It is generally true that when a person first becomes a believer
in Jesus Christ that they are overcome with a passion for the
Lord Jesus Christ, even though they are lacking in knowledge
about many things, many truths concerning God.
But the danger for a new believer is that as they grow
and as they accumulate an increase in knowledge, they at
the same time lose their enthusiasm for the person of
Jesus Christ. That is precisely what happened
to an entire church in the ancient city called Ephesus.
And it is this assembly that the Lord Jesus Christ has his
servant John address before any other in the Book of Revelation.
And I believe there is a reason why the Lord Jesus addresses
this assembly initially. But before we dive into the
details, let's read this short letter together in Revelation
chapter 2, beginning in verse one to the Angel of the church
in Ephesus, right? The words of him who holds the
seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden
lampstands. I know your works, your toil,
and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those
who are evil. But I've tested those who call
themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false.
I know you're enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's
sake, and you have not grown weary, but I have this against
you, that you have abandoned the love that you had at first.
Remember therefore, from where you have fallen, repent and do
the works that you did at first. If not, I will come to you and
remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
Yet this you have. You hate the works of the
Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He has an ear.
Let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches, To the one
who conquers. I will grant to eat of the tree
of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Every church has an origin story.
Some churches emerged because of a few families in a particular
area. I feel like there's a lack of
true Bible teaching. So they meet in a home and
something happens in that place where it grows into an
organization, an Organism, a local church.
Other formations have occurred because of an evangelist who
came into town or a missionary and they preached the gospel
faithfully and converts came about and a church starts.
There are other things that happen with formations such as
an established ministry that raises up elders and then as an
extension of their church plant another one.
And some churches even start out as a youth group and over time
they grow into a multi generational ministry.
I love hearing about how people come to Jesus Christ.
I equally enjoy knowing how somebody was called into the
ministry, and I find great thrill in hearing testimonies of
how the Holy Spirit of God raises up churches across the
world. And if you're like me, then you
will enjoy this message today because the Holy Spirit has
given us the very details, the very account of how this church
in Ephesus started the first time.
The word, the name Ephesus appears is in the book of Acts,
specifically in chapter 18. So let's turn there together in
Acts 18 verse 18. This was after Paul plants a
church in Corinth. We read here that he travels to
Ephesus with his new friends Priscilla and Aquila.
Acts 1818 reads. After this Paul stayed many days
longer and then took leave of the brothers and set sail for
Syria and with him, Priscilla and Aquila at Saint Cray.
He had out, he had his, he cut his hair for he was under a vow,
and they came to Ephesus and he left them there.
But he himself went into a synagogue and reasoned with the
Jews. So Paul leaves Corinth, makes
his way to Syria, then comes to Ephesus and evidently something
special was happening there. Paul felt the need to move on,
but he he asked Priscilla and Aquila to remain in Ephesus to
nurture something that God was beginning to do in the hearts of
people. What we find here is that in
Ephesus, Priscilla and Aquila met the gifted Apollos.
Remember we talked about Apollos, how he came into town
and he was a wonderful order. He was limited in his
understanding. So God used this couple to
inform him and to help him grow. And he was a mighty vessel in
the hands of God. And after even a brief time, we
see added believers coming to this place.
And Paul, while making travels in roads and inland regions, he
comes back eventually to Ephesus, and that's when things
really take off because he every single day preaches the truth,
defends the truth, explains how Christ is the Messiah, and this
is the fruit of his unabated ministry.
Scroll down to Acts 19 verse 10. This continued for two years.
Paul was doing this for two years straight so that all the
residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and
Greeks. This is so significant because
what what was happening in Ephesus was spilling over into
neighboring regions. The word that was preached now
was was having its way across the borders of this town.
And some believe that even other churches were planted as a
result of what was happening here in Ephesus.
But it wasn't just the word of the Lord that was being
expounded. There was something else that
was happening here that was unique.
We read here that unusual manifestations start taking
place, unique miracles that the Bible calls extraordinary
happening by the hands of Paul so that even handkerchiefs
people would come in such faith and desperation.
They would take their napkins, they would take aprons and they
would have Paul touch it. And then they would take those
objects and go to those who are sick or possessed with demons
and they would be expelled. And so this is this is awesome.
This is unparalleled and we see the fruit of what was happening
here with the combination of word and wonders.
Come down to Acts 19 verse 18. Also, many of those who are now
believers came confessing and divulging their practices, and a
number of those who had practice magic arts brought their books
together and burned them in the sight of all, and they counted
the value of them and found it came to 50,000 pieces of silver.
So the word of the Lord continued to increase and
prevail mightily. One word to summarize what's
happening here in Ephesus. One word, revival.
Lot of talk about revival these days.
Revival is breaking out here. Revival is happening on this
campus. Revival is breaking out of this
church. There are marks of a true
revival. You can manufacture revival.
You can fabricate it. You can manipulate people into a
frenzy, but a true revival will cause repentance, radical
repentance, and not just repentance.
With that, the response of the people will be a reverential awe
of God's Word. Don't we see that there is
repentance here? In verse 20, we read that the
word of the Lord continue to increase and prevail mightily.
