Revelation 2

Revelation 2:1-7

Chapter 9 Christ’s letter to the church at Ephesus ‘Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.’ Revelation 2:1-7 Revelation 2:1-7 Ephesus was a wealthy, prosperous, magnificent city, famous for its extravagant temple for the pagan goddess Diana. For many years it was the center of commerce in Asia.

It was connected to all the major cities of Asia Minor by well maintained roads. Its harbor accommodated the largest ships of the day. The temple of Diana in Ephesus was a museum, a treasure house, and a place of refuge for criminals. That pagan temple provided employment for artisans and silversmiths, who made and sold little shrines, religious trinkets, and idols to the worshippers and tourists who passed through the temple. The Apostle Paul came to this city of more than 225,000 people on his third missionary journey. He preached the gospel in Ephesus for over three years (Acts 18-20). Multitudes were converted by the grace of God. A gospel church was established, which quickly became a lighthouse for truth, from which the gospel of God’s free and sovereign grace in Christ went preached. The church at Ephesus was devoted to Christ. It was known throughout the Christian world for its devotion to and zeal for Christ. But, now, more than forty years had passed. Another generation had arisen. The church at Ephesus still walked in the truth. The gospel of Christ was still proclaimed from her pulpit. But something desperately evil had happened. The Lord Jesus Christ discovered a very sad fault in his church at Ephesus. The pastor, the angel of the church, did not discern the fault. The people were unaware of it. But Christ saw it. Therefore he sent this letter to the church, to be read publicly in the assembly of the saints. How their hearts must have sunk when they read these words from the Savior - ‘I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.’ This letter was not written to the church at Ephesus alone, but to all the churches of Christ in this world. ‘He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches’ (v.7). It is written to you; and it is written to me. Let us each ask God to give us ears to hear and hearts to obey the word of Christ to his church. Let us each ask ourselves this question: Is there in me a declension from my first love to Christ? Painful as the question is to the heart of one who truly does love the Savior, it must be asked and honestly answered. A Commendation We must not fail to recognize that there was much, in this Ephesian church, which the Savior commended (vv.2, 3, 6). Our Savior always deals with his people in love, kindness, and tenderness. When there is a stern reproof to be given, he cushions it with a kind word of commendation and encouragement. Let no one imagine that the church at Ephesus was an apostate or even indifferent congregation. Nothing could be further from the truth! Few are the churches to whom such a laudable commendation could be given. The Lord Jesus Christ, who is the faithful and true Witness, said to these Ephesian believers, ‘I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast labored, and hast not fainted…And this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.’ With those words, the Lord Jesus Christ commended his church at Ephesus for eight noble things. Blessed is that man, blessed is that local church in which such commendable characteristics of grace are found!

1. ‘I know thy works.’ These were not idle believers. Their faith was practical. By works of obedience to God, works of charity to men, and works of devotion to Christ, the saints of God at Ephesus demonstrated their faith. They did not merely profess faith. They practiced faith. Their works were known, approved of, and accepted by Christ.
2. The Savior also said, ‘I know thy labor.’ These believers not only walked in good works before God, they put themselves whole-heartedly into the work God gave them to do for his glory. They zealously and anxiously went about serving the cause of Christ in their generation with all their might. These men and women were not lazy, loitering, listless people. They seized every opportunity to serve their Savior. And they did it willingly.
3. Next, the Lord said, ‘I know thy patience.’ There are many who labor, and labor well, but labor only for a while. They do not persevere in the work. Before long, they faint and fall by the wayside. Not these people! This congregation had labored steadily, in the face of great opposition, in the midst of great trials, and in a dark, pagan world of religious superstition and moral perversion. They had done so for more than forty years! This church threw all its energy and all its means into the cause of Christ, not in spurts and spasms, but in continual, unabated zeal for the glory of God!
4. Then, the Son of God commended the church at Ephesus for its intense adherence to gospel truth. ‘I know how thou canst not bear them which are evil.’ They had an intense loathing for that which is evil, both doctrinally and morally. They loved the truth. And their love for the truth made them ‘hate every false way’ (Psalms 119:104).5. The Lord went on to say, ‘I know thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars.’ Few there are to whom these honorable words could be spoken! But the saints at Ephesus knew the difference between things that differ.

They knew truth from error. When they heard Judaizers and free-willers (legalists and Arminians) preaching another gospel, another Jesus, and another spirit, their blood boiled. They boldly denounced all such pretentious preachers as liars, deceivers, and wicked men. 6. This church also bore reproach and persecution for Christ’s sake, and did so with patience. The Lord Jesus said, ‘I know how thou hast borne, and hast patience, and for my sake hast labored.’ In the teeth of opposition, they stood firm. In the midst of Christ’s enemies, they boldly confessed him. In the face of hardship, trial, persecution, and imprisonment, they confidently served their Master. They were loyal to the core. 7. The Savior commended them for their rare faithfulness and perseverance. ‘I know that thou hast not fainted.’ They never failed. They never faltered. They never quit. The saints of God at Ephesus were rare, rare people. 8. One other matter of commendation was their hatred of the Nicolaitanes. ‘I know that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.’ The Nicolaitanes were a sect of base antinomians which had arisen in those early days of Christianity. They contended that since God’s elect are saved by grace and are free from the law, nothing is evil. They made every excuse for lewdness and licentiousness. John Gill tells us that the Nicolaitanes ‘committed fornication, adultery, and all uncleanness, and had their wives in common.’ All this evil was practiced and promoted in the name of Christian liberty. All true believers, like these Ephesians, and like Christ himself, despise those who promote ungodliness in the name of grace. A sad declension These eight things the Lord commended. Commendable characteristics they are. Yet, the church at Ephesus had one serious flaw, one dreadfully evil weakness, which, if it were not corrected, would end in utter ruin. The Lord Jesus said to this otherwise exemplary church, ‘Nevertheless,’ though you are orthodox, zealous, patient, persevering, uncompromising, and upright, ‘I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.‘Does this charge apply to you? Does it apply to me? William Cowper took the charge personally. Should we not do the same? ‘Where is the blessedness I knew When first I saw the Lord? Where is the soul-refreshing view Of Jesus in His Word? What peaceful hours I then enjoyed, How sweet their memory still! But now I find an aching void The world can never fill!’ The sad fact is, love that is not fed with fellowship and communion soon decays into something worse than indifference. It decays into presumption and ingratitude. What is this first love I am not sure that I can really define the term ‘first love;’ but I am sure that it can be clearly identified. Do not imagine that this is merely an emotional or sentimental thing that has no real significance. This thing called ‘first love’ is very important to our God and Savior (Jeremiah 2:1-2). When our Savior says, ‘Thou hast left thy first love,’ it is obvious that he is not talking about believers who once loved him, but have now ceased to love him. True love can never be quenched. Anyone who ceases to love Christ never truly loved Christ at all. Love for Christ is a gift of God’s grace that can never be taken away, lost, or destroyed (Jeremiah 32:38-40; Hosea 2:19-20). Yet, God’s people do sometimes leave their first love. Through indolence, neglect of duty, and the care of this world, the heat and fervor of our love for Christ abates, and the exercise of love toward him diminishes. Let me stir up your memory a little. Go back to the place where you first met the Savior. Go back to Mt. Calvary, where the Lord Jesus Christ first appeared to you, bleeding upon the cross as your Substitute. Do you remember how he spoke to your heart and said, ‘I am thy salvation. I have redeemed you. All your sins are forgiven, washed away in this fountain of blood.’ Immediately, you fell in love with him. Had he asked you then to give everything you had to him, you would gladly have done so. In fact, he did ask it, and you gladly laid all at his feet. If you are a believer, I know that was your experience. Faith, in its very essence, involves a voluntary surrender of all to the dominion of Christ as Lord (Luke 14:25-33). It was that first love which caused us to confess Christ before men, identifying ourselves with him in believer’s baptism, and caused us to earnestly and zealously confess to men, telling all who would hear us what a wonderful Savior he is. That first love inspired our hearts to almost unceasing prayer, praise, and communion. That first love for Christ made His Word our most delightful treasure. That first love made the house of God, the ministry of the Word, and the fellowship of God’s saints the most important and most joyful things in the world to us. How delightfully we learned and sang the songs of Zion! How easily our hearts broke with joy, as we ate the bread and drank the wine at the Lord’s Table, remembering our Savior!

