Good morning, you will please return to the book of Revelation chapter two. Revelation chapter two. May our good and kind Lord give us grace to understand his word on this his day. Revelation two and verse 18 is the letter that Christ through John sends to the church in Thyatira, Revelation two verse 18. And to the angel of the church and fire fire, right? These things says the son of God. Who has eyes like a flame? A fire in his feet like fine brass. I know your works. Love. Service. Faith in your patience. And as for your works, the last are more than the first. 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. And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality and she did not repent. Indeed, I will cast her into a sick bed and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation. Unless they repent of their deeds. 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. Now to you I say and to the rest and fire Tyra as many as do not have this doctrine who have not known the depths of Satan as they say. I will put on you no other burden. But hold fast what you have till I come. And he who overcomes and keeps my works until the end to him, I will give power over the nations. He shall rule them with a rod of iron. They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter's vessels. As I also have received from my father and I will give him the morning star He who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches. Well, here, in some way, is a congregation that, in some ways, is the opposite of the Ephesian church. The church in Ephesus, in many ways, was very sharp doctrinally, able to recognize heresy, especially that of the Nicolaitans. The vision church had lost the love that they had at the beginning. This congregation in fire Tyra. Seems to be something of the opposite of that growing in love but some of the church have come under the influence of a false teacher. Last week we looked at the church in Pergamos and so now from Pergamos we now travel about forty miles southeast into the Lycus Valley. So we are now Up to this point, we've been moving roughly north. Roughly along the coastline, and now we are taking a turn and coming back down southeast to complete this loop of churches that John is sending these letters to about 40 miles southeast of Pergamon. Fire Tyra sitting in this valley. Had been a vulnerable place throughout its history due to its low lying position. When it came under the control of Rome in 190 BC, that certainly brought some stability to it that it had not known before. And that stability provided opportunities for that city to grow, especially economically. Inscriptions have been found in the ruins of the city. Those inscriptions show that Fire Tyre was a place of great industry, not really the kind of place you would take a vacation to. It was really a place of, you would think of maybe in your own city, the industrial complexes. That's probably the way Thyatira would have looked at this time. There was a wide variety of trades and manufacturing. One historian makes this following list of who you would have found in Thyatira. Wool workers, linen workers, makers of outer garments. Dyers, that is, dipping the clothes in dye, leather workers, tanners, potters, bakers, slave dealers, and bronze smiths. We know a little bit about one particular person from Thyatira. She was in Philippi when she heard Paul preaching. She was a seller of purple. Her name was Lydia. She was from Thyatira. She was one of those merchants. If you could have walked the streets of Thyatira, you would have been in the middle of a lot of activity and a lot of noise. Carts and porters bringing into the city all of the raw materials, the export of all of the finished products that would have been going out to all different places of the empire. If you would have walked in the streets, you would have noticed that the bakers would be organized into a specific area. They would have had their few city blocks where they would have been. A few blocks over you would find the tanners and so on. The trades were organized into guilds. These were, you can think of them as trade unions that organized the workers according to their skills. These guilds were business and socially oriented. There were many aspects to them. But in an aggressively pagan environment, These guilds also had a religious element to them. The guild members believe that ultimately they were dependent upon their particular God to bless them in their trade. So you can see how this would work out if you were a silversmith you would offer your incense and prayers to some God you know of the metals or the silver God. If you were a baker you certainly would have In this environment, you can see the need of offering your service and your prayers, your sacrifices to the God of grain or those kinds of things, depending upon them for your success. Thyatira was known especially for its worship of Apollo, the son of Zeus, who was regarded, among many other things, as their lord and protector of the guilds. So it was expected then. It was a simple expectation that guild members would participate in the ceremonies to honor the gods. The meat in the ceremony. The