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Go to Revelation chapter 2. And so we are up to part 4. We are looking at the seven churches in Revelation. We're up to part 4, which is the church in Thyatira. The church in Thyatira. And like I said, we will come back to Luke 19 later in the sermon. But if you go to Revelation chapter 2 and verse number 18. Revelation chapter 2 and verse number 18. The Bible reads, And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira. Right, so just to bring you back up to speed. The angel of the church there refers to the pastor of the church. This is a message being given to the pastor and by default then being given to the larger church as well. These things saith the Son of God, who have his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass. Now this is the vision that John gets of Jesus Christ. Now look, when Christ came the first time, he came in Bethlehem's manger. He was meek and lowly. There was one moment where he did, he performed that transfiguration upon the mount. And his disciples were blown away. Remember that? Remember the way that took place? Well we get an idea of what the glorified body of Jesus Christ looks like. That his eyes would be a flame of fire, his feet are like fine brass. Now please go to the previous chapter, Revelation chapter 1 verse number 12. Revelation chapter 1 verse number 12. And I just want you to really consider our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, he's our meek and lowly Lord. Yes, he's the one that gave his life for us. Yes, he came to seek and to save that which was lost. But don't forget who Christ is today. Glorified once again, seated on the right hand of the Father. And returning back to this earth a second time, not to lay down his life but to pass judgment upon this wicked world. And when we are reminded about this Jesus Christ that we serve, flames of fire. Could you imagine if you just turned and faced Jesus? And you see a man with fire coming out of his eyes as it were. And it says here in verse number 12, this is John. Don't forget John was one of the apostles. John was one of the guys that walked with Jesus Christ. He was there in the ministry of Christ day after day for three years. But then he sees Christ this time as well. And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks. And in the midst of the seven candlesticks, one like unto the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. I like what he says there, and one like unto the Son of Man, which Jesus Christ many times referred to himself as the Son of Man, as he walked this earth. It's Jesus Christ again. But John says, look, it's like the Son of Man. It's him, but there's something different. And then it says this in verse number 14. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were as a flame of fire. So you can see the same description there. Verse number 15, and his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace. And look at this. And his voice as the sound of many waters. So when Christ speaks, it's like the sound of just rushing waters. And it shows us again, this second coming of Christ isn't one to just lay down his life. It's not about being meek and lowly. It's going to be a return of authority and one of power and great glory. And verse number 16, it says, and he had in his right hand seven stars, and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword. We know that when Christ comes back, and he defeats the Antichrist and the armies of the Antichrist, he uses that same sharp sword to destroy those armies. And so this power just out of his voice, and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. I'm sure we've all had times where we've just looked into the sun, which is not good for you, by the way. It could destroy your eyes. But I'm sure, haven't you all, at least as a child, when you're a bit foolish, right, you just look into that sun and it just blinds you. Then you look away and you've just got these black spots everywhere. It's just overwhelming. You can look upon it for just a moment, just a brief moment, but then it's overwhelming. Well, that's the vision that he gets of Jesus Christ. It's just too overwhelming. It's like looking at the sun shining in its strength. And look at how it responds to Jesus Christ. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead, and he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not, I am the first and the last. And I have no doubt that if Jesus Christ showed himself in this way to us right now, that we all would just fall, as it were, dead, just laying on the floor, in a position of worship, just overwhelmed by the glory and the power of Jesus Christ. But how beautiful, how kind is he to lay his right hand and say, Fear not. Don't be afraid. We don't have to be afraid. God's not going to judge us. Praise God, we're saved. We're saved by the shed blood of Jesus Christ. In fact, seeing that glory should not give us fear. Seeing that glory of Christ should remind us that we serve a powerful God. You know, we're on the winning side. We know this world is going down the spooler. We know this world is becoming more wicked, and we can get discouraged, but we're reminded that we serve a great God, a powerful God. Back to Revelation chapter 2, verse number 19. And you may recall, as we're going through these churches, the Lord has some nice things to say about the church, and then some negative things to say about the church. No different with the church in Thyatira. Verse number 19, I know thy works. Hey, is this a church that's busy, serving the Lord? Yeah. Is it a church that has numerous activities? Yeah. I'm sure they're out soul-willing as well. I'm sure they're doing great works of ministry for the Lord. I know thy works. And then he says, and charity. Not for your charity, it's love. Loving your fellow man, right? They love the Lord. They're serving the Lord. They love their fellow man. These great things are happening in the church. And service, so people are serving one another, right? To serve one another means you have to lower yourself to become a servant to a fellow person. So yeah, there's humility happening in this church. And faith, hey, not just the faith that saves, but the faith, the continual, you know, we're to walk faith by faith, day by day. We're to walk a life of faith. And so they're continuing to live a faithful life. And then it says, and thy patience. You know, this is a church that, yeah, you know, it's waiting upon the Lord, right? And then it says again, and thy works. Why would Jesus Christ say, and thy works twice? Don't forget, at the beginning of verse 19, I know thy works, toward the end there, and thy works. What's so important about the works? Why is it bringing it up a second time? Because notice what it says there, and the last, well, that's the last works, to be more than the first. So Christ says, look, I've seen your works when you started as a church. You're doing great works. But even at the last, even right now, you're doing even more works. There's even greater work that's coming out of this church. There's a lot of positives, right? It's not like this church has started on fire, and then it started to dwindle away. No, they're doing more works. They're more busy than the Lord than they were when they first started. All right? So there are great things going for this church. I mean, these are positive things, aren't they? Very positive things. Now, you know, to think of a church like this, like, if we were part of a church, and God would look down to that church and say, look, I've seen your works, your charity, your service, your faith, your patience, and you've even got more works. We would think, man, what a great church to be part of. Yeah, and absolutely it's a great church, which is why it's so surprising when we get to verse number 20 about how bad certain areas of