To Thyatira

Thank you very much, Jamie and the band.

And welcome, everyone.

Let me add to Graham's welcome this morning.

It's great to have you here.

Why don't we pray?

Father God, as we approach your word,

will you open our hearts and minds

to what you have to say to us?

And Lord Jesus, as we think of you

as the speaker to this church so long ago,

will you give us a bigger view of who you are, Jesus?

And let us listen to your voice to us today.

Amen.

So as Graham mentioned,

we're continuing to look at these letters to the churches.

You've got mail, we're halfway through,

and we're looking at the message to the church in Thyatira.

You'll find it in Revelation chapter 2 and verses 18 to 29.

Revelation 2 · chapter mention

And if you can get hold of a Bible,

please get hold of one or see it on your phone or whatever.

Revelation 2, 18 to 29.

Let's read it together now.

To the angel of the church in Thyatira write,

these are the words of the Son of God,

whose eyes are like blazing fire

and whose feet are like burnished bronze.

I know your deeds,

your love and faith,

your service and perseverance,

and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

Nevertheless, I have this against you.

You tolerate that woman Jezebel,

who calls herself a prophet.

By her teaching,

she misleads my servants into sexual immorality

and the eating of food sacrificed to idols.

I have given her time to repent of her immorality,

but she is unwilling.

So I will cast her on a bed of suffering,

and I will make those who commit adultery with her

suffer intensely unless they repent of her ways.

I will strike her children dead.

Then all the churches will know

that I am he who searches hearts and minds,

and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira,

to you who do not hold to her teaching

and have not learned Satan's so-called deep secrets,

I will not impose any other burden on you

except to hold on to what you have until I come.

To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end,

I will give authority over the nations.

That one will rule them with an iron scepter

and will dash them to pieces like pottery,

just as I have received authority from my Father.

I will also give that one the morning star.

Whoever has ears,

let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

And it's been my prayer as I've read and prepared for this over recent days

that quite simply God would have something to say to each of us.

And that as that passage finishes by saying those who have ears,

let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

So we would be discerning of what God

and God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit

have to say to us this morning as individuals,

perhaps as families and also as a church today.

My title for Thyatira is that Thyatira is both committed and compromised.

I wonder if it seems often that we would have to either be one or the other.

And so either you'd be expecting to be hearing about those who are fully committed

or those who are in some ways at compromise,

those who are no longer following Jesus.

But Thyatira is an interesting church

because it seems that they are both committed to following Jesus,

but they are also living in a way which for many of them amounts to compromise.

And so that's my challenge.

It's been a challenge to my own heart this week

about whether it's quite possible for me as an individual

and for us as a church not to desert the faith.

That's not what this church had done.

They were still carrying on.

And at least superficially and externally,

they appeared utterly committed.

But yet the Spirit, Lord Jesus himself,

speaks to that church and says,

I commend you for your commitment,

but I look and I also see real compromise.

So we want to get into that.

And in three very simple sections,

I want to look first of all at the speaker

because I think it's important that we try to understand more

about who is speaking to this church

and how he describes himself.

I want to look at their situation

and I want to look at the solution to that situation.

So first of all, the speaker here.

And my question as I've reflected on the speaker

is whether my view of Jesus is far too small.

And it's my question of you today as well.

As you look at Revelation chapter 2

Revelation 2 · chapter mention

and look at this and look at how the speaker,

Jesus himself, describes himself.

I wonder if we've made our view of Jesus far too small.

Let's look back to chapter 1 so we get the context.

Chapter 1, we also have a revelation of Jesus.

Verse 5, Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness,

the firstborn from the dead

and the ruler of the kings of the earth,

to him who loves us

and has freed us from our sins by his blood

and has made us to be a kingdom and priest

to serve his God and Father,

to him be glory and power forever and ever.

Amen.

So there's that revelation of Jesus

as he's described as the faithful witness,

the firstborn from the dead,

the ruler of the kings of the earth,

and crucially as he's described as him who loves us

and has freed us from our sins by his blood.

