The Corrupt Church

And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write:

The Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and feet like burnished bronze, says this:

“I know your deeds, and your love and faith, and service and perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater than at first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her deeds. And I will kill her children with plague, and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds. But I say to you, the rest who are in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as they call them—I place no other burden on you. Nevertheless what you have, hold firmly until I come. The one who overcomes, and the one who keeps My deeds until the end, I will give him authority over the nations; and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are shattered, as I also have received authority from My Father; and I will give him the morning star. The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Rev. 2:18-29 NASB)

Christ identifies Himself to the church at Thyatira by declaring that He is the Son of God!  That, in itself, is significant.  The Son of God has many attributes that lend credibility to the message given.  Had the message just come from John, and he says, “Here’s some things that I have noticed…”, it would not carry the weight of, “The Son of God says this.”  Whenever Jesus is talking directly to you, you need to hear Him, and take His words to heart.  He further identifies Himself as the one with eyes like a flame of fire and feet like burnished bronze.  This imagery comes directly from Rev. 1:14-15 where Jesus first appears to John.  In describing what he sees, he uses this imagery.  We also see this description in Dan. 10:6 when a preincarnate Christ visits Daniel.

Christ offers a great commendation for this church.  He says that He knows their love and faith.  On top of that, their deeds are greater now than at the beginning.  Remember that the church of Ephesus had forgotten about their “first love” (Christ).  They were like Martha, too busy with their service that they didn’t pay attention to the One they were serving.  That’s not the case here.  This church was busy doing the Lord’s work, yet they were commended for their love and faith even as their works increased!  They didn’t just do service for Jesus; they served in the love of the Lord.

There is a flip side to that coin.  The church at Pergamum was known as the compromising church because they tolerated evil within the church.  Thyatira takes this a step further.  The didn’t just allow evil, but they had a person in the church playing a prominent role, that was actively teaching false doctrine to the church.  The people of Thyatira did not simply tolerate her, but they actively listened, and allow her to lead them astray.  Jesus calls His church to holiness, to be set apart from worldly things.  Therefore, the church needs to guard its pulpit and be mindful of the false teachings that can lead it to destruction.

There is a lot of imagery here concerning the judgment on this false prophetess and those who follow her.  The biggest element is Christ stating, “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.” (Rev. 2:23b ESV).  “All the churches” could mean the 7 churches to whom this was originally written, or it could mean all the churches across time;  which would apply to our churches, today.

To say He “searches hearts and minds” really means that He examines hearts and minds.  The all-powerful, all-knowing God who exists everywhere, knows your thoughts and motivations.  Nothing is hidden from Him.  He gives a “reward” to all based upon their deeds.  Now, within the church today, a lot of time is spent explaining how we live under grace.  Everything we have, or will get, is a product of the grace of God.  We cannot earn, and do not deserve the blessings that we get.  That is all true, but here, He says that He will give to us based on our “deeds”.  Your deeds are the actions you take every day.  They are your motivations and lifestyle.  It is true that you cannot earn God’s grace.  But, you can live your life motivated by the grace you have been given.  In this case, grace is not a product of works; works are a product of grace.

Christ tells them that He knows not everybody is participating in the sin brought by the corruption of this prophetess.  He says He will not punish them for the sins of the others.  However, He warns them to stay the course until His return.

Jesus says, “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.” (Rev. 2:26-27 ESV).  To understand this, you almost need to read these verses backward.  Jesus says that the authority He grants to the overcomers is just like the authority granted to Him by the Father.  Therefore, this promise to the overcomers is that they will share in His power, authority and rule.  They will share His work as a shepherd who guards the sheep with a “rod of iron.”

He also promises to give the “morning star.”  Later, in Rev 22:16, Jesus says, “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”  So, Jesus is the morning star.  He gives us Himself.  You may say to be an overcomer one must have Jesus already, so what is He promising?  This is to say that He will give Himself to the conquerors in a fresh, new way.  Something never seen before.

Once again, the opposite is implied.  Someone who does not overcome, will not share in the authority of Christ.  Further, he will not receive the morning star, or Jesus, in this new and exciting way.

As with all of these messages, Christ says, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”  He uses this phrase to show that this message isn’t just for Thyatira, but for everyone.

It is vitally important that you know the scriptures so you can test what is being taught.  Whenever you receive teaching, you need to know if it lines up with scripture.  The one you are listening to might be trying to lead you astray with false doctrine.  How will you know unless you know what the true doctrine is?