Revelation Episode 3: Letters to the Churches: Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira - Part 3

Jesus appears in blazing glory to warn Thyatira against Jezebel’s seductions, urging them to repent before God's approaching judgment and seek holiness.

- PODCAST TRANSCRIPT -

Wes

Welcome to the Two Journeys Bible Study Podcast. This podcast is just one of the many resources available to you for free from Two Journeys Ministry. If you're interested in learning more, just head over to twojourneys.org. Now on to today's episode.

This is Part 3 of Episode 3 in our Revelation Bible Study Podcast entitled Letters to the Churches: Smyrna, Pergamum, and Thyatira, where we'll discuss the letter to the church at Thyatira in Revelation 2:18-29. I'm Wes Treadway, and I'm here with Pastor Andy Davis. Andy, what are we going to see in these verses that we're looking at today?

Andy

Well, we're going to see a church that similarly to the one we just studied in Pergamum, is a church that tolerates sin. Now, they are working hard, they're faithful in some respects, and not everyone in the church is like that. But Christ is going to have to deal very seriously with those who are following a woman called Jezebel, a prophetess who's misleading people into sexual immorality.

And so, Jesus is going to deal very seriously with that, but then make a distinction between her and her followers, and then the rest of the church who doesn't hold to that and just give an overall warning. But also, an exhortation to those that are walking in holiness. So, we're going to walk through that today.

Wes

Well, let me go ahead and read Revelation 2:18-29.

"And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: 'The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze. "'I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols.

I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works. But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I come.

The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'

Now on some accounts, Thyatira was the least important of the seven cities, yet it receives this longer letter. If Thyatira was noted for anything, it was its trade guilds, including bakers, bronze workers, clothiers, cobblers, weavers, tanners, dyers, and potters. And notably, Lydia, the dealer in purple cloth, had come to Philippi from Thyatira. We've talked about Christ's description of himself at the beginning of each of these letters. How does Christ describe himself to the church at Thyatira? And what is the significance of these descriptions?

Andy

Well, he says these are "The words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze" (Revelation 2:18). And so, I think the sense here, and to me this reminds me very much of the way that the cherubim are described in Ezekiel 1 and later chapters in Ezekiel as well, the idea of fire and brightness and burnished bronze and all that is one of holiness. It's a sense of God is a consuming fire. "God is light and in him there's no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5).

He's pure, and he will purify his people. So, there's a sense there of having eyes like blazing fire. Eyes, in particular, meaning he searches out and knows what he's later going to talk about Satan's so-called deep secrets. There's nothing secret from Jesus. His eyes search out everything, and he looks with eyes of purity and holiness. Also says in Habakkuk 1:13, "Your eyes are too pure to look on evil. You cannot tolerate wrong." He will not tolerate impurity and wickedness.

He does give people time to repent. He's patient, but he's not tolerant of it. And so fundamentally, this is an image of holiness and knowledge applied specifically to the secret, the hidden practices of Jezebel and her followers.

Wes

What good things does he have to say about this church in verse 19?

Andy

Well, he's going to say later not everyone in that church is caught up in this Jezebel cult. There are some that are not involved. They're not holding her deep secrets. Perhaps you would find fault with them that they're not doing enough to get rid of those who are, that they're tolerating it. But at any rate, he doesn't seem to really lay any heavy burden on them later on.

And so, he's pleased with them, and I think they are the ones that are being commended here early on where he says, "I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you're now doing more than you did at first." So, they're hardworking. They're persevering. I guess the implication is in the face of persecution or opposition. And they're improving. They're increasing. They're growing. They're doing more than they used to do. They're not shrinking back. They're actually expanding in their service to Christ. So those are very good things that he says about the faithful that are there in Thyatira.

Wes

What's the significance of the fact that the church at Thyatira is now doing more than they did at first, and how would we contrast that with the church at Ephesus?

Andy

Well, I think that's a lesson to all of us. There should be a principle of expansion and growth and development in every aspect of our Christian lives. We should be growing in grace in the knowledge of Christ. There should be a sense that we'd like to move from 30 to 60 and eventually even to a hundredfold what was sown in the good field. We want more and more and more fruit.

We're not satisfied. We want to keep growing. And also, 2 Peter 1 talks about virtues that are tied to Christianity. And he says, if those virtues are in you and are in increasing measure, in other words, you're more compassionate than you used to be, you're more diligent than you used to be, your love is more now than it used to be, that's what you want because it's dynamic.

I mean, you, frankly, are either growing or you're retracting. You're either expanding or your heart is being gradually hardened. It's one or the other. So, the fact that they're doing more than they used to do just means that they're alive and healthy in that regard.

"I mean, you, frankly, are either growing or you're retracting. You're either expanding or your heart is being gradually hardened."

Wes

Now, what significant problem exists at Thyatira?

Andy

Sin, fundamentally. Sin and specifically secret sexual sin. The thing he has against this church is tolerance, which is a really important word for us. We are a culture that prides ourselves on tolerance. We think about diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we're tolerating homosexuality openly and even celebrating it. And so many Christians are deceived by this tolerance thing saying it's really good thing for us to be tolerant.

