Peace and grace in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We learn about the fourth church in Thyatira [Revelation 2:18-29].
Revelation 2:18-20
2:18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write, ‘These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass:
2:19 “I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and asfor your works, the last aremore than the first.
2:20 Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.
Jesus appears in two forms to the church in Thyatira as follows.
Revelation 2:23-24
2:23 I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.
2:24 “Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden.
If they are combined, the eyes like a flame of fire and the feet like fine brass mean Jesus appears to test and sanctify the heart and mind, up to the deepest one or the kidney. What is it for?
Revelation 2:19
2:19 “I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and asfor your works, the last aremore than the first.
The church in Thyatira has five excellences that are recognized by God as follows.
If these five excellences are not accompanied with the sanctification of the heart and mind up to the deepest one (kidney), they will become pride or vanity. One will appear as Satan.
Isaiah 14:12-14
14:12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!
14:13 For you have said in your heart: ‘(1)I will ascend into heaven, (2)I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; (3)I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north;
14:14 (4)I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, (5)I will be like the Most High.’
In the Heaven, there was Lucifer the archangel. He is also called as the morning star or the son of the morning. But he boasted himself in front of God and said “I will” for five times. It opposes the five wounds of Jesus that refer to humility. The consequence is he is thrown out to the world and becomes Satan.
John 8:44
8:44 You are of yourfather the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources,for he is a liar and the father of it.
The devil is a murderer of men. It refers to envy or hatred without any reasons.
The devil is the father of liar, meaning there is no truth at all.
Be careful, if a servant of God is boastful or having low self-esteem, he will have envy, hatred, and lie.
We learn from Jesus who humbles Himself until He dies with five wounds.
Philippians 2:5-8
2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
2:6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
2:7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, andcoming in the likeness of men.
2:8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point ofdeath, even the death of the cross.
The mind and feeling of Jesus is humbling Himself as much as possible. The peak of the humility of Jesus is being willing to die in curse on the cross with five main wounds. The fifth wound that is the biggest and the deepest one brings out blood and water.
Philippians 2:9
2:9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
Thus, Jesus is highly exalted to the throne of Heaven. He receives the name which is above every name. On the throne of Heaven, Jesus becomes the Bright and Morning Star.
Revelation 22:16
22:16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”
The term "bright " means it never gets dim or falls. It is the difference with the archangel who is boastful and falls at the end.
There are two lessons that we can learn from the archangel and Jesus as follows.
If our heart and mind are sanctified up to the deepest one, we will have the mind and feeling of Jesus, so we can humble ourselves as much as possible and receive the sign of blood and water that come out from the side of Jesus.
The sign of blood in the Tabernacle is shown by the Altar of Burnt Offering. It means repentance, stopping sinning to return to God. The process is we receive the sword of the Word that makes us realize and regret our sin, so we can confess it to God and the others. If we are forgiven, we must not repeat it anymore. We die to sin.
1 Peter 2:1
2:1 Therefore, laying aside (1)all malice, (2)all deceit, (3)hypocrisy, (4)envy, and (5)all evil speaking,
Repentance is started from throwing away five main sins as follows.
The sign of water is the water and Holy Spirit (the living water from Heaven) baptism.
Romans 6:4
6:4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
The true water baptism is one who has died to sin must be buried in water together with Jesus, to be raised with Him and receive a new life. A new life is a Heavenly life, that is living in the anointing of Holy Spirit as a newborn baby.
Matthew 3:16
3:16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.
1 Peter 2:2
2:2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,
A baby always longs for the pure and spiritual milk, that is the shepherding Word. We can be right and well shepherded. We can enjoy the pure and spiritual shepherding Word, meaning we can obey it until the flesh does not sound anymore, as Jesus who is obedient until He dies on the cross. We can be obedient whatever the risks are. When we are obedient, God will bear all the risks. The example is when Abraham is obedient to offer Isaac, God is responsible by providing the lamb.
The usefulness of the pure and spiritual shepherding Word is as follows.
God blesses us.
We learn about the fourth church in Thyatira [Revelation 2:18-29].
Revelation 2:18-20
2:18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write, ‘These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass:
2:19 “I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and asfor your works, the last aremore than the first.
2:20 Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.
Jesus appears in two forms to the church in Thyatira as follows.
- His eyes are like a flame of fire, meaning the sanctification to the inner part.
- His feet are like fine brass, meaning the judgment.
Revelation 2:23-24
2:23 I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.
2:24 “Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden.
If they are combined, the eyes like a flame of fire and the feet like fine brass mean Jesus appears to test and sanctify the heart and mind, up to the deepest one or the kidney. What is it for?
- It is so that the church in Thyatira is not proud of their excellences.
- It is so that the church in Thyatira is sanctified from false teaching.
The teaching of Jezebel is the teaching that allows women to teach and command men. Woman becomes the head of man, and the consequence is God does not become the Head but the wolf and bird (evil and unclean spirit) do.
Revelation 2:19
2:19 “I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and asfor your works, the last aremore than the first.
The church in Thyatira has five excellences that are recognized by God as follows.
- Love.
- Faith.
- Service.
- Patience.
- Growth in the work of God.
If these five excellences are not accompanied with the sanctification of the heart and mind up to the deepest one (kidney), they will become pride or vanity. One will appear as Satan.
Isaiah 14:12-14
14:12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!
14:13 For you have said in your heart: ‘(1)I will ascend into heaven, (2)I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; (3)I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north;
14:14 (4)I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, (5)I will be like the Most High.’
In the Heaven, there was Lucifer the archangel. He is also called as the morning star or the son of the morning. But he boasted himself in front of God and said “I will” for five times. It opposes the five wounds of Jesus that refer to humility. The consequence is he is thrown out to the world and becomes Satan.