I want us to take a few minutes

to recapture perhaps for some of us

a real picture of who Jesus is

as the speaker here this morning.

He is the one who loves us

and if we're following him,

he is the one who has freed us from our sins

by his blood.

But specifically, what aspects of his person

does he emphasize to the church at Thyatira?

Well, look at chapter 2, verse 18.

He says,

The words of the Son of God,

whose eyes are like blazing fire.

So we hear about his eyes,

whose feet are like burnished bronze.

Still in verse 18.

Verse 19,

I know your deeds,

your love and faith,

your service and perseverance.

So we know about his,

we hear about his mind,

his knowledge,

not only his eyes,

not only his feet,

but also his knowledge,

his mind.

I know your deeds.

And then we hear more about who he is

and what he's doing.

And when we look on to verse 23,

where he says,

I am he who searches hearts and minds.

So something there about his eyes,

something about his feet,

something about his mind,

and something about his activity

as he searches hearts and minds.

I wonder if we've grasped

and continue to grasp

that Jesus sees us,

knows us,

he sees us,

he knows us.

Do we,

it seems such a basic truth,

doesn't it?

It's,

and maybe,

maybe you've got a greater awareness of it

than I have,

but I've just reminded myself

as I've looked at this passage time and again,

Jesus,

you're the one who sees me

and who knows me.

I wonder if we look at our own limited vision

and our own eyes

and how little we can see.

Most of us can see around

everybody who's in the room,

but we certainly can't see what's going on

in the houses across the road even.

And our vision is so,

so limited as human beings

that does that in some way

cause us to have a limited sense

of what it means

when Jesus says,

I see you

and I know you.

Have some of you been to see

the great new film,

Finding Dory,

yet?

I'm not seeing a sea of hands.

Some of you have been,

I'm glad to see,

one or two of you have been to Finding Dory.

Well,

I apologise if any of you

are marine scientists here today.

I'm not,

but I learned something

about the ability of whales

from watching the film,

Finding Dory,

because it tells us

quite a bit about echolocation

and the fact that whales

have got skills

to sense what is going on,

potentially miles away in the ocean,

much greater skills

than we would have on earth

or if we were in the sea.

And according to Finding Dory,

and I'm sure the very accurate science

portrayed therein,

those whales can detect

even the slightest movement

miles away in the ocean,

thanks to that great ability

they have of echolocation.

Or think about eyes

of some of the animals.

Think about the eyes of a hawk,

which I understand

flying at 1,500 feet

could detect a rat or a mouse

down on the ground

and could swoop down

at 100 miles an hour,

maintaining its focus

on that rat the whole way

in order to grasp it

and have it for supper.

So even in the animal kingdom,

there are animals,

creatures of our God

which have got abilities

to see and to sense

way, way, way greater

than ours can ever be.

And why is it then

that I suppose we sometimes

have got such a limited,

narrow view of Jesus,

somehow or other,

making him in our own image

and thinking that we can live life

in some ways away from his gates?

Because I suspect

if you're anything like me,

that's how we sometimes

seem to act.

Jesus says,

he sees us

and he knows us.

Of course,

our knowledge

and our sight

is so imperfect,

not just physically,

but in terms of our ability

to discern

what is right,

in terms of our ability

to work out

how we should live,

in terms of our ability

to make good judgments.

We read about that

in 1 Corinthians chapter 13

1 Corinthians 13 · chapter mention

where we read that

now we see

only a reflection

as in a mirror,

then we shall see

face to face.

Now I know

only in part,

then I shall know fully

even as I am fully known.

And perhaps this morning

we can come to Jesus

and can acknowledge

his perfect sight

and perfect knowledge

and acknowledge

our great imperfections

and therefore

our utter dependence

on him

for him to guide us,

for him to lead us,

for him to show us

how to live.

I've been particularly struck

by the need for that

as I've done a bit of reading

this week

into the views of

those who claim

to follow Jesus

in America

and who are pronouncing

somewhat diametrically

opposed views

on who

the US

country,

the country of US

should vote for

come the US election.

