Bible Study - Awake (2) - Return to Your First Love - Revelation 2:1-7 - July 26, 2015

Bible Study – Awake (2) – Return to Your First Love – July 26, 2015

This is lesson two (2) in our series entitled “Awake: The Call to a renewed Life.”

Our focus scripture is Revelation 2:1-7.

Return to a love for CHRIST that permeates everything you do.

The Apostle John wrote the Book of Revelation. He was exiled to the island of Patmos because of preaching the gospel of CHRIST. While in exile John had a profound revelation from CHRIST regarding evil forces fighting against GOD. Our scripture focuses on the church in Ephesus and CHRIST’S assessment of that church and the other six churches as a Spiritual body.

I like what the Herschel Hobbs Commentary, summer 2015, LifeWay, Nashville, TN, page 79 has to say “The revelation began with a “state of the church” address, expressed through letters to seven churches in Asia Minor. One church, the church of Ephesus, was singled out as an active church, but sadly it had lost sight of its reason for being so – love for CHRIST.”

This is so true in many churches today. The members of the church body are going through the motions and doing but have lost their first love. It is worse when the pastor and leadership of the church have lost their zeal for serving our LORD. Many Christians have settled into their comfort zones and they do not want to change.

I quickly add, I am not saying for us to change for the sake of changing by embracing an “anything goes” mentality but to take Spiritual inventory. Sin is still sin and the Christian community must take a stand and call sin, sin but not to forget to love the sinner. What is a church?  Is it a showcase for the saints or a hospital for the Spiritually sick?

We must keep in mind that those caring for the Spiritually sick must not be Spiritually sick. They were at one time Spiritually sick. The Bible is very clear, if the blind lead the blind, they both fall into the ditch as recorded in Matthew 15:14: (JESUS was speaking)

14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

Recently, I heard that the pastor of a certain denomination asked the church staff to stop referring to GOD as Father. I personally love to call GOD, Father. That is what faith in CHRIST gives to all Christians at the instant of salvation. Christians, through the miracle of rebirth, have all the rights and privileges of being the Son or Daughter of GOD. HE becomes our Father and what a joy it is to call HIM, Father.

When JESUS taught HIS disciples how to pray, what did HE tell them in Matthew 6:9?

Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

When the leaders of our churches have lost their first love, it pollutes the church.

Let’s read Revelation 1:1-20: (Background)

1 The revelation of Jesus Christ that God gave Him to show His • slaves what must quickly take place. He sent it and signified it through His angel to His slave John, 2 who testified to God’s word and to the testimony about Jesus Christ, in all he saw. 3 The one who reads this is blessed, and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it are blessed, because the time is near! 4 John: To the seven churches in • Asia. Grace and peace to you from the One who is, who was, and who is coming; from the seven spirits before His throne; 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has set us free from our sins by His blood, 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father —the glory and dominion are His forever and ever. • Amen. 7 Look! He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, including those who pierced Him. And all the families of the earth will mourn over Him. This is certain. Amen. 8 “I am the • Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the One who is, who was, and who is coming, the Almighty.”

John’s Vision of the Risen Lord

9 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation, kingdom, and endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of God’s word and the testimony about Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard a loud voice behind me like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.” 12 I turned to see whose voice it was that spoke to me. When I turned I saw seven gold lampstands, 13 and among the lampstands was One like the • Son of Man, dressed in a long robe and with a gold sash wrapped around His chest. 14 His head and hair were white like wool —white as snow —and His eyes like a fiery flame. 15 His feet were like fine bronze as it is fired in a furnace, and His voice like the sound of cascading waters. 16 He had seven stars in His right hand; a sharp double-edged sword came from His mouth, and His face was shining like the sun at midday. 17 When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. He laid His right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last, 18 and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and • Hades. 19 Therefore write what you have seen, what is, and what will take place after this. 20 The • secret of the seven stars you saw in My right hand and of the seven gold lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

The order of this revelation was:

-         From GOD to JESUS to John. JESUS was telling John what to write. Some believe that Revelation was strictly code for John to get his letters by the Roman soldiers into the hands of his friends. I believe it is truth which will be fully revealed at the right instant.

-         Bible scholars believe that all seven churches exist at the same time throughout history. That is, all we have to do is look around at any period of time and we can identify these churches today. Which one represents our or your church?

Let’s read Revelation 2:1-3:

1 “Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus: “The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand and who walks among the seven gold lampstands says: 2 I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate evil. You have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and you have found them to be liars. 3 You also possess endurance and have tolerated many things because of My name and have not grown weary.

JESUS instructed John to write to the angel of the church in Ephesus. Does each church have an angel assigned to it just as those born-again have a guardian angel? Or was JESUS referring to the pastor or minister of that church as an angel? Either could be correct because ultimately, the pastor/minister of the church is responsible and accountable to JESUS and GOD for the Spiritual leadership of the church.

CHRIST is the One Who walks among the seven gold lampstands. CHRIST knows the intimate details which HE stated:

-         I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate evil. You have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and you have found them to be liars. 3 You also possess endurance and have tolerated many things because of My name and have not grown weary.

-         This is an impressive list. So what is the problem? We will get to the rest of the story in our next scripture.

Let’s read Revelation 2:4:

4 But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first.

The church of Ephesus was going through all the motions but they missed something very vital. They had lost their love for CHRIST.

This is easy to do when Christians work in their own strength and follow the rules and regulations. We are “ok” and that is all we need.

