We are excited to be here as we are starting a new sermon series this morning. During, this series we will be looking at the seven churches found in the book of Revelations. These churches had several things in common, in particular they were all living in a pagan world and they were all under persecution at the time.
Before we get to far ahead, I would like to share some background information on this much important book. The author of Revelations is none other than Apostle John. John wrote the book of Revelation while he was on the island of Patmos. Some traditions say that the Romans dropped John in a vat of boiling oil, but the apostle did not die. They then banished the apostle to the barren rock of Patmos. The book of Revelation provides us a glimpse into the events of the tribulation. This is the time that God pours out His judgment on the earth. This event happens after the rapture of the church. These letters to the churches that the apostle John was overseeing were letters of encouragement and warnings to them to repent. The advice that is given in these letters are a prophetic forewarning to us today. They warn us of the snares that can lure us away from the Lord in our lives.
The first church that we are looking at today is Ephesus. This church today, would be located in what is now western turkey. I have a picture to give you an idea where Ephesus is located in comparison to all the others churches that we will be talking about in the coming weeks.
As you can see, Ephesus is on the coast of the Aegeon Sea. It was a trading town which had provided an immense amount of prestige and wealth. The soil was fertile and the climate was ideal . They had a theater that could seat up to 24,000 people. The apostle Paul visited Ephesus on his first missionary journey but the church was not established until his third missionary journey when he spent two years preaching there. According to early history, the Apostle John spent time ministering in Ephesus at his old age. If you have your bibles with you, please turn with me to Revelation chapter 2 starting verse in 1:
2 “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: 2 “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. 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 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. 6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 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.” ’
This church in Ephesus was actually very influential to all the other churches that we are looking at in the coming weeks. In fact, there are some scholars and historians that believe that Ephesus, was the one responsible for planting the other churches in the area. This was no small group of churches, in fact it is estimated that there were 25,000-30,000 members. While looking at these churches, we would benefit tremendously to see if we find ourselves in one of these churches.
I. Good things
A. Not all bad
a. While there certainly were some challenges at the church, not all things were bad. There were some good things that were happening.
b. In fact, lets revisit our text and look at Revelation 2:2-3 2 “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.
c. And then in verse 6 NKJV 6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
d. Here we see the Lord praising them for their works, their efforts that they made to further the kingdom of God. This work was no doubt physical work in caring for the needs of the people, but was also through their prayers as well.
B. Hard work
a. This hard work took effort and the Lord noticed their effort and commends them accordingly.
b. He also commends them for their patience and their perseverance.
c. In the face of opposition, this church stood their ground, courageously.
d. We talked last week about Shadach, Meshack and Abendo and how they courageously stood up to the king and they let their faith guide them.
e. Perseverance pays off in the end. I found a story in Today in the Word which shares : Wilma didn't get much of a head start in life. A bout with polio left her left leg crooked and her foot twisted inward so she had to wear leg braces. After seven years of painful therapy, she could walk without her braces. At age 12 Wilma tried out for a girls basketball team, but didn't make it. Determined, she practiced with a girlfriend and two boys every day. The next year she made the team. When a college track coach saw her during a game, he talked her into letting him train her as a runner. By age 14 she had outrun the fastest sprinters in the U.S. In 1956 Wilma made the U.S. Olympic team, but showed poorly. That bitter disappointment motivated her to work harder for the 1960 Olympics in Rome--and there Wilma Rudolph won three gold medals, the most a woman had ever won.
C. Purity
a. These early believers in Ephesus, they had a desire for purity in their church.
b. They could not bear with them that were evil, they rooted out many false prophets from among them.
c. They were not afraid to stand against those that would try to subvert the truth of God’s Word.
d. Some of these false prophets were Jews that wanted to impose the Old Testament law, some were false teachers proclaiming immoral lifestyles was accepted by God, while others were beggars, who tried to take advantage of the love and generosity of the church.
e. Not only did the church weed out these false prophets, they stood up to the Nicolaitans who were a cult that mixed Christianity and elements of paganism. These Nicolaitans lived an unrestrained life in self indulgence.
f. In order to root out these people, the church needed to use discernment that only comes from God.
g. The bible talks about using discernment in our lives. Here are a couple of verses for you:
i. 1 Thessalonians 5:21 NKJV 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.
ii. 1 John 4:1 NKJV - 4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
iii. Romans 12:2 ESV - 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
II. Love lost
A. Lots of good, some bad
a. While everything seems good so far, there was something that this church failed to do.
b. It was something really important. They forgot the reason why they were doing all these things.
c. Let’s go back to verse 4 in Revelation NKJV 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
d. Because they lost their love for the Lord, they really opened themselves up to having a love for the world.
e. This no doubt lead the church into compromise, which lead to indifference, which then lead to a lack of motivation to love the Lord.
B. Over time
a. This lack of love, no doubt did not happen right away, rather over a period of time.
b. The enemy of your soul will not try to change your heart overnight, he will use time on his side and do it slowly without you even knowing.
c. Israel turned away from following the Lord in a matter of just one generation.
d. The church in Ephesus was doing all the right things working hard, being patient, persevering and staying pure and yet they found themselves needing to repent. They had forsaken their first love.
e. The church in Ephesus began to focus on the battle, rather than Jesus.
f. They focused on battling sin, rather than on loving the Savior. After time, their sense of duty and religious activities replaced the love that they once had for Jesus.
C. Never forget to love God
a. May we never come to that place in our lives where we forget the love of God, and may we never take our spiritual eyes off of the One who first loved us.
b. May we never replace the motive of love for Jesus and others with religious activity and a list of do’s and don’ts.
c. You may have heard the tale where a wife asks her husband, “Don’t you love me anymore?” The husband responds, “What do you mean? Of course I still love you. I take out the garbage; I cut the grass and wash your car. I make sure you have gas in your car; I pay the bills. Yes I love you, I told you that I loved you when I married you and when that changes, I will let you know.”
d. Let me say this, while doing all those things I am sure every wife here today would love her husband do. Yet those things do not replace the affection and acts of love that husbands can do.
e. Never allow duty or hard work to replace or quench the motive and love you have in your heart for others and more importantly for Jesus.
D. One way to overcome
a. There is only one way to overcome this lost love and that is expressed there in verse five and I will not read it but summarized.
b. This verse instructs the hearers to begin to remember where they have come from. Remember the love that they once had and repent of losing that love.
c. If repentance is not made then there would be severe consequences for the church and their loves.
III. The invitation
A. Ear to hear
a. We see as we close out this text this morning there in verse seven: Revelation 2:7 NKJV 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.”
b. This is an invitation. That those that hear what the Spirit is saying here and they respond, God will let them eat from the tree of life which is located in paradise.
c. This promise is only to those that overcome. This promises is in place regardless of their current condition.
d. God accepts us where we are at! Amen
B. Distracted
a. These disciples were being called back to living an overcoming life.
b. This invitation is really amazing because God did not just cast them off, He wanted them to come back to Him from their distracted state.
c. Friends, at times fighting the spiritual battle before us can be so consuming.
d. Let me say this, It is so easy to focus on the battle and forget about loving the One who has already won the battle for us!
Closing:
So as we wrap up our time here this morning. Let me encourage you to not let the love of God and love for others grow faint because you have been so busy fighting battles in your life. So this morning maybe your are finding something missing in your life, you have been feeling tired, feeling alone, maybe you have come to a place that you recognized that you are not as passionate for God as you once were. Today, is the day to change all that! Today, is the day to renew your commitment and your love for God! Choose today to be a over comer ! Choose today, to press into God and renew your love for Jesus!