John 8:44
8:44 You are of yourfather the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources,for he is a liar and the father of it.
The devil is a murderer of men. It refers to envy or hatred without any reasons.
The devil is the father of liar, meaning there is no truth at all.
Be careful, if a servant of God is boastful or having low self-esteem, he will have envy, hatred, and lie.
We learn from Jesus who humbles Himself until He dies with five wounds.
Philippians 2:5-8
2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
2:6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
2:7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, andcoming in the likeness of men.
2:8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point ofdeath, even the death of the cross.
The mind and feeling of Jesus is humbling Himself as much as possible. The peak of the humility of Jesus is being willing to die in curse on the cross with five main wounds. The fifth wound that is the biggest and the deepest one brings out blood and water.
Philippians 2:9
2:9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
Thus, Jesus is highly exalted to the throne of Heaven. He receives the name which is above every name. On the throne of Heaven, Jesus becomes the Bright and Morning Star.
Revelation 22:16
22:16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”
The term "bright " means it never gets dim or falls. It is the difference with the archangel who is boastful and falls at the end.
There are two lessons that we can learn from the archangel and Jesus as follows.
- Do not be boastful if there are excellences. Do not have low self-esteem if there are lacks. The right attitude is always humbling ourselves as Jesus. This kind of people will never fall.
- The Heaven is never empty. If the archangel or the morning star falls and becomes Satan, he will be replaced by the Bright and Morning Star, that is Jesus who never falls. Thus, the archangel cannot return.
If our heart and mind are sanctified up to the deepest one, we will have the mind and feeling of Jesus, so we can humble ourselves as much as possible and receive the sign of blood and water that come out from the side of Jesus.
The sign of blood in the Tabernacle is shown by the Altar of Burnt Offering. It means repentance, stopping sinning to return to God. The process is we receive the sword of the Word that makes us realize and regret our sin, so we can confess it to God and the others. If we are forgiven, we must not repeat it anymore. We die to sin.
1 Peter 2:1
2:1 Therefore, laying aside (1)all malice, (2)all deceit, (3)hypocrisy, (4)envy, and (5)all evil speaking,
Repentance is started from throwing away five main sins as follows.
- Malice is the root of sin, that is the lust of money that causes stinginess and greediness.
Stinginess means being unable to give.
Greediness means seizing the right of the others and God (the tithe and special offering).
The example is Judas who takes the right of God and the consequence is being destroyed. Be careful since in the modern era, people steal the trust of God to the pastor in the matter of the tithe.
If there is the root of evil, there will be the root of uncleanness, that is sin concerning eating-drinking and marrying-being given in marriage. - Deceit.
- Hypocrisy.
- Envy, hatred without any reasons.
These three things are the shoot of sin. - Evil speaking or the fruit of sin.
A ripe fruit will bring death, that is everlasting perdition.
The sign of water is the water and Holy Spirit (the living water from Heaven) baptism.
Romans 6:4
6:4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
The true water baptism is one who has died to sin must be buried in water together with Jesus, to be raised with Him and receive a new life. A new life is a Heavenly life, that is living in the anointing of Holy Spirit as a newborn baby.
Matthew 3:16
3:16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.
1 Peter 2:2
2:2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,
A baby always longs for the pure and spiritual milk, that is the shepherding Word. We can be right and well shepherded. We can enjoy the pure and spiritual shepherding Word, meaning we can obey it until the flesh does not sound anymore, as Jesus who is obedient until He dies on the cross. We can be obedient whatever the risks are. When we are obedient, God will bear all the risks. The example is when Abraham is obedient to offer Isaac, God is responsible by providing the lamb.
The usefulness of the pure and spiritual shepherding Word is as follows.
- Being calm and satisfied, whatever problems we face.
- Experiencing spiritual growth up to spiritual maturity, meaning experiencing sanctification from salvation to perfection.
Acts 20:28,35
20:28 Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
20:35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
Spiritual maturity is being more joyful to give than to receive. It is until we can give our whole life to God. - Being active in the ministry of building the spiritual house, that is the perfect body of Christ.
1 Peter 2:4-5
2:4 Coming to Him as toa living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God andprecious,
2:5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 4:11-12
4:11 And He Himself gave some to beapostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
4:12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
The requirement of ministering God is holiness. Accordingly, for sure we will be equipped with the ministry and the gifts of Holy Spirit to be used in the ministry of building the body of Christ. The more holy we are, the more God will use us. The ministry is our place in the body of Christ and in the Heaven.
The ministry of building the body of Christ is as the mother of Moses breast-feeds him according to the command of the daughter of Pharaoh. It means as follows.- There is no more fear and worry about physical matters.
- Not demanding for physical rights or wage.
- Ministering with joy and love.
Matthew 21:15-16
21:15 But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant
21:16 and said to Him, “Do You hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise’?”
Out of the mouth of babes there is worship with a contrite heart. We feel that we are worthless and powerless. The mouth of babes only cries out the name of Jesus. Thus, He will pay attention, care, and struggle with us. When we are alone, He is also alone on the cross.
Exodus 2:6
2:6 And when she opened it,she saw the child, and behold, the baby wept. So she had compassion on him, and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.”
The results are as follows.- Being lifted up from water, meaning the hands of God protect us from all sins and distress.
- Being lifted up as the son of king, meaning there is beautiful and successful future.
- Being lifted up to the Heaven on Jesus’ second coming. We are sanctified and renewed until we are as perfect as Him.
- There is no more fear and worry about physical matters.
God blesses us.