The Seven Lampstands

I recently started reading the book of Revelation again. Revelation is one of my favorite books in the entire bible. It's an incredible read that I would recommend to everyone. Revelation is a book that is basically describing what is, and what is to come.

Just read through this passage in Revelation chapter 1, describing the King of Kings.

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lamp stands, and in the midst of the lamp stands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, "Fear not, I am the first and the last, the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. As for the mystery of the seven starts that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lamp stands, the seven starts are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches." 

(Revelation 1:12-20) 


After reading scripture like that, it literally and figuratively puts me in awe. I cannot mentally wrap my mind around that passage. It's absolutely amazing.

So where am I going with this?

After reading through Revelation 1 & 2, which were letters to the seven churches, something about those letters really stuck out to me. Every letter ends with the same verse: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches, and then is finished with another statement written to the one who conquers.

I find it interesting that every letter ends to the same way. These letters were written for the churches which are different groups of people right? Right! Everybody is different. I imagine these letters being specifically filled with words for people who are going through all sorts of things.

In this life we never go through the exact same thing. Sure we might struggle with the same wrongdoings and sins, but we don't suffer in the same way. Nothing is the same about any two people and that is an important thing to remember. We were all created to be different and to love one another.

I think there are valuable lessons that we can learn from these letters. Just like how churches experience different hardships, so do people.

I want to highlight some of the specifics from each letter written to the seven churches. My hope is that some things stick out from these letters and that you are encouraged and reminded that you are never alone. It's common to suffer and go through hardships all of the time. We have to remember that we are conquerers. The reward that comes with that is indescribable.

Seven Lampstands


1. Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7)

- patient endurance
- cannot bear with those who are evil
- abandoned the love you had at first
- repent!
- if you do not repent your lamp stand will be removed

"To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." 

We endure and we are patient with everyone, but sometimes there comes a point where we lose it. We think that we are above people who might seem evil because of their actions. We must never lose love for one another. If that happens, we have to repent. When we repent, we will be able to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. 

2. Smyrna (Revelation 2:8-11)

- tribulation and poverty
- do not fear what you are about to suffer
- the devil is about to throw some of you into prison and you will be testes
- be faithful unto death and you will receive the crown of life

"The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death." 

We all experience tribulation and poverty. We can never fear because the Lord is always with us. Some of us will be tested and thrown into prison where we must remain faithful. Those who are faithful will receive the crown of life..


3. Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-17)

- held fast to the Lord's name and never denied faith
- teachings that are withheld

"To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it." 

I am going to be honest here, I really don't understand this letter to the fullest. It seems like there were some teachings that were being denied that shouldn't have been.


4. Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-28)

- our works, love, faith, service, and patient endurance are noticed
- Jezebel seduces servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols
- we are tolerating that
- God searches are mind and our hearts
- We will be given according to our works

"To the one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. And I will give him the morning star."

This one is tricky. There is a woman in the church who is seducing her servants and the people of the church are tolerating what is going on. God throws this servant onto a sick bed and whoever commits adultery with her be thrown into great tribulation. God uses this to teach the church that he is a God who searches our mind and heart, and that we will be given according to our works. We cannot tolerate things like this, we must confront any wrongdoings.


5. Sardis (Revelation 3:1-6)

- we have a reputation of being alive but are dead
- wake up and strengthen what remains and is about to die
- our works are not complete
- remember what we have received and heard and we must keep it and repent from it
- if we do not wake up, God will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour He will come

"To the one who conquers will be clothes thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels."

To me, this is the most important. We take in so much every single day and never do anything with it. We sit in church on Sunday and gets super encouraged and convicted and then do nothing about it the rest of the week. We think that we are alive because we go to church and because we are Christians. But there is more than just that. Just because you park your car in a garage doesn't make you a car. Same thing with church and Christinas. Just because we go to church doesn't mean we are Christians. There is so much more than just being called a Christian. SO much more. We need to wake up and strengthen what remains in is. Our works are no complete. We need to remember what we learn, and we must keep it in our hearts and repent from it. If we as Christians don't wake up, God will come like a thief, and we will not know when He will come.  I encourage you to wake up from your slumber.


6. Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13)

- open door in front of us
- we have little power, kept the word and have not denied God's name
- patient endurance will keep you from the hour of trail that is coming on the whole world
- I am coming soon

"To the one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name." 

There is an open door that is in front of us. God is just waiting for us to come through. We have all of the power, freedom, and resources to do so. Patient endurance will keep us from the trial that is coming on the whole world. God is coming soon! Hold fast to what you have so that no one may seize your crown.


7. Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22)

- we are neither cold not hot
- we are lukewarm, and if we are lukewarm God will spit us out of his mouth
- we must buy gold refined by fire and white garments
- God loves us so he reproves and disciplines us, so we must be zealous and repent
- God stands at the door and knocks, if we hear his knock, we must open the door

"To one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne."

This letter is also one of my favorites. There are to many of us who are lukewarm. I view lukewarm as mediocrity. You don't stand out and you don't fit it. You are right in the middle. We can't just be right in the middle. Eternity was written on our hearts. Whatever think we do in our daily lives that involves things of this world will never fill us up. Real legitimate fulfillment comes from God and only God. You get it though a relationship with Him. God is at the door waiting for us to knock. He is literally waiting right there. When we knock, the door will be opened. It's simple and we make it way to complicated. 

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I know that this post was very long and I hope that the Holy Spirit was able to use something in there to encourage or even possibly convict you. 

Never let any of your lampstands get blown out.