The Body lifeAs a sign, the church in Sardis prefigures the Protestant church, from the time of the Reformation to the second coming of Christ: When the church, in her continuous fall, came to the stage of Jezebel, God could no longer tolerate it; the church in Sardis is God’s reaction to Thyatira. Sardis emerges because the […]
As a sign, the church in Thyatira prefigures the Roman Catholic Church, which was fully formed as the apostate church by the establishing of the universal papal system in the latter part of the sixth century. The church in Thyatira tolerates the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess: Jezebel, the pagan wife of Ahab, […]
In Greek Pergamos means “marriage,” implying union, and “fortified tower”: As a sign, the church in Pergamos prefigures the church that entered into a marriage union with the world and became a high fortified tower; these two meanings correspond to two of the parables in Matthew 13 —the parable of the great tree and the […]
The church in Smyrna was a church under the suffering of persecution: In Greek Smyrna means “myrrh,” a sweet spice that, in figure, signifies suffering; the church in Smyrna was a suffering church: This persecuted church suffered in the sweetness and fragrance of Christ. This church was in the tribulation in Jesus and was in […]
