Revelation
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 In Ephesus
-- Click To Expand/Collapse Bible Verses -- Rev ch2:v1-7
Rev 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;
Rev 2:2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
Rev 2:3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Rev 2:6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
Rev 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
(KJV)
The mystery of the seven angels and the seven churches is revealed as the “seven stars in the right hand of Christ”. These stars represent the seven angels, and we may assume that all seven stars are fulfilled by only the least in the kingdom of heaven , also the qualifying condition for gaining a “star” in the sequence that I allude to is given to any one that overcomes the corresponding letter as if as commandment from Christ Himself. – In completed sevenfold (and done so) only by the right hand of Christ Himself. We could expect any number of believers to fulfil one or more of the letters but only one (the angel) to fulfil all seven and overcome as in place beneath all. It is true that the least is sent, not any that would emulate him.
This letter is actually the entry point of the angel into a church as we would understand one today.
Rev 2:2 Is actually a statement looking forward – the angel is assured that his deeds, his efforts and patience in overcoming each church will be rewarded. In this letter Christ is commanding the angel to start going to church, (To draw out as the least of the flock.) Why? So that he may show that the least has enough discernment to avoid all false doctrine, convicting his fellows as to draw them out into the one and only flock.
Jesus states that the cause of the circuit has been for Jesus’ name’s sake. The angel in doing this 7-cycle has done so on the basis of election in Christ only, and in showing all are able to overcome in the name of Christ, this is interpreted correctly as done for Christ’s name’s sake.
The angel it seems has once already come to Christ and has left off from faith – a clear setback to justifying Jesus’ name as His right hand. Christ commands him to remember from where he fell, (outside of any church one would assume) as he was without proper instruction: and commands him to go to a church and be baptised and confess Christ – (though I place more emphasis on the latter in preference to getting wet), Though the church is useful for many doctrines they hold correctly, yet not all. There is false doctrine. Christ is assuring the angel that He will lead the angel to correct his doctrine.
Christ exhorts the angel to do so quickly, else the underlying lampstand that convicts the angel in every other one of the churches (Which is as to make him overcome as from Laodicea as an identity element of C7 in each of the six) to force him to repent by overcoming, and moving on; would be removed from under the angel and some other “angel” would be given the chance, he having missed the opportunity. The seven churches as spanned by the Laodicean lampstand is witness enough for the angel to overcome: Though only Christ knows whom is chosen for this task.
Jesus assures Him that the angel however stands a good chance: I could accept that the “Nicolaitanes” are those whom are come in to spy out the freedom the believers have in Christ and whom pollute true doctrine to justify their false own conceptions of God – alieving their sin. One could make the analogy to Catholicism or indeed within Protestantism. In any case the Nicolaitanes are those whom are practicing the dialectic process. They are known by their fruits; inviting in teachers to fill their itching ears or moving to those fellowships that have an “acceptable” doctrine.
There is the distinction in the letters between Nicolaitanism and the “synagogue of satan” (the source of the leaven.) The former are mentioned quite a few times – and we may identify the synagogue of satan as the leaven; and the woman who hides the leaven in the three portions of meal as those whom work it through to leaven the whole lump. This is done by the image system to be sure – but it is accepted in by those whom pollute the gospel with a false one of the dialectic – approaching pleasure and avoiding pain. They are “tares” yes, but more generally they are those that cause the image to be set up.
Finally the reward is to eat from the tree of life – that the Holy Spirit will “map” the angel’s singleton element to the unity in the 7-cycle. This is a promise that the angel is uniquely predestinated to overcome successfully.
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