festival would be prepared and first offered to the gods. And then that meat would be placed in front of you. As if the God himself was returning that meat to you and you would eat that meat in this festival. That would be held as a public display of your dependence upon the God for your sustenance, not just for that particular piece of meat, but for your whole livelihood. It would be a public display also of your willingness to receive that meat from the God and to receive your sustenance from him. And then, of course, the ceremonies would descend into sexual immorality, either as an official part of the service to the God or just the way things work. And so, put yourself in Thyatira. Maybe you're a baker, maybe you are a linen worker, and maybe like Lydia, you are traveling on business and you hear the gospel. Maybe you hear the gospel preached there in Thyatira and you become a believer. You are converted. But this is the place where God has put you. Into this kind of environment, this is the time and this is the place where God has ordained that you live your life. With all of these cultural and business and social pressures, what are you going to do? Can you still be an active member of the guild? Can you refuse to participate in the ceremonies and still be a welcomed participant in the trade? How can you? Thinking just simply as a as a new believer, how are you going to make progress in holiness in this kind of an environment under this kind of pressure? As a believer, you now have a desire to grow in true holiness. You've had some perhaps you've had some teaching on that now, but God has put you into a very difficult environment. And this is where we find the church in Thyatira. You'll observe that Jesus, when he sends his letter to Thyatira, commends them for four things. Notice the four things that the church in Thyatira as a general characteristic of the congregation, four things that they're doing very well. They receive the praise of Christ himself for these things described, described for us here in verse 19. I know your works, your love, service, faith and your patience. Their love, their love is demonstrated in their service. It's it's really not just a theoretical concept for this congregation. There are very practical, tangible outworkings of their love for one another. I think you would have walked into this group of people and you would have noted how how kind they were, how welcoming they were. You would have described them as a as a congregation of people that were very gentle and patient with one another. Their faith and their patience and Jesus says they're actually increasing in them. Now compare this with Ephesus who had love at the beginning and it faded and failed. Here Jesus puts it this way. As for your works the last are more than the first. And what he means by this is that the display of these things you're actually improving in them. You're growing in your love. You are growing. There is an improvement from from one week to the next or from one year to the next. We look at your congregation now as compared to its founding. And your hospitality now is even more aggressive than it was the beginning. Your love is with each other. It's an improvement in those things. And this and this then is generally true of the congregation. This is how they can be characterized. But Not everyone in the congregation is following Christ as they should. Some of them have begun to follow someone else. And she. Is identified as Jezebel observed in verse 20, if you will, nevertheless. I have a few things against you, says Christ to them. Because you allow that woman Jezebel to teach. I don't I don't think this is her real name. I don't think that she was actually named Jezebel. I think what's happening here is that it is a name that is used by Christ as a fitting description of what she's doing in Thyatira. I think Christ is being very efficient here. Instead of identifying her by her real name by attaching this epithet to her. Not only would it be obvious in the congregation who he's speaking about. But he gives a very rich description of her character and of her teaching by attaching a very recognizable Old Testament name to her. The Old Testament. So really Jesus is already giving a diagnosis of her just in identification. The Old Testament Jezebel if you remember was the daughter of Ethel of the Sidonians. and Ahab who thought it a trivial thing. To walk in the sins of Jeroboam and who did more in the sight of God. Who did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel. To anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him made a made Jezebel his wife. And she led Ahab in the worship of Baal. She massacred the prophets. She would have murdered Elijah if she could have gotten her hands on him. She had Naboth murdered for his vineyard on and on and on and on goes the story of Jezebel. You find that in her story in first and second Kings. So for Christ to send a letter to a New Testament congregation and identify this particular woman in the congregation by this name is Well, obviously, it's it's a very stinging and sharp rebuke. To use this name, this symbol of wickedness that Jezebel had become. Stinging, it's an