“Seven” Week 5
Joy’s Notes:
PERGAMUM:
• 3rd LOVE-letter (out of SEVEN)
• 95 Miles from Ephesus
• The most FAMOUS city of all of Asia!!(present day Turkey)
• it’s believed that Paul dispatched teams from Ephesus to PLANT church’s in Pergamum
• this city was built on a 1000 ft hill above the countryside- creating a natural fortress.
• this city was the CENTER of Greek culture & education
• this city was full of cults & idol worshipping
• one of the darkest cities in the entire Roman empire!
There were LARGE AMOUNTS of “gods” & temples for whatever you needed, desired or wanted in the city of Pergamum!
• the main god (Asclepius- a serpent) was considered the “god of healing.”
👇
They’d put people in a trance
& then put the sick people in black room at night to sleep and release snakes to crawl over body to “heal” their body
👇
(the medical symbol today in America is a rod with snakes around it!— it comes from this ‘god’ in Pergamum)
————
GOOD
1. Loyal to Jesus (Refused to deny Jesus)
COMPLAINT:
1. Toleration of false teaching that lead to idolatry & sexual sin.
——————
Rev 2:12
“Write this letter to the angel of the church in Pergamum. This is the message from the ONE with the sharp two-edged sword:
• The Romans would walk up & down the streets with SWORDS up in the air— showing their authority.
• Heb 4:12 “For the WORD of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates & divides the soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
B45 bibles= “My Sword”
• CROCKODILE DUNDEE (That’s not a sword— THIS is a sword!)
_________
Rev 2:13
“I know that you live in the city where satan has his throne….”
🔥Satan disguises himself as angel of light (2 Cor 11:14)
🔥He doesn’t reveal himself as dark with horns!
🔥 He presents something as pleasing & beautiful & enlightning & life-changing — when it’s actually a trap to STEAL, KILL, DESTROY
🔥Satan has a COUNTERFEIT version of everything God does & gives!
• Eph 2:2 = “satan is the prince-of-power of the air’’
• John 12:31 - “satan is the ruler of this world.” - Jesus
But God has NO rivals
He’s the only CREATOR- satan is the CREATED!
satan has demonic influence on the worlds:
👇
Culture
ideals,
goals,
opinions,
views,
philosophies,
educational system,
thoughts,
ideas,
Beliefs,
false religions…
His motto:
“Come as you are-STAY as you are.”
• The mission statement of the culture is: “do as thy will!”
• culture today says Jesus “accepted” everyone. (Come to His table!)
• Yes He accepts everyone— but He never left people as they came!!
• He fed them.
• He healed them.
• He provided them true identity
• He called them to repentance
• He showed KINDNESS by revealing the very blind spots that would put them in hell!
Mark 10:21
The rich young ruler
👇
(“Teacher” vs. ‘Lord’)
👇
When Jesus called this young man to give up his money, the man started to grieve, because money was for him what the Father was for Jesus.
👇
It was the center of his identity, affection & security
👇
The problem with the rich young wasn’t his wealth.
👇
It’s where he placed his wealth (throne of heart)
👇
What Jesus was doing was revealing to him His out-of-order heart
• He doesn’t rebuke the rich young ruler for being rich.
• But for placing his AFFECTION, IDENTITY, SECURITY & LOYALTY in his wealth.
Culture def (demonic) of love VS. Jesus def of love=‘
👇
“Love people how they are. ….” (By not telling them theres a lethal snake on their path!)
Is that LOVE?
Is that KIND?
Is that compassionate?
God is love. He gets to define love
He loved His sheep enough to share truth— that IS love!!
(Stephanie Tucker loved ME more then herself)
• “God doesn’t hate sin because it BREAKS A RULE; God hates sin because it BREAKS YOU!”
Are you INFLUENCING the world - more than the world is INFLUENCING you?
👇
• We can become so affected (BY the world) that we become ineffective (TO the world)
Do you listen to the news ANCHOR…
More than the true ANCHOR?
Jer 6:15-16
“(False teachers) They offer superficial treatments for my people's mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace. This is what the LORD says:
“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
Matt 15:8 “These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.” ~Jesus & Isaiah
————
Rev 2:13 cont….
“yet YOU have held fast to my NAME!” (NIV)
Do you HOLD FAST to His name????