How anxiously we read and studied the Word of God! How anxious our hearts were to hear the preaching of the gospel! You do remember, don’t you? That first love caused us to do the will of God with unquestioning faith and unhesitating obedience. We would give anything for the cause of Christ. We would do anything for the glory of Christ. We would go anywhere at the bidding of Christ. Like the Apostle Paul, once the will of God was known in any matter, we ‘conferred not with flesh and blood.’ ‘Those peaceful hours we once enjoyed, How sweet their memory still!’ Do you remember how it was then, when your heart was still burning with those live coals from off the altar? But now we are more refined. Now we are more settled. Now we are more learned, more mature, more cold, more dead, more useless. Is that not so? What happened Where did we go wrong? How did we leave our first love? Rarely, if ever, does such a decline in love begin with some climatic event. It gradually steals over our hearts and suffocates us by degrees. But the cause of the decline is not hard to find. If we will be honest with ourselves, we will find, I am sure, that any decay from our first love comes from three sources. Our love decays whenever we willfully neglect Christ (Son 5:2-6)One of our most besetting sins is the neglect of Christ, the neglect of sweet communion with our Savior. Give us something to do for Christ, for the good of his church, for the furtherance of the gospel, and we will immediately put ourselves into the work. But we are not, it must be shamefully confessed, nearly as quick to open our hearts to communion with Christ. Yet, love to Christ very much depends upon nearness to Christ. If we live near Christ, in close, intimate communion, we cannot help loving him and being controlled by love for him. The heart that lives nearest Christ in sweet communion is most aflame with love for Christ. Another thing that causes first love to decline is the love of the world (Matthew 13:22) There are few, very few, people who increase in riches and increase in grace at the same time. Of all the temptations to which God’s people are exposed in this world, this is the most dangerous, because it is the most subtle. Too much of the world is an evil encumbrance to any man. None of us are sufficiently aware of what our Lard calls, ’the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches.‘The third thing which causes first love to decline, is our carnal tendency toward presumption, self-confidence, and self-righteousness; ‘Woe unto them that are at ease in Zion’ (Amos 6:1) When we begin to think much of ourselves, we think little of Christ. Presumption destroys perseverance. Self-confidence destroys faith. And self-righteousness destroys love. He is wisest who walks before God always as a poor, needy sinner, trusting Christ alone for everything (Colossians 2:6). He is strongest who knows his utter weakness and total insufficiency, finding Christ’s grace and strength sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). What can be done to rekindle our first love If we belong to Christ, through we decline in love to him, his love toward us will never decline; and because he loves us he will chasten us and cause us to return to him (Son 5:6-7). If we do not return to Christ, if our hearts do not again glow with love for him, if our decline is a permanent decline, it is because our love is a fake, a pretense, a sham profession, and no more. Let us not be presumptuous. We might be wise to sing with John Newton, ‘Help me to love Thee more and more, If I love at all, I pray: If I have not loved before Help me to begin today.’ If you would return to your Savior and regain that first love, the Lord Jesus here gives you three words of instruction.

1. ‘Remember!’ ‘Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen.’ ‘Remember’ what a blessed condition your soul was in when you enjoyed that first love (Son 2:4-6). ‘Remember’ where and what you were when the Savior found you and saved you by his grace (Isaiah 51:1). ‘Remember’ what you owe Christ (Ezekiel 16:6-14).
2. ‘Repent!’ ‘Repent’ as you did at the first. Repent of the evil you have done to Christ in leaving your first love. ‘Repent’ of your shameful neglect of your Savior. ‘Repent’ of your sinful love of the world (Colossians 3:1-3). ‘Repent’ of your proud presumption, self-confidence, and self-righteousness.
3. Return! ‘Repent and do the first works.’ That is just another way of saying, ‘Return unto the Lord.’ Many years ago, a young preacher went to visit an older preacher whom he admired, to seek his counsel about the work of the ministry. The young preacher asked the old man, whom he esteemed so highly, ‘Can you give me one word of advice, I can remember, by which to direct my life and ministry for the glory of God?’ Without hesitation, the old man replied, ‘Take great care that you never lose your sweetheart love for the Lord Jesus Christ.’ Wiser counsel was never given. Yet, when that love does decline, as it is ever inclined to do, return! Return to the place where first you met Christ. Return to the foot of the cross. Bathe your sin-sick soul again in the precious blood of Christ. As you did at the first, trust Christ. As it was in the binging, let your soul be ravished with his love, and look on him until your heart breaks with love for him again (Son 5:8). In order to stir up our hearts to return to him and regain that first love, our Savior gives us a warning and a promise. The warning is this: - If you do not remember, repent, and return to me, ‘I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place’ (Revelation 2:5). That believer who goes on in indifference, will be put away like a broken tool, in uselessness. That local church which goes on in indifference to Christ will have the light of his presence taken away, and their usefulness will cease. The promise is this: ‘To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God’ (Revelation 2:7). Those who lose their first love fall, but those who regain their first love are made to stand. And that love is fed and nourished by Christ himself, both now upon this earth and forever in heaven’s glory. The Lord Jesus Christ will be, to all that love him sincerely, a ’the Tree of Life’ in heaven, ’the Paradise of God.’ The feeding of love upon Christ is heaven begun already in the soul! If I could have anything on earth I might desire, I would choose to have nothing but love for the Lord Jesus Christ, and to do nothing but that which is for his sake and that which is done out of love for him. Oh, may God the Holy Spirit fill our hearts with love for Christ! Yet, I know that there will be no returning of our hearts to our first love, once it is in declension, except Christ himself cause us by his Spirit to return. So this is my prayer - ‘Turn us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned: renew our days as of old.’ Amen.

