All Things Permissible - Revelation 2:18-29

[0:00] You can open your Bibles to Revelation, chapter 2. So we are up to the church of Thyatira. It is the church that gets the most press of the seven churches, has the most scriptures.

[0:15] It's got a lot going on in this little church. Let's read the text and then we'll go and dig into it.

[0:25] So, Revelation, chapter 2, starting in verse 18. Because thou suffers that woman Jezebel, which calls herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants, to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.

[1:06] And I gave her space to repent of her fornication. And she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation. Except they repent of their deeds.

[1:18] And I will kill her children with death. And all the churches shall know that I am he which searches the reins and hearts. And I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

[1:30] And unto you, I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak, I will put upon you none other burden but that which you have already.

[1:43] Hold fast till I come. And he that overcomes and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron, and as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers, even as I received of my father.

[1:59] And I will give him the morning star. And he that has an ear to hear, with the spirit saying unto the church. And he that has an ear, sorry, let him hear with the spirit saying. Message title, I guess. All things permissible. If you remember, we looked at the definition for to tolerate something, is to allow something that's allowed to be done without prohibition or hindrance, not prevented, not restrained.

[2:23] And Thyatira is a very tolerant church. But in Thyatira, all things are permitted. All things permissible. And we're going to see why that is the case. Thyatira, if you remember, we have the seven churches.

[2:34] John is at this time on the Isle of Patmos. It's that little island in the Mediterranean. And then there you can see the seven churches. Smyrna and Ephesus were on the coast. And then as we moved up from there, we looked at, I can never remember the names of them.

[2:50] Pergamos. There we go. Smyrna, Pergamos, and now Thyatira. Thyatira is the smallest, one of the smallest of the cities where the church would find itself. Not very important in one sense, but it was very massive in trade.

[3:04] It was very focused on trade. A lot of different, you could call them, companies had their headquarters in Thyatira. But at that time, the companies that were in Thyatira, they were attached specifically, they were guilds, and they were attached to a Greek or Roman god, was what your occupation was attached to.

[3:25] So it wasn't just that, well, I worked for such and such a company. Here's our logo. Here's our tagline. You know, here's what we do. But it was specifically that your guild, if you were a mason, if you were a weaver, if you were known for the dyes that you produced.

[3:42] Lydia, if you remember, in Acts chapter 16, Lydia, she was a sales rep for Thyatira, who happened to be in Philippi when Paul meets her. She's from Thyatira. They were known for that.

[3:53] It was known for its purple dye. But you had to be attached to one of these guilds if you wanted to be in business, as we say, in Thyatira. And so in the church, if you were working and wanted to work in Thyatira, you were working in one of these companies, well, I mean, it's just I have to go to the annual, would have been a Christmas party, God of Diana party.

[4:19] You know, I had to go to the Zeus party. I mean, everybody does. You have to if you want to just be in business. It's just kind of how it works. If you remember, we saw with Smyrna, they were the ones, Smyrna?

[4:34] No, it's Pergamos. The ones that were wedded to the world. And you saw that tolerance. Well, this is kind of like the end result of that. When you wed yourself to the world, when you kind of seek oneness with the world, well, you end up at this place where Thyatira is, where all things are permissible.

[4:52] The name Thyatira actually means white castle. It's said to be named for the daughter, I think, of the guy who conquered this area.

[5:05] But it made me think of how Jesus said to the Pharisees, he said, man, on the outside, you are gorgeous. You are whitewashed. But on the inside, you're dead men's bones. You're like those whitewashed sepulchers.

[5:16] On the inside, you're nothing but dead men's bones. In Daniel, in Daniel chapter 12, verse 10, speaking of the end, he said, many shall be purified and made white and tried, but the wicked shall do wickedly.

[5:27] And none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand. Many shall be purified and made white. Thyatira looked it. The church in Thyatira, it looked good.

[5:39] It was very white. We're going to see here, as we get into the commendation, the good things they were doing. They were doing a lot of stuff there that seemed good. But they're also very tolerant of things that should not have been in the church.

[5:54] So let's pick up here in verse 18. And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira, write. So unto the messenger, write.

[6:05] We're not drawing a picture. Remember, we're writing. We're not sending a video. We're not sending a trailer. We're writing this. Truth is communicated through words. These things sayeth the Son of God.

[6:17] And this is the only time in any of the seven churches where Jesus is referred to as the Son of God. He doesn't use that title for the other ones, but he does hear for Thyatira. And if you remember, as we just read through this, who was the person, the name, that kind of jumped out to you in Thyatira, in the church here?

[6:35] What name was being a prophetess that they were suffering to be there? Jezebel. You know, how many people know a Jezebel? Jezebel. We had a spider that once lived on the outside of our house that just was huge.

[6:47] We called it Jezebel. It's like he's going out. There's Jezebel. But you don't name many people Jezebel. Maybe name a dog if you don't like it Jezebel. So here we have the Son of God.