the church had become. Okay? I mean, isn't that like, what you're about to read in verse number 20 just seems like how can, you know, what takes place in verse number 20, how can God be saying all these great positive things about the church just before that in verse number 19? Well, what does it say there in verse number 20? And by the way, let me just say something. There is a danger with a church being too busy. They are a busy church. They're doing a lot of works, but there is a danger when you become too busy, and this is the danger that develops in verse number 20. Notwithstanding, I have a few things against thee. What could you have against thee? Because thou sufferest, or thou allowest, 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. What? I mean, Christ has said all these wonderful things about the church, and what do they have? They've got a female preacher. They've got a woman calling herself a prophet. Look, she's a self-ordained prophet. What does it say there? Thou sufferest, that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess. God did not call her a prophetess. She was not ordained. She herself says, I'm a prophet. She's a self-ordained preacher, and she's preaching in the church. And what is she preaching? To teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication. You know, she's given permission. People in the church, you know, I assume people are coming up to her, and says, look, you know, I've just got saved. I'm living with my girlfriend. You know, should I get married now? What should I do? I'll just continue living fornication. That's just fine. That's what she's teaching, all right? Not only that, and to eat things, sacrifice unto idols. You know, encouraging people, well, you know, we can just have God as just one of the other gods of this city, and the sacrifices that have been done to these idols, yeah, we can just eat of them as well, no problem. You know, I mean, the things that she's teaching are horrible sins. You know, the sin of fornication is a sin that gets you kicked out of church. 1 Corinthians, chapter 5. You know, and then to turn around and say, well, this woman is there preaching these things and encouraging, giving permission for people to commit fornication to the same man. What a horrible church. I mean, like, again, compare verse number 19, which sounds just wonderful. What a great church to be part of. Now, brethren, let's say you're part of a church there, what we read about there in verse number 20. You know, you come to church, there's a woman preacher, she's preaching fornication, just go ahead, she's preaching, just go ahead and eat sacrifices offered unto idols. What would you do? Honestly, like, what would you do? What would you think about that church? Like, I have no doubt, and I'm not saying that you're bad for doing this, I have no doubt that several of you, if you were visiting that church, you'd just walk out of there, all right? You might even say a few words on your way out, okay? That's what I think many of you guys would do, all right? And when we think about that, it's just, you know, because as we keep going, Jesus Christ says that he gives this church time to repent. You know, and it's sort of, sometimes I think, like, in our zeal, you know, in our excitement to serve the Lord, you know, we can sometimes, you know, rubbish a church or put down a church for the wrong that they do, but that church may be very well, still be made up of many believers that are doing some great works for God. You see, it sounds like this church, yeah, there were some, it kind of sounds like to me there were some that just love the Lord, they're doing what is right, and then there are others that are just putting up with this prophetess and following the bad teaching that she's given. Keep your finger there and please turn to 1 Timothy chapter 2. Turn to 1 Timothy chapter number 2. 1 Timothy chapter number 2 in verse number 11. Now, just as a reminder, the book of Timothy, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, 2 Timothy, these are pastoral epistles, okay? I mean, they're good letters for all of us to read, right? But it's primarily Paul to pastor Timothy, okay? He's teaching pastor Timothy how to run the church. And he says there in 1 Timothy chapter 2 verse 11, 1 Timothy chapter 2 verse 11, and ladies, I'm not attacking you, okay? I'm not here trying to have a go at you or anything like that. I don't want you to get offended by these words, okay? I know we live in a strange year, 2022. I know there are strange views on man and woman, the roles and responsibilities, but this is what God's word says. In verse number 20, notwithstanding... Sorry, sorry, verse number 11, 1 Timothy chapter 2 verse 11. I'll give you a moment just in case I gave the wrong reference. 1 Timothy chapter 2 verse 11. Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. Okay, this is how to run a church. To have a woman stand behind the pulpit and to preach is wrong. It's unbiblical. It's a sin, okay? Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. Look at verse number 12. But I suffer not a woman to teach. Hey, what did we read about the church in Thyatira? Because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel to teach. The Apostle Paul says, but I suffer not or I allow not a woman to teach, nor to assert authority over the man, but to be in silence. Now, I've heard some ladies get offended by this and they're like, what? So we're not allowed to speak in church? What, so we're not allowed to sing hymns in church? We're not allowed to, you know, fellowship in church? That's not what it's saying. It's saying when it comes to the time of teaching, but I suffer a woman, not a woman to teach. When it comes to the preaching time, when it comes to standing behind the pulpit and expanding God's Word, that is not a role or a responsibility of a woman, okay? A woman is to be silent with all subjection, okay? That's what the Bible says. I did not write that in your Bible, right? I mean, that's there printed. You guys can see that in your King James Bible. This is what God's Word says. Why? Look at verse number 13. This is why. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. You see, there are roles and responsibilities between man and woman, okay? Even in the marriage, Adam was first formed. Eve was created for Adam, to be a help to Adam, to be under his subjection. Adam is the head of his house and Eve is to be subject under that man. Well, if that is how God created marriage, if that's how he created the relationship between husband and wife, then we see a similar process within the church that those that have authority, those that are teaching and preaching God's Word must be the man and the woman must be under that authority, okay? Under subjection. Now, ladies, please don't misunderstand. I'm not saying that every man in this church has authority over you, okay? And I'm not saying that as the pastor, I've got authority over you when you leave the church. Hey, when church service is over, I've got no authority over you. Ladies, the one that has authority over you is your husband and if you're not married, it's your father, okay? God has put man to be over the woman, okay? That's how God has created things. That's how we are to run church decently and in order. These are the instructions from God, okay? Look at verse 114. It says, And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. So we're pointing back to the story in Genesis chapter 3 when Adam and Eve sinned against the Lord. God says Adam was not deceived, okay? Eve was deceived. Satan came to Eve and said, Hey, eat of this tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It's going to be good for you. You'll be like God. Eve thinks this is great. Man, look at this tree. It looks wonderful. I'm going to eat of it. And then she sinned against the Lord. Then she goes