Revelation 2:8-11

Chapter 10 Christ’s letter to the church at Smyrna’And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.’ Revelation 2:8-11 Smyrna, like Ephesus, was a rich coastal city. It was located about thirty-five miles north of Ephesus on the Aegean Sea. It was a loyal ally of Rome, even before Rome gained its greatness. Smyrna was also a place of Emperor worship. The city built a temple for the worship of the Emperor Tiberius. In a word, Smyrna was a wealthy, powerful, pagan city, entirely given over to idolatry. But, in his merciful providence, God was pleased to send a gospel preacher to that city and establish a gospel church in her midst. We have no way of knowing for certain how this church began; but in all likelihood, it was established by Paul, during his ministry at Ephesus (Acts 19:10). This church had remained faithful for many years in the midst of great trial. It was sound in doctrine, strong in faith, and in a spiritually healthy state. There was nothing in this church that needed to be corrected. The singular purpose of our Lord’s letter to this church was to encourage his people to remain faithful, even unto death. Christ, who knows all things, knew what severe trials the church at Smyrna must face. In this letter he wisely prepares his people for their trials. Our Lord Jesus Christ dictated this letter to John to comfort and strengthen his church in the midst of our earthly trials and to encourage us to persevere in the faith of the gospel. Though this letter was addressed particularly to the church at Smyrna, historically, it was intended by Christ to be a message to us today. Though we in free societies, we no longer fear the persecutions of God’s church in days gone by, because God providentially restrains the powers of wicked men, yet it is still true ‘all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution’ (2 Timothy 3:12). If we follow Christ and seek to live in this world for the glory of Christ, we will suffer abuse at the hands of Christ’s enemies. Our Savior has told us plainly, ‘In the world ye shall have tribulation’ (John 16:13). In this letter our Lord does four things to comfort and encourage his church in the midst of her troubles: (1.) our Lord Jesus Christ calls our attention away from our troubles to himself (v8); (2.) our Savior assures us of his constant care (Revelation 2:9); (3.) the Lord graciously quietens our fears (Revelation 2:10); and (4.) the Lord Jesus Christ encourages us to persevere (Revelation 2:11). Look to Christ As the letter opens, Our Lord Jesus Christ calls our attention away from our troubles to himself (Revelation 2:8). ‘And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive.’ The church at Smyrna, was a flock of harmless sheep in the midst of ferocious wolves. It was the object of malicious slander, reproach, and persecution. Her troubles were many. And, like all of us in times of trouble, the people of God at Smyrna were in danger of falling into the pit of self-pity, which always leads to despondency, if not despair. In order to prevent this from happening, the Lord Jesus says, ‘Do not look upon your troubles, but look to me.’ That is the thrust of this salutation: ‘These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive.’ If we could learn to meditate upon and look to Christ with believing hearts, rather than meditating upon our earthly woes, our troubles on this earth would give us far less trouble. Everything on this earth is temporary. Christ, who is the first and the last, is eternal, and he has secured for us an eternal inheritance in glory. Let every troubled believer look to Christ, our eternal, unchangeable Savior, and his troubles will seem insignificant. The Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, is the first and the last. He is the first, for by him all things were made. He is before all things; and by him all things consist. Christ is the first, for he is himself God, from everlasting to everlasting. And he is the last, for all things were made for him. All things shall be brought to their final end by Christ. All things shall be judged by Christ. And all things shall show forth the praise of Christ. Christ is the first, for he is the foundation laid in Zion. And he is the last, for he is the top-stone, the chief-cornerstone, and the headstone of the corner in his spiritual temple, the church. Our Savior particularly would have us dwell and meditate upon his most glorious work and most glorious character, as our all-sufficient, unchanging, exalted Mediator and King. He is the One who ‘was dead, and is alive.’ There is no cure for despondent hearts like the knowledge of redemption by Christ. The cross of Christ is like the tree Moses cast into Marah’s bitter waters. Take the blessed gospel doctrine of blood atonement and cast it into your bitter waters of earthly trouble, and it will make your bitter troubles sweet to your soul. Whenever you look for something to comfort your heart, encourage your faith, revive your soul, and cause your spirit to dance with joy, meditate on these two facts: (1.) He was dead. (2.) He is alive. The Lord Jesus Christ was dead. He died as our Substitute, under the penalty of our sins. He died to satisfy the offended justice of God for us to put away our sins. By his death, the Son of God purchased salvation for us. Christ died for us, what reason then do we have to fear? Having died under the penalty of sin as our Substitute, the Lord Jesus rose again for our justification; and he is alive forever more. Christ died to obtain salvation. And he lives to apply salvation. ‘For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life’ (Romans 5:10). Christ lives as our Priest and King forever to save his elect (Isaiah 53:9-11). He lives to intercede for his people (John 17:9; John 17:20; 1 John 2:1-2). He lives to protect his own (John 10:27-30). Surely, when we are aware of what Christ has done and is doing for us, we can smile at Satan’s rage and face a frowning world (Romans 8:28-39). Assurance In Revelation 2:9 our Lord assures us of his constant care. ‘I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.’ More tender, assuring, comforting words could not be spoken to troubled believers than the words of Christ to us in this verse. He says, ‘I know.’ It is enough for the child to know that his Father knows what is troubling him. It is enough for the wife to know that her loving husband knows her need. And it is enough for God’s saints to know that Christ knows our peculiar circumstances. Here our Savior gives us five words of assurance. ‘I know thy works’ Christ, who is the omniscient God, knows our works. For the unbelieving hypocrite this is terrifying. But for the believer it is comforting. He whose glory is our chief delight knows our works for him. He not only knows them, he accepts them, through his own merit, and delights in them. He knows the motive of our works, that they are done out of love for him (2 Corinthians 5:14). He knows the strength by which we perform our works for him is the strength which his own grace supplies. And he knows that our works are performed from a sincere heart that desires his glory. Peter’s consolation, even in the teeth of his horrid sin, was the Master’s knowledge of him (John 21:17). Let every believer find comfort here. – ‘Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee.’ Believers never speak of their own works to God. We recognize that our best works are marred by sin and must be washed in the blood of Christ. But Christ will not fail to remember even a cup of cold water offered in his name (Matthew 10:41-42). ‘I know thy tribulation’This is our Lord’s legacy to his church. – ‘In the world ye shall have tribulation’ (John 16:33). He told us plainly that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of heaven (Acts 14:22). For the people of God, this world is a place of sorrow. Believers are soldiers in a hostile territory. Conversion is the beginning of conflict. To worship Christ is to enter into warfare with this world.

No one can follow Christ without paying a price for doing so. In those early days of Christianity, believers suffered banishment, imprisonment, and death by wild beasts or burning at the stake. In these days the conflict is perhaps more subtle, but it is just as real. If you and I follow Christ, we will have to march contrary to the world at all times. It is the confession of Christ that causes the conflict. If we do not confess Christ in the teeth of his enemies, we will have no conflict.

