Remember, Jesus Is For All the Churches

By Tony Crocker, President • BMA of Arkansas

Revelation contains an extremely needed message for our churches right now. Most of us read this book with rapt attention to the visions unfolding from broken seals, trumpets and bowls. But the bookends, the first and last chapters, though not as vivid, are among the most comforting words in Scripture. With a little thought, we can easily see why.

Some years ago, these first chapters of Revelation settled a conversation about the viability of our association. An argument was made that churches were not New Testament churches if they did not exhibit certain characteristics and show a level of vitality leading to measurable growth. The brother saying this was admittedly frustrated that his church was not healthy. He stated his case to me that his church and the churches in our association were not healthy because they were unbiblical. This had brought him to question whether or not they were even churches.

The first three chapters of Revelation quieted our souls in that discussion. Christ revealed Himself to John and revealed what all the churches needed to know about Him before He spoke. In fact, it was the very first thing He said as He spoke to the churches. “These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands” (Rev. 2:1 NKJV). He had explained the vision, so there was no mystery. The stars were the messengers, the lampstands were the churches, and there was Christ holding His messengers in His right hand while walking in the midst of His churches. ~~This is electric stuff!~~

Jesus spoke in the most intimate way in those seven letters that we can imagine. Through John and then the local preachers, He gave penetrating letters to the churches. What does He say to them? With each letter Christ says, “It’s me,” “I know where you are,” “I know who you are” and “I’m telling you what to do.” This is what quieted our souls in the conversation I was having then, and I believe it sets the tone for our thoughts on the theme for our association.

Jesus knows our circumstances. He knows right where we are and exactly what is going on. There is no question of this because what He knows is not known at a distance. He is omnipresent — Jesus is in our midst. Churches are not being called churches here because they exhibit certain strengths in ministry or because their location is particularly suited for dynamic growth. They are churches because of the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ! That is all it takes to be a church. As an association, we believe a church is a local, visible body of baptized believers because that is the only thing Jesus acknowledges. Ephesus was busy, Sardis was dead and Laodicia was deaf, but all three were being addressed as churches by Christ, Who is Lord over all the churches.

Are you encouraged by this? Does knowing that Jesus is there wherever you are and however bad it may be comfort you? It should.

Though comforting, there is a tension here because He knows us. Ephesus was too busy. Sardis maintained a false reputation. Laodicia perceived themselves as being something they were not. False teachers even compromised Pergamos and Thyatira to varying degrees. How many of our conversations about ministry stop with externals? We blame our community or a sordid event in our history. But Jesus did not focus His address on the externals. He addressed the heart. If we listen, He addresses ours as well. Preachers, this is the stuff that built an association and is the only thing that will revitalize it. With exact precision, Christ calls us to repentance. He acknowledges the externals, they are bad, but He targets the heart because it is worse! We must hear Him for this to work.

Christ’s message then is the same as He gives today. He only addressed them as “churches”. He did not retract that identity, nor should we. That settled the question then, and I hope it settles it now. But more, though Christ threatened with the consequences of disobedience, He revealed He is for all the churches by His call to repent because He promised He will receive us and reward us when we do. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 3:22).