The City in John s Day THYATIRA CHURCH PERIOD 606-1520 A.D. Thyatira, a small town about 35 miles southeast of Pergamum was founded by Alexander the Great in 300 B.C. A military city situated in a fertile agricultural valley, it was noted for commerce, trade guilds, and craftsmen specializing in tanning, bronze, pottery, and purple dying. Although the city was not a religious center, emperor worship did exist and each trade guild had its own pseudo-god. Christian business owners or tradesman were expected to join trade guilds in Thyatira, which exposed and put pressure on them to be involved in pagan worship. Failure to participate meant the loss of livelihood and being blackballed from their trade. When John wrote the church in Thyatira, he warned about worshiping false idols. There were no great statues of pseudo-gods in the city, but trade guilds strongly promoted idolatry and excessive drinking. We read in Revelation 2: Rev 2:20-23 20 Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. 21 And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. 22 Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. 23 I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works. Within the local body of Believers at Thyatira of John s day was a woman. This was a woman of great influence who claimed to be a prophetess. They permitted this woman to teach the principles of Roman religious practices; bottom line the pagan worship of Babylonian and Greek origin. Who this woman was is a question, but this is what can be said of her. She was a pretender, and called herself a prophetess. Probably she was of noble lineage. She certainly was a woman of commanding influence. Her teachings led those in this local body of Believers to commit sexual sins and eat things sacrificed to idols. Her punishment she was given time to repent, but she did not. So she, along with those who practiced her teachings, and her children too, they all died with a sickness that is not disclosed. Whether her real name was Jezebel or not, she was much like her prototype of the Old Testament, the wife of Ahab. More will be disclosed as the Thyatira Church Period is considered. The main characteristic of the local church in Thyatira seem to be its works toward people rather than striving to keep their doctrinal beliefs pure and aligned with the Word of God. 1
The Arabs and Turks repeatedly attacked Thyatira throughout the years, but each time it was rebuilt. Because the new structures were erected over the ruins, the history of the city is difficult to trace. Now the city is a Turkish town of 50,000 called Akhisar, with little evidence of its character in the apostolic era. The Thyatira Church Period in History The Church Period of Thyatira produced what is known in history as the Dark Ages. What was begun in the Pergamum Period will now only escalate in the Thyatira Period, merging the dark systems of paganism even deeper within Christianity. The light that Yeshua entrusted to His Church all but flickered out during the Dark Ages and was not rekindled until the days of the Reformation. This darkness of pagan worship began in the Pergamum Period, so it is necessary to recount a point made in the study of that particular Church. Its Period extended from 312 to 606 A.D., a time span of nearly 300 years. From Satan s point of view, this was ample time to totally saturate the pagan ways of worship into the people, unknowingly. So if born into or after the third generation of these accepted practices, the Church had no idea how far true worship had strayed or how paganistic it had become. By the end of the Pergamum Period, the practices were now considered and accepted as holy, totally unaware of the changes made. At this point, it is necessary to examine the story of Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, who brought Baal worship to Israel (1 Kings 16-19). From the story we will be able to see the error brought into the Church of Thyatira. Here is the story: Jezebel, the wife of Ahab (Kingdom of Israel s seventh king), was not by birth a daughter of Abraham, but a princess of idolatrous Tyre, an ancient Phoenician city, located on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Tyre s royal family was famed for cruel and savagery and intense devotion to Baal and Astarte (another name for Ishtar). Her father, Eth-baal, a priest of the Baal deity, murdered the reigning monarch Phales, and then succeeded him. Ahab, in order to strengthen his kingdom, married Eth-baal s daughter, Jezebel. She, aided and assisted by Ahab, introduced the defiled worship of Baal into the Kingdom of Israel, and killed all the prophets of Yehovah she could lay her hands on. And this influence she exercised, not only while her husband was alive, but also during the reign of her two sons, Ahaziah and Jehoram. Moreover, the marriage of her daughter Athaliah to Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, king of the Kingdom of Judah, introduced idolatrous worship into the Kingdom of Judah. It was not long before there was a house of Baal built in Jerusalem, and so Jezebel caused all Israel to sin after the sin of Jeroboam (the Kingdom of Israel s first king), the son of Nebat (1 Kings 16:29-33). Once again; in the original church at Thyatira, during John s day, was a woman of great influence. They permitted this woman, who claimed to be a prophetess, to teach the Christians within the church to embrace and become involved with the Roman religious practices of Greek 2