But that lack of confession will be a proof that we do not truly know Christ (Matthew 10:32-34). Believers are a confessing people. We confess our sin to our Savior, and confess our Savior before men. We confess Christ in the waters of baptism, being buried with him in the watery grave and rising with him from the grave, we identify ourselves with our Lord and publicly declare our allegiance to him (Romans 6:3-6). We confess Christ when we defend his honor amidst his enemies. We confess our Lord when we press his claims upon his enemies. We confess the Lord Jesus Christ when we make his gospel and his glory the rule by which we live in this world. ‘I know thy poverty’ These believers at Smyrna were brought to extreme poverty because of their confession of Christ. It was not at all uncommon for a man to lose his job when he was baptized. In those days, to be a believer, from an earthly point of view, meant real sacrifice. Indeed, it is still true today, in measure. Believers frequently lose much by following Christ. If we are believers, anything that would keep us from worshipping Christ or honoring Christ must be forsaken, though it may cost us much in earthly goods. ‘Ye cannot serve God and mammon.’ ‘But thou art rich.’ For the gospel’s sake, these believers suffered tribulation and poverty. But there was no reason for them to begin to pity themselves. They may have seemed to be poor. Indeed, they were very poor, in the matter of earthly goods. But they were rich toward God, rich in spiritual possessions, and rich in grace (Matthew 6:20; Matthew 19:21; Luke 12:21). Do not allow today’s prophets of health, wealth, and prosperity to deceive you. Earthly riches are no sign of divine approval. And earthly poverty is no sign of divine displeasure. If we are believers, if we are in Christ, we are rich (Ephesians 1:3). All the riches of God’s grace are ours in Christ. All the blessings of God’s covenant are ours in Christ.

We are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). It is written, ‘All things are yours.‘‘I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.‘Here our Lord assures us that he knows his true people from those who merely profess to be his people. There was a large population of Jews in Smyrna. They had settled there, because Smyrna was a good place of business, and built a synagogue. As always, these Jews were filled with hatred for the people of God. They both blasphemed Christ and accused his people of horrible crimes before the Romans.

These physical descendants of Abraham thought they were the people of God. But our Lord calls them the synagogue of Satan. ‘How anyone can say that the Jews of today are still, in a very special and glorious, and pre-eminent sense, God’s people, is more than we can understand. God himself calls those who reject the Savior and persecute true believers ‘the synagogue of Satan’. They are no longer his people.’ (William Hendriksen) Yet, this text has a wider application. Those assemblies which are set up in opposition to the truths of the gospel, though they call themselves Christian churches, are all synagogues of Satan. He presides over them. He works in them. And his interests are served by them. What are these synagogues of Satan? Any church that equates morality with righteousness (Romans 10:1-4). Any church that promotes will worship (Colossians 2:23). Any church that puts salvation and redemption in the hands of man (Galatians 2:21). Any church that substitutes ceremonialism and ritualism for worship. God’s covenant people, the true Israel of God, is the church of God, Christ’s spiritual seed. A man’s family tree, outward religious exercises, profession of religion, and doctrinal creed has nothing to do with his relationship to God. Christianity, faith in Christ is a matter of the heart. It is altogether inward and spiritual. ‘They are not all Israel which are of Israel’ (Romans 9:6; Romans 2:28-29; Philippians 3:3). It is most comforting to believers, in the midst of their earthly trials, to hear the Son of God say, ‘I know.’ He who is our Savior is the sovereign King of the universe; and he knows all about us. His eye is always upon us. Fear none Our Lord graciously quietens our fears in the Revelation 2:10. ‘Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.’ Again, I remind you that, as long as we live in this world, we are going to suffer. And our Lord here plainly warns us that the longer we live in this world the more our sorrow will increase. Particularly, he is talking about the evil which we must suffer at the hands of wicked men, who, unknowingly, are the pawns of Satan himself. Yet, our blessed Savior says, ‘Fear none of those things.’ Though Satan roars against us, he cannot devour God’s elect. No matter how great our sufferings on this earth may be, here are four facts which should quieten our fears.

1. Our sufferings in this world are governed and regulated by our Savior (1 Corinthians 10:13) It is true, we often suffer at the hands of wicked men. And, like Job we suffer much from Satan himself. But both wicked men and Satan are under the rule of Christ. They can do nothing without our Redeemer’s permission (Job 1:12; Job 2:6). And whatever God permits our enemies to do will be best for us (2 Samuel 16:10-12).
2. Those things that we suffer will not last long Our sorrow will not be perpetual. It will last for a set time and that set time is really a very short time. ‘Ye shall have tribulation ten days,’ that is to say, ‘You will suffer for a definite, but brief time.’ Surely, we who live for eternity and live in eternity should be able to patiently bear our light afflictions, realizing that they are but for a brief moment in time (Isaiah 26:20; Isaiah 54:8-10; Matthew 24:22; 2 Corinthians 4:18; 1 Peter 1:6).
3. The purpose for our trials is to prove our faith God allows the temptation, the trial, and the tribulation, ’that ye may be tried.’ God sovereignly uses Satan’s vicious attacks to prove his elect. Satan’s intent is to destroy us. But God graciously uses his wicked designs to prove us (James 1:2-3; James 1:12). To put it in the words of John Gill, ‘Suffering times are trying times, whether men are real Christians or no; whether they have the true grace of God or not; and whether the principles they hold are right and true, and are worth and will bear suffering.’ Sooner or later, God will prove our faith. It will be clearly demonstrated whether or not we really trust him.
4. All who endure temptations shall receive a crown of life Our Master says, ‘Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.’ This is not a promise of a special crown for martyrs. All who belong to Christ shall receive a crown of life. God has promised this crown to all who love him (James 1:12). The crown is eternal life itself (1 Corinthians 9:25). Faithfulness is the one thing God requires of his people. And faithfulness is the one thing all believers give. God’s people are faithful. Once a sailor, sailing through a storm made this statement: ‘God, you may sink me if you will; You may save me if you will. But, whatever happens, I will keep my rudder true.’ That is the believer’s attitude. To those who are faithful unto death, Christ promises the crown of glory, eternal salvation (Matthew 10:22). Perseverance encouraged Here is a promise to those who persevere unto the end, to those who are conquerors and more than conquerors in Christ. ‘He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches: He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death’(Revelation 2:11). There is a second death. Death in itself is the result of sin. And physical death is tormenting to men. But there is a second, eternal, spiritual death, which is the death of the body and of the soul in hell (Revelation 20:4). But this second death has no claim upon God’s elect. Though we may be put to death physically, we shall never die (John 5:25; John 11:25; Revelation 20:6). We have been ordained to eternal life (Acts 13:48). Christ purchased eternal life for us (Hebrews 9:12). We have eternal life now (1 John 5:13). We shall soon obtain the glory of that eternal life. Christ himself will give it to us. The greatest encouragement to faithfulness and perseverance is the assurance of our security and eternal life in Christ (Hebrews 11:13-16; Colossians 1:21-23).

