Tuesday 23 July 2024

Thyatira and Sardis in the Book of Revelation. The Seven Seals.

 I made two mistakes in my title last post. I've fixed it now. I have illnesses and am pretty old, so forgive me when I make mistakes. 

Thyatira: Faithfulness     Fourth Seal: Religious Persecution    538 CE - 1516 CE

Spirituality:

I know your deeds, and your love and faith and service and perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater than at first.  But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality…But I say to you, the rest who are in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as they call them – I place no other burden on you.  Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come.  He who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations…  Rev. 2:19, 20, 24-26

Jezebel was a wicked queen who led the people of her nation to abandon God and worship idols and she killed those who refused to submit. (1 Kin. 16:31; 21:25;                2 Kin. 9:7, 22)  In prophetic language, a woman represents a city, which represents a group of people that have something in common (i.e. citizens of a city [“city”zens] have their place of residence in common). (See Appendix 2)  Here, Jezebel calls herself a prophetess, so Jezebel is a city, a group of people (“city”zens), who have a religion in common since they believe they speak for God. 

In the year 533 CE the Roman Emperor Justinian declared that the Bishop of Rome was to be the head of all Christian churches.  By the year 538 CE all opposition to this appointment, both religious and civil, was crushed.  The Bishop of Rome (city) was firmly established in his authority over religious and civil matters.  Those church members with the traits of Balaam and the Nicolaitans (“city”zens) had finally attained all the power and riches they had so desired (commonality).  They had set up a powerful church and were designing doctrines that would strengthen their control and would lead the masses astray.  But there were still believers who remained faithful to the teachings and the spirit of Jesus although they did not fight hard enough in the beginning against this false church with its false doctrines.  However, what was done was done and Jesus told them to hang on and as a reward they would rule with him.

 When the Lamb broke the fourth seal…I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him.  Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth.  Rev. 6:7, 8

Hades is the Greek word for hell, and the experience of many of those who refused to follow Jezebel, the teachings of this false church, went through hell on earth, dying for their faithful adherence to the pure teachings of Jesus.  The Inquisitions and persecutions, the torturous and agonizing deaths of the faithful were unrivaled by anything in history.  Truly the ashen horse of Death followed by Hades fell upon those faithful people.

Sardis: Truth    Fifth Seal: Reformation    1517 CE - 1797 CE

Spirituality:

…I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.  Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.  So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent…But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.  He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.  Rev. 2:1-5

Jezebel had almost completely wiped out those who remained faithful to the pure teachings of Jesus, but the truth was not yet dead even though it looked like it.  A spark remained and it was about to be kindled into a full-blown fire.  Martin Luther, a Catholic monk, was a man in search of truth.  As he dug into the Bible he found that much of what he had believed in his previous religious life was untrue.  In 1517 CE he bravely wrote out the truths he had discovered and then posted them (his 95 theses, see Appendix 3) so everyone who could read would see the truth.  Some others, both in religious and political offices, saw the truth in what Martin Luther had discovered and together they started what became known as the Protestant Reformation (“protest”ing the false teachings of the Jezebel church).  Jesus promised those who fought against the false church that they would be clothed in white and have their names written in the book of life.

Experience:

When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”  And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.  Rev. 6:9-11

The Jezebel church was not going to give up its power easily and the persecutions continued, but this time it was aimed at the visible and vocal Protestant movement.  Some European political powers stood up to the church for the first time, refusing to turn over their citizens to be killed, and Jezebel found herself losing power.