03.12. The Message To Thyatira

The Message To Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29)

We have previously pointed out that these messages to the seven Churches are divided into two groups of three and four, and that the conditions found in the first three churches were temporary, whereas the state of things manifest in the last four continues on to the end of the Church’s history. In our present studies we come to the fourth Church, Thyatira, which thus stands in the middle of the whole series of the seven. Three Church periods preceded Thyatira and three other prophetic periods follow it. The first three culminate in Thyatira and she becomes the embodiment of the three stages of departure which we have seen in Ephesus, Smyrna and Pergamos. The last three Church periods spring from Thyatira. With this fourth prophetic period of Thyatira there is thus a change, for we have here a condition of things that continues on in Christendom to the coming of the Lord for the true Church and goes on to its culmination in Babylon the great of Revelation seventeen. In that chapter we read of its destruction shortly before the Lord’s coming to earth in judgment. The development of evil in the professing Church, which we shall find set forth in the message to Thyatira, is therefore a permanent condition and represents a system of religious evil that is with us today.

We shall see that there is no hope of recovery held out in Thyatira; there is no prospect of deliverance of the whole Church from its evil condition, for the Lord gave her space to repent and she repented not, therefore there is the pronouncement of judgment to come. But a remnant is recognized within Thyatira that is not characterized by the evil and for the first time we hear of the Lord’s coming in these messages to the seven Churches. His coming is held out as a bright hope of full deliverance from the ruin and departure that has come into Christendom. This hope is given to the remnant and overcomers. The Name Thyatira

One authority on the meaning of names has given the meaning of Thyatira as "odour of affliction" (JB Jackson). Another has said that it comes from two words, one of which means "a sacrifice or incense offering," the other word meaning "that which goes on continually." Combining these two thoughts, the suggested interpretation of the name Thyatira would be "continual sacrifice." Another suggested meaning is "one unwearied in presenting sacrificial offerings." All these meanings point us to that which characterized the system of religious teaching which sprang up in this Thyatira period.

Thyatira gives us a picture of the professing Church during the Middle Ages, the period in history called the Dark Ages. The Thyatira period began around 600 AD and continued to the eve of the Reformation in the sixteenth century. It was in the seventh century that the Bishop of Rome was first recognized as the vice-regent of Christ on earth. He became the pope and the acknowledged head of the Church. This was the beginning of the Roman system of the Papacy. It is during this period of Thyatira that Roman Catholicism developed and became the corrupt Church of systematized evil which we know today. During this time Christianity became heathenized.

One of the great characteristics of the Church of Rome is the sacrifice of the mass which it is always offering for sin. This is truly a distinguishing feature of the Roman system, and thus the meaning of Thyatira, "continual sacrifice," "one unwearied in presenting sacrificial offerings," aptly characterizes the Church of this period. The continual or oft repeated sacrifice of the mass is Satan’s insult to the one perfect and complete offering of Christ for sin and is a denial of the finished work of the Saviour for sinners. "We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Christ once for all. . By one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews 10:10; Hebrews 10:14). The Approach of the Lord

"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" (Revelation 2:18). The character in which the Lord presents Himself to these Assemblies of Asia is always in keeping with the condition and state of the Church addressed. Here He presents Himself in the most searching and positive character of the Son of God with absolute authority and penetrating judgment. The Lord approaches Thyatira in a sterner and severer manner than He does to any of the other Churches, for there was the greatest wickedness and presumption here. The woman Jezebel called herself a prophetess and was teaching and seducing God’s servants into spiritual fornication and idolatry. This is what the system of Rome has ever done. She claims to be a prophetess and to speak with authority from God and puts the seal of God on the most terrible iniquity. The Church of Rome presumes to be the chaste bride of Christ and against this self-asserting, pretentious bride the Lord has to assert His authority as the Son of God in judgment. He is "a son over His own house" (Hebrews 3:6), and as such He wields authority and is judicially prepared to act against evil. The Church of the living God is the house of God on earth and holiness becometh His house (1 Timothy 3:15 ; Psalms 93:5), therefore the Lord will not tolerate evil in His house, but will judge it in His own time. Here in Thyatira the Lord presents Himself in His full Deity and in all the power of His person as Son of God. He comes in all His authority and exaltation and would assert His headship over His rebellious Church that was setting up her own authority. His eyes are like unto a flame of fire. Eyes speak of intelligence, understanding and discernment, and the symbol of a flame of fire would convey the thought of all-searching, penetrating, discerning judgment. The prophet Habakkuk said, "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity" (Habakkuk 1:13). "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good" (Proverbs 15:3). The feet of the Lord like fine brass indicates the firmness with which He deals with sin in divine righteousness. Brass typifies God meeting man in his responsibility according to divine righteousness. This is set forth in the brazen altar of the tabernacle. There God met man in his sins and His claims in righteousness were met by the offered sacrifice. In this presentation of the Lord we see that He comes to deal with the public state of the Church as His responsible light-bearer and witness in the world. He would remind her of His absolute authority over the house of God, of His discerning and piercing judgment and of His firm purpose not to pass over sin. Though He is the God of all grace and love, He is also holy and righteous and will deal in justice and judgment. These solemn characteristics are ever true of the Lord and abide as principles in His dealings with single Assemblies and with individual believers everywhere. The Commendation