In last week’s study of Jonah, Jonah went through the motions and in spite of him and his callous heart, GOD brought the results. GOD always produces the results in spite of us. GOD’S desire is for us to see what HE has done in spite of our attitude in hopes that we be drawn closer to HIM. But when we have the attitude that we are “ok” and are doing the will of GOD, we do not see the need to change. We are Spiritually blind because we are not allowing the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us as church leaders, including the pastor, deacons, elders, staff or individual members.

Many Christians do not understand the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and HIS purpose in their lives. This is so sad. Christians think they will become some sort of fanatic. But the Holy Spirit gives balance to every Christian and empowers him or her to step out in faith as led by GOD to carry out the will, plan and purpose of GOD.  The Holy Spirit opens our eyes to the opportunities which surround us.

Let’s read Revelation 2:5-7:

5 Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place —unless you repent. 6 Yet you do have this: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 “Anyone who has an ear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. I will give the victor the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in God’s paradise.

JESUS admonished the Christians in the church of Ephesus to take inventory. They think they are doing great but GOD says not. JESUS’ desire was for them to wake up and take a realistic look at themselves now, as compared to their hearts when they first became Christians.

Do you recall when you first accepted CHRIST as your savior, how excited you were and wanted to tell everyone that you were a Christian? You were unashamed and wanted all you came in contact with to know the Good News. You took steps of faith. You may have encountered resistance but you took it as an opportunity to pray and seek guidance. You may have come to the realization that at times you were working in your strength because of your zeal for others to know CHRIST. But you learned to wait upon the LORD. Christians are to move in step with HIM and often that is a learning experience. JESUS loves zeal but zeal which is in step and that is the purpose of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Do you recall the occasion of JESUS’ disciples as recorded in Luke 9:51-56 wanting to call down fire from heaven?

51 As the time drew near for him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 He sent messengers ahead to a Samaritan village to prepare for his arrival. 53 But the people of the village did not welcome Jesus because he was on his way to Jerusalem. 54 When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?” 55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them. 56 So they went on to another village.

In their zeal, the disciples of JESUS wanted to destroy those who would not welcome them. JESUS is not about destroying but in changing and redeeming the lost.

JESUS urges HIS disciples to repent. We know what repent means. It means to stop doing what you are doing and turn around and head in the opposite direction.

JESUS issued the church in Ephesus a warning as we see in verse 5 “I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”

What is a lamp stand? It is a stand which holds the lamps that give light. JESUS is the lamp stand through Whom the light comes. HIS light dispels Spiritual darkness. The Holy Spirit is compared to the oil in a lamp. To remove the lampstand, JESUS was saying that HE would withdraw HIS blessings from that church. That would mean the Spiritual death of that church. JESUS is the foundation of any church and is the chief corner stone. The life within a church is the manifestation of the Holy Spirit through its members.

The church at Ephesus and JESUS had one thing in common. They both hated the practices of the Nicolaitans.

Not much is known about the Nicolaitians. It seems that they were believers who had compromised their faith by embracing sinful practices espoused by the prophet Balaam. Balaam was a false prophet who urged the Israelites to follow their lustful desires to see them defeated. He was a sorcerer, yet he acknowledged Yahweh as a powerful God. He was a wolf in sheep’s clothing; the most dangerous kind and motivated by money.

It is interesting that the king of Moab, Balak, wanted to hire Balaam to put a curse on the Israelites but GOD had blessed the Israelites and Balaam could not put a curse on them. After much wrangling, Balaam stated there was only one way any curse could be placed on the Israelites and that was if they sinned. Some of the princes saw that as an opportunity to defeat Israel.

Now that is a huge message to every Christian. We can remove ourselves from the blessings of GOD when we sin and do not confess our sins. Christians will not lose their salvation but they can open themselves up to all sorts of evil. We do sin and we must repent and confess our sins. Christians stay under the banner of HIS love as they journey through life and obediently serve HIM. Yes, Christians are under GOD’S grace and their salvation is secure in CHRIST but there is accountability for sin. That is why Christians must confess their sins, repent and remain a healthy branch connected to the true vine.

JESUS stated that those who remain true to their first love will be restored to eat of the tree of life which is in GOD’S paradise or heaven. Those who place their faith in CHRIST are restored to GOD’S original intent for HIS children. Once they receive the miracle of rebirth through faith in CHRIST, they are no longer prevented from eating from the tree of life and live forever. The joy of this fact rekindles the love that GOD and CHRIST have for us “in that while we were yet sinners, CHRIST died for us.” We who are the recipients of this Good News are the ones who are to share this never ending Good News. We will eat from the tree of life and live forever. JESUS continued as we read in our next scripture.

Let’s read Revelation 2:14-16:

14 But I have a few things against you. You have some there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to place a stumbling block in front of the Israelites: to eat meat sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality. 15 In the same way, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent! Otherwise, I will come to you quickly and fight against them with the sword of My mouth.

Also, let’s read Numbers 31:16:

16 “Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam’s advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord’s community.

May we, as Christians, be found faithful and obedient to our LORD and not be seduced into allowing persistent sin to enter our lives that becomes commonplace. So what do we, as Christians, need to do? The answer is recorded in Psalm 139:23-24:

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Christians must be honest with GOD. HE already knows our hearts. They must reconnect with their first love through prayer and Bible study to rekindle the building of their relationship with GOD through CHRIST. They must then put into action what is being revealed to them as their relationship with CHRIST is restored. There is a time for prayer and study but then step out as led by the Holy Spirit. Blessings!!!