to Adam. Now, look, the Bible says Adam was not deceived. Adam knew this was wrong. It's not like Eve. Eve was deceived into thinking, this is right. Adam goes, no, I'm not deceived. I know this is wrong. And he's still out of it though. Sometimes we sin out of ignorance. Sometimes we sin on purpose. Eve was deceived out of ignorance. She sinned. Adam sinned out of just plain disobedience. My wife sinned. I know this is wrong. I know we should not eat of this, but he did it anyway. But Adam was not deceived. The point being that when it comes to opening God's Word, ladies are more likely to be deceived by the devil than men. I'm not saying that men cannot be deceived by the devil. Of course they can. But when it comes to God's Word, when it comes to preaching behind the pulpit opening God's Word, that is not the place for a woman because she's going to start preaching crazy things, like fornications just fine, crazy things like eating, sacrifices offered unto idols are just fine. That's what we've seen develop here in the church in Thyatira. All right. Now, if you compare, there's something similar that took place in the previous church. I want you to have a look at Revelation chapter 2 and just go back to verse number 14. This was the church in Pergamos. Something very similar is said. But let's just draw out the differences here. In Revelation chapter 2, verse number 14, Revelation chapter 2, verse number 14, again, this is a separate church. This is a church in Pergamos. It says, So is this happening as well in the church in Pergamos? Yeah, the same. But what's the difference? What's the difference? Now, when we looked at Balaam, when we looked at the church last time, we saw that Balaam did things behind the scenes. Balaam did not come out and preach what is wrong. He just, behind the scenes, caused, right, for the women of... I forgot what it was. The daughters of Moab. The daughters of Moab. The prostitutes of Moab, basically, to go into the Israelite men and to seduce them. But he did that behind the scenes. He encouraged the king of Moab to do this. The difference with Jezebel that we read about in the church in Thyatira is that she's just open about it. She was just there, open. Like, she was not behind the scenes. She was just openly telling people to commit this wickedness, this sin against the Lord. So, you know, like I said to you, brethren, what would you do, you know, if you walked into a church like this where you've got this female preacher, you know, completely disobeying the instructions that God has given a local church? Now, I'll get you to turn to another passage. Keep your finger there. And please go to 1 Kings in the Old Testament. Please go to 1 Kings 16. 1 Kings 16. Now, I've got a couple of thoughts here. Number one, I don't think her real name was Jezebel. I don't know if you guys think about that or not. I think she's been called Jezebel because we've got a Jezebel in the Bible in the Old Testament, okay? Jezebel with King Ahab, you may remember that story, where King Ahab wanted a vineyard and then his wife convinced basically to ultimately kill the man that did not want to sell the vineyard to the king, okay? So she was a wicked wife. You know, she basically influenced her husband, the king, who was a weak king, who was a weak man, and generally that's what happens within churches. When ladies start to take authority and start to preach behind the pulpit, it's because the church is filled with weak men. That's what normally happens, okay? So I personally believe that this woman in the church of Thyatira is called Jezebel after her namesake Jezebel in the Old Testament. Because, I mean, I kind of think about the story, right? I mean, Jezebel is quite a, you know, like no one calls their daughters Jezebel, okay? There's a reason why. Because we've got the story of the Old Testament. We don't want any of our daughters to be named after, you know, and if we had a woman called Jezebel and she wants to preach, we're like, hold on, man. That's a strange name to go by. I mean, look, I could be wrong, maybe it was her name, but I think she's called Jezebel because she follows the spirit of Jezebel of the Old Testament, okay? Now, 1 Kings 16, verse 30, please. 1 Kings 16, verse 30. 1 Kings 16, verse 30. Let's have a look at just some of the other sins that she's been involved with. And remember, King Ahab's a wuss. You know, he's a weak man. His wife just tramples all over this guy. It says in verse number 30, And Ahab, the son of Omri, did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were before him. And it came to pass as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam, the sons of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel, the daughter of Ephbeel, king of the Zidodians, and went and served Baal and worshipped him. So what's the first thing that we see here with Jezebel? As soon as she marries the king, King Ahabia, she calls him to turn away from the Lord and to worship Baal. Okay? To worship Baal. That's, you know, probably the three great sins that we see of Jezebel here is that she turns the man's heart, the king's heart, away from the Lord and he worships Baal. And again, just a reminder about when you get married, when you're looking for a spouse, when you're looking for someone to marry, you marry a believer. Please, men, please don't turn your eyes to women who do not love the Lord. You know, make sure that if you're desiring to get married one day, that you marry a sister in the Lord. And ladies, same thing for you. That your heart desire will be to marry a man that is saved, a man who loves the Lord. You know, a man who loves the Lord is going to treat you right in marriage. You know, it's so important that we marry brothers and sisters in the Lord. So the first thing is, hey, she's a non-believer, she turns the king's heart against the Lord. Now, can you please go to chapter 18, 1 Kings chapter 18. 1 Kings chapter 18. What else does she do? In 1 Kings 18 verse 3, it says, An Ahab, that's King Ahab of course, called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. Now, what did we learn about Obadiah? Now, Obadiah feared the Lord greatly. She's out there murdering God's preachers. Okay? That Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifty in a cave and fed them with bread and water. Obadiah has such a fear of God that when he sees Jezebel purposely going and persecuting the preachers of God, he takes a hundred of them, I suppose two caves, fifty in one cave, fifty in another cave, and just feeds them with whatever is God, the bread and water that is God. Okay? But the point being, we see the second great sin of Jezebel there, a desire to destroy and to kill God's prophets. Okay? And of course the third one, which I've already kind of covered, the great sin of her, of course is that she conspired to have Naboth killed because he would not sell his vineyard. That's the most famous story when it comes to Jezebel, right? That she conspired to kill Naboth to steal his land and his vineyard so that King Ahab could have that for himself. All right. Let's go back to Revelation chapter 2, verse number 21. Revelation chapter 2, verse 21. So, we just went to look at Old Testament Jezebel because I believe that's why she's called Jezebel in the New Testament, not that being her real name, but rather she's following after that same spirit, that same rebellion, that same desire to have authority over man, you know, authority over a king. You know, instead of having the men preach, hey, she'd rather get rid of those men and she herself ordains herself, calls herself a prophet, preaching things that are false to God's people. Verse number 21. Now, this is what surprised me the most, and I think it's going to surprise many of us here. Again, these are the words of Jesus. He says, and I gave her, that's Jezebel, space to repent, space, he gives