Pergamos (Rev. 2:16) needs (1Cor. 6:18 & 10:14, 1 Tim. 6:3-11 and 2Tim. 2:22 keyword in all: flee) a warning Spirit.
Summary NOTES
#1) The theoretical clay tablet record of the history of the beginning of man mentioned in the first parts of this commentary were kept by the “First Born Sons” before the flood and then passed on through that lineage after the flood to Abraham’s son Midian who was (Gen. 25:1-2) Abraham’s son by his 2nd wife Keturah. Midian was the founder of the Midianites. (Gen. 1:1 to 12:1) The clay tablets are only a historical record of people and events through one third of the Book of Genesis but it covers thousands of years.
The clay tablets were passed through the Midianite side of Abraham’s lineage from priest to priest and eventually Reuel, the priest of Midian, was the keeper of the clay tablets. (Ex. 2:16) Reuel did not know he was the last keeper of the clay tablet history, that he would hand them over to a man named Moses who was his Son in Law, or that he would die long before Moses (Num. 31:1-18) destroyed the Midianite nation. SO:
(Ex. 2:10-15) Moses came to the land of Midian when he fled from Egypt. (Ex. 2:16-22 esp. V.18 keyword: Reuel) Reuel (friend of God), the priest of Midian, became Moses’ father in law when Moses married Reuel’s daughter Zipporah. Obviously Reuel and Moses were emotionally close because (Ex. 3:1) Reuel’s name was changed to Jethro (his excellence) (Ex. 18:1-27 esp. V.19 keyword: counsel) and he counseled Moses how to designate authority so he would not wear himself out micromanaging the Israelite’s migration from Egypt to the promised land.
#2) So, the clay tablets were at the house of Jethro waiting for Moses when he was driven away from Egypt to the place where God could use him. (Gen. 12:1 keyword: Abram) But then there is an abrupt change and the scripture focuses on the beginning of Israel. (Gen. 12:1 to 25:8) God involved himself with Abram/Abraham, the individual, through the covenant years until Abraham’s death and the Hebrews had started keeping their own records. THEN: The first 5 books of the Bible, called the Torah, were written by Moses.
Obviously, Hebrew was the language God taught Adam and Eve in the Garden of
Eden. Hebrew from Eden was the universal language used by all people until the language was confounded at Babel. It is also obvious Noah’s group kept the Eden language of Hebrew after the scattering at Babel (Part 13). There appears to be only 3 possibilities of the origin of the historical record. #1) God revealed the history of man to Moses on Mount Sinai (Part 7), #2) the history of man was passed down by word of mouth from generation to generation, #3) or A clay tablet record was kept
SO: #1) No mention is made in the scripture that God verbally gave Moses the history of man. #2) In those thousands of years could man be trusted to verbally, story style, pass the history of man from generation to generation without loss, distortion, or exaggeration? Yes, I am fully aware God could have “tweaked” man’s memory when needed but why would He? Many other nations kept historical records of themselves on various materials. #3) (2Tim. 3:16) Is it not logical that God could have inspired Adam and the succeeding generations to have kept the clay tablet record because they were witnesses to the events?
In the rest of Genesis and the first one third of Exodus approximately 550 to 600 years pass while Israel the nation is founded, then held in bondage by Egypt, God destroys Egypt and Israel starts going to the Promised Land. (Ex. 16:1 to Deut. 34:12) In the last three and two thirds books of the first 5 books of the Bible (Torah) only 40 years elapse while Israel wanders in the wilderness that surrounds Mount Sinai and Moses goes up Sinai to meet with God several times during those 40 years. SO: We do know one thing for sure. However God arranged it (2Tim. 3:16) “All scripture is given by inspiration of God” and God’s word is the only absolute, dependable, absolute truth in this evil world!
#3) On Mount Sinai God gave Moses the laws, method of worship, tabernacle construction, dietary rules, priesthood and etc. that established Judaism as Israel’s religion. The vast majority of Christians either do not read the Sinai part of the Torah or they stumble through its bewildering maze as fast as they can so they will not lie when they say they have read through the Bible X number of times. Sometimes teachers and preachers pick out some particular event or even a single word in the Torah and use it to focus on some other Biblical situation, event, or commandment and that is about the extent of its use in the Protestant Church. END OF NOTES.
History of Preparation
(Eccl. 1:9) “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”
Example of nations rising from tribes: In the past 300 years from today’s date, 5-9-15, look at how many nations have risen to world prominence and fallen as exampled by Spain, France and Great Britain, yet they are still there and are still players in the present scheme of world events. There are those who have risen, fallen, risen again and fallen again yet they are still there and rising again as exampled by Germany, China and Russia which are also players in the present scheme of world events. Many other nations fit the same pattern.