epithet, it's a condemning nickname is the way that you can look at it. We have three descriptions given in the letter of this woman, number one. Number one is described for us. The kind of teacher that she claimed to be. Look at verse 20. This woman, Jezebel, that they're allowing. To teach, she calls herself a prophetess. She calls herself a prophetess. The problem is not that she's a woman. At this point in church history, the problem is not that she's a woman. Acts 21 describes the very godly man, Philip. who has four virgin daughters and they are prophesying. The difference between them and this New Testament Jezebel is that Jezebel's designation of prophetess. Or her recognition is not by the church. And it's not by any of the apostles. It is a self designation. She calls herself a prophetess, Jesus says. This is not a case where God gifts and appoints a person and then the church by congregational approval recognizes that person. She's a self-proclaimed prophetess. It's all her idea. And I think this is key. This is this is key to understanding Jezebel. Because when she makes the claim. In and of herself, without any congregational approval, without any approval of the apostles, she's making a claim regarding her doctrine. She, by this self designation. Is promising something to you? If you will, but listen to her words. She's promising that she's able to speak for God. And I think She is claiming to have the gift to reveal to the church new things, new doctrines. She promises, I think she promises her followers a new understanding. But you can trust her. She's a prophetess. So, number one, the letter describes for us the kind of teacher that she claims to be. Number two, we see in the letter a description of the result of her teaching. The result of her teaching for twenty. Teaching and seducing Christ's servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. Now remember what we've seen, especially when we looked at the church in Pergamos. Remember what we've seen from first Corinthians eight and first Corinthians ten. There is a proper way and an idolatrous way to eat idle meat. Go down to the meat market. You buy the meat. Paul says, do so with a clear conscience. You're invited over to someone's house. They set me in front of you. Enjoy the meat with a clear conscience. It's not polluted, provided that by your actions, you're not emboldening another believer who is in their conscience convinced that it is sinful to do so, provided you're not emboldening them, emboldening them to go against their conscience and eat the meat. Paul says, enjoy it. But that does not allow you Just because Zeus is nothing, Apollo is nothing. That does not allow you and does not give you the Christian liberty to engage yourself in the ceremony like I have described already this morning of the giving of the meat and the receiving of the meat and these public displays of dependence upon God. That is not allowed. In fact, Paul calls it in 1 Corinthians 10. You're drinking from the cup and you're sitting at the table of demons. It is not allowed. So there's a right allowed way and then an idolatrous way to eat idle meat. We've seen that from first Corinthians eight and first Corinthians ten. Remember also what we've seen from Acts fifteen where this issue of liberty is being dealt with. The apostles send this letter designed to be helpful to Gentile Christians who are wrestling with this issue of what they're allowed and what they're not allowed not allowed to do because they're so steeped in this in their culture. They've been raised with in the shadow of these temples and they need help with this. And so, we've seen already then that these two descriptions of sexual immorality and eating meat offered to idols when they are attached together refer to this pagan temple ritual. The giving and the offering of meat and then the almost inevitable official or not official engaging in these public acts of sexual immorality. as an offering to the God. And so, we see there, here in Thyatira, there is a similarity with the Pergamos congregation. Christians engaging in behavior which does not come under the protection of Christian liberty. Now, it's possible. It is possible that a twisted doctrine of liberty was a part of Jezebel's teaching. That has to be a possibility, but it's not what's in view in this letter. That's not what's in view here. So you're maybe sitting there and you're thinking to yourself, how in the world? Is it even possible? For something like this to be going on. In a Christian congregation, how does this happen? How is it that the Christian church in fire Tyra has some of its members? Openly engaging In such wickedness. As a result of following the teaching of a person who claims to speak for God. It makes you scratch your head when you first look at it. How does this happen? How can this be the result? Of someone in the congregation who's claiming that she has their spiritual well being in mind. But we see the result of her teaching. So, number one, the kind of teacher she claimed to be. And number two, the result of her teaching. Number three, the letter describes for us what she was teaching. What she was teaching. Skip down, if you