her time to repent, of her fornication and she repented not. Now, brethren, this is, you know, again, just a, you know, I would not expect you, if you walked into a church and you had a lady preach, you're preaching fornication just fine, I would not expect you to stay in that church, okay? I would, you know, I mean, the point being is when we look at God's mercy, when we look at his, just his faithfulness toward a church, right? I mean, it's a church that has a lot of great things going for it. Now, something really bad's happening as well, but God says, you know what, Jesus Christ says, I'm going to give her space to repent, okay? And she repented not. Now, brethren, if we have problems in our church, okay, and, you know, and it might seem like, and I'm sure even your life sometimes is like this, right, that there might be a certain sin in your life that, you know, you're committing that sin, you know it's wrong, you know God wants you to repent from it, God wants you to overcome that sin, right, so you can be walking in wholeness with the Lord, but sometimes you may go through life and go, well, I'm committing this sin, my flesh enjoys it, and I seemingly have no judgment. I seemingly, I'm just getting away with this sin, you know, and maybe I'll just continue in this sin. Hey, be careful, be careful. The reason you're able to continue that sin without what is seemingly being judged is because Jesus Christ gives us space to repent. Okay, he gives us space. Otherwise, every time we sin, God will just strike us down. Immediately, as soon as we sin, you know, God's hand to chest, no, he gives us space to repent. Now, you got a choice. You either take advantage of that space and go, thank you, Lord, for the time you've given me, you go and confess that sin and ask God to help you overcome that sin, or you take the stupid attitude of saying, well, seems like God's all right with it, I'm going to continue that sin and repent not. Jezebel did not repent. She continued preaching behind the pulpit. She continued preaching what is false. So what happens? Well, verse number 22. Behold, I will cast her into a bed and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. So what else is happening? She's saying that fornication is just fine and she's also committing adultery with men in the church. I mean, these things happen. You know, we often think about a woman preacher, we often think about a Pentecostal, a charismatic type church, you know, and you say, oh, no, she's a godly lady, I don't think she's committing adultery and fornication. Of course she is. Of course she is. Why do you think she has so much power over the man? Why is it that a church like this full of men are unable to bring her down because she's got all the secrets about what these guys have done with her? When we read about these things in the Bible, let's not detach that from reality. When you've got a woman preacher at a church and she's got power over the men, I guarantee you, because the Bible tells us so, that she's out there committing fornication, she's out there committing adultery, she's seducing the men in the church. That's one way that these type of women get power over the man. Okay? And so Christ says, alright, we're going to judge. Not just her, but them that commit adultery with her are going to be cast into great tribulation. There's going to be great judgment that falls upon, tribulation means the word trouble, don't forget that, right? There's going to be great trouble that falls upon them except they repent of their deeds. I mean, Christ, once again, just give them one more chance. Repent of your deeds, repent of your works. Alright? This weakness that you're doing. And look at verse number 23. It just keeps getting worse. I mean, it started so promising with this church. Your works, your patience, your service. Man, it sounds like a great church to be part of. Now, here's the other thing that I want us to, before we read verse number 23. Let me remind you, brethren, that there is no such thing as a perfect church. Okay? There is no such thing as a perfect church because there really is no such thing as a perfect person. We're all sinners. Even if we're saved, okay? Yes, our soul has been saved. We've been born again of the Spirit. But don't forget, we still have the flesh. The flesh can still sin. The flesh can still do great weakness like we see that is happening within this church. You know, if there are problems within our church, don't give up on the church. Jesus Christ did not give up. Hey, if there are problems in our church, it gives us space to repent, to fix those things. The reason why we're going through this series of the seven churches is that if we can highlight something in our church that we're failing in the way that these seven churches have, then we need to repent of that and get that right. Okay? Yes, it's great to learn about other churches, but we need to apply this to ourselves, to our church, to our families, to our lives. All right? And, brethren, if you're struggling with some sin, some weakness, and you're just enjoying it, and you think that you're going to get away with it, you're not. Christ is going to send you great judgment, great tribulation, great chastisement if you don't get those things right. And what else did we learn here in verse number 23? And, now, these are the words of Jesus. Okay? Again, not first coming meek and lowly, you know, the lamb which take away the sin of the world, Jesus. The second coming, Jesus, the one that is glorified in the Father right now, okay, eyes with a flame of fire, this Jesus, whose voice is, as it were, many rushing waters, this is the Jesus that we're talking about here. These are the words of Jesus. This is the New Testament. Don't some people think, well, God in the Old Testament was one way, but then God in the New Testament has to change his ways. He's a much nicer God in the New Testament. Hey, this is as far as... The book of Revelation is the last book of the New Testament, okay? This is why we're left knowing who God is, okay? He says in verse number 23, and I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts, and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. Now, listen, if you're serving the Lord faithfully and doing great things for God, hey, that's wonderful. Every one of you will be given according to your works. Praise God. You know, when we serve the Lord, he's going to reward us for that great work. But you know what? He also rewards you for your works if they're works of iniquity. What kind of reward is that? Well, it's major judgment. It's major chastisement. Now, notice this. I will kill her children with death. Now, there's a few thoughts around this. Number one, we learned that she's committed adultery with other men, okay? She's fine with fornication. So it may very well be, yes, that literally she's had children out of these relationships, okay? And it wouldn't be the first time that God allows children to perish because of the parents' sin, okay? The other view that you might have with this, I will kill her children, might be referring to basically the people within the church that have accepted her as a prophetess and that have accepted her doctrines. And so she's a children in the sense where, you know, when we talk about leading someone to Christ, you know, the Bible says that that person's been begotten, you know, and even Paul refers to people that he got saved as his little children, okay, because of the influence that he has had with them with the Word of God. So it may be that children here are just those that have been swept away and believe in the doctrines of the prophetess Jezebel here, okay? But regardless, the thing that we learn here, brethren, is that God's judgment, God's chastisement can fall so harsh even upon a church, even upon God's people, that he might even allow you to be put to