Why are the 7 Churches in Revelation each greeted differently...

[Heart2Soul]

In Chapter 1 all of the characteristics below are used to describe Jesus...but when addressing each church separately only 1 characteristic is used in the greeting to the church....and each church received a different one. WHY? Is there any significance to this?
Refer to Revelation 1:11-20


2:1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks

8 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;

12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;

3:1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars;

7 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; 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;

14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

I don't believe this was done by mistake or happenstance. I believe there is a reason and am studying it as best I can. Anyone got an answer?

 

[Jipsah]

In Chapter 1 all of the characteristics below are used to describe Jesus...but when addressing each church separately only 1 characteristic is used in the greeting to the church....and each church received a different one. WHY? Is there any significance to this?I don't believe this was done by mistake or happenstance. I believe there is a reason and am studying it as best I can. Anyone got an answer?

Maybe because our Lord had specific things to say to each of those churches?

 

[Sabertooth]

I don't know for sure, but some things jump out at me a little bit.

2:1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks

3:1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars;

Seems to be the Menorah.

12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

A callback to Hebrews 4:12 & Ephesians 6:17.

 

[Heart2Soul]

Maybe because our Lord had specific things to say to each of those churches?

Agreed because He did....I am thinking more along the lines of what the meaning behind the greeting is....for example...Pergamos was addressed as He which has the sharp sword with two edges....
Pergamos was guilty of pagan worship....the word of God is like a sharp two-edged sword....so perhaps this meant He was coming to divide asunder
Hebrews 4:12 King James Version (KJV)
12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Is this His judgment coming to Pergamos....

The Holy Spirit told me to study Revelation again and so I am going to get really deep with it this time.
Thanks for your input.

 

[Heart2Soul]

I don't know for sure, but some things jump out at me a little bit.


Seems to be the Menorah.

A callback to Hebrews 4:12 & Ephesians 6:17.

I got the same thing about the sword....thanks for your input.

 

[Sabertooth]

The Gentile Church doesn't do much with the Menorah. It may be a good idea to study its role in the Temple and the seven-fold Spirit of God/stars. Verse 1 seems to suggest that there is a relationship between the two.

 

[Heart2Soul]

The Gentile Church doesn't do much with the Menorah. It may be a good idea to study its role in the Temple and the seven-fold Spirit of God/stars. Verse 1 seems to suggest that there is a relationship between the two.

Thanks....I know their is some hidden wisdom here....your suggestion is good.

 

[Vicky gould]

In Chapter 1 all of the characteristics below are used to describe Jesus...but when addressing each church separately only 1 characteristic is used in the greeting to the church....and each church received a different one. WHY? Is there any significance to this?
Refer to Revelation 1:11-20


2:1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks

8 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;

12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;

3:1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars;

7 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; 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;

14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

I don't believe this was done by mistake or happenstance. I believe there is a reason and am studying it as best I can. Anyone got an answer?

Very interesting question. One I am seeking clarity on is similar. Why are the epistle addressed to churches while the final books through the Revelation are not addressed to any church. Would be very interested in hearing yours and others thoughts if I am not being rude. If I am please tell me and I can look elsewhere to broach this subject. Thanks and God bless.

 

[Heart2Soul]

Very interesting question. One I am seeking clarity on is similar. Why are the epistle addressed to churches while the final books through the Revelation are not addressed to any church. Would be very interested in hearing yours and others thoughts if I am not being rude. If I am please tell me and I can look elsewhere to broach this subject. Thanks and God bless.

You are not being rude at all. I was wondering if you could expand a bit more. Just to make sure I understand the question.

 

[Vicky gould]

Thanks, the books from Romans to 2 thess. All are addressed to churches. From Hebrews through revelations none are addressed to a church. The books addressed to the churches are very orthodox Christian if you will. The final 9 books seem to be more Hebrew Christian directed and while all the books are clearly the Lord and His people the last nine have just a slight difference and as near as I can figure a slightly more Jewish flavor in what is written.

