The Seven Churches (Pt. 2)

This week’s churches LOOK like they’re in real trouble (“tribulation, poverty…little strength”) but the Head of the Church gives them the highest marks!

The words to Smyrna and Philadelphia have a lot in common; they’re a deliberate match. And one thing they share is IMPENDING pain. They’re both about to undergo great hardship and the two messages supply warning and hope. This, we could say, is the big purpose of Revelation: hope for churches in distress.

These two groups are notified – “suffering is coming and here’s what you’ll need to get through it with poise/fortitude…and even growth.”

What to do when you learn that pain is coming your way? Whether it’s suffering for your faith or suffering in ways common to everyone – when you’re told to “brace yourself” for a period of difficulty – how do you do that? What resources are available in the Gospel (basic message of Christianity) to bring us through suffering with composure and even growth?

Let’s look at:
1) Anticipated Hardship
2) Sources of Composure
3) Bringing Composure into the Pain