[7:00] There's no Queen of Heaven, right? But there is the Son of God. And this name that Jesus is putting forth as the only one. The nature of the Son is the nature of the Father.

[7:12] The Son is the Father, right? In the Jewish culture to say that, you know, so-and-so is your father, you're essentially declaring equality. And so Jesus here, by declaring himself as the Son of God, he's saying there is no other.

[7:26] This is it. There's no other deity, and there's no other entity. There's no Queen of Heaven, but there is a Son of God with the nature of his Father. And what's our description?

[7:38] Who has eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass. And there's those words, like. His eyes weren't on fire, and his feet weren't brass. You know? Don't need steel-toed shoes.

[7:50] But it was like that. So eyes like fire. What does that mean? What are some characteristics of fire? We talked about this before in chapter one when we said that. What are some characteristics of, like, if you said your eyes were like fire, what do you think is trying to be conveyed here?

[8:06] What does fire do? Fire burns. It gives light. It shines. It illuminates. There's an intensity. Right?

[8:17] His eyes like fire. They're piercing. If you look at those, they're going to be piercing, penetrating, consuming, intense. The eyes of Jesus.

[8:28] It's fire representing purity. As he's looking at this church, he's saying, essentially, look at me. Look in my eyes. And when we look to Jesus, what do we find?

[8:40] Man, there's a piercing, penetrating, consuming, intense glance that burns away all that stuff. Hebrews 4.13 says, Neither is there any creature that does not manifest or open in his sight, but all things are naked and opened under the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

[8:54] There's nothing concealed. Everything revealed under that gaze. This church needed to have some things revealed that was there. And his feet were like fine brass.

[9:05] That word fine is brilliant. Brass. So brass represents judgment. And his feet. So he's standing. He's standing in judgment. He's standing in purity. He's standing where no one else can. And he's standing immovable.

[9:16] It's Jesus. Jesus is presenting himself to the church here in Thyatira as one who is immovable, who's sure, who has solid footing. Very solid.

[9:28] Brass. But one who stands in judgment and impurity. And again, like we said, that idea that his feet are brass, like that they're still glowing with the fire. He's the only one who can withstand that judgment. He's also the only one with the authority to judge.

[9:42] Psalm 33.11. The counsel of the Lord stands forever. Thoughts of his heart to all generation. I like that because Jesus is what? He's the word made flesh. The counsel of the Lord stands forever.

[9:52] Jesus, the word made flesh, the counsel of the Lord, it stands forever. So this is what Jesus is presenting to this church. This church that is permitting all things.

[10:05] All things permissible. Essentially, Jesus is saying, I am the only one who has the authority to judge that. I see that. I know that. And in typical Jesus way, he starts with the good, right?

[10:18] Would you start with the good? Man, look, I'm here to set some things straight. But yeah, we're doing this. I know what you're doing good, but look what you're doing so bad. I mean, come on. I think like when Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he's like, listen, you guys think you're doing so good because you're so tolerant.

[10:33] You think it's grace. You got some guy living in immorality with his mother-in-law. You know, that's where I'd be starting. But Jesus, Jesus is so good, so gracious. He says, I know your works.

[10:44] And your love and your service and your faith and your patience and your works. He says, works again. The last to be more than the first. What is he saying?

[10:55] Jesus knows. Jesus, that word is there to pay attention. Jesus is able to not just see what's happening, but he is zeroed in on it. He's paying attention. He's understanding.

[11:06] He's focused. Jesus knows, and I'll go through these things. He knows our works. That word means occupation. Jesus knows what we're occupied with. He knows what the church is occupied with. This is a good thing.

[11:16] He's saying, hey, guys, you are occupied with good things. Man, I know your love. That word's agape, that limitless love of God. I know that the agape love of Christ is working in your midst.

[11:27] You're not just like saying you love one another. Hey there. Hi, how are you? Good. God bless you. Oh, man, did you see that person? No. You know, it's a genuine love. Jesus says, I pay attention to that.

[11:38] I pay attention to your service, to your ministry, literally. I see the ministry that you're doing there. I see your faith. What's that? That's your belief, your belief system, which informs your actions.

[11:49] Jesus says, man, I know your faith. It is solid. Your patience, your endurance. All of these churches had need for endurance. They were living in a corrupt world.

[11:59] We have need for endurance. Love Wednesday night because it's like, here we are, you know, midway through the week. You know, I work with people that are great.

[12:13] I love them. They're nice people. But, man, they are of the world. You know, they're just of the world. They're just like not where I'm at. Valuing things, you know, teaching their children things. It's just, they're not terrible.

[12:25] They're just of the world, of the things that perish. And so Jesus looks at this church and he says, I see your occupation, your agape love, your ministry, your beliefs, your endurance. I want Jesus to look at our church and say, I see all those things.

[12:37] I know all those things. Good job. Proverbs 22, 29. Seest thou a man diligent in his business, he shall stand before kings. He shall not stand before mean men.

