The Church at Ephesus - Revelation

        As promised, I want to begin digging into the seven churches in Revelation and uncovering their characteristics one by one. Before we get to that, I want to address something. I get feedback all the time about the information I put out there for others. Most of the feedback is negative in nature which is completely fine with me. I have very thick skin and no need to please anyone except for my Lord, Jesus. I do not put the information out there to in some way insinuate that I am any better than anyone else. I am not! I am a sinner, saved by the grace of God sent on mission by God with a message of truth, love and warning for others.

        I certainly understand how the information being presented could cause someone to feel something inside themselves. That is what the word of God does! It lives and breathes and cuts to the bone. This is what conviction feels like. I hope that anyone who reads the words I write or listens to the videos and podcasts I post, will first understand that God loves you. The reason I share this information is to in someway get people to look into their hearts and ultimately come to Jesus as he desires. I want people to know that Jesus does love them and desires a relationship with them. However, this doesn't mean we can do whatever we want and still be in a relationship with him.

        True devotion to Christ requires us to do things his way, to follow his teachings and example. When Jesus lays claim to a life, that life can no longer look out for itself. It must bow and follow Jesus in humility, forsaking this world and all of its ways, following Jesus. A life committed to Christ must be 100 percent sold out, laying aside their own desires to follow Christ. I am not the type of person that cries, "the sky is falling." Though there is the possibility for the rapture to come any day now, we must still be able to operate until that day comes. My words are meant to prepare people for the day it does come so they will not be deceived by the lies of satan. This is the duty of those called to such a task.

        "If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul." - Ezekiel 3:18-19 ESV 

        The short of it all is this, I refuse to stand before my Lord and have anyone's blood on my hands. Therefore, I will stand firm in my calling to preach the gospel and warn people of the coming end in hopes they will repent. Apart from Christ I am nothing, I have to choose daily to surrender to his will for my life, regardless of the ridicule and persecution I may face.

Let's get to it!

  "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘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 have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are 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 you had at first. 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. Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 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." 

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Re 2:1–7.

        "I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance." -  I know what you are doing for the kingdom, I know your painful and troubled labor, and you have actively endured. Jesus recognized that they were under heavy fire. They weren't in a static position being oppressed. They were in a dynamic, active state of doing while taking fire. They are soldiers in the battle moving forward under heavy enemy fire.

        "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." - You do not support evil men, but you have examined those who call themselves apostles and you have found them to be false teachers. These are good things they were doing. They were actively working to expose false teachers who were spreading false information and leading people astray.

        "I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary." - I know you are standing firm and ready for my cause, ready to make defense for my name.

        "But I have this against you"

        Does this mean all of their work is in vain? It does if they don't come to the reality of what he is about to say. He has now told them he recognizes all they have done, are doing and stead ready to do. However, they are missing the key ingredient to all of their labor.

        "that you have abandoned the love you had at first." - Their labor, what they were doing had taken the place of true faith. They had allowed themselves to believe this labor was their faith. They had forgotten love. They had forgotten to represent Jesus in all they were doing. Judgement and condemnation had become their main motivation for what they were doing. They were so worried about calling people out, they had forgotten to show love, mercy, and forgiveness. Their actions weren't motivated by love and in fact were void of love altogether. The first order of business in the life of a Christ follower is love. If we are not motivated by love and showing love, we become incapable of sharing the gospel. In fact, they had forgotten themselves to worship Christ. Though they stamped his name on what they were doing, they themselves had forgotten him. They had grown to worship their work, it had become their religion. 

       Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first." - Take a breath, step back and evaluate where your heart once was. Go back to that, those are the works you must do first. When we first come to know Christ, we are before him, praising him, worshipping him, and soaking up all we can. We see this very church today. Though they profess Jesus, they are far from Jesus. They stamp his name on everything they do, yet they have forgotten to take it all back to him. They too have left Jesus on the outside of the building. They don't realize that Jesus is standing outside the building, inviting them to come along with him on mission. They are too busy doing things their way, Jesus comes last. 

        "If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent." - Remember what I said before, all they had done is in vain unless they repent. Jesus said if they do not repent of this behavior and return, he will remove their lampstand. What does this mean? It means to will be removed from among the ranks. They will cease to bear the name "Bride of Christ." Why? Because they to can now be labeled among the false teachers, leading others astray. 

        "Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate." - There is much speculation about the placement of this, yet another praise. Some say Jesus didn't want to close on a negative note. However, it must be noted that it is really hard to tell why it is where it is. A breakdown of the Nicolaitan looks like this. In Greek it would be "Nicolaus" or "nikos" "laos." Nikos meaning hierarchy, and laos meaning common person. This practice would have been establishing a go between or placing certain people in the church over the others. This would not have been approved considering Jesus died to give each individual direct access to God. 

        NOTE: What I am about to say is strictly my opinion and should not be taken as a fact: I reserve the right to change this upon further study and clarification.

        It almost appears to be a warning to the Church at Ephesus that they are in danger of becoming like the Nicolaitan's if they do not repent. In other words, they are in danger of being cast out. I came to this conclusion because of what he follows this with ...

        "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." - Usually when you see, "he who has an ear, let him hear," that means you better go back and read that again. The one who conquers would be the one who takes this warning, repents and returns to his first love. Should you not repent, as the Nicolaitan's did not repent, you are in danger of hell fire. 

FINAL THOUGHTS:

        One thing is clear, the church had some major issues that needed to be dealt with immediately. Love is and will remain the greatest off all things. We must first maintain our love for Christ because he first loved us. We must then be motivated by that same love when dealing with others. Remember this, spreading the gospel is mission number one. Anything that hinders this mission or takes our focus from this mission needs to be dealt with immediately. No ministry or mission in the church or in the life of a believer should ever overshadow the gospel mission.