"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" (Revelation 2:19). Following the severe presentation of the Lord to Thyatira in the previous verse, which we dwelt upon in our last study, it is rather astonishing to read these wonderful words of commendation. But it is ever the way of our Lord to commend first all that which is good and worthy before dealing with that which is grievous and evil to His holy eyes. In spite of the awful evil system that was rising up and ruling during this Thyatira period of the dark Middle Ages, there was a faithful remnant of true believers (spoken of as "my servants" and "the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine"), whose faithfulness and piety shone out the brighter in the increasing evil.

It is ever a principle in Scripture that whenever there is corporate failure, the faithful remnant becomes invested with the collective position before God. So on this principle the Lord is able to impute to Thyatira all the merits, faithfulness and activities of the devoted saints in her midst, and speaks of their work, charity, service, faith and patience as that of Thyatira. This group of faithful souls is looked at positionally as the true Church of that period; the Lord recognized them as His people in that day. Of this class of faithful witnesses another has well written: "Nowhere, perhaps, is there a more deeply interesting story; nowhere longer and more unwearied patience; nowhere truer, or perhaps so true, hearts for Christ and for the truth, and for faithfulness to Him against a corrupt Church, as in the saints of the Middle Ages. Through toil and labour, hunted and punished in spite of a system far more persevering, far better organized, than heathen persecutions, violent as for a time they surely were; with no fresh miraculous revelation, or publicly sustaining body, or profession of the Church at large, clothed with universal acknowledgement as such, to give them confidence; with every name of ignominy that people or priest could invent to hunt them with, they pursued their hemmed but never abandoned way with divinely given constancy, and maintained the testimony of God and the promised existence of the Church against the gates of Hades, at the cost of rest and home and life and all things earth could give or nature feel. And Christ had foreseen and had not forgotten it" (JND). Of the things which the Lord commends among these faithful believers in Thyatira, love is mentioned first. It is the great characteristic of the divine nature and of God who is love. From it springs all spiritual activity. In the more correct translations, faith is mentioned next. It is "faith which worketh by love" (Galatians 5:6) and is manifested in service to God and man. Then there was patience, or endurance amidst much persecution. "And the last works (to be) more than the first" (N.Tn). There was increasing devotedness amongst these saints. As the evil increased, their energy and zeal for the Lord also increased, so that the Lord could say their last works were more than the first. Love and faith, which were missing in the Assembly at Ephesus, were found amidst this remnant in Thyatira, and in this sense their state was above that of Ephesus where first love had been departed from.

One of our wonderful hymns was written by Bernard of Clairvaux during this dark and evil time. The following lines of its first and second verses are a sample of the devotion which the Lord was commending as answering to the love of His heart:

"Saviour, the very thought of Thee
With sweetness fills the breast;
But sweeter far Thy face to see,
And in Thy presence rest.

"No voice can sing, no heart can frame,
Nor can the mind conceive,
A sweeter sound than Jesus’ name
To sinners who believe."