👇
Psalm 71:20-21
“Though you’ve made me see many bitter troubles … you WILL restore me, bring me up again, increase my honor & comfort me”
When troubles/persecution’s/ trials/ losses/ rejections… come— are you …..
• FAST to call His name??
• FAST to seek His face?
• FAST to remember His character (he’ll do it again!)
• FAST to run into your secret place ?
• FAST to remember His promises?
• FAST to lay prostrate before His throne?
• FAST to feed on His Word?
• FAST to receive His undeserved grace?
• FAST to remember satan is a defeated foe?
• FAST to acknowledge God is guarding, grinding & providing
John 14: 12 Jesus says, “whoever believes in me, will do the work I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.”
• Jesus gives us the SAME POWER that raised Jesus from the grave
👇
• There’s POWER in the name of Jesus
Acts 19:11-16
“God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
13 Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” 14 Jewish chief priests were doing this. 15 One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” 16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.”
👇
His name doesn’t have “super powers” — the “super power” comes from KNOWING the ONE with the Name above all names!!
Phil 2:9-12
“God exalted him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the NAME of Jesus
every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
______
Rev 2:13 cont…
You refused to deny me even when Antipas, my faithful witness, was martyred among you there in Satan’s city.
• Pergamum was called the city “where Satan has his throne “
• The PERGAMUM CHURCH- was surrounded by fasle-god worshipers
• The false-god worshipers Martyred one of their Christian brother/sister🥲
• even Jesus’ “faithful witness” was murdered.
👇
Acts 5:41
(After being flogged) “The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.”
• Hebrews 11 — “the hall of faith”
👇
Heb 11:1 “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
👇
Each PERSON of faith IN Heb 11
👇
conquered kingdoms,
performed acts of righteousness,
obtained promises,
shut the mouths of lions,
quenched the power of fire,
escaped the edge of the sword…
But some were=
tortured,
mocked,
scourged,
chained,
and imprisoned.
• Heb 11:35- But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection.11-36.html)Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons.
Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated.
They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground.
All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received ALL that God had promised.
For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.
And the BETTER IN MIND: Jesus!!!
🔥Each one believed “God rewarded those that diligently seek Him!”
👇
But Despite their great faith— this cloud of worthy witnesses "did NOT receive the things God had promised them."
• Oswald Chambers died at a very young age, yet left a significant impact and influence in the world.
👇
In spite of him never seeing the promises come into fruition!!!
Isaiah 57:1
“Good people pass away; the godly often die before their time. But no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil to come.”
👇
• Revelation is the reminder: THIS IS NOT OUR HOME!
Heb 13:14-15
“For this world is not our home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.
15 Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his NAME!”
———-
Rev 2:14
“But I have a few complaints against you: You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed King Balak (bay-lock) (king of Moab) how to trip up the people of Israel...”
(Numbers 22-24)
👇
⁃ Balaam was a non-jewish sorcerer & prophet.
⁃ His reputation of being a great prophet was as great as MOSES!
⁃ King Balak(bay-lock) (of Moab) hired Balaam to curse the Israelites.
But he blesses them 4x🙌
• where cursing failed, Balaam knew what would take-down the Israelites: 🔥idolatry & SEXUAL SIN🔥
Moabite women were were sent in to entice the Israelite men (who had Israelite wives)
👇
Kathy Lee Gifford story (Just heard it— tabloid thought of a way to destroy her & her family & HIRED a women to seduce her husband.) and it worked!
This is SATAN’s FAVORITE TOOL FROM HIS TOOL BELT!!!
We must WAKE UP to this demonic plan on our lives!!!
Numbers 25:1 says, “While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate and bowed down before these gods…. And the LORD’S anger burned against them.”
——————
Rev 2:14 cont…
“He taught them to sin by
(1) eating food offered to idols
(2) committing sexual sin. “
• Idolatry INVITES in sexual immorality (they’re often married)
👉IDOLATRY &
👉SEXUAL IMMORALITY
= Satan’s “go-to” temptations
IDOLATRY
• the Israelites believed God had abandoned them while on the mountain with Moses.
—>FEAR caused them to take gold & melt it to form an idol.
⁃ In the WILDERNESS/WAITING we’ll be VERY TEMPTED to believe God left us, abandoned & deserted us.
