The Lord identifies and highlights the distinguishing characteristics of the striving ones amongst the Ephesus community, i.e. they cannot tolerate wicked men, and carefully check those who claim to be apostles, but are not. In addition, this community has the added crown of patient endurance as they are subjected to hardships for the name of the Lord. On this basis, one may know that he belongs to the best of this community of human spirits. It must be apparent that the words are addressed only to those in the various communities or Universes who can still be saved, i.e. those who believe in the Eternal One and who seriously strive for the Truth. The rest of the human spirits in the Universes, those that reject God are no longer relevant in the work of the Son of Man. They have already judged themselves.
Of more importance to the Ephesian church is the shortcoming involving the majority of striving human spirits in this community. They have forsaken their first Love, perhaps referring back to the distant past before the fall of man on earth when spiritual service and Love of God were our first love before we fell and allowed over cultivation of the intellect to the detriment of the spirit. If we accept Ephesus as the world community or Universe to which we belong, we, human spirits, have fallen from the great height of a direct link to Paradise, a natural ability of an alert spirit, to the depth of impenetrable darkness led by our intellect.
However, if we bear in mind that this is directed to only striving human spirits who still retain a spark that may be awakened, then this may be a direct condemnation of the groups who claim God, but live a life that does not bear up the Will of God, an indictment that we have forgotten the Message and work of the Son of God amongst us.
For those who think of the churches as snapshots of man’s spiritual progress in subsequent Creation, and the admonition to Ephesus as referring to Judaism, this is believed to refer to the failure of Judaism to keep the Light bright and their failure to recognize the Son of God.
The Lord calls urgently for repentance and a re-awakening of the spirit in the new birth. Everything must become new. We must return to a life ordered according to the Will of God. The Message of the Son of God demands this and the Message of the Son of Man compels it. Unless we live in the Will of the Father, Ephesus as World community will cease to exist. If we fail in this, we will lose our place in the world communities before God and cease to exist (the lampstand will be removed from its place).
Although, the star of Ephesus may still be glowing, it is no longer luminous. Indeed Smyrna and Thyatira were the most luminous at the approach of the Lord (transmitted writing).
A specific and obviously important commendation is made to Ephesus, but who are the Nicolaitans, who are abhorred by the Lord and who we must avoid? The exact identity is not known; but among scholars, they are thought to be followers of Nicolaus, a movement that taught that it was permissible to eat things sacrificed to idols and to engage in utter self expression and release, including especially in sexual immorality. There is however no clear evidence that such a sect existed. It is more probable that the name does not refer to a sect, but is used symbolically, denoting those inclined towards the principles of Balaam (Rev. 2:14-15). As pointed out in the New Bible Commentary: Revised, the names Balaam and Nicolaus have the same etymology, indicating he who consumes or overcomes the people.
We must seek the meaning of this reference from the point of view of the spiritual development of humanity in Ephesus. The most recurring theme linked with our failure in Ephesus is the over cultivation of the human intellect. Since these events are occurring after the Son of Man had come to Ephesus, this is most probably a reference to the misleading intellect.
There are many in the world today who hold strong views on self-expression and letting one’s self go. This is a belief or characteristic that is the norm in our societies today and should not be found amongst the striving human spirits. Rejecting this doctrine is important to the process of repentance and re-awakening. Nicolaitans like adherents of Balaam follow a doctrine based on intellectual sophistry.
The Lord concludes His admonition to Ephesus by becoming personal, by talking to the individual human spirits. In response to the request of the Son of God, Jesus, the Son of Man had come to us first as the comforter, the Spirit of Truth with a Message. We must listen to this Truth or be rejected in the judgment. He talks directly to each of us, but the decision is still ours – to listen and hear or to reject. This is a spiritual intuitive movement and the reward for overcoming is eternal life in Paradise. Can we afford not to obey?
This is a recurring injunction to all the communities visited by the Son of Man. The Message is clearly given to the striving spirits in the various Universes and so, this must be after the sifting. In all the Messages, the Lord implies that after the gift of the Message, a period of testing will come and only those of the faithful who overcome will receive the reward of life.
Smyrna (Rev. 2: 8-11)
28 “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. 9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.11Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.
The Son of man, the alpha and omega, identifies himself with our physical weaknesses – He had taken on physical form in the World of Matter, had suffered and died and came back again. This should easily be understood by Christians who identify with Christ’s death and resurrection, but does not necessarily indicate that it was Jesus speaking (see above). As stated earlier, in presenting the Son of Man, John frequently emphasizes the unity of the Trinity and the fact that in the Son of Man we must also see the Christ. This is meant to be a great help for all those who have accepted the message of the Son of God. It is, however, important to remember that Christ’s incarnation is not the first or only incarnation of Divinity on earth and this phrase may apply to another incarnation from the Light.
The Son of Man understands our affliction, but is also aware of our spiritual hypocrisy and conceit. As such, He can assure us that affliction and poverty in the earthly sense do not detract from spiritual riches. This is a church under serious persecution, but which is spiritually alive and as such truly rich. Spiritually, Smyrna’s star is glowing brightly. In terms of spiritual commendation, this church is the highest followed by Thyatira as number 2. Philadelphia is number 3, Ephesus in 4, Sardis in 5, and Laodicea in 6th position and Pergamum last.
Nevertheless, within this community, there are hypocrites, those who say they are Jews but are not. This does not refer to Jews as a people or sect since they will not in any case be members of the Christian church community in earthly Smyrna. It is, of course, possible that the Jews indicated are outside the church community, but we must bear in mind that the admonitions are to the spiritually striving within each community. We must remember that the designation Jew may refer, as often before, to servants of the Almighty on earth. Indeed, the faithful everywhere are regarded as the children of Abraham, the ancestor of all the Faithful. These hypocrites present opportunity for Satan to internally destabilize the church.
There is suffering still ahead for this community, persecutions and deprivation, but the influence of Satan is limited already in time. The use of ‘ten’ days as the time scope, I believe indicate ‘complete’, i.e. that the influence of Satan will be allowed to run its full allotted time as permitted by the Almighty. This may indicate the time until the binding of Lucifer by the Son of Man, a task that followed after giving us the Message and before the establishment of the Kingdom of a thousand years (Chapters 10, 11).
It is, however, more probable that it indicates the time until the end of the Millennium when all evil is judged. The main base of activity of oppression and persecution is from those who claim to be Jews, described as a synagogue of Satan. In these trying times, faithfulness