So be discerning. If people claim that there's a
move of God, but there isn't repentance and there isn't the
word of God being proclaimed and received and obeyed, you have
every right to question that revival.
But all it was a real thing here in Ephesus.
It was a glorious thing and it was just more than that.
It wasn't just a spontaneous visitation of the Spirit of God.
It wasn't just an episode. It led to something else more
permanent. Because you see, Paul remains
here for a total of three years, and with these culverts, with
the sermon, he singles out those who can lead this church.
And so he raises up elders and he trains them and he pours into
them, and they become a very powerful church.
He stays in touch with them for many years.
That's where the book of Ephesians comes from.
And even beyond that, he later appoints his disciple Timothy to
be the teaching pastor of that church.
In fact, it's more than just the origins, the Genesis account of
this church that makes this church impressive.
The legacy of its leadership is incredible.
So again, remember, you had Priscilla and Aquila, arguably
Apollo's, who helped foster the foundation.
Paul, yes, he was there as well, but he comes back to establish
the framework. He then raises up Timothy to
oversee that church with other elders.
And it is believed that at some point, John, the very same John
who wrote the Book of Revelation, was a Bishop in the
church in Ephesus. So you're hearing this, you
think that's wonderful, that's interesting, but how does that
help me understand this book? Well, I'm persuaded that knowing
the background may help us understand why Christ introduces
himself the way He does to the church in Ephesus.
What does he say? Look back again to Revelation
21, to the Angel of the church in Ephesus, right?
The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand.
What did we determine about the meaning of these stars in his
right hand? Who were they?
The leaders of these churches, The elders of these churches,
particularly the elder who's in charge of instructing and
speaking to these churches. And Christ resurfaces this
element of his being to this group of believers.
Why? Could it be because of their
impressive spiritual heritage? Could it be because of their
spiritual pedigree, the ministers that they had over the
years? And Christ wants to remind this
group of believers, I am the center of the church.
You know what's possible for Christians to do?
Become so infatuated with men of God, with brilliant theologians,
with missionaries who've done great things in nations that
nobody would dare to step foot in with former reformers and
revivalists. You can love and appreciate men
of God more than God himself, servants of Jesus Christ more
than Christ himself. Listen, I've personally heard
ministers who talk about those of the past, who even talk about
current pastors with greater excitement and affection than
Christ himself. And here you have the Lord Jesus
introducing him, reintroducing himself to the church and says,
those ministers are in my hand. If it wasn't for me, these
ministers wouldn't exist. I'm the source of their
strength, their insight, their power.
I'm the one who extends my hand and plants them in different
places so that they can bless my people.
But the greatest men of God are men at best.
And if you do know anybody, any believer, minister or not, who
has lived so sacrificially, such a sanctified life that has
impacted you, never forget the source of their godly scent.
It's Christ himself, Christ in them, Christ oozing out of them.
And no matter what Christ does through someone, remember, he is
infinitely more glorious, more fascinating.
And this is what I believe Christ is doing here, reminding
this church with a wonderful history, wonderful roster of
leaders and ministers. My face outshines these stars.
The same one who holds these stars, we're told in Revelation
2, one walks among the seven lamp stands.
You get the impression from Revelation one that when John
initially saw Christ that he was standing in the midst of these
lampstands. But there's an added detail now.
He's walking. Christ right now on this Lord's
Day is walking and many all rather churches.
And he's looking at every heart from the leadership down.
He's examining. And this is what we find him
doing here. He begins by commending this
church. Come with me to Revelation 22
and let's see how he begins. He wants to say, I know your
works and your toil and your patient endurance, and how you
cannot bear with those who are evil but have tested those who
call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false
toil. That should stand out to us.
He says more than once, I know your works.
But he says to this church, I know your toil.
You know what the word toil means in the original beating.
In other words, I know how you're taking a beating.
This is a church that labored intensely.
They work to serve God to the point of exhaustion.
Now there's a difference of being weary of the ministry and
being weary in the ministry. Two different things.
There's some people who give up on ministry because it's too
difficult. That's not this church.
They worked hard while serving and they would not give up.
They were faithful, they were committed.
They were serious and they gave absolutely everything that was
in them to volunteer in every way possible.
Think about it in the modern context.
After a long week of work, they would come to the service.
They would come to the church to help out in any way.
Friday night evangelism was followed up by an early morning
of setting up breakfast for fellowship.
They gave it all. This was not a spectator church.
It was buzzing with activity. It was filled with energy.
So many things got done. There was no worry about any
need because everybody was serving in one way or another.
I know your toil. You're not lazy.
You're invested completely. But they didn't just serve well.
This church also suffered well. That's what he means by the next
thing. I know your patient endurance.
Well, we get a sample of what this church went through when
they started because when that revival broke out, they put out
many idol making shops out of business.
Remember the the great temple Artemis was there.
They had different things going on in that ancient city.
It was, it was a major one and a lot of idolatry was taking
place. And we see the trouble that Paul
almost gets himself into because this frenzy breaks out, this
riot almost breaks out and it gives us a little taste of what
this church might have endured. Think about it this way.