will, to verse 24. Now here, Jesus, in verse 24, is speaking to those who are not following, who have not followed This Jezebel, so he says to them now, I say now to you, I say into the rest and fire of Tyra as many. As do not have this doctrine. And that's what he says next, who have not known. The depths of Satan, as they say. As they say. Here's what I think Jesus is doing in this verse. And it's in one of the it's one in one of the few places of scripture where ignorance is praised. You have not known. And this is a description given to those who are not following Jezebel. There's something Jesus says that you're ignorant of. To those who are not following Jezebel, you have not known, and that's a good thing. Here's what I think Jesus is doing. He has he's dividing the congregation out into two groups of people in this verse. The first group over here are those who have not followed this doctrine, as he puts it, who have not followed the teaching of Jezebel and, as a result, have not known the depths of Satan. The second group that Jesus describes are those who have followed Jezebel's teaching, and as they say, this is the claim that Jezebel and her followers are making. Of themselves. They have known the depths of Satan. This knowledge, it's what the followers of Jezebel are claiming. As a point. Of spiritual strength. As a point of spiritual strength about themselves. They want to make this claim about themselves, and when they look at the others, this group over here. They've known the depths of Satan, and when they look at the other group that's not following the teaching of Jezebel, they say to them, you don't know the depths of Satan. And we do, and we're better Christians for it. For church members. And you're probably sitting there thinking to yourself. For passenger, he's so confused. This doesn't make any sense. And he had so much potential. You're sitting there thinking. How in the world is this happening? A woman who claims to speak for God. And along with that would claim to have their spiritual well-being in mind when she teaches. This group now, as a result of her teaching, have this claim that they know the depths of Satan, so that when they look at everybody else who's not following their doctrine, they say to them, you don't know the depths of Satan. How is it? That you have church members saying that they know the depths of Satan and they're convinced that this is a good thing. For church members to want to claim this kind of knowledge for themselves, it must be. It has to be that Jezebel has convinced them that it's good knowledge to possess. It is spiritually advantageous knowledge. It is a sanctifying knowledge. If I were to have come in here this morning. Stood up here and said, OK. Change of plans. From this point forward up to this point, we've all been singing hymns to God, we've been. Dedicating our prayers to him, but change of plans from now on. We're going to dedicate our prayers to Satan. Well, you throw me out of the building. But that's not what Jezebel is promoting, she's not coming into the congregation, promoting Satan worship. Once you think about the word here for just a little bit, the depths of Satan, the word translated as depths is the Greek word bathos. And as used in the New Testament, both literally and figuratively, The bath off. Literally, we find it in Matthew 13 in the parable of the soils, remember where some of the seed is cast on the rocky ground, it sprouts up, but it doesn't last. Why? There's no bath off. There's no literally there's no deeper. And so it fades quickly. You find the word also in Luke five when Jesus commands Peter to put out into the deep. Push the boat out into the bath off. OK, so deep, deep earth, deep water, but the word is also used figuratively. And so we find it in First Corinthians two, when Paul says this, we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew, for had they known they would have not crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, I have not seen nor heard nor have entered into the heart of man. The things which God has prepared for those who love him, but God has revealed them to us through his spirit for the spirit searches all things. Yes, the bath off the deep things of God for what man knows the things of a man, except the spirit of the man which is in him. Even so, no one knows the things of God. Except the spirit of God, so first Corinthians, what are the deep things of God? Well, verse seven, it's his wisdom. Paul says this is the bathhouse of God, his wisdom hidden his plans of blessing his people. The deep things of God, well, how do you come to know them? How do you come to know these things? Are they easily known? They are not the shallow. readily apparent things of God. They're the deep things. Only the Spirit knows them and only the Spirit can bring them to you by his word and by his power. Paul, again, uses the word bathos in Romans 11, where he says this, oh, the depths. The bathos of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments, the deep things, how unsearchable Are those things have been searchable are his judgments in his ways past finding out for who has known the mind of the Lord or who has