THE TRUE CHURCH
Obviously the official “Jezebel” church of the Middle Ages is not the Church that Jesus commends in the message to Thyatira. So who were the true people of God during the Thyatira era? They are described as having “works, love, service, faith, and…patience.” They also “allow” Jezebel—to some extent they are influenced by her and do not effectively protest against her. But with the passage of time they become more effective in rejecting her—“as for your works, the last are more than the first.”
The names of individuals and groups that rejected the papal system and were true to God are lost in the mists of legend and history, and much of what is known comes from those who accused them of heresy. The Paulicians, Cathari and Waldensians were among those who rejected some of the worst errors of the papal church. These movements, particularly the Cathari, had serious doctrinal errors, and naturally the question arises, why would these groups with their doctrinal errors be considered the “true c
The answer is that God can and does tolerate many conflicting doctrinal positions, but the characterization of the papacy as Jezebel shows what He will not tolerate. Jezebel introduced the worship of false gods and slaughtered the priests of God who would challenge this false worship. The papal church did the same, promoting the worship of the saints and viciously persecuting those such as the Cathari and Waldensians who rejected idolatry and corruption and attempted to follow the scriptures rather than church tradition.[1] They were forced to retreat further and further into remote mountain areas, and finally, “thanks to the Inquisition… the Cathari were utterly rooted out in the course of a little more than a century, and the Waldenses greatly repressed.”[2]
But just as prophesied, “As for your works, the last are more than the first.” The true church became more biblical in her doctrines and more effective in her resistance to the Jezebel abuses of the Roman Catholic system. John Wycliff (1320-1384) defied the papacy, translating the scriptures into English and denouncing the Papal and monastic systems, even going so far as to identify the pope as antichrist. His followers became known as Lollards, and they carried the translated scriptures throughout
Continue to next section: 2:21-23 JEZEBEL’S SICKBED
[1] In the middle of the seventh century the Paulicians arose, who “rejected monasticism, the external sacraments, the cross, images, and relics…The Catholic hierarchy they repudiated. They opposed the externalism of current orthodox religious life (
The fundamental teaching of the Waldenses was that the Bible is the sole rule of belief and life. “As unbiblical, they rejected masses and prayers for the dead and denied purgatory…they believed prayer in secret more effective than in church. They defended lay preaching by men and women…At the Reformation they readily accepted its principles, and became fully Protestant” (Walker p. 251-253).
At first the Roman church sent missionaries to try to convert the Waldenses and Cathari. An alternative movement, the Pauperes Cathokici, was set up with many of the same practices of the Waldenses, but under strict supervision by the church. Although many were won back to the church, the “heretic movement” continued to grow and spread, threatening the stability of the church in southern
[2] Ibid p. 254