Revelation 2:12-17

Chapter 11Christ’s letter to the church at Pergamos’And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; I know thy works and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth. But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate. Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it’ Revelation 2:12-17 Pergamos means ’exalted, lofty, or elevated.’ It was a city in Asia Minor, which was built on a huge rocky hill. The Romans made it the capital of the province. In Pergamos Aesculapius, the pagan god of healing, was worshipped. The emblem of this god was a serpent, which to the people of God is the very emblem and symbol of Satan. Therefore, our Lord called Pergamos the place ‘where Satan’s seat is.’ The great altar to the Greek god Zeus was also in this city, as were many other pagan altars to pagan gods. In addition to these things, Pergamos was the center of emperor worship.

Temples were dedicated to the worship of Caesar. All men, including the disciples of Christ, were expected to offer incense to the emperor’s image and say ‘Caesar is Lord.’ Those who refused to do so suffered great hardship and persecution for their fidelity to Christ.

One example was a man named Antipas, a faithful man, who suffered martyrdom because he would not deny Christ. The majority of those who were members of the church in Pergamos were faithful. They held fast the name of Christ and would not deny his faith. But there were a few, even there, who tried to straddle the fence. Though they claimed to be Christians, they were willing to compromise with the pagans. They followed the doctrine of Balaam. In order to avoid persecution they tried to remove the offense of the cross by incorporating the worship of pagans into the worship of Christ. They would offer incense to Caesar, eat meat in the temple of Aesculapius, pay homage to Zeus, and then come to worship with the people of God on Sunday.Others in the church went beyond the doctrine of Balaam.

They followed the licentious practices of the Nicolaitanes. These Nicolaitanes were base antinomians. They openly taught and practiced fornication and adultery, and shared their wives with one another. In a word, they lived and acted like pagans, but called themselves Christians. Notice the character under which our Lord Jesus Christ presents himself to the church at Pergamos. ‘Those things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges’ (Revelation 2:12). Christ stands before the door of his church with a sword drawn and ready to do battle. The sharp, double-edged sword with which the Son of God does battle is the Word of God. There are two reasons for this picture.

Christ will destroy those who defile his name. He speaks to those in the church who hold the doctrine of Balaam and the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, and says, ‘Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth’ (Revelation 2:16). Notice he says, ‘I will fight against them.’ Not against my church, but against them who are in my church but have forsaken me. There is a parallel passage in Matthew 3:12. John the Baptist tells us that Christ’s ‘fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.’ Christ’s love for his church is manifest by his judgment against the traitors within her walls. The Word of God is a sword of judgment and destruction to hypocrites. By the preaching of the Word, our Lord disciplines his church, separates the wheat from the chaff, and binds up the tares for the burning (Matthew 13:30). He turns his sword against those within the church who have no right to be there. Such a sight should make every hypocrite tremble; but nothing makes hypocrites tremble. Christ presents himself here as a man of war, with his sword drawn, to comfort and defend his church. He is saying to the faithful, ‘I will defend you, I will fight off those who attack you, I will destroy your enemies, and I will purge you of all those wicked men within who would defile you.’ The Lord Jesus is our Joshua. He will chase the enemy before us, and lead us onward, conquering and to conquer. Thus, in this letter our Lord encourages us to persevere in the faith of the gospel. The name of Christ and the faith of Christ The passage shows us that the name of Christ and the faith of Christ are one. Our Lord says, ‘Thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith’ (Revelation 2:13). These two things are identical. They can never be separated. The faith of the gospel has Christ for its center, Christ for its circumference, and Christ for its substance. The name of Christ, that is his Person, his character, his work, and his teachings, is the faith of the gospel. The great doctrines of the gospel are all intimately connected with the Lord Jesus Christ himself. They are the rays; and he is the Sun. We never hold the faith of Christ, except as we hold Jesus Christ himself as the center and object of that faith. In the faith of the gospel Jesus Christ is all and in all. Election is God’s choosing us in Christ before the world was made. Redemption is God purchasing his elect out of the hands of his own law by the blood of Christ. Regeneration is God giving dead sinners life in Christ, and Christ living in us. Forgiveness is God pardoning our sins through the blood of Christ. Justification is God clothing us with and imputing to us the righteousness of Christ. Sanctification is God forming Christ in us, imparting his righteousness to us. Resurrection is God raising us up by the power of Christ. Glorification is God conforming us to the image of Christ, to which end we were predestinated in the eternal purpose of his grace. To the Jews the law was never in its proper place until it was laid in the ark, and covered with the mercy seat. And it is still true with us. We never see the law properly until we see it fulfilled in Christ. The same is true of the gospel. The gospel is the golden ring of our faith; but Christ is the diamond setting in the ring. Christ is the Author and Finisher of our faith. He is the sum and the substance, the top and the bottom, the Alpha and the Omega of the faith of the gospel. When we hold fast the name of Christ we have not denied the faith. Denying the faith Our Lord tells us that there are many who do deny the faith. In Pergamos there were some who held the doctrine of Balaam and others the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes. In doing so they had both denied the name of Christ and the faith of the gospel. This is a painful fact, but it is a fact, and one that we have to face. In every local church there are some who will, for one reason or another, deny the faith. How do men and women deny Christ and his faith? Many let go of Christ’s name and deny his faith by simply refusing to confess it. Secret disciples are always suspect disciples. Those who confess Christ and the faith of the gospel only among his friends have, by their silence, denied him (Matthew 10:27; Matthew 10:32-33). Those who know the truth, but refuse to confess the truth in the teeth of Christ’s enemies, deny the truth. Many, in this age of self-serving pragmatism, ‘I do not think we should offend people, or try to shove anything down their throats. We must try to get along.’ Are you of that opinion? This is what the Son of God says about the matter: ‘I came not to send peace, but a sword’ (Matthew 10:34). ‘He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad’ (Matthew 12:30). ‘And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple’ (Luke 14:27). If we are Christ’s disciples, sooner or later, he will see to it that we confess him before men, even before his enemies. The time will come when Nicomdemus will identify himself with his Lord (John 7:50-51) and Joseph will openly own his Master (John 19:38). Others let go of Christ and deny his faith by embracing false doctrine. In Pergamos some had embraced the doctrine of Balaam and others the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes. Neither was an open denial of the gospel, but both were a practical denial of it. The doctrine of Balaam was the acceptance of and compliance with false religion. It was an attempt to say, ‘We do not have to denounce the religions of men in order to hold to the truth of God’ (Numbers 25:1-2; Numbers 31:16). The doctrine of the Nicolaitanes said, ‘Faith in Christ does not require godliness and obedience to Christ.’ How does this apply to us today? If we embrace error regarding Christ’s person, work, or doctrine, if we believe what our Lord did not teach or refuse to believe what he did teach, then we have denied his name and his faith. Let us ever focus our hearts and minds on Christ our Lord, and shun everything that would turn our thoughts away from him. Christ is the Way we must follow. That is practical Christianity. Christ is the Truth we must believe. That is doctrinal Christianity. Christ is the Life we must live.

