WORD up!

Dr. Missler begins each week of study with a fairly detailed overview of what we’ve already studied.   Don’t be discouraged by this.   You may actually pick up on something that he’s repeated over and over that you’ve missed each time previously. Today, Thyatira is known as Akhisar.   It is a small, unattractive town of 30,000 people.   Back in Biblical times, Thyatira was an important military city.   I won’t give you a complete history.   Suffice it to say that the name Thyatira is derived from the Greek word for daughter.   And previously, it had been known by other names including Semiramis.   That name should be familiar.   Semiramis was Nimrod’s consort.   The city having that name shows its Babylonian origins. This letter contains the only mention of Jesus as the Son of God in the book of Revelation.   His title speaks of Him in His capacity as powerful authority and judge.   He commends them for their works an...

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The study of Pergamos was fascinating.   The city’s name means mixed or objectionable marriage.   The official emblem of the city was the Caduceus.   This led us to a study of Aesculapius (whose symbol was a single serpent wrapped around a staff) and discussion about the origin of the snake on the pole being a representation of healing which came from Scripture (Numbers 21:6-9). Jesus’ title in this letter (he which hath the sharp sword with two edges) identifies Him as the highest official authority. The commendation of the church’s works includes the mention of a faithful martyr named Antipas.   A legendary story says he was shut up into a red-hot brazen bull during Domitian’s reign and that he ended his life giving thanks and prayers to God. The mention of Balaam referred to being spiritually unchaste, married to the world (sound like the translation of the city’s name?), selling their spiritual gifts for profit and sacrificing eternal riches for tempora...

The letter to the church of Smyrna is a letter about suffering.   The city’s name comes from the Hebrew root translated myrrh, which means death.   Does myrrh sound familiar?   It should if you’ve ever heard the Christmas story.   The three gifts presented to the Christ child by the magi were gold, frankincense and myrrh.   The gold was a symbol of Jesus’ kingship.   The frankincense symbolized His priesthood.   The myrrh symbolized His suffering and death.   It’s intriguing that gold and frankincense will be offered at Jesus’ second coming according to Isaiah 60:6.   No myrrh, because the death is behind Him. Dr. Missler presented a history of the city, including its political risings and fallings and destruction by earthquakes.   The proclivity of the population toward pagan worship was evident on Smyrna’s coins.   Caesar worship was widely accepted.   Annually, each Roman citizen had to burn a pinch of incense on the ...

First, I would like to extend a heartfelt “Thank you” to Lenora Worth and her publisher for sending me a copy of "An April Bride" to review for them. I am truly grateful for this generosity. I really appreciate the time, effort and expense it takes to make a reviewer copy available to me. In the sweet romantic novella, “An April Bride” by Lenora Worth, it appears that Stella may not get her “Happily Ever After” when her fiancé, Marshall is involved in an explosion and returns home from military service with PTSD and lots of holes in his memory.  His memory is returning a little bit at a time, but will Marsh remember his love for Stella before they are scheduled to walk down the aisle? This story brought tears to my eyes more than once.  The frustration of not being able to count on plans made really put me in touch with what it means to die to self.  It’s difficult to do, but if we keep our eyes focused on Christ, He will always lead us down the right path.  The ...

I will confess that I didn’t read the whole book of Revelation this week.   I DID listen to it on The Word of Promise CDs, though.   And I did spend quite a bit of time studying 2:1-7, our text for today.   It is the letter Jesus dictated to John to be sent to the angel of the church of Ephesus. Dr. Missler has spent quite a bit of time recapping the previous week’s study during the last couple of videos.   The material unique to this week’s study is about the church of Ephesus.   Ephesus means “Desired One” or “Darling”.   Jesus knows their works.   He knows our works, too.   What will that portion of your report card say about you?   What do you want it to say?   What are you willing to do/allow the Lord to do to achieve that? Ephesus was founded in 1400 BC.   It became associated with Diana (Artemis) in the middle of the 6 th century BC when the city was captured by Lydia and Ephesus joined the Ionian Confederation. ...