THE LETTER TO THE CHURCH AT EPHESUS
Revelation 2:1-7
If you have been born again then you certainly remember the joy and excitement that you felt when you first met Jesus. It is an overwhelming experience to know that you have gone from death unto life. Chances are pretty good that when you were converted you wanted to tell everyone about the glorious change that Jesus brought into your life. In the early days of your faith you couldn’t get enough of the things of God. You spent much time worshipping, praying, studying and sharing the gospel with others.
Many would have to admit that somewhere along the way something changed; you may not have consciously turned away from the Lord, but if you are honest, the joy, excitement, and zeal that you experienced at first has faded. Perhaps you are at a place in your life where you your focus has shifted back to the things of this world and your relationship with Christ has suffered as a result.
If this describes you then our selected text contains a message that you need to hear. Jesus confronted the members of the Church at Ephesus because they had “left their first love”, He then called on them to “remember how far they had fallen”, and to “repent, and do the works they did at first.” If they refused to repent, He would come to them and “remove their lampstand from its place”; this is a warning of the discipline and judgment that they would face if they refused to return to Him.
This is a message that was addressed to an actual church; Jesus sent this message through John to the assembly of Believers who met and worshipped in Ephesus. This was a church that had a rich history and many positive attributes, but they had one major flaw that had the potential to destroy their productivity for the Kingdom of God.
As I study this letter, I realize that there may be some potential parallels between our local assembly and the Church at Ephesus. If so, then we have a choice to make; we can receive the message that Jesus has for us and respond accordingly, or we can continue to ignore it and risk Him taking His hand off of us. I would like to examine this first of the seven letters to the churches in Asia Minor and preach about “The Letter To The Church At Ephesus”.
Over the next several weeks we will walk through all seven of these letters, you will notice that each letter has the same general outline. In almost every instance these letters contained praise, a rebuke, a command, a warning and a promise.
- Look with me to verse 1 as we consider:
THE RECIPIENTS OF THIS LETTER
v1a "To the angel of the church of Ephesus write…
This letter was addressed to the “angel” of the Church at Ephesus. The word “angel” here literally means “messenger”. In this context “angel” does not refer to the heavenly agents of God that we read about in other places in the Bible, rather it speaks of the seven Elders or Pastors who led the seven churches in Asia Minor.
This specific letter was addressed to “the Angel of the church at Ephesus”. He was expected to receive this information and then share it with the members of that church. The city of Ephesus was on a major trade route that was renowned for its magnificent harbor. Ships came to Ephesus from all over the world bring their goods and their wealth. Ephesus was the richest city in Asia Minor and it was referred to as “The Gateway To Asia”.
This city was also the center of worship of the Greek goddess Artemis; she was identified by the Romans as Diana. Diana was the goddess of sex and fertility. People came from everywhere to come to the temple to worship Diana.This temple was filled with hundreds of prostitutes and the way you worshiped Diana was to have sexual relations with a temple prostitute.
Clearly, Ephesus was a wicked, degenerate, vile place to live. However, in the midst of this wickedness and idol worship was a strong church with a rich history. God sent the Apostle Paul to minister in Ephesus (Acts 18:19-21; 19; 20:17-38.) He was the founder of this church and he preached there for two years. Timothy was the first bishop of the Church at Ephesus (1 Timothy 1:3). Tychicus, Aquila, Priscilla & Apollos all labored in the Ephesian church as well. The Apostle John spent the last years of his life in Ephesus. It was here that he wrote the Gospel of John and his three epistles. John was in Ephesus when he was arrested by Domitian and exiled to the Isle of Patmos as a result of his service to Christ.
God had truly blessed this church with great leadership and a strong spiritual foundation. Ephesus was an active, vibrant church serving in the midst of a wicked society. God was with them and as a result many souls were saved in that region.
- Now that we have seen who this letter was addressed to, let’s take a moment and consider:
THE AUTHOR OF THIS LETTER
Jesus says that He is “the one who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: (v1)
In Chapter one, Jesus explained to John that the “stars” represented the “angels” (or the leaders) of the seven churches. He also revealed that the “lampstands” were a metaphor for the churches themselves. The lampstands that are pictured were small golden stands that held small oil lamps. Each of these 7 lampstands that John saw represented a specific church. Like a lampstand, the churches of Christ are to shine the light of Christ in a dark world. This was true for Ephesus and it is true for Stockdale Baptist Church as well.