[12:47] That doesn't mean, you know, all your bosses will be nice. No, it just means unknown men. He'll not stand before nobodies. Do you see a man diligent in his business? This man continue to be diligent because Jesus sees.

[12:59] It doesn't matter if anyone else sees. Jesus sees. Jesus knows our works better than we do. But if you remember at the end of this chapter, look over at verse 26, when it's speaking about those that overcome.

[13:12] And he that overcomes and keeps whose works? To say, my works. He that keeps my works, the overcomer. So Jesus knows our works.

[13:25] He knows our works better than we do. And then he's contrasting them and saying, but be about my works, as we're going to go through this and see. In Luke chapter 10, Jesus is spending some time at the home of Lazarus, Mary and Martha.

[13:42] Lazarus has been raised from the dead at this point. And he's there and Martha's fixing dinner. And she is about much ministry, about much business. And you could say that she's occupied with ministry, with patient endurance, because of the beliefs that she has based on the love of God.

[14:00] That's a good thing. And Jesus doesn't condemn her for her service. But what does he say? He says, you're all about your works, Martha. He said, but one thing is needful. Be about my works. And Mary has chosen that because she's sitting at his feet.

[14:13] And Martha's like, well, she should be up helping. She should be serving. Now, this is not a time to serve. But Jesus says one thing is needful. And Mary has chosen that good part. Jesus knows our works.

[14:26] Essentially, when he says there, and I know your works, which are the last to be more than the first, what he's saying is, and I know your works, which are last to be more in number than the first.

[14:41] What did he say about Ephesus? Remember that? He said, nevertheless, I have somewhat against you because you've left your what? First love. Unlike Ephesus, the church at Thyatira did not forget their first love.

[14:54] He's saying, hey, your later works, man, they're building. They're greater than the first. You don't have to start. They're continuing to build. Unlike Ephesus that forgot their first love. He says, I know that your works, which are last, which are continuing, be more than they which are first.

[15:11] You're building on that agape love. Notwithstanding, now he is going to get into the concerns. I have a few things against you.

[15:23] And that's that same word, few. Remember, it means little, tiny. Jesus says, these are tiny. I'm like, these are huge. I mean, could you imagine if Jezebel was teaching in your church? Well, Wednesday night, we'll have a midweek Bible study.

[15:35] And then Thursday night, come on out. Jezebel will be teaching. You know, I mean, when Jesus says, hey, have we just a few little things. Just a few. Few things. The word against is, it means against, but it means in.

[15:46] So a few things in you. There's a few things that's in this church. A few things here. Because you suffer, that woman Jezebel. Suffer to allow or permit. And when we allow or permit something, it doesn't happen accidentally.

[16:01] Idea here that you are giving permission. You are giving allowance. It's not like, I've heard stories. I've heard stories that, you know, the youth pastor was planting a church Sunday morning in the church that his pastor was teaching in.

[16:20] As he was off in another room, gathering people and like pulling people away. Building his own church to then take out and leave these church splits. I don't know how that happens.

[16:31] You know, I mean, you guys want to make sure nobody's back there, just in case. But, so this isn't like, well, I didn't know about it. This is like, this is, Jesus says, you're suffering this.

[16:42] You're allowing it. You're permitted. You know it's there. So who is Jezebel? Well, if you remember back in 1 Kings, Ahab, the king of Israel, marries Jezebel.

[16:54] He marries her. She was the daughter of the king of Zidon, priest of Astarte. And he murdered his predecessor. And he killed him to seize the throne.

[17:04] She marries Ahab to seal a profitable trade alliance. This is a trade alliance between Israel and Phoenicia. And she's thought, she sought to exterminate the prophets of God, of the Lord.

[17:16] Do you remember when Ahab, he says, we need to find Elijah because of the famine that's taking place. So he sends out Obadiah, not the Obadiah that's in here, but his servant Obadiah.

[17:28] And he goes, you go that way, Obadiah, and I'm going to go this way. And they go out and Obadiah runs into Elijah. And he's like, don't kill me. And he says this.

[17:39] He says, was it not told my Lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the Lord? How I hid a hundred men of the Lord's prophets by 50 in a cave and fed them with bread and water.

[17:49] Jezebel sought to exterminate the priests of God to set up her own prophets, the prophets of Baal. He says, you suffer this woman Jezebel.

[18:01] And so he's likening either there is someone actually named Jezebel or it was this idea of there was a woman, a prophetess, who was of the same idea, the same spirit of Jezebel, who was trying to supplant God's ordained authority with her own authority, which then led to corruption, just as Jezebel led Israel into Baal worship.

[18:27] And he says here, which calls herself a prophetess. Well, that's a problem there. Hebrews 5.4, speaking of the priesthood specifically, says, And no man takes this honor to himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.