That is experimental Christianity. It matters not whether you talk about practical godliness, doctrinal truth, or experimental religion, all must be found in Christ, all must come from Christ, and all must direct us to Christ. We cannot be right in any area, unless Christ is the sum and substance of all. Our religion is Christ. Apart from this there is no true religion. Any doctrine divorced from Christ is heresy.

Any precept divorced from Christ is legalism. Any religious experience divorced from Christ is fanaticism. There are some who deny the faith by lives that are contrary to the gospel. Paul said to Timothy, ‘If any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel’ (1 Timothy 5:8). Morality will never produce faith; but faith always produces morality. This was the error of the Nicolaitanes. They held the truth in creed, but denied it in life. It matters not what I say I believe, if my manner of life is contrary to the gospel, I am an infidel, an unbeliever. Others let go of Christ and deny the faith by actually forsaking Christ and the gospel (John 6:66; 1 John 2:19). There are some who deliberately choose to forsake the gospel, while others are gradually overcome by the deceitful charms of the world; but all who forsake Christ, all who forsake the gospel of the grace of God, have denied the faith. And by their actions they prove that their faith was false. Persevering faith All true believers hold fast the name of Christ and will not deny the faith of the gospel. It is true that some, like Peter, fall at times and deny Christ for a season, but none of God’s elect do so permanently and totally. In the tenor of their lives, God’s people are faithful. All true believers will persevere in the faith to the end. This is clearly the teaching of Holy Scripture (Jeremiah 32:37-40; John 10:27-30). How do we hold fast the name of Christ and the faith of the gospel? How is it that God’s elect persevere in the faith? We must, in our hearts as well as in our heads, hold fast the faith of the gospel. The gospel is the message of God’s free grace to sinners in Christ. It is the message of full atonement and free justification by the obedience of Christ as the sinner’s Substitute. It is the message of salvation by grace alone without the works of man. It includes electing grace, redeeming grace, regenerating grace, and preserving grace. The grace of God in Christ is sovereign, free, irresistible, effectual, and saving. This is the faith of the gospel (Ephesians 1:3-14; 2 Timothy 1:9-12). Believing sinners hold it fast, knowing that we have no hope but the hope of free, sovereign grace in Christ. We hold the faith by the full consent of our minds. God deals with the heart, but he does not by pass the mind. When Christ speaks our minds assent to what he says, and our hearts consent to his revelation. Our motto is, ‘Let God be true, and every man a liar.’ Yet, there is more, we not only agree to the truth of the gospel, we have received the love of the truth. We hold the faith of the gospel in the affections of our hearts (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). Many acknowledge the truth, but few love the truth. God’s people love the truth. Divine sovereignty, electing love, effectual atonement, imputed righteousness, and almighty, infallible, irrevocable grace are matters of unceasing joy, thanksgiving, and consolation to needy sinners who have been made to experience them. We hold the faith when we hold forth the faith of the gospel in the teeth of all opposition. Those who believe the gospel do not hide their colors. They raise the banner high. If men resist, we hold it higher still. If they oppose, we hold it high and wave it in their faces. If I believe the gospel, I am not ashamed to confess the gospel. Men may count me a fool. Men may ridicule me as a fanatic. Men may denounce me as an instigator of strife, but I am honored to be counted a fool, ridiculed, and despised by men for Christ’s sake. If we would hold the faith of Christ, we must hold fast the name of Christ. We must, like those disciples to whom our Lord said, ‘Will ye also go away?’ reply, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God’(John 6:67-69). Ever hold fast the deity of Christ’s name. We rejoice to know that our Savior is a man. But let us never forget that that man is ’the mighty God’ (Isaiah 9:6). He is Immanuel, God with us, God in human flesh. When you put the finger of faith into the nail print in his hand, always cry with the heart of faith, ‘My Lord and my God’ (John 20:28). The royalty of Christ’s name must never be forgotten (Romans 14:9; Philippians 2:9-11). Our Savior is The Lord Jesus Christ. He reigns as King over all things and must continue to reign as King of kings and Lord of lords until he has put all of his enemies under his feet. Believing hearts bow in submissions to Christ’s kingly throne, trust his kingly power, submit to his kingly will, and obey his kingly rule. Never was there a name of such greatness and grandeur of Christ’s name. ‘His name is great in Israel’ (Psalms 76:1). I will ‘praise thy great and terrible name, for it is holy’ (Psalms 99:3). ‘There is none like unto thee, O LORD; thou art great, and thy name is great in might’ (Jeremiah 10:6). ‘I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen’ (Malachi 1:14). It is impossible to speak too highly, or even highly enough, of Christ’s name. It is impossible to make too much, or even enough, of him and his great name. His name is who he is. Surely, none can imagine that it is possible to make too much of him who is all. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Alpha and the Omega, and that he is all and in all. The whole Bible was written to set forth his name (Luke 24:27). The covenant of grace was ordered in his name. All the promises of God are yea and amen in his name. All the blessings of grace are received through his name. We are saved by faith in his name (Acts 4:12; Romans 10:13). We prevail in prayer through his name. God’s servants are sent to preach his name. We find all comfort in his name. ‘Jesus, the name that charms our fears, That bids our sorrows cease, Tis music in the sinner’s ears, Tis life, and health, and peace.’ In the name of Christ, only in the name of Christ, we have a confident hope of victory (Romans 7:24-25; Romans 8:35-39). Constantine once had a dream in which he imagined that God showed him the cross of Christ, and he took it as his emblem, with this motto, ‘By the cross I conquer!’ Believers care nothing for Constantine’s for his superstitious idolizing of the sign of the cross. But we hold forth and hold fast the doctrine of the cross, the doctrine of the gospel and the name of Christ in it, and we say, ‘By Christ we conquer!’ If we persevere in the faith and hold fast the name of Christ firm unto the end we shall be saved (Matthew 10:22; Colossians 1:21-23; Hebrews 3:6; Hebrews 3:14; Hebrews 10:35-39). And all who are born of God shall persevere to the end, because God almighty who has ‘begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.’ Hidden manna, a white stone, a new nameThis is our Savior’s promise: ‘To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it’ (Revelation 2:17). This is what that means: ‘If in the midst of much opposition from the world, the flesh, and the devil you hold fast my name and depart not from the faith of the gospel, you shall overcome your enemies and I will receive you into my heavenly kingdom.’ The hidden manna which Christ will give us to eat forever is the very manna which we now eat by faith - It is Christ himself (John 6:32-35). As today we live by feasting upon the merits of Christ’s righteousness and shed blood (John 6:54), even so in heaven our souls shall live forever, feasting upon him. The white stone which Christ will give us is the stone of complete absolution in the day of judgment (Jeremiah 50:20). The allusion here is to the common practice of the Romans in judgment. After a man had been tried for a crime, if he was found guilty, the judges would cast a black stone into an urn, which meant condemnation. If he were found innocent, they would cast in a white stone, which signified that he had been acquitted and absolved of all guilt. The new name which Christ will give us, which no man can know but those who receive it, is ‘The Lord our Righteousness’ (Jeremiah 23:6; Jeremiah 33:16). We have been made so perfectly righteous and holy by the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to us that our everlasting name shall be ‘Jehovah our Righteousness’ (Isaiah 56:5; Isaiah 62:2).