Imagine being a church in a neighborhood that because of
your efforts and the gospel being preached and the power
that was exuding from that place, bars shut down, clubs
shut down, adult entertainment places shut down, temples and
mosques close their doors. Somebody's going to get
irritated. You can imagine the harassment
that they experienced week after week, but it didn't bother them.
They were fearless. They kept going, and Jesus says,
I know your patient endurance. But this group wasn't just
invested practically. They were sharp.
They were mindful of other things, including sin in the
church. Look at the third thing, he
says. Rather, Christ praises them for
their zero tolerance of sin. You cannot bear with those who
are evil. So this group of believers did
not take unrepentant behavior lightly in their assembly in
their congregation. And we have reason to even
believe that they took seriously Jesus's mandate for the church
to confront professing Christians who will not let go
of their sin. Let me pause and say this.
There are many people who have a variety of ideas of what a
church should be and what it should look like.
But let me say this. The word church appears only
twice in the four Gospels by the lips of Jesus.
Specifically once in Matthew 16 where he tells Peter, upon this
revelation of who I am, I will build my church, and the next
time in Matthew 18 where Jesus instructs Christians how they
are to confront one another when they're in sin.
Out of all the functions that Jesus could have brought up
about his church, the one thing that he focuses on is church
discipline. Think about that church
discipline. He gives the protocol.
He gives the steps necessary to what?
Keep the local assembly pure. Let me ask you this, how many
churches today take church disciplines seriously?
It's the one thing that Jesus brings up about the function of
the church. It doesn't talk about preaching.
The Bible talks about preaching. It doesn't talk about prayer.
The Bible talks about prayer fellowship.
Yes, it's there, but I just find it interesting that are all the
things that Christ mentions. He brings up how we should keep
each other accountable. That's what this church was
doing. They were faithful to that
mandate. More than that, Christ
congratulated them for their discernment.
He says here, you have tested those who call themselves
apostles and are not and found them to be false.
This is one of the most impressive things about the
church in Ephesus because it reveals that they took seriously
the words of their founder, namely Paul, who sat with these
elders before he left them permanently.
And one of the instructions that he gave them is in Acts 2029 to
31. You don't have to turn there
unless you want to, but hear what Paul says.
Here's a reminder for us. I know that after my departure
fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock, and
from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted
things to draw away the disciples after them.
Therefore Acts 2031. Therefore be alert, be alert,
remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to
admonish everyone with tears. So he gathers these pastors and
he says, Listen to me. A time is coming where there
will be false teachers who will try to come in and even in your
own group that will rise and they will speak twisted things
and they will try to get their own movement, their own ministry
with deception. Be alert, be watchful, be
discerning. And the realization of Paul's
warning appears in First and Second Timothy, where Paul
reminds Pastor Timothy, hey, there are teachers in there that
shouldn't be teaching. Address it, Timothy, and under
his leadership he did. And ever since they remained
alert, vigilant, careful, even up to this point.
In the final letter to the Ephesians, Jesus praises this
church for how they handled those who try to come in and
lure people away from the truth. So far, we should be impressed.
This is a remarkable church. This is like a five star church.
If anything, we need more churches like this, right?
Active, serving. They don't tolerate sin.
They can smell a false teacher from a mile away.
Give us more churches like this. And yet Jesus says I have
something against you. And what he has against this
church is so serious that it puts them in danger of losing
their light as much as looking at these.
Wonderful accolades may inspire us.
They actually warn us because it reveals that a church on the
surface can appear so healthy, so vibrant, and yet be so far
from the will of Christ. What does He have against this
ministry? Well, before we get into that,
let's examine some things that Christ teaches about his
example. Here's what I mean before we go
to verse four and look at what He has against them.
Did you notice that Jesus compliments before He
criticizes? And if we strive to be like
Christ, let us imitate Him in the way He offers correction.
One way to do that is, like the Master, persuade fellow
believers that we genuinely appreciate and value them before
we attempt to critique them because our flesh favors
pointing out the faults and others rather than eagerly
encouraging Christians. But what our Savior teaches us,
oh, even in this you have an example.
I have an example that when needed, rebuke needs to be
offered. It should be wrapped.
It should be coated with love. So he praises this ministry.
He praises his believers before he highlights where they're
weak, where they're wrong. But I even see Jesus here giving
us a model of how we should think and engage with
unbelievers. Squirtle verse 6.
Yet this you have. You hate the works of the
Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Who are the Nicolaidans?
Well, there's a lot of debate, not a lot of information in the
scriptures to come to a clear conclusion.
Some make a case that it was a movement that started by
somebody with a similar name in the book of Acts.
But you can't say that dogmatically.
Whoever the Nicolaidans were, they did some things that Jesus
didn't like. But we have another clue.
Scroll down to Revelation 215. So also you have some who hold
the teaching of the Nicolaidans. So this group taught something
and it's believed because their presence of the church that they
had a distorted teaching about Christianity, about the gospel,
about what it means to have a sanctified life.
And Jesus praises the church in Ephesus for how they abhorred
the Nicolaitans and what they produced and christened them and
beyond. But notice what he says.