[18:43] Now, all callings must be called. You can't call yourself. 1 Thessalonians 5.24 says, Faithful is he that calls you who also will do it.

[18:54] To call, the word here, it means to teach, to advise, affirm, or exhort. So she's teaching others. She's calling herself. She's teaching them, advising them. She's affirming herself.

[19:05] She's exhorting others of her position. This prophetess. Peter tells us in speaking of prophecy, in 2 Peter 1, beginning verse 19.

[19:18] He says, Here's this woman.

[19:44] She's not coming in the authority of the Holy Spirit. She's coming in her own authority. I'm going to bounce over to Jeremiah 23. Put it on the screen if you want to jump over there or not.

[19:56] Jeremiah 23. Jeremiah talks a lot about false prophets. He kind of gives us some clues on how we can identify false prophets, how we can identify true prophets.

[20:07] But in Jeremiah 23, in speaking of the false prophets, pick up in verse 16, and then we're going to just cherry pick some of the scriptures instead of reading all of it. But it all speaks of God's view of these false prophets.

[20:20] Jeremiah says, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you. They make you vain. It doesn't mean like really puffed up.

[20:31] It just means lacking substance in what they say. They speak a vision of their own heart and not out of the mouth of the Lord. I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran.

[20:41] They called themselves. They sent themselves. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. They have no purpose and they have no message. But if they had stood in my counsel and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, from the evil of their doings.

[21:02] You know, the thing they wanted, God said, you know, I think of where he said, Whom shall I send? Whom shall I send? Whom shall go for us? And Isaiah goes, Here I am, send me. God is not a respecter of persons.

[21:13] He's willing to use anyone. He says, If they had stood in my words, if they had taken my counsel, that's the mark of a true prophet. False prophet, no purpose and no message. Leads to just lack of substance.

[21:24] There's nothing there except what they're promoting out of their own minds and their own hearts. There are many false prophets out there. There's a lot of money and business to be made in false prophets. But they're so, they're exactly like I said, they're so vain.

[21:38] They're so empty. They're so vague. Like God is prophesying that these are the days of good and great things and we will see a move of goodness. And well, okay. And then someone else prophesies, These are the days of evil times.

[21:49] Well, they're both right. Right? Okay. God is very specific. But the mark of a true prophet is what? We will hear God's word and we'll turn people from their evil way from the evil of their doings.

[22:02] False prophet speaks out of his own dreams, out of his own heart, out of his own thoughts.

[22:28] And what is the ultimate end? Well, I know the Bible says that, but I have some other revelation. Let's forget about that, essentially, and listen to me. Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams, which they tell every man to his neighbor, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Bethal.

[22:45] Exactly what Jezebel did. And isn't that great? They tell every man their neighbor. You know, I think of where Jesus says, Hey, that which is your father, when you pray, enter in your closet, pray in secret, and your father who sees in secret will answer you openly.

[22:58] Or these false prophets, it's like they got to run around and tell everybody. Mark of a false prophet. The prophet that has a dream, let him tell a dream.

[23:09] And he that has my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? Saith the Lord. Is not my word like as a fire? Jesus' eyes, the word of God, the living word of God, those eyes of fire.

[23:21] Is not my word like as a fire? Saith the Lord. And like a hammer that breaks the rocks in pieces. You know, got those brass feet. Crunching those rocks. Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steal my words, every one from his neighbor.

[23:36] A false prophet will supplant God's word with their own word. You don't need God's word. We got something else going on. Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues and say, he saith, behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them and cause my people to err by their lies and by their likeness.

[23:57] Yet I sent them not, nor commanded them. Therefore, shall they not profit. Those prophets don't lead to profit. They shall not profit this people at all, saith the Lord.

[24:09] False prophets possess nothing genuine. They replace the word of God with something as insubstantial as a dream. Here's this Jezebel here.

[24:19] This false prophet. It calls herself a prophetess. But what does she have? She doesn't have God's word. So how do you hook someone? You know, with a lie, with something false. Oh, well, she's got a hook, as we're going to see here.

[24:34] To teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication and to each thing sacrifice unto idols. Oh, guess what? I have a word from the Lord. It's okay to live with the flesh. It's grace.

[24:44] It's all good. To teach, to impart, to instruct, to seduce, is to lead astray. So she is leading astray through what she is teaching. Jezebel, self-appointed, speaks with authority, instructs, practices, and encourages the pursuit of lust and oneness with the forbidden.

[25:04] Right? Eating things sacrificed to idols. Essentially, being one with that which is forbidden. This is what the self-appointed woman in the church. Can women, I didn't put that verse in there.

[25:22] Quote it. Can women teach in the church? Can women speak in the church? Paul would say, I don't even permit a woman to speak in the church.

[25:34] If she has, if she needs to ask anything, she can ask her husband at home. You know, they're just so noisy. All you women, be quiet out there. Is that what he's saying? No, not at all. Because we know they speak because he talks at other places about when they pray or prophesy that they should have their head covered in that culture.