death. God, Jesus Christ, may kill you himself if you're that wicked and you're that far gone as a Christian, okay? That's what Jesus Christ said, all right? These things can happen. Now, look, most likely, God's going to put you through some trial, some tribulation, something to wake up to yourself, to wake up to your senses and say, boy, I've been far from the Lord, I need to get close to him, you know, you repent, you confess your sins, you know what, and the Lord's mercies are new every morning, great is his faithfulness. But you know what, there are some Christians that are just so bad, okay? Because what is salvation? Salvation is belief in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved. It is without works. It is without your performance. It is your faith alone on Christ's death, bear and resurrection. That's what salvation is. Hey, but then Christ has created us unto good works. He wants us to do what is right. He wants us to walk according to his will. He wants us to do his service. He wants us to preach the gospel. He wants us to further the kingdom of the Lord. So that's why we come to church, that's why we read our Bibles, that's why we pray, that's why we continue to grow and follow after the footsteps of Jesus Christ. But some Christians, they've got the salvation because it's faith alone, and they're like, well, I'm just going to live the wicked life that I want to live. You know what, I'm going to just disgrace the name of the Lord. There are many Christians like that. And sometimes people think, well, they're not saved because they're not even right. No, salvation is by faith, not by works, okay? It's just that some Christians can get so horrible, so far gone, where God has constantly judged them, God has constantly chastised them, God has constantly given them time to repent and get right with God. But when a Christian can get so far gone, where the salt has lost its savour, or that the Lord will just end that life early. And look, praise God, they're saved. Their life ends early, they're going to be in heaven. But are they going to be rewarded when they get to heaven? They're probably not going to have many rewards at all for the wicked life they've lived. All right, can you please turn to 1 Corinthians 5. Keep your finger there in Revelation 2. Turn to 1 Corinthians 5, please. 1 Corinthians 5. 1 Corinthians 5. Because you might say, well, Pastor Kevin, I don't know. You know, this is the book of Revelation, it's a bit cryptic, it's a bit symbolic. Are you sure that Jesus would allow his own believers to die to death? You know? Well, let's have a look at 1 Corinthians. It's an epistle to a church, okay? So again, it's an epistle to a New Testament church. And as I already mentioned, 1 Corinthians 5 deals with kicking people out of church because of grievous sins. And one of those grievous sins is the sin of fornication. In fact, the man that we're talking about in this chapter, you can do your own time, you can read it in your own time, is a man that was killing them in fornication with his father's wife, okay? But it says in 1 Corinthians 5, 5, so the reason you kick someone out of the church, because of these sins, it says, look at verse number 5, to deliver such and one unto Satan, look at this, for the destruction of the flesh. What is the destruction of the flesh? Death, right? And that's what it is, right? That the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. So notice, this person is saved, okay? But in his flesh, he's just living a wicked lifestyle. He's committing fornication with his father's wife, okay? I mean, he's so far gone as a Christian, where Paul says, look, just kick him out of church and hand him over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh. But even if his flesh gets destroyed, his spirit is saved, because he's a saved person, he's believed in the Lord, okay? Now, that's what's great about the Bible, is we've got 2 Corinthians, and what we read back in 2 Corinthians, this man actually gets things right. He does repent, he does ask for forgiveness from the church, and then Paul encourages the Corinthian church to bring him back into the church. Okay? So ideally, if somebody's been kicked out because of a grievous sin, we want them to apologize and get back into church. That's the ideal, okay? But people that want to continue in their weakness, their flesh will ultimately be destroyed. They're going to receive this heavy judgment, not just from the Lord, but being delivered to Satan himself, okay? So church discipline is an important part of our practice as a church, okay? All right. So that's, obviously, I just want to show you that, you know, I'm not just misinterpreting or something, right? Revelation chapter 2, we see just simple passages about church discipline applying the same thing, that God will even allow his own believers to die if they're that far gone. All right. Can you please go back to Revelation chapter 2, look at verse number 24, Revelation chapter 2, and verse number 24. But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine... So now Jesus Christ is not speaking to Jezebel and to those other people that have been committed to these things. He says, but I say unto you and the rest of you in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine. So you don't have the doctrine of Jezebel, okay? You know she's a wicked woman. You're not listening to her preaching. Okay? So that's what he's talking about right now. And which have not known the depths of Satan. So Jezebel, that woman preaching, knows the depths of Satan. She's teaching Satan's doctrines, okay? So he's talking to those that haven't bought into Jezebel. As they speak, I will put upon you none other burden. Why? Because they're doing everything right. At the very beginning when we read about all that great works that they were doing, the works of charity, the service, the faith, the patience, and the works, he's speaking about these people. He says, look, just continue doing what you're doing. Don't quit on church. Keep serving the Lord. And you know what? A church can get so bad where sometimes you might say, you know what? I'm just going to get out of this church because it's gone so bad. You know what? The instruction is, if that's the best church in your area, stay there. Serve the Lord. Christ is not going to put any other burden upon you. Just you do what is right and allow God to judge those that are wicked within the church. Okay? Once again, there is no perfect church. Okay? There's always going to be an issue here, an issue there that pops up. Every church has any issue. You go and talk to any pastor of any church and they will, if they're honest, will tell you, yep, we've had major issues within our church. It's just that sometimes some pastors are open about that to the church. Other times those pastors just sweep it under the rug hoping that nobody finds out. Okay? But every church has problems. All right? There's something else that I wanted to speak about here. If we can just backtrack to verse number 22. Backtrack to verse number 22. And where it says, Behold, I will cast her into a bed and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation. Now I do believe there is a double application here. Okay? We looked at the application for that church. But when we look at this term, this phrase, great tribulation, this phrase only appears three times in our Bibles. Okay? The first time it appears in Matthew 24 about the great tribulation being when the antichrist exalts himself and persecutes the people of God. Okay? The second time that it appears is what we just read there in Revelation chapter 2. The third time it appears is in Revelation chapter 7. Once again dealing with the antichrist persecuting the people of God. All right. So what I want to do then is apply this in that sense. I don't believe it's a coincidence that great