Revelation 2:20; Notwithstanding! (2)
Revelation 2:20 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.
The kings in Israel to be ruling according to God’s laws and not compromise God’s Word with the idolaters of the land.
Deuteronomy 17:18-20 And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which isbefore the priests the Levites: 19And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 20That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, tothe right hand, or tothe left: to the end that he may prolong hisdays in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.
In this church, the voice of falsehood, the voice of Jezebel, was virtually allowed to be regarded as the voice of truth, this is the spirit of Jezebel that we are warned against.
The leaders of the church are exhorted as Paul said to Timothy, the young pastor.
2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 3For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4And they shall turn away theirears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. 5But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
How do you know if these are true prophets? Our Lord Jesus says look at their lives and you will find telltale signs.
Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither cana corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
As we mentioned in the past few devotions, the city of Thyatira was the place where may trade guilds or trade unions were established for the purpose of advancing commerce and each of these unions would have their particular set of rules for membership that includes the worship of idols specific to their trade. And so instead of teaching God’s people to separate from the pollution of idols and immorality, the word there is “fornication”, this evil prophetess was seeking to promote compromise and breaking down the walls of the doctrine of biblical separation in that church.
Biblical separation, the doctrine of separation from sin unto God is a fundamental principle of the Bible, one grievously ignored in the church today. One that must be quickly embraced by this church in Thyatira to arrest her downward slight – If we go to the article 6 of the BP constitution you would see this important doctrine clearly stipulated.
This doctrine arises out of the holiness of God. Both the purity and righteousness of God (Luke 1:75) are involved. “Be ye holy; for I am holy”.[1]The Bible does speak of cooperation (“be of one mind”, “that they may all be one”, ” labourers together”, ” keep the unity of the Spirit”, ” Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord”, also 1 Cor. 12:25). However, biblical cooperation is based upon TRUTH. It involves the united effort of God’s people. This is not a cooperation born of a spirit of undiscerning pluralism, or that of seeking “truth” in all religions.
We maintain that Scripture teaches a separation that is based on the holiness of God, producing purity in all of life, personal and ecclesiastical.
It is the duty of all true churches of the Lord Jesus Christ to make a clear testimony to their faith in Him, especially in these darkening days of apostasy in many professing churches, by which apostasy whole denominations in their official capacity, as well as individual churches, have been swept into a paganising stream of modernism under various names and in varying degrees.
6.6 There has been a notable growth of autocratic domination on the part especially of modernistic leaders by whom the rightful powers of true churches are often usurped and are now being usurped. This is the Jezebel spirit and 6.6 speak against.
6.7 The commands of God to His people to be separate from all unbelief and corruption are clear and positive: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers” which is our memory verse.[2]We reach out to those who are part of any human system which involves compromise with error, and who thus ought to “come out from among them” (2 Cor. 6:17), separate themselves unto the “Father…the Lord Almighty” (2 Cor. 6:18), thus cleansing themselves and “perfecting holiness in the fear of God’ (2 Cor. 7:1).
On the ecclesiastical level, we are to know and oppose the infiltration of modern isms into the church.
6.8 In loyalty to the revealed Word we, as an organized portion of the people of God, are obliged to oppose all forms of modernism, cultism, Romanism, and false religions. Dialogue for the purpose of reaching a compromise between all true Bible believers and representatives of such beliefs is impious, unbiblical, treasonous and unfaithful to the holy God, as He has revealed Himself to us in His infallible and inerrant Word.
6.9 We are opposed to all efforts to obscure or wipe out the clear line of separation between these absolutes: truth and error, light and darkness (see Isa. 5:20; 2 Cor. 6:14-18). We refer to such efforts by New Evangelicals, Charismatic Christians, promoters of ecumenical cooperative evangelism and of the social gospel, and all churches and other movements and organizations that are aligned with or sympathetic to the Ecumenical Movement.
6.10 The Church, having been founded on the principle of Biblical Separation may seek fellowship with like-minded Bible-Presbyterian and other fundamental, Bible-believing churches of similar stand “for the Word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 1:9).
In order to catch a glimpse and understand the stubborn evil of this Jezebel spirit, this was the story following when Elijah defeated the 450 Baal prophets and had them slain at Mount Carmel when God sent fire from heaven to proof that Jehovah only is God. And King Ahab having witnessed the truth went to tell Jezebel of events that took place at Carmel.
1 Kings 19:1-3 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 2Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. 3And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongethto Judah, and left his servant there.
The queen disclosed her murderous intentions led Elijah to run for his life. Remember how Elijah fled from Jezreel to Beersheba, a long-distance marathon many times over and he came to a Juniper tree and sat there depressed? Why was Elijah so frightened of this woman and the evil that she represents? He even asked God to take his life.
This is the entanglement with evil persons. The battle was grievous to deal with a vindictive, wrathful, Jezebel spirit, nevertheless, she must be dealt or the Lord would deal exercise His judgment soon.
May His church exercise strict biblical separation. Amen.
[1]1 Pet. 1:16; also 3:11; Exod. 15:11; Isa. 6:3; 2 Cor. 7:1
[2]2 Cor. 6:14; see also Matt. 6:24; Rom. 16:17; Gal. 1; Eph 5:11; 2 Thess. 3:6,14; 2 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 3:10; 2 Pet 2:1-3; 1 John 4:1-3; 2 John 7-11; Jude 3,20-24; and Rev. 18:4