Expedition 44

Why we are not dispensational:   • Dispensationalism promotes escapism which hinders discipleship in the present because the goal is to escape the earth. If Christ’s goal is to be his body on earth why would he want us to escape it and if he is the pattern and his pattern was suffering leading to victory then the dispensational interpretation is opposite of the pattern of Christ. If a true disciple looks like Jesus then we are called to endure to the end not escape, this actually builds our faith and discipleship.   • Staunch Dispensationalists see the 7 churches as ages from the ascension up till the “GREAT TRIB” and this stunts the application of Jesus’ message to these churches because they apply them to other “ages” and cannot see the application (not written to us, but written for us). To give the benefit to Dispensationalists some do see the pastoral applications of the churches (The "things that are”).   • Dispensationalists interpretations of the 144,000 as Jews in the “Great Trib” screws up much of the rest of the letter. If they can’t see this as what John “sees” in Rev 7 (The interpretation of 144000) as all tribes, tongues, and nations (the church) who worship the lamb and follow him wherever he goes (Rev 15) and rather see it as some end times jewish army with the church “raptured” out of the picture it can really screw up the mission of the church in following the lamb in suffering and service because that is only reserved for the end times jews (The same that are called a synagogue of Satan in Smyrna?).   • A major thrust is the futurist nosterdomist misinterpretation of what prophecy Is, but we addressed this in part in our intro episode. If it’s all about predicting the future then it has no bearing on the present except to just “watch” for it. It requires not action on the part of the church.

X44 KINGDOM COVENANT PATRIOTISM / NATIONALISM DISCUSSION  Dr. Will Ryan, Dr. Steve Cassell, and Pastor Matt Mouzakis   2 masters Remnant vs salvific instruments  Rival kingdom vs reclaimed kingdom  Who is fighting the Battle?  American Govt as pagan or potential Christian  Churches involvement in government

Revelation 3:14-22     Background/History  Laodicea was named after Laodice the wife of Antiochus II, the founder of the city.   Laodicea, Hierapolis, and Colossae were the 3 major cities in the Lycus valley and build among the Lycus river.   In the first century Laodicea was the banking capitol of Asia minor (It was the home of the millionaires)  Laodicea was destroyed by an earthquake in 61 AD and when offered aid to rebuild from Rome it refused because they were so rich that they were self-sufficient to do it on their own. This plays into the attitude of the church in Laodicea as well.  Laodicea was known for 3 things besides it’s wealth: It’s black wool industry, their medical eye salve ointment, and their lukewarm water.     Description of Jesus (v14)  The Amen: The Faithful and True Witness We are used to “amen” being what we end our prayers with. In Greek it means “so be it” but in Hebrew it has connections to the covenant and promises.   2 Cor 1:20 says that all God’s promises find their yes and amen in Jesus.     The “beginning” of the creation of God-  The NASB, which we read from, translates this as the “beginning of God’s creation” but this is probably not the best translation. The Greek word is arche and that is better translated as the ruler of God’s creation. This is a better connection with Amen and faithful/true witness     Jesus’ correction to Laodicea (v15-18) Jesus gives no praise to this church. They are very entangled to the mindsets of the world- individualism, materialism, and the systems of Babylon.     Neither hot nor cold Laodicea built aqueducts to bring the hot water to town from Hierapolis but by the time it made it to Laodicea it would be lukewarm.  Laodicea built aqueducts to carry the cold water from Colossae but by the time it reached Laodicea it would have also been lukewarm. Jesus uses this fact about their water to talk about the spiritual life in Laodicea.  To Jesus their pride and arrogance of being independent, individualistic, and having no need for Jesus (self-reliance) is the opposite of being a faithful witness. And it makes Jesus sick. He says he’ll throw them up. The point is that in being this way they are not usable for the kingdom of God. He’s rather them be hot, like the healing waters of Hierapolis, Or cold, like the refreshing waters of Colossae.  But instead, they are so self-absorbed that they are of no use for the kingdom. He wants to spit them out.     Rich, healthy, no need James 5:1-6; Rev 18:2-3    Repentance (v18-20)  Gold refined by fire  Isaiah 55:1-5 Revelation doesn’t describe what it means to be truly rich but the echo if Isaiah 55:1-5 gives us some clues. Verses 3-5 talk about an everlasting covenant, being a true witness, and the result is the nations coming running into the true Israel because they display the splendor and beauty of the Lord Today- The job of the church is to make Christ so beautiful the world cannot resist it! Our job is simply to enthrone Christ and meet his needs and evangelism, discipleship, correct doctrine and all else will take care of itself. Let’s just behold him and explore the vastness of who Christ is… THE AMEN!  “Buying” in revelation has to do with worship

Revelation 3:7-13 Background Philadelphia is 25 miles SE of Sardis in the Hermes Valley. It is the youngest of the churches in Revelation. Philadelphia means “brotherly love”. When King Eumenes II of Pergamum founded the city of Philadelphia he named it after his younger brother and successor Attalus Philadelphus. Attalus got the nickname Philadelphus (The one who loves his brother) because Attalus was deeply loyal to his brother to the point when the Romans offered to help Attalus overthrow his brother and give him the throne he refused. Philadelphia sat on top of a fault line and was affected by several major earthquakes in 17 AD. It was a city that was ruined and rebuilt many times Description of Jesus (3:7) Holy and True This is usually translated as “the words of him who is holy and true” but in Greek “holy” and “true” are each proceeded with the definite article. It should read “the words of him who is THE holy and THE true”. By taking these titles Jesus is reminding the church that he is one with God the Father. It’s also important as we look at the interaction of the Jews and Christians in Philadelphia. The claim of the church that Jesus is Lord and God is what is bringing them persecution. Has the Key of David Isaiah 22:15-24 The theme here in Isaiah 22 is that the previous stewards will be removed, and a new “servant” will be set up who will have the keys to the kingdom, the key of David. There are a lot of Echoes of Christ in this passage: a servant, given authority, connection to David, at the seat of honor (right hand), over the father’s household. And the honor of the family hangs on Him (Jesus is the head of the church).   Praise for Philadelphia (3:8-11) Philadelphia, like Smyrna, is a church that Jesus does not call to repent. Both churches are churches that suffer for Jesus’ name. both churches are facing persecution from the religious establishment (The Jews). Synagogue of Satan In Revelation 3:9 Jesus describes this synagogue as not real Jews but liars. Like in Smyrna “Those who say they are Jews but are not”. The true Jew is the one who in part of the family of the Messiah in Christ. Those who claim Jesus as Lord.   NT Wright: “which of these two groups then, Jews or Christians, can claim to be the true Jews, bearing the torch of God’s ancient people? Here Jesus is quite clear; those who follow him, the Davidic messiah, are the true Jews. Those who deny him are forfeiting their right to this noble name.” Isaiah 45:14 The Expectation was that the nations would flow into the Jewish nation, but Jesus reverses it and now at the end of Revelation we see the nations flowing into the New Jerusalem, the Kingdom. But Jesus puts the Jews in Philadelphia in the shoes of the pagan nations. Flips the script! He compares the Jews in Philadelphia to Shebna in Isaiah 22 who is removed from the house, and the keys of David are given to God’s servant Eliakim, a shadow of Jesus. It says the glory of his family will hang on him, it’s offspring and offshoots… His body the church  Kept in the Trial There are exact word parallels with the words “keep” and “from” in Rev. 3:10 and John 17:15, which is the only other NT occurrence of “to keep” with “from” together: there Christ prays, “I ask not that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” Thus, Jesus denies a physical removal from tribulation and affirms a spiritual protection from the devil. Big idea of this section is there is judgement coming on the kingdoms and systems that oppose God but God will keep his family Conquer We conquer the way of the Lamb, not the way of Rome! The conquers will be a pillar in the temple of God and have God’s name, New Jerusalem, and Jesus’ name written on them.