[25:51] He was saying that. So they're praying and prophesying in the congregation. What he's saying is they're not to speak with the authority of a teaching position of authority over God's people.

[26:04] Why? Well, he says because the woman was deceived in the transgression, but Adam wasn't. Oh, so women are super gullible? No, not at all.

[26:16] Adam sinned. Eve sinned. Yet sin did not come into the world through Eve. It came through Adam. Right? Why? Eve sinned first. Shouldn't it come by her? Eve sinned through deceit.

[26:28] Adam sinned through willingness. Adam knew what he was doing and he did it. Eve was deceived because that was her nature. Her nature was one that was more emotionally driven. That's how God, when he split the two, he said, here's man and here's woman.

[26:41] You got a little emotion, you get all the emotion. Right? That's just kind of how it goes. So for Eve, she was deceived through the nature that she had. God did not say sin is coming to the world through Eve.

[26:53] It is through Adam that sin came into the world because Adam knew what he was doing. He says, I'm going to willfully disobey. So, God recognizes that so it's for protection, the protection of the body and the protection for both of the sexes that he says, hey, there are different roles and positions.

[27:10] This is the one that I want within the home. How the structure I want. This is the structure I want within the church. When we, like Jezebel, seek to upend that, well, we end up having to call ourselves because God hasn't called us to that.

[27:25] And then it ends up always in the same place that Jezebel here has ended up because when we step outside God's order, the only other place is what? Idolatry because we're not following the Lord anymore. There's an idol that we've set up instead.

[27:38] And immorality because we no longer have God's law and God's word. We've stepped into something immoral, something that is not according to that which is right. And also, if I don't have the truth, how am I going to hook people?

[27:50] Man, I need to have something juicy. I need to have something good. I know. I'll just, I'll just constantly cross that line of like, ooh, that's a little, that's a little, I don't know if you should have said that, but it appeals to something in me.

[28:02] Yeah, it appeals to my flesh. And so God says here regarding, Jezebel says, or Jesus says regarding Jezebel, he says to the church that you have allowed this.

[28:14] You knew it was happening. You've given her a place of authority. You've given her a place of teaching. You've set her in a place that she is allowed to speak over the church direction and calling.

[28:26] Look where it's leading. Why? Well, because if we want to get along in the world, we got to make some compromises. That's actually what they're saying. If I don't do this, well, I won't be able to be part of that guilt and I'll get fired.

[28:39] Then get fired. Oh, well. God says he'll supply all of our needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus. Compromise is never worth the cost. There is no true gain in compromise.

[28:50] And Jesus says, I gave her space to repent of her fornication. Space, an undefined amount of time, an indetermined amount of time. I don't know how long that is. A week, a year, 10 years, five days?

[29:01] Jesus says, I gave her space to repent of her fornication and she did not repent. And here we see real authority, real instruction, real grace, and real consequences. As the Son of God, the Word of God says, I am the true authority.

[29:15] I gave her space to repent. She had to repent. What she was doing could not continue. Either repent or not, but I'm the authority. Real instruction and real grace. Grace, she had some cheap copy of grace.

[29:26] Oh yeah, you can do whatever. God loves you just the same. Well, God loves you the same, but He never leaves you the same. You know, God welcomes all in, but it's so that He may transform all. And then real consequences.

[29:38] Behold, I'll cast her into a bed and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation except they repent of their deeds. That word cast is like to discard, like to be thrown out, something that has no value.

[29:49] And this is the first use and revelation of the phrase great tribulation. And I will cast her into great tribulation and them with her except they repent of their deeds.

[30:01] Revelation 7, 14. John says, And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest, as he says, Who are all these people clothed in white? And he said unto me, These are they which came out of great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

[30:16] That time, those that will come out of great tribulation. You say, Is that the church? They got white robes? No, it is not the church. Because Luke, in Luke 21, 36, Jesus says, Watch you therefore and pray always that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man.

[30:35] And that is where we're putting our hope, that we have been counted worthy to escape all these things. How are we counted worthy? Revelation 5, 11. And I beheld and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beast and the elders and the numbers of them was 10,000 times 10,000 and thousands of thousands saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, and glory, and blessing.

[31:01] Who is the worthy one? The Lamb. We are counted worthy because He is worthy. And notice there, that's Revelation 5 that comes before 7 when you have the slain ones who will stand in white robes.

[31:13] And how many is it? Ten thousands and thousands and thousands standing there saying, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain. Who has the position to stand there and say, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain? The ones He was slain for.

[31:24] The church. The church is in heaven. There is only one who is worthy to judge. There is only one who is worthy to rescue us from judgment. That's Jesus.

[31:35] He says, And I will kill her children with death. That sounds like a southern saying. Man, you're going to be killed with death. Nothing worse than being killed with death.

[31:47] Coming with life. What does that mean? Well, to kill is to slay. So that is the physical death. Like, you've been killed. But with death is with the power of death. There is nothing worse than being killed with death.

