God’s Word for us this morning, in one sentence, is this:
“Instead of tolerating sin, hold on to Christ,
because those who are faithful to Christ will reign with Him.”
I saw a sign this last week that has intrigued me from the moment I saw it. You can see this sign as you enter the city of Middleton. It says this: “Are citizens practice tolerance and welcome diversity.”
When I first saw that I thought, “That’s nice. What a great thing to say.” But the more I thought about it, the more questions I had, especially in light of the message of God’s Word this morning.
Is Middleton tolerant of sex offenders? Does it practice tolerance with those convicted of DUI? Do the citizens of Middleton practice tolerance with drug dealers, robbers, and rapists?
I don’t mean to pick on Middleton, it’s a great place. But think about what it means to be tolerant. Are we, as Christians, to be tolerant? God’s Word tells us to not tolerate sin of any kind!
Is it intolerant to not tolerate sin? I can just hear it now: “You’re being intolerant. You’re preaching hatred. You are judgmental.”
Intolerance of sin is not hatred. Not tolerating sin is really a great expression of love. Do you tolerate your child running across a busy street? Do you tolerate your children playing with poison? No! Why? Because you love your children, right? You are intolerant when it comes to certain things you know are harmful to them. In the same way, God is intolerant of sin. And He expects His church to not tolerate sin either.
I hesitate to even mention this, based on what we’ve gone through as a church this last year, but when God’s Word draws the line on a sin and says it is wrong, that must be the same line we believers hold to as well.
God’s Word says that tolerating sin of any kind is wrong. But if you dare speak out against a sin, you are accused of being intolerant. You are accused of being “homophobic” for example. Listen, I am not homophobic. I’m hamartiaphobic. What’s that?
Well, it’s a word I made up. Hamartia is the Greek word for sin.
I am afraid of what sin can do.
I’m afraid of what sin can do in the life of an individual.
I’m afraid of what sin can do in the life of a church body.
Sin acts a lot like weeds in a garden. If they go unattended, they can overtake the entire garden and kill every plant in it.
Sin has the same affect on our lives.
We must take aggressive measures to remove the sin in our lives... ...so that we can be clean vessels,
...so that we can be used by God to accomplish His business.
But it is more than running from sin.
It is more than just not tolerating sin.
We are to passionately pursue the righteousness that God requires.
“There is a sense in which, as long as we are in the body, we can never stop running. If we stop running from what is evil, it will catch us. If we stop pursuing what is righteous, it will elude us.”
We are to passionately pursue God.
We are to passionately hold on to Christ.
I am afraid, yes. I am afraid of what sin can do in our lives and in our church today. I am also afraid of what Christ will do.
We all like to see Christ presented in the Gospels as a very loving, kind and caring Savior. He healed the sick, made the lame to walk and the blind to see. He’s a loving God. What would He do to us? That perspective of Christ does describe a true aspect of His character, but if that is the only view you have of Christ you are in for a big surprise. Look at how Christ is described in Revelation. Look at what Christ has to say about Himself as He views His church, the church in Thyatira in Revelation 2:18...
Turn in your Bibles and listen as I read Revelation 2:18.
This verse shows another side of Christ, doesn’t it? It shows Christ as a judge. We see from v. 18...
1. THE JUDGE DESCRIBED (v. 18)
This is not a very comforting picture is it?
Christ is not giving any words of comfort here.
When a church or an individual reaches such a high level of sinfulness that it tolerates sin in its life, Christ comes as judge, not comforter.
Notice that Jesus uses the title “Son of God” to describe Himself.
This means He is emphasizing His deity to the church.
Christ presents Himself as the Son of God, coming in judgment because of sin.
He is not the sympathetic Savior here. He is the righteous Judge!
Notice He describes Himself as having “eyes like blazing fire...”
Jesus sees through all the masks that we wear.
Jesus sees through all the disguises that we like to hide behind.
He can see all our pretenses and motives.
He gets right down to the heart and core of what we are doing and why we are doing it.