👇
• So, they took what God gave them as a BLESSING (gold) & turned it into an IDOL (gold calf)
• We turn to idolatry when we DONT believe God is who he says he is AND that He’s deserted/abandoned us!
• We turn to idolatry to fill in the lonely gaps & become a FALSE-SENSE OF SECURITY
Unbelief (of God) is the doorway to IDOLATRY 🤯🤯🤯
“I, your God, will NEVER abandon you.” (Is 41:17)
IDOLS LIE!! They say they’ll:
👇
• 1. save you, 2. complete you, 3.love you— but they deplete you!
IDOLS= Theyre a numbing agent for our weary hearts 🥲
Isaiah 44:20
“The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He trusts an idol that can’t help him at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, “Is this idol that I’m holding in my (RIGHT) hand a lie?”
• JOHNS VERY LAST SENTENCE (book of 1 John)
“Dear children, keep yourself from idols.”
SEXUAL IMMORALITY
👇
Rick Berry conversation (pastors “falling one by one)
The cultural won’t tell you: sexual immorality is opening up a demonic portal straight into your life!
⁃ satan TRICKS you, then TEMPTS you, then TRAPS you!
• culture TELLS us if it makes you happy— it must be good!
👇
EVE thought the fruit would make her happy, too! (Satan doesn’t tell you the CONSEQUENCES)
⁃ Porn— 100 billion dollar industry
79% of men in church view porn at least once month
(8 out of 10 men)
1 out of 3 viewers of porn are female
1 out of 10 viewers are under the age of 10
Theres an area of brain that’s severely damaged by only two things:
1. Head on collision
2. Viewing porn
⁃ this generation fights sex-trafficking more than any other generation
⁃ BUT This generation consumes porn more then any other generation
👇
⁃ porn and sex trafficking are integral
👇
“Watching porn & fighting against human trafficking, is like protesting a corrupt politician, and then giving money to his campaign.”
• We’ve created the worlds first visual drug— & it acts like a drug!
“TRADING real intimacy for superficial quick satisfaction” (trick of Satan)
• Porn is just as addictive as heroin and cocaine
READILY AVAILABLE
QUOTE:
“The greatest threat to the Church today is not so much the pornography itself as much as it is the
IGNORE IT attitude many Christians have about its wrongness— & ultimately it’sdestruction ”
(Share my story— had to call a counselor to ask if his PORN was “wrong” — because my heart hurt SO DEEPLY!)
👉More millennials think it’s wrong to not recycle than it is to look at porn!
• OXYTOCIN (the element released to be the super glue for human bonding during sex) which in effect “bond” us to these images
Average age of child viewing porn: 8-11 yes old
2019 — study shown it’s now 7 yrs old
Most Children viewing porn have found it “accidentally”
👇
Today’s porn is more graphic, violent, deviant & destructive than anything ever seen before.
• almost 50% of families say porn is a “problem “ in their home.
Youth that view pornography once a month or more are at a greater risk of developing:
• depression,
• anxiety,
• sexually permissive attitudes,
• preoccupation with sex,
• inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality,
• unrealistic ideas about sexual relationships, insecurities about body images in females and insecurities about sexual performance in males.
• As an adult, they’re more likely to be unfaithful to their spouse.
• 56% of divorce cases involve one party having obsessive interest in online pornography.
With increase of
porn, there’s been an increase in:
1. violent sex crimes
2. child pornography
3. sex trafficking (at an all-time high.)
——-
• Sex is FROM God
👇
Sex, in its God given design— GLORIFIES HIM!
• because we are HIS IMAGE BEARERS,
everything we do with our body glorifies him
👇
• That’s why Satan perverts it!!!! (COUNTERFEIT VERSION)
• He wants to pervert everything that God made, and that glorifies Him!
It’s starts in the MIND
👇 Matthew 5:28
“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
“UNSEEN THOUGHTS- produce VISIBLE consequences !”
Rom 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
👇
R A D I C A L steps needed to FIGHT this demonic battle!!!!
👇
“For God is working in you, giving you the desire & the power to do what please Him!” (Phil 2:13)
• anything you STOP FEEDING WILL DIE!
And that radical step just many be CUTTING OUT THE LIES OF SATAN that you need to find love in all the wrong and perverted places!
FEAST IN TRUTH!!!
John 8:31-32
“You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, & The TRUTH will set you free.”
Heb 12:1
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially THE sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us!”