Church history records the names of many of these faithful witnesses who remained true to the Lord Jesus and did not go on with all the evil of the corrupt Church of this period. Some of these were known as Nestorians, Paulicians, the Albigenses of the southern province of France on the western side of the Alps, and the Waldenses of the valleys of Piedmont on the eastern side of the Alps . Multitudes of these faithful ones were slain by the wicked Roman System during these Dark Ages. This faithful remnant is another evidence of the truth of the oft-mentioned statement that God never leaves Himself without witnesses. No matter how dark and evil the days may be, God ever raises up some faithful ones who walk in separation from the evil and bear testimony to Himself. Such witnesses of faith stand out like bright, shining stars on a dark night. May we seek to be such in the present evil day. The Lord’s Censure

" But I have against thee that thou permittest the woman Jezebel, she who calls herself prophetess, and she teaches and leads astray My servants to commit fornication and eat of idol sacrifices. And I gave her time that she should repent, and she will not repent of her fornication. Behold, I cast her into a bed, and those that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and her children will I kill with death; and all the assemblies shall know that I am He that searches the reins and the hearts; and I will give to you each according to your works" (Revelation 2:20-23, N.Tn).

Having expressed His appreciation and commendation of faithful devotedness of the godly remnant, the Lord now speaks of that which He had against the angel or messenger of the Church in Thyatira. He points out the grievous evil that was permitted in the Assembly, which called forth His severe condemnation and impending judgment. A wicked woman Jezebel was allowed to teach and to lead astray God’s servants into spiritual fornication and idolatry. The apostle Paul was led by God’s Spirit to write: "Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence" (1 Timothy 2:11-12). Thus for a woman to teach in God’s Assembly is definitely contrary to God’s Word, not only in the days of Thyatira, but in the present day. The evil results of a woman teaching in Thyatira were manifest in her leading astray servants of the Lord into the worst evils. As Eve was deceived by Satan and led Adam into sin, so Satan has often worked since. When the woman gets out of her ordained sphere and takes the place of a teacher, she is often deceived by Satan and leads others into evil teachings of which he is the father. Many of the false and unscriptural religious cults of our day were started by women. But there is more serious evil here than just the matter of a woman teaching in the Assembly. It is a principle in Scripture that a woman in a type is expressive of a state and condition of things, whereas a man indicates more the activity and conduct in that state. Remembering also that the state in each of these seven Assemblies of Asia is prophetical of the various conditions that would exist in the whole professing Church in its seven different stages, we have here in the activity of the woman Jezebel a state of things set forth that was to be found in the Church at large of the Thyatiran period in the Middle Ages. The professing Church as a whole was to be characterized by this thing of Jezebel claiming to be a prophetess and teaching and seducing the Lord’s servants into idolatry. It is the Church taking the place of a prophetess and teaching. In Ephesians 5:1-33 we are told that "the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands. . This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:23-24, Ephesians 5:32). This Scripture teaches us that the Church as the bride of Christ is to be subject to Him as its Head and Bridegroom. Therefore the Church is never to teach or to set herself up as an authority of Christ her Head. The Word of God has come from Christ to the Church and she is to be subject to it. Christ teaches by His Word, as ministered in the power of the Holy Spirit through the instrumentality of His servants. In Thyatira we have the woman in the man’s place and the Church substituting herself for Christ, claiming the authority of a prophetess for her teaching. As previously pointed out in our introductory remarks on Thyatira, it is the Church of Rome that is clearly symbolized here by the woman Jezebel teaching and leading astray God’s people into idolatry and evil. In Romanism it is the Church that teaches and sets herself above the Word of God, the Holy Scriptures. Their subtle propaganda is set forth today in national magazines and newspapers, claiming that the Roman Catholic Church existed before the Bible, and that "the Catholic Church is the mother of the Bible." Rome claims that she has given us the Bible, that she has sole authority from Christ and alone can interpret the Scriptures, that all other interpretations of it are private interpretations and wrong. This is the evil woman teaching and usurping authority over Christ and His Word. In Pergamos the Lord spoke about the doctrine of Balaam and his activity of evil in the Old Testament. Here in Thyatira the Lord speaks of the evil of Jezebel. This was the name of a well-known wicked queen in the days of Elijah the prophet of the Lord. She was the "daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Zidonians" and wife of Ahab, king of Israel (1 Kings 16:31 ). Her father had been a priest of Astarte (Venus) and the family was famous for intense devotion to Baal. She fed 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah at her table and slew the prophets of the Lord (1 Kings 18:13; 1 Kings 18:19; N.Tn). Her whoredoms and witchcrafts are spoken of as "so many" by king Jehu who was used of God to execute judgment upon her and the whole house of Ahab (2 Kings 9:22). We are also told that she was the instigator of all the evil which her husband Ahab did. "There was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up" (1 Kings 21:25 ). Such was the character of wicked Jezebel and such has been the manifested evil, idolatrous and murderous character of the wicked, ecclesiastical system of Rome which Jezebel typifies in Thyatira. The Woman Leavening The Meal The fourth parable of Matthew 13:1-58 is similar to what we have set forth in the activity of Jezebel in Thyatira, the fourth Church. The Lord said, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened" (Matthew 13:33). Leaven is always a type of evil in Scripture (1 Corinthians 5:6-8), The three measures of meal speak of Christ the Corn of wheat, the Bread of life, or the doctrine of Christ. The woman here is doing that which was forbidden in the Scriptures; she was stealthily hiding leaven in the pure meal, a thing prohibited in the meal-offering (Leviticus 2:11). The purpose was to leaven and corrupt the whole of the pure meal. Thus there is the thought of evil and opposition to the Word of God in the activity of this woman. This is what we have in Romanism as presented in the figure of the woman Jezebel and her activity. The Papal system has corrupted the pure doctrine of Christ by introducing into it her evil doctrines one by one. She has ever mixed into the truth of God the leaven of her own heathen ideas and then presents this mixture as a dogma of the Church, which must be accepted under pain of excommunication. It is a system of development as can be seen by an examination of the origin of her doctrines and practices. One discovers that they came into being one by one through the centuries.

