WEEK #2 OF 5 COMMUNITIES & DIVINE POWER (HANDOUT #1 OF 2) Bible Study on the Book of Revelation By Pastor Daren Erisman

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5 WEEK #2 OF 5 COMMUNITIES & DIVINE POWER (HANDOUT #1 OF 2) Bible Study on the Book of Revelation By Pastor Daren Erisman FOR NEXT WEEK Read chapters 6-11 for next week ROMAN IDEOLOGY AND RELIGION The Roman empire understood itself as divinely mandated to conquer and rule the world eternally The Roman empire largely tolerated the religions and cultures of the peoples it conquered as long as they observed and offered sacrifices to the divine emperors and loyalty to the empire With the rise of the Emperor s power and accompanying Imperial Cult, friction increased between the Jews and the Romans Rome took on the Greek gods and renamed them: Greek Name Roman Name Description Aphrodite Venus Goddess of love and beauty, wife of Hephaestus, was said to have been born fully-grown from the sea-foam. Apollo Apollo God of the arts, of light and healing (Roman sun god) twin brother of Artemis, son of Zeus. Ares Mars Hated god of war, son of Zeus and Hera. Artemis Diana Goddess of the hunt, twin sister of Apollo, connected with childbirth and the healing arts. Athena Minerva Warrior goddess of wisdom, patron goddess of the useful arts, daughter of Zeus who sprang fully-grown from her father's head. Cronus Saturn Titan sky god, supreme ruler of the titans and father to many Olympians, his reign was referred to as 'the golden age'. Demeter Ceres Goddess of the harvest, particularly of grain, sister of Zeus, mother of Persephone. Dionysus Bacchus God of wine and vegetation, patron god of the drama. Gaia Terra Mother goddess of the earth, daughter of Chaos, mother of Uranus. Hades Pluto God of the underworld, ruler of the dead, brother of Zeus, husband of Persephone. Hephaestus Vulcan Lame god of the forge, talented blacksmith to the gods, son of Zeus and Hera, husband of Aphrodite. Hera Juno Goddess of marriage and childbirth, queen of the Olympians, jealous wife and sister of Zeus, mother of Hephaestus, Ares and Hebe. Hermes Mercury Quick-witted, clever messenger of the gods, patron god of travelers, thieves and merchants, escort of souls to Hades, son of Zeus. Hestia Vesta Peace-loving goddess of the hearth, guardian of the home, sister of Zeus. Persephone Proserpine Daughter of Zeus and Demeter who was kidnapped by Hades and forced to become his wife; she spends half the year in the underworld with her husband and returns every spring to live with her mother. Poseidon Neptune God of the sea and earthquakes, brother of Zeus. Rhea Ops Wife of Cronus. Uranus Uranus Father of the Titans. Zeus Jupiter Sky god known as 'the thunderer,' supreme ruler of the Olympians.

6 SEVEN CITIES (Chapters 2-3) Why these 7 cities/communities? o All within 100 miles of Ephesus possibly a circuit for an itinerant preacher. Ephesus o Roman provincial governor for Asia (Minor) o Population of ~225,000 and center of imperial cult with 4 imperial temples o Message to Ephesians (2:1-7) Have abandoned the love you had at first (2:4) Credited for despising the Nicolaitans (unknown heretical group) (2:6) Smyrna o Harbor city and major rival of Ephesus o Message to church in Smyrna (2:8-11) Suffered persecution from local Jewish slander (2:9) Implying Christians are the real Jews Crown or wreath a sign of victory Pergamum o Population of ~120,000 o Important imperial cult o Message to church in Pergamum (2:12-17) Satan s throne? (2:13) Enormous altar of Zeus (now reconstructed in museum in Berlin) Temple to the deified Augustus (imperial cult) Seat of judgment used by Roman magistrates Martyrdom of Antipas likely due to failing to sacrifice to the gods on behalf of the (deified) emperors. (2:13) Warning against the influence of idolatry and immorality (which are deeply connected) Balaam (2:14) The O.T. non-israelite diviner considered a bad influence on the Israelites leading to idolatry and immorality o Refer to Numbers 22-24; 25:1-5; 31:16 o Balaam understood to advise King Balak of Moab to use prostitution and the eating of sacrificial meat (forbidden) to bring down the Israelites (Num 31:16) Also warning against bad influence of Nicolaitans Manna (Exodus 16:1-36) and white stone (?) promised for the victorious