All the above nations came from earlier nations before them and those nations came from even earlier tribes such as the Gauls, Saxons, Franks, Slavs, Tartars, Mongols and etc. as they disappeared, merged, or allied and became nations.
The point is that they all came from Babel and do not forget Satan led every group that left Babel except Noah’s family through which Israel was founded. (John 8:44 then Matt. 23:1-39 esp. V.15) With Satan’s help the hierarchy of Israel had turned their religion (Law of Moses) into a god and spiritually worshipped that instead of the God who gave them their religion. The final destruction of Israel by Rome would begin in 70 CE with the destruction of the Jewish temple and would be completed in about 126 CE with the destruction or dispersal of what was left of the Jewish population.
There were also surviving pockets of Jews from earlier Diasporas in nations all over Southern Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa who clung tenaciously and stubbornly to their Jewish religion while they waited for Messiah. (Acts 1:6) They expected Messiah to come and make Israel a powerful, physical world kingdom.
The Jews as a nation did not accept the fact their purpose was to be the seedbed from which the grace covenant church would sprout because, (John 18:1 thru 19:42 esp. 19:15) even though the Jews as a nation rejected Jesus, (Rom. 1:16 & Acts 28:28) the gospel of Jesus Christ would be offered by Jesus to the Jews first and then to the Gentiles (non-Jews) and that pattern held true while churches were being planted in various nations at the beginning of the church age. Just like Ephesus and Smyrna, the church at Pergamos was planted in the Jewish community between 53-55 CE.
Ancient History of Pergamos
Pergamos is located about 70 miles north of Smyrna and about 35 miles inland from the sea. Recorded history shows the Anatolians were the first people to build a fort on the huge, rocky outcrop hill that dominated the whole plain of the Caicus River. In his conquest to rule the world Alexander the Great conquered that area of Asia, took the Anatolian fort, and enlarged it greatly by adding terraces where more buildings and temples were built and turned it into his own huge acropolis (fortress). The small Anatolian outpost of Pergamos was becoming a large, fortified, Greek city built to withstand an enemy.
During the Greek construction other people started coming to Pergamos to find work. As the town sprang up and continued growing. Greek citizens came to find work and the town grew even larger. Disbursed Jews also came there and built their synagogue. Pagan temples were built, various businesses were started to service other citizens in the town.
Agriculture, herding, fishing and trade became businesses to feed and clothe the ever-increasing flood of people. It was a story as old as time. People like the company, security and the variety of other people, they flock together and towns are the result. Sometimes towns like Pergamos grow larger and develop into cities.
The talented people of Pergamos were inventors and innovators. When Egypt grew jealous of the growing power and literacy of Pergamos they refused to sell Pergamos any more papyrus. A rather poor type of parchment made from animal skins was in use at that time but papyrus was the preferred product for recording data.
The inventors in Pergamos discovered a way to make much better parchment by improving the method of stretching and drying raw goat and sheep skins and they developed a better chemical mixture for tanning and preserving. Parchment became a thriving export. Wealth rolled in. Pergamos contained the world’s 2nd largest library. Because of the myriad temples to every known god the people in Pergamos became known as the “Temple Keepers of Asia”.
Then the Romans came to power. They liked the strategic location of the Greek acropolis so they took over where the Greeks had left off. In reality nothing changed very much under the Romans except they made Pergamos their capital of their province of Asia. There will always be a government of some kind, there will always be taxes and laws and the government will provide security so it can live off its citizens.
The citizens went on about their business of raising their families, their work, worshipping their gods and goddesses and entertaining themselves. Just like people everywhere most of the people in Pergamos were relatively honest according to their moral values and they just wanted to be left alone to live their life.
Satan’s Enemies Spiritually Assault Fortress Pergamos
Then the Apostles came. There were at least 49 idolatrous, mythological gods and goddesses from different cultures (Rev. 2:13 keywords: Satan’s seat) in ancient Pergamos. It was the same old story as elsewhere but because Pergamos housed the “Temple Keepers of Asia” the Apostles found there was at a greater magnitude of false god and goddess worship, rampant sexual immorality, lying, stealing, crooked government officials, false advertising and the worship of the icons of athletics, teams, theater stars and musicians.
The Apostles prayed to God until there was spiritual blood on the words, begged for Holy Spirit guidance, inspiration and protection, (Acts 9:4-31) handed their lives into Jesus’ care, rolled up their sleeves, clutched their parchments and headed to the Jewish synagogue.
Pergamos had swollen to nearly 100,000 people and it was still a fortified, stronghold city built to withstand an enemy. The Apostles were preparing their assault. Nobody realized the 3 Jews were “the Enemy” because they intended to attack the very essence of what made Pergamos “the religious center” of Asia. But one resident who was not a flesh and blood citizen of Pergamos did notice. He had seen it happen before and he intended to stop this Jesus movement in its tracks.