Prayers for the dead began around 300 AD; the worship of Mary and the saints around the fifth century; Lent was imposed around 998; priests were forbidden to marry by Gregory VII in 1079. Prayer beads were invented by Peter the Hermit in 1090 and auricular confession to the priest was instituted by Pope Innocent III in 1215. The sacrifice of the mass came into existence in the eleventh century and the doctrine of transubstantiation was made an article of faith in 1215. At the Council of Trent in 1546 Roman Catholic traditions were placed on the same level with the Holy Scriptures and the Apocryphal books were added to the Bible. At this same Council command was given that the doctrine of Purgatory be held, taught and preached everywhere. It had been formally received as a dogma of the Church in the time of Gregory the Great in 600. (See Miller’s Church History, Vol.2, and "Roman Catholic Inventions.") Thus the woman has been busy mixing leaven into the pure meal and Jezebel has taught and led astray souls into idolatry. In spite of this history of development in doctrine and practice over a period of centuries, the Church of Rome claims to be the first Church and that which Christ established on earth with Peter as the first pope. As Romanism has greatly revived and presses its claims with great activity in our present day, many are becoming ensnared and led astray by its subtle propaganda. Therefore it is necessary that we speak out clearly and faithfully in warning souls as to this false and evil system of Jezebel teaching which the Lord condemned in Thyatira. The true Church, founded by Christ on Himself as the Rock foundation (Matthew 16:16-18; 1 Corinthians 3:11), is found in the book of Acts and in the Epistles of the New Testament. It is "the church, which is His body" and the glorified Christ is its only head. It is the "church of the firstborn," those born again and baptized by the Spirit of God into this divine body, and whose names are written in heaven (Ephesians 1:21-22; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Hebrews 12:23). In the Epistle to the Romans, written by the apostle Paul around 60 AD, we can see what characterized the first Church there and note how vastly different are the doctrines and practices of the Papal system at Rome today. The Church of Rome developed out of the evils which came into the professing Church in the Pergamos period. It is the first corrupt and idolatrous Church, where the elements of Judaism and heathenism were combined into a fixed, systematized teaching under the garb or cloak of Christianity.

"Leads Astray My Servants" This is what the Roman system has done according to God’s indictment. She has turned the great mass of professing Christians from Christ to Mary; from Christ to the Pope; from the one offering of Christ to the continual sacrifice of the mass; from the Word of God and its certainty to the uncertainty of the traditions of men; in a word, from Christianity to Christianised and Judaised paganism.

"She teaches and leads astray My servants to commit fornication and eat of idol sacrifices." The end result and aim of popish error, blasphemous teachings, and wicked practices is to get her adherents to "commit fornication and eat of idol sacrifices." Fornication, used as a symbol here and elsewhere, signifies for those naming the Name of the Lord: forbidden intercourse with the world. What was begun by Constantine in the Pergamos period was consummated in the papacy. Its taking upon itself to combine secular and spiritual power universally was the masterpiece of the papacy. The unholy union of the Church with the world was perfected as a system in Catholicism and this is spiritual fornication which the Lord abhors. Eating of idol sacrifices is association with heathen idolatry and fellowship with demons, for "that what (the nations) sacrifice they sacrifice to demons, and not to God" (1 Corinthians 10:20, N.Tn).