Now that we have seen who wrote this letter and who it was addressed to, we will consider the content of this letter. Each of the seven letters was similar in format. All but Philadelphia and Smyrna received a rebuke, and all seven received a warning, a command, and a promise to those who overcome.
- Concerning Ephesus, we will begin with:
THE PRAISE IN THIS LETTER
v2 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; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary.
Ephesus was a church that had many positive attributes. They were an assembly of people who ministered in the midst of false religion and idol worship. They labored fervently and endured patiently. They refused to tolerate evil men and they were a discerning people who dealt with false prophets and fake apostles accordingly.
Paul & John both had served in this church and we can be sure that they taught them to be on guard against deceivers who would come into the church and cause division. Both of these Apostles wrote about the importance of evaluating those who claim to be spiritual leaders.
Paul told the Thessalonians “Don’t despise prophecies, but test all things. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:20-22)
John said “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
This message had been received by the people in the Ephesian church and Jesus praised them for their vigilance. Jesus goes on to praise them for their hatred of the deeds of the Nicolaitans. (v6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.)
The Nicolaitan heresy was similar to the teaching of Balaam, leading the people into immorality and wickedness. We don’t know much about the Nicolaitans, but Jesus knew of their influence, and He praised the Ephesian church for their hatred of this false teaching.
There is much that we can say about the Church at Ephesus that was positive, however, they had one major problem; a problem that was so big that it could lead to the destruction of this church. Now that we have seen the praise, let’s consider:
THE REBUKE IN THIS LETTER
v4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
Though this church had endured trials, persecution and opposition, though they had labored fervently for the cause of Christ, and though they were sound in their doctrine and refused to tolerate false apostles & heretical teaching, Ephesus had lost its focus. Jesus declared that they had “left their first love.”
Notice that their sound doctrine and active service to the Lord is not spoken of in the past tense, they were still doing everything that a solid biblical church should do, but their motives had changed. Their love and devotion for the Lord had grown cold. Ephesus was a church that was doing the right things for the wrong reasons! God had used that great church for over 40 years and during that time they had remained faithful to the Word and the Lord. But now their passion and enthusiasm for Christ had become cold and ritualistic. The light that had once shined so bright for Christ had become a flickering flame. It they refused to heed the message in this letter, they would be judged and Jesus Himself would be the one to put that flame out! He said “I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place--unless you repent.”
This was certainly a sobering revelation; Jesus confronted their spiritual condition and warned them of judgment, but He did not leave them without hope. He told the Ephesian Christians exactly what they must do to turn things around. Notice in verse 5:
THE COMMAND IN THIS LETTER
When you consider the authority of Jesus over His church, it shows us that verse 5 is more than instruction, it is not a mere suggestion or great advice; it is a command from the Lord Himself! Christ commands His church to do three things in order to once again be a church that shined as a bright light in the midst of darkness. He told them to remember, repent and return.
- Let’s examine the command to:
1. REMEMBER - v5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen;
The Christians in Ephesus had fallen away from where they once were. Decades earlier when Paul wrote to them, he commended them for the love that they possessed for Christ and each other.
Ephesians 1:15 This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.
In the conclusion of his letter, Paul spoke of their “undying love for the Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 6:24)
When Jesus sent this letter to them, their love may not have been dead, but their light was fading! This body of believers was called on to remember where they once were. They needed to think back to the love, passion, and enthusiasm that they possessed when they first came to faith in Christ. They needed to remember the reason that they exist and the responsibility that they had been given. If they would do an honest assessment of their lives as individuals and the church as a whole, they would see what Jesus saw. This was the first step in the process of restoration but remembering was not enough, Christ called on them to:
2. REPENT - v5b repent,
Repent is a change of mind that results in changed behavior. When God changes how we view things, this will result in changed behavior, In the context of Ephesus, they were not called to do something new, rather they were commanded to go back to where they once were.
