Synopsis: Though commended for their love and good deeds, Christ has some very sharp words for a woman he identifies as “Jezebel,” for those who follow her teachings, and for the rest of the church for tolerating her.  Her teaching was extremely similar to what we saw in Pergamum; namely she taught that Christians could go along with the cultural norms of the day as it pertained to the issues of idolatry and sexual immorality.  In fact, not to go along with these things would have come at a tremendous cost for Christians–socially and financially–and so the appeal of “Jezebel’s” compromise would have been strong.  Nevertheless, Jesus has absolutely no tolerance for it and threatens to punish it severely.  As we did with Pergamum, we’ll think together again about similar temptations in our day not to stand out as Christians–particularly not in costly ways–and what that may indicate about our need for repentance.  To those who remain faithful, Jesus reminds them that they will one day reign with him over all the nations.  No matter how out-of-place and powerless they may have felt in their cultural moment, Jesus reminds them that in the end and for all eternity, only faithfulness to him will matter.