become his counselor. So the New Testament. Describes the depths or the deep things of God as his plans, his wisdom, his knowledge, his judgments, his ways to explore these things is to explore the deep things of God, the hidden things. Jezebel. comes to fire Tyra and is promoting. The necessity of exploring and discovering. The deep secrets of Satan. The bath off not of God. But if Satan. And this can be promoted in a Christian church. If it's passed off as a means to spiritual progress. Secret. It's the secret to sanctification. To discover the secret plans of the devil. She's not promoting Satan worship. Look again in verse 20. Because you allow that woman, Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet to teach. And to seduce there is the characteristic of her teaching. Her teaching. is a seduction of God's people. It's enticing. It's put in words that make it look attractive. It seems plausible. This is a characteristic of the false teachers. It sounds right. To explore the bathos of Satan. She's claiming as a prophetess That there is a way for you to have victory over your sins in the ways of Satan. Don't you want that? Don't you want that? Don't you want to conquer Satan? Surely you do. Don't you want to rule over him as a victorious Christian? Well, then you have to know his secrets. You have to know his deep laid plans. And where in fire Tyra would be the best place to go. To explore the depths of Satan. Why not the festivals? Why not the feast to Apollo, and that is the very result that we see. For teaching. Don't you want to make progress in sanctification? Go ahead. Go ahead, indulge your sins. But become very familiar with your sins. Only in that way can you discover how really bad your sins are. For example, do you struggle with the immoderate use of alcohol? Well, go get drunk. In fact, go see how drunk you can get. Explore the depths of Satan. Know them. Then because you'll be so familiar with it, you'll know better next time how to fight it. Go ahead. It's all the name of sanctification. It could have also taken this angle, I think. What you do in the body doesn't affect your spirit. Go ahead, indulge yourself, know the depths of Satan. Send more so that grace can abound even more. Explore the depths. It's interesting, I think, to note that full-blown Gnosticism, which would be a later development, prided itself on teaching that the way to victory over Satan was to discover his secrets in his limits. We may be looking, because Jezebel has this claim to knowledge and this particular result, my opinion, we may be looking at a prototype Gnostic when we look at this New Testament Jezebel. Jezebel has at least two elements that she's using as leverage. She's very skillful at manipulation. And she has she has two points of leverage that she can use to work believers into this ridiculous position and this ridiculous suspension of reason. But I'm going to make progress and holiness by indulging my sins. One point of leverage, I think, was the pressure to conform that these believers would have had in their society. The societal and business expectations and especially the religious attachment that was a part of that. But I think also the thing that she's working is just simply the basic element of church members knowing they need to grow spiritually. She's working this to her advantage. Jezebel is teaching and her disciples are pursuing this quote unquote knowledge. The fruit of this teaching is the honor as is as we would expect the unrepentant participation all of the pagan ceremonies. And Jesus sends this letter condemning them for it. It's interesting to note if you'll observe in verse twenty one that Jezebel has already been given an opportunity to repent. I gave her time to repent, Jesus says. I don't think that Jezebel is approaching this as some theoretical concept. She's teaching according to her own character. I don't think Jezebel is simply teaching and then sending forth her disciples, I think she is very much engaged in the activity herself. The name is very fitting. We're not told how Jesus gave her the opportunity to repent. I think very likely someone in the church had confronted her over her teaching. So Jezebel is not ignorant. Especially at this point, she's not confused. She has already been given an opportunity to repent. But she, like the woman in Proverbs, she has this impudent face as she teaches. For twenty two. Jesus says indeed I will cast her into a sick bed and those who committed adultery with her into great tribulation. Jesus promises that he is coming to strike her down. Casting her into a sick bed he says. An interesting woman promoting spiritual and physical adultery is cast into a sick bed and the irony is intentional. This game of spiritual charades is coming to an end. All of this supposed interest in holiness will be exposed for what it really is, Jesus introduces this letter by saying it's not Apollo, but he is the son of God. And he is not deceived by what he sees. His eyes of fire Penetrate this fog of lies. He sees their hearts, those that are following. And in verse 23, Jesus is promising to remove his disciples from his her disciples, from his church, if they do not repent, he