Isn't it remarkable

that you can read

impassioned,

in some ways

well argued

and thought out

arguments

from Christians

as to why

it's absolutely

essential

that you vote

for Trump

or why voting

for Trump

would be an

absolutely heretical

thing to do

and certainly

I've read both of them

and thought

yep you've got some

quite strong arguments

both ways.

I'm happy to discuss

later which ones

I found the most compelling

but certainly

it's just brought home

to me again

our incredibly

limited sight,

our incredibly

limited vision

and I trust

causes us

to turn all the more

to Jesus

as the only one

who sees

and knows

and searches

our hearts

and minds.

Will we invite him

this morning

to say Jesus

I'm glad that you see me

I'm glad that you know me

I'm glad that despite

all that you see

you love me

I'm glad

that you have

freed me

and forgive me

from my sins

through your blood

and I invite you now

to search me

to know me

to try me

and see

and to work

in my life

and to conform me

more to your image.

I pray that that might

be our attitude

to the great Lord

Jesus Christ

this morning.

So he sees

he knows

and he looks at this

church in Thyatira

with his eyes

of blazing fire

with his feet

of burnished bronze

speaking I think

of his strength

and his control

and says

I've got some really

some really great words

of commendation

for you

I know your deeds

your love

your faith

your service

your perseverance

and that you're doing

more than you did

at first

those hearing it

must have been thinking

this is fantastic

Jesus is looking at us

with his perfect vision

and he's seeing

all of this great stuff

that we're doing

now Jesus is seeing us

today as well

and I'm sure

as he looks down

on this

gathering of

followers of Jesus

all in different

situations

he looks

and maybe

for some

the word

to you

today

is simply

that Jesus

sees

your perseverance

maybe it's just

that Jesus

sees the fact

that you're still

clinging on

and he wants

to commend you

for still

hanging on

I see

your perseverance

I see the difficulties

that you've been

subjected to

I know

intimately

all about the

difficulties

of your

family life

about all

that's going

on in your

work

about all

that's going

on in your

own heart

about your

ill health

about financial

worries

and you're

persevering

you've chosen

to come here

today

once again

to meet

with God's

people

you're not

giving up

you're

hanging on

I see it

and I commend

you for your

perseverance

take that word

of encouragement

if that's for you

this morning

maybe for others

you've done

more than

persevere

maybe your

life this week

has been full

of deeds

love

faith

and service

in which case

Jesus sees it

and he knows it

maybe some of you

are gearing up

for a busy

busy week

with the holiday

club at Brunsfield

and again a word

of encouragement

for you

Jesus sees

what you're doing

he sees

and appreciates

your love

your faith

your deeds

and your perseverance

and he assures you

this morning

no matter what may

happen

no matter what

physical

or immediate

results you may

see from that

holiday club

he assures you

through his word

1 Corinthians 15

58

let nothing

move you

give yourselves

fully to the work

of the Lord

because your labour

in the Lord

is not

in vain

it's never in vain

it's never wasted

you're never laboring

for the Lord

for no reward

or for no reason

it's not

in vain

so folks

those of you

the great team

that will be

assembling this week

throw yourselves

wholeheartedly

into that work

not serving the kids

first and foremost

but serving the Lord

knowing

knowing for sure

that it is not

in vain

so that's the situation

that we see

in Thyatira

but of course

there is a very big

but coming

in terms of what

Jesus sees

and verse 20

says

nevertheless I have

this against you

you tolerate

that woman

Jezebel

who is not

leading

she is

misleading

and we see here

a real challenge

about those who are

not leading

effectively

but who are

misleading

so what's going on

here

what's going on

in this church

at face value

all that we're told

is that a woman

Jezebel

has come into the church

she's calling herself

a prophet

and she's misleading

servants

into sexual immorality

and the eating of food

sacrificed to idols

she's been given

time to repent

she's unwilling

and she's about to be

cast on a bed of suffering

and those committing

adultery with her

are also going to

suffer intensely

we need to understand

a little bit more

about the context

