Renewing the Church (7)

Jesus’ view of the Church
In previous articles in this series, the discussion of the vision, mission, purpose, and practices of a local church set the stage for this next series of articles which encourage the local church to reform and conform so that it is in accordance with Christ’s standards for a revived, healthy, and spiritually maturing assembly of believers.

In 1958, John R. W. Stott published a small book entitled, What Christ Thinks of the Church: Insights from Revelation 2-3. This is an apt title because in these seven dictated letters by our risen Lord found in Revelation 2-3, Jesus clearly tells us what pleases Him and displeases Him in a local church.

The first article in this series opened with a quote from Rebecca Barnes and Lindy Lowry’s article that appeared in the May-June 2006 issue of Outreach magazine entitled “Special Report: The American Church in Crises” in which Barnes and Lowry stated that the American church is in profound crisis. They then quoted leading pastors as to why this is the case. It is enlightening as well as troubling that not one of the church leaders interviewed by Barnes and Lowry referred to these letters of Jesus, letters which tell us what He expects from His church.

The vision of Christ
John begins his revelation with an awe-inspiring portrait of the reigning Christ standing amidst seven golden lampstands (Rev. 1:9-16). John, who had walked, eaten, and travelled with the pre-resurrection Jesus, is astounded when He hears Him now speaking with a “loud, trumpet-like voice” which John later describes as being like the “roar of many waters.” He appears to John as “one like a son of man.” He is clothed in a long robe with a golden sash around His chest, His hair is white as snow like that of the Ancient of Days (Dan. 7:9-10), His eyes are scorching like flames, His face is like the bright, noonday sun, and His feet are like “burnished bronze, refined in a fire.” In Jesus’ right hand, are seven stars. This portrait reveals Christ in all of His glory and majesty; the sight of Him was so terrifying, John “fell at his feet as though dead” (Rev. 1:14). It is this image of Christ that should be in full-focus in a church’s vision.

In Revelation 1:20, Jesus tells John that the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches themselves. Some commentators posit that the seven lampstands are akin to the seven-branched lampstand that Moses constructed for the Old Testament tabernacle (Ex. 25:31ff), and others to Zechariah’s vision of the seven-branched golden lampstand fed by seven pipes (Zech. 4:10). But from the account as given in Revelation, these appear to be seven individual lampstands at Christ’s feet. The image of the seven lampstands at Jesus’ feet and the seven stars He holds in His right hand conveys the fact that He is sovereign over the churches, holds their futures in His hands, and that He knows them intimately because He stands above them and looks down on them and witnesses the fervor or lack thereof of their flames.

Seven letters in one
The seven letters that Jesus dictates to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 are a unit consisting of seven parts. Even though each letter is addressed to a specific church, all of the churches received all seven letters, probably on one single scroll. In Revelation 1:11 Jesus states, “Write what you see in a book [singular] and send it to the seven churches…” (the fact that this is a seven-unit singularity can also be inferred from Rev. 1:4, as well as Jesus’ repeated admonition as found in 2:7, 11, 17, 29, 3:6, 13, 22 that “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”). What Christ says in these letters is timeless; His words apply to every church, past, present and future. His message applies to house churches, store-front churches, mega-churches, Roman and Orthodox Catholic churches, as well as Protestant and non-denominational churches—again, to all churches.

Despite its being a unit consisting of seven parts, each individual letter nonetheless addresses a specific church and its unique situation at the time the letters were dictated. Despite this specificity, these letters in their totality contain Christ’s expectations of a local church, as well as his expectations of each church’s individual members. The letters therefore contain encouragement, warnings, and the promises of eternal rewards to those who conquer. Since the seven letters describe seven distinct personalities that a church can assume (the doctrinally pure but loveless church, the suffering church, the culturally compromised church, to name but three), one of these seven letters in its entirety will apply to any given local church at any given moment in history. In the entirety of seven letters, they offer us a guide as to what a local assembly should and should not be like.

There is a general pattern to these letters:

1. A greeting: “To the angel of the church that is in ______________”
2. A title of the risen Christ, usually taken from the description of the risen Christ in chapter 1.
3. A section headed, “I know,” introducing praise for what is good in the church’s record (an exception is the church of Ladodicea).
4.  A criticism of the church (two exceptions are the churches of Smyrna and Philadelphia).
5. A warning.
6. An exhortation beginning, “He that hath an ear ______________.”
7. A promise beginning with something like “to the one who conquers.”

In the four last letters the order of 6 and 7 is reversed.

We will be limiting this discussion to the praises given to each church, the “I know” description of what that church is doing right in our Lord’s eyes, and the warnings as to what they are doing wrong. The reigning Christ is hardly avuncular. He expects obedience and will judge His churches when they fail to obey. Church leaders should never lose sight of what proceeds from the mouth of our glorious and reigning King: “a sharp, two-edged sword” (Rev. 1:16).

Next steps

As you examine your church, what is its vision of Christ? Does the assembly understand and know that Christ now reigns in full-glory at the right hand of the Father? As He examines your local church, His words might indeed be painful and penetrating. Talk with some of your church’s leaders. Try to find out whether Christ’s vision for His churches, outlined in Revelation 2-3, has been taken into consideration in your church’s planning and ministries. Begin to pray daily for your church, that the flame of its lampstand might burn more brightly in the year ahead.

For more insight to the Church and its ministry, order a copy of Chuck Colson’s book, Being the Body, from our online store. You might also read the article, “God’s Vision for His Church: A New Year’s Plea to Church Leaders,” by T. M. Moore.

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