Sunday Morning Service

Revelation 2:1-7 (Ephesians 7)

Audio Available Above

“Two Decades Later” • 10.6.13 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service

Intro.

- Having just finished the book of Ephesians, I couldn't move on without taking a day to consider the rest of their story.

- It's not exactly known, but scholars agree that a 25-30 year window has passed. Young men and women are now old men and old women.

- The children of the Ephesian letter from Paul are now in the prime years of their life, taking the reins of the church.

- This has been a profoundly successful church, raising multiple generations and standing firm in the truth that they had been established in.

- One day, almost out of the blue, a letter comes to their mailbox. It's from Jesus Christ, dictated by John the Apostle! When next they gathered, what is before us is what was heard.

Text

• Revelation 2:1 : "To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:" : The word "angel" simply means "messenger." The equivalent post in the church would be the Pastor today.

- This messenger is tasked with being the vehicle through which God's message is proclaimed. The church in Ephesus had some hall of fame greats by all accounts!

- It's very likely that Apollos had disciples that became the core of the church of Ephesus. These were the men that God allowed Paul to meet when he came to Ephesus.

- Paul stayed there for some time and then later sent Timothy to continue the work.

- Shortly before Jerusalem fell, the Apostle John also came there and ministered for a time!

- The Pastor at this time is unknown, but he has the privilege to deliver this message from Jesus Himself to the church of Ephesus.

- Jesus is in heaven, living in His rightful place, far above the suffering that marked His earthly life and yet, it's His heart to communicate to this the church on Earth!

- Jesus wanted this written down, preserved for the ages, a message that reveals much about what concerns the only One that matters.

- Jesus describes Himself first as the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand.

- The word speaks of one who has been trusted with something valuable. For a Christian, what can be more valuable than one's own life and course!

- Jesus takes that seriously, telling the Ephesians conclusively that their Pastor is held firmly and kept safely in His very hands presently!

- How well are we kept? Notice that we are kept in His right hand, the hand of power!

- Jesus continues with His own description, calling Himself the One who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands, a symbolic phrase speaking of the churches.

- One commentator noted that these are not candlesticks, or self-burning units, but a lampstand, filled with oil, needing often to be refilled in order to burn! That's a good description!

- Literally, He is always walking in their midst! What does that mean?

- This is where Jesus wants to be, in communion with His people, dwelling among them, granting them favor and joy, satisfying them with Himself! That is the Lord Jesus!

- He is present in His sanctuary and as God the Father walked through the camp of His people Israel, God the Son walks among the meeting grounds of His Bride, the church!

• Revelation 2:2,3 : "I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary." : Jesus thoroughly and accurately understands what they were all about.

- He knew their works, that which they endeavored to do and how they occupied or busied themselves. He knew their labor, which speaks of a grievous, burdensome labor.

- Virtually every other time that this word is used, it is translated as trouble or toil. Jesus has seen them respond with their hearts to that which brought them grief.

- It seems that they saw something troubling and devoted themselves to labor related to it, united in their desire to address this situation before them.

- Jesus had also seen their patience or endurance. They were not easily swayed from their direction. Nor will they let anyone sway then. They won't tolerate those who are evil in their midst.

- They will not support in any way, anyone with an agenda to promote wickedness, nor will they stand idly by and let someone bring in a false doctrine.

-  They listened with prejudice to each person that addressed them. They put them on trial, especially those which made the claim to be Apostles, but were not.

- The Apostle Paul had warned the Ephesian elders on the beach at Miletus that false prophets would abound in their midst, coming as ravenous wolves. The Ephesians took him seriously!

- The Lord's words indicate that they found them to be liars because they had done their homework. Their investigation bore out the fact that these people claiming apostleship were false.

- These people had carried the load, endured through difficult seasons and worked their fingers to the bone for the name of the Lord!

- This is an active, disciplined, discerning church which had not fainted to that very day! They stood dressed and ready for more! What a spiritual resume!

- It would be good for us as a church to be known for these things.

- To put our energies toward something redemptive, to work as a body for the betterment of our community, to respond to the issues of our day, being available and a part of the solution.

- It would be good for us to be discerning and wise regarding those with a wicked agenda or a poor, Christ-less theology.

- It would be good for us to live a consistent life of dedicated service for the sake of the Lord.

