In verse 26 the Lord says, “And he who overcomes, and he who keeps My works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations.” To overcome here means to overcome Catholicism. The overcomers, the rest in Thyatira, do not have Jezebel’s teaching (v. 24), have not known the deep things of Satan, hold fast the Lord’s testimony until He comes (v. 25), and keep the Lord’s works until the end (v. 26). “My works” in verse 26 refers to the things the Lord has accomplished and is doing, such as His crucifixion, resurrection, intercession, etc., in contrast to the works of the apostate church under the influence of Satan.
In verse 26 the Lord says that to the one who overcomes He will give authority over the nations. This is a prize to the overcomers of reigning with Christ over the nations in the millennial kingdom (20:4, 6). This promise of the Lord strongly implies that those who do not answer His call to overcome degraded Christianity will not participate in the reign of the millennial kingdom.
In verse 27 the Lord says, speaking of the overcomer, “And he will shepherd them with an iron rod, as vessels of pottery are broken in pieces, as I also have received from My Father.” In the millennial kingdom, the ruler is a shepherd. In Psalm 2:9, God gave Christ authority to rule over the nations. Here, Christ gives the same authority to His overcomers.
Finally, in verse 28 the Lord gives a promise to the overcomer, saying, “I will give him the morning star.” At Christ’s first appearing, the wise men, not the Jewish religionists, saw His star (Matt. 2:2, 9-10). At His second appearing, He will be the morning star to His overcomers who watch for His coming. To all the others, He will appear only as the sun (Mal. 4:2).
Once again, in verse 29, the Lord says, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” All those in the apostate church, which demands that people listen to her rather than to God, need more of the speaking of the Spirit. If anyone listens to the speaking of the Spirit, he will hear the living word of the Lord to deny all the apostate items taught by the apostate church and become an overcomer for the satisfaction of the Lord.
At the end of each of the first three epistles, the ear for hearing is mentioned first, and then the call for overcoming. At the end of each of the last four epistles, the order is reversed. This proves that the first three of the seven churches are one group and the last four are another. The number seven in the Bible is composed either of six plus one, such as six days plus one day equaling one week; or three plus four, as in these two chapters where the seven churches are divided into one group of three and another group of four. Six plus one is in God’s creation, whereas three plus four is in God’s new creation, the church. Since all things were created in six days, the number six signifies the creation, especially man, who was created on the sixth day; and since the seventh day was the conclusion of the six days as the one day of God’s rest, the number one signifies the unique Creator. Hence, six plus one means that all things were created unto God for the accomplishment of His purpose. The unique Creator, God, is triune, as signified by the number three. Since the creation is represented before God by four living creatures (4:6-9), the number four signifies creatures, especially man. Hence, three plus four means that God is added to His creature, man, and thus His purpose is being accomplished. The church is not only the creature, but the creature with the Creator, the Triune God, dispensed into her. She is the real number seven; the real three, the Triune God, added to the real four, the created man. Therefore, the number seven denotes the completion in God’s move, firstly in the old creation, and then in the new creation, the church.