There is a RACE & we’re called to RUN IT!!
It won’t be easy—
⁃ but these “witnesses” that surround us, they endured suffering when though it came with a cost— because obeying God was their main focus !!
The Christian life is:
👇
• picking up my cross,
• following him,
• denying myself!
HEB 12:2 (here’s the secret:)
👇
“We do this by:
keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.”
• Jesus is praying w/ sweat & blood & asked 3x if cup could pass—
👇
He didn’t take away the cup, but He….
👇
sent an angel to STRENGTHEN JESUS— so that He could ENDURE🙌🙌🙌
_______
Rev 2:15
“In a similar way, you have some Nicolaitans among you who follow the same teaching. “
• the church of Pergamum wasn’t being persecuted for their faith in Christ!
👇
• they were being persecuted for not adding other gods to their worship of Jesus
👉 Jesus + something= everything (city of Pergamum)
👉 Jesus & NOTHING= everything
• one degree off teaching
— the enemy skews it just enough to be off -subtle & crafty & manipulative.
• 1 degree off makes it NOT TRUE
• Code to Barn: if I’m one number off, the barn isn’t going to say “close enough!” It’s going to say “error!”
• 1degree off takes you in wrong direction!!!
• We’ll know the counterfeit from the truth!!!! STUDY THE TRUTH- Hold FIRM to the truth that gives you life
🔥STORY: shea’s false-ID
——————
Rev 2:16
“Repent of your sin, or I will come to you suddenly and fight against them with the sword of my mouth.”
Danger of “one degree off teaching” —- If we say a SIN is no longer SIN— we won’t repent from something we’ve been told we don’t need to repent from!
• this is the ONLY COMMAND in this letter! = repent.
• REPENTANCE in Hebrew means = “return to the path.”
• ISAIAH 6=
👇
reverence=
Repentance=
forgiveness =
send me!
🔥Repentance without reverence — is just RELIGION in disguise.
RED PEN- journal
After Jesus’ baptism and temptation, his FIRST WORDS publicly were:
👇
“repent, for the kingdom of heaven, has
drawn near”
——————
Rev 2:17
“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.
To everyone who is victorious I will give some of the manna that has been hidden away in heaven.
• Prov 27:7
“A person who is FULL refuses even honey from the comb (sin)
but even bitter food tastes sweet to the HUNGRY.”
👇
When I’m hungry— I’ll eat JUNK!!
• Have you been feasting on “junk food” because your heart is hungry ?
(Alcohol, food, people, things, counterfeit comforts)
👇
Leaves me worse off then when I began!!
—> I’m Still hungry & never satisfied <—
• GOD FEEDS US DAILY MANNA (His Word)
And we’re FULL— too full for satans bait!
• Manna meant 🔥 “what is it?” 🔥
• The world doesn’t recognize His manna of Living Bread
• We easily miss the BREAD THAT FEEDS US TO COMPLETENESS because it’s not what we expected— “WHAT IS IT?”
—————
Rev 2:17 cont…
And I will give to each one a white stone, and on the stone will be engraved a new name that no one understands except the one who receives it.
⁃ Ancient Greece court of law—jury members would throw BLACK rock to the guilty & WHITE Rock to the non-guilty with their NAME written on it.
God doesn’t call me by:
⁃ My darkest secret,
⁃ My broken past,
⁃ My guilt
⁃ My shame
—but by my NEW NAME!!
GOD CHANGES NAMES:
👇
• Sarai to sarah
• Abram to Abraham
• Jacob to Israel
• Paul to Saul
But, satan wants nothing more than to CHANGE YOUR NAME!
👇
• Shadrach
• Meshsck
• Abednigo =the enemy changed their manes)
But God’s given you a:
• NEW NAME
• NEW IDENTITY
• NEW CREATION
• NEW BEGINNING
• NEW HEART
…. A name “No one understand besides YOU!” 😭 ( a name only between you and your daddy)
Isaiah 45:3
“And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness— secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by NAME
Isaiah 49:2
“The Lord called me before my birth; from within the womb He called me by NAME
Isaiah 49:15
“ can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child She has born? But even if that was possible, I would not forget you!
See, I have written YOUR NAME on the palms of my hand.”
————
HOSANNA WONG - “I have a new name”
👇
“God spends a lot of time in the Bible telling us who we are.