Scot McKnight joins Dr. Will Ryan and Matt to talk about the church. In this episode we discuss Scot’s book “A Church Called Tov” about resisting toxic church culture and forming a goodness (tov) culture that promotes healing in our churches. Follow Scot McKnight: A Church Called Tov https://www.amazon.com/Church-Called-Tov-Goodness-Promotes/dp/1496446003/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=a+church+called+tov+scot+mcknight&qid=1661285141&sprefix=a+church+calle%2Caps%2C194&sr=8-1 Blog https://www.christianitytoday.com/scot-mcknight/ Kingdom Roots Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kingdom-roots-with-scot-mcknight/id1078739516

Revelation 3:1-6 Background Sardis was a fortress city. It was surrounded on 3 sides by extremely steep cliffs. As a result, it was considered to be so impenetrable that “to capture the acropolis of Sardis” became a euphemism for achieving something impossible. In the 5th century BC Cyrus king of Persia caught Sardis’ army by surprise and besieged the city. Even after this the people of Sardis believed they were safe but on the 14th day of this siege a few Persian troops claimed the cliff where no man was stationed because the cliff was so steep, and they thought it to be impenetrable there. But their lack of vigilance to an area they thought needed no attention was the downfall of Sardis at this time. In AD 17 an earthquake ripped apart Sardis and brought sudden destruction to the city once again. Just prior to John’s day Sardis was a city of wealth and security once again but Jesus and John use their history of being overtaken or sudden destruction to talk about spiritual matters in the church Description of Jesus Seven Spirits Isaiah 11:1-2, Enoch 61:11, Psalms of Solomon 17:37 It’s about the fruit the Holy Spirit produces. The idea is that this spiritual fruit is rooted in Jesus and resembles Jesus’ life. Seven Stars The big thing about Jesus’ description that is important for Sardis to notice is that It’s spiritual in nature. Sardis is said to have an appearance of being alive on the outside but are actually dead or dying spiritually Jesus’ Correction Alive but dead Sardis had the reputation (a name) to those in the community of being alive, but Jesus says they are actually dead. They are playing church Col 1:9-10- Bearing fruit, growing in the knowledge of God Strengthen what remains Jesus tell the church to “wake up”. Which is better translated as “be watchful”, echoing the story of the defeat of Sardis we mentioned earlier where they were lax in their protection of the city. Sardis is similar to the Pharisees in Matt 23:25 Consequences If they do not repent Jesus is coming to them like a thief in the night Matt 24:36-44 Jesus attributes this coming to being a thief in the night here as well. The message is that is Sardis doesn’t “strengthen what remains” and “be watchful” (of their spiritual state) their lamp-stand will be removed and not be counted as a faithful witness. They will be overtaken like the acropolis of Sardis was in the past. Soiled garments Jesus mentions that there are some that are faithful in this church. Not all are spiritually dead. They are the remnant. Soiled garments is usually a way of talking about impurity by being stained by sin or the world (Jude 22) “they walk with me in white, for they are worthy”- This has echoes of Eden and walking with God in the garden. Conquerors Jesus gives 2 rewards to the conquerors- White garments and their name not erased from the book of life

Revelation 2:18-29 Background  • In the ancient world Thyatira was not very important like Ephesus or Pergamum.   • It was founded as a military outpost to protect the governmental seat of Asia in Pergamum.   • It did become a bit of a trade city because many people traveled through it.   • It was known for its trade guilds (It was a blue-collar city) such as wool and linen workers. It became known for its purple dye (Lydia in Acts 16 was in this line of work).  • There were also a lot of metal and bronze workers in the area.   • At this time in history, trade guilds functioned similarly to modern unions. Yet, each trade guild had a patron deity and to be part of the guild meant that you needed to worship that deity, attend the guild worship festivals, and this would have been a major problem for Christians.    Faithful witness- What do we learn from Thyatira about what it means to be a faithful witness?   • Balance of Love and Doctrine/Theology: Thyatira did love well (unlike Ephesus) but they got into the ditch. They neglected doctrine and theology. This shows the importance of being studied and having discernment in order to refute false teachings, but in love. How are we doing in the American Church?   • Spirit of Jezebel: Is the mindset of the world/Ba’al/Satan creeping into the church? Immorality, power-over systems, self-seeking motives?   • What does ruling look like? Do we want to rule like Jesus or Rome? Jesus is calling the church to be servants, to be shepherds and not to Lord over. The church needs to get back to “washing feet” rather than grasping for political and top down power.