You have to read your Bible carefully.
He doesn't say you hate the Nicolaitans, does he?
You hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
Big difference. Because Christians, if you're
not careful, you can hate sinners, you can despise
sinners, you can wish harm on sinners.
That's not the heart of Christ. The way to follow Jesus is not
sinners we hate, but their sin, Not false prophets, but we
despise their perversion. Not evil men necessarily, but we
loathe their evil ways. And to be able to make that
distinction in your heart is to be that much more like Jesus.
Now let's come to what he has against the church in Ephesus,
verse 4. But I have this against you,
that you have abandoned the love you had.
At first when I looked at this, I thought, I'm trying to imagine
how this church reacted when this letter was read aloud.
So you can imagine, like they were smiling.
Verse 2 and verse three, I know your words.
I know your toy. I know your patient endurance.
And they're looking at each other like, yeah, he recognizes
us, Praise God, Wonderful. And then finally.
But I have this against you. Was there a collective gasp?
Did a chilling silence fill that room?
This is strange, and though we can't know for certain how this
church reacted, perhaps for us more confusion arises than
anything else. Because here's the confusion.
How can such a devoted group of Christians be indicted for being
loveless? How can you have Christ saying
you lack love? Is he referring to a love for
God? A love for the fellow brethren?
A love for the lost. Well I love the ESV translation,
but I think in this part here it makes it a little bit more
difficult to pin down. But when you look at any other
faithful word for word translation, it becomes clear
The wording might sound familiar to you because here we see you
have left the love you had at 1st and others would say you
have left your first love. So it's not necessarily the
absence of love, but the object of love that's being underscored
here. You have left your first love.
Well, I think the debate is over right there.
Why is the debate over? Because we know what Jesus said
about the greatest and 1st commandment, that you shall love
the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul, all
your mind, all your strength. And the second one is what?
Love your neighbor as yourself. So you have to highlight that
word first, your first love. What's in view here is love for
Jesus Christ. But doesn't really solve this
because we're left to wonder then, how is it possible for a
church to be so busy, so wholesome, apparently so
healthy, and be deficient in their love for the person of
Jesus Christ? And here's where I think married
people might understand it better than others.
Is it possible to be a busy, committed, faithful and
responsible spouse while being affectionately numb towards your
husband or your wife? Don't lie.
It is possible. And sadly, many married people
who were once deeply taken by one another have allowed their
marriage to be reduced to being roommates.
Yeah, the bills are getting paid, dinners are being
prepared. You have things being taken care
of at the home. Kids are cared for, you have
vacations planned every year. But your heart is not connected
as it once was. And so sincere conversations
have been replaced with weekly to do lists that you have to
agree on. And over time, the focus of a
marriage is no longer one another, but the
responsibilities that marriage demands.
That's what happened to this church.
They were doing, they were doing, they were doing, they
were doing, but their hearts were no longer in it for the
same reasons. When they started, everything
became a mechanical routine. And if a pastor is not careful,
he can prepare his messages in that way where it's no longer
because you're in love with Christ because of how you met
him that week, and now you're coming up to that platform to
look at other people that you love so that they can fall
deeper in love with the person of Christ.
It's now a lesson and you want to just make sure that it's void
of error and that it's delivered with some kind of excitement so
that you can at least satisfy the people who are coming to
hear something. And you get that paycheck at the
end of the month. Where's the where's the love for
Christ? Where's the overflow of how you
worship them? And you received from him and
you've seen something of his beauty and, and his glory and
you can't wait to somehow show it.
And whatever you're preaching, it can happen with pastors.
It happens to a lot of pastors. It can happen with members.
OK, so yes, praise God, you come to Friday night Bible study.
But why? It's because you have nothing
else to do. Is it because it's just what you
do on Friday nights and it's a little weird if you don't come
to Bible study Friday nights? Or is it because Sunday service
is not enough and you want to know more about Jesus and oh,
OK, I guess NBC has a Friday night Bible study.
I want more because I want more of Christ.
See the difference? If you're saved in this place,
then you can say with absolute confidence, you can recall a
communion with Christ that captivated you when you first
tasted the truth and have been sealed of the Holy Spirit of
God. And you were able to
effortlessly relate everything to him on a personal level.
Everything that came your way, you're able to bring back them.
Everything that you did, you were mindful of him.
But you see, what some call the honeymoon phase is a heart
posture that Jesus expects for us and from us to maintain.
Can I prove that to you? Let's go to Jeremiah chapter 2,
verse 2, Jeremiah 22. Go and proclaim in the hearing
of Jerusalem. Thus says the Lord, I remember
the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you
followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown.
What is the Lord referring to here?
The love that Israel had when they were first delivered from
bondage, when they were brought out into the wilderness.
And what the Lord is highlighting here is the
exuberance of this people, the soaring affection that they had
when they were lost but found and God longed for it to return.
Where is that love? Where is that devotion of youth?
Where is that willingness to go where I go?
You went to a land not sown. You're willing to follow me
there because you were so captivated by me.
I want it back. And the same thing happened with
these Christians. Their relationship with the Lord
has been reduced to cold orthodoxy.
