Answer: No. The individual local congregations of
Christ's body, His church, were simply referred to here as
"the churches in the province of Asia," (verse
19).
MORE INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:
The province of Asia was the Roman province (presently in
western Turkey) in which Ephesus and the surrounding cities were
located. During Paul's long ministry in Ephesus all in
the province of Asia heard the Word. The churches of Colosse,
Laodicea and Hierapolis (Colossians 4:13-16; Revelation
1:11), which were located on the border of the province of
Asia, may be included in the greetings, along with the other
churches of Revelation 2, 3.
Acts 19:8-10: "Paul entered the
synagogue [in the city of Ephesus] and spoke boldly there for three
months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. But
some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly
maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him
and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus.
This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who
lived in the province of Asia heard the Word of the
Lord."
Acts 19:21-27: "After all this had
happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, passing through
Macedonia and Achaia. 'After I have been there,' he
said, 'I must visit Rome also.' He sent two of
his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed in
the province of Asia a little longer. About that time there
arose a great disturbance about the Way. A silversmith named
Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in no little
business for the craftsmen. He called them together, along
with the workmen in related trades, and said: 'Men, you know
we receive a good income from this business. And you see and
hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large
numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole
province of Asia. He says that man-made gods are no gods at
all. There is danger not only that our trade will lose its
good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis
will be discredited, and the goddess herself, who is worshiped
throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of
her divine majesty.'"
Romans 16:5: "Greet my dear friend
Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of
Asia."
1 Peter 1:1: "Peter, an apostle of
Jesus Christ, To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered
throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and
Bithynia..."
Revelation 1:4: "John, To the seven
churches in the province of Asia..."