I love the Lord and I am absolutely enthralled by His Word. To be able to have a way of looking into the Mind that has created all things and the multitude of varieties, traits etc is awesome. So here is my is it a coincidence question. The books not mentioning a church total 9 in all. The number nine is most often the number of judgment in Scripture and the ninth book in this chain is the Book of Judgment, Revelations. That alone makes me think there could be other meanings in both the church letters and their numbers and then the non- church mentioning books. Cannot wait to have Him do the road to Emmaus Bible study for us like he did for those two He walked with it is going to be positively beyond our wildest dreams. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. God bless

 

[watchtower08]

Why did He address them differently? He didn't??? These letters outline what true prophecy is. A lot of people think prophecy is simply the foretelling of future events. It isn't.
1. Each of these letters start out with a revelation of who Christ is: the one who has the key of David or that holds the 7 stars.
2. They then go on to say: I know your works (aka, what you are going through),
3. They then say here is something that pleases Me: you're patient or you have not denied the faith.
4. They then go onto say, hey here's something you need to deal with in your church/lives.
5. Finally, they all end with a promise to the one that overcomes.
Take a closer look at these letters, you'll begin to see that even though they were specific to certain churches, Jesus dealt with all 7 of them, exactly the same (He is not a respecter of persons after all).

 

[Heart2Soul]

I have this thread on a sister forum as well and I gained alot of insight into this topic.
I had just finished studying Thessalonians 1 and 2...I asked the Holy Spirit what should I study next and He Revelation. (Not my favorite book because it is so hard to understand). But I was obedient and asked for my eyes and heart to be opened up to understand it.
Right into the first 2 chapters I saw the 7 churches greeted with a different description of Jesus. I have read Revelation before but never caught this.
I asked for clarity as to what the hidden wisdom or meaning was.
That is when I started this thread....what I believe is relevant about these 7 churches is 1. Spiritual decay and how it progressed 2. Call to repentance, 3. They symbolize the church movements throughout history.....Laodecia is the church of wealth and prosperity....the lukewarm church. (Today churches aim for large buildings and large audiences ...Megachurches).
The remains of these churches still exist today.
So to me, it is saying that after Laodecia is complete in it's judgment and repentance then God is going to Restore His Church....as it was when Jesus first laid the foundation of it.
Remember He said judgment first begins at the House of Lord.....it preludes judgment on the earth.
But I am a student seeking deeper understanding like everyone else.....I truly believe there are a lot of things in Revelation that God kept hidden until the appointed time.
People are starting to gain a revelation knowledge and understanding of this book that was hidden to them before.

 

[Heart2Soul]

Deleted due to duplication

 

[Heart2Soul]

Why did He address them differently? He didn't??? These letters outline what true prophecy is. A lot of people think prophecy is simply the foretelling of future events. It isn't.
1. Each of these letters start out with a revelation of who Christ is: the one who has the key of David or that holds the 7 stars.
2. They then go on to say: I know your works (aka, what you are going through),
3. They then say here is something that pleases Me: you're patient or you have not denied the faith.
4. They then go onto say, hey here's something you need to deal with in your church/lives.
5. Finally, they all end with a promise to the one that overcomes.
Take a closer look at these letters, you'll begin to see that even though they were specific to certain churches, Jesus dealt with all 7 of them, exactly the same (He is not a respecter of persons after all).

Thanks for your input.

 

[watchtower08]

Any time. Revelation is a fascinating read. The third trumpet is almost universally regarded as the catastrophic disaster that was the Chernoble melt down, in case you want to look closer into the trumpets.

 

[Heart2Soul]

Any time. Revelation is a fascinating read. The third trumpet is almost universally regarded as the catastrophic disaster that was the Chernoble melt down, in case you want to look closer into the trumpets.

I didn't know that...thank you for sharing!

 

[Heart2Soul]

Why are the 7 Churches in Revelation each greeted differently...
If you get a chance click on the link and learn from some really good students of the Word. I gained so much knowledge...blows my mind!

 

[Jipsah]

The third trumpet is almost universally regarded as the catastrophic disaster that was the Chernoble melt down, in case you want to look closer into the trumpets.

Shot who? Outside of these forums I've never encountered anyone who believes that, and precious few here.

 

[watchtower08]

The biggest obstacle people who believe this face is that Bible clearly says the star fell from heaven, indicating comet, meteor, asteroid, etc. But, if you look at everything else in that verse, it simply lines up. Chernobyl is Russian for Wormwood, the name of the star is Worm wood (Rev 8:11). Chernobyl was located on the Pripyat River which fed into the Dnieper reservoir system, one of the largest surface water systems in Europe. The Bible says it affects a third part of the Rivers, and the fountains of waters. But hey, it didn't fall from heaven, so we can scrap everything else, right?

 

[nonaeroterraqueous]

.but when addressing each church separately only 1 characteristic is used in the greeting to the church....and each church received a different one. WHY?

My gut instinct tells me that he used a key phrase that he had used with that particular congregation before. It was a kind of key to establish his identity. Otherwise, the letter could have come from someone else, and there were certainly enough people who would have wanted to subvert the church at the time.

You'll also notice the poetic nature of what he said. It looks a lot like one of the gospels, but not the others. It's very characteristic of John.