They can confront sin, no problem.
They can memorize doctrine. They can explain it well.
They can put on many events and appear busy.
But they had a dying heartbeat towards Christ.
Is that the same for you? Come on.
I say this in love. I say this after a week looking
into this and looking into my own heart.
Where's your heart as you hear this message today?
Are you a shell As you sit in that Pew?
Are you empty? Is there any kind of aroma to
your worship? Or you sing, but your heart is
not soft. You serve.
Yes, you're responsible. You're dutiful, but it's no
longer from the place of delight.
This is possible for any of us. Let me put it this way.
Can you confidently say, Lord, if you take away my ministry, if
I never have any future opportunity, even if you cancel
my abilities, I will love you. I will adore you.
That's what the Lord is after. Because it's a temptation for
Christians to be more enamored with church activity than the
head of the church. He doesn't want that in His
church, so he calls them to repent.
You know what encouraged me the most about this?
If Christ expects us to maintain and grow in that personal love
for Him, then it's possible. It's attainable.
He never asked anything of us. That is not possible.
Never. Behind every command, every
promise, there is the power of God for us to walk in it.
So here's that, what that means for you and I.
We don't have to give in to the common trend of Christianity
that as you grow in age, as you grow in experience, you wane and
your affection and your enthusiasm for Christ.
And even if you do, the Lord gives us a way out.
So he doesn't just point his finger at where the problem is.
He quickly offers the solution and begins with the letter R 3
words with the same letter. The first thing is to remember
what do we see here, but I have this against you that you have
abandoned the love you had at first.
Remember verse 5. Remember therefore from where
you have fallen, repent and do the works that you did at first.
So remember, imply self-assessment that you are to
examine your own heart and ask yourself, is my love for Christ
where it once was? Is it maturing?
Is it growing? Is it stable?
Is it there? And obviously there's something
unique about those first moments after you get saved.
There's something that's incomparable really.
And I don't believe what the Lord is asking of Christians is
to recapture those emotions upon your first realization of his
grace, of his forgiveness, of his love.
I don't think that's what he's asking for.
All he's simply saying is remember the fellowship you had
with me, Remember how it was personal for you, Remember how
real it was to you. So the Lord is not demanding
something that is is unrealistic.
It's very possible the way you prioritized me, that's what the
problem is. Is it still there or is it
virtually non existent? Would you remember?
Would you think? Would you look back and if
you're struggling in this place to come to a conclusive answer
because you don't know what standard to measure yourself by.
The Bible is our guide. Our memories can betray us, our
feelings can lie to us. So the Bible gives us direction
and I share this last Wednesday a prayer because this verse so
penetrated in my heart. So I share it with you now where
Peter tells us in First Peter 1/8, though you do not see him,
you love him. And though you do not now see
him, you believe in Him and rejoice with a joy that is
inexpressible and filled with glory.
That's a miracle. How can you love somebody that
you haven't seen physically? Clearly, salvation is a work of
God. It's a miracle.
It testifies to the fact that we are spirit beings, that we can
actually love someone even though we haven't seen them with
our eyes. But here's the main point.
Did you notice how Peter connects love and links it with
joy? In other words, the way you can
measure if you love Christ is to reflect upon the joy you have
for and towards Christ. And this is the level of joy.
It's inexpressible. You can't put words to it.
In other words, if you want to know if my love for Christ is
supreme, what does he bring more thrill to my soul than anything
else in this life. Oh yes, you enjoy certain
hobbies, you love traveling, looking around, those are all
wonderful gifts from God. But you have to ask yourself
this, is He better? Does he bring me more
satisfaction than anything else in this life?
Because Peter speaks about a joy that is inexpressible and filled
with glory. That's how you know you love
him. Where's that joy?
So it's not confessional. I love the Lord Jesus Christ.
OK, where's the joy? Where's the delight?
Where's the happiness? The Bible here is not against
feeling, but this is deeper than feeling.
It's conviction that produces something.
You don't have to answer this out loud, but do you know how
the book of Ephesians ends? The same epistle that Paul wrote
to the church that John addresses?
It ends in a certain way, and I think it's fascinating.
What's the last verse of the book of Ephesians?
Well, let's go there. And Ephesians chapter 6 in verse
24, Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love
incorruptible. That's all Paul signs off.
That's how he concludes his thoughts.
Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love
incorruptible. That word incorruptible stood
out to me. I wanted to know what it means.
It's the same word in the original that's used for
immortality. And we know what immortality
means, right? It's for something or someone to
live on forever. So what is Paul essentially
saying to this group of Christians?
There is a grace for those, and may there be a grace on those
who love Jesus Christ with an undying love.
And it's this very same church that had a dying love for Christ
in Revelation chapter 2. It was disappearing.
It was robotic ministry. It was going through the
motions, remember. And once you remember, repent.
I can think of many Christians and churches that need to
repent, but this one, Yes, this one.
And it must have been very difficult for a hard working
church to hear that word. But here's the point.
If we're going to receive any help from Christ to rekindle
that love for Him, it requires honesty on our part.
