2Timothy 4:1-5 ~ 1 I solemnly exhort you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction. 3 For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth and will turn aside to myths. 5 But as for you, use self-restraint in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your ministry.
The words of every preacher, teacher, author, and speaker must be subjected to the pure Light of GOD'S Word. Some will think that that statement is being judgmental, yet the Scriptures command us to judge what is right, and what is not right. "Prove all things," says 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22. "hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil."
Revelation 2:4-6, " 4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. 6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate."
So, we learn there is serious trouble in the Ephesian church. While there may be much to applaud about this church, there is also something tragically wrong. The LORD says, "thou hast left thy first love." So serious a situation that HE adds, "I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent."
This doesn't mean that individual members will lose their hope of eternal salvation or lose the Grace of GOD. It means that the congregation itself will lose its ability to shed the Light of Truth. No matter how hardworking, persevering and orthodox this part of the church may be, if it loses its first love then it will cease to have an illuminating impact on those around it.
That warning of our LORD has been fulfilled again and again in thousands of ministries, groups, and congregations down to, and including, in our own day and age. All across the world you find congregations and ministries where folks continue to meet, sermons continue to be preached, hymns continue to be sung, good works continue to be done - and yet there is no impact, no fire, and no light... because there is no full Truth! Compromise has taken hold. Compromise = Failure!
It seems that the lampstand has been removed from many congregations. The community which surrounds these buildings and gathering places goes on about its business, ignoring whatever is said and done within that quaint little building. That place has now become irrelevant, and so has its message. Its Light has failed.
What does it mean to "forsake your first Love"? What exactly is our first Love? It is the Love we felt when we discovered The FATHER, when we first came to know HIM. That Love we experience through knowing HIM, HIS Presence and being Holy unto HIM! Holiness matters. Truth matters. That wonderful sense of discovery that HE Loves us, that we have a FATHER, matters. That HE has delivered us, rescued us, freed us from our sins, matters. Coming to know HIS Son, YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST. Being enveloped by HIS Holy Spirit.
Remember when your heart went out to The CHRIST in gratitude? When you knew that you knew HIM? When you finally “got it”? Remember when you had eyes for no one else but YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST? When you 1st Believed? When you Repented? When you were buried with The CHRIST in Baptism? How about when HIS Holy Spirit came to dwell within you? What Joyous moments! How could we forget!
Watch a young couple in love and see how they talk to each other; how they touch each other's hands. They are actually lost in each other. They think only of the wonder of one another. That is the way it is when a person first comes to The CHRIST. Their heart is filled with gratitude, with wonder, and with absolute amazement.
"I've been forgiven!" we think. "GOD Almighty robed HIMSELF in flesh and came to this world to become the propitiation and died for me! GOD Almighty actually Loves me, lil ole me! I can hardly believe it!"
Think of the times when you heard the testimony of a new Believer, or think of the time when you first heard or read my testimony. Remember the tears of Joy? Remember the trembling voice, the look of wonder? Remember the tears that were shed while telling of such an amazing Freedom and how JESUS The CHRIST has rescued us from the cesspools of this world??? The Love of The CHRIST is something new, fresh, incredible and heart stopping for so many.
Charles Wesley wrote: "Amazing love, how can it be, that Thou My God shouldst die for me!" That is what "first love" is like, and how do we ever lose it? Very gradually, as our focus slowly shifts from our love-relationship with The CHRIST to simply being busy for the ministry. Where we once delighted in serving others, singing GOD'S Praise and studying HIS Word due to our amazing Love for HIM, now we continue to do these same things for a subtly different motive.
Instead of being pleasing and acceptable unto The LORD, we seek the approval of others. Position, status and reputation in the church begins to matter more than our relationship with YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST. Suddenly the things that matter are “blending in” and “being open-minded.” And sadly, as people lose their First Love, Holiness also fades away in their lives.
Without even noticing the change, something of your first Love is lost. The busyness, the religious activity, the churchianity, the sincere mumbo-jumbo is all there, but the wonder and the intense Love are gone. The light has failed. When this occurs to an entire congregation, then their lampstand is removed. The Ephesian church trembled at the brink of this very idea, its light flickered, yet still shone, but for how long?
Could it be that we, in this very time, at this very moment, find ourselves in the same situation? Are we wavering alongside the Ephesian church, tottering, about to tumble off & fall away? How would we even know if we were? Could we even be rescued from such a fate? A fading first Love is when you lose that distinctive, glowing Joy of the Holy Spirit led life. And while usually that only reveals itself on the inside, it is just something you know deep within yourself, but GOD forbid it reveal itself on the outside.