7 WEEK #2 OF 5 COMMUNITIES & DIVINE POWER (HANDOUT #2 OF 2) Bible Study on the Book of Revelation By Pastor Daren Erisman Thyatira o Smaller town famous for its dyes and is the hometown of Lydia (Acts 16:13-15) o Message to the church in Thyatira (2:18-29) Warns against an unknown woman prophet nicknamed Jezebel A leader within the community Charged with teaching sexual promiscuity and eating sacrificial meat Jezebel was the (9 th century B.C.) infamous Phoenician princess and wife of king Ahab of the Northern Kingdom of Israel (1 Kings 16:28-19:3; 2 Kings 9:22, 30-37) o Jezebel encouraged worship to Baal and her 450 prophets battled with the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 18:20-40) Sardis o Large (60,000 to 100,00), wealthy influential city o Significant Jewish population (archeological digging discovered one of the largest Jewish synagogues that would hold over 1000 people) o Message to the church in Sardis (3:1-6) Community is spiritually starving or dead Must wake up The few righteous will wear white robes (ritually clean; also worn by victorious Roman generals) Book of Life A citizen of heaven: eternal The Greeks would sometimes erase the names of citizens executed by the state Philadelphia o Rich volcanic soil and place of major earthquakes (big one in 17 A.D.) o Message to the church in Philadelphia (3:7-13) Struggle with Jews (3:9) Told to hold fast to their faith (3:11) Promise of New Jerusalem (3:12) Laodicea o Destroyed in earthquake in 60 A.D. and rebuilt o Laodicea was the most important city in the Lycus Valley that included cities with two other Christian communities: Hierapolis and Colossae o Message to church in Laodicea (3:14-22) Laodicea considered lukewarm (3:15) Perhaps an illusion to the hot springs in Hierapolis and pure cold waters in Colossae. A wealthy community chastised for its impoverished faith (3:17) Jesus knocking at the door (3:20) HEAVENLY THRONE ROOM THE LION AND THE LAMB (Chapters 4-5) More sevens: seals (4:1-5:14), trumpets (8:1-5), and bowls (15:1-8) Movement from earth (the seven churches) to heaven through a doorway (4:1) Opulent imagery of throne room and 24 crowned elders (symbolizes 12 Tribes of Israel + 12 Apostles) also on thrones (4:2-6) and they are surrounded by a vast multitude of angels (5:11) The 4 creatures will listed here will become associated later by Christians as representing the 4 gospels (Mark = lion; Luke = ox; Matthew = man; John = eagle) Breaking 7 seals and opening the scroll: The conquering Lion and the slaughtered Lamb o Hymnody (5:9-14) and power

8 DIVINE POWER: KENOSIS & HILM kenōsis = an emptying in Greek, or as it has become known in Christology, the selfemptying of God in the incarnation of Jesus Christ o Philippians 2:5-11 (RSV): Having this mind among yourselves, which you have in Christ Jesus, who though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself [heauton ekenōsen], taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men [anthrōpōn, i.e., of humans]. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every other name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. o Issue: As has been observed over the centuries of Christological debate, the synoptic gospels portrayed Jesus as exhibiting human frailties such as being tired, hungry, or not knowing certain things such as the time of parousia. At the same time however, Jesus also acted with great power evidenced by miracles such as healing the sick and lame. Finally, Christ could not be considered less than God for only God could ultimately save a broken creation, yet such a creation could only be saved if God entered fully into creation, into the incarnate Jesus Christ. hilm = forbearance in Arabic, a pre-islamic virtue. The Arabic root, h-l-m, not only has the connotations of forbearance or clemency, but of gentleness and serenity, of understanding and intelligence. o o o Example: Traditionally, one witnesses hilm in a leader with undisputed power who must decide the fate of someone with lesser power. Perhaps the person with less power has committed a crime or has offended someone, even the leader, and now it is expected that this person will be punished or killed. In an exercise of hilm, the leader chooses not to use their power to destroy that person, but chooses to exercise their power to pardon or to save them. The crucial point is that hilm is exercised through the use of power by someone with spiritual or physical superiority and usually both. It cannot be exercised through a powerless person. It must be exercised by one who has power over another, yet chooses to use that power in a benevolent manner. An historical example is when the Prophet Muhammad s troops had beaten back an overwhelming Meccan army to take control of the city that would become the focal point for Islam. The defeated Meccans expected to be destroyed, yet Muhammad, in what has traditionally been viewed as a great act of hilm, not only spared the Meccans, but brought them into the Muslim community, the ummah. The pre-islamic virtue was therefore appropriated into Islam and importantly is one of the Muslim names for God, al-halim, the Forbearing (exercising hilm). Divine power in terms of hilm o o This is where the pre-islamic virtue of hilm becomes an important conceptual tool. My contention is that hilm redefines what real power is. It does not negate the reality that power can be used to control, coerce or destroy. Rather, it challenges the presumption that to act with forbearance and clemency is somehow a withdrawal of power. Hilm describes a virtuous display of power, not its withdrawal. It is a qualitatively different power, one of mature self-restraint and not hasty destruction. Hilm provides an alternative to the presumption that divine power in Christ must somehow be mediated or removed. It also provides insight into not just how we may perceive Christ s incarnation, but God s life, death and resurrection. An understanding of divine power in terms of hilm would theoretically allow for Christ to retain full divine power and exhibit this power not only in terms of healing people, but of forgiving a world that would crucify him on a cross. Forgiveness, grace, love power exercised in a different manner, in the manner of hilm. Christ is not an example of the removal of God s power; rather Christ is the culmination of God s power. Lion AND Lamb.

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