and Babylonian origin. She was much like her prototype of the Old Testament, whether her real name was Jezebel or not. In fulfilment of the Jezebel in this Period, some 200 years after John s life that this Church Period takes in, the Jezebel spoken of in the scriptures typifies a system and that system is now called the Papal Church. And as the years progressed through time in this Period, some 913 years, we will soon see the Papal Church began to issue more decrees enforcing the ways of Babylonian and Greek worship into the worship of Christianity. When the Papal Church introduced images and pictures into its churches for the people to bow down to, it became idolatrous. And when it set up its claim that the teachings of the Church are superior to the Word of God, it assumed the role of Prophetess. A careful study of the Papal System from 606 A.D. to the Reformation in 1520 A.D., with its institution of the Sacrifice of the Mass and other pagan rites, reveals in it the sway of Jezebelism. It was also a period of Jezebelistic Persecution, as seen in the wars of the Crusades, and the rise of the Inquisition. Continuing the history of the Church where we left off in the Period of Pergamum, we note the following changes and doctrines that have their source in paganism added to the Church during this Period: YEAR 607 First Pope coronated; Boniface III, who was named Universal Bishop At this point, in the year 607 A.D. the Universal Church moved its headquarters to Rome from Pergamum; where it remains even today. Therefore, Satan s seat throughout history goes as follows: Babylon Pergamum Rome then it will go back to Babylon during the Great Tribulation Returning once again to the changes made: YEAR 709 Kissing the Pope s foot 786 Worshiping of images and relics 850 Use of holy water begun 995 Canonization of dead saints 998 Fasting on Fridays and during Lent 1079 Celibacy of the priesthood 1090 Prayer beads 1184 The Inquisition 1190 Sale of indulgences 1215 Transubstantiation 1220 Adoration of the wafer (Host) 3
Changes made during Thyatira Period: (con t) YEAR 1229 Bible forbidden to laypeople 1414 Cup forbidden to people at Communion 1439 Doctrine of purgatory decreed 1508 Doctrine of seven sacraments affirmed Continuing on up into modern times: 1534 The Ave Maria approved 1545 Tradition granted equal authority with Bible 1546 Apocryphal books put into Bible 1854 Immaculate conception of Mary 1864 Syllabus of Errors proclaimed 1870 Infallibility of the Pope declared 1930 Public schools condemned 1950 Assumption of the Virgin Mary 1965 Mary proclaimed Mother of the Church One of the dangerous trends during the 1900's in the Church of Rome is the elevation of Mary to a status just short of deity. News media reports indicate that millions have petitioned the Pope to declare her a member of the Trinity, though the official line is that it is not going to happen yet. Already she is referred to as the mother of God or the queen of Heaven. In reference to Yeshua, He is referred to as the Son of Mary. In some instances, Mary appears to be the dispenser of salvation, which contradict Scripture. We read Yeshua s own words in John 14:6: I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. The Teaching of Continual Sacrifice Thyatira comes from two words meaning sacrifice and continual; this introduces the central heresy that has produced other false doctrines. The Church of Rome can scarcely be accused of teaching a false concept of the personal deity of Christ; however, their emphasis on the continual sacrifice and their rejection of Yeshua s finished work breeds a concept that causes people to try to earn their own salvation by works through the use of such things as sacraments and praying for the dead, burning candles, saying penance, indulgences, and many other satanically conceived ideas. All of these were borrowed from the mystery Babylon religion. During this period, between 607 A.D. to this day, the Universal Church has gradually become more Babylonian than Christian in beliefs and practices. All introduced practices were borrowed from the mystery religion of Babylon, the mother of all pagan customs and idolatry, none of which is taught in the New Testament, and they are labeled by Yeshua in His letter to this Church as the depths of Satan (Rev 2:24) or better understood would be, Satan s so-called deep secrets. Satan does not want us to know, he does not want us to see the program he has set up and intermingled within the Church. 4
The mystery Babylonian religion is found clear back in Genesis, during the rule of Nimrod. Satan had taught the children of men a form of idolatrous religion of serving pseudo-gods. These practices are known as Satan s so-called deep secrets. Satan tries to entice and lure man into these practices so cunningly with deception and craftiness. This explains what is meant in Revelation 2:24-25: Rev 2:24-25 24 But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not explored and known the depths of Satan, as they say I tell you that I do not lay upon you any other [fresh] burden: 25 Only hold fast to what you have until I come. AMP In these two verses comes a piece of valuable advice and counsel from the Son of Yehovah. It says, If you have not explored and known the depths of Satan, his so-called deep secrets, hold fast to what you have until I come! In other words, hold on to Truth tightly with a firm grip. Do not let TRUTH go. Yehovah definitely provides a way of Truth through His Word READ IT! Messiah s Character Revealed Rev 2:18 18 'These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass: Messiah, again, selects one of the aspects of His nature, as revealed to John in his vision of Chapter 1. To Thyatira, He reveals that He is the Son of Yehovah, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass. The title Son of Yehovah emphasizes His deity to a city in John s day that worshiped the sungod. It is also instructive to those in the Church of Rome, who are prone to think of Him as the Son of Mary. The words eyes and feet denote that Messiah is looking with indignation and with piercing judgment on the Church because she has permitted false teachings to creep into her midst, which has misled many servants. Promises Are Given to the Overcomers Rev 2:26 26 And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations 27... as I also have received from My Father; 28 and I will give him the morning star. Two promises were given to the overcomers who would faithfully keep Messiah s works unto 5