- Intertwined with this call to remembrance and repentance is a call to
3. RETURN - v5c and do the works you did at first.
Jesus wanted His Church to return to the kind of living that they exhibited before they left their first love, (namely Him). He wanted them to think back to the early days of their faith, repent of their drifting and return to a place where they possessed fervent love for Him. Then and only then would they find themselves doing the right things for the right reasons (as opposed to their current state of doing the right things for the wrong reasons).
There was still hope for the church at Ephesus, Jesus was not finished with them; it was not His desire to remove His hand from that important body of believers. However, He did warn them of the consequences of rejecting His message. Notice in verse 5:
THE WARNING IN THIS LETTER
v5d or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place--unless you repent.
If the people of this church refused to remember, repent and return, Jesus declared that He would “remove the lampstand from its place.” If they would not obey Him, the Church at Ephesus would cease to exist. The once bright light in Ephesus was now dim and flickering, if they would return to Jesus, they would once again shine brightly for Him, if they continued on the path they were on; Jesus Himself would be the one to extinguish the flickering flame.
- Jesus concludes His letter to the Ephesian Church with a promise to those who would respond accordingly to His rebuke. Let’s consider:
THE PROMISE IN THIS LETTER
v7 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."
The leader of the church was tasked with the responsibility of reading this letter to the members of the Ephesian church. The people were encouraged to hear the message and respond accordingly.
Those who obey the command to repent and overcome these spiritual obstacles are promised that they will “eat of the tree of life”. God planted many trees in the Garden of Eden, Genesis 2:9 tells of “the tree of life” and “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God and are of the “tree of knowledge” they realized what was good and what was evil. Because of their sin, they were banished from the Garden and prevented from eating of the “tree of life”. Jesus promises that those who are overcomers (those who are truly saved) will one day eat from “the tree of life”. As a result they will enter into eternal life and its fullness in Heaven.
As I said in the beginning of this message, there are some clear parallels between Ephesus and our own assembly. There are many positive things that can be said about Stockdale Baptist Church. For the last 110 years God has blessed and used this church for His glory. We are a strong church with a rich history. There is no way to know how many people have been reached all over then world as a result of the ministry of this small rural church. Like Ephesus, we have been blessed with many faithful leaders who have invested in the lives of the people in this assembly and this community. There is a long list of faithful pastors, deacons, teachers, and laymen who have stored up many treasures in Heaven as a result of their tireless labor in this church over the last century. We are a church that is unified and filled with love, compassion, and generosity. Like Ephesus, our church is a Biblical church that is devoted to sound doctrine and will not tolerate any teaching that is not in line with God’s Word.
I could go on and on pointing out the positive aspects of this body of believers. But I must warn you, Ephesus had all of these things as well. But there was something missing, something that if not addressed could lead to discipline and judgement at the hands of Jesus Christ. Satan was not their greatest enemy, nor was it heretical teaching or inward dissention; the problem was that Ephesus had lost its focus.
This was not an intentional act, and it was not one that happened overnight. It began with a slow drift and by the time they received this letter from Jesus they were in a dangerous situation. With all the good things that can be said about our assembly, can we be honest enough to admit that we are not where we once were?
Like Ephesus, we need to remember, repent and return to the Lord. However, this is not something that can happen collectively until the people of this church respond accordingly as individuals. We cannot sit back and place the blame on those who have left this church and joined another. Nor can we blame those who have become sporadic in their attendance or those who have stopped attending altogether.
We must take a long, honest look in the mirror. We need to assess our own spiritual lives and ask ourselves some difficult questions. Do you spend your days walking with the Lord like you did when you first surrendered to Him? Do you spend more time in His Word than you do pursuing the things of this world? Is prayer a priority in your life? How long has it been since you shared the Gospel with a lost friend, neighbor, co-worker or family member? Do you walk in the doors excited about the opportunity to worship your Lord and Savior or are you merely going through the motions?
Would you be honest enough to admit that you have left your first love and drifted away from the Savior? Do you possess the joy, excitement and zeal that you had in the beginning of your walk with Jesus? If not, then the answer is for you to do what Jesus instructed the Ephesian believers to do; you must remember, repent and return. If you fail to do this, then there will be serious consequences for your refusal and rebellion. If you will obey Jesus’ command, then restoration is possible.
I pray that you will hear and heed the warning that Jesus gives us in “The Letter To The Church At Ephesus”.
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