It's almost as if He knew that we
would doubt who that was from time to time.
It's as if He saw it coming that we'd spend our whole
lives searching for what our identity, what our real name was,
And that there'd be many moments in our lives
where we'd let different kinds of names define us.
When we've looked in the mirror,
compared ourselves to pictures and heard the name "Ugly."
When we've been left by loved ones,
people we trusted once and heard the name "Unworthy."
When we've been drowning in discouragement,
living in a seemingly never-ending
crisis and heard the name "Forgotten."
When we've had our hopes up and our hearts open only to
be brought down by closed doors, and we've heard "Rejected."
When we look for infinite affirming love
through lesser physical fleshly versions,
When we give it away or when it was stolen and we hear "impure."
We hear "garbage"
When we go to other vices to ease our pain and we hear "addict."
We hear "forever broken"
When we feel like we're living in the shadow of
someone else's calling, and we hear "second place."
When our pain cripples us to a point where we don't
even know how to let others in, and we hear "lonely."
When our past seems too gross for
others to forgive, and we hear "disgusting."
It's overwhelming.
These voices we're constantly hearing
It's suffocating, this air of constant critique and comparing.
And it's sort of amazing the people
whose voices I've allowed to name me.
The power I've given to my past, to my mirror,
and to my surroundings, and enabled them to identify me.
The amount of years I've spent
living up to whatever others say over me.
But God says something else about me.
It's like He knew there would be other voices,
so He wrote His voice down in a timeless Book of truths that would remind us over and over again in the moments when
lies would block His truths and somehow make us forget
I'm going back to the source,
not the people I've allowed to represent God to me
But the actual, literal,
tangible words that He has written down for me.
And there's some other names He's given to me:
John 15:15 He calls me "friend"
1 Thessalonians 1:4 He calls me "chosen"
Ephesians 2:10 He calls me His "workmanship"
He calls me His "art"
He calls me "hand-made"
He calls me "purposed" and "fashioned for good things"
Corinthians 6:19 He calls my body "a temple"
He calls it "the residence of the Holy Spirit"
Acts 1:8 He calls me His "messenger to the world"
Galatians 3:26 He calls me His "child"
Romans 5:8 He calls me "greatly loved"
John 8:36 He calls me "free", "free indeed"
2 Corinthians 5:17 He calls me "brand new"
And it's amazing how different these names
are from the names I'm used to listening to.
And in my journey to discover who I really am,
in my battle to uncover the truths of
myself, I've learned something new about my name.
And now, this is what I am certain of:
my name is not the name the world calls me
My name is not the name my past calls me
My name is not even the name my own mirror calls me.
But my name, my name is the name I answer to.
And I can choose today from this
moment forward to answer to a new name.
When I hear "lonely", that's not me.
When I hear "disgusting", that's not me.
When I hear "unworthy", I don't even look over my shoulder.
When I hear "broken", they must have confused me.
Please, look elsewhere
When I hear "ugly", "abandoned", "useless", "forgotten",
I figure someone just has to remind them maybe.
those were my old names, but they're no longer the names that I respond to.
My name is the name I've chosen to spend my days living up to.
And if these other voices are not saying the same thing that the
truth is, I look in my mirror and I repeat
this: they have no right to be speaking to you.
When you stop answering to your old
names, they stop having power over you.
The names that my Father, eternity's Author,
the world's Creator has called me are the only names that I answer to.
When I hear "friend of God", that's my name.
"God's workmanship", that's my name
"Chosen", that's my name
"Loved, wanted, created with a purpose", that's my name
"God's temple", that's my name
"God's messenger", that's my name
"Free", that's my name
"Child of God", you must be looking for me
"Greatly loved", you must be calling for me
"Brand new", that is my name
That is the name that I respond to
The enemy has no power here
Perfect love casts out fear
And perfect love has named me and you
What is your new name?
What is stirring up inside of you when you hear
these words, that His word, that the Word has proclaimed?
What do you know is the name God is calling you?
Maybe it's not the name you gr
ew up with.
Maybe it's not the name your old friends associate you with.
Maybe it's not the name that your whole life you were used to identifying with.
But it's the name you now answer to.
So when the enemy tries to get to you,
it's the name you introduce yourself with.
As for me, my name is "forgiven"
My name is "free"
My name is "brand new, loved, wanted, child of God,
created with a purpose.”