Revelation Studies #15 [Part 6]: The Revelation of the Reigning Lamb walking Among the Candlesticks in Chapter 2 & 3

We now turn our attention to the second major section of the Revelation, chapters 2 and 3. We will first consider these chapters as a unit, then give further consideration to each of the chapters separately.

An Overview of this section as a Whole

We return to our ongoing question:

How does this portion of the Truth given by God in the book of The Revelation help me to better see and understand the Revelation of Jesus Christ?

This section as a whole helps me to better understand the Revelation of Jesus Christ in at least seven ways.

1. The fact that these epistles to the seven churches precede all that comes

after in the panorama of The Revelation to follow reveals the great heart

of the Lamb for His true churches.

Having given the amazing vision of the glorified Christ to John in the first chapter, the Holy Spirit[1] immediately turns John’s [and our] attention to the one thing that is most on the heart of the Redeemer of all mankind: His churches. There will be great and often overwhelming aspects of The Revelation of Jesus Christ as we continue. But, before entering into those, the Holy Spirit pulls back the veil that we may see His great heart.

Is it any wonder that this is where this Revelation begins, in view of the fact that His churches comprise His Bride?[2] What seems clear about the Bridegroom and His Bride is His watchfulness toward Her, regardless of which believers are included in the Bride. We are reminded of His solicitude for believers when He prayed:

“I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.”[3]

We all generally look forward to a wedding date in the future when a loved one is being wed. How much more must the Son of God be looking forward to that great wedding day when He will be forever joined, openly before all men and spirit beings, with His Beloved! Each one of us has that same wedding day to look forward to, provided we are truly His. In the meantime, we may in faith sing:

“I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me.”[4]

2. The Glorified Lord directs the epistle in each case to the “angel” of the

church.

As we have previously noted, these were either actual angels that had responsibility regarding each assembly, or [the far more commonly-held view] the men that were tasked with giving God’s Truth to the assemblies. These men would be the shepherds and overseers of the flock in each local assembly. These two designations are actually applied directly to the Lord Jesus Christ in 1 Peter 2:25.

“For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.”

The human being filling this role is divinely intended to be a vessel through which the Glorified Lord, the true Shepherd and Overseer of every genuine Christian in any true assembly, may work. Because of this truth, it is easy to see why the Glorified Lord would direct His epistles to these messengers.

The fact that the Glorified Lord uses the word “angel,”[5] rather than “shepherd”[6] or “bishop,”[7] when addressing these men emphasizes the calling that He views as being primary for them: messengers. To the extent that they fulfill their commissions in each assembly the True Shepherd and Bishop will be glorified among His people. Furthermore, in terms of the context here, the ministry of these “messengers,” when done as it needs to be done, will be to preach/teach the Glorified Christ.

In light of what we now have before us, we are better enabled to rightly understand the great heart of Jehovah as He promised, through Jeremiah long ago:

"And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding."[8]

Considering this verse in the Hebrew, one may notice that this same Hebrew word translated “pastors” here has, as its first definition in Strong’s Concordance:

רָעָה râʻâh, raw-aw'; a primitive root; to tend a flock; i.e., pasture it; intransitively, to graze (literally or figuratively)

The underlining in this quote is mine, for the sake of identifying that Augustus Strong considered that the primary usage of this Hebrew word is “to pasture” a flock. This seems to further suggest that the primary calling of these “angels” [messengers] is ‘to pasture’ [feed] the flock. The Glorified Lord knows how vital it is for there to be faithful messengers in His assemblies. In directly addressing the messenger in each instance, the Lord is doing two things:

· Commending the messenger for those things in the assembly over

which he presides for those things that please the Lord.

· Holding the messenger accountable for those things in the

assembly over which he presides that the Lord is displeased with

[or hates].

[1] John 16:13- Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

[2] Some Bible teachers/students hold that the Bride includes believers from all the way back to Adam. This is one of those places in The Revelation where we do well to demonstrate graciousness, rather than gritting our teeth and demanding acquiescence to our perspective.

[3] John 17:9.

[4] Song of Solomon 7:10.

[5] Greek: ἄγγελοι

[6] Greek: ποιμένα

[7] Greek: ἐπίσκοπον

[8] Jeremiah 3:15