Calvary Chapel Staten Island

Guest (Female): When someone you love is hurting, what do you do? We're often quick to say, if there's anything I can do, just let me know. But what if we stopped waiting to be asked and simply showed up? On the if there's anything I can do podcast, Pam McConnell shares real stories, biblical wisdom, and practical ways to walk alongside people through grief, loss, and life's hardest moments. Learn how to show up and make a difference. Subscribe now at klovepodcast.com, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Guest (Male): Hello and welcome to God in Our City, the daily edition. Your host and Bible teacher is Pastor Dave Watson. Pastor Dave has been the pastor of Calvary Chapel on Staten Island for 35 years. In addition, he is the co-founder and president of the New York Institute for Biblical Studies. To receive a special downloadable gift from Pastor Dave, please go to calvarychapelsi.org/gioc. That's calvarychapelsi.org/gioc. Now here's Pastor Dave and our show.

Pastor Dave Watson: Welcome to God in Our City, the daily edition. We've made it. Made it all the way to Friday. I trust you are well. Trust you've got a good weekend planned. We've had an amazing week studying the word of God together in from the book of Revelation, chapter two. We We've looked at the the church at Pergama. We've looked or looking at the church of Thyatira. We'll finish that today. Previously, we looked at the church at Ephesus and the church at Smyrna. So we're we're we're we're making a little bit of progress, but most importantly, we're we're studying the word of God.

We're looking at what it says. We're seeking to apply it to our lives. That's what we do here on God in Our City. I'm I'm glad you've joined us today. If it's your first time, welcome. If it's your second time, welcome. If you left and then came back, welcome. We're just glad that you are here and trusting that what we're sharing is blessing you. You know, I I you know, I I I picture things here when I think about how you're studying with us. You know, it's our our show is broadcast at 6 p.m. on the East Coast on WMCA 570 and 102.3 FM, the mission.

And so I picture some of you are in your car on your way home from a commute today. Maybe it's Friday. You can't wait to get home. It's been a tough week. Some of you, you're around the table with your family and friends. Maybe you're listening on the radio, but you could equally be looking at Facebook or YouTube or oneplace.com. And you know, that's just part of and parcel of of, you know, how how things go. And maybe that's how you're picking us up today. But no matter where you are, please you know, spend spend this time well.

Listen, allow the word of God to touch your heart. Allow the word of God to do its work in you. You know, while while you're there, while you're listening, perhaps perhaps if you can, go to calvarychapelsi.org/gioc. Get our downloadable, free downloadable study guides, calvarychapelsi.org/gioc. Ask us to send you the Revelation Scripture Journal free. It's right there. A little thing you got to fill out at calvarychapelsi.org/gioc and we'll send that right out to you. No charge for shipping and handling. No charge. We just want you to have it. We want you to be in the word.

So we just encourage you to to do that. Let us know that you want it and we will get it to you. What do they say? Lickety split. And while you're there, just consider making a donation to God in Our City. Every donation makes a difference. It's appreciated. It's tax deductible. This is a local church sponsored program, but we need your help to be here for a long time. So we need your help for us to be a local church supported or I mean a listener supported program as well as well. Well, we're going to get into our study right away today cuz we've got to finish Pergama today.

We've got to finish our study in Pergama today. So it's it's just important that we we read our text and get right into it. So today from the book of Revelation, the second chapter, the 18th through the 29th verses. It says, and to the angel of the church in Thyatira, write the words of the son of God who has eyes like a flame of fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. I say Pergama, it's Thyatira. I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first.

But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I'll throw her into a sick bed. And those who commit adultery with her, I will throw into great tribulation unless they repent of her works. And I will strike her children dead and all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.

But to the rest of you in Thyatira who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, so so to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I come. The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations. And he will rule them with a rod of iron as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my father. And I will give him the morning star.

And he who has an ear, he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Heavenly Father, help us to listen to you. Help us, Lord, to to to heed the invitation. He who has ears to hear. And then help us, Lord, to make sure to do everything we can not to be a corrupt church. Help us, Lord, to diagnose the church that we're in. Maybe maybe it's a corrupt church and and we need to walk away from it. Lord, may we take that that that thought very seriously and not not not not you know, jovial jovially or or lightly.

But help us, Lord, to know what you would have us to do. To hear hear teaching our God our God, we pray through the ministry of your Holy Spirit in Jesus' name. Amen. So the cold church is Ephesus. The crushed church is Smyrna. The church is Pergama. The corrupt church is Thyatira. The the the the the corpse church dead Sardis. The the consistent church Philadelphia. The callous church Laodicea. Remember we talked just yesterday about the address to the church that you know, the the one addressing them is the Lord Jesus. And he's called the son of God who has eyes like a flame of fire, whose feet are like burnished burnished bronze.