It may not, it may not be enjoyable to admit it, but it's
necessary for Christ to be able to do what He only can do in us.
That we have tolerated this, our hearts being cold towards Him.
So what does that look like? Lord, I, I confess that I'm just
going through the motions. I, I admit that I'm more
passionate about defending doctrine than worshipping you.
I stand here open because I I preach, but I'm not really
passionate. I serve, but I'm not satisfied
in you alone. This this step requires
humility, and that's why I believe the Lord, knowing the
hearts of His own people, would be reluctant to admit this.
So He quickly offers a warning with it.
Come back to verse 5. Remember, therefore, from where
you have fallen, repent and do the works you did at first.
If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its
place unless you repent. So what is he saying?
He wants to alarm them. If you don't repent, I will
remove. Now some are satisfied in
thinking that what Christ is saying here is that they're
going to lose their spiritual light in their community, that
they're not going to have the influence they once had.
That's definitely true, but I think it's much more drastic
than that. I believe what Christ is saying
to this church is, yes, you will lose your impact, but you'll
also lose your meetings. He's talking about physical
dispersion here. He's talking about shutting this
church down, and he has many ways of doing that.
But why so dramatic? And here's what came to mind.
I think it's because of the influence of this church.
Remember how they really touched Asia at this time with what was
happening in their own congregation?
So for Christ to say this, I believe in part is I don't want
what's happening here to be replicated elsewhere.
I don't want all these neighboring churches and
ministries that look up to this church as an exemplary model and
then think that this is what I'm really after, getting really
busy but not really having a heart throbbing for Christ.
I'm going to shut this place down.
I don't want to copy paste of it.
Jesus sees differently than us. Come on, think about it with all
these other churches, if there is anyone that deserved to be
shut down. I can think of so many in this
and in a real life example. But again, it goes to show how
he evaluates what he's really after.
And This is why we're here to to know his heart.
Look back at this language he says here in verse 5.
Remember from where you have fallen, fallen.
What's a fallen church to you? A church that is scandalized
with immorality in the leadership, embezzlement of
funds, that's, that's a fallen church in my imagination.
You know what it is to Jesus Church that is so busy but is
not doing it for the Lord. That's a fallen Christian.
That's a fallen church. God help us.
And the danger of hearing this is to not take this vanishing
love seriously. So we have to hear his words.
And this is precisely why I believe Christ addresses this
church first, because we're all headed towards greater spiritual
peril when we depart from that place of intimate devotion.
That's where so many things go wrong for a Christian and for a
group of Christians. Many things happen when we leave
our first love, many things that we never thought we would
invite, that we would allow. And that was true for Israel's
crumbling condition even before they crossed the Jordan into the
promised land. The Lord warned them.
He says, listen here, all the blessings if you choose life
here all the curses if you choose death.
And after describing some of these curses, he reveals the
diagnosis. He reveals where things will go
wrong. And I want to show it to you.
Listen to these words. I remember studying this in
Deuteronomy, I think when we were studying it together as a
church, and I never forgot the Scripture and Deuteronomy 28,
verse 47. Notice what the Lord says.
He's speaking to His own people, and He says, because you did not
serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of
heart, because of the abundance of all things.
Did you hear that? Can I read it again?
Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness
and gladness of heart because of the abundance of all things He
didn't say. Because you didn't serve me, You
didn't serve me with joyfulness of heart.
So what were they doing? Does it sound familiar?
They were willing to serve, but they didn't have gladness in the
soul. That is one of the reasons why
they spiraled out of control. It started here, serving without
savoring Jesus. So he says, listen, you church
and Ephesus, you need to remember, you need to think
deeply. Don't just brush it off.
Don't just cancel that conviction when it visits you
think, remember from there, if you're honest with yourself, if
you can say, yes, I know, I know I'm not where I'm supposed to
be, then you need to repent. And lastly, you need to revisit.
Look how specific the Lord is back in Revelation 2 and verse
5. Remember therefore from where
you have fallen, repent and do the works you did At first He
didn't say, OK, if you remember and you realize you need to
repent, then just sit tight and wait for a flood of emotion to
come. Wait for a spontaneous surprise
of the Spirit to just combust you so that you can be where
you're supposed to be. He says no, you need to work for
it. There are certain things that
you can do to reignite that passion for the personal Christ.
That's that's not far fetched. If you've ever done marriage
counseling and there's some trouble in your relationship,
then you'll hear from a faithful counselor after assessing, OK,
there are things that you both need to do to re establish this
love. So it's going to require
something on both of your ends. It's going to some planning,
some thinking here so that as you by faith in a sense, engage
in these activities, something will take place, something will
follow. It's no different here.
Don't just wait for some kind of supernatural thing to strike
you. No, you need to pick yourself up
and do some things if you want this passion to come back.
And this is the part now the I'm just going to breathe for a
second and I want to be very practical, very practical.
I want to help. I want to help all of us of how
if we find ourselves here to be where Christ wants us to be.
So I gave you 3 Rs. Let me give you 3 CS.
First thing you got to do, the first work that you have to do
is communicate. Communicate with who?
With Christ. No meaningful relationship can
happen unless there is clear communication.
