Be Wary by Brother Curtis Hansen

         Good morning. This morning's message is going to be a bit of continuation of the message last week. We are going to be in Revelation chapter 2 and will be reading from verses 18 to 20.

        18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass.

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

        20 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.

        So, before we dig into the scripture, a little backstory. Revelation chapter 2 was an account of the present state and circumstances of seven churches in Asia. At the beginning of the chapter, John scribed about the church of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, and Thyatira. 

        In verse 19, John writes about Jesus noticing the things the church was getting correct and in verse 20 what he reproofed. There were members who were similar to Jezebel. Jezebel was a persecutor of the prophets of the Lord in her day. These members in Thyatira were seducing others into fornication and eating things which were sacrificed to idols. 

        Thyatira was a wealthy town on the Lycus River in what is modern day Turkey. If we read further on in chapter 2 with 22, we see the promise of throwing the offenders into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deed. He will strike their children dead. In verse 24, Jesus encourages those who are faithful. They haven't fallen astray and have held firm in the faith until Jesus' return. At the end of the chapter, Jesus promises the believers authority over the nations, victory over all the enemies, and the morning star. Jesus himself is the morning star, which is in chapter 22 of Revelation.

         When we talk about Jezebel, we need to speak about Ahab. Ahab was the king of Israel who Jezebel was married to. One of the traits of the jezebel spirit is one of an apostate. The spirit of Ahab is one of weak and evil. He devoted himself to the worship of Baal and Asherah. If you look at the book of 1 Kings 16-22 you will read about Ahab's reign, his partnership with Jezebel and the prophets Elijah and Elisha.

        The spirit of Jezebel is rebellious and loves to control of all situations. Jesus was asking why the church was tolerating this spirit among its members.

        21 And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.

        God had given a time for Jezebel to repent as well as Ahab. To be specific, after the murder of Naboth for his vineyard, Elijah came to see a skulking Ahab. In the scripture, Elijah gave the word to Ahab the Lord would deal with him by cutting off all his descendants. Elijah also told Ahab of his ignoble fate. Ahab, in hearing this, tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and fasted. In response to Ahab's repentance, God postponed the destruction of Ahab's dynasty until after his death. God hates evil and still gives you an out to repent. 

        Christian men who are susceptible to flesh pleasing doctrines and under a domineering mate carry traits of the Ahab spirit. The Jezebel and Ahab spirit always find a way to come together. Elijah, being the prophet of God, was often seen as a troublemaker to the king. His word was contrary to what the king wanted to hear and how he was living. The question to ask you this morning is who are you loyal to in life?

        These spirits have a way of finding one another. Two identifiers of a Jezebel spirit are a flirtatious matter and domineering manner. Type A personalities often use that domineering spirit because that gets the quickest results for them.

        For added context and detail to Elijah, Ahab, and Jezebel, I suggest you to read 1 Kings 16 and 2 Kings 9.

        There are three types of patterns and personalities to look for if you read these chapters. The first is possession. Here the lines are blurred and the faith is counterfeit.

        The next category is oppressed. Elijah was a oppressed against the prophets of Baal. Some people can feel oppressed by God and others can feel oppression by the evil spirits. After Elijah had overcame these prophets, he was on the run and depressed.

        Personality and tendency is the last category. There are those who control at a high level every aspect of their life. Some are non confrontational in life. Your boundaries are not defined. Guard your door. Be aware of what's coming in or going out. What you are in charge of, you need to be watching.