GOD forbid our lives become "routine"! GOD forbid that when we hear the Word of GOD, a powerful teaching, a meaningful lesson, or even the miraculous testimony of a dead man walking coming into the fold, and we begin to feel that we have heard it all before. When praising or worshiping GOD Almighty begins to be mechanical, routine or dull.
This is a sign, and a very dangerous one. One might also lose their ability to Love others. One of the great revelations of Scripture is that the reason we Love others is because we have first been Loved ourselves. When we lose that awareness of the Love of YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST, it is almost inevitable that our Love for others begins to fade. We become rather critical of others, we complain, we even become more selective in our friendships, we start singling out only those who match up with our own personal beliefs, standards, professional levels, economic status, etc...
We lose our Christ-like, indiscriminate, unconditional Love for others. You remember, that kind of Love you expressed in the days when your own Love Affair with The CHRIST was warm, and new and alive?? How you relished every waking moment of telling others of HIS Mighty Love and Power? How you proudly walked in Holiness? When modesty and abstaining from the appearances of evil were top priority for you??? What happened?
We also tend to lose a healthy perspective of ourselves. Meaning, our wants, our needs become more and more important to us than they ought to be. Instead of concerning ourselves with what is pleasing and acceptable to GOD Almighty, we seem to be only concerned with what is pleasing and acceptable to us, and those people we hold dear.
When enough people become like this (and one is too many), the result is division. Instead of being focused on their love for The CHRIST, and wanting to spread that love to others, they become focused on themselves, their own agendas, their own programs, their own interests. Self-centeredness sets in, and their light flickers, falters and then eventually, it fails. It is removed.
We have all been "Ephesian" in our Faith at one time or another.
I know I have. Almost like I pressed pause because I once again became lost or confused because what I expected was not quite what I found. Maybe I grew to know it all. Maybe my own struggles were just too much. Maybe I didn't truly believe in the power of transparency. Maybe I let others affect my own walk and my own studies of Truth. Maybe I became focused on myself, and cared more about how others thoughts and feelings were making me feel, or directed at me.
But GOD!! I did not give up, and don’t you either! Just seek HIM and seek HIS face, learn HIS Truth in HIS Word instead of wanting everyone to give you their perspective on things.
In HIS letter to the Ephesian church, our LORD, our GOD, gives three specific & practical steps to recovery: Remember, Repent & Return. "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen."
Remember... HE says. Look back. Recall how you felt and how you responded when you first came to know ME. The inner support and strength that came to you in times of pressure and trouble. That Joy, Wonder, Peace and Closeness you felt when you first gave yourself over to the One True Living GOD. And do not forget the eagerness with which you went to the LORD in prayer.
Warm your soul with the fond memory of the delight you took in fellowship with other Believers, in devouring GOD'S Word. Soaking up the preaching of that Word in worship and praise. How you could barely stand to miss a moment to give HIM The Glory! Think back. Look back. Remember.
Repent... change your mind and change your life. Forsake your wicked ways. Turn not only from sin, but towards HIM! Change your mind about what has taken HIS place in your life. Rebuke that ambition, that pride of position or reputation, that longing for approval that has replaced your original Love for The CHRIST. Turn from those longings to “fit in” and to “live like the world.” Many of the things you do will take on new meaning as you replace old prideful, self-motivation with a new, Joyful CHRIST-centered desire for seeing others come to know HIM, and as you are the example in Word, Deed and Action.
Give up the critical spirit, the complaining attitude, the reliance on the knowledge of men and put YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST, back in the center of all that you are and all that you do. Allow the Joy of the Hope of Eternal Salvation and your amazement over GOD'S Amazing, Unconditional, and Present Love to permeate every endeavor you undertake.
Return.... "Do the first works, " says our LORD JESUS The CHRIST. Return to the Scripture, absorb its Truth with eager eyes, while praying continually for The Holy SPirit to lead you and guide you in all Truth, trusting HIM with all the issues of our lives, great & small.
At the same time, respond to others selflessly & compassionately from a heart full of Amazing Love which only HE can provide. As we Praise HIM from the depths of our hearts, full of gratitude for all HE has done in our lives; as we sing praises to HIS Name and meditate on HIS Grace, only then will we start to truly return to our first Love.