Satan looked at the apostles with hatred. He knew what they had done in Ephesus and Smyrna. As a matter of fact, he had left Ephesus with them and was frustrated to no end because he had not been able to influence any of the robber bands of brigands to murder them on the road from Ephesus to Pergamos. He looked around suspiciously; “Is there something “unseen” afoot here that I don’t understand?” The God of Eden, the God of all glory, (Remember? Job 1:6-7 & 2:1-2) invisible in His Spirit presence silently thought; “Yes evil one, there is Some-One here (Matt. 28:18) who has all power in heaven and earth.”
(Dan. 10:12-21 esp. V.13 keywords: prince of the kingdom of Persia & Michael, one of the chief princes then refer to Eph. 6:12 keyword: principalities) The unseen angel assigned to help the apostles knew his trip with the apostles from Ephesus to here had been only a skirmish with Satan. He stared grimly at Satan, girded up his loins and prepared for war. Satan gritted his spiritual teeth, dug in his spiritual heels and also prepared for war. “Divide, divide, divide!”
The Three Main Gods, Satan’s seat, in Pergamos
A) It is one thing to hear about a place but it is quite another to see it and walk in it. Paul already knew Ephesus was the great political center of Asia and he knew Smyrna was the great commercial center of Asia. Now he realized why people called Pergamos the great religious center of Asia. These 3 cities were considered royal cities of Rome because each of them had a huge temple where the seated statue of the mythological goddess Roma accepted the homage of those who worshipped Rome and its emperors.
Roma: It is documented that the mythological Amazons, warrior women, originated from the Sumerians, a tribe in Mesopotamia where Babylon was located. The mythological record states that Semiramis, the wife of Nimrod who held the seat of the Queen of Babylon, was the Amazon who created the famous breeches worn by the Amazon warrior women (Part 23).
The myth of the Amazons with their myriad tattoos commemorating their astrological signs, warrior initiations and heroic victories persisted through numerous civilizations and was eventually adopted by the Greeks into their mythology. Satan loved to foster the idea of Amazons because they promoted unnatural problems between the sexes.
Any great mythological Greek hero such as Hercules or Achilles had to defeat an Amazon to prove himself worthy of man’s worship. The mythological Amazons were reputed to be celibate except to breed with selected male prisoners of war to produce more girls, boy babies were killed or sold. But sometimes an Amazon slipped up and fell in love with a human male, always with tragic results for the Amazon.
Feminism verses masculine dominance had been born in the murky mists of mythology. The Romans adopted the Greek idea of the mythological Amazons and produced their goddess Roma as their protective Amazon. Satan’s seat with its Amazon goddess came from Babylon, to Greece, to Rome, to Pergamos, to now! Think!
B) Standing out in all its man-made glory, was the huge, round, white marble temple of the serpent god Asklepios. There was only one other temple of the serpent god Asklepios in the whole world that equaled this one in magnificence and it was located in Athens, Greece. The Pergamos temple of Asklepios was mainly a healing center but it also contained a health spa known for its mud baths with mineral treatment. Over the gilded, columned entry way was a sign engraved in the white marble; “Death Is Not Allowed Here“.
Paul had heard of it but was still shocked. He thought; (Gen. 3:1-19) “They worship the serpent who is (Rom. 5:17 then 2Cor 4:4) the god of death and they say death is not allowed here?” But Paul knew obviously dying patients were always turned away at the entrance with counterfeit grief and a blatant lie; “I am so very sorry, we are filled to capacity right now.” Paul snorted; “Man always makes up lies to cover what he cannot handle.” then he noticed the frescoes on the temple depicting 2 serpents entwined around a silver shaft extending out of a hollow circle with 2 silver wings on the circle and grimaced at the occult symbol.
Paul did not know the medical insignia would someday be called a caduceus and archaeologists would find the insignia on cylindrical, stone seals when they excavated Nimrod’s Babylon (Part 23). Nor did he know the very same symbol would come to represent the medical profession in the far, far future.
The temple was known throughout the empire as a surgical center. Paul knew the Asklepios healing center had a wing dedicated to curing insanity but he also knew they only deadened an already troubled brain with a deluge of an elixir composed of brain chemistry altering hallucinogens (alchemy). Remember? Remember the gods Somniferum (opium) and Qunubu (cannabis) Cain and Tubal-cain worshipped? Modern people still worship the gods that have been worshipped since the beginning (Genesis) of man!
Paul knew on admission the patients were sedated and placed in absolutely dark rooms with no furniture in them then numerous non-poisonous snakes were loosed to crawl over them. The doctors told the patients their tortured dreams were their diagnosis. Then they were treated with surgery, various remedies and alchemy.