He's the one addressing them. And and and he he's he's serious as can be to this church filled with union workers whose unions each represented a different God whose each each each of the unions, each of the guilds in the city. They were known for their their garment guilds, worship the different God. And And he tells or John is told to write these things. Write these things. And the he uses the phrase to describe himself, the Lord Jesus does as the son of God. And And he has eyes like a flame of fire. He He He He's judging.

He's searching and judging the hearts and his his bronze-like feet gleaming, our feet that are walking in the midst of the seven lampstands. He assesses the church with a commentary. I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and your latter works exceed the first. The quality of the works, the quality of the efforts there. They're motivated by love. There's service and and there's faith and there's patience or perseverance, just like you would want in every church. First thus one, two, and three says we give thanks to God always, for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

And there is also quantity of these works. There's more it now than at the beginning. This church would be top of the heap of the churches. What more could you ask for? But they're condemned. Why are they condemned? They They tolerate this woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrifice to idols. There's They're laying this woman who resembles Jezebel who was Ahab's wife, who was part of those who would pervert the northern kingdom cuz she fed the prophets of Baal. And And she She was messing up the church.

And she's a self-appointed, not God anointed prophet prophetess. And And she's leading God's servants astray. And perhaps she's saying, yeah, you can go. You can celebrate with the guilds, with with your unions, your gods. It's okay. It's okay. Oh, you slept with another woman. It happens. The excuse that was probably used during this time was that your your body and your spirit were separate. So that your spirit would not want to do something. It would be okay for your body to do it very very perverse. First Corinthians 6:18 and 20 reminds us, flee from sexual immorality.

Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but sexual immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit within you whom you have from God? You are not your own for you're bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. These these guilds, these unions would would frequently meet for a common meal. And And And in this meal, there would be a religious ceremony. It would probably meet in the heathen temple and would be certainly begin with a libation to the gods or a liquid offering to the gods and the meal itself would largely consist of meat offered to idols.

The official position of the church would be that that a Christian could not attend this. But Jezebel, she knew better, right? No. Her philosophy was that that that that you got to do business. Business is business, Ray Stedman says. If business practices collide with your Christian principles, then your principles have to go because you have to make a living. Have you ever heard that argument before? I've I've counseled men who work for major companies and the company would bring in guests from out of town. And these men were were required to go to strip clubs with them to help them be entertained.

And And it was horrible for the souls. And I know at least of one man who quit his job for that reason. And here's here's the the the confronting. The text says, I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. I've given her in the past with ongoing results a period of time to repent. John had comfort you know, confronted her. John had gotten in her face with an opportunity to get right with God, but she had refused. She had refused. Through John verses 9 and 10 speak to a similar situation where it says, I have written concerns written something to the church, but the Diotrephes who likes to put himself first does not acknowledge our authority.

So if I come, I will bring up what he he's doing, talking wicked nonsense against this. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. This guy Diotrephes was a problem. And John says, when I get to the church, I'm confronting him. She desired not to repent of her fornication. She is personally involved in this activity and chooses to remain in it. Chooses to remain in it. And the consequences here are severe. The consequences here are are quite frank. The Lord Jesus said, behold, I will throw her into a sick bed.

And those who commit adultery with her, I will throw into great tribulation unless they repent of her works. And I'll strike her children dead and all the churches will know that I am he who searches minds and hearts and I will give to each of you according to your works. She'll be cast into a bed. Perhaps a casket is in view. Her companions in false teachings will be cast into mega affliction, mega affliction. First Corinthians 5 4 and 5 says it this way, when you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present in the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh so the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

It's speaking of a a man involved in in morality, involved in taking his father's wife, his stepmother in a relationship. And it's it's said that, you know, we're turning him over to Satan. That's almost the picture here of what's happening at this church at Thyatira. Unless they repent of their works, Jesus gives them one more chance. Her children are killed by the the death or the plague. The second generation teachers of this false doctrine, her children will suffer severe chastening, yea, even death. This church becomes a sermon illustration. All the churches will know. What will they know?

That I am that's the deed of Christ. That's an I am statement. Jesus Christ, I'm the one who searches the minds, the kidneys or the intestines or what is what it literally says. But Jesus searches the kidneys, the intestines, and the cardias, the heart according to the standard of their work. According to the standard of their work. First Corinthians 4 5, therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now in in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each will receive his commendation from God.

Second Corinthians Second Timothy 4 14, Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Now we get down to the admonition of the church. But to the rest of you in Thyatira, the rest of you who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan. To you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden, only hold fast what you have until I come. The audience, the the left ones in Thyatira, the ones not possessing this false teaching. Those who don't know the depths of Satan, the depths of Satan, the the the the Bathia, the beyond human scrutiny.

