Autumn 1939, a candlelit church in Oxford, and a professor asking students who may soon be sent to the front: why have we gathered here at all today? From that question the message takes us to Thyatira, an industrial city not unlike Łódź, and to a letter warning that community about the teaching of Jezebel (Revelation 2). At stake is the temptation to serve the Lamb and, at the same time, whatever brings money and standing, because for John there are only two cities: Babylon and the New Jerusalem. Listen and consider which of them your daily life is lived in.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- In the letter to Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29) Jesus first praises the church for its love, faith, service and perseverance, and then brings a charge against it. What exactly was wrong, and why was the comparison to Jezebel so strong for Jewish listeners?
- How does the Jerusalem decision in Acts 15:28-30 about food sacrificed to idols and sexual immorality connect with the situation of Christians in Thyatira, where taking part in such feasts was a normal part of working life?
- The false teaching in Thyatira said you could follow Jesus and still worship Apollo, because life would be better and richer. In what forms does a similar belief show up today?
- The preacher compared the danger in the church to the Trojan horse: the problem is inside, not outside. What helps you recognise false teaching when it sounds comfortable and comes from within the community?
- John speaks of two cities: Babylon, which serves the dragon, and the New Jerusalem, which follows the Lamb. What does coming out of Babylon mean for you in practice in how you earn and spend money?
- In what area of your work or everyday life do you feel tempted to serve two masters, and what concrete step this week will help you make the Lamb your only partner?