Seated women’s seductive voices spoke incessantly and repetitiously down tubes in the ceiling to the patients in their rooms, wards and dormitories; “You are feeling better, you are getting well, you are going to be healed.” Satan’s seat with its serpent emblem came from Babylon, to Greece, to Pergamos, to now!
Paul did not know patients sometimes did die suddenly but the temple priests held the convenient belief a flexible body still held the flicker of life. A close watch on patients was held and rigor mortis was not allowed to set up in a dead patient. The patient’s body was hustled out a back entrance and secretly buried. “I am sorry sir, your near kin left here very much alive. Perhaps you should search for him at some of his favorite haunts or maybe he just wanted a fresh start someplace else.” “Death Is Not Allowed Here you know.” Satan loved the temple dedicated directly to him.
C) Paul was stunned speechless when he saw the altar of Zeus, the most impressive pagan edifice in Pergamos. A great marble chair (Satan’s seat) stood on the altar and behind it was a hollow bronze bull where burnt human sacrifice was made to Satan. The living victim would be stuffed headfirst through a door in the back of the bull so his head would protrude up inside the bull’s head (Parts 12 & 13). A fire would be kindled in the fire pit under the bronze bull and as the victim was slowly cooked to death his or her moans and screams made the bronze bull sound alive.
Nearly 30 years after Emperor Nero beheaded Paul, Christians at Pergamos were being offered up as burnt offerings in the bronze bull to Zeus (Satan) at Satan’s seat. (Rev. 2:13 keyword: Antipas) Ancient accounts record that the most famous was Antipas, one of the Apostle John’s disciples. Antipas had cast out so many demons in Pergamos the pagans complained to the Roman governor who arrested and questioned Antipas.
Antipas refused to renounce Jesus the authentic Saviour, drop a pinch of salt (salt covenant) and swear loyalty to Roma the goddess of Rome so Rome burnt him alive in the brazen bull as a sacrifice to Zeus (Satan). Satan loved this seat. Was this an awful prophesy of a future altar of Zeus? Yes!
Zeus was worshipped as the father of the gods and the saviour of man. The altar of Zeus still stands, you can look at it, touch it and it is beautiful beyond description. Some ancient writers say it was one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. In 1864 a German engineer visited the ruins of Pergamos. He was horrified to see Alexander’s ancient white marble being carted off piecemeal to use in new building projects. He received permission from the Turkish government to excavate the ruins of Pergamos with their commitment he could take the altar of Zeus back to Germany.
He took the altar of Zeus back to Berlin, Germany, secured funding, built the Pergamum (Pergamos) Museum, installed the Zeus altar in it along with many more works of Greek art and sculpture and the museum opened in 1930. History tells us early in his rise to power Hitler entered the Pergamum Museum and he loved Satan’s seat, the altar of Zeus. Adolph Hitler was on his meteoritic rise to power and he was fascinated by ancient Roman, Norse and Germanic mythology.
Sources record that Hitler, who intended to rule the world, walked in his garden at night and consulted the dark forces. He was an adherent of astrology and he was dabbling with mind altering drugs given him by Dr. Theodor Morell<- SEE: www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/03/07/51896612/author-says-hitler.
Did Hitler really intend to rule the world? Yes! See the TV programs on the Military History (MHC) and American History (AHC) channels concerning the NAZI political and war plans and intentions. One of them outlines Hitler’s plan describing how he will rule America after he has conquered the world.
Adolph Hitler became chancellor of Germany in 1933, appointed Albert Speer as his architect and ordered him to build at Nuremberg, Germany a parade ground and a speaking platform designed after the altar of Zeus for NAZI (National Socialist) party rallies. In 1934 Hitler commissioned a movie titled “Triumph of the Will” to be produced depicting his life. It was shown continuously for 10 years. It told the German people exactly what he wanted them to know about him. He was depicted as a godlike person descending from the heavens in a beam of light and that he was the saviour of the Aryan super race that was the German people.
Albert Speer constructed the Hitler altar (speaking platform at Nuremberg) with 150 powerful searchlights around the altar angled to produce a beam of light, just like the movie depicted, that appeared to come from the heavens and shined down on Hitler as he spoke. And there, in his nighttime, torchlight parades by uniformed, regimented NAZI soldiers Hitler said; “I am you and you are me!” and demanded all present to perform a sworn oath of absolute loyalty to only him as the saviour of the German people. And they did; “Heil Hitler! Heil Hitler!” then they took the oath.
The Jews had been marginalized by Hitler and his NAZI party until they were non-citizens without any civil rights. I have seen the following speech on TV. On the evening of September 15, 1935 from his speaker’s podium designed after the altar of Zeus, Satan’s seat, Hitler announced the Nuremberg Laws; “Bitter complaints have come in from countless places citing the provocative behavior of Jews. This law is an attempt to find a legislative solution. If this attempt fails, it will be necessary to transfer the Jewish problem to the National Socialist (NAZI) party for a final solution!”