[31:58] The fruit of the false prophet leads to what? To death. Jesus says, Hey, this is the fruit. The children of the prophetess. Those who have followed her teaching. It leads to death.

[32:10] Jesus says in Matthew 10, 28, Fear not them which kill the body. Kill. But are not able to kill the soul. But rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

[32:22] Death. They will be killed. They will be slain with death. The problem is not dying. Our problem is not dying. The problem is death. Jesus died.

[32:33] We will die. But we will not enter into death because of his life. All must die. But not all must enter into death. Romans 14, verse 8 and 9.

[32:45] For whether we live, we live unto the Lord. Or whether we die, we die unto the Lord. Whether we live, therefore, or die, we are the Lord's. For to this end, Christ both died and rose and revived that he might be Lord both of the dead and the living.

[33:01] So all must die, but not all must enter into death. Even those who are alive and remain when Jesus returns and are caught up with him in the air, we'll be metamorphosized. Essentially, our bodies will go through a transition.

[33:15] Not death as we know it now, but we will all have to be changed. So we will all die in the sense that we will be changed, but we do not all need to enter into death. And then he says, and all the churches shall know that I am he which searches the reins and hearts and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

[33:32] God judges according to the heart. He says, I am he which searches the reins of the heart. But he rewards according to the outworking of the heart. And I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

[33:47] Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 3 beginning in verse 11, For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Christ. Okay, we all know there's only one way to come to God is through Christ.

[34:01] Now if any man build upon this foundation, oh wait, we're not just supposed to get saved and then just kick back and go to heaven, we're all good? Oh no, we're supposed to build. Jesus gave us some one, some five, some ten talents, money to invest.

[34:14] He's given us this life to invest. For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man's work shall be made manifest.

[34:28] For the day shall declare it because it shall be revealed by fire. Keep coming back to that fire, don't we? And the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide, which he's built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.

[34:42] If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved, yet so is by fire. It sounds so, but it has nothing to do with our salvation. It has nothing to do with our standing before Christ.

[34:54] It has to do with what we do with what we've been given by Christ. God judges according to the heart. Is our heart right with God by faith, but he rewards according to the outworking of that heart.

[35:06] So the work God has done in my heart, how do I, what do I do with that? I don't really want to get involved. I don't, I had too much, I had too much to do. I don't, I don't got time to be about eternal things.

[35:18] Okay. Well then God will judge according to that. It's easy to build with wood, hay, and stubble. It goes up fast. You try building a house out of diamonds, it's going to take a little while. Verse 22 from 24, but unto you, and notice the tense here, the change in, in who he's talking to.

[35:33] I will kill her children with death. I cast her into a bed, but unto you. So wait, he's writing to the church. Isn't everybody in the church a Christian? Isn't everybody part of the church, a believer?

[35:46] I don't know. Have you ever been to churches that don't have believers in them? Not this one, of course, but other churches, right? Of course. There is the church that is the body of Christ, and then there are the churches that he's writing to, these seven church entities that house the body of Christ but also have these other people.

[36:06] So here, when he switches now, he says, unto you, he's writing to the true church, unto you, I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, separated out from these. Yes, I see that you are tolerating this.

[36:18] I see that all this is permissible, but I also recognize that it is not about your salvation. And unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan as they speak, I will put upon you none other burden.

[36:34] So here's the exhortation of what they need to do. Doctrine matters. The difference between the truth of God and the depths of Satan was a matter of doctrine. It wasn't the flashy, you know, exciting, powerful things that the false prophets were doing.

[36:50] You know, it wasn't they were like melting people on the spot or, you know, growing people's legs or any of that. It was the doctrine. That was the depth of Satan. The difference between the truth of God and the depth of Satan was a matter of doctrine because doctrine matters.

[37:07] The doctrine we hold to determines our favor with God. The doctrine or the teaching we hold to determines our eternal destiny.

[37:19] The doctrine we hold to determines our temporal destiny as well. It says, hey, you hold to that doctrine? You're heading, I'm going to throw you in a bed of death. It determines our work and our reward, the doctrine we hold to.

[37:33] Church, don't follow after the false prophet. Don't follow Jezebel. Yes, your heart is judged. You're judged before God based on your faith. Man, don't squander the opportunities I've given you to build on that sure foundation.

[37:48] Don't lose your reward. The depths of Satan begins in the lie that God has withheld a deeper knowledge from us. There is something more that if only we could grasp it.

[37:59] That's what the false prophet says. The false prophet says, this isn't enough. You need what I have for you. And isn't that the lie in the beginning? What the serpent said to Eve? Yea, has God said, you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

[38:11] Did God say that? No, he didn't say that. He said, we can't eat of the trees or touch it lest we die. Satan says, got you now. You just added to God's word. I'm going to prove that you can touch it and not die.