And even there's some conceptions of Jesus that if we know nothing else about Jesus, and they don't seem to know anything else about Jesus, he's tolerant. He accepts people just as they are and all that. That's not the God of the Bible. It's certainly not the Jesus we're reading about here with eyes of blazing fire. He's not tolerating this, not at all, but they misread Jesus.

Christians wanting to be nice people tolerate their friends, their dorm mates, or their relatives, could be nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, neighbors who are indulging in clearly wicked sexual immorality that's decried and actually forbidden in scripture. But Christians pride themselves on being tolerant. So, I think we need to start right here. The sin that he has against them, first and foremost, is the good people that are not involved in this are tolerant of it.

But then there's others that are actively involved. And what are they involved with? Well, he says, "You tolerate that woman, Jezebel" (Revelation 2:20). Now, Jezebel is a well-known wicked woman from Israel's history, who was married to King Ahab and led him astray into idolatry and wickedness in the days of Elijah the prophet. And so, I don't know that there was a specific woman named Jezebel here, but it is that same pattern.

She's dominant, a leader. She's in charge. Between her and Ahab, we know who's running the kingdom. It really was Jezebel. And so, here's a woman, and she calls herself a prophetess. So, she has some kind of spiritual insights and all that. And she's not really a prophetess, but she calls herself that. Here's a sexually immoral woman who has secret patterns in her own house or in some temple somewhere, some dark basement, and what's going on there is flat out sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols.

It's definite wickedness, but it's going on in secret. And the church apparently is sufficiently aware of it that they should have done something about it by now, but they didn't.

Wes

Now, what does verse 21 teach us about the patience of Christ?

Andy

It's actually very terrifying when you think about it. I mentioned earlier, the clock is ticking. Christ has given her time to repent. And we should not misunderstand that the patience of God is meant, and the kindness of God is meant to lead us to repentance. It's not a permission to keep on living the way you've been living. Instead, we need to realize there's an urgency whenever conviction of sin comes, to deal with that sin directly and powerfully and to put it to death by the power of the Spirit.

"The kindness of God is meant to lead us to repentance. It's not a permission to keep on living the way you've been living."

And so, Christ says, "I've given her and her disciples time to repent of their immorality." So, he focuses on her. I've given her time to repent of her sexual immorality, but she was unwilling. And so, I think we need to realize that that God's holiness never changes. Conviction of sin for you personally starts the clock, and we don't know how long it'll last, how long will God be patient. It's like you don't know.

At any moment, the judgment could come down. And so, it's very terrifying. The idea is whatever you're aware, whatever sin in your life that you're aware of, deal with it as soon as possible.

Wes

Now, how might we say the punishment fit the crime in verse 22?

Andy

Well, he says he's going to cast her on a bed of suffering. She's had a bed of pleasure, sexual pleasure, and so she's enticing people into the bed of her adulteries. So, it reminds me very much of the immoral woman in the Book of Proverbs that entices the young man to come. My husband's gone for a long time, and she's got her bed spread with all kinds of linens and silks and soft things and all that.

So, it's sexual immorality. The bed is a symbol of that. But she's going to be on a bed of suffering. She's going to be on a hospital bed. She's going to be laying down, but not enjoying sexual immorality. She's laying down to suffer. He calls it a bed of suffering. And not only her, but those that committed adultery with her are going to have the same kind of suffering.

So, this could be sexually transmitted disease or some other fever or some kind of plague that comes on her. We know in the case of a particularly wicked king, his bowels came out, and it was just a hideous disease that was intense suffering. And he even talks about suffering intensely. I'll cause those who commit adultery with her to suffer intensely or to be deeply and terribly afflicted. So, there's terrible pain coming, and this is what he's threatening.

Wes

What does Christ say is the goal of this severe discipline? And how is verse 23 a strong inducement to personal holiness?

Andy

Well, the goal of the discipline is to give her time to repent. So, you could imagine he could instantly strike someone dead. But if he strikes someone with a sickness, that's almost like the final warning shot. It's like the next one's a kill shot; the next one you die. But you're not dead yet, so you still have time to repent. And so even then you might be healed. The Lord is gracious, and you might heal. But it is definitely a time to think, what has brought me to this point?

And the same thing with those that are indulging in that sexual immorality with her. I am sick. I've got a fever. I've got a disease. I've got a sexually transmitted disease. I've got something that's come on me. My body is burning and wasting away with this disease. I better repent. I don't want to die in this condition. And the Lord could easily do that. And so, he wants them to repent. God's working here, Christ working on them is to bring them to a genuine repentance.

Wes

And in the end, we see that the knowledge of Christ as the one who searches mind and heart and then gives to each one according to their works is exactly his aim here, that they would know that it's a just punishment. We just talked about this recently, the justice of God. That it's not something that just came out of left field or that God is capricious in any way, but that his just judgment comes on those who will not repent of their sin.

