www.trumpetoftruthonline.org
From The Desk Of Pastor Toby Powers
Truth Baptist Church
Bremen, GA
www.trumpetoftruthonline.org
Loving & Leaving
Revelation 2:1-5
Intro: These seven churches in Asia Minor were seven actual churches in this day of John the Revelator. They also represent seven different church ages. They show the progression of the church world over the past two thousand years, and whether you will have it or not, I believe we are living in the Laodicean Church Age. But, not only were these churches actual churches and types of church generations, but they are also object lessons to all who will follow. Just as they show us the progression of the church ages over the generations, they also show us the progression of churches.
This church of Ephesus was a great, influential, hard-working, prominent, and well-known church. It is the church that most of us would think was “just right.” But they had one issue: they had left their “first love.” They had come to serve the church, religion, the community, and the desires and goals of society more than they served God. They were still doing the right things, but they were not doing them for the right reasons. They did what was good to be recognized, to grow the number on the board, to get credit among society, for obligation, or to satisfy family. Why do you do what you do for God?
Furthermore, I notice the progression of the churches, of which we have just spoken. This church in Ephesus had left its first love. Notice the progression of what takes place after that:
• Smyrna faces tribulation (2:9). The same society from which you seek approval through religion will persecute you for your religion!
• Pergamos endures Satan’s authority levied from within the church and his false doctrine taught from its pulpit (2:13-15).
• Thyatira develops loose morals and standards in church doctrine, discipline, and decorum (2:20-23).
• Smyrna just about dies! They were a dead church… or at the least, almost dead (3:1-2)
• Philadelphia became a weak church. Though they had attempted to get things right with God, they had no influence with the world! (3:8)
• Laodicea regressed into lukewarmness or apathy. They became so anesthetized to their own condition that they believed themselves rich, increased with goods, and having need of nothing; they did not even know that they were wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked! (3:15-18) They were in a mess, did not know it, and did not care!
WHAT REALLY MAKES THIS SUCH A SHAME IS THAT IT ALL STARTED WITH A GOOD CHURCH IN EPHESUS WHO DID ALL THE RIGHT THINGS FOR THE WRONG REASONS. THEY HAD LOVED, BUT THEY HAD LEFT!
I am preaching on “LOVING AND LEAVING.” If we leave our first love, the same things can happen to us that happened to these churches. Let me say today that a church who is “loving and leaving” becomes:
I. Carnal: as James began to speak to the church about its carnality in James 3-4, he called the world and its wisdom, goals, and desires: earthly, sensual, and devilish. To be carnal is to be sensual, worldly, non-spiritual, given to the crude desires and appetites of the flesh. A church leaving their first love will be carnal in:
A. Interests: the priorities set will be carnal. Athletics, entertainment, programming, socializing, and esthetics will take preeminence over worship, praise, and evangelism.
B. Intentions: Ministers will seek praise through numbers. Members will seek prominence through notability. Masses will seek peace with no relationship with God!
C. Interaction: the fellowship of the “loving and leaving” church will be carnal. Spiritual people fellowship in worship, at the breaking of bread, through friendships and relationships built. Carnal people need carnal things to fellowship around because their interests are carnal. That’s why they have Sunday School class swimming parties for the young people.
II. Conformed: Romans 12:1-2. Churches who leave their first love will become conformed to the world or worldly in their:
A. Meetings: this is seen in the “movie ministries” where preachers show their movie or TV show clips on the church projector screen and preach on the lesson learned in the movie! That’s why they really like these cafeterias, warehouses, and theatres to hold services in. They do not look like churches, and they are trying to get rid of the church look!
B. Music: they don’t love the songs of the spirit. They love the songs of the world. That’s what they listen to all week, and they make their church songs sound the same way. It is impossible to glorify God to a beat that Satan uses for his glory!
C. Message: they deal with nothing! All the sermons are geared toward the flesh, the pocket book, and the here-and-now with no concern for the hereafter. There is very little preaching on sin, hell, judgment, the diety of Christ, and the perfection of the Word of God. These things bring conviction, but that’s what we need to see sinners saved!
D. Methods: they play psychological games with people. They preach easy-believism to sinners, false prosperity to the church, and feel-goodism to everyone! They try to use the world to “win” the world, but in winning they lose God and win no one!
E. Mindset: they have such a worldly mindset that they can not even comprehend spiritual things. They would not know real worship if they saw it, and the Holy Ghost is a complete foreigner! Jesus said in John 3:12, “If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?”
III. Contemporary: “Loving and Leaving” churches are new or up to date. They have a new way of:
A. Preaching: intellectual, sophisticated, entertaining, but Paul said, “And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” I Cor 2:1-5. PREACHING MUST BE DONE WITH POWER NOT POLISH, THE WISDOM OF THE WORD NOT THE WORLD, THE SPIRIT OF GOD NOT GOLD, THE ANOINTING OF THE HOLY GHOST NOT THE ENTERTAINMENT OF HOLLYWOOD!
B. Parenting: there is a contemporary method of parenting in this church that has left its first love. Still, God’s Word teaches us to pray for our children, teach them the Word of God, instill in them discipline, and direct them toward the fear of God and respect for all authority. This might “stifle their creativity”, but it will serve to bring them up in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
C. Prayer: contemporary prayer is formal, self-seeking, and void of God. May we get back to old-time prayer where we agonize with God for sinners again! “Pour your heart out before him” Psalms 62:8.
D. Programs: when I was a child the church programs were: Sunday School, Worship, Sunday Night, and Prayer and Testimony meeting. Now we have so many “programs” that our churches are robotic! This is a place of worship, and we have turned it into a YMCA, carnival, and country club!
IV. Casual: nonchalant, careless, unconcerned, relaxed. The “loving and leaving” church is casual in:
A. Appearance: the parish, the parishioners, the pastors have all become casual!
B. Approach: we are so lackadaisical in our approach to worship sometimes. Let us get serious about why we are here. Do you realize what a privilege it is to be in this church today?
C. Attendance: people attend when it is convenient, but church should be more important to us than that!
D. Attentiveness: Church should be a place where people come to dream and never fall asleep.
E. Attitude: sometimes church people are so flippant with one another. The best people in the world are right here in this building. God help us to have a servant’s heart, an humble spirit, and a compassionate manner.
V. Compromising: Eventually, a “loving and leaving” church will become apathetic, unconcerned, and they will compromise the things that they once believed before they left their first love. We can not compromise on:
A. Standards: That which is right and wrong will forever be so.
B. Scriptures: I still have a King James Bible, and I will not compromise on the blessed infallible, inspired, and inerrant preserved Word of God!
C. Salvation: It is by repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ.
Conclusion: Let others do what they will, but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. We will love God. If you are not saved, today is the day to get it right. If you have been slack in your devotion and love toward God, today is the day to get that right. If you have been a bit apathetic in your worship, prayer life, Bible study, and church life, today is the day to get that right. This is the place; now is the time. Will you come do business with the Lord?
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