And you have probably experienced the frustration of
trying to Foster and deepen in your relationship with someone,
but every time you have to talk to them or try to talk to them,
they're not present. So not just communication, but
undistracted, intentional communication, opening your
heart to Christ. You know how many times I've
come to the Lord? I said, Lord, you need to help
me with my heart. Lord, I know your warnings.
I know where things go wrong for churches, for ministers, You
need to help me. And sometimes my times of
prayers looks just like that and only that for that morning.
Just help me Lord, let me not lose my amazement.
Let me not lose my my love, my appreciation, my adoration.
Strengthen it in me, protect it, secure it in me.
God, I don't want to ever look at this Bible with dull eyes.
I don't ever just want to put things together, Lord.
I want it to just flow out of my heart because I'm stunned by
you. Communicate, but not just
communicate, contemplate, contemplate.
I invite you to turn to Psalm 103.
This is an example for us. I'll wait for you.
This is a famous passage, but look at verse 2 of Psalm 103.
Let's read it together. You don't have to read it out
loud, but with your eyes. Bless the Lord all my soul, and
forget not all His benefits. Who forgives all your iniquity?
Who heals all your diseases? Who redeems your life from the
pit? Who crowns you with steadfast
love and mercy? Who satisfies you with good so
that your youth is renewed like the eagles.
Do you see it? There's a mind soul connection
here. If I want my soul to truly bless
the Lord, I am to remember, not forget.
I am to meditate on certain things.
My soul can't bless unless I'm willing to think.
Forget. Not all His benefits.
Another way to put it is if I want something to happen in my
heart, I got to engage my mind is that's where people go wrong.
They're just again, they're waiting for some kind of thing
to visit them in their affection.
Sometimes something just an illustration in a sermon
perhaps, or some kind of testimony to take place that
that may surprise you so that you can, you can have that fresh
infatuation. No, you need to think, you need
to contemplate, if you want to know this joy that is
inexpressible and filled with glory, you need to be exposed to
His glory. That's precisely what we're
seeing here. And God has given us the main
window to behold Him is this book.
It's right here in front of us. So I told you earlier, I was
reading through Exodus, but I finished Genesis last week, and
one of the things that moved me about Genesis was the story of
Joseph. And this is where it was fresh
for me. It wasn't just what God did for
Joseph. It's what God did in Joseph, not
just the, the the clear traces of Providence and how, oh, I
know where this is going. Yeah, you're throwing him into a
pit. I know you're going to sell
them. But God, I know where this not,
not just that, as wonderful as that is, but how even though God
was orchestrating this story and putting the pieces together to
save this nation called Israel, he was also doing a personal
work in this man. And when his brothers finally
came to him, and yes, he tested them, but he also unmasked
himself and he was willing to forgive them.
That's a miracle. So people love to talk about the
Providence of God and Joseph, you have every right to, but I'm
looking at what God did in that man's heart this past week.
I say I want that in me. Yes, what?
I want to celebrate your Providence.
But can you deal with this heart that loves to clutch to
bitterness, loves to think about what I've been hurt by in the
past. Do a miracle in me.
I say you behold the glory. Yes, Lord, this is available.
So contemplate and you have to do this if there's going to be
any chance for your heart to beat again for the Lord Jesus
Christ. And listen, I'll add this,
Spurgeon said, Visit many books, but live in the Bible.
Visit many books, but live in the Bible.
And I believe those are other means of grace in our lives,
that there are men of God, there are different people that we
might know that when you look at their life, when you sit with
them, when you read about their stuff, it is contagious.
So look at and look for other people who have an infectious
love for Christ and let that iron sharpen your iron.
And there are many ways of doing this.
Personally, what came to mind was a little book that I have,
and I've mentioned this before on a Wednesday night, a prayer
book that's been collected of all the Puritans, not all of
them, but many of them, and just neatly organized by different
subjects and different prayer requests.
And though again, I live in the Bible, I'm not afraid from time
to time to look at how some of these Puritans prayed and how
it, it, it impresses me. How do you have this love
language for Christ, for somebody they haven't seen?
I want it, I desire it. And sometimes it puts language
to the things that I can't even express to the Lord.
Can I give you an example? This is from the Valley of
Vision. That's the name of the book.
And page 50. Let me just read this to you.
Lean in, I know it's raining, It's OK.
It's not going to hurt you, but just listen to these words and
page 50 of the Valley of Vision. Oh Holy Spirit, as the sun is
full of light, the ocean full of water, heaven full of glory, so
may my heart be full of Thee. Vain are all divine purposes of
love and the redemption wrought by Jesus, except thou work
within, regenerating by Thy power.
Giving me eyes to see Jesus, show me the realities of the
unseen world. Give me thyself without measure
as an unpaired fountain, as inexhaustible riches.
I bewail my coldness, poverty, emptiness, imperfect vision,
language, service, prayerless prayers and praiseless praises.
Suffer me not to grieve or resist Thee.
Come as power to expel every rebel, lust to reign supreme and
keep me Thine. Come as Teacher, leading me to
all truth, filling me with all understanding.