"My servants" were those who were pious and groaned and suffered under the forced worship of images and the idolatry of this Jezebel system. They were God-fearing and had a conscience about God’s Word and a love for the Saviour; yet they never left Romanism and their consciences were stupefied by the acceptance of the clergy and the doings of Jezebel. The Lord regarded their piety and felt it keenly that they were led astray by this evil system. No Repentance In the messages to the first three Churches the call to repentance is addressed to the whole Church, for there was still hope that they would repent and return to the Word of God and forsake the evils. But there in Thyatira the Lord has to say, "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" (Revelation 2:21-22). Opportunity had been given to the Jezebel-system of Rome to repent of her evil deeds, but she was hardened in her sinful ways and would not repent.

God raised up numerous witnesses for Himself during this period of Thyatira, in Church history, who spoke as men of God and cried against the evils. In the fourteenth century John Wycliffe boldly spoke out in England against iniquities of the Church of Rome and maintained the absolute supremacy of the Holy Scriptures, which he succeeded in translating into English, giving England its first complete Bible. Jerome Savonarola faithfully preached in Italy in the fifteenth century against the evils of the Church, but was hung and burnt by order of the pope. There was John Knox in Scotland, Martin Luther in Germany, Zwingle and Calvin in Switzerland and many others who were mighty reformers whom God raised up to call Rome to repentance; but instead of heeding the call and repenting, she persecuted God’s servants and slew many of them.

Papal Rome has continued unto this day unrepentant and will do so until its final judgment as given in Revelation 17:1-18; Revelation 18:1-24. Therein we see her character is darker and her deeds blacker than in the past. Popery is utterly corrupt and her character fixed and unrepentant to the end. Therefore her judgment is fixed also.

We should notice in passing that it is a principle with God always to give opportunity for repentance before judgment is executed. "I gave her space to repent." Thus He has ever acted from the beginning of time and so should His Church and His people act. Even when speaking of the judgment that He would execute upon Jezebel, the Lord adds, "except they repent." Such is His long-suffering and yearning over His professed people for their recovery from evil. The Threatened Judgment

"Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds" (Revelation 2:22). This is judgment of the severest character upon Jezebel and those that committed adultery with her. There would be forced association with those she seduced into evil with her, and great tribulation and desperate distress for those who tampered with this evil system. All who in the public Christian world of the day meddle and associate with the corruption of Christianity, represented by Jezebel in Thyatira, will be cast into great tribulation and distress, unless they repent. Besides general tribulation, there may be a reference here to the time of great tribulation that shall come upon apostate Christendom after the Lord has come for His bride, the Church (Matthew 24:21-31). And I will kill her children with death" (Revelation 2:23). There are not only those who have had to do with this Jezebel system and associated with her in evil, but there are her children, those who have been begotten and formed by her evil teaching and are the expression and proponents of her views. There is full judgment for such who have become the devotees of Rome and perpetuate this evil system. There is spiritual death as well as physical death, and also the second death of eternal separation from God (Ezekiel 18:4; Revelation 20:12-15). This judgment may be twofold, present judgment in divine government in time, and future judgment when every one will receive according to his works. The Lord adds, "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" (Revelation 2:23). By divine visitation of judgments in time all the churches would know that they have to do with a holy and righteous God who searches the hearts and is not indifferent to evil. He deals with each one individually in discriminating judgment, according to each one’s works. Though God moves slowly in utmost patience, judgment is sure to come.

Encouragement To The Remnant

"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" (Revelation 2:24-25). Here the Lord addresses in tender and gracious tones the faithful remnant, which we have previously spoken of as existing in this period of Thyatira, and which may have its representatives or counterpart even in this present day. They did not have this evil doctrine of Jezebel and had no part in the iniquity which the Lord charged Thyatira with. Their piety and other commendable features we have already noticed in the first part of the Lord’s message. They were hounded and persecuted by the papal system; and it would seem were accused of being linked up with the depths of Satan. So the words of the Lord, "The depths of Satan, as they speak," would imply. But the Lord saw and knew everything and vindicates these faithful ones. He knew it was a great effort for them just to hold on to what they possessed in the Lord, so He considerately and tenderly says, "I will put upon you none other burden, but that which you nave already hold fast till I come." The Saviour would encourage this godly remnant to hold fast, to persevere amidst the corruption, subtle seductions and persecutions until He would come.

