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I, John am your brother and partner in suffering and in God’s Kingdom and in the patient endurance to which Jesus calls us. I was exiled to the island of Patmos for preaching the word of God and for my testimony about Jesus. It was the Lord’s Day. I was worshiping in the Spirit. Suddenly, I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet blast. It said,”Write in a book everything you see, and send it to the seven churches in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodiea.”

When I tuned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven gold lampstands. And standing in the middle of the lampstands was someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe and a gold sash across his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And His eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace, and His voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from his mouth. And His face was like the sun in all its brilliance.

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if it were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last. I am the living one, I died, but look-I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave.”

“Write down what you have seen-both the things that are now happening and the thins that will happen. This is the meaning of the mystery of the seven stars you saw in My right hand and seven gold lampstands. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.” (vv 9-20, NLT)

This letter is from John to the seven churches in the province of Asia.

Grace and peace to you from the One who is, who always was, and who is still to come; from the sevenfold Spirit before His throne, and from Jesus Christ. He is the faithful witness to these things, the first to rise from the dead, and the ruler of all the kings of the of the world.

All glory to Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by shedding His blood for us. He has made us a Kingdom of priests for God his Father. All glory and power to Him for ever! Amen.

Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. Ans everyone will see Him – even And those who pierced Him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for Him. Yes! Amen!

“I am the Alpha and the Omega – the beginning and the end, ” says the Lord God. “I am the One who is, who always was, and who is still to come – the Almighty One.” (vv. 1-8, NLT)

This is a revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants the events that must soon take place. He sent an angel to represent this revelation to His servant John, who faithfully reported everything he saw. This is his report of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church, and He blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near. (vv 1-3, NLT)

But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said. They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them.

But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love.

And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do do with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives.

Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into His glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to Him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are His before all time, and in the present, and beyond time! Amen. (vv. 17-25, NLT)

Enoch who lived in the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said, “Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of His holy ones to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have ever spoken against Him.”

These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want. (vv. 14-16, NLT)

In the same way, these people-who claim authority from their dreams-live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at supernatural beings. But even. Michael, one of the mightiest of angels, did not dare accuse the devil of blasphemy, but simply said, “The Lord rebuke you!” (This took place when Michael was arguing with the devil about Moses’ body). But these people scoff at things they do not understand. Like unthinking animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and bring about their own destruction. What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion.

When people eat with you in your fellowship meals commemorating the Lord’s love, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are like shameless shepherds who care only for themselves. They are like clouds blowing over the land without giving any rain. They are like trees in autumn that are doubly dead, for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots. They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the foam of their shameful deeds. They are like wandering stars, doomed forever to the blackest darkness. (vv. 8-13, NLT)

Dear friends, I had been eagerly planning to write you about the salvation we all share. But now I find that I must write about something else, urging you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to His holy people. I say this because some ungodly people hav wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

So I want to remind you, though you already know these things, that Jesus first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt, but later He destroyed those who did not remain faithful. And I remind you of the angels who did not stay within the limits of authority God gave them but left the place where they belonged. God has kept them securely chained in prisons of darkness, waiting for the great day of judgment. And don’t forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were , destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God’s judgment. (vv 1-7, NLT)

Dear friend (Gaius), you are being faithful to God when you care for traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you. They had told the church here of your loving friendship. Please continue providing for such teachers in a manner that pleases God. For they are traveling for the Lord, and they accept nothing from people who are not believers. So we ourselves should support them to that we can be their partners as they teach the truth. (vv. 5-8, NLT)

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This letter is from John, the elder.

I am writing to the chosen lady and to her children, whom I love in the the truth-as does everyone else who knows the truth-because the truth lives in us and will be with us forever.

Grace, mercy and peace, which come form God the Father and from Jesus Christ -the Son of the Father- will continue to be with us who live in truth and love.

How happy I was to meet some of your children and find them living according to the the truth, just as the Father commanded.

I am writing to you to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning. Love means doing what God has commanded us, and He has commanded us to love one another, just as you hear from the beginning.

I say this because many deceivers have gone out in to the world. They deny that Jesus Christ came in a real body. Such a person is a deceiver and an antichrist. Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked so hard to achieve. Be diligent so that you receive your full reward. Anyone who wanders away from this teaching has no relationship with God. But anyone who remains in the teaching of Christ has a relationship with both the Father and the Son.

If anyone comes to your meeting and does not teach about Christ, don’t invite that person into your home or give any kind of encouragement. Anyone who encourages such people becomes a partner in their evil work. (vv. 1-11, NLT)

I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. And we are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him. And since we know He hears us when we make our requests, we also know that He will give us what we ask for.

If you see a Christian brother or sister sinning in any way that does not lead to death, you shoul pray, and God will give that person life. But there is a sin that leads to death, and I am not saying you shouldn’t pray for those who commit it. All wicked actions are sin, but not every sin leads to death..

We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil on cannot touch them. We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one.

And we know that the Son of God has come, and He has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and He is eternal life.

Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. (vv. 13-21, NLT)