Thyatira 14
I pray you have an enchantingly awesome and magnificent week! 😊
Today we are going to continue looking at our nemesis, Jezebel. A nemesis is a formidable and usually victorious rival or opponent. Nemesis is also the name given to the Greek goddess for retributive justice – i.e. an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Jesus does not do and neither does He engage in retributive justice; His justice is the forgiveness of sin once and for all. His justice is to love His enemies and to do good to those that despitefully use Him.
Thank God for His grace! Imagine if He was retributive and paid us back according to our sin! We would have no hope and our condemnation and punishment would be well deserved. But thankfully Jesus did not appear as a man to bring us into eternal condemnation but into eternal justification. He came to destroy the works of our nemesis (enemies) so that they no longer have victory over us.
What the spirit of Jezebel, and other demonic principalities, does is to entice, tempt, and snare the saints in their imagination with seductive words and thoughts, drawing them away from an imagination, words, and thoughts of a faithful, loving and engaging relationship with the Lord. In this private, unseen world of the heart and mind they dish up the food of idols (thoughts, words, and imaginations) that are contrary to the knowledge of God.
In His letter to Thyatira Jesus is not referring to their outward sins but to the sin that is deep within their heart and soul. Look at His statement in verse 23, I am the One who thoroughly searches the most secret thought and the innermost being. We tend to judge or form opinions concerning someone by judging their outward circumstances, but God does not. He looks at what is going on inside their mind and heart.
What goes on inside your heart and mind – your words, your thoughts, and your imagination are far more real in God’s sight than your outward behaviours. Why? Because sin is conceived (brought to life) in the heart and mind. Sinful acts are simply the manifestation of what is going on within your inner world. Sinful acts are the “children” or physical manifestations of what was conceived in union between the words, thoughts, and imaginations of your heart. And it is here, in your most secret place, your own inward and personal conversations, which bring forth acts of righteousness or unrighteousness.
And you, my son Solomon (put your name), acknowledge the God of your father, and serve Him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought… (1 Chron 28.9)
For the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges (examines) the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Heb 4:12)
Jesus is called the WORD or the VOICE of God. Words are the things you interact with in your heart and mind. At the center of all life are words. Every encounter you have with God are through His words, thoughts and imaginations interacting with yours. To serve God faithfully is to have a constant inward conversation with Him based on His love and eternal plans and purposes concerning you. The outward acts of love and kindness will come naturally.
In your inner world, where you are alone with your thoughts and imagination, who are you interacting with? Who are you talking to? What emotions and feelings stir up within you? This is the environment that Jesus lives in. He lives in your heart – your inner thoughts, words, and imagination. How are things in there between the two of you?
Have a thoughtful day! 🤔
Yvonne
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