(Eccl. 1:9) “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”
Tower of Babel (Nimrod)! Babylonians (Nebuchadnezzar)! Persians (Darius)! Greeks (Alexander)! Romans (Caesars)! France (Napoleon)! United Kingdom (Royalty)! Germany (Hitler) And on to Russia (Putin) and China (Xi Jinping) today! NEAR THE END (Rev. 13:1-18 keyword: beast & 1John 2:18) antichrist will be the last known human world ruler! (Rev. 20:1-15) then the devil, Satan, will try his hand BUT (1Thess. 4:13-18 esp. V.18 keyword: comforted, Rev. 7:9-17, 19:6-9, 21:1-27) JESUS WILL WIN IN THE END AND THOSE WHO HAVE ACCEPTED GOD’S SALVATION THROUGH JESUS WILL BE COMFORTED!
Is there no new thing you who wish to rule the world; Nimrod, Nebuchadnezzar, Darius, Alexander, Caesar, and on down through the ages (Rev. 13:1-18) to the beast, (1John 2:18 & 4:3 keyword in both: antichrist) the antichrist, who, through the power of Satan, initiates (Rev. 17:1-5) the return to Babylon (Gen. 11:1-9 esp. V.4 keywords: let us make us a name) where it started?
“Let us make us a name”? According to God’s Word (Rev. 20:7-15 esp. V.7 keyword: Satan & V.10 keywords: And the devil that deceived them—–was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone) you will Satan, you devil, you will because you have made a name for yourself!
Archaeologists unearthed what they call a gammadion cross (a bent cross) in Mesopotamia (Babylon) that dates as far back as the Neolithic age to Nimrod and Babylon. That ancient occult emblem, handed down through various civilizations as an occult symbol, was named the swastika by The NAZI party and they adopted it as the NAZI party emblem on their flag.
The Aryan, super race of Christian Germanic people with their bent cross cheered long and loud; “Heil Hitler! Heil Hitler” and took the oath of absolute loyalty to Adolph Hitler, their saviour, sent to them on a beam of light from heaven! During Hitler’s rise to power and reign of terror the German population was about 64% Protestant and 32% Catholic. Their cross was truly bent and their saviour was a grotesque, satanic imitation of Jesus.
(John 16:2-3) That final solution statement by Adolph Hitler from his recreated altar of Zeus, Satan’s seat, at Nuremberg, Germany rendered God’s people (Jews) as non-persons and 6 million of them were herded into cyanide gas chambers and then offered up as burnt offerings to Satan in Germany’s crematoriums, Hitler’s version of the bronze bull, where, in antiquity, God’s people (Christians) had been offered up as burnt offerings to Satan by the Romans at Satan’s seat almost 2,000 years earlier. All this came from a German Christian population that was 64% Protestant and 32% Catholic at that time! Do not think it cannot happen to Christians and/or Jews in America!
Satan shouted his horrid glee while he whirled, danced and frolicked through the terror, prayers, horror, tears, cries of pain, sweat, blood, agony, burnt flesh and ashes. Satan’s seat with its bent cross emblem came from Babylon, to Pergamos, to Berlin, to now in the Neo-Nazi, skinhead, white supremacist movement in the modern, developed nations.
AGAIN: “Let us make us a name”? According to God’s Word (Rev. 20:7-15 esp. V.7 keyword: Satan & V.10 keywords: And the devil that deceived them—–was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone) you will Satan, you devil, you will because you have made a name for yourself!
AND: (Rev. 20:10-15) It astonishes me beyond measure why anyone, anywhere, some false religion or no religion at all would refuse the salvation Jesus offers and go to a lake of fire to be with Satan (V.10) to be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Think about it! If anyone wants salvation HERE IS HOW TO ACHIEVE IT.
(Rom. 10:8-10) “But what sayeth it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith (conviction of the truthfulness of God), which we preach: That if thou shalt confess (to admit or declare oneself guilty of sin) with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and believe (to trust Jesus for salvation and entrust Jesus with the rest of your life) in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved (to preserve one who is in danger of destruction, to deliver from the penalties of judgment). For with the heart man believeth (same definition) unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
For complete details please see the one article commentary Breath of Life on this website. Then see the article Backsliding: The Failure Principal located in the menu of the commentary Sin in Church to see how God arranged for us to be able to keep our salvation.
THE CHURCH AT PERGAMOS
Two God’s War for the Soul of Man
In spite of Satan’s best efforts Paul and the Apostles planted the church at Pergamos and John, isolated on the island of Patmos, saw his vision of the church at Pergamos almost 40 years after that.