will not tolerate it. He will not tolerate it. Remember, first Corinthians three in which the Corinthian congregation is described as God's building. God's temple and the teacher. Who defiles God's temple, God will destroy him. First Corinthians chapter three. Remember, first Corinthians eleven. Many Paul says to them, many of you are weak, sick or have already died. Because of their dishonoring of the Lord's Supper. Yes, Jesus is serious. He says he's coming, he is already on his way. To deal with Jezebel and her disciples, should they not repent. He loves his bride that much. So that when she is assaulted, Jesus will not look the other way. Men, you understand this. Man, a man were to come up and. Treat your wife rudely. How much more he who is holy. Will he be a righteously jealous husband. Defending his people. Well, this is what we have. This is the letter to the church and fire tower of very interesting. and perverted kind of teaching that Jezebel was bringing. As if knowing the depths of Satan would be a good kind of knowledge, how twisted. Let me give you a few points of application as we think about this. I hope that you've been doing this, I hope that as we've been going through the letters. That you've been thinking about our church. I hope that you've been thinking about What in the letters? Describes us, how are there good things that we're doing? That we find in the letters, are there things that we could improve on? Are there things that we are neglecting that we find described in the letter? I hope that you will think like that and submit our whole congregation to the word of God for the evaluation of Christ himself. I hope you'll do that. I'm trying to do that as we go along through the applications. Number one, our love of the truth must accompany our love for one another. It's the reverse of one of the applications I gave to you when I preached from the letter to Ephesus. When we looked at the letter to Ephesus, I told you that our love for one another must accompany our love for the truth. But I'm going to put it reverse now. Our love of the truth must accompany our love for one another. James Ramsey wrote the following words, does not fire Tyrus set forth a type of church character which sad to say has been widely and fearfully realized. Have not intense activity. Earnest zeal in the works of charity in ministering to the wants and woes of suffering man. and faith and patience and enduring all the toils and self denials, which this has demanded been found often in a church side by side with great charity to soul destroying error and its teachers. Well, we're just going to love everything. He goes on, let the churches remember. That there is no such system of compensations in the spiritual kingdom, as will allow zeal in one thing. to make up for neglect of another. Works of charity cannot compensate for indifference of truth. James Ramsey wrote those words in the mid eighteen hundreds. What would he say today? Behold, a plague of many modern churches filled with programs and activities Even organizing soup kitchens and yet on Sunday mornings, believers leave the preaching hungry. In worse, are left vulnerable because of their meager diet, they're left vulnerable to wolves. Thyatira was so attractive. The congregation was so busy and attractive and pious with many good things, but was rotting from the inside out. What are we here at heritage? We are but men and women. Ever in need of God's sustaining us on both fronts in truth and in love, we are ever in need that God. What have mercy upon us? Do we think that we are somehow immune from the things that we've been reading? God, we're ever in need that God would sustain us. I hope you'll make this a matter of matter of specific prayer that you'll pray for your church. We need to be increasing in the ways that fire tower was increasing. That needs to be described of us. That we are increasing in our love. That somebody would walk in among us and spend some time with us. And they would just be stunned with how Gentle we are with one another and how patient and loving. And kind and humble we are with one another. But not at the expense of truth. How aggressive we are in loving one another and hospitality. And generosity with our time and our gifts. We are but weak men and women. I hope you'll make this a matter of prayer. For our church, number two, number two, be watchful for yourself and for the sake of your church, be watchful for yourself. Take a look, if you will, real quick at Second Peter. Last, I think it was last week I had as our scripture reading Second Peter, Chapter two, in which Peter gives an extensive description of false teachers. Extensive discussion of false teachers, I find it interesting. What Peter says before he gets to that chapter by way of introduction, listen to the words of second Peter one. I'll begin at verse one. Simon, Peter, a bond servant, an apostle of Jesus Christ to those who have obtained a like precious faith. With us by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus, our Lord. As his divine power has given to us. All things. I don't miss that. I think Peter. He's already looking ahead to what he's going to discuss about the false