These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;
He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.
These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
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.
These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;
He that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
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.
And I will give him the morning star.
These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars;
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.
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;
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.
These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
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.
– Opening and closing of the letters to the 7 Churches of Revelation found in Revelation Chapters 2-3
I wanted to look at these scriptures as a whole and separate from the commentary that the Lord, Jesus spoke by His Spirit to the 7 churches. I think these scriptures paint a lovely picture, so I wanted to share.
I am working on a writing that considers the ideas we see in the letters to the churches, with a focus on He who wrote them. With a proper focus on Him, all else falls into place.
I am eager to get this work done, but I have been detained by a discussion with a couple of brothers in Christ who have disagreements about a Christian doctrine.
A related discussion with one of these brothers deals with how to properly discern which Christian doctrines are salvation issues and which are not.
From my perspective, determining which doctrines are salvation issues and which are not is quite simple, though coming to this point was not a simple process, so the Lord has taught me patience with it. I understand that we tend to peg our favored doctrines as being salvation issues. However, they are not.
Jesus is the salvation issue. If we put our faith in Him and continue in this faith, all else will follow. It’s quite a stern yet gracious line.
If we draw that line anyplace else, our scale is unjust. This is pertinent to the troubles Ephesus deals with, so I am glad to be having this discussion, though it is deterring me in a way. People like it when we go after false doctrines, false teachers, and false prophets. There is a time and place for all things, but we have to have our center well established first.
So, I want to post this here for consideration. Jesus is the center of it all, and we all see Him in part and know Him in part. He reveals Himself more fully to those who sincerely want to know Him and keep His ways of love towards God and our fellow man.
He reveals all things according to His perfect will and timing, so we must be patient with one another and trust in Him. Put our “first love” first or else we are going to judge unjustly, and as is the case very often, our pride blinds us. Love overcomes pride, and without it, the Lord does not reveal Himself to us as readily.
What do you see when you consider the scripture above? What is Jesus revealing about Himself? This is our focal point. He is the straight and narrow line from which all else proceeds, and if we build upon Him who is our Rock, then our building will be sure (our building being our individual selves as Christians and our work to edify one another as the faithful church and body of Christ).
Jesus Alone 