The Christian Elder John was one of the Lord Jesus Christ's favorite disciples. After Jesus left this world to be rejoined with His heavenly Father He left His mission of building the kingdom of God to His followers like John. The Roman world of the New Testament era was not very favorable to the "Christian sect" as the early believers were called. The believers of Jesus Christ were looked upon as a heretical group to be eliminated by the Jewish community. They were mistreated and shunned by the pagan community as those who were bad for commerce. Monies gained by pagan and cultist worship were often diminished by the cessation of these activities from those who believed in Jesus Christ. New Christian converts were bad for Roman pagan commerce. And then there was the severe mistreatment of Christians by the Roman government. Emperors were very self-centered and power hungry individuals. Many of then considered themselves to be "gods for the people" and spent mass amounts of tax payer money to build temples of worship just for the emperor. In addition, they made it required law for citizens to worship-ally confess that the emperor was "lord." And those who would not, like the Christians, were arrested and imprisoned. The majority of them were brutally and unmercifully martyred during the entertaining games in the arenas of the Roman empire. Some were dressed in animal skins and fed alive to half starved wild and ravenous dogs in front of crowds for family night out. Others were tarred and hung in the air on crucifixions and lit on fire to provide night lights for late evening parties. Some went through the respectful "luxury of being beheaded" for their faith. This was experienced by the Apostle Paul. And there were others still yet that the emperor exiled to his favorite prison located on a heap of rock named the Isle of Patmos. Because of his loyal service to the true Lord Jesus Christ, Domitian sentenced the Elder John to this prison of rock and chains. It is from this prison, as an old man, that John was shown a heavenly revelation like no one before and no one since. The resurrected and glorified Lord Jesus Christ shown John His heavenly vision and had the Elder write down the vision of those things he both saw and heard in the heavenly realm. Part of this revelation was seven distinct and direct letters to seven specific churches located in Asia Minor. Letters from the Lord of the Church to the church of Ephesus, the church of Smyrna, the church of Pergamum, the church of Thyatira, the church of Sardis, the church of Philadelphia and finally, to the lukewarm church of Laodicea. These letters are written down and recorded for us in the first three chapters of the Book of Revelation. Seven letters written to seven literal churches. Seven letters written for their benefit from our Lord. He had John write them down for His Church of that time and for His Church throughout history. Seven letters to seven churches from an old man in prison. May we grow in grace as we use the envelope opener to see what's inside. MKR