Andy

I mean, he threatens to strike your children dead, and it's terrifying, but there's death involved here. And children, because they are the products of sexual immorality. They're conceived and born by this. It's a terrifying thing. And then what he says about himself, "I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will give to each person according to what he has done" (Revelation 2:23). And this is a clear and consistent Bible teaching. We think sometimes that justification by faith apart from works means that works don't matter.

That is absolutely untrue. He consistently says this. He'll say it at the end of this Book of Revelation, "Behold, I'm coming soon, and I'll repay to each person according to what he has done" (Revelation 22:12). This is consistent teaching. And so, what he's saying now is I'm going to repay you according to what your works are. But before that, I'm going to search your heart and your mind. And this reminds me very much of Psalm 139 in which it says, "O Lord, you have searched me, and you know me" (Psalm 139:1).

And then at the end of the psalm he says, "O Lord, search me and know me. I want you to do that and show me if there's anything offensive in me and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23-24 paraphrase). And so, I think we Christians who read this should say, "I invite this. Please show me what I'm doing wrong. Search me and show me and I will repent. I will make use of the time you've given me. Before I get sick, before I'm cast on a bed of suffering, I'm going to repent of my sins." It's powerful. This is the one whose eyes are like blazing fire. He searches hearts and minds, and he knows what's going on.

Wes

What does Christ say to the rest of Thyatira's church members? And what are Satan's deep secrets?

Andy

Well, it clearly implies there's some people that are not involved. Now, they're involved to the degree that they know what's going on. It's like they've heard rumors, and they're plausible. And they might even have been told directly by some people. It's like, "Yeah, I did this last night," and it's like, "Oh my goodness." And so, these are people that are not involved in it, but they're aware of it, or it could be they're literally not aware at all. They're just part of the church there at Thyatira.

He says, "Now, I'm saying to the rest of you, you're not involved in this." Now you know because Jesus has told it to everybody. Everybody that read this letter knows what's going on now. But he says to the rest of you, you don't hold onto her teachings. You're not learning Satan's deep secrets. And so, the idea here kind of reminds me of what we know about the mystery cults or the mystery religions.

And sometimes it's related to secret societies like the Masons and all that, where there are secret passwords and code words and levels and circles of knowledge, and you go on and on deeper and deeper into the cult. It's like, look, there are some people that aren't involved in any of that and they're not learning any of Satan's so-called deep secrets. So that's what I think this means.

Wes

What does it mean to "hold on to what you have until I come"?

Andy

Yeah, that's very important. There's this image of let no one take your crown. Hold on to what you have. "I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me" (Philippians 3:12). I think the thing is, hold on for dear life. Hold on to Christ. Hold on to righteousness. Hold on to patterns of holiness. Hold onto your rewards. So, you got to fight for it. You're getting attacked here. So, hold on to what you have until I come. Hold on to your faith in Christ. And the thing that's so beautiful is we're holding on to Christ who has taken hold of us. And so that's the security we have. But you need to hold on.

Wes

What then does Christ promise him who overcomes and does my will to the end?

Andy

Well, I'm going to give him authority over the nations. We're going to rule with Christ. We sit with him on his throne just as Christ overcame and sat down on his Father's throne. So, we're going to rule. "I'll give authority over the nations" (Revelation 2:26). So that's authority. And it says of Christ, "He will rule them with an iron scepter. He will dash them to pieces like pottery" (Revelation 2:27). So, we're going to rule with Christ over the nations, that's a promise of authority.

Wes

What is the morning star mentioned at the end of this passage?

Andy

The morning star, I think, is probably a planet or something like that that tells people... It's like a bright spot in the sky that it comes just before dawn and tells people that dawn is coming. I think that's what the morning star is. And the idea is I'll give you a clear sense of the imminent coming of my kingdom of glory and of the new heaven and new earth and the new Jerusalem.

I'll give you a symbol or a token or a sense of the imminent glorious kingdom of God that's coming. The very thing we pray for in the Lord's Prayer, may your kingdom come. I will give you a token or sense of the imminent coming of this glorious kingdom. I think that's what I get out of, I will give you the morning star. So, the morning star is dawn is coming, the light is coming, and so I'll give you a sense of that. It's probably a sense of assurance of the second coming of Christ.

Wes

What final thoughts do you have for us today?

Andy

Well, again, similar to the church at Pergamum, I think it's a call to sexual purity. And to any hearers, to us, you and I, Wes, as we look at that, it's like is there anything in our lives that corresponds to these warnings? And if so, we need to be getting rid of those patterns and sins from our lives by the power of the Spirit and realize that just because up to this point nothing has happened, it doesn't mean anything.

It just means that the Lord is being patient. So, we say you're the one, Lord, that searches hearts and minds. Search me, show me, and help me to get rid of any sin in my life. And so, I would say that to any that are listening to this podcast.

Wes

Well, this has been Part 3 of Episode 3 in our Revelation Bible Study Podcast. We want to invite you to join us next time for Part 1 of Episode 4 entitled Letters to the Churches: Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, where we'll discuss the letter to the church at Sardis in Revelation 3:1-6. Thank you for listening to the Two Journeys Podcast and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.