teachers, but by way of introduction. He's going to establish you in certain things that will be a protection for you. Notice where Peter begins as his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life. And to godliness. Through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue. Verse five, but also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge, self-control, to self-control, perseverance, to perseverance, godliness, to godliness, brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. What Peter is giving to you is an encouragement to remember the promises of God. To remember what He's promised to you regarding the blessings of sanctification, the rewards and results for those who will attend themselves. Heart, soul and mind and strength to what God has revealed. He's not hidden anything from you. Do you desire godliness, brotherly kindness and love and patience and perseverance? God has not withheld anything that you need. For those blessings to be enjoyed, God has given you all things, but it's not only an encouragement, it's a warning. It is a warning. That you be not discontent. With what God has provided you to look in verse four verses 14 and 15, Peter knows that he does not have long to live. And so he wants his readers, he wants to leave his readers a reminder of what that will remain after he is gone. But why? Why should Christians be convinced that God has not withheld any truth that we need to make real progress and glorify him in this life? Because you need to be alert to the techniques of wolves. That's why you need this. Verses 16 through 21, Peter says he wants to establish that what he's teaching is not a cunningly devised fable. It's not his own personal invention. And this is the introduction that Peter gives before going into his extensive description of the false teachers. Follow any other teaching. Peter says God has given you all things that you need. For life. For the pursuit and increase of your godliness, God has given you all things. Beware, because there will be wolves who will come along. And they will attack you at this very point. So you have to be on guard against the smallest notions of discontent. With what God has given you. There are plenty of wolves out there. Who are more than happy? To offer you some new thing. To prey upon that very natural sense of frustration because things aren't moving fast enough for you. You look at yourself and you're frustrated. You have those moments where you say to yourself, well, how can I be a Christian and do that? And at that point. At that point, there are more than enough teachers out there in this world. Claim to speak for God and they will attach themselves to you by this very point of leverage. Oh, I know you're frustrated. You've tried and tried the simple things. I have a new idea. I have a new technique that will work. Aren't you frustrated? Don't you want to grow? I have this new thing for you. New method, I have a I have a new program never been tried before, never heard of before. I guarantee the results. Cunningly devised fables, Peter says, destructive heresies. You have to be on guard. And notice this early on in yourself when it crops up, those false teachers in particular. On sanctification, offering you promising you growth and holiness will begin by attacking this very point that Peter begins with. God has already revealed a word to you that gives you everything you need to be and to do as that person who daily walks in a pleasing way before the Lord. Consider for the sake of your own soul and for the sake of your church. Also, in Ephesians four, If you will take a look at their real quick, please Ephesians 4. For the sake of your church. For the sake of your church, understand what is true in addition to your love for one another. Ephesians 4 11. Christ himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists and some pastors and teachers. For the equipping of the Saints for the work of the ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ, so we all come. To the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man. To the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ that we should no longer be children tossed to and fro carried about by every wind of doctrine. Thyatira is a tossed church. This chapter that Paul gives us is in the context of every part of the body doing its part. Every member. Every member doing its part, the teachers. All of the saints doing the work that is necessary for true stability in the church. A congregation would be stable in the face of destructive heresies that a congregation loving one another, patient, humble, gentle, Assuming good things, patient, hospitable, hospitable, but also very, very sharp in their listening and their thinking, being very careful. And being content. Being satisfied with what God has provided in his word and in his word alone. We at Heritage need to have this sort of immunity. And all of these winds come blowing along and they blow through the bookstores all the time. They blow around on the Internet. You got to be careful. Promoted by people that are very famous, successful, a lot of people listen to them, it's tempting. But we at Heritage need to