“You teach idolatry and compromise” -Jesus
(Rev. 2:18-29)
*Commendation: Good works, love, service, faith, patience.
*Condemnation: You allow Jezebel to teach idolatry and compromise.
*Counsel: Hold fast what you have until I return.
*Challenge: “To him who overcomes…” I will give millennial leadership and the Morning Star.
Thyatira was a city dominated by trade guilds and a happening social scene where religion was worn as casually as an ornament, though the guilds were each dedicated to a particular deity and to become a member (and successfully make a living) one had to swear loyalty to the deity of the guild with which they were employed. The prominence of trade (in pottery, for example) is possibly the reason for Jesus speaking of nations being “dashed to pieces like the potters’ vessels” (Rev. 2:27).
The word thyatira is formed by two Greek words: thuo, meaning “sacrifice,” and ateires, meaning “unweary, or continual.” Thus the idea of “continual sacrifice” agrees with the nature of the city per its multiplicity of Roman religious rituals and celebrations. Offering sacrifices had become a recreation.
In Revelation 2:19 Jesus commends the fact that the church’s latter works exceeded the first, implying progress and genuine spiritual maturation after initial stagnation. It is not enough for one to commit to following Christ only to maintain a pretense of discipleship absent consistent growth. When met with life’s challenges, rather than persevere in-step with the Spirit, we often regress or proceed with equal or less energy.
The Interpreter’s Bible explains that stress and strain had ideally led Thyatiran Christians to press forward and not retreat: “It is a rich experience to meet a man after a few years’ absence and to find that his touch upon life is surer, his understanding deeper, and his actions finer.”[1]
Disciples Without Discipline
In Thyatira persecution was barely a threat. Christian living was easier and more affected by social and carnal indulgence, begging the question: How far will a Christian compromise with the world? William Barclay offers warning:
A church which is crowded with people and which is a hive of energy and a dynamo of activity is not necessarily a real church. It is quite possible for a church to be crowded because its people come to it to be entertained instead of instructed, and to be soothed and petted instead of to be challenged and confronted with the fact of sin and the offer of salvation. A church may be so full of energy that it becomes a restless ferment instead of a haven of peace. A church may be packed with many activities, but in the abounding energy the centre may have been lost, and it may be a highly successful Christian club rather than a real Christian congregation.[2]
While true that Christ commended the Thyatira church on a number of levels, His condemnation brought to light the lack of both evangelistic zeal and adherence to sound doctrine. This was betrayed by the church’s allowance of the teaching of false doctrine by “Jezebel,” and the church’s failure to repent of heretical compromise.
Jesus references the Old Testament in His use of the name Jezebel (daughter of Ethbaal, king of Sidon; and pagan wife of King Ahab) who corrupted the nation of Israel by introducing Baal worship, i.e. spiritual adultery (1 Kings 16:30-33). This reference acts as a parallel for those who were bringing pagan practices into the church.
The level of heresy to which the church had fallen is portrayed in the phrase “the depths of Satan” (Rev. 2:24). Such depths are exactly what Barclay’s quote above is detailing. When Jesus’ standards of Christian living and witness are abandoned for a personal standard of the same, one has ceased serving God and is choosing to serve self by placing one’s own interests above Christ’s. Today many nominal Christians claim that Jesus is either one of many saviors or perhaps the Chief of saviors, but they reject that He is the only Savior. This leads to a heart full of idols, of which Jesus becomes merely one among other gods, which leads to a life lived scarcely different from the heathen.
The grace of God is on full display when Christ says, “And I gave her [Jezebel] space to repent of her fornication [spiritual adultery]; and she repented not” (Rev. 2:21). Plainly, no change of mind took place so Christ issued a warning of impending judgment by confinement to a “sickbed” for Jezebel and her “lovers.” He then proclaimed death to her “children” so that all churches would know Christ for who He is (Rev. 2:22-23).
The sickbed signifies a long-term illness (strong delusion) brought about by association/fornication with Jezebel, who is a prophetic foretaste of the Whore of Babylon detailed in Revelation 17-18. The children in this context would be the deviant versions (not all versions) of Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and eventual Protestant and Independent denominations (offspring) spawned from the teaching of false doctrine.
Jesus’ exhortation to “hold fast till I come” makes plain the idea that the message to Thyatira is not only intended for the local congregation but is likewise intended for the Church universal (Rev. 2:25); that message being to hold fast to truth, endeavoring to preserve its light in a dimming world.
Cross-Examination
The age of spiritual darkening that began with Pergamos continued through Thyatira, further damaging the church’s spiritual integrity. Two common pagan practices that infiltrated Christianity during this era were chanting and use of the crucifix. Priests began to chant during services and individuals who prayed would often do so by reciting a word or phrase repeatedly, regardless of whether the meaning of said words or phrases was known or unknown to the speaker. This contrasts harshly with Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:7 where He warned: “When you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they are heard because of their many words.”
The crucifix is meant to evoke Christ’s “continual sacrifice.” But Christ died only once for all (He is not still dying) and in His own words He says, “It is finished.” Moreover, in Revelation 1:18 He proclaims, “I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.”
An obvious difference between Catholics and Protestants is the cross used to symbolize their faith. Whereas the Catholic cross often displays Christ in perpetual remembrance of His “continual sacrifice” for our sins, the Protestant cross is empty, heralding the fact that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose in victory over death on the third day (1 Cor. 15:3-4).
In addition to the impious crucifix there is an ongoing trend in the Church of Rome toward deifying Mary, earthly mother of Jesus. Media reports show that millions have petitioned the Pope to pronounce her as a member of the triune Godhead![3] Officially, prayers are encouraged to be directed to Mary; she has also been considered as a giver of salvation, in direct blasphemous contradiction to the teaching of Scripture (ref. John 14:6; Acts 4:12).
Compromise led to spiritual blindness for Thyatira, but there were yet those few who remained obedient and strived to “hold fast” until Christ returned, doing so by refusing to acquiesce to the disintegration and ill teachings of the fattening, politicized ecclesia, and opting to take the Light of Truth into “hiding” until it would be rekindled in full flame at the Reformation/Protestant transition. This was accomplished by the development of monasteries, scriptoriums, and individuals intent on perfectly preserving (by pen and inkwell) the Holy Scripture in its raw uncorrupted state so that the common person would eventually be able to experience God through His Word directly, rather than through priestly proxy. This development was assisted immensely by the invention of the printing press.
The Lord’s counsel to Thyatira was surely meant for the faithful remnant of such a darkened time. And to such faithful individuals will be awarded positions of authority during the millennial reign of Christ on earth, and to such will also be given the Morning Star–revealed in Revelation 22:16 to be Jesus Christ Himself!
Since the Thyatira era continues the unfortunate trend of compromise, the following list of adopted pagan-based changes and doctrines furthers the history of the church where we left off in Pergamos:
Notes:
1. The Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. 12, (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1957), pp387-388.
2. William Barclay, The Revelation of John, Vol. 1, (Philadelphia, PA: Westminster Press, 1960), p129.
3. Tim Lahaye, Revelation Unveiled, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1999), p67.
4. Adapted from Lorraine Boettner, Roman Catholicism, (Philadelphia, PA: Presbyterian & Reformed), p8.