(Rev. 2:12-17) “And unto the angel (messenger – pastor) of the church in Pergamos write; these things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;” By mentioning the sharp sword with two edges Jesus voiced a warning and a veiled threat to the Pergamos church concerning (V.14-15) some groups within their membership and their activities. It will be shown later how the seven churches had copies of the NT letters. They had read:
(Heb. 4:12) “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder (rend apart) of the soul (mind, self, me) and spirit (vital principal, life), and of the joints (joining together) and marrow (soft, fatty substance in the cavities of bones that produce blood cells), and is a discerner (judge) of the thoughts (long, careful thinking) and intents (intentions) of the heart (feelings, mind, self, soul).”
The warning: (John 6:63) Jesus words are spirit and they are life (John 12:48) and those words will judge us (John 1:1-5 & 1John 1:1-4) because Jesus is the living Word of God. The Bible is alive.
They had read; (Luke 15:10) God expresses joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. So they knew; God is love and love wants to give. Why would it not be personal to Him? Jesus suffered and died for only you. At the time of your salvation it was only God and only you! There was nobody else who could help you in your time of the most dire need you had ever experienced. Only God! There was nobody else, no matter how close they were to you, who could share that wondrous, magnificent, full of humility moment when the exact moment of your salvation happened. Its personal. Only you.
They had read; (Mark 8:36) “For what shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world and lose his soul.” So they knew and had seen that no deceased could take his accomplishments and worldly possessions with them when they died.
Maybe they did not know but you and I do know; Mighty Tutankhamen, (king Tut) the boy pharaoh of Egypt who lived about 1300 years BC, left behind his kingdom, his royal crown, his gold and all his funerary trinkets for other men’s greedy hands to fondle. He left behind his withered, dried, husk like, mummified, royal body for other men to examine, x-ray and probe to ponder and try to discover what killed one so young. When he left to go face the living God he took nothing with him except his eternal life and himself (soul) to face the record of everything he had thought and done in his lifetime. You will be no different. Nor will I.
(Mark 8:36) Since God and you (soul) are eternal and the rest is only temporary you are worth more than all the physical world. (Eph. 2:7-9) When God gave you salvation (1Cor. 2:9) He gave you a key to His unimaginable riches (Rev. 21:1 thru 22:5) and you can live with Him forever. BUT:
(Rev. 21:7 keyword: overcometh- defined as: conquer, prevail, get the victory) we Christians must prove ourselves worthy to be with Him. We must overcome what the world and its people offer us and do to us, we must overcome our own nature AND we must overcome Satan. (Rev. 2:7, 11,17, 25, 3:5, 12, 21 and 21:7) “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.“ If we (concerning every Christian in every church) do not overcome, we do not inherit heaven!
The modern church, we, are in the same situation as the church at Pergamos. (2Cor. 4:4) Satan, the god of this world, has non-Christians blinded. BUT (Rev. 20:15) when a person accepts God’s salvation their name is placed in God’s book of life BUT (Eph. 6:10-18) Satan places that name on his hit list and their only recourse is to (2Tim. 2:15) “Study (make effort with diligence) to show thyself approved (acceptable) unto God, a workman (toiler, effort, occupation, deeds) that needeth not be ashamed (disgrace upon), rightly dividing (to dissect correctly the divine message) the word (the thought, reasoning, motive, the Divine Expression i.e. Christ of God) of truth.”
Yes, I am fully aware there is the Holy Spirit, prayer, worship and etc. but it all starts with the word of God’s truth, the Holy Bible.
(Matt. 11:29-30 esp. V.29 keywords: learn of me and John 14:15 keywords: If ye love me keep my commandments) How can any Christian have a relationship with God/Jesus if you refuse to learn about Him so you can know Him? The only way to develop a relationship with God is through his word because it tells you the who, what, when, where, why and how about God/Jesus. (2Tim. 2:15) Never forget that you are studying for your eternal life. If Satan can pervert God’s word in your mind he has perverted you.
Do you trust your preacher? How far? Do you believe everything he says without checking to see if he is holding to God’s truth? Do you accept your Protestant or Catholic denomination’s belief and teaching without checking in God’s Word to see if it is true? Are you starting to feel a little foolish? I hope so because you may very well be placing your eternal life in the frail, fallible hands of man. Remember Satan’s method? “Divide, divide, divide!”
Satan, the devil, is the great enemy of the church. (Rev. 12:9 & 10) He is identified as a dragon, serpent, Devil, Satan, and the accuser of the brethren on the job day and night. (Matt. 4:3) Satan is a tempter. (1 Peter 5:8) The Devil is every Christian’s adversary (enemy) and is like a roaring lion, which is an active predator, seeking whom he may devour (drink down or gulp entire). If the devil devours you; you have become part of his strength just like the meat of a lion’s prey becomes part of his strength.
