The Book of Revelation - Chapters 2-3 - The Seven Assemblies

Hello, everybody. My name is Chadwick Harvey. You have reached Faithful Performance. Thank you so much for joining us tonight as we continue our journey through the book of Revelation. Tonight we continue with Revelation chapters 2 and 3, both of which address the seven churches of Revelation — or the seven assemblies, as they are identified in the book.

It is extremely important to identify with these churches as we enter into the end of the age, to understand what Messiah was warning and admonishing them about. They were doing some things correctly and some things incorrectly. He acknowledged what was good but also warned and admonished them to correct what needed correcting — or he would remove their lampstand. This is a very important pair of chapters, because the warning is for all of the churches, for all of us. Each of us belongs to one of these seven churches, and he is warning every one of us.

Thank you again for joining us. Shabbat shalom to everyone out there. We hope everyone is enjoying the counting of the Omer as well. What a beautiful season we are in — the counting of the Omer, the Shabbat tonight — as we continue the journey toward the feast of Shavuot, the feast of Pentecost. We are currently on day twenty, just entering into day twenty-one this evening. I know everyone may be on a different count, but here at Faithful Performance we are on day twenty-one. Every Friday night or Saturday you should be on a number divisible by seven — twenty-one this week, fourteen last week, seven the week before, twenty-eight next week, then thirty-five. That is how it works, a divisible of seven every Shabbat, and then you will be on the right count when the festival of Shavuot arrives on the fiftieth day.

What a great time to be alive. I hope everyone has been spending time with the Lord — in intimacy, receiving revelation, and allowing him to speak to you during this period. Please take advantage of this time. You only have so many countings of the Omer in a lifetime, and it is truly one of the most meaningful times of the year. This is the season of liberation, and we must receive it again. This is a beautiful time to draw near to God, a time to make aliyah — to ascend to the Most High and grow closer to him. The rewards of pressing into him during this season are fresh revelation, breakthroughs, the breaking of bondage, blessings, and answers to things you have been praying for. Those rewards come when they come, but you must start the process somewhere, and there is no better time to begin than during the counting of the Omer — alongside Pesach, Passover, Unleavened Bread, Resurrection, and the Feast of First Fruits. Do not forget this fifty-day divine appointment that consumes the month of Iyar. Every day is filled with this beautiful count, and the revelation and rewards that come from intimacy with him during this season are spectacular.

With that said, we will revisit the season of liberation in the questions and comments after the teaching, and we will go through the blessing of the counting of the Omer together. Think of it as climbing a mountain day by day. When we reach the fiftieth day, your life spiritually should be at the highest peak it has ever been. No matter where you are right now, Shavuot should mark the pinnacle of your spiritual ascent this year. Please receive that.

Shabbat shalom, everyone. Rest easy in the Lord tomorrow. We may see some rain in the south, which is a beautiful blessing. We may also return with a prayer sometime this weekend, perhaps engaging the courts of heaven, since we are roughly halfway across the rainbow, if you will. The rainbow represents the seven-week journey of the feast of Weeks — seven weeks, or seven colors. We have just entered a new week, and after tomorrow that new week carries the color green, associated with healing. We do not have all the revelation on the rainbow, of course, but it is a beautiful and important layer to press into as the Lord continues to reveal it. There is also a connection worth exploring between the rainbow and the seven years of the Shmita cycle — all of these sevens pointing to deeper patterns in God's appointed times.

With that, let us turn our attention to the book of Revelation. As we discussed a couple of weeks ago when we opened this series, we covered the introduction in Revelation 1. For those who were with us then, we will briefly summarize chapter 1 again — not every tie-in in depth, but enough to set the trajectory of what Yeshua was communicating before he moves into the seven churches in chapters 2 and 3.

What Yeshua wanted the seven assemblies to understand is rooted in Revelation 1, where he proclaims both the first coming and the second coming events. He wants us to engage in this process with him and to understand what he spoke to each of those churches. Those seven churches are prophetic — we are seeing them on this earth today. We need to make sure we are found in the faithful church: the one that follows the ways of God, does the will of God, worships him in spirit and in truth, operates in love, fulfills the great commission, and does not tolerate Jezebel.

The theme Yeshua returns to most frequently when addressing the seven churches — with the exception of the faithful one — is idolatry. Whenever you read through these seven churches, keep that in mind: idolatry is central to his warnings. We want to be that faithful church. We want to be the church of Philadelphia, the church of brotherly love. It is critically important to identify with these churches, especially since we are living at the end of the age. The narrow road requires that we make sure we are in the faithful church and not among those being warned and rebuked. That narrows the road considerably, particularly now as things grow increasingly intense across the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, America, and everywhere else.

Before we read through chapter 1 in summary and move into chapters 2 and 3, I want to make a few important observations. It is remarkable that all seven of the assemblies, every single one of the churches of Revelation, are located in what is today the nation of Turkey. That is vital to understand. Yeshua is essentially telling all of us to put on the full armor of God and be ready, because this is what the end of the age will look like. He even states directly in the text that Satan's throne is in Turkey and that Satan dwells there. For everyone who loves prophecy, that should make it very clear where to look. Your Master and my Master has identified the location from his own mouth, and that eliminates a great deal of false eschatology.

We need to engage with these churches both on a personal level and on a prophetic level, making sure we keep our crown so that no one can take it from us. This is another narrow-road understanding. Reading the seven churches is, in many ways, another Olivet discourse — another unfolding of the themes in Matthew 24, walking through the same warnings in a different form.