I am John, your brother and partner in the oppression, kingdom, and patience that comes because of Jesus. I was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony about Jesus.
I came to be in the Spirit on the Day of the Lord, when I heard a loud voice behind me like a trumpet, saying, "Write on a scroll what you see, and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea." Then I turned to see who was talking to me, and when I turned I saw seven gold lamp stands. Among the lamp stands there was someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash around his chest. His head and his hair were white like wool, in fact, as white as snow. His eyes were like flames of fire, his feet were like glowing bronze refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of raging waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp, two-edged sword. His face was like the sun when it shines with full force.
When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. But he placed his right hand on me and said, "Stop being afraid! I am the first and the last, the living one. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever! I have the keys of Death and Hades. Therefore, write down what you have seen, what is, and what is going to happen after this. The secret meaning of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and the seven gold lamp stands is this: the seven stars are the messengers of the seven churches, and the seven lamp stands are the seven churches” (Rev. 1.9-20).
The Lord Jesus appeared to Apostle John and gave him messages for each of the seven churches. The seven churches are called: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. These seven churches are all the believers of Christ Jesus on the earth from the time of the departure of the Lord till his return. The universal church of Christ is spiritually divided into these seven assemblies. These seven churches are named after seven local churches that existed at the time of John because these seven local churches were in the seven spiritual conditions that the Lord wanted to address in his letters.
The Lord is walking amongst seven golden lampstands. These seven lampstands are the seven churches. The Lord Jesus does not walk only amongst the seven local churches. He is walking amidst all his churches. There were many other local churches during the early church days; the church at Antioch, the church at Jerusalem, the church at Corinth, the church at Philippi etc. The seven local churches and all the other local churches make up the seven churches. All the servants of the Lord Jesus are entitled to know the future (Rev 1.1).
The names of the gates of the new city of Israel are: Judah, Reuben, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Simeon, Levi, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin. The names of the twelve foundation stones of the new city are the names of the twelve apostles. Spiritual things are named after earthly realities. The fact that the names of the local churches are used does not mean that they are the sole constituents of the Seven churches.
Each believer belongs to at least one of these churches. Membership in a church depends on the spiritual state of the believer. The Lord is addressing each believer based on his/her spiritual state. To some churches, he demands repentance without which they will be cast out. To another, he encourages their persevering obedience.
The Lord addresses his words to the messenger of each church. These messengers are the servants of the Lord who feed his flock. In the book of Daniel, the anointed ones (prophets, kings, and teachers of the law) were identified as stars. These messengers are not the pastors/overseers of today’s institutionalized churches. The messengers (the seven stars) are God’s servants whom he personally called into service to speak his word to his seven churches.
Who is the Church?
The church is two or more believers who are one in heart and mind and are in total submission to Christ (the Head). In other words, the members of the body are jointly knit together in oneness under the Head, Christ.
A member of the body of Christ (church) should be a person who has believed in the Lord Jesus unto repentance and holiness. When two of these believers meet, Christ Jesus is in their midst. Whatever these two bind on earth, is also bound in heaven.
The true church of God is united in heart and mind and are bonded by their selfless love for one another and their sole submission to Christ as head. They are not one because they meet in a building/house. They are one because of their faith and love. The early church was a church because they were one in heart, spirit, and mind. Filling up buildings on Sundays and trying to create a oneness on that Sunday does not make it God’s church. Until two people learn to carry one another’s burden and share in the other’s life in a spirit of love and are in total submission to the Headship of Christ, they are yet to become the church (the body). We must be wise to differentiate between the sheep and the goats. The goats claim to belong to the shepherd but they always go their own way.
If a member of the body of Christ is in need, his fellow brother goes as far as selling his property to meet the need of his needy fellow brother in the faith. The early church lived in this way. No one was in need among them because they sold their properties and distributed as they each needed.