Keep these words at the top of your list as you read this article! “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)
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Revelation is the only book in the bible that offers a blessing to those who read and understand its pages. “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” (Rev 1:3)
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Revelation is the ancient Greek word apokalupsis (apocalypse). The word simply means “a revealing, an unveiling.”. It is important to note that Revelation is singular and is NOT the Revelation of John but rather the unveiling of Jesus Christ.
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Revelation 2:18-29
”And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass; I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first. Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. 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. And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. But 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 ye have already hold fast till I come. And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.”
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Thyatira
The Middle Ages- Corrupt Church
Thyatira represents the church between the 7th and 17 centuries. This was called the ‘Middle Ages or Medieval Years. During these years the Roman Catholic Church became infected with the Babylonian paganism that was surfacing the earth. Even today we see those bits and pieces of pagan practices (i.e. The rod of Ascelepius of Pergamos)
The city of Thyatira was the smallest and least important of all the seven cities addressed Revelation chapters 2 sand 3. there is very little in history about this city including the fact that she apparently did not suffer any type of persecution, be it political or religious. Even though the city was deemed unimportant, she did have many features that were uniquely hers. The city had many, many gods, both Greek and Roman from each type of Labor Unions (Trade Guilds).
“From the inscriptions which have been found in the neighborhood it is clear that Thyatira possessed more trade guilds than any other town of its size in Asia.” (Barclay)
“No merchant or trader could hope to prosper or make money unless he was a member of his trade guild.” (Barclay)
We find in Acts 16:14-15..the first convert to Christianity in Europe..”And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.” Purple (scarlet)dye and cloth gives us some insight about the church at Thyatira and the future church period it will represent.
“Thyatira was famous for the manufacture of a purple dye, and numerous references are found in secular literature of the period to the trade guilds which manufactured cloth.” (Walvoord)
Thyatira was located between Istanbul (Constantinople) and Izmir (Smyrna) near the township of Akhisar. Paul traveled the roads that interconnected Thyatira to Pergamos, Sardis and Smyrna during his missionary journeys.
“It was an old town that had gone through several name changes. Originally it was the Lydian town of Pelopia. It then became Semiramis then Euhippia.” (Missler)
The name Semiramis, otherwise know as the Astarte, “the Queen of Heaven” was the consort of Nimrod, the King of ancient Babylon. She was also the mother of Tammuz. Mother Goddess worship started here and has persisted throughout the ages. If you remember the story of Elijah at mount Carmel and the four hundred prophets of Asherah in 1 Kings 18, then you are reading about as Canaanite goddess whose past name was Semiramis.
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The Seven parts of the Thyatira Letter
1. Name:
“Unto the angel of the church of Thyatira (the Corrupt Church) write;” The letter may be to the Pastor or an Angel of God protecting the church but as with all seven letters, it is written to the entire church congregation including those that will read this letter today
2. Title: A title chosen from the seven titles found in Rev 1:14-15.
“These things saith the Son of God,”.. In Jewish language, to be a son is to have the nature of the parent. This is represented in scripture, Isa 53:3 and Mark 3:17. Thus Jesus would have the nature of GOD!
“who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire,“..As fire brings cleansing and judgment so do His eyes.
"and his feet are like fine brass;” Brass was the only metal alloy in ancient times that could hold fire within. Again this Levitical symbol speaks of cleansing and judgment.
3. Commendations about the condition of the Church:
“ I know thy works,” Like all other cities and churches, they could hide nothing from Jesus. So it is with the Church at Thyatira
“and charity(love), and service,”..Jesus knew about the enormous charity and service to other this church did and has done throughout the ages. I
“and faith, and thy patience,” ..Overall, they, the church continues to have faith and patience for the Lord and for one another.
"and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.” In fact, the Catholic Church good works; charity, service, faith and patience is much greater today than in ages past.
4. Concerns:
“Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee,”..How many of you readers have had a job evaluation where the boss gives you your good points and then says” Nevertheless”. This is what Jesus is telling the Church at Thyatira….”Notwithstanding” There are significant problems.
“because thou sufferest (allow) that woman Jezebel,(wife of King Ahab)”..Here Jesus refers to 1 Kings 16-21, 2 Kings 9:30-37, the woman named Jezebel, one of the most evil characters in the Bible who attempted to marry the ‘worship of Israel’s God’ with the ‘worship of the idol Baal’. In 378 AD the Bishop of Rome married the church with the state thereby bringing paganism into the Roman Catholic Church that has never been removed..3
“which
calleth herself a prophetess,”..Jezebel
was not a prophetess but rather claimed to be one. Within the Church
of Thyatira many parishioners believed and received her as a
prophetess. Today, there are millions that fall unto this line of
thinking.
“to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication,and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.”..Not only does Jesus call her out but also provides us with her specific offenses against him and the Church.