Revelation 2:18-29

Chapter 12 Christ’s letter to the church at Thyatira ‘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.’ Revelation 2:18-29 Thyatira was the home of Lydia, whose heart the Lord opened. It was a place of great commerce, a city with many, many people passing through its streets every day. Thyatira was a place of wealth and power. In that place of great commerce, the trade unions (guilds) of the day were well organized and powerful. Wool workers, linen workers, tailors, leather craftsmen, tanners, potters, etc, were all associated in business, in one way or another, with pagan idolatry. Each guild had its own guardian god. The situation there such that you wanted to get ahead in business, you had to belong to one of the unions, one of the trade guilds. If you belonged to the guild, your membership implied that you worshipped its god. You would be expected to eat the food offered to those gods at their pagan festivals. That implied that you acknowledged that you had received the food from the gods. After the feasts, base orgies would begin. You could not dare insult your peers by walking out of their festivities! What could a believer do in such circumstances? If he quit his union, he would lose business. If he remained in the union, attended the immoral festivities, and joined in the idolatrous fornications of pagan worship, he would be denying his Lord and sinning against his conscience. God’s saints at Thyatira had to face these kinds of problems everyday, much like many of God’s people do, to varying degrees in this degenerate age. There was a prophetess in the church at Thyatira, called Jezebel, who claimed to have a solution to the problem. She reasoned that if you would conquer Satan, you must get to know him. You will never be able to influence the idolaters if you condemn them and refuse to go along with their religion. You do not have to deny Christ, but you cannot expect to get along in the world if you do not accept the world’s religion, or at least accept it as an acceptable form of religion. After all, who are we to condemn another man’s religion? You just cannot say that someone’s religion is false! Sound familiar? By her cunning craftiness, this prophetess seduced many in the church and persuaded them to commit fornication, not only spiritual fornication, but literally to commit fornication in the name of religious unity! That was the condition of the church at Thyatira. Almost all the old commentators suggest that this letter has reference to the rise of papacy and the heretical, immoral doctrines and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. I have no tolerance for papacy. I am always ready to denounce it as antichrist. Romanism is idolatry. It promotes immorality. Its doctrines are nothing but heretical superstitions.

However, it is a grave mistake to limit this letter to the church at Thyatira to the rise of Romanism. Like the other six letters, this letter is addressed to God’s saints today. It warns us of certain dangers the church of Christ is sure to endure in any age. ‘He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.’ In this letter our Lord warns every local church, every pastor, and every one who professes faith in his name of the subtle and damning influence of false religion. An assuring revelation As this letter opens, our Lord Jesus makes an assuring revelation of himself (v.18). He who walks in the midst of his churches and holds her pastors in his right hand is himself ’the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass.’ In times of trouble and danger, nothing is more assuring to God’s saints than the comforting knowledge of Christ’s presence. ‘The Lord is at hand’ both to observe and to protect his own. The Son of God addresses himself to the angel of the church at Thyatira. As we have seen repeatedly, the angel of the local church is her pastor. He is God’s messenger to the church. You will notice that in each church there is but one angel, one pastor, one messenger from God to his people. It is his responsibility under God to instruct the people of God and protect them from the many forms of false religion that arise. The means by which he does this is the faithful preaching of the gospel, expounding Holy Scripture (Ephesians 4:11-14; Acts 20:28-30). Identifying himself as the Son of God, our Savior calls us both to trust him and to obey him. He who is the Head of the church is not some silly old man dressed up in a sissified costume, but the Son of God himself, our Savior and our Lord. He calls himself the ‘Son of Man’ (Revelation 1:13) to assure us of his love and sympathy toward us. He calls himself the ‘Son of God’ to assure us of his sovereign, almighty power. Our Savior is God almighty; and he is a man touched with the feeling of our infirmities. His eyes are like a flame of fire. He has a piercing, penetrating, perfect knowledge and insight into all things and all people. He searches the hearts and knows the motives of all actions. He tries the reins and knows the principles of all people. His feet are like fine brass. As he knows and judges all things with perfect wisdom, he rules all things and acts with absolute strength and perfect steadiness. His works of providence are deliberate and irrepressible. These two things ought to encourage every faithful pastor to remain loyal to Christ and the gospel of his grace: Christ knows all things; and he has all power. Who or what shall we fear? An acknowledged regard Our Lord displays an acknowledged regard for the faithfulness of his people (Revelation 2:19). The Lord God promises to honor those who honor him (1 Samuel 2:30). Here he fulfills that promise. The Son of God here publicly commends the good works of faithful men and women. ‘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.’ This commendation was not given by a stranger, or even by a casual observer. It was given by one who was well acquainted with them and with the principles upon which they acted[1]. In this nineteenth verse our Savior names five specific works for which he commended his saints at Thyatira. [1] While we must do nothing to honor the flesh and promote pride, it is always proper to recognize and commend faithfulness. To do so is but to follow the example of Christ himself. We should never neglect to commend or show our appreciation for the good things people do for Christ, his gospel, his church, or for us. Ingratitude is always inexcusable, especially when it hides behind the mask of spirituality! 1. They were men and women of obvious charity This is a clear evidence of real grace. Those who are born of God love Christ and love one another. Faith ‘worketh by love’ (Galatians 5:6; John 13:34-35; 1 Corinthians 13:1-3; 1 John 4:20 to 1 John 5:1). Love is much more than a phony, candy coated smile. Love is a thoughtful regard for and active pursuit of another person’s happiness and well-being. 2. The saints at Thyatira were men and women of service to the gospelNo doubt, they served one another in many ways. But the words, ’thy service,’ here seem to have a particular reference to the church’s commitment to the ministry of the gospel. They were a missionary church, committed to the spread of the gospel. With great diligence, they sacrificed money, time, and labor, so that others might hear the gospel of the grace of God (1 Thessalonians 1:8). 3. The people in this church demonstrated great faithfulness to Christ The Master commended their ‘faith,’ their faithfulness. They were not lukewarm, half-hearted religious professors, but faithful followers of Christ. Faithfulness is the one thing God requires of his people, and the one thing all his people give (1 Corinthians 4:2). 4. They were patient Those who are most charitable, most diligent in the cause of Christ, and most faithful in the things of God are likely to be the most tried. But in their many trials they display patience. ‘Tribulation worketh patience’ (Romans 5:3). It cannot be learned any other way. Patience is simply the peaceful, believing resignation of one’s heart to the will of God (Philippians 4:12). 5. ‘And thy works; and the last to be more than the first!’ Added to all these things our Lord commended the Thyatira saints for the fact that they steadily grew in devotion to him. Their last works were better and more numerous than their first. Others had left their first love and lost their first zeal. Not these people! As they grew old, they grew wise. As they matured in years, they matured in grace. As they declined in physical strength, they grew in spiritual strength. These five things ought to be matters of constant concern and prayer to every believer. Let us ever seek grace from our God to love our brethren, serve the cause of Christ, be faithful to our God, walk with patience before God and men, and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. An alarming reproof In Revelation 2:20-23, our Lord sounds an alarming reproof to those who embrace, or even show a tolerance for false religion. ‘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.’ This reproof is not so much directed to the church itself as it is to the wicked seducers within the it. Yet, the church itself was at fault. She is reproved for her tolerance of false religion. There was within the church a woman who claimed to be a prophetess, a female preacher. No one dared assert the teachings of Scripture and reprove the abominable practice. But our Lord called this woman, Jezebel. He compared her to Ahab’s wicked wife, Jezebel, because she encouraged the patronage of false religion, kindness to false prophets, and the acceptance of idolatry. She seduced God’s servants to engage in the pagan festivities connected with idol worship, including fornication! She did all this in the name of God, pretending all the while that she was promoting the worship of Christ. And people believed her! The church in Thyatira was to be blamed in part for the spread of this wicked woman’s heresy because they tolerated her and afforded her opportunity to preach her damning doctrines. They allowed a woman not only to teach, but also to preach, in direct opposition to the Word of God (1 Corinthians 14:34-35; 1 Timothy 2:11-12). By allowing her to spread her doctrine, and by embracing her as a believer, this church became partaker with her in her evil deeds (2 John 1:10-11). If we would be faithful to the souls of men and to the glory of God, false religion and false prophets must be pointedly and plainly exposed by us. We preach a positive gospel. We endeavor to avoid being negative.