Just like the Ephesians, your spiritual fire has not gone out yet, and HE even points that out in this letter to the Ephesians, so take heed!
The words of every preacher, teacher, author, and speaker must be subjected to the pure Light of GOD'S Word. Some will think that that statement is being judgmental, yet the Scriptures command us to judge what is right, and what is not right. "Prove all things," says 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22. "hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil."
Revelation 2:4-6, " 4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. 6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate."
So, we learn there is serious trouble in the Ephesian church. While there may be much to applaud about this church, there is also something tragically wrong. The LORD says, "thou hast left thy first love." So serious a situation that HE adds, "I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent."
This doesn't mean that individual members will lose their hope of eternal salvation or lose the Grace of GOD. It means that the congregation itself will lose its ability to shed the Light of Truth. No matter how hardworking, persevering and orthodox this part of the church may be, if it loses its first love then it will cease to have an illuminating impact on those around it.
That warning of our LORD has been fulfilled again and again in thousands of ministries, groups, and congregations down to, and including, in our own day and age. All across the world you find congregations and ministries where folks continue to meet, sermons continue to be preached, hymns continue to be sung, good works continue to be done - and yet there is no impact, no fire, and no light... because there is no full Truth! Compromise has taken hold. Compromise = Failure!
It seems that the lampstand has been removed from many congregations. The community which surrounds these buildings and gathering places goes on about its business, ignoring whatever is said and done within that quaint little building. That place has now become irrelevant, and so has its message. Its Light has failed.
What does it mean to "forsake your first Love"? What exactly is our first Love? It is the Love we felt when we discovered The FATHER, when we first came to know HIM. That Love we experience through knowing HIM, HIS Presence and being Holy unto HIM! Holiness matters. Truth matters. That wonderful sense of discovery that HE Loves us, that we have a FATHER, matters. That HE has delivered us, rescued us, freed us from our sins, matters. Coming to know HIS Son, YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST. Being enveloped by HIS Holy Spirit.
Remember when your heart went out to The CHRIST in gratitude? When you knew that you knew HIM? When you finally “got it”? Remember when you had eyes for no one else but YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST? When you 1st Believed? When you Repented? When you were buried with The CHRIST in Baptism? How about when HIS Holy Spirit came to dwell within you? What Joyous moments! How could we forget!
Watch a young couple in love and see how they talk to each other; how they touch each other's hands. They are actually lost in each other. They think only of the wonder of one another. That is the way it is when a person first comes to The CHRIST. Their heart is filled with gratitude, with wonder, and with absolute amazement.
"I've been forgiven!" we think. "GOD Almighty robed HIMSELF in flesh and came to this world to become the propitiation and died for me! GOD Almighty actually Loves me, lil ole me! I can hardly believe it!"
Think of the times when you heard the testimony of a new Believer, or think of the time when you first heard or read my testimony. Remember the tears of Joy? Remember the trembling voice, the look of wonder? Remember the tears that were shed while telling of such an amazing Freedom and how JESUS The CHRIST has rescued us from the cesspools of this world??? The Love of The CHRIST is something new, fresh, incredible and heart stopping for so many.
Charles Wesley wrote: "Amazing love, how can it be, that Thou My God shouldst die for me!" That is what "first love" is like, and how do we ever lose it? Very gradually, as our focus slowly shifts from our love-relationship with The CHRIST to simply being busy for the ministry. Where we once delighted in serving others, singing GOD'S Praise and studying HIS Word due to our amazing Love for HIM, now we continue to do these same things for a subtly different motive.
Instead of being pleasing and acceptable unto The LORD, we seek the approval of others. Position, status and reputation in the church begins to matter more than our relationship with YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST. Suddenly the things that matter are “blending in” and “being open-minded.” And sadly, as people lose their First Love, Holiness also fades away in their lives.
Without even noticing the change, something of your first Love is lost. The busyness, the religious activity, the churchianity, the sincere mumbo-jumbo is all there, but the wonder and the intense Love are gone. The light has failed. When this occurs to an entire congregation, then their lampstand is removed. The Ephesian church trembled at the brink of this very idea, its light flickered, yet still shone, but for how long?
Could it be that we, in this very time, at this very moment, find ourselves in the same situation? Are we wavering alongside the Ephesian church, tottering, about to tumble off & fall away? How would we even know if we were? Could we even be rescued from such a fate? A fading first Love is when you lose that distinctive, glowing Joy of the Holy Spirit led life. And while usually that only reveals itself on the inside, it is just something you know deep within yourself, but GOD forbid it reveal itself on the outside.
GOD forbid our lives become "routine"! GOD forbid that when we hear the Word of GOD, a powerful teaching, a meaningful lesson, or even the miraculous testimony of a dead man walking coming into the fold, and we begin to feel that we have heard it all before. When praising or worshiping GOD Almighty begins to be mechanical, routine or dull.
This is a sign, and a very dangerous one. One might also lose their ability to Love others. One of the great revelations of Scripture is that the reason we Love others is because we have first been Loved ourselves. When we lose that awareness of the Love of YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST, it is almost inevitable that our Love for others begins to fade. We become rather critical of others, we complain, we even become more selective in our friendships, we start singling out only those who match up with our own personal beliefs, standards, professional levels, economic status, etc...
We lose our Christ-like, indiscriminate, unconditional Love for others. You remember, that kind of Love you expressed in the days when your own Love Affair with The CHRIST was warm, and new and alive?? How you relished every waking moment of telling others of HIS Mighty Love and Power? How you proudly walked in Holiness? When modesty and abstaining from the appearances of evil were top priority for you??? What happened?
We also tend to lose a healthy perspective of ourselves. Meaning, our wants, our needs become more and more important to us than they ought to be. Instead of concerning ourselves with what is pleasing and acceptable to GOD Almighty, we seem to be only concerned with what is pleasing and acceptable to us, and those people we hold dear.
When enough people become like this (and one is too many), the result is division. Instead of being focused on their love for The CHRIST, and wanting to spread that love to others, they become focused on themselves, their own agendas, their own programs, their own interests. Self-centeredness sets in, and their light flickers, falters and then eventually, it fails. It is removed.
We have all been "Ephesian" in our Faith at one time or another.
I know I have. Almost like I pressed pause because I once again became lost or confused because what I expected was not quite what I found. Maybe I grew to know it all. Maybe my own struggles were just too much. Maybe I didn't truly believe in the power of transparency. Maybe I let others affect my own walk and my own studies of Truth. Maybe I became focused on myself, and cared more about how others thoughts and feelings were making me feel, or directed at me.
But GOD!! I did not give up, and don’t you either! Just seek HIM and seek HIS face, learn HIS Truth in HIS Word instead of wanting everyone to give you their perspective on things.
In HIS letter to the Ephesian church, our LORD, our GOD, gives three specific & practical steps to recovery: Remember, Repent & Return. "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen."
Remember... HE says. Look back. Recall how you felt and how you responded when you first came to know ME. The inner support and strength that came to you in times of pressure and trouble. That Joy, Wonder, Peace and Closeness you felt when you first gave yourself over to the One True Living GOD. And do not forget the eagerness with which you went to the LORD in prayer.
Warm your soul with the fond memory of the delight you took in fellowship with other Believers, in devouring GOD'S Word. Soaking up the preaching of that Word in worship and praise. How you could barely stand to miss a moment to give HIM The Glory! Think back. Look back. Remember.
Repent... change your mind and change your life. Forsake your wicked ways. Turn not only from sin, but towards HIM! Change your mind about what has taken HIS place in your life. Rebuke that ambition, that pride of position or reputation, that longing for approval that has replaced your original Love for The CHRIST. Turn from those longings to “fit in” and to “live like the world.” Many of the things you do will take on new meaning as you replace old prideful, self-motivation with a new, Joyful CHRIST-centered desire for seeing others come to know HIM, and as you are the example in Word, Deed and Action.
Give up the critical spirit, the complaining attitude, the reliance on the knowledge of men and put YESHUA, JESUS The CHRIST, back in the center of all that you are and all that you do. Allow the Joy of the Hope of Eternal Salvation and your amazement over GOD'S Amazing, Unconditional, and Present Love to permeate every endeavor you undertake.
Return.... "Do the first works, " says our LORD JESUS The CHRIST. Return to the Scripture, absorb its Truth with eager eyes, while praying continually for The Holy SPirit to lead you and guide you in all Truth, trusting HIM with all the issues of our lives, great & small.
At the same time, respond to others selflessly & compassionately from a heart full of Amazing Love which only HE can provide. As we Praise HIM from the depths of our hearts, full of gratitude for all HE has done in our lives; as we sing praises to HIS Name and meditate on HIS Grace, only then will we start to truly return to our first Love.
Just like the Ephesians, your spiritual fire has not gone out yet, and HE even points that out in this letter to the Ephesians, so take heed!