Scripture to Read: Revelation 2:19
As we saw yesterday from Revelation 2:19, our Lord’s words of encouragement to the church of Thyatira were all about the church’s works of love, faith, service, and perseverance. We know how incredibly important love and faith are to our walk with our Lord, but our Lord also mentioned service and perseverance. Service is a characteristic that God has given us and called all of us to do so that our lives honor Him and are useful for His work. God makes it clear in Ephesians 2:10 that He has created us in Christ to do these good works of service because He has already prepared them for us. Then, God has Paul write about our service to Him again in Titus 2:14, where God says we are to be committed to good deeds. There are many other Scriptures where God lets us know that we are to be involved in serving Him by serving others. If we are NOT serving, then we are being disobedient to our Lord. The final characteristic our Lord mentions about the church in Thyatira is their perseverance. Perseverance is a characteristic that we grow in through the tests and trials of life. Most of us do not look forward to tests and trials but God uses them to strengthen our perseverance. God has stated clearly in Romans 5:3-4 that we are to rejoice in our tribulations because our tribulation brings about perseverance, and then our perseverance produces in us a proven character. May our Lord say of us that He knows well our love, faith, service, and perseverance.
Challenge & Application
1. What did God teach you today about service unto Him and about perseverance?
2. How are you currently serving our Lord by serving others, and how are you growing in your perseverance?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!