After
John the apostle saw the vision of Jesus in chapter one of
“Revelation”,
he began to write to the “seven
churches in Asia”. He
started with the church located in “Ephesus”,
then the “church
of Smyrna”,
the “church
in Pergamos” and
the “church
in Thyatira” where
He told them, “I
know your works, and charity, and service, and faith, and your
patience, and your works; and the last to
be
more than the first”,
and he added, “Notwithstanding
I have a few things against you, because you suffer that woman
Jezebel, which calls herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my
servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto
idols”. John
shared how Jesus gave“the
church in Thyratira”
“space to repent of her fornication;
and
she repented not”,
and in
chapter
two and verse twenty-two of Revelation Jesus said,“I
will cast her into a bed...and into great tribulation” where
we read:
Behold,
I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her
into great tribulation,
except
they repent of their deeds.
The
verse begins, “Behold,
I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her
into great tribulation, ...”
John
began with the word, “behold”
which means “lo and see”, “I
will cast her”
or “Jesus shall throw the church
in Thyatira”
“into
a bed”
which means “onto a reclining couch”, “and
them”
which refers to “and the people whether male or female” “that
commit adultery”
or “who submit to the solicitation to be drawn away to idolatry and
to the eating of things sacrificed to idols”
“with her”
which refers to “with the church
in Thyatira”
“into
great tribulation”
which means “abundant, large and grand oppression, affliction,
distress and straits”. Jesus provided a “place” for people to
“align with” the “spiritual adultery” of the “church
in Thyatira”,
and if they submitted, they were to suffer “abundant affliction,
oppression and distress”.
The
verse goes on to say,
“...
except they repent of their deeds.”
John
added the word, “except”
or “if perhaps” “they
repent” which
means “the people who are committing spiritual adultery within the
church
in Thyatira
change their minds and ways” “of
their deeds”
or “toward and pertaining to the church in Thyatira's business,
employment and that which they are occupied”. Jesus provided
“repentance” as the way to “escape” the troubles that were to
come upon the “idolatrous” “church
in Thyatira”.
When
we consider John's words in this verse, we see how Jesus desired for
the “church in Thyatira” to turn from them “idolatry”
and worship only Him. If they “repented”, they would not
endure the “great tribulation” Jesus predicted, and if they did
not “repent”, they were certain to suffer. God desires to
save every person through belief and trust in His Son Jesus, and when
they submit to Him, they avoid not only “great tribulation”, but
also “eternal damnation”. “Except” a person “repents of
their deeds”, they cannot be saved. Let all who read take heed
to the Jesus' warning to this church.
Next
time
John writes how Jesus tells the “church of
Thyatira” “I will kill her children with death, and all the
churches shall know that I am he which searches the reins and
hearts”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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