Mail Call: Thyatira Series

Church at Thyatira

Revelation 2:18-29

March 12, 2023

This mornings message was rewritten on Friday morning, because God led me in a very different direction than where I was headed. It’s really a God thing. So, here we go!

When we were in Dearborn, Michigan and I was pastoring that church, there were a lot of issues. The church was dwindling and needed to change. I came there and we dramatically changed the way we did a lot of things in the church. But there was a lingering problem. It was the people.

You see, this church lived in conflict. It was as if they thrived on conflict. It was not formed that way, it was once a thriving, landmark church. But somehow, somewhere, conflict crept in. It wasn’t intentional, it wasn’t planned . . . Nobody ever thought, ‘hmm, I think it would be so much fun to bring conflict to the church, but it happened.

Meetings, meetings and more more meetings were held. Ground rules had to be posted. To be honest, it really wasn’t much fun. Many of the people believed they could offer their opinion in a very loud and confrontational manner. You could raise your voice and tell someone they were very wrong about something, and in not so nice a way. Then, they believed they could go out for a meal together. It was all part of their culture. It didn’t help that the church was filled with a lot of Ford and Chrysler executives. We had a board room which had to cost upwards of $30,000. So, the way of the world crept into the church.

I’m telling you this story because I believe it was very similar in many respects to what was happening to the church in Thyatira. As we’re looking at the churches in Revelation, 7 churches who received a letter from John. Today, we’re looking at the 4th church, located in Asia Minor, or present day Turkey.

Thyatira was small and not as famous as the other cities we’ve looked at. Thyatira was known for its trade guilds or unions. There were trade unions for carpenters, bronze workers, cobblers, potters, tanners, weavers, tent makers, and more. It was located on a major trade route which helped its economy.

If you were a potter or metalworker, you joined a trade union that met at the local pagan temple. Along with the regular trade business came idol worship, drunkenness, and a great deal of sexual perversion. It was a package deal. You couldn’t say, “I want to be in this trade union, but I’ll skip the idol worship.” That wouldn’t go in Thyatira.

Thyatira received the longest letter from the Lord. It’s a reminder that all churches, large and small, are important to Christ. Nobody can say, my church is too small, so Jesus doesn’t care about us.

The letter begins with a description of Jesus ---

18 These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze.

God is telling the church, that God sees all things and overlooks nothing. You know what it’s like when someone’s staring a hole through you, well, that’s the image John wants the church to get. Jesus sees all that’s going on. His feet were like burnished bronze, describes his power and strength to execute judgement. The trade workers would have fully understood the power of Christ through this imagery. Jesus is speaking their language.

Jesus is letting the people of Thyatira know, listen to me, now!

First, we start with the praise. On the surface, it sounds like an amazing church.

Jesus said - - - 19 I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed your first.

It sounds like they were rocking it. Jesus is telling the church - - - He’s proud of them, they’re growing in who He’s called them to be. A group of faithful, powerful, courageous believers in Christ who are growing in faith and service.

Think about it - - - their works and love and faith and service and patient endurance were evident . . . . . and they were getting better at it.

It’s very powerful praise from Jesus to the church. They were growing spiritually and this was evident in the work they were doing. They were loving one another, caring for one another, they were helping, and at the same time, they were persevering through persecution and hardship. Great praise from Jesus!!

BUT . . . there was something else going on in the church. And it wasn’t good. Somehow in the midst of their growth they allowed an ungodly woman to rise to a place of enormous spiritual influence. John wrote - - - -