“she was an immoral and ungodly influence on others, and led others into sin. Jezebel led others into immorality and idolatry.” (Guzik)
Notice “my servants”. These are servants of Jesus and He will not forget judgment in this case. For in Mark 9:42..”And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.”
”And I gave her space (time) to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. “..Jesus shows us his patience and mercy when He gave her (the church) time to repent (turn away from sin) However as the next part explains, his patience does not last forever.
5. Recommendation/warnings:(if any)
“Behold, I will cast her into a bed , and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.”.. A “sickbed”, a “bed of tribulations”, a space where Jezebel and all that follow here will be gathered together for judgment. Yet, Jesus after all of this, still reminds them of their salvation if they repent of their sins.
“And I will kill her (Jezebel) children (believers) with death;”.. A warning, a very explicit and terrible warning of what will happen to those follow Jezebel will face as their judgment.
“All men die, but all are not killed with death... Oh, it is a woeful thing to be killed with death.” (Trapp)
“and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.”..Speaking to all Seven churches of that day and to all churches in the future 96 AD., Jesus tells us, they, (parishioners) will realize that Jesus know all about their sins and will hand out judgment accordingly,
“But 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 ye have already hold fast till I come.”...Jesus speaking to the others in the church who hold fast to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Yes, He will know who you are for you cannot hide from the mind of GOD! Simply “Hold Fast” to your beliefs in Jesus Christ.
6. To the Overcomer: “ And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:”..Jesus promises those who continue to believe in Him, they will be kings and priest over nations of the earth. (Rev 5:8-10).
"And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers:" ..During the millennium, Jesus will rule with a iron fist yet, distribute justice for all. Those who do not believe will be dealt with solidly and immediately.
“even as I received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star”..What a wonderful gift to those that believe other than Jesus Christ himself. For He is the morning Star and where He is, We shall be!
7. Declaration/Command: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.”..Jesus Christ is speaking to every one of us...Anyone who has an Ear..It is very Personal! LISTEN to what the Holy Spirit says to the church. Here is a glimpse at the Trinity, as Jesus is dictating the letter word for word to John yet, we are told the Holy Spirit is the one speaking to the churches. How many hear what Jesus is telling us in this letter to a somewhat faithful church.
( ) Emphasis Added
A commentary on “to the overcomer”
The three churches mentioned, Ephesus, Symrna and Pergamos had the phrase “to the overcomer” placed outside of their letter’s body, after “He that hath an ear”.
Ehesus = “to eat of the tree of life”
Smyrna = “shall not be hurt of the second death”
Pergamos = “ eat of the hidden manna”, ‘given a White Stone’
In this letter and in all the remaining four letters the “To the Overcomer” section is place within the body of the letter. WHY?
The churches at Ephesus, Symrna and Pergamos are only archaeological sites today. All the remain four churches represent those churches that are still active. In addition, these remaining churches have within this section, a mention of Heaven and the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ. (Example: While Thyatira represented the Catholic Church from around 378AD to the sixteenth century, this church still affects mankind today and beyond.)
This is my belief and I ask you to follow Acts 17:11 in that you can know what God has directly said to you.
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*The next post will be about the Church of Sardis, Rev 3: 1-6. I urge you to read all of chapters 2 and 3 and then try to outline each church. There are some surprises in store for you there.
“to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” (Rev 1:6)
The
Authorized King James Edition (1611, 1769) was used exclusively as
other versions are somewhat different depending upon the year of
their printing.
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” (2Ti 3:16)
(Note:
we have placed
all scripture in RED
for your convenience)
God
is considered the author of all 66 books through 40 writers including
those of Psalm 2 by the author of this blog.
Because
none of us know
when
our eternity
will begin and our time on this earth is at an end;
it is paramount that you know exactly where
you are in your walk with Jesus Christ.
Since your justification/salvation
is
not determined by the church you attend, the amount of good work you
do,
your
status in society,
etc.;
I
urge you to make sure of your personal
relationship
with Jesus Christ in the privacy of your own mind, your own time.
Don’t put it off, Time is Short and there are no second chances after death!
1
Cor 15:1-4.."Moreover,
brethren, I
declare unto you the gospel
which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein
ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I
preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered
unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ
died for our sins according
to the scriptures;
And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day
according
to the scriptures:"
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We welcome your comments, suggestions and questions.
Please -- keep them precise and clean!
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References:
1. The seven Letters to the Seven Churches, by Chuck Missler, Historical Church Identity, p750
2. Rod of Asclepius - Wikipedia
3. The Seven Letters to the Seven Churches, by Chuck Missler,
4. The Woman Rides the Beast, Dave Hunt
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Sources:
1.
Treasury of Scripture
Knowledge
2. Blue Letter Bible
3. The King James Edition
4. Koinonia Haouse
5. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
6. The Woman Rides the Beast, Dave Hunt
