18 “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.
19 “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. 20 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. 21 I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality.22 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, 23 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. 24 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.25 Only hold fast what you have until I come. 26 The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations,27 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. 28 And I will give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
In the fourth of His letters, Christ addresses the church in Thyatira. This city was not a great city when compared to the likes of Ephesus, Smyrna, or Pergamum, however it was located along a significant trade route and was known for its numerous trade guilds. To the church Christ presents Himself as “the Son of God” (a reference to His position of authority as Messiah) whose eyes are like a flame of fire” (allowing Him to judge accurately) and as the one whose feet are “like burnished bronze” (demonstrating His authority to tread upon His enemies and to purify His people).
He begins with a commendation of the church, noting their love and faith which have been demonstrated through acts of service and through patiently enduring persecution. These are significant words which demonstrate that this church is faithful in the same ways that the churches in Smyrna and Pergamum were, while also being faithful in ways that the church in Ephesus was not.
In spite of this, the Lord has something significant against them. The church “tolerates” a woman who the Lord refers to as “Jezebel” in order to draw a connection between the works of this woman and those of the evil queen of Israel from 1 and 2 Kings who led the people into idolatrous worship. This woman within the church who refers to herself as a prophetess has also misled some of the believers there, seducing them with the promise of deeper knowledge of God through the practice of idolatry and sexual sin. In spite of these things, this woman’s greatest sin is that the Lord has given her time to repent and she has not done so. The result will be judgment upon her and those who follow her, referred to as her “children.” This judgement will be meted out upon her and her followers with the result that the churches will know that Christ is the one who judges hearts and minds. Although many within the church at Thyatira have not been willing to see the teaching and works of “Jezebel” and her followers as sin, Christ does, and their subsequent judgment will remind them of His position of authority over the churches.
For those within the church who have remained faithful, Christ places no other burden upon them. They are instead to hold fast to what they have. They must maintain their faithful witness to the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus, persevering under tribulation. They must also continue to resist and oppose false teaching even though others in their midst may permit it.
To these who “conquer,” Christ makes a great promise in the form of a quotation from Ps. 2:8-9. In this psalm the nations rage against the Lord, but He laughs and speaks of His “Son,” the Messiah (Davidic King). Yahweh promises Messiah that the nations will be His heritage and that He will break them with a rod of iron and dash them like a potter’s vessel. Christ, in speaking to the churches, makes the same promise to those who remain faithful to Him. Just as He has taken up the position of rule and authority in the church, so that rule will be extended to the nations of the earth when He returns. Having raptured the church to deliver her from the final days of judgment, He will return along with the church to establish His rule upon the earth. Here, believers will reign with Him. This rule will not end with the creation of the New Heavens and New Earth, but will continue throughout eternity as believers exercise rule and dominion over the earth as was originally intended for mankind (Gen.1:28).
The church of Thyatira has a significant place as the fourth letter of the seven. In this sense, the church represents both the best and the worst of what the church can be. Those in the church who have been taken in by false teaching must repent, while those who are faithful must endure patiently and continue to worship Jesus. For these faithful brothers and sisters there must have been great discouragement at the false teaching within the church as well as from the paganism of the surrounding culture. The promise that they would rule and reign with Christ would have encouraged them in the midst of their present position of weakness. Since Christ has conquered through His death and resurrection, they can be assured that they will also conquer and will return with Him to rule and reign!
Join us this Sunday as we proclaim the greatness of our Savior Jesus and anticipate His return together through our time of gathered worship!
Soli Deo Gloria.
-Thomas