tribulation is mentioned here. Okay? And again we're talking about the book of Revelation. All right. So there's something that we learn here. That whatever that generation is, that is the last generation of believers on this earth that go through this time of great tribulation. Okay? There's basically two ways that these believers can function during this time. Number one, they can be like those that did not give in to the sins of Jezebel and continue serving the Lord. Don't forget what Christ said about that the kingdom of the gospel is going to go out for all the nations of the earth during those end times. So there are going to be some believers that are faithful to God, serving the Lord, preaching the gospel. It's not about preserving their own life. They're trying to give everlasting life, eternal life to other people. But then there will be other Christians who cave in, they give in to sin, they just live the wicked fleshly lifestyle and Christ is about these people that they're going to be cast into the great tribulation. Now what does that mean? Basically a couple of things. Think about it this way. If you're the Lord Jesus Christ and you've got two groups of Christians, they're saved because they have actions by faith alone. And you know that the time is near, people need to get saved, the gospel needs to go out for the whole nation. You've got one group of Christians that are serving you faithfully, they don't care if they have to lose their life in your name and you have another group of Christians just living for themselves, just committing sin, all kinds of wickedness. Which group are you going to preserve during the great tribulation? Which group do you need to continue? Which group are you going to sustain and keep them safe for this time of great tribulation? Of course it's going to be the one that's doing the works of God, but those that live for themselves, why would God protect them in that time of great tribulation? And so I do believe we can take a secondary application here about these end times, that these Christians that just live for themselves come in all manners of sin. Yeah, okay, you'll be cast into a bed. You'll be cast into that great tribulation. You know, your flesh will be destroyed. You know, your children will be cured. But for those Christians that are serving the Lord faithfully, they will be preserved to the coming of the Lord. Alright, let's keep going there, verse number 25. Verse number 25. But that which ye have already, hold fast till I come. So again, what do you have already? What we read, the charity, the service, the faith, the patience and works. Continue doing those things, hold fast, you know, be steadfast, don't be discouraged by all the problems happening in the church. Hold fast till I come. Keep serving me till I return. Okay? Alright, and then we get to verse number 26. He, and he that overcometh, and don't forget, he that overcometh is talking about someone that is saved. The one that has believed Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is in Christ Jesus, that is the person that has overcome. And he that overcometh, but notice this, and, there's an and, okay? And keepeth my works unto the end. To him will I give power over the nations. Now brethren, if you're saved, you have overcome this world. Okay, that's all of you. But you know what, there are some that will keep his works unto the end. There are some of us that will remain faithful to the Lord until his return. Or until our bodies perish and we go to be with the Lord forever. You see, those that are doing the great works for God, Jesus Christ says that he will going to give them power over the nations. Amen. This is, you know, again, it's always, when I think about this, I'm just overwhelmed to think that one day, we are going to rule and reign with Christ. Okay? And they're not just empty words. We truly are. Like, we're about to, is it this week or a week and a half away from the elections? Okay? And people are going to vote for the government and the politicians. And yeah, you know, in many ways the politicians have power over this earth. But you know, one day you're going to be those politicians. One day you're going to be those kings. One day you're going to be given power over the nations. That's coming at the millennial reign of Jesus Christ. Okay? It's great that you're saved, but if you want a prominent position, you want to be someone of authority, serving Jesus Christ, ruling reign with him in a high position, hey, don't just overcome, don't just be saved, but keep his works unto the end. The more you do to the Lord, the greater your reward will be. The greater position of authority you're going to have. Now, I want you to quickly look at Revelation chapter 20. Go to Revelation chapter 20 and verse number 4. Revelation chapter 20 and verse number 4. Revelation chapter 20 and verse number 4. We're talking about people here, this last generation of believers, that have gone through the great tribulation. It says in verse number 4, Okay. Well, we know that God sits on a throne, but now there are thrones, and they sat upon them. Who sat upon these thrones? And judgment was given unto them, so these people are passing judgment, so who are they? And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands, and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. These are believers that served the Lord during this time against the Antichrist. They lose their heads in service for God, and they're given great thrones to judge over the earth with Jesus Christ for a thousand years. You see, we can serve the Lord, and there are some Christians that have served, and will serve to the Lord till the day they die. They will die for the name of Jesus. They will die for the word of God. These people that have served God, have given up their life for the service of the Lord God, they're going to be given great positions of authority, great thrones upon this earth. That brings us back to Luke 19. Can you please go to Luke 19? Okay, we have the reading from Luke 19 and verse number 11. Luke 19 and verse number 11. So we're going to be looking at this parable, alright? And this parable is all about, you know, doing the works for God and receiving a great inheritance, great authority, great power over the nations. In Luke 19 verse 11, Luke 19 verse 11. And as they heard these things, He added and spake a parable, because He was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. So this is, Jesus Christ is on His way to Jerusalem, you know, that He will eventually be sacrificed when He gets there. But the people are thinking, okay, He's coming to Jerusalem, it's the capital city of Israel, He's going to rule upon this earth, He's bringing His kingdom now. So this is all about ruling in Christ's kingdom, alright? So this is the parable that it says before them. Verse number 12. to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. Now, of course, we have hindsight, we know that the certain nobleman that he's referring to in this parable is himself. He's going to Jerusalem, they think you're going to accept the kingdom now. He goes, no, no, no, I'm going to go to a far country and receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he's already saying, look, there's going to be a second coming. And when I come the second time, I'm bringing the kingdom from that far country, okay? So he's already telling them, you know, in a parable form, I'm not setting up the kingdom now, okay? It's going to come when I return. Alright, let's keep going there. Verse number 12. Now look at verse number 14. Now who would say these words? Who are the citizens of this kingdom that do not want Jesus Christ to reign over them? Of course, it's the unbelieving Jews, okay? Of course, it's not the believers, it's not the Christians. Don't forget this kingdom was for the Jews, but those that rejected