Revelation book recommendations    The Sermons to the Seven Churches in Revelation (Jeffery A.D. Weima)  Understanding the Seven Churches of Revelation (Dr. Jonathan Welton)  Unholy Allegiances (David deSilva)  Apocalypse and Allegiance (J. Nelson Kraybill)  The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia (Colin J. Hemer)  Revelation (Interpretation Commentary Series) (Eugene Boring)  A Slaughtered Lamb (Gregory Stevenson)  Reading Revelation Responsibly (Michael J. Gorman)  The Triumph of the Lamb (Dennis E. Johnson)  Revelation (G.K. Beale) and More

Background  • Pergamum was the seat for the Roman Governor for the region. So, if Ephesus was like New York (Financial and commerce center), Pergamum would be like Washington DC (governing and legal center).   • They had the 2nd largest library at the time (Alexandria had the largest)  • In 29 AD Pergamum was the very first city to erect a temple to a Caesar (Augustus)  • Those in Pergamum also worshipped the god Asclepius, who was a healing God in the form of a serpent. They also were the center for medical practice. This God’s temple had a medical spa connected to it and a 3500-seat amphitheater for musical therapy.  o  Asclepius was given the title Soter (savior)for his “healing power”. This would have put early Christians at odds with this cult claiming Jesus was the healer and savior.   • On the highest peak of the hillside around Pergamum was the temple to Zeus. It had a huge altar that looked like a throne. Smoke would rise day and night from the temple from the sacrifices being made.   • On another hilltop near Zeus’ temple was Athena’s temple the goddess of victory.   • As well there was a massive temple to the god Serapis who was also a god of healing. Today this temple is known as Red Basilica. It contained a massive 30-foot statue that the priest could make “talk” by entering the base and speaking through a pipe.    NT Wright describes the impact this environment might have had on the church in Pergamum: “Many local inhabitants in the first century must have been proud of all of this.  But for the little Christian community it represented a threat- and a threat with which, it seemed, the Christians were not coping particularly well.”    All of these temples, smoke, talking idols, altars and more must have seemed overwhelming and intimidating to the believers here. It’s no wonder Jesus describes Pergamum as the place where Satan dwells. Not only was it the governing center for the imperial cult but also a major center for false worship and some of the Christians are struggling to maintain a faithful witness in this culture.   Revelation 2:12-17 Description of Jesus (v12)   Antipas the Faithful Witness (V13)   Balaam/Nicolaitans (v14, 15)   Call to Repent (v16)   Reward: Hidden manna and New name (v17)   Conclusions: How to apply this to the Church today

Smyrna  Revelation 2:8-11    Background  • Smyrna was one of the most prosperous cities in Asia Minor in the 1st Century   • 195 bc Smyrna built a temple to Roma   Remember the big idea is faithful witness!  • Smyrna is 1 of 2 of these churches that gets praised and not correction in Revelation.    Jesus’ description (v8)   Poverty and Riches (v9a)  • No health and wealth gospel is being preached to the church in Smyrna  • Some have argued that ptocheia (poverty) is a very strong word for this concept meaning they had literally nothing  Who is the true Jew? (v9b)  • Michael Gorman sums this up in READING REVELATION RESPONSIBLY:  o It is likely that some Jews have betrayed their own identity as God’s people (from John’s perspective) by colluding with those possessing economic power (perhaps officials in the trade guilds, the networks of tradespeople similar to modern unions, or in the temples that served also as banks) and/or Roman political officials in persecuting the Smyrnaean church. The economic impact and the potential for legal action have apparently not led any in the church to accommodate. The challenge is to remain fearless and faithful—to trust and obey.   Do not fear/Tribulation for 10 days/ Be faithful unto death (v10)  o Gregory Stevenson- A Slaughtered Lamb, Pg. 118-19:   In imitation of their Lord, the church in Smyrna is called upon to maintain their faithful witness, even if such witness leads to their deaths because the victory of Christ is achieved through a witness that does not faulter or fade even in the most extreme circumstances. Yet, He assures them, if they share in this part of Christ’s pattern, they will also share in the remainder of that pattern- Christ’s glorified resurrection (The crown of life)… the seven letters transform the concept of victory. If Christ sets the pattern, then our understanding of victory must conform to Christ’s own victory. Christ’s own victory achieved on a cross was not a victory over his Roman oppressors or Jewish enemies, but over the Power of Satan.    Conquers (v11)  Polycarp