest of all the church eras. Gods true church has always thrived during times of persecution.


Verse 9 of this chapter speaks of the the synagogue of satan, this refers to those who tried to pervert the gospel of grace with Jewish law or works in order to obtain salvation.


The 10 days referred to in verse 10 refers to a 10 year period ( there are many examples in prophecy where 1 day = 1 year ) from 303ad to 313ad when the persecution of Christians had reached its peak under Ceasar Diocletian

Church Of Pergamos ( 325ad - 500ad )

¹² And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

¹³ I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, [even] where Satan's seat [is]: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas [was] my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

¹⁴ But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

¹⁵ So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.

¹⁶ Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

¹⁷ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth [it].


Pergamos was the capital city of Asia Minor at this time and a hotbed of pagan worship. That is why verse 13 tells us it was the place satan has his throne and where satan lives.

This church era starts with the elevation of christianity to the state religion by Augustine. To make the new religion more acceptable to the masses many pagan practices were adopted by the new state religion. Many of these pagan practices still plague our churches today to some extent or another. Verse 14 refers to Balaam, the full story can be read in Num 22 to 24, and deals with Balaam who new the truth of Gods word but chose to reject it and the stumblingblock of denominational christianity is still with us, the rest of the verse I leave to you, the reader to draw your own conclution. 

In verse 15 we read about the Nicolaitians again this time we see they have a foothold in the church, and like a bloodsucking parasite ready to take over. In 440ad we have Pope Leo1 declaring papal superamacy in governing christianity.

 

The Church of Thyatira

¹⁸ And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet [are] like fine brass;

¹⁹ I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last [to be] more than the first.

²⁰ Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.

²¹ And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.

²² Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.

²³ And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

²⁴ But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.

²⁵ But that which ye have [already] hold fast till I come.

²⁶ And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:

²⁷ And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

²⁸ And I will give him the morning star.

²⁹ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

This church located in the rich city of Thyatira which history tells us was wealthy because of it`s trade in color dyes.

This period in history was known as the dark ages because of the spiritual state of christianty during this period. Verses 20, 21 and 22 need to be studied by the reader and their own conclusions drawn but I believe this is the same Jezebel as the whore of Revelation 17.

Revelations Chapter 3

The Church Of Sardis

¹ And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.

² Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.

³ Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

⁴ Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

⁵ He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

⁶ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

The city known for it`s wealthy carpet industry had almost no spiritual treasure and had a dead church. This church era was best known for the crusades against the Muslims, and we know the crusades had nothing to do with spreading the good news of Jesus Christ. 

The Church Of Philadelpia

⁷ And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

⁸ I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.

⁹ Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

¹⁰ Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.

¹¹ Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.

¹² Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, [which is] new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and [I will write upon him] my new name.

¹³ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

We have traveled with John down the dusty streets of Asia Minor, from one church to the next. We have listened to the lessons but now we have arrived at the church of Philadelphia. I would like to linger here for just awhile, because this is the Church that got it right, this church or church age received no condemnation from our Lord. This church age was born out of persecution, and as the fires of persecution blazed through out Europe God opened a door for the church, and I believe this door was the new colony of America, which was settled by those seeking religious freedom from persecution and from this desire to be free of tyranny a new nation was born.

Church Of Laodicea

¹⁴ And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

¹⁵ I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.

¹⁶ So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

¹⁷ Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

¹⁸ I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and [that] the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

¹⁹ As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

²⁰ Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

²¹ To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

²² He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Now we have arrived at the last church of Asia, the lukewarm church, the get rich quick church.   In 100 years we went from Gods beloved church to, the wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked church. In this church age it is obvious that this is the lukewarm church, and that God is challenging us on our very salvation. Look around you America, look at the morale decline we are in and where is the church? Getting richer and richer. Like Judas who took the 30 pieces of silver to betray the Son of God we have taken our wealth and sold out to the world. We no longer stand for anything, we no longer want to offend anybody we are to scared to call sin sin as it might offend somebody.


The reason I have put this bible study on my Blog is so people will see that, as a nation and even more important, as a nation with it`s roots firmly placed in our Christian heritage we are now    lukewarm, blind and miserable.




The Last Pope


I have studied many different sources of prophecies but I only stand by biblical prophecies as completely reliable. However there is one prophecy by a Roman Catholic Priest, by the name of St Malachy that I believe is worth mentioning. 


St Malachy was a Bishop in Ireland and, with some monks from his flock he went on a 16 month pilgrimage to Rome. Just before entering the city they stopped and gave thanks to God for his travelling mercies. The year was 1140ad, and as Bishop Malachy prayed he suddenly started having a visions. One of his faithful flock, a scribe took out parchment and began recording his utterances. When he had finished there were 111 Latin phrase recorded on the parchment. When St Malachy awoke from his vision he told his little flock that God had given him a vision of every Pope that would reign till the end of the world when God would come back to judge the world. 


In total St Malachy described 111 Popes, and many with amazing accuracy. Lets look at the last Pope. Pope John Paul II who is third from last on ST Malachy list. In St Malachy vision he was described as, "De lobore solis" or, from the suns labor. Pope John Paul II was born on May 18, 1920, a day of the total eclipse of the sun, and was entombed on a total eclipse of the sun. But maybe it was his travels to over a 102 different countries and his celebrating of many Masses around the world many under the hot burning sun of African and Asian countries that earned him description he was given by St Malachy. 


The second last Pope, Pope Bernedict is described as, "De gloria olive" from the Glory of the Olive.  The Order of Saint Benedict has claimed that this pope will come from their ranks. Saint Benedict himself prophesied that before the end of the world his Order, known also as the Olivetans, will triumphantly lead the Catholic Church in its fight against evil. The olive braunch also represents Greece and in Israel it represents peace. This Pope has done much to reunite the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox church which split in 1054ad. 


The last Pope is described by St Malachy as, "Petrus Romanus" or Peter of Rome. St Malachy went on further to say,  "In extreme persecution, the seat of the Holy Roman Church will be occupied by Peter of Rome, who will feed the sheep through many tribulations, at the term of which the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the formidable Judge will judge the people."


The final Pope will take the Name of Peter, something no Pope in History has done, as they have felt they are not worthy of this Name. When Pope John Paul died I had already studied the prophesies of St Malachy, and watch with anticipation to see who the "Glory of the Olive" would be. But what struck me even more was the comment of the Vatican after Benedict`s appointment, when asked why they had chosen such an old and sickly Pope, the spokesperson said, he was an interim Pope!

I predict the last church will meet the last Pope very soon, and I fear that this lukewarm church that stands for nothing will fall for anything.