[38:22] Eve reaches out and touches the fruit. She doesn't die. So she thinks, well, then I'm sure I can eat it too and won't die. God has lied to me. But what does he say here?

[38:35] I'm not going to read all that. Look down, scroll down and start in verse four. And the serpent said unto the woman, you shall not surely die for God does know that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened and you shall be as God's knowing good and evil.

[38:53] And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was pleasant to the eyes and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took the fruit thereof and did eat and gave also unto her husband with her and he did eat.

[39:05] The depths of Satan begins in the lie that God has withheld a deeper knowledge from us. That's where that false doctrine comes from. Why would we need any other doctrine unless I think perhaps there's something more to be known out there?

[39:20] Paul writes in Ephesians chapter one, beginning verse 16, I cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers that the God of our Lord, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him.

[39:35] The eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of his calling. Does God want us to know? Does he want our eyes open? Yes, he does. But not like Eve, not through the shortcut of the depths of Satan and the false doctrine of that lie, but through Jesus, our eyes are opened.

[39:52] That you may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him in his own right hand in heavenly places.

[40:09] God does want us to know. His desire is not to withhold knowledge. And as many as have now this doctrine and have not known the depths of Satan as they speak, I will then do what?

[40:22] Jesus says, I'll put upon you none other burden. Before we look at what that is, what is the idea here? The idea is that false prophets place burdens and God lifts them. Right? False prophets, they put a lot of burdens.

[40:34] Jesus does not put upon, but he lifts off the heavy burdens that the world, sin, and the enemy have placed on us. False prophet will always add burdens. Oh, I gotta do this. If I don't keep this, if I don't have my lucky rabbit's foot and my cross, then prophecy won't come true.

[40:48] Or if I don't go and have this person pray for me at the right time, Psalm 55, 22 says, cast your burden upon the Lord and he shall sustain you. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. Psalm 81, verse 6, the Lord is saying, I removed his shoulder from the burden.

[41:04] His hands were delivered from the pots. Speaking of what we're going through in Exodus, that he removed Israel's hands from the burdens. His hands were delivered from the pots in Egypt. And then Jesus, in Matthew 11, verse 28, come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, I'll give you rest.

[41:18] Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. For I am meek, lowly in heart, you shall find rest for your souls. For you won't have any yoke or burden. Now, is that what he says? No. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

[41:31] It's so opposite from the world. The world's yoke is hard. His burden is heavy. When we take upon us the things that God wants to be on us, instead of adding a weight, it lifts it.

[41:44] Verse 25, but that which you already have, yeah, but that which you have already, hold fast till I come. What is the burden?

[41:55] Jesus is saying, I'm not putting any other burden upon you, but that which you already have, hold fast till I come. The burden of the hope of Christ's return.

[42:07] Well, that's a burden. It is. It is a burden. We hold fast, how? By doctrine. Jesus says, hold fast. Well, how are we going to do that? We do it through doctrine, by what we believe, through exclusion and inclusion.

[42:21] What do we include? What do we exclude? Well, we determine that through doctrine. We exclude the doctrine of Jezebel, the false prophet. We include the doctrine of the Lord. The burden of the hope of Christ's return, it is not heavy.

[42:34] It's not a heavy load to carry. Jesus is coming back to take us home, but it is costly, especially in today's world, where even the church looks down on those who would put their hope in the return of the Savior.

[42:47] 2 Peter 3, beginning in verse 2. That you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior, the true prophets, knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, where is the promise of his coming?

[43:06] For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. There's a part of the church that thinks that this world is it, that Jesus is going to come and make a paradise on earth forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever, and nothing will ever change.

[43:19] But beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing. Though one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years is one day, the Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

[43:34] God is not slack concerning what promise? The promise that he's coming back. It is not a heavy burden, the hope of Christ's return. Jesus says, I'm not putting any other burdens on you. Just carry that one. But it is costly.

[43:47] And he that overcomes and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations. The promise to the overcomer. We know who the overcomer is, right? For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world.

[43:58] We've seen that in 1 John chapter 5. We've looked at it a few times. Who is he that overcomes the world? But he that believes that Jesus is the Son of God. That is the one that overcomes. He that overcomes and keeps, and here we have that phrase, my works.

[44:13] Well, what are Jesus' works? Well, they're specific. As Jesus says, I have a work for you, it's going to be specific. That's according to his nature. And we know it's according to his word, according to his doctrine.

[44:26] And then it requires our participation. Where he says, and he that overcomes and keeps my works unto the end. That's a choice if we're going to keep that or not. I will give him power over the nations and he shall rule with a rod of iron.

[44:40] Who will? Jesus is going to rule. We will. The one that overcomes rules with a rod of iron as the vessels of a potter shall be broken to shivers even as I received of my Father.

[44:50] What is he talking about? Authority, all authority, originates from one source. Originates with God. Originates with the Father. But true authority always enables.

