The Revelation to John: God Wins!

Session Six

The Seven Letters to the Seven Churches, Revelation 2—3

Part Three: “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write…”

Smyrna

 Powerpoint Presentation

 Population: 200,000

 Known for its stadium (where Polycarp was martyred), library and theater.

 Two Large Populations:

○ People loyal to Rome

○ Jews

 Church Father, Polycarp, Martyred 155 AD

Jesus, 2:8

 He is the _______________ and _______________, 1:17

 He is the one who _______________ and was made _______________, 1:18

 As the first, Jesus is the _______________ of our faith and life.

 As the last, Jesus is the _______________ of our faith and life.

What He Knows, 2:9

 He knows their _______________ (see Rev. 1:9)

 He knows their _______________, James 2:5

 He knows their _______________, Matthew 5:3, Luke 6:20

 He knows their _______________, Galatians 3:1-14

Call to Repentance, 2:10a

 Don’t be _______________ (Literally “stop” being afraid). (If you lose your first love

you might be tempted to be afraid of the things that really don’t matter.)
  Ten days in prison.

○ In the Old Testament, _______________ (Ten Commandments) was symbolic

of God’s perfection within this broken fallen world. And a period of short

duration (Daniel 1:12-14).

○ In the Old Testament, _______________ symbolizes the perfection of God to

himself regardless of the human context.

○ Ten days in prison probably symbolized a short duration of time that the people

of Smyrna would suffer and then it would be over.

 God calls his church to _______________ and _______________ to Jesus, their

first love.

Promise, 2:10b-11

 “Be faithful unto death…” The Martyrdom of Polycarp

 Crowns

○ Matthew 27:29

○ Revelation 14:14

○ Revelation 4:4

For Discussion

How does this overview of Revelation 2—3 lead you to…

1) …repentance

2) …faith, and

3) …worship?