Come as love that I may adore the Father and love Him as my
all. Come as joy to dwell in me, move
in me, animate me. Come as light, illuminating the
scripture, molding me in its laws.
Come as sanctifier, body, soul and spirit, Holy thine.
Come as helper, with strength to bless and keep directing my
every step. Come as beautifier, bringing
order out of confusion, loving this out of chaos.
Magnify to me Thy glory by being magnified in me, and make me
redolent of Thy fragrance. It's hard to read that and not
get moved. Contemplate.
Lastly, commit. Don't leave your undistraction,
communication with Christ and contemplation of Him up to
chance. Pick a place, choose a time, and
protect that pursuit daily. Give yourself goals.
It's OK, but let them be realistic.
How are you going to communicate and contemplate Christ on a
daily basis? How much time are you able to
give Him? It's not about the duration of
the time. Who would want to spend time
with someone who is concerned about the length of time instead
of the substance of that meeting?
Christ is not interested in that.
That takes a lot of time for people to get commit.
Come up with some rules for yourself, because sometimes it
takes discipline. No, no, let me retrace.
It does takes discipline before you reach delight.
Here's a rule that I know many abide by and something that's
helped me over the years. Very simple rule, Bible before
breakfast. Simple right before I eat
physical food, I'm going to eat spiritual food.
That's it. Bible before breakfast.
You preach that to yourself and you remind yourself that and
there are other things that you can go.
I know people who have very unique things that they've
applied to their own lives so that they can make sure that
they commit to this communication and this
contemplation. Repent and do the works that you
did at first. And here's the final promise.
It's not a warning, it's an encouragement.
And verse 7 of Revelation 2, he who has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches, to the one who
conquers, I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in
the paradise of God. You can imagine how this verse,
which echoes in different ways in each letter has caused much
debate because some may interpret this idea of
conquering, especially when you look at the reward, as just a
general encouragement for all believers because they would say
in first John, John calls all believers overcomers who have
put their faith in Christ. So this is just really a general
comment for all believers, no matter the condition of your
faith, that we all have this promise, we all have eternal
life, we're all conquerors. Others see this as a warning for
believers that if you do not overcome this faithfulness in
this area, then you actually risk not inheriting eternal
life, that you'll be barred from what in this case, eating of the
tree of life. In other words, this teaches to
some that salvation is not guaranteed, and if you're going
to go with that, then you have to also say that it's the
strength of your love for Christ that determines if you have
eternal life. Lastly, there are some who
believe that what John is saying here by the Spirit is that he is
speaking to believers, genuine believers, to strive to overcome
a particular obstacle which will lead to a reward that will
enrich their experience of the life to come.
I hold to that point. I believe to be an overcomer in
this context is to be a diligent believer who matures in a
specific area of faithfulness that Christ will honour in a
wonderful way. He who overcomes.
Well, if you honor the context, what does he ask you to overcome
in this case? Negligence and your and your
love for Christ. If you overcome that, then then
here's a particular specific reward.
Now I know that some of us might be curious and well, what does
this really mean? And, and, and in some cases does
sound like perhaps he is speaking about gaining eternal
life. But then you have to do the work
and compare. Is that true in some cases and
others not? We'll get there.
But I would say that here we find that there is a call to
overcome in order to touch something that others who don't
overcome will not experience. Thank God that heaven is
available to all who repent and believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ. But let me say this because I
fear God, Not every Christian will experience what's to come
in the same way. As glorious as it's going to be
for all of us, if you honor what Jesus says here, then there are
particular prizes for those who are overcomers or overcomers.
And here's what Jesus Christ, the living Messiah, says.
The Maranatha Bible Church on this Sunday.
Overcome your coldness towards Christ and he is ready to help
us remember, repent, revisit. How do you do that?
Go back to the place of undistracted communication.
Go back to contemplating. And oh, when you're there,
commit to it, and you will soar again in your satisfaction in
Christ. Let's pray,
Lord, we ask you from a sincere heart that you would give us
that love that's incorruptible again, if it has become corrupt,
if it did rot over time, if we'd allow the maggots of this world
to eat away at that love. Oh, forgive us.
And Lord, we pray for encouragement more than anything
else, that this quality of faith is possible for every single one
of us. And help us, Lord, protect this
passion when you work it in us again, to never forget that
that's where you're ultimately after that, all that we do, all
that we say, all that we help with, that it would come from
the place of loving you personally.
Help us, Lord. So this day we pray, Lord, in
our own hearts, responding to this truth, believing that you
hear us and that we can walk not just weeks and months, but year
after year after year, with a maturing love for you.
Sustain us by your grace. In Jesus name we pray.
Amen. Can I ask you to do something?
It's raining so you can't go anywhere.
Anyway, the praise team is going to come up.
Just stay in your seat unless you want to stand up.
You can do whatever you want. Just don't distract anybody.
Take this message to heart. Pray this message.
Translate it in your own life. Even if you're walking with a
brimming love for Christ, ask the Lord to secure it.
Ask the Lord to keep you. Let's just talk to the Lord who
just spoke to us through this word and at the right time,
we're going to sing together. Can we do that?