- But, these things are not an end to themselves, which seems to have been the problem.

• Revelation 2:4 : "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love." : Let that sink in for a moment. Nevertheless. It does not quite cancel out the good that has been accomplished, but causes it to pale in comparison to what He says next.

- It is a harrowing word for an otherwise model church. In spite of all that has been happening, Jesus has a recurring beef with this church, as this would better be considered as "having."

- Take a further moment to reflect upon who is bringing this to light. Jesus. The King of Kings. The focal point and the head of the Church!

- Every other opinion or perspective is expendable and a very distant second!

- It's not as if anyone can claim that Jesus has spoken in ignorance or that His is not the vote that matters, so long as other people are satisfied!

- Ephesus likely had a very satisfied congregation and may have even been a blessing in their community to some degree. But the One that the Church exists to satisfy is not! That's a problem!

- The source of His contention is that the Ephesians had left their first love.

- The word for "left" can also be translated "neglected" or "abandoned." When the word was used in a marital context, it referred to a husband divorcing his wife.

- Their actions, all of which had been noble, were done apart from or instead of their first priority, which is namely, to love the Lord and to love His people. They go hand in hand.

- When we leave our love behind, we fail to stoke the fire, we make decisions that hinder love's progress. Consequently, we suffer on both the divine and human planes.

- The fact that they had left their first love, implies decision and the working of a collective will.

- To love someone means that you make choices to invest in them. You clear your calendar and you prioritize around the object of your love.

- When I have talked with couples who have considered divorce, the ones who speak of distance point back to decisions that put their relationship at risk.

- One took up a time consuming hobby. Another took a job that brought in more money, but that sapped the emotional strength. One began making other friends which isolated their spouse.

- Did the Ephesians get tired of God's presence in their worship service? Had they heard it all from the pulpit, causing them to disengage?

- One wonders if they began to enjoy the notoriety that came with their heightened profile in the community. Maybe, it was just good ol' pride.

- They had a rich spiritual heritage replete with the finest teachers that ever walked the planet!

- Somewhere along the line, these Christian people made decisions that promoted the adoption of secondary agendas over against the primary agenda of the church.

- In the end, much of what they had done could have been done by secular agencies. Works, exhaustive labor, and even apologetic watchdog programs exist outside of the realm of the Church!

- But there is no substitute, no other group on Earth that will manifest and cultivate the love of Jesus Christ and the subsequent love of His people! That's what a church does!

- It's no wonder then that the Lord takes issue with this church and with any church that adopts priorities that conflict with the main priority.

- Ultimately, without love, the congregation will stop doing all that it was doing and the people who did all the work would leave because nobody loved or appreciated them! Love is critical

- Thankfully, the letter does not end there! Take a look at verse 5.

• Revelation 2:5 : "Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent." : The remedy for the Ephesians condition begins with their memory.

- "Mneuomic" which we all know for mneuomic devices, speaks of calling something back into their mind. To have a memory of something necessitates it's being remote to us.

- When we stop our lives and think back, we can often be a little surprised by the power of a distant memory and perhaps a little shocked to discover how long ago we experienced that.

- Jesus tells the Ephesians to think back to where it was that they had been, which had been a high place, because they had fallen from it!

- The world would look upon the Ephesian church and praise it for all it's stature and history. It would be applauded for it's tireless work! Jesus says just the opposite!

- What had they fallen from? The memory of their warm fellowship and the early expressions of their love for God and each other came flooding into their minds.

- The sight of a smile, the strong hand of a prayer partner, the vision of standing with a Bible open together. All of the senses sent an image to the forefront of their thinking.

- The intensity of that memory must have shocked them when they looked around and saw cold, heartless repitition and service that had replaced what they had once experienced.

- How easy it is to sacrifice the authentic practice of love for God and each other, for all kinds of other activities, divorced from any love motivation at all.

- Are you thinking back to your first days in Christ? What were the best days like? What were you doing? What is different today?

- It's not enough to remember you know. It all begins with remembering but if that's all anyone does, then all you have is nostalgia!

- Jesus wants their memory to stir them up to action, to motivate them out of their malaise! That takes a decision to think differently and consequently, to move in the new direction of thought!

- They needed to think differently, change their minds about what Church was all about. It has never been the intention for the church to be a social club or a relief organization.

- They needed to recapture the fact that the church is a place to cultivate love for Christ and His people and then for that love to spill over into the world!

- What does Jesus prescribe for these repentant ones? New works? Did He say, "Let's replace the works that you guys have been doing with new works that I like better!"

- No. Remember, repent and repeat! Go and do the first works! "First" goes back to the first in order or priority. The word "protos" speaks of the necessary first steps in a process.

- A prototype is the first iteration of a new machine. It's a necessary step in the creative process. Jesus is telling them to go back to the drawing board!

- "Go back to what you were building with me before!" Start over again and begin at the beginning! "Get back to doing things that made you love me!"

- For some, that will be picking up a Bible. For others, it will involve obeying the last command you decided was not for you. Some will need to travel to exact spots that they used to sit quietly in.

- Everything that you did when you were in deep love with Jesus is in order to return to.

- The consequence for the church that doesn't is that the church will dry up. Jesus Himself will remove the lampstand from it's place!

- He promises that He will do this quickly, speedily, without delay! A church without love can't continue on! It's just a caricature, a shadow of what it once was.

- It's sad to say that there have been just as many churches that have died this kind of death as there are churches that have flourished in love.

- In cities all over the world, large buildings lay dormant because their people are loveless, empty vessels! What a profound warning to each of us!

• Revelation 2:6 : "But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate." : They had left their first love, but this was still something in their favor. Jesus commends their continuing hatred of what the Nicolaitans produced.

- Jesus commends them for hating something that He also hated! Did you know that about Jesus? He hates things produced by people like the Nicolaitans.

- The name Nicolaitan gives it all away as it means "The destruction of people."

- The two Greek words together, "Nikos" meaning conquerors and "laiety" referring to the people carries an interesting concept that is most relevant for today.

- This seems to refer to a trend toward moving the affection of a group to a leader, rather than to Christ Himself!

- The Nicolaitans wanted to be the center of the body's love. They wanted the love attention for themselves! Their works were aimed at this very goal!

- Jesus tells the Ephesians, in His bid to return their love to Him, that at least it's not another man! We get a further clue about the Nicolaitans a few verses later in verses 14 and 15.

• Revelation 2:14,15 : "But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate." : The Nicolaitans destroyed people in a similar fashion, presenting a doctrine which opened a door that offended God.

- When you are attempting to steal away Christ's bride, you will make light of anything, even promoting that which is sinful to reach your new beau!

- To say that we've seen trends that cater to the lowest common denominator in the church over the last few years, would be saying it very politely!

- Frankly, it begins with a steady diet of topical preaching, which moves to the sensational, which eventually opens the door for the spiritual deception to occur.

- God's people become dependant, not on God's Word, but on the presumed teacher, who dictates what God's people do hear and don't hear! This is a foul perversion that God hates!

• Revelation 2:7 : "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God." : Does a church have an ear? No! God's people have ears, giving them a chance to hear and perceive what the Spirit says.

- Do you have an ear? Are you listening? He is speaking this to the churches, not just the Ephesians, not just a people trapped in time, but people who are sitting here and now!

- Ironically, Jesus give a promise to him who conquers! Some had attempted to conquer the hearts of the people of God. To those who conquer those who sought to conquer, there is a promise!

- Jesus speaks of the tree of life, the symbol of an eternal state, which is in the midst, the center of the ruling place of God!

- The ancient Kings of the ancient Kingdoms had celebrated gardens, gardens of pleasure or Paradise. They would entertain and spend their private time here.

- Only the most dignified and intimate of friends were brought here. The King would show off for his guests and share his heart and life with them.

- Nobody ever left such a garden the same! All were transfixed for the rest of their lives for having been in such a place of splendor.

- Do you see why Jesus invites us to return to our love of God? That is what eternity is going to be about! We will love Him and He will shower His love upon us!

Conclusion
- To those who are young in their faith and in love with Jesus like no other time in your life: Keep doing everything you are doing now! Keep yourself right where you are at!

- To those who are old, nothing more needs to be said, except this: The Ephesians of this time had a chance to listen to Jesus speak. Jesus invited those with ears to listen in.

- Some may not have had ears. I only wish that we had 4th Ephesians, but that would not be the point. We neither require their example or their story.

- What will be our story? That's the pertinent question for today! Will love blaze again or will the testimony of a public church be snuffed out? May He minister to you today!