Now Satan is in the church. The The problems at Sardis and Pergama was in the first in the in the case of Sardis, excuse me, in the case of Smyrna, the Satan Satan is influencing the church. And in case of Pergama, he's in the city. But here, he's in the very church. As they speak, they they call it this. They call it the depths of Satan. Unbelievable. Probably sinning without being defiled was what they're told. You can do that. It's the depths of Satan. No one taught you that? We need to get close to the devil to defeat him.

May also be part of the teaching. Both of those things being so wrong, the depths of Satan. He says here though that I will not cast you out. Jesus has the authority to ask more but won't. And another burden living there in the church is burden enough. I'll I'll not give you but this, hold fast. Strict adherence, hold on in a single decisive act to what you continually possess a a picture of a valued possession. What you have, hold on to. What you have, hold on to. And here's the assurances to the church, the one who conquers, who keeps my works until the end.

To him I'll give authority over the nations. And I will rule them with a rod of iron as when earthen pots are broken in pieces. Even as I myself have received authority from my father. And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear with the spirit says to the churches. Let's unpack this. There's the declaration to the overcomers, the one overcoming. And that is a believer. He is who is he that overcomes? But he who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is the one Who is the one who is described as an overcomer?

It's the believer. And to that person, the one keeping my works until the end, guarding or holding the works of Christ until the end, until the return of Christ. The what? I'll give the authority over the nations. I'll I'll give him as a gift the power to do something, the exusia. Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth. And we will reign. Please understand this. We will co-reign with him. That's what we're called. We're called joint heirs with him. Romans 8:17 speaks of us that way. So he's talking here about the Christian's destiny as an overcomer.

What is my destiny? My My destiny is that I will rule with him. And And And you know, he's going to rule with the rod of iron. They'll be dashed and speak in pieces like potter's vessels as quoted or seen in Psalm 2 7 through 9. The non-compliant will be crushed and broken into pieces. The father gives to the son and his son gives to us. And then he says, I will give him. That is the overcomer, the morning star. The morning star. It's a picture of complete and thorough victory, complete and thorough victory. If we were to go all the way back to the book of Daniel, Ezekiel and then Daniel to the 12th chapter, and we would see what it says there.

It speaks of the fact that those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above. And those who turn many to righteous like the stars forever and ever. It's a picture of complete victory. I'll give him the morning star. I'll give him as a as it were the sun. We have this prophetic word we have here in Second Peter 1:19, more fully confirmed to which you do well to pay attention to as to a lamp shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Matthew 13:43, the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their father.

He who has ears, let him hear. And then the Daniel 12 passage we just read. Revelation 22:16, I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the Senate of David, the bright morning star. Jesus is what the church gets. The morning star is Jesus. The invitation now is the word of the spirit to all the churches and everyone. He who has ears to hear, what let him hear. Let him hear. We see this church foreshadows the time from the 6th to the 16th century, a thousand years that have been called the Devil's Millennium, the dark ages, or it is known in in history as the Middle Ages.

It was a time when the church became corrupt by combined paganism and Christian teaching. Many pagan practices and heathen rituals were introduced in the church, baptized with Christian terminology related in some way to elements of the Bible and thus accepted as being true. Images began to be worshiped in churches. Various practices of priests which were unknown in the early church were accepted. We conclude with these thoughts. The Jezebel of the Old Testament taught Israel to go after Asherah, the queen of heaven. The age of the corrupt church led by another Jezebel pushed God's people to worship Mary who became in essence the queen of heaven.

No church in Thyatira today by the way. So what's it to me? God insists that we do the right thing, to do the right thing. The sermon in love must go hand in hand. God will chasten us if we do not do the right thing. And overcomers will reign. If I have Christ, I will reign with him. The issue is whether or not I have him. Let's pray. Lord, thank you for Jesus. Thank you for the truths regarding him. Thank you that we can have eternal life because of him. Thank you, Lord. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. Please have a great weekend. Please please please go to church. Go to a local church. The letters in Revelation were written to churches. Uh the Revelation itself was written to a church. Go to church. And please join us again Monday for another edition of the daily edition of God in Our City. God bless you everybody. Can't wait to see you again next week.

Guest (Male): Thanks for listening to God in Our City with your host Pastor Dave Watson. We hope the show was a blessing to you. Again, to receive a downloadable gift from Pastor Dave, go to calvarychapelsi.org/gioc. That's calvarychapelsi.org/gioc. Please check out Pastor Dave's blog at nycshepherd.com. That's nycshepherd.com. Please invite a friend and join us every weekday for another edition of God in Our City.

Guest (Female): When someone you love is hurting, what do you do? We're often quick to say, if there's anything I can do, just let me know. But what if we stopped waiting to be asked and simply showed up? On the if there's anything I can do podcast, Pam McConnell shares real stories, biblical wisdom, and practical ways to walk alongside people through grief, loss, and life's hardest moments. Learn how to show up and make a difference. Subscribe now at klovepodcast.com, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts.