Remember Your First Love
Revelation 2:1-7 (ESV) - “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.
2 “‘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. 3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 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. 6 Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 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.’
There seems to be a
Yet each church is
Their
7 Part Pattern of the Letters:
1: Salutation or
2:
3: Assertion of
4: Comment and
5: Promised (or threatened)
6: Admonition to
7:
Jesus holding all things in His hands speaks to His control, authority and also
Ephesus has been described as the
There is nothing
The fear of the Lord is the
Question: What were the works that you did at first?
What do we need to have an awareness of?
Our works are not the
of salvation, but rather the
of salvation.
Read also Matthew 7:24-27 & Luke 6:46-49
What does this mean?
Question: How is God calling you to respond to this message today?
Reflection: Describe where you were when you first found God – when He found you. What were you like? How did He work in your life? How did you respond?