ILLUS: Nome, Alaska, on the edge of the Bering Sea, is like many villages of the Arctic. If you visit Nome in summer you’ll see front yards full of broken washing machines, junked cars, old toilets, scrap wood, and piles of non-degradable refuse. Tourists who visit Nome in the summer are amazed at the trash and can’t understand how anyone could live like that. What those visitors do not realize is that for 9 months of the year Nome sits under a blanket of snow that covers all the garbage. During those months, the little town is a pure white winter wonderland.
The eyes of God are a fire. The eyes of God are like the sun melting the snow away, exposing all the trash we tolerate in our lives. When we tolerate sin in our lives, Christ gets upset.
He is intolerant when it comes to sin.
And He does not tolerate a church that tolerates sin.
Hebrews 10:26-31 tells us what Christ thinks of sin...
Hebrews 10:26-31 (NIV) “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
This is a picture of the all knowing Christ.
He sees all. He knows all. And He is the righteous judge. He exposes us for what we really are.
Notice that Christ describes Himself also as having “feet like burnished bronze.” Bronze and brass are symbols of judgment. What Christ means by this is that when He sees sin, He will trample that sin under foot.
Christ, the Judge is described in v. 18. We see Him looking at His church with eyes of judgment, fully exposing it for what it is.
Wow! This evaluation isn’t going to be a picnic is it?
We see next in vv. 19-21...
2. THE CHURCH EXPOSED (vv. 19-21)
This morning we come to the 4th church that Jesus, the Lord of the church, is evaluating. It’s the church of Thyatira.
Before we look at the church exposed, let me give you a bit of background about the city of Thyatira...
Thyatira was an inland city in Asia Minor. It wasn’t nearly as large as Ephesus, Smyrna or Pergamum, that we’ve looked at so far. This was a blue collar city. This was a city known for its trade guilds. A trade guild in Thyatira looked after apprenticeships, licensing, enforcing standards, advertising, and assigning different jobs to the tradesmen.
In Thyatira, there were trade guilds that oversaw weavers, linen workers, clothing makers, dyers (Lydia, a convert to Christianity in Philippi, through the apostle Paul, was involved in the dying of purple. She was from Thyatira.). Other trade guilds included: leather-workers, tanners, potters, bakers, slave-traders, and metal smiths. Basically, if you were a tradesman in Thyatira, and didn’t belong to a trade guild, you didn’t work!
I give you that background because it will become important later on as we look at the church exposed.
As Christ exposes the church, He points out, first of all, the good news about the church...
• The Good News (v. 19)
I want to point out again the words “I know.” Jesus isn’t making some casual observation here. He’s not making a judgment without knowing all the facts (what we do too often, right?).
No, He knows. He knows what’s going on. You can’t fool God!
This reminds me of a problem a farmer was having with couples who were using his secluded, private property to “park.” He tried everything to try to keep these romantic couples off his land.
Until he got the idea to put up an illuminated sign. This sign was a picture of an eye, and underneath it were these words:
“God, You see all that I do.”
Guess what? From that point on, his land was left alone!
Well, let’s what the all-seeing, all-knowing Jesus sees when He exposes this church.
[Read v. 19]
These are some great words of encouragement and commendation.
Jesus was aware of what they had done to build the church.
He knew about the love they had one for another & for the Lord.
He knew that their faith was strong.
He knew that they worked hard.
He knew that they were a growing, thriving church...
He knew that they were working harder than they’ve ever worked.
Jesus compliments them on their hard work.
You get the impression that Jesus is telling them that the best days are ahead for the church.
And, you know what, that’s how I feel about OUR church.
There have been some good years in the over 100 year history of this church. I’m sure many of you have fond memories of the wonderful things that have happened in this church.
But I am convinced that our best days are ahead...
I am convinced that our best work...
our best victory...
and our best growth is in front of us!
What will it take to become that kind of church?
Jesus tells us...
hard work...
love...
faith...
service...
perseverance.
