END OF TIME PROPHECIES 049

THYATIRA     the Commendation        Revelation 2v19.

"I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first".

As always, Jesus commences with an appreciation of all the good they are doing.   This is surprising, considering the level of corruption being tolerated in the church.   It is a lesson from the Master himself to all of us, that we should have the grace to acknowledge in others the good features in them, no matter how we may disagree with them.   This is especially so since we have limited (and sometimes biased) knowledge of them.   There is no prejudice or flattery in His praise of them.   He misses nothing, making a careful note of every detail.   He is able to point out four outstanding features which if present together in any church, would make it, by any standards, a thriving church.   He notes their works and enumerates four of them;  their love, their service, their faith, and their endurance.  

• Their works     -     They are a busy church.   They are following their Master who "went about doing good."   In the language of Paul they are  "always abounding in the work of the Lord."   Although we are not saved by works, we are saved "unto good works."   Paul, writing to Titus, lays out the pattern for good Christian living.   "Sound words" and "good works" were to be the twin graces characterizing every Christian.   The church at Thyatira came badly short in the matter of sound words, but they were noted for their good works.   In Titus 3v8 the apostle said  "that they which have believed in God be careful to maintain good works."   Doing works for the Lord will take many forms, and it is said that when Christians leave this life "their works do follow them."   It is good to ask what works am I doing for the Lord?  
• "I know thy love"     -     Not merely philanthropic love, but sacrificial love, love that went beyond the call of duty to our fellow man.   The Greek word he uses is "agape" this is the kind of love that can only come from God.   It is more than the "milk of human kindness" it is a care and concern that seeks the other person's ultimate good.   It is the outworking of the "love God -love man" scenario.   It is the love of God Himself flowing through me to others.   This kind of love is defined in detail in 1st Corinthians chapter 13; this involved selfless service and consideration toward others.   Jesus used this same word when He said to Peter "lovest thou Me?"   Peter replied with a different word for love, as much as to say I love you from a human point of view but no more.   Agape love is a much deeper love than fellow feeling and is the love that the saints at Thyatira demonstrated.  
• "I know thy service"     -     The word is "diakonos" which means humble service.     It was used in the New Testament to describe table waiters, helpers, those engaging in manual service, those who preach, those who teach, those who are involved in an administration of any kind, or simply the conveying of a gift.   Translated "deacons" or "deacon service" in scripture, it seems to describe any work which is undertaken for the church on a regular basis.   This was a vibrant, efficient church.
• "I know thy faith"     -     This may refer to their adherence to the body of faith common to all believers, or it may refer to their personal faith or trust in the Lord for day to day living.   Whatever it is, it is commendable.   The Christian life is all about faith.   It commences with faith, it continues with faith, and will only give place to sight in eternity.   Peter caught the idea when he wrote  "Whom having not seen ye love, in whom though now you see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory,"   Jesus Himself when he was here remarked on the different levels of faith He found around Him.   He spoke of "little faith" - "great faith" - "faith that can remove mountains."   He appreciates the faith of these good people.  
• "I know your patience"  (endurance)     -     This spiritual life which they were living had been proven in the cauldron of experience, and through many trials.   The idea of endurance is that which has stood the test of time.   There is a sense in these four graces which  Jesus commended of them, that love would lead to service, and faith would lead to endurance.   The saints at Thyatira had become "like a tree planted by the rivers of water" (Psalm 1).

In summary, they were a busy church, they were a loving church, they were an efficient church, they were a loyal church, and they were a strong church.   He finished by saying about those works  "The last are better than the first."   This was a growing church, a progressive church, they did not sit on their laurels.   Their works for God were increasing all the time.   Unlike the church at Ephesus who were told to go back and do the first works, these had progressed and were growing all the time, as to the amount of work they were doing and as to the quality of the same.   What more could anyone ask for from a church?  

Perhaps the sad reality is that their activity was masking their amorality (the condition of being morally neutral).   They were compromising, in that they tolerated known and visible evil amongst them.   No church, no matter the other commendable features about them, can continue the work of God while tolerating evil.   Such was the church at Thyatira.