I think

to fully

get to grips

with what's going on

here

so first of all

Jezebel

rings bells

I'm sure

for many

Jezebel

was the wife

of Ahab

we read about her

in 1 Kings

one of the most

wicked women

who had ever lived

and she was a woman

who not only

terrorised the prophet

Elijah

you remember

after his great victory

in Mount Carmel

Jezebel was the one

who got a message

to Elijah

to say

I'm going to have you dead

and we saw Elijah

running for his life

a trembling wreck

thanks to the power

and fear

that Jezebel

could conjure up

but particularly

interestingly

is that Jezebel

it seems

from what we read

in 1 Kings

didn't necessarily

say to the Jews

you must stop

worshipping your God

no no

it's okay

you can continue

worshipping your God

but also

here's a whole heap

of idols

the prophets

the Baals

you should worship

them too

and so she introduced

idolatrous

worshipping

worshipping practices

to the people of God

and we read about

the hundreds of Baals

and idols

that she introduced

and so I'm not sure

there necessarily was

a literal Jezebel

maybe that was

or was not

the name of those

who were misleading

the people in Thyatira

it doesn't really matter

but I think we're being

encouraged

to think back

to the characteristics

of that woman Jezebel

who has come along

and has done similar things

to this church in Thyatira

what was their situation

well they were in a town

which we don't know

an awful lot about

but we do know

that they had lots

and lots of trades

do you remember

the story of Lydia

Lydia the seller of purple

well she was from Thyatira

so Lydia was a woman

incidentally

who could hardly stand

in sharper contrast

to Jezebel

if you want to do

a wee character study

between the two

but Lydia was the seller

of purple

who had come from Thyatira

so her trade was in cloth

and in dyeing cloths

and equally we understand

there were people

who dealt in copper

in bronze

in other fabrics

in leather

and in that town

in order to succeed

in business

it seems as though

you had to be part

of some of the very

powerful trade guilds

effectively the unions

for the particular

types of employment

that you were dealing with

and associated with

those unions

was a whole lifestyle

it wasn't that

you just had to

be there to try

and purely help

with the trading

of those goods

but rather it was

a whole lifestyle thing

and there were all sorts

of rituals

there does seem

as though

within those unions

there would be

all sorts of

deviant sexual practices

going on

and indeed

there would be

idolatrous worship

and the eating of foods

offered to these idols

and the Christians

in that church

had heard clearly

the word of God

as it had been brought

to them

and they'd heard

clearly the instructions

that they were not

under a whole heap

of rules and regulations

as followers of Jesus

if you look back

to some of the

book of Acts

and the instructions

that were given

to the church

we don't have time

to look at them

in detail

but those instructions

were saying

you know you don't

have to be

those of you

who are not Jews

and are now Gentiles

you don't have to be

circumcised

not all about

following the law

you're under grace

it's all about

just following Jesus

but there are some

instructions that we've

got for you

avoid sexual immorality

and avoid the food

that's been offered

to idols

that was very inconvenient

for these Christians

in Thyatira

because it meant

that they couldn't

really be part

of the trade guilds

it was potentially

going to have an impact

on their livelihood

it was potentially

going to have an impact

on their income

and so along comes

this Jezebel

or the Jezebel

and says to them

no no no no

that's far too strict

you've been drawing

up the rules

far too tightly here

of course you should

be worshipping Jesus

and of course

I'm one of you

and I also am a follower

of Jesus

but it's absolutely

fine to be

worshipping Jesus

and in fact

work hard

serve others

in the church

be involved

but at the same time

you can be part

of the trade guilds

and Jesus won't mind

if you participate

in those rituals

because you're free

you're free

you're not under law

so no no

don't describe

that as

idolatry

or immorality

it's absolutely

fine

and some of them

some of the people

in that church

had followed

Jezebel's teachings

they hadn't departed

from the faith

but they had

compromised

they were committed

and compromised

they'd got back

involved

in all of

the immorality

the sexual immorality