Here for the first time in these messages to the Seven Churches we have the remnant specially marked out as separate from the body in general and as no longer in connection with the Church as a whole. Until now there was held out the possibility of recovery of the Church from its fallen condition, but now the Church-State corruption had become so hopeless that the Lord directly addresses the faithful remnant and points them to His coming for encouragement and hope. All hope of recovery of the whole Church from its fallen condition is abandoned now. For the first time also in these epistles the Lord’s coming is spoken of. They were not to expect the Jezebel system to get right; they were to look for His coming as the only deliverance out of evil. This was and is the comfort held out to the saints in the midst of the wreck of everything here. The fact of the Lord’s coming being brought in is also an indication that the Thyatira condition of things will continue until His coming for the true believers. So we have in Thyatira a state of things that goes on to the end. But there is also a godly remnant there that the Lord recognizes and will come for.

Promises To The Overcomer

"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" (Revelation 2:26-28). With such precious promises the Lord would encourage the overcomers in the evil day of Jezebel rule of corruption. They were to hold fast and keep His works to the end and thus overcome by the Spirit’s power the evil about them and the seductions and persecutions of papal Rome and of the nations around. With Christ they would have power over the nations that were now persecuting them by the false Church’s instigation, The time shall come when Christ will rule over the nations and execute judgment upon them and set all right. When He does so, the Church of the true believers and overcomers will be associated with Him in it. The overcomer shall share in the glory of the Messiah’s kingly rule, and receive power from Him to rule as He received power from His Father. (See Psalms 2:8-9 which is referred to here.) The large, grand and public character of the promise of authority over the nations exceeds anything we have yet had in the previous promises to the overcomers in these messages. This is the very thing that was the goal of the corrupt Church in the Thyatiran period and has ever been the goal of papal ambition - power over the nations. She literally and metaphorically put her foot on the neck of kings, and in the coming day of satanic rule Babylon the Great will sit upon the beast, the head of the revived Roman Empire . What the corrupt Church seeks in her own power, Christ promises to the overcomer that walks in separation from evil and takes the place of reproach now. Precious encouragement to every overcomer in any period of the Church’s history

"And I will give him the morning star." This speaks of more intimate and more heavenly blessing, for it is Christ Himself in His heavenly beauty as the proper portion and hope of the Church while waiting His return. He says, "I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning Star" (Revelation 22:16). The morning star shines in the last hours of the night and is the harbinger of coming day. It appears before the rising sun. So the coming of Christ for His Church shall precede His coming to earth as the "Sun of righteousness with healing in his wings" (Malachi 4:2), His coming to rule the nations. They undoubtedly did not understand all this in the Thyatiran period (this truth was fully brought out in the Philadelphian period), but the blessed person of Christ as the morning star was the portion of the overcomer to enjoy here. It is the watcher who is awake when all are slumbering that sees the morning star. May we today be such overcomers who enjoy Christ as the morning star in our hearts and look for His coming to receive us unto Himself in the Father’s house on high. The Call To Hear

"He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches" (Revelation 2:29). As in each of these messages to the churches, there is the appeal to the hearing ear to heed the voice of the Spirit. But here we have a change from the order of things in the previous three churches. There the call to the hearing ear precedes the promise to the overcomer, but now in Thyatira we have the call following the promise to the overcomer. The exhortation to hear the call of the Spirit is no longer addressed to the whole Church, as previously, but follows the word of cheer to the remnant and the promises to the overcomer. It is therefore spoken to the overcomers, for only such could be expected to have a hearing ear to truly hear and consider what the Spirit had to say to the churches. The professing body of the Church is treated as incapable of repentance; space was given her to repent and she willed not to do so. Hence the separated remnant who overcome are appealed to, to hear what the Spirit has to say in this message to Thyatira and to the other churches also. As ever, it is an appeal to the individual to have an opened ear to the words of the Spirit. May our ears be such in this present evil day of Laodicean lukewarm indifference to Christ.