Yet, we must never allow any room for the acceptance of any doctrine that is contrary to the gospel of God’s free and sovereign grace in Christ. The popular, accepted, mainstream religion of our day is a religion of works. The vast majority of religious denominations, respected religious leaders, and churches, local, national, and international, are unified in the essence of their message. Virtually all preach salvation by man, either by his works or by his will. They are modern Jezebels, deceiving and seducing the souls of men. We have no point of agreement with them.

If free grace is true, free will is false. If the gospel of grace is true, any and every mixture of works with grace is false. Two opposite messages cannot both be true. That means that there is no room in the house of God for free will, works religion. All who deny the totality of man’s depravity deny the Word of God, which declares it plainly (Romans 3:9-19). All who deny the sovereignty of God in salvation deny the Word of God, which declares it (Romans 9:11-16). All who deny the efficacy of Christ’s blood atonement deny the Scriptures, which proclaim it universally (Galatians 3:13). All who deny the effectual, irresistible power and grace of God the Holy Spirit in regeneration deny the gospel, which asserts it boldly. Such people (men, women, churches, denominations) must never be received, heard, embraced, or supported by the people of God as our brethren, as co-laborers with us in the cause of Christ (Galatians 1:6-8; Galatians 5:12). God will destroy all false prophets and all who follow them, if they do not repent and receive the love of the truth (vv.22-23). There is nothing more damning to the souls of men than Arminian, free will, works religion. Those who are deceived by it shall be damned by it (2 Thessalonians 2:7-12; Matthew 7:15). The purpose and design of Christ in destroying these wicked seducers is that his elect may be both made manifest and instructed (v.23). When heresies come, God’s elect are made manifest by their adherence to the truth (1 Corinthians 11:19). When false prophets are destroyed by the hand of God in judgment, God gives instruction and reproof to all men. God’s judgment upon the seducers of men reveals his infallible knowledge of their hearts. God knows the deceitful principles by which they operate, the hypocrisy of their religion, and the motives of their actions. And he will judge them accordingly. His justice is impartial. He will give every false prophet the exact reward of his works. In the day of judgment they will not be able to hide behind the name of Christ. Their popularity will provide them no sanctuary (Matthew 7:21-23). An Assigned Responsibility In these dark days of apostate religion our Lord lays before each of us an assigned responsibility (Revelation 2:24-25). ‘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.’ These false prophets call their doctrines the depths of theology. They love to dazzle men with deep mysteries, and persuade them that they have profound insight into the things of God. They love to talk about prophetic mysteries, the nature of angels, the work of demons, and most anything that intrigues the imagination. Our Lord calls their deep things ’the depths of Satan!’ (Read 2 Corinthians 11:3.) False prophets will always draw your attention away from Christ and the gospel of his grace. Their mysteries are the mystery of iniquity, satanic delusions, and diabolical doctrines. The gospel sets forth the mystery of godliness, which is Christ crucified. Let us never be turned from it. Christ crucified is the solitary message of the Bible, the solitary object of all true faith, the solitary center of all true worship, the solitary theme of all true preaching, and the solitary motive of every believer’s life. It is our responsibility to hold fast the doctrine of Christ until he comes again. That is, first and foremost, above everything else, the business of every local church (2 Timothy 1:9-13; Titus 1:9). That form of sound words, which we must hold fast, can be summed up and set forth in six brief statements.

1. God almighty is absolutely sovereign over all things (Romans 9:11-26).
2. All men and women, since the sin and fall of our father Adam, are spiritually dead and totally depraved (Romans 5:12; Romans 3:9-19).
3. God has an elect people in the world, chosen from eternity, who must and shall be saved by his sovereign operations of grace (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14).
4. The Lord Jesus Christ died for and redeemed all God’s elect, infallibly securing their everlasting salvation by the satisfaction of divine justice on their behalf (Isaiah 53:8-11; Hebrews 9:12).
5. God the Holy Spirit regenerates, calls to life and faith in Christ, and preserves in grace all who were chosen by God the Father and redeemed by God the Son, by his almighty, effectual, irresistible grace (Psalms 65:4).
6. All who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ shall persevere in faith, being preserved and kept unto eternal glory by the grace and power of God (John 10:27-30). When the Lord Jesus Christ comes again, he will put an end to all heresy, and truth shall rein triumphantly forever. An assured reward If we persevere in faith and hold fast the doctrine of Christ, our Savior, the Son of God, promises us an assured reward (v.26-29). ‘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.’ Those who overcome are those who hold on to Christ’s works, not their own. They shall rule and rein with the Son of God forever. We shall rule with Christ over all our enemies. All who persevere in the faith of the gospel shall sit as kings with Christ upon his throne and rule over all things with him forever (Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:29; Revelation 3:21; Revelation 20:4). All believers will sit with Christ in judgment over all his enemies. Fallen angels, false prophets, every rebel to Christ’s throne, and Satan himself shall be judged and condemned by our Lord; and we shall be his witnesses in the judgment (1 Corinthians 6:3; Hebrews 13:17; Psalms 2:8-9).

The Lord Jesus Christ will give us himself (all of himself!) forever (v.28). He is our souls’ eternal ‘Morning Star’ (2 Peter 1:19; Revelation 22:16). The Day Star which shall introduce us into the glorious day of eternal bliss is Christ himself! He is our glory. He is our crown. He is our heaven (Psalms 73:25-26).