If we aren’t a church where there is
...hard work
...and love
...and faith
...and service
are cultivated.
If we aren’t a church that is willing to work even harder now than in days gone by...then maybe our best days ARE behind us.
May we be like the church in Thyatira at least in this area! What a great church, huh? Look at all the good things happening there.
That’s the good news. Now, however, Christ lowers the boom for the bad news... Look at vv. 20-21 for the bad news.
• The Bad News (vv. 20-21)
This church has a major problem. It has a SIN problem.
Sure, they had hard work, love, faith, service, and perseverance.
But they also had sin.
What is Christ so upset about here?
Answer: The church was tolerating sin.
How do we know that? We know that because Christ condemns the church for tolerating the woman Jezebel.
Well, who’s that?
We don’t know for sure, but probably a reference to a self-proclaimed prophetess who had the characteristics of the Jezebel in the Old Testament.
Remember her? What did she do? What was she like?
Let’s meet Jezebel:
She was the daughter of the pagan king of Sidon, in Phoenicia
She married Ahab, an Israelite king as part of a deal between Israel and cities on Israel’s western border as a way to protect Israel from war.
She introduced the worship of the false god Baal. This was a religion based on idol worship and sexual immorality.
She was responsible for killing many prophets of the Lord.
She tried to kill the prophet Elijah.
She ordered her neighbor Naboth killed, in order to take his farm. She continually urged her husband, Ahab to do evil.
She was an evil woman, no doubt.
Now, back to the Jezebel in Thyatira...She was influencing the Christians in the church there to tolerate sexual immorality and idolatry.
Here’s the tie in to the trade guilds:
In order to work in Thyatira, you had to be part of a trade guild. Trade guilds controlled the entire business community in Thyatira. So, Christians had to join a trade guild in order to work. Now, the meetings of the guilds were devoted to all kinds of sexual immorality that were connected to the worship of the erotic gods of the Greek world.
So, you see the problem that these Thyatiran Christians faced was that in order to make a living they had to belong to the trade guild. But to attend the guild meetings meant that they had to be involved in sexual immorality and idolatry. So the Christians in Thyatira were faced with a moral dilemma. And apparently, this “Jezebel” woman had begun to teach that it was all right for Christians to go along with the requirements of the guild, and submit to the pressures of pagan society, rather than remaining pure before God.
After all, you had to make a living, right? Today we would say, “Business is business.” In other words, if business practices conflict with your Christian principles, then your principles have to go – because you’ve got to make a living. That’s the line of reasoning the Christians in Thyatira were using.
Now I don’t want you to miss this point. I want you to understand the logic here. I don’t want you to miss what the Lord is saying to us this morning.
If people deliberately reject the Lord’s authority, He is no longer their God. The result? They’ve got to find another god.
That’s because it’s impossible for us to live without something to live for. And that’s what a god is...
Whatever you are living for...
...or whatever makes life worth living for...
...that becomes your god.
It may be the god of pleasure, or sexual immorality.
It may be the god of wealth.
It may be the god of power, or lust, or ambition, or comfort.
It may be the god of fame or recognition.
But don’t kid yourself. Whatever you’re living for, that’s your god.
And this is the sin of Thyatira.
And this is part of God’s message for us this morning.
Don’t tolerate sin! Because when you tolerate sin, you’re really following another god.
And Jesus Christ, the Lord of the church will not tolerate that! That’s why Christ moves next to a judgment. We see next...
3. THE SINNERS JUDGED (vv. 22-23)
3 judgments are given here:
1. Jezebel (v. 22a)
Jesus says, “I will cast her on a bed of suffering.”
This is a statement full of irony and sarcasm. Jesus is saying, in effect, “O.K., you like your bed for sexual pleasure? I’ll give you a bed – it’ll be a bed of pain and suffering.”
We don’t know exactly what that was, but it was probably similar the judgment given to the next group.