and idolatry

of their past life

they thought

they could worship

God

and follow Jesus

and continue

to live

as they liked

and the solemn thing

is maybe for many

of them

they've been doing

that for quite a while

and it didn't seem

to be a problem

maybe for some of them

they've been living

that way for years

and years

and years

and they've grown

increasingly confident

that it was

absolutely fine

to follow Jesus

and live as you like

and then

the eyes

of him

who had been

seeing them

all the time

he reminds them

that he's been

watching them

he's been seeing

and knowing

he's been urging

them to turn

from this

he's been urging

them to repent

and many of them

have been refusing

to do so

and now

he's going to come

to them

in punishment

and so how are we

going to apply

this ourselves

because we know

that we don't just

read God's word

simply to be informed

but for our lives

and hearts

to be moved

and changed

and as I've thought

long and hard

about what the

application of this

is for my life

and potentially

for our church

I've got three things

to offer you

this morning

three risks

that I think

we can get into

that might arise

and that might be

linked directly

or indirectly

to the sorts

of ways

in which

the church

at Thyatira

were going

astray

and the first

one it's right

there

and it is

sexual immorality

and idolatry

do we think

that we can

continue in the

church

and follow Jesus

while actually

adopting the same

sexual practices

that are widespread

among us

in our world

and idolatry

in all of its forms

actually seek

thinking we can

worship two gods

Jesus spoke quite

clearly about that

didn't he

you cannot serve

two masters

you can't serve

God and money

you'll either

love the one

you'll hate

the other

and you know

you can't do it

and I pause

there lest any

of us feel

that as individuals

what we've done

is swallowed the

lie of the Jezebel

who said it's okay

to continue to be

a follower of Jesus

while also engaging

in sexual immorality

and idolatry

but I think there

may be other risks

for some of us

who perhaps

think yeah

are there other ways

in which we might

be committed

but compromised

well I think

sexual immorality

and idolatry

will be the risk

for some

I think self-preservation

and isolation

may be a risk

that we could also

fall into

as a church

and as individuals

self-preservation

and isolation

what do I mean

I think it's easy

to think

well actually

we will worship

God

and we will focus

on Jesus

but you know what

we're a bit scared

of the world

out there

and so we're going

to separate ourselves

from it

we're going to

isolate ourselves

from it

we might even

seem a little bit

angry about the

world out there

about all that's

going on

and actually

our whole approach

to life and faith

will be one of

self-preservation

and isolation

it's all about me

it's all about my

family

it's all about my

church

it's about trying

to stand up

against the

terrible government

out of there

this is fairly

close to my heart

as one who works

for government

and at times

I have to say

I observe in

the Christian church

an awful lot

of self-preservation

and isolation

I don't think

I observe

an awful lot

of we are

absolutely praying

for you

as lawmakers

we are with you

we want to support

you

we want to stand

with you

whether that's

in protecting

the most vulnerable

whether that's

in welcoming

the orphan

and supporting

the poor

and the needy

rather I think

what I sometimes

observe among

the church

is self-preservation

and isolation

and I suggest

that if that's

the route we go

down

then we may be

swallowing the

lie of the

Jezebel

in the same way

as if we went

down the route

of sexual immorality

and idolatry

but I suppose

I've been challenged

by a third way

in which we might

be swallowing

a lie

in which we might

be committed

but compromised

today

it's maybe not

self-preservation

and isolation

I wonder if it's

maybe silence

and indifference

and this is the one

that comes closest

to me to be honest

where actually

we think that we

can be committed

to Jesus

and fully engaged

in the life

of the church

and in service

in the church

but when it comes

to the world

out there

when it comes

to the spiritual

well-being

of our neighbours

of our colleagues

when it comes

to the spiritual

health of our nation

actually we have

nothing to say

we are silent

and we are

indifferent

might that be

the mark

of some of us

and might that

at times be

the mark