Christ, those that did not want him to reign over him, that kingdom has been taken from them, okay? Now let's keep going there. They don't want him to reign over him, so we'll deal with them in a moment. Verse number 15. Having received the kingdom, remember, Jesus Christ says his kingdom is not from hence. It's not from the earth. It's the kingdom of heaven. It's the kingdom of God, okay? He comes back and he brings the kingdom to this earth, alright? Having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him to whom he had given the money that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Verse number 16. Then came the first saying, Lord, thy pound have gained ten pounds. Hey, that's wonderful. Lord, you've given me one pound and I've come to show you ten pounds. This is what I've done for you. This is how I've occupied till you come. I've served you, I've worked for you and I've got this in. You know, it's ten times more than what you've given me, Lord. Now listen, let me just quickly tell you, every man is given a pound here. This is not the parable of talents. When it comes to the parable of talents, different people are given different talents. In this parable, everyone's given the same pound. Okay, so what could that represent? If we're all given the same pound? Salvation. We're all given the gospel message. Okay, we're all given the same thing. Now, what are you going to do with that? Once you have received the pound, once you receive the gospel message, once you have been saved, what are you going to do? You know, are you going to try to produce ten pounds out of that? Are you going to labor and serve the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, this man did. He gives him ten pounds. And then it says here, sorry, anyone know where I'm up to? Sorry? Verse number 17. Oh yeah, verse number 17. And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant, because thou hast been faithful in a very little, look at this, have thou authority over ten cities. Hey, man, if you've got authority over ten cities, that's a powerful position to have. Okay, this man has served the Lord ten pounds out of the one pound, he has authority over ten cities. Verse number 18. And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound, so again, he's got one pound, have gained five pounds. So say, oh man, it's not as much as the guy that had ten. Well, hold on. Look at verse number 19. And he said likewise to him, be thou also over five cities. You see, even if you just produce five pounds, you get a position of authority. You're not going to be given as much authority as the man with the ten cities. Hey, but you're still a good and faithful servant. You still serve the Lord with what you've been given. Let's keep going there. Verse number 20. And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin. So this guy did not trade with it. He just hid it in a napkin. So Lord, you gave me one pound, here's your one pound back. Now look, praise God. There's something there, but look, now notice this. If the pound represents the gospel or represents salvation, and you know what, you're giving that pound back, there's nothing that's developed from that. Notice what it says here. Verse number 21. For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man, that thou takest up, that thou layest not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. And he said unto him, Out of thine own mouthful I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taken up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow. Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming, into the bank, that at my coming, I might have required mine own with usury. Because what you could have done was deposit it into the bank, and at least the bank would have made some interest on it. Okay? What happens then? And it says in verse number 24. And it said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that have ten pounds. And they said unto him, Lord, he have ten pounds. They're like, Lord, he's really got ten pounds. He's really got ten cities, Lord. For I say unto you, that unto every one which hath shall be given, and from him that hath not, even that shall be taken away from him, but those mine enemies. So, let me just stop there for a moment. Okay? So one thing that we learned there is if this man's pound, if he did nothing with it, those rewards that God would have given that man gets given to those that served him the most. Okay? This teaches a few things. God has set rewards. God has set authority. God has given us different privileges, different things that we can all obtain. None of it's going to go to waste. Everything that God has will be given to somebody. Okay? And God wants you to maximize your rewards. But brethren, if you don't serve the Lord, if you do nothing for the Lord, the rewards that you should have had are going to be given to those that did serve him. Not only are they going to get the rewards that they did to serve the Lord, but for all the Christians that are not doing any works, those that serve the Lord are going to be shared, sharing those rewards that should have been given to other Christians. So no rewards goes to waste. Okay? And so we see this parable. We should have a desire to take the wonderful message of salvation and to do something with it, to preach it to other people. Yeah, one pound, one salvation. Hey, I can get out there and preach the gospel to 10 people and see them call upon the Lord and be saved. Yeah? Or we can take it and raise our family in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Hey, we can take the word of God and fix our lives and live a holy life and grow in wisdom, grow in understanding. You know, we can do so much for the Lord with what he's given us. He's given us a church. He's given us a Bible. He's given us the Holy Spirit to understand his word. God has given us so much. Let us not be like this guy that took the pound and did nothing with it. Okay? Let's not be this guy. Now notice, verse number 27. But those mine enemies... Remember the enemies were those that didn't want Christ to rule over them? The Christ-rejecting Jews. But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither and slay them before me. So those that have not trusted Christ as Savior, they're going to be slain. They're going to be cast into hellfire for rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ. Back to Revelation, chapter 2. Revelation, chapter 2, verse number 27. Revelation, chapter 2, verse number 27. I don't know about you, brethren, but when I get this thought about getting rewards from Jesus Christ, you know, and thinking about the fact that he wants us to maximize the rewards that we have, and thinking that maybe if I don't serve the Lord enough, my reward's going to be taken from me and given to someone else. Doesn't that just drive you just want to serve the Lord even more? Could you imagine being saved your whole life, you know, and you've just done nothing for the Lord? You've been saved for 50, 60 years, 70 years, and you've just done nothing? I mean, that's going to be embarrassing when you face the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, well, Lord, you know, I got saved, or great, you got saved. You know, and wonderful you got saved. Don't get me wrong, salvation's wonderful, okay? You know, again, the thief on the cross. I mean, he could barely do any worse, right? He believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ said, verily, verily, I say unto thee today thou shalt be with me in paradise. Okay, that thief on the cross could do no works besides eventually dying, you know, on that cross. And so, just being saved is wonderful. But look, salvation is what Christ has done for us. The rewards about what we've done for him. You know, what have you done for the Lord Jesus Christ? Because salvation is a gift, okay? Rewards are not a gift. Rewards are earned. Earned by the labor and the work that we do for the Lord Jesus Christ. Okay, let's keep going, verse number 27. Revelation 2, verse number 27. And as Jesus Christ says, and he shall rule them. Wait a second. You know what, let's get the context back again. Let's go back to verse number 26. And he that overcometh and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations. So again, it's talking about believers that have served Christ. They're going to be given power over the nations. Hey, maybe some of us are going to get ten cities, some of us are going to get five cities. You know, I kind of want, maybe if the Lord just gives me the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, I'll be happy. I'll be happy with that. I don't really want Sydney. Someone else can take Sydney. Get the Sunshine Coast, I'm happy with that, okay. But notice what it says in verse number 27. And he, that's the person that has the authority that's been given that power. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers, even as I received of my Father. So the Father has given Jesus authority over the nations. The Father has given Jesus a rod of iron to rule during the millennium. Then Jesus says, hey, those that have served me, I'm going to give them the same authority. They're going to be ruling with a rod of iron. Now, just quickly, look at Revelation chapter 12, verse number 5. Look at Revelation chapter 12 and verse number 5. And sorry if I got a little bit long tonight. I did travel from Queensland. Please forgive me. Revelation chapter 12, verse number 5. Now, what we're looking at Revelation chapter 12 is of course a retelling of the birth of Christ here. But it's just a very short statement. It says in verse number 5, And she brought forth a man child, talking about Jesus who was born, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron, and her child was caught up unto God and to his throne. So I just want to show you that when Christ comes, he's going to be ruled with that rod of iron, but those that have faithfully served him are going to be given the same authority with him and rule and reign with him. Okay? Just like the Father gave to the Son, the Son's going to give us that authority. Now, when you go back to Revelation chapter 2, and now we're up to verse number 28. Verse number 28 makes a lot more sense now. And I will give him the morning star. And I will give him those that are ruling and reigning with Christ will be given the morning star. Say, what does that mean? Well, again, go to Revelation 22. Sorry, it's a bit of a Bible study. Yes, it is. Go to Revelation 22, verse number 16. Revelation chapter 22 and verse number 16. Revelation 22, verse number 16. These are the words of Jesus. I, Jesus, have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. And then continue saying, I am the root and the offspring of David, look at this, and the bright and morning star. Brethren, who is the bright and morning star? Jesus Christ. In verse number 28, it said, and I will give him the morning star. Wow, what does that mean though? If Christ is the morning star, and for those that rule and reign with him are going to be given the morning star, what does that mean? Well, again, what are we looking at? Authority over the cities, authority over the nations. The authority that Christ has as the morning star will be given to us to rule over this world, to rule over this nation. Look at verse number 29. Sorry, chapter 2, verse 29. He that hath an ear. Brethren, have you got an ear? You do. Hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches, not just the church in Thyatira. This includes, blessed are Baptist Church. Listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to you. The Lord God wants you to rule and reign with Christ. He wants you to receive that morning star. He wants you to have that rod of iron where you can have authority when Christ comes in his millennium kingdom. This is something we ought to be excited about, something that our hope and desire ought to be, yes, about salvation, yes, yes, for the coming of Christ, absolutely, but also that one day we're going to be judges over this earth. We're going to be given great authority. One more passage. Please, one more passage. The last book of the Old Testament, Malachi chapter 4. Last book of your Old Testament, Malachi chapter 4. I just want to show you the consistency of the Bible here. Go to Malachi chapter 4 and verse number 1. Malachi chapter 4 and verse number 1. Jesus Christ is the morning star, the bride of the morning star. Christ will give us the morning star. Malachi 4 tells us a little bit more about this. Verse number 1. Malachi chapter 4 and verse number 1. It says, For behold, the day cometh, this is about the wrath of God from upon the earth, that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble, and the day that cometh shall burn them up, save the Lord of hosts, and it shall leave them neither roots nor branch. We know when Christ pours out his wrath, the trumpet vials, the trumpets and the vile judgments upon this earth, it's all going to burn. The earth is going to burn. Now after Christ pours out his judgments, okay, he returns on the white horse with his believers with him, and then what's the next thing on the prophetic calendar? The millennium reign of Christ, right? So it continues there in Malachi chapter 4, verse number 2. But unto you, that fear my name, look at this, shall the son, and that's s-u-n, as in like the son, okay, not the son like a child, shall the son of righteousness arise with healing in his wings, look at this, and ye shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall, and ye shall tread down the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, save the Lord of hosts. So Christ refers to himself as the morning star, okay? In Malachi chapter 4, again about the same timeline, after the judgment of God falls upon this earth, during his millennium reign, he refers to himself as the son, s-u-n, of righteousness. Because that's what the morning star is, it's the sun, okay? You know, the sun, the star of the morning is the sun which shines brightly, okay, and Christ is using that as an example that he's going to rule over this earth. You know, when God created the sun, God said that it rules over the day, okay, and the moon rules over the night. Well, yeah, but here's the thing, Christ's kingdom is not a kingdom of darkness, it's a kingdom of light, and that's why he's taking that parallel of the son of righteousness, and notice there in Malachi chapter 4, he says that we, God's people, those that fear God will tread down the wicked, and they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet. You see, during the millennium reign of Christ, you know, yes, there are those that have been raptured, that have been given new resurrected bodies, that have served the Lord, they're going to have authority on this earth, but then there are going to be others that go into that millennium, those that did not take the mark of the beast, those that continue living on, and they're going to continue to procreate, they're going to have natural bodies, and God's people are going to rule over these nations, rule over the kings of this earth that did not align themselves with the antichrist. And this will continue for a thousand years, okay? And finally, the wicked will be brought to judgment. It's not going to be like 2022, where someone commits murder and they get a slap on the wrist and nothing happens. No, these wicked people, these pedophiles, these people that take advantage of the innocence, hey, they're going to be like ashes under our feet. You know, justice is going to be served finally on this earth in the kingdom of Jesus Christ. Hear that happen here. Let him hear what the spirits say if unto the churches. Okay, let's pray.