2. Those who listen to Jezebel (v. 22b)
This group actually practices sexual immorality and idolatry with the trade guilds. The suffering that Jesus refers to, very likely had to do with sexual diseases.
Think about it. What generally accompanies sexual immorality? Some form of sexually transmitted disease, right?
Gonorrhea and syphilis were well known diseases and wide-spread diseases even then. Add to that you have the disease of AIDS today, which results largely from sexual immorality.
Can you even imagine the kind of suffering resulting from sexual immorality?
Finally, there is the third group...
3. Those who follow Jezebel (v. 23)
The term “children” here represents those who not only practice immorality but who teach it as well. Just like Jezebel was doing. The “death” that Jesus talks about is what the letter to the church at Pergamum called “the second death.” Remember what that referred to? They are not only dead spiritually, they will die a “second death.” This is mentioned in the end of Revelation and is described as the “lake of fire.”
This 3rd group of people are in the church, but have never really had a relationship with Christ. They are in the church to make trouble and lead others astray from the living God.
But I want you to notice something at the end of v. 22...
“...unless they repent...”
Isn’t that great? This is the great thing about our Lord Jesus.
Yes, He is God and pronounces judgment on sin.
Yes, He can bring about terrible consequences to a person because of their sin.
But Jesus always gives the opportunity for repentance.
Stop the sin. And start in the opposite direction by entering into a relationship with Him. That puts you on the road that will save you from the judgment.
Having seen the Judge described, the church exposed, and the sinners judged, Christ now turns to the faithful ones in the church. We see...
4. THE FAITHFUL ENCOURAGED (vv. 24-29)
Before we get to the 2 promises to the faithful ones, there are some encouraging words that Christ gives... it’s found in v. 25...
Jesus tells us, “...hold on to what you have...”
In other words...
–Don’t let go of God’s authority in your life!
–Don’t accept degrading moral standards!
–Don’t go along with sexual immorality!
–Don’t accept the idea that sexual lust is just a natural part of being a human. Don’t fall for it!
–Don’t accept the idea that adultery is only a minor sin!
–Don’t replace the God who proved His love for you by dying on the cross for you, for any other god of any kind!
This is not a half-hearted holding on!
No! We are to hold on with all our might!
Hold on to Jesus! Hold on to Jesus! Hold on to Jesus!
Instead of tolerating sin...Hold on to Jesus! Hold on to Jesus!
If you hold on to Jesus, if you remain faithful to Him, 2 promises are given to you....
• Rule with Christ (vv. 26-27)
Verse 27 is a quote from Psalm 2.
This is a promise to rule with Christ when He returns to set up His kingdom. This is what is called the “millennium.”
Christ will rule and reign for 1,000 years, and we will rule with Him. This isn’t the new heaven and new earth at the end of time, but a 1,000 year period that the Bible teaches will take place before that new heaven and new earth are set up.
Imagine! We will rule and reign with Christ! What a promise!
But it’s only given to those who hold on...to those who are faithful.
The 2nd promise is in v. 28...
• Receive Christ (v. 28)
Why do I say that it’s a promise to “receive Christ” when the promise is that Christ will give us the “morning star”?
Who, or what, is the “morning star?” Revelation 22:16 tells us who this "morning star" is... “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
The “morning star” is Jesus Christ! He will be yours and mine! Although we have received Christ, and He is ours and we are His, we will not experience the fullness of what that means until we see Him face to face. Won’t that be something? Amen!
And just in case you think this only relates to the church in Thyatira and is not for you, let me remind you of what Christ says at the end of each of these letters. Look at v. 29...
You have ears, right? Then listen to what God is saying to you.
I hope you get the message. It is this:
Don’t tolerate sin of any kind!
Don’t follow anything or anyone else, other than Jesus Christ. Hold on to Him!
Hold on!
Remain faithful to Him!
If you do, you will rule and reign with Him!
You can’t follow Jesus on your own terms!
Our God is a jealous God!
And He will not share His rule in your life with anyone or anything else!
