By Roy E. Ciampa, Ph.D., S. Louis and Ann W. Armstrong
Professor of Religion, Samford University
Strong in Purity
Revelation 2:18–29
The church in Thyatira reflected both strengths and weaknesses of many churches today. The purity of our own churches will be strengthened by paying close attention to Christ’s words of both encouragement and warning to the believers in that city.
Increase your love and service for Christ. (18–19)
Christ introduces Himself in language that reminds us He has supernatural insight and power to judge and to guide His Church. The church in Thyatira stands in contrast to the church in Ephesus: The latter had strayed from its first love and was no longer doing the works it did at first, but the believers in Thyatira are doing greater works than they had previously. Christ praises the virtues He sees in their midst: their love, faithfulness, service and endurance. In these things they are models for us today as we also are called to constantly grow in our love of and service to Christ.
Do not permit immorality in the church. (20–23)
The Lord confronts the church for its toleration of false teaching, including the practice of idolatry and sexual immorality. He compares a woman in the church (who mistakenly considered herself a prophetess) to Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab, who was known for “much prostitution and sorcery” (2 Kings 9:22). Jezebel promoted the worship of Baal and persecuted Elijah and other prophets of the Lord.
Jews and Christians recognized sexual immorality and idolatry as the two most egregious vices of Greco-Roman society. Those who followed the so-called prophetess’ teaching and participated in either idolatrous or sexually immoral behavior, summarized together at the end of verse 22 as “her practices,” needed to repent (and still do). They are guilty of having committed adultery with the woman inasmuch as they have followed her teaching and assimilated to the moral and spiritual vices of the surrounding culture.
In our society today, we have our own predominate forms of idolatry (including the idolizing of family, power, materialism, libertinism, individual expression and various kinds of political idolatry) and of sexual immorality.
Many Christians and churches today are guilty of assimilating to our sexually libertine culture, and others are guilty of failing to respond appropriately when victims report sexual misconduct within the church.
The compromises of the church in Thyatira are ones found in some of our churches as well. The false prophetess and those who have followed her teaching (“her children” in v. 23) — in that time or our own — are given the opportunity to repent. If they do not repent, they will experience the discipline of the Lord. Christ’s judgment of rebellious believers will clearly reveal that He examines minds and hearts and is therefore able to recompense each one perfectly for their obedience or lack thereof.
Remain faithful to the gospel. (24–29)
Others in Thyatira have correctly rejected the false teaching of the so-called prophetess and have recognized they are not “deep things” of God but are actually from Satan. The Lord asks nothing more of them than what they are still doing. They have done well to recognize the error. They, and we also, are called on to continue to remain faithful to the Lord and to do the works to which He has called them and us.
Christ alludes to Psalm 2 (especially Ps. 2:8–9) and indicates He will share His authority over the nations with those who remain true to Him to the end, referring to “the Morning Star” (see Rev. 22:16).
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