of the church

we'll worship

God

but we don't

feel we've

really got a

message

for those

who we are

coming into

contact with

who do not

know Jesus

his love

and forgiveness

his power

and his all-seeing

and all-knowingness

and we are

silent

and we are

indifferent

may you

reflect

on what it is

Jesus might

have to say

to you

in your

life

is it about

sexual immorality

and idolatry

is it self-preservation

and isolation

is it silence

and indifference

if it's any

of these things

then there is

an invitation

given to us

by Jesus

as he speaks

to the church

in Thyatira

verse 21

I have given

her time

to repent

of her

immorality

isn't it great

here

that Jesus

reminds them

again

that he is

gracious

that he is

loving

and that despite

all that

Jezebel

had done

she has had

opportunities

to turn

and to leave

behind her

rejection of

God

and to turn

again

to Jesus

and I trust

that as we

reflect

on this

letter

to the church

for some of us

we might feel

the call

and know

the need

to repent

to leave

behind

the areas

of

compromise

and to turn

again to our

loving

powerful

Jesus

and to serve

him

wholeheartedly

some were to

repent

and the message

to others

was to

remain

verse 24

I will not

impose

any other

burden

on those

of you

who do

not hold

to her

teaching

and who

have not

learned

Satan's

so-called

deep

secrets

just hold

on

to what

you have

until

I come

let's

ensure that

this morning

we are

ready

and before

God

ready to

repent

and also

ready to

remain

to cling

tightly

to him

and to

do his

will

to the

end

we're

almost

done

but before

I finish

there is

also a

promise

given

to

these

Christians

if they

truly

turn

from the

Jezebel

if they

repent

and if

they cling

tightly

to Christ

there's a

promise

that they

will be

given

authority

that there's

a great

future

for them

verse 26

to the

one who

is victorious

and does

my will

I will

give

authority

over the

nations

again

they're

encouraged

to see

just beyond

the

immediate

to look

to the

long

term

to

recognize

all the

plans

that

Jesus

has

in store

for them

to realize

all of

his

purposes

and to

look to

the long

term

future

as they

commit

to Christ

and then

this

slightly

curious

word

towards

the

end

I

will

also

give

that

one

the

morning

star

what does

that mean

as Jesus

speaks to

that church

and leaves

them with

this

promise

that those

who

turn from

their

lack

of

those who

turn from

their

compromise

will be

given

the

morning

star

well let

me turn

you to

Revelation

Revelation 22 · chapter mention

chapter 22

and to

verse 16

Revelation

Revelation 22:16

22

verse 16

I

Jesus

have

sent

my

angel

to give

you

this

testimony

for the

churches

I

am

the

root

and

offspring

of

David

and

the

bright

morning

star

Jesus

himself

describes

himself

as

the

morning

star

I

think

that's

where

we'll

leave

the

church

in

Thyatira

today

we'll

leave

them

with

this

great

promise

that if

they turn

from their

compromise

in whatever

way that

might be

they will

not only

know

blessing

from

Jesus

they will

not only

know what

it is to

be doing

the will

of Jesus

but they

will have

Jesus

he

who describes

himself as

the bright

morning star

will be

theirs

they will

live their

life

in

intimate

fellowship

connected

to

and

knowing

Jesus

that promise

is available

for us

isn't it a

great one

that we

can know

Jesus

he will

give to

us

the morning

star

he'll give

us

himself

his

presence

his

power

his glory

all that

he promises

all that

he is

he offers

that to

us

but invites

us to

reflect

and maybe

to repent

if there

has been

compromise

alongside

commitment

in our

lives

let's pause

and pray

now

Lord Jesus

we just

want to

turn our

eyes

to you

albeit

we know

that if

we could

see you

we would

scarce be

able to

look at

you face

to face

as we

think of

your eyes

of blazing

fire

as we

think of

the fact

that you

tell us

that you

see us

you know

us

and you

search our

hearts

and our

minds

and as

we linger

for a few

minutes

together

as we

sing

as we

have this

opportunity

to take

bread

and to

take

this

cup

we

simply

open

our

lives

and our

hearts

to you

Lord

Jesus

as the

one who

sees us

knows us

searches

our hearts

and minds

and yet

the one

who says

again today

I love

you

and I've

laid down

my life

as the

perfect

sacrifice

for your

sin

thank you

Jesus

Amen