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The Church with Everything but the Greatest Thing · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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Speaker 1: If you have a copy of the scriptures with you,
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Speaker 1: will you turn to the last book in the Bible,
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Speaker 1: the book of the Revelation? And this would be a
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Speaker 1: good time to take the outline we've prepared for you
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Speaker 1: and place it here where we'll be reading. We'll return
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Speaker 1: to it in a moment. Have a pen handy and
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Speaker 1: or pencil that you can use to record your thoughts.
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Speaker 1: Revelation 2, beginning at verse 1. A message we've entitled,
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Speaker 1: The Church with Everything but the Greatest Thing. To the
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Speaker 1: angel of the church in Ephesus write, The one who
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Speaker 1: holds the seven stars in his right hand, the one
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Speaker 1: who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this, I
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Speaker 1: know your deeds and your toil and perseverance and that
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Speaker 1: you cannot tolerate evil men. And you put to the
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Speaker 1: test those who call themselves apostles and they are not.
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Speaker 1: And you found them to be false. And you have
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Speaker 1: perseverance and have endured for my name's sake and have
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Speaker 1: not grown weary. But I have this against you. that
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Speaker 1: you have left your first love. Therefore, remember from where
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Speaker 1: you have fallen and repent and do the deeds you
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Speaker 1: did at first, or else I'm coming to you and
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Speaker 1: will remove your lampstand out of its place unless you repent.
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Speaker 1: Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds
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Speaker 1: of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He who has
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Speaker 1: an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to
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Speaker 1: the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to
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Speaker 1: eat of the tree of life, which is in the
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Speaker 1: paradise of God. We bow before you, our Father, in
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Speaker 1: a world that is troubled and uneasy. whether in these
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Speaker 1: United States or across our borders or across the seas
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Speaker 1: beyond us, there is a growing sense of uneasiness. But
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Speaker 1: we want you to know, our Father, it is well
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Speaker 1: with our soul. We are surrounded by those who lack
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Speaker 1: a sense of peace. Not knowing what the future holds,
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Speaker 1: it is very difficult for those without roots to understand
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Speaker 1: how there can be stability in the midst of what
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Speaker 1: is apparently chaos, uncertainty. But having come to know a
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Speaker 1: relationship with you, our Father, through your dear Son, because
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Speaker 1: of your grace, it has become for us a comfort
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Speaker 1: to know that you are sovereign, that nothing is out
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Speaker 1: of control, that nothing touches us that does not first
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Speaker 1: pass through the permissive hands and fingers of our God.
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Speaker 2: And so it's well with our souls.
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Speaker 1: Thank you for those who do good work today in
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Speaker 1: shadowy places, in obscure places. within the walls of hospitals
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Speaker 1: and homes of care, for the medical profession and the nurses,
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Speaker 1: for those who do assisting work in counseling and ministering
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Speaker 1: and encouraging and, yes, confronting. Thank you for their courage
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Speaker 1: and their insight and their faithfulness. Thank you for using
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Speaker 1: them to help those who stand alongside children clinging to life,
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Speaker 1: and loved ones sick, afflicted, discouraged. Minister through these very
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Speaker 1: capable professionals, these servants of yours who minister to us
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Speaker 1: in our needs. For those who wear the uniform of
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Speaker 1: these United States and for those of our allies, we
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Speaker 1: pray today. May it be well with their souls. May
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Speaker 1: they be given courage beyond their years and determination even
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Speaker 1: beyond their own emotional makeup. May they have a sense
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Speaker 1: of confidence and assurance that if war does come, they
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Speaker 1: walk into it unafraid with you in their midst. Watch
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Speaker 1: over them. Watch over their parents. who anxiously stand back