Revelation 2: 12-17

¹² And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;

The Lord Jesus is introduced as HE WHICH HATH THE SHARP SWORD WITH TWO EDGES. The Bible teaches us that the two-edged sword is the Word of God.

• Hebrews 4:12 ¹² 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 the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
• Revelation 19:15 ¹⁵ Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations.
• Ephesians 6:17 ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Jesus is coming to the church at Pergamos with the SWORD OF THE SPIRIT…THE WORD OF GOD…. and he’s about to address false doctrine. This is how you do battle against false teaching that causes people to sin and corrupt the church, you do it with the word of God. Anyone who is standing before a congregation to teach and lead needs to teaching the Word, and if this person isn’t, the Word will take them out of that position. There is a huge lesson here, people are led away and seduced because they don’t know the word. The sword of the spirit is part of the armour of God and if you know the word, then the word will protect you against the attack of false doctrine which is going to cause huge numbers of people to fall in the end time.

• Hosea 4: 5-6 5 You stumble day and night, and the prophets stumble with you.So I will destroy your mother—⁶ my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.“Because you have rejected knowledge,I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God,I also will ignore your children.

Jesus is called the Word of God…

• John 1:1-4 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was with God in the beginning. ³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

My prayer of late before I open my bible is to ask God to write his word on the table of my heart that I not sin against him, let it be a light to my path, let it be my moral compass, the way I react in every situation… fill me with Jesus so that I spill out on to everyone that bumps in to me.

I pray that because it occurred to me that if Jesus is the Word of God…. and the Bible is the Word of God, then reading the word, learning the word, living the word is making Jesus the center of my life.

Truthfully, if you are armed with the sword of the Spirit… the word of God, many battles will never take place, they will be stopped the moment false teachings begin.

¹³ I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

This verse contains a lot of information as to what is going on with this particular Church. There are Christians there that loved the Lord who held fast the Lord’s name…..and there are people who have been corrupted with false doctrines. Antipas was a Bishop that was martyred for casting out demons that were being worshiped. Nero had him put to death by burning him in an altar shaped like a brazen bull. The idolatry had a stronghold. Also, we need to keep in mind that this trial this church is going through is included in the book of Revelation for a reason.

¹⁴ But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

Balaam was a non-Israelite prophet who used women to seduce the Israelite men to commit sexual immorality with them and to introduce them to idolatry by getting them to eat things sacrificed to idols.

• 2 Peter 2:15 ¹⁵ Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;
  

My thoughts are that the sin of Balaam was to seduce the children of God away from their relationships with God to gain an advantage for himself. Kind of like a preacher or pastor who teaches a false doctrine, like the prosperity gospel that teaches you as a Christian are entitled to be rich. This doctrine appeals to people, so they are seduced into embracing the beliefs without realizing they are making wealth their idol and departing from sound doctrine. It’s the sin of self-indulgence and Idolatry. So Balaam was the seducer…but the Nicolaitanes were conquerors.

¹⁵ So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.

Wow! The doctrine of the Nicolaitanes again…this doctrine that the Lord declares his hatred of…. what is it? In the modern form, I think it’s trying to be accepted by the world and by God. In today’s society, we are normalizing things that God calls sin and sinful. In this culture today, a person can be “cancelled” for refusing to use personal pronouns of choice over what logic and science dictate. You can be cancelled for refusing to accept the mainstream narrative. So, people cave under pressure and compromise their beliefs to embrace behaviors that God himself calls sinful. I’m guilty of this myself, and I repent for doing it. God does not compromise his righteousness to be inclusive to anyone… He’s the same yesterday, today and forever….he’s a God that says…. come out from among them…. be not conformed to this world, but be transformed. …no man can serve two masters…. evil communications corrupt good manners…. Don’t be a friend of this world and find yourself as a Nicolaitane enemy of God.

¹⁶ Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

¹⁷ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.