make sure that we are preserving and pursuing this kind of contentment. We're satisfied with what God has given us in his word and in his word alone. We don't. God hasn't tricked us. God's not withholding something that we desperately need. We're not missing out on something in our worship services if we only do what God has commanded that we do in his word. We're not missing out. We're not missing the bull's eye. We're not living God's second best if all we do. Is simply follow what he's given in his word. You be encouraged in that and guard yourself, guard the discontent that might creep up. Guard yourself against those teachers and that teaching that so easily tickles the ears. Number three, let me leave you with this. If you were a disciple of Christ, hold on to the promises that he's given to you. If you are a disciple of Christ, hold on to the promises that he's given to you know, Jezebel, she was so enticing. She made her words so attractive, she was she was so seductive in her methods. And the way she did that is she offered promises to her disciples. There had to be incredible promises to to seduce the servants of Christ into wanting to hold on to the depths of Satan or to pursue those things. promising all kinds of benefit and promising blessing. Given their culture, I think it I think is very likely that she was probably promising relief from the struggle. Do I go to the ceremonies? Do I not go? There was there was promise of relief. Sure, go. You don't have to struggle over that. There was promise in that there was promise of of relief in that that would have been very enticing and seductive. promises of knowledge and promises of progress in addition to promises of relief from the pressure. Jesus sends this letter and he wants to remind his people. Of the promises that he gives and back in chapter two of Revelation. He gives this promise to you, he says, he says, hold fast what you have till I come home. Hang in there. Trust me. And hold fast, don't give it up, hold fast what you have till I come. And he who overcomes, that is the one, not the one who is the perfect Christian, totally free from sin, we know that's not the case, but the one that he finds ever repenting and ever trusting in him, keeping his works until the end, to him, notice this promise, to him I will give power over the nations. You know what that is? You know what this promise is? It's a direct contradiction of the promises of Jezebel, who was promising power over Satan. Discover his secrets. Explore the Bathos. You'll have victory over the devil, Jesus says. I will give you victory over the nations. You will share with me, and he quotes from the second Psalm. in which is ultimately fulfilled in Christ himself, ruling them in verse 27, ruling them with a rod of iron. And then he says something which would have been very readily understand understandable by those in the fire of Tyre, especially those potters. They, the nations, shall be dashed to pieces like a potter's vessel by the reign of Christ and Christ gives this promise to his people, he invites you and to have a share with him in this reign. Now, what other promise can even compete with that? Doesn't it set your perspective straight? Can you see? Maybe you've been seduced. Your perspective has been tunneled down into these very small, meager, temporary promises that Jezebel gives. And Jesus backs you out of that and says, no, you need to remember what I promise. There's great encouragement. We find in that promise strength to endure, to look at the world around us with all of the temporary, seemingly so great promises that the world and all of its teachers would offer us. We have to remember, no, no, no. I remember the promises that Christ has given to me. The promises that Jezebel gave were all site based. Very appealing because they were immediate. They could be touched and smelled and tasted and enjoyed right then. Jesus calls his people to live not by what they see, but by what he is promising to them. How difficult that is at times, and that is what Christ is calling us to do. If you were a disciple of Christ, you need to encourage yourself not with the promises that are so readily apparent around us, but with what he's given to walk, not by sight. But by faith to to pursue that kind of relief. And comfort, not which is temporary and fleeting and is passing away, but this kind of comfort that Christ promises, he says in verse 28, I will give him the morning star. Well, that's him, Revelation 22. Christ is the morning star. What kind of gifts could Jezebel have offered to them? Christ offers himself. You will you will enjoy me, you will walk in my light as the book of Revelation will later further develop. Jesus promises his disciples to those who keep his works that they will rule over the nations and receive receive as a gift Christ himself. Is it worth holding on to Christ and forsaking all others? If you give up all other securities, if you give up all other promises, and all you're left with in a difficult world with all kinds of temptations and promises and enticements, if you give it all up, and all you're left with is the security and the promise that Christ gives you, you have everything.