Jesus and the Church in Thyatira (Rev. 2:18-29)

As we noted with regard to previous studies of the seven churches, there is a similar structure to each letter: characteristic of Christ, commendation by Christ, criticism by Christ, counsel by Christ and comfort from Christ. The structure is followed in the letter to the church in Thyatira. This is the longest letter of the seven churches, mainly because of the length of Christ’s criticism. Having said that, it is not the longest criticism, which is reserved for the church in Laodicea.

The city of Thyatira

The city was known for its metalworking industries, and this is alluded to by Jesus in his self-description in verse 18 when he describes himself as having eyes like a flame of fire and feet like burnished bronze. Lydia, who was converted through Paul’s ministry in Philippi, came from Thyatira (Acts 16:14), and she was involved in selling of cloth, which was another industry of the city. Like all other cities, it contained pagan temples, with all the demands and connections they made on the inhabitants – Thyatira had more trade guilds than any other city in the province.

In order to understand the problem, we need to recall that many Christians in the Roman Empire faced a problem connected to the trade guilds, which was that their meetings were linked to idolatrous worship. We saw that was a problem in Pergamos, and it was also a problem in Thyatira.

The character of Christ

Jesus here reminds the church in Thyatira that he is the Judge of his church. In his description of himself, Jesus refers to three things: his person (Son of God), his penetrating knowledge (eyes like unto a flame of fire) and his powerful strength (feet are like fine brass). This description is a reminder of his unique status as divine.

There is perhaps an allusion to the focus there was in Thyatira on Apollo, the son of Zeus (whom pagan worshippers there thought was the main god). But Christ’s uniqueness was also being denied by some in the church because they were prepared to practice what he forbade. The proof that we truly accept Jesus to be the Son of God is to tolerate no rivals and to obey what he says.

Jesus reminds the church members that his knowledge is penetrating, that he is aware of all that is going on. He can see through all postures and disguises to give an accurate assessment His judgment is based on precise information. But he also has the power to carry out his judgment, depicted in the imagery of bronze feet, strong to crush all who oppose him. This is the Jesus with whom we deal, one who cares for the purity of his church, and who will crush all who oppose him.

The commendation (v. 19)

Jesus identifies aspects of the life of this church. In several crucial ways it was a very healthy church. This was an active church marked by two positive features. First, its inner strength was its love and faith; second, its outer strength was its determined and dedicated service of Christ.

This church could not be criticised for losing love, rather it served out of love. They were touched by the graciousness of Jesus in coming to save them, and they loved him in return. Their Christian lives were warm towards Christ. Along with love, there was faith, which includes both trust and loyalty. They were committed to him in the main, and had done so for some time.

Indeed the spiritual temperature was rising and its commitment was progressing, because its current level was higher than it had been in the past. So it was a church that seemed to be on the way to fulfil its potential. This was indeed a church to be impressed with.

The criticism (vv. 20-23)

Looking a bit closer, we can see that Thyatira was strong where Ephesus was weak (love), but weak where Ephesus was strong (fidelity to truth). Her weakness was such that Christ had already resolved to deal with the problem in judgement.

The problem was caused by the presence of a prophetess in the church who had a following because she taught it was permissible to take part in the pagan feasts. We saw, when considering the church in Pergamos, that financial loss and civil persecution would follow the failure of any to take part in the temple worship. In Pergamos, some had compromised their commitment to Christ by taking part in the feasts; in Thyatira, a prominent prophetess was teaching that it was permissible to take part.

Jesus says about her that she called herself a prophetess, which indicates that he had not given her a spiritual gift that she had abused. Rather her involvement in the church had been brought about by her own actions. Probably she had been accepted by some in the congregation because she seemed to be speaking for God and giving helpful advice about a difficult area of life. Their failure to assess her adequately had led to sinful tolerance. In this situation we see the problem that will develop when a congregation focuses only on action and forgets about doctrine.

It is not clear how she and her followers justified the practice. Verse 24 says that they regarded their actions as knowing the depths of Satan, which means that they recognised the Satanic nature of the pagan temples. There are, at least, two possible explanations: one is that they regarded themselves as immune from the spiritual dangers linked with pagan worship and the second is that they thought it was essential for them to experience the temple rites in order to be better witnesses for Christ.

Whatever their logic, it was not shared by Jesus. He tells the church that the prophetess had ignored an earlier opportunity to repent, which may have been an earlier warning to her, and therefore she and her followers were about to experience terrible judgments unless they repented soon. The judgment would involve physical death, a bed of illness. The reference to children is to her followers and not to physical children. Note here the longsuffering of Jesus; he prefers repentance to judgment, and although this woman had sinned herself and led others astray Jesus had given her a previous opportunity to amend her ways. Yet since she had spurned his offer of mercy, he will judge her.

We see once again that Jesus does not approve of compromising his witness in society in which we reduce his uniqueness. A church cannot use worldly responses to escape difficulties. The lesson to learn here that a growing and loving church is not immune from compromise.

Compromise is subtle because it can seem persuasive, it can seem to be the answer to the situation. It is important to note that the compromising is not limited to the ones who followed the woman; it is also found in a church that tolerated her influence.

The counsel (vv. 24-25)

The counsel that Jesus gives to the others involves not giving them another burden. This seems to mean that he is not going to make any special demands of the church in Thyatira that is extra to what he has given to all the churches. He wants them to adhere to what has already been given to them. It is likely that the false teachers were making wrong demands and the response of the true leaders was to suggest new rules. In passing, this is a word for us as churches facing problem situations. The usual response that we make to a new problem is to create a new rule, hoping that the rule will prevent further declension. Eventually, there will be a lot of additional rules, which then become more important than the Bible’s commands. Legalism is never the answer to wrong practices. The answer to every problem is found by going back to what Christ has already given us and holding tightly to it.

What does it mean to hold tightly to the teaching of Christ? It is an interesting word picture because it depicts how we hold on to something that is important such as a marriage certificate or a will or a form giving us the right to vote. So how would be expect a Christian to hold on to the teaching of Christ?

First, he will hold on to it endearingly because he loves Jesus and therefore loves all his teaching, whether it is explanations, promises or commandments. The degree with which we are willing to hold to all his truth is a good thermometer for measuring the intensity of our affections for Jesus.

Second, a Christian will hold on to Christ’s teaching eruditely, that is, he will hold on to doctrine intelligently. A child can hold tenaciously to a worthless item because he is too young to understand that it is of no value. In contrast, it is a mark of adulthood to hold closely that which is understood to be valuable. Therefore, those who want to hold on to Christ’s doctrine will take steps to ensure that they continue to increase in understanding of Christian teaching and so avoid being misled like those in Thyatira.

Third, a disciple of Jesus will hold to his teaching elegantly, that is, graciously. While it is true that Jesus’ truth must be held tenaciously, it is not to be conveyed in a manner that terrorises others. The hand that holds firmly to the teaching of Jesus will be a gracious hand, willing to guide and help others in understanding Jesus. A Christian adhering to the teaching of Christ should have an attractive witness.

Fourth, a believer will hold to the doctrine of Jesus equally, that is, in balance. We are prone to grade doctrines and say some are more important than others. For example, it is common for some to say that a teaching may be only mentioned once or twice in the Bible and suggest that such a doctrine is not as important as one that is mentioned many times. Of course, what is to be noted is the clarity and not the frequency by which a teaching is made. One teaching may be so obvious that one reference is enough whereas another teaching may require several lengthy passages in order to explain it. But a believer will hold fast to all of Jesus’ teaching.

Fifth, a believer will hold to the instruction of Jesus exclusively, that is, he will not mix it with other ideas, whether from outside the church or inside the church. The problem in Thyatira was that the congregation, while active in the service of Jesus, was led by a false teacher to mix the teaching of Christ with that of pagan religions. A devoted follower of Jesus will not do so, no matter how interesting the suggested compromise may seem.

Sixth, a Christian will hold on to the teaching of Jesus effectively, that is, he will spread it in ways that increase the influence of the gospel. Effective use of Jesus’ teaching will include eagerness to share it with others. Yet the Christian will know that effectiveness is only attained through earnest prayer, and therefore he will pray for success.

Seventh, a disciple of Jesus holds on to the teaching of Jesus enduringly, that is, he should never let it go. Sometimes the pressure to moderate one’s commitment will become very strong, nevertheless a believer marked by the several traits just mentioned will persevere in holding on, often having to pay a heavy price.

Eighth, the follower of Jesus will hold on to his teachings enjoyably, that is, he finds them satisfying. This is the case intellectually – his mind is satisfied with the knowledge he receives from the teaching of Jesus. It is also the case emotionally as he discovers his affections are impressed and enlarged by the doctrine of Christ. And it is the case practically as well because the believer finds that the best way to live is to obey the instructions of Jesus.

The comfort (vv. 26-28)

Jesus promises two things to the overcomer, to the person who believes in him. The first is total victory over all his enemies. To appreciate this promise, we need to realise its allusion to Psalm 2 which describes the triumph of Jesus over all his enemies who opposed him. While some regard the fulfilment of the promise as taking place in the intermediate state, I suspect that more likely it is a reference to sharing the glory of Christ, including involvement on the day of judgement when he judges fallen angels and men (1 Cor. 6). It also includes receiving from the Father the same inheritance as Jesus did, which includes within it sharing his rule over it.

The second promise involves receiving the morning star. This star is seen while it is still dark, but is a sign that the day is about to appear. Jesus is the morning star, but what he means is that his loyal people will have him now as the foretaste and guarantee of the day of glory in the future. He will meet with them through the various means of grace that he has provided.

So there is a promise of future blessing and present provision. These two aspects have appeared in previous promises to overcomers and remind us that, as Christians, we must always look ahead to the promised glory and look around for the promised benefits of Jesus.