Revelation Chapter Two, Deeds Become Doctrine

Revelation 2:15 “Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.

The church of Pergamos errs twice; the first error was tolerating the doctrine of Balaam in their own church. Ephesus tested apostles and found them to be false, by implication rejecting them for their heretical teachings.

Pergamos apparently tolerated factions, even heretical factions. Yes, the Apostle Paul did write about the reality, and even the necessity of factions to the Corinthian church. “For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you,” 1 Corinthians 11:18, 19. Yes, the early first century church was apparently united in doctrine, Acts 4:32. But this church was relegated to Jerusalem; geographically isolated still, the believers dwelt together bodily, as well as in spirit. By the time the first epistle to the Corinthians was written (commonly accepted between 51-54 AD), the church had spread well beyond Jerusalem. Paul and other missionaries had been sent out far and wide. Foxe’s Book of Martyrs holds a record of the extent of the apostles' travels, as well as men like Philip and Mark. The gospel had gone out far and wide, and with it the epistles of doctrinal clarity written by Peter, Paul, James, Jude, John, etc.

As we read in Corinth, regardless of the Scriptural failsafe the Holy Spirit set up in terms of doctrinal integrity, people still erred when it came to practice. Paul referred to them as divisions and factions; people were rallying behind names, and within those names were particular teachings supposedly unique to that person. Since we are taught only to revere and worship Christ, every teacher of the word is a brother in Christ; they do not–and should not–be elevated to the position of eminence too many people lift them up to. When we isolate a teacher’s persona and reputation, elevating them to being revelators of the word and not fellow workers, it distorts our ability to differentiate between someone who is on the same level as us and someone whose station is above ours. Yes, we are told to honor those who preach the word, 1 Timothy 5:17. But honor signifies that we recognize the purpose and fruit of their labor, both who they are doing it for and why, and we honor such an endeavor. But honor does not mean elevate. It does not mean to take that man’s name and make it the umbrella under which a new sub-heading of Christianity exists, unique and distinct from other forms of Christianity. This does nothing to honor the individual. Rather, if they were truly a God-fearing man, I wager that it belittles their genuine effort to please Christ and serve men.

Though Paul said that factions must exist, it was for a poor reason indeed. When a faction rises in a church, it is often a challenge to orthodoxy. For instance, Jehovah’s Witnesses’ founder, Charles Taze Russell, broke from Christianity when he could not reconcile orthodox doctrine with his newly acquired belief system. From the wreckage of his faith came the Russellite movement, which transformed into the Jehovah’s Witnesses of today. Those who are approved remain faithful; those who were not departed, either spiritually or physically, 1 John 2:19. Not only did Pergamos tolerate the doctrine of Balaam, they also tolerated the Nicolaitans. Paul advised Titus to reject men that preached divisive teachings, Titus 3:10, 11. The Galatian church, who had succumbed to legalism, was admonished by Paul when he wrote, “This persuasion (of false doctrine) does not come from Him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump,” Galatians 5:8, 9. The reason why factions form is like the reason we cut out malignant tumors. They will poison the body eventually; their very presence indicates their intention for the entire body. We are to excise the tumor to save the body. Likewise we are to reject the divisive doctrine to preserve orthodoxy and spiritual fellowship, because how can two walk together unless they are agreed, Amos 3:3?

The deeds of the Nicolaitans in Ephesus (Revelation 2:6) grew into doctrine. The seeds of heterodoxy and heresy blossomed into an articulated teaching system transposed over genuine Christianity in an effort to absorb or displace it. If true Christianity could be supplanted, then the heresy that replaced it would be considered orthodoxy since the majority would cleave to it. But truth is never about how popular something is, and the amount of people believing a lie does not convert it into truth. The lie that infiltrates by one man’s cunning must take time to germinate; we can see its germination when factions eventually form and people rally to one camp or another. Our Lord cautioned that He is a sword that sunders families. So too will He sunder believers from unbelievers for the sake of their spiritual welfare. As long as the faction exists like the proverbial tumor in the church, its cancerous effects can harm all the members of the body. That is why Jesus tells Pergamos that He hates the deeds and doctrine of the Nicolaitans. It is fatal to those who imbibe it. Rather than the pure water of the word people drink from a broken cistern that holds nothing of spiritual value, Jeremiah 2:13.