Run and Repent
Pastor Keaton Washburn
As we continue our study of Revelation, we are going to focus on the criticism of the church at Thyatira. The word of the Lord to the church at Thyatira in Revelation 2:19-23 says, “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.’”
In verse 20, there is a word that the Lord gives to those at Thyatira that stands out, “tolerate.” After commending the church for continuing to increase in their love, faith, service, and patient endurance, the Lord gives them a bit of a scolding. He has this against them, that they tolerate Jezebel and her teachings. Jezebel is a false teacher and the Christians in Thyatira are doing nothing about her, despite the fact she is seducing those within their church and drawing them into sin.
One of the most common bumper stickers I see is the word, “coexist,” with the symbols of many religions superimposed into various letters that make up the word. The message of the bumper sticker is that all religions should “respect” one another and get along; or to put it another way, “stay in their lane.” While that sounds good, that is the message of Jezebel here in Revelation that the Lord is specifically speaking out against! The call of Jezebel was that Christians could still be Christians while also adding to their faith the sexual immorality that she sold. The culture of Thyatira was filled with feasts that often turned sexual and Jezebel tempted those around her to participate in them. Her call seemed innocent but was the gateway to sin.
The call to the Christian today is that, though toleration sounds good, there are lines that God takes where we must follow suit. There is a time when coexisting is dangerous. That line here is false teaching. Anyone who adds to the teachings of Scripture is a false teacher. As Scott Duvall puts it in his commentary on Revelation, “When we dabble with false teaching, we are playing with fire.” Be wary of the teachers you listen to. Have your Bible out and cross-check everything they say with Scripture. If it does not line up with Scripture, run. The message to Jezebel and her followers is the same today to false teachers and their followers, “Repent.”