[45:01] True authority never lords it over. True authority enables. And we see that with Jesus. Jesus says, I have been enabled by the authority of my Father. And then Jesus takes that authority and he enables his disciples.

[45:12] So he's essentially saying, you as well will take up the same authority I have and will rule the nations. True authority is for the sake of accountability.

[45:25] Where he says, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron. There shall be accountability because true authority always demands accountability. And I will give him the morning star. What is the morning star?

[45:36] Revelation 22, 16. I, Jesus, have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches and the root, the offspring of David and the bright and morning star. Jesus promises to the overcomer the full glory of his presence, nothing withheld.

[45:51] The full glory to the overcomer. I don't know if I can overcome. We just saw how to overcome. Remember? We overcome by the one who has overcome. Who is he that's overcome the world?

[46:02] That which is born of God, this is that which overcomes the world, our faith. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches.

[46:13] That phrase in every single one, pay attention. I think to Thyatira, he's saying, pay attention to whom it is you're paying attention to. Pay attention to that. Who are you paying attention to?

[46:24] Pay attention to that. Well, you know, I heard a really good teaching. Well, who is it by? Well, I'm, it seemed okay. You know? Well, that's fine. There's, you know, the problem with false prophets is they mix a little bit of truth.

[46:38] Problem with false doctrine is it has enough truth that it hooks, right? A lot of narcissism. A lot of like, it's all about you and fulfilling your dreams and sin's okay. And you're like, I don't know.

[46:49] Then they throw the gospel in. You're like, well, that resonated with me. So it must be a true teacher. Well, no, it's not. Pay attention to who it is we pay attention to. Who are these people? What are they?

[46:59] The problem is you can hear a really good message by a really off dude and you can then start listening to more of those messages. I like that. It resonated with me. Oh, wait. This guy, he's off in this area.

[47:12] He's got false doctrine over here. I'll just be really careful. Who we follow and what they say affects what we believe, whether we like it or not.

[47:22] It affects what we do and it affects how we will spend our eternity. No, we can't lose our salvation, but it can affect how we receive a reward for what we've done with our salvation. It doesn't matter how good something looks or how smooth something sounds.

[47:37] Doctrine matters because it's a matter of doctrine. Hear, for I will speak of excellent things, says the wisdom, the voice of wisdom in the Proverbs.

[47:52] And the opening of my lips shall be right things. Receive my instruction and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold. For whoso finds me finds life and shall obtain favor of the Lord.

[48:06] What we permit in our life is determined by what we believe. What we allow in our life is determined by what we believe. And what we believe is determined directly by who we follow.

[48:19] Who you follow will determine what you believe. And then what you believe will determine what you allow in your life. If we follow Jezebel, we listen to a Jezebel, she shapes what we believe.

[48:33] Well, there's idolatry, there's fornication, there's... I want to be that first part of Thyatira. Jesus says, man, I know your works. I don't want him to say, ah, but Jezebel.

[48:49] So let's be those who find life and hold tight to it. Father, thank you for this wonderful section of scripture, Lord, the church of Thyatira.

[49:00] And Lord, how wonderful to know that there's a remnant in every church, Lord, even in Laodicea when we get to them. And Lord, as bad as Laodicea is, I think being in a church where Jezebel is a teaching pastor, and we didn't even have time to go into all of where Paul lays out the authority structure in the church, that it is not for, it's not the place of a woman to teach or to be a pastor or hold that position.

[49:30] And it's not the place for a man either to lord it over anyone. Lord, it is your place to speak through the people that you have called according to the order that you have set up.

[49:40] That is how we're going to hear your voice, Lord. We're not going to hear your voice by reading the Koran because we think really well about it. We have to come to your word. And also, Lord, we're not going to have a thriving ministry and a church that's healthy and a body that's growing because, well, we want to do it our own way.

[50:00] Lord, we have to do it your way. And Lord, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6, all things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient.

[50:11] All things are lawful for me, but I'll not be brought under the power of any. All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient. All things are lawful, but all things do not edify.

[50:23] So, Lord, all things, in a sense, are permissible. Lord, we know that eating food sacrificed from an idol is just food. But, Lord, we also know that behind that is a belief system and a heart and a doctrine and a person we're following.

[50:41] So, Jesus, we want to put you first. We want to follow you. We want to hear your voice. We want you to shape our beliefs. And then out of that, Lord, we want to act in a way that will bear fruit for eternity. Purify this church, Lord.

[50:52] Look upon us with those eyes like fire. Look upon me, Lord, upon my heart. Lord. Lord, use those feet of brass, Lord, to stand firm in areas, Lord, that I wish you would waffle a little bit.

[51:04] Just cut me a little slack. Maybe I could compromise here. Stand firm there, Lord. The world has nothing to offer, Lord. It's empty in its vein. Thank you, Lord, for giving us the assurity of your word.

[51:14] We don't need a prophet. We have one. A prophet, priest, and king, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In his name we pray. Amen.