(John 8:44) The devil is a murderer, a liar and the father of lying and he will tell you any lie you will believe so he can murder you spiritually. Remember what Satan said when he dug in his heels to fight Paul and the Apostle’s assault on fortress Pergamos? “Divide, divide, divide.”
(Rev. 2:13) “I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.” Jesus commends the faithful Christians who had “not denied my faith” even in the great persecution of the Pergamos church when Antipas was offered as a burnt offering to Satan in the brazen bull on the altar to Zeus “where Satan dwelleth”. They had the faith to not deny Jesus’ name even to the point of being martyred. (Acts 7:55-56) Stephen is the example. Jesus carried them through and He will also carry us through.
Why would Jesus say my faith? (Eph. 2:8-9) “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” The faith to get saved is a gift from God, thus it is Jesus’ faith that He gives to us. (John 8:32) You could not have obtained real salvation if you had never heard God’s word; the how, who, what, why, where, and when about God would not have existed for you!
(1John 1:1-4, John 1:1-3 keyword in both: Word: defined: the thought, reasoning, motive, the Divine Expression i.e. Christ of God and John 14:6 keyword: truth) Jesus is God’s word personified! You heard God’s word (John 6:44 & 12:32) and God’s Holy Spirit had to draw you toward God by the revelation of the truth in God’s word (John 16:13) because he is the Spirit of Truth.
(Rev. 2:14) “But I have a few things against thee (the church), because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine (teaching) of Balaam who taught Balac to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel (God’s people), to eat things sacrificed (part of an idolatrous meat offering) unto idols, and to commit fornication.”
(Num. 22:1 thru 24:25) The story of Balaam and the talking ass is well known. (Deut. 23:4) Balaam was a heathen priest from Pethor in Mesopotamia (Num. 22:5 keywords: which is by the river of the land of the children of his people) which obviously was a town by the river Euphrates. Though not said, the Babylonian priesthood of Nimrod, Satan’s flunkeys, was alive and well.
Greedy Balaam was hired (Num. 22:7 keywords: rewards of divination, defined as: soothsayer, witchcraft) to put a curse on Israel by Balak a Moabite king, who was a believer in the occult. God refused to let that happen and even forced Balaam to pronounce blessings on Israel and give a prophesy concerning Israel’s future (Num. 24:25) then Balaam took his monetary reward and ran for his life.
You heed this warning! (Num. 31:16 keywords: counsel of Balaam) The reason Balaam ran for his life was that he had counseled Balak how to teach and persuade some of the Israelites into sinning with the Moabites. BUT: (Prov. 15:3) “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.” (Num. 32:23) “be sure your sins will find you out.” (Luke 12:2) “For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.”
(Deut. 32:35 & Rom. 12:19) “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Greed always takes you further than you intended to go, costs more than you intended to pay and keeps you longer than you wanted to stay! Balaam ran but he could not hide. You cannot hide either!
The Vengeance of God: (Num. 25:1-5 esp. V.4-5) Some of the Israelites did worship the Moabite god Baal-peor and they fornicated with Moabite women. God’s vengeance killed the Israelites who had committed such idolatry. (Num. 22:1-4) Balak, the king of Moab, was afraid of Israel and he had sought advice from the Midianite elders and they obviously advised him to get in touch with Balaam.
(Num. 31:1-18 esp. V.8) So, God’s vengeance killed the Midianites, killed their kings and killed greedy Balaam with the sword. (2Sam. 8:2) It took a while but God’s vengeance killed 2/3 of the Moabites and brought the rest into bondage to Israel. (Rev. 20:10-15) God’s vengeance will come when He decides the time is right and it always comes.
You Christians think about this parallel for a minute. (Gen. 17:18-19) “And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.” Israel was a real people that began, “was born”, from Abraham. You were born. (Ex. 1:5 & 12) Israel grew. You grew. (Ex. 1:8-11) Israel went into bondage in Egypt. (2Cor. 4:3-4) You went into the bondage of sin. (Ex. 3:1-10) God sent a deliverer, Moses, to bring Israel out of bondage. (Luke 19:10 & John 8:36) You were sent a deliverer, Jesus, to bring you out of sin.
(Ex. 4:29-31) Israel heard about their coming deliverance from bondage. You heard about the possibility of your deliverance from your bondage of being lost in sin whenever you heard about and really thought about Jesus. (Ex. 16:10) Israel started through the wilderness of Sin toward the promised land. (John 6:44 & 12:32 keyword: draw) You were drawn toward God and His promised land of salvation.
(Ex. 17:8-13) Israel had some fights on their journey to the Promised Land but they won when their deliverer’s hands were held up. (2Cor. 4:4 & 2Thess. 2:11) You had some fights on your way to your promised land and your deliverer’s hands were held up on a bloody cross by bloody nails.
(Josh. 4:1-17) Israel crossed the Jordan River while God held the waters in check. You crossed your personal Jordan when you knelt to ask for salvation and God held Satan in check. Think about it, you had no sense of anything bad or evil, Satan was not allowed to be around to spoil it for you was he? It was only God and you was it not? Sure it was! (Josh. 5:1-10) (V.2-3) Israel was circumcised. (Rom. 2:29) You were given a spiritual circumcision of the heart (soul). (V.4) The men of Israel who had sinned had died and, for effect, Israel was new. (John 3:3 & 2Cor. 5:17) You were spiritually born again and through Jesus you were a new creature (creation) in Christ.
(V.9) The reproach of Israel’s bondage in Egypt had been rolled away. (Heb. 9:11-14) Your bondage of your awful past sins had been cleansed away from you by the precious blood of Jesus the Son of the living God. (V.10) The Israelites celebrated the Passover that commemorated the breaking of their bondage in Egypt while they were protected by the lamb’s blood. (1Pet. 3:21) You celebrated your personal blood of the Lamb of God Passover from your past life that gave you salvation, you had a good conscience toward God and you celebrated it by your baptism.
(V.1) The people living in the promised land were distraught because they had seen what God had done for Israel and their spirit had changed. You had become a Christian and your old friends in sin were distraught because you had changed sides and they knew your spiritual relationship of sin with them had changed.
(Josh. 6:1 to Jesus prophesy in Matt. 24:2) As soon as Israel had accomplished the above they had to go to war to overcome their enemies to win their promised land. God helped them but due to their disobedience God abandoned them and they perished as a nation.
(Matt. 1:1 to 21:7) As soon as you accepted God’s salvation your name went on Satan’s hit list (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 26, 3:5, 12, 21 & 21:7 keyword: overcometh) and (James 4:7) if you don’t overcome Satan, (Rom. 8:13 & James 1:13-15), overcome your own propensity to sin (Luke 6:19-24, Rom. 12:2 & 2Cor. 6:11-17) and overcome what the world and its people offer you and do to you, you will also perish in the fire.
BECAUSE: (Jer. 3:5-18 esp. V.14 keyword: married) God spiritually married the nation of Israel through Abraham’s covenant because God’s Son, Jesus, would be born of Israel and God’s holiness would not let anyone consider Jesus illegitimate (Part 21 subtitle: 3 Purposes of the Covenant: in #2) and God will redeem His wife, the nation of Israel.
(Matt. 9:15) Jesus is the Bridegroom. (John 3:27-29) The church is the bride. (Rev. 21: 2-9) The bride is called Jesus’ wife after the marriage takes place in heaven. SO: Jesus is in the process of selecting His bride one person at a time.
(1Cor. 3:1-3) These people are called brethren and yet they are carnal thus there really are carnal Christians. (Col. 3:1-10, Rev. 21:7-8, 1Cor. 6:6-10 & Gal. 5:15-21 keyword: shall not inherit the kingdom of heaven) All these scriptures are written to the church and they list the sins that Christians can and do commit.
Jesus said; (Mark 12:30) “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.” Jesus said; (Matt. 15:8) “This people draweth nigh me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” Would you marry someone who did not love you enough to be true to you? Jesus will not either!
(Rev. 2:14) “But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.” As shown above, Balaam, the heathen priest, (2Cor. 4:4 keyword: blinded) was working under Satan’s influence. (Num. 25:1-5) As a result of Balaam’s teaching Israel split into 2 factions. Some remained faithful to God’s word and some committed the sin Balaam had taught. “Divide, divide, divide!”
(Rev. 2:15) “So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.” (2Cor. 11:13-15 keywords: angel of light and ministers of righteousness) Satan can deceive Christian leaders (2Tim. 2:15) if they do not study God’s word intensely and pray for God’s revelation (2Tim. 2:4 keyword: entangleth) above all things (Acts 6:2) just like the apostle’s example. “Divide, divide, divide!”
(2Cor. 6:14) “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” (Eph. 5:11) “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. The church at Pergamos was at war with itself (1Cor. 3:1-3 V.1 keywords: babes in Christ and V.3 keyword: carnal- defined: human nature with its passions and frailties) because carnal minded, self-appointed leaders were leading carnal minded babes (simple minded, immature) Christians astray. Satan had divided the Pergamos church.
SECTION 2 explores the doctrine of the Balaam sect in the Pergamos church and its existence in the modern church in detail. SECTION 3 explores the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes sect and its rampant existence in the modern church, the Love process, the Sin Process, the Bridegroom, the identity of the Holy Spirit, God’s Temple on Earth, the Hidden Manna and the identity of the much speculated about name in the White Stone.