I am a Jesus guy. I know He died for all sin and will immediately forgive a repentant heart. However, the stubborn will encounter long-term consequences like STD’s, pregnancies outside of wedlock, lawsuits, job loss, or removal from ministry for a season. And that’s not all…“I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds” (Revelation 2:23).
This is a powerful verse. Jesus is very straightforward here. Children’s lives are in the balance. He will visit the sins of the fathers on their children. Jesus’ intent is that, if necessary, this discipline would clarify to all the churches that He is Lord of the church and this flagrant disobedience in leading others into disobedience is intolerable. When He says He repays us according to our deeds, He is staying true to His character. This is reminiscent of the parable He told in Matthew 25:32 about the sheep and the goats. He has upped the stakes and now the church leadership in Thyatira is faced with a decision to make:
Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets, ‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come’ (Revelation 2:24-25).
There are men and women in every church who are the real deal. They are sexually pure before marriage and in marriage. There are ministers of the gospel who are also pure and have no sexual issues whatsoever. I am so glad there are men and women like this today.
On the other hand, I have counseled male and female ministry leaders who were fully sexually addicted. They were cheating, lying to their spouse and ministry partners, yet after they repented, they were fully healed. Today they live sexually pure lives. I have observed firsthand how God can translate sickness into glorious health. If you’re struggling today, there is always a team of people here at Heart to Heart Counseling Center ready to help you. And Jesus won’t miss a beat.
Satan's so called, deep secret is quite simple: be immoral. He has used this same trick throughout the centuries, but it’s not a secret anymore. Anytime you’re being tempted into immorality or viewing pornography, you are following the teaching of our enemy hook, line and sinker. Anytime you are following the path of sexual purity, you are following the Spirit and teaching of our God. It is that simple. I can tell you that after seeing so many men come clean from this fog, the simplicity of the truth of sexual purity becomes clear and self-evident once again. Actually, I love seeing this light bulb come on in men, be it at a conference or in my office.
Scripture Verses