the end. The first was power over the nations. The overcomers will be given authority to rule over the nations in the Millennium, sharing the privilege granted to Messiah by God the Father. The word rule means to shepherd. Believers will administer mercy, direction, and protection to the nations during the Kingdom Age. Second, they will be given the morning star, Yeshua, who has given Himself to all Believers. We will read later in Revelation 22: Rev 22:16 16 "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star." The morning star shines brightly over the dark Earth just before dawn. At the Rapture, Messiah will appear over this dark world to take the Bride away before the darkest time in man s history, the Great Tribulation, and they will reappear with Him to usher in the dawn of the Millennium. Messiah to the Church of Thyatira Rev 2:19 19 "I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and as for your works, the last are more than the first. As hard as it is to imagine, there is something good concerning this church and the Church Period that it defines. As stated before, the main characteristic of the local church in Thyatira seem to be its works toward people rather than striving to keep their doctrinal beliefs pure and aligned with the Word of God. Throughout the history of the Roman Church it also has been characterized with human kindness and compassion; such as: the many hospitals and sanitariums that have been set up and run by nuns and priests. Not to go unsaid is their service of ministry to humanitarian needs. The last area that needs to be considered is the judgment against the Church of Thyatira and the influence they have had for nearly 1700 years in history. Messiah predicts that those that are persuaded to follow her false teachings will go into the Great Tribulation, when she will, according to Revelation 17, be the Church of the Tribulation. This warning should speak to every Bible-believing Believer in the world about having any entangling affiliation with any worldwide religious trends or movements; such as, one-world religion; which is already on the table in pursuing that end. Next, a judgment of repaying each according to your deeds, is an obvious reference to the just judgment of the Great White Throne. The last judgment, death which literally means the second death, when those who are spiritually lost will be cast into the lake of fire. The final words from Messiah: Rev 2:29 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."' 6
Added Notes: What can be seen up to this point in Church history is: Doctrine of the Nicolaitans: Clergy over Laity got a foot in the door during the Ephesus Period. But by the time of the Pergamum Period, it was imposed upon the Church to be accepted as a doctrine. Doctrine of Balaamism: Government and religion becomes unified, as in a marriage with one another. Jezebelism: The Babylonian and Greek paganistic ways, introduced in the Pergamum Period, now takes a firm hold in the Thyatira Period. Also, during this Period many more ways of the Babylonian Mystery Religion of Nimrod s day have been ordered as a way of worship within Christianity. These are the systems that will be dealt with throughout our study of the book of the Revelation. These areas above still exist in the practices of worship to this day, totally immersed and absorbed within Christianity; and pretty much without one s knowledge and understanding that this has occurred. The damaging influence adopted from the Babylonian and Greek cultures, has caused such a spiritual fracture from the purest forms of Godliness. These practices will only intensify as the end of days come to a close until all source of worship will be commanded of the people to worship the one behind these mystery and pagan ways of Babylonian and Greek origin Satan! It is so hard to acknowledge the fact that there are areas of our worship that have been saturated with the ways of the Babylonian and Greek s mystery religion. We have been so contaminated, defiled, polluted, corrupted, and poisoned of true worship. Father, in Yeshua s name, please help us to find our way back to You! Again and again this will be stated in all Bible Studies when we come together: We need to understand that true worship begins with loving Yehovah and Yehovah alone with ALL our heart, mind, soul, and strength! It is promised that He will lead us into all understanding. Let us continually proclaim that promise as we walk our journey through life. Be very cautious of man s teachings and their ways. If it does not line up with scripture, ignore it. Yehovah has so blessed us with the written Scriptures, that truly we are without excuse to claim ignorance. But we must pursue to take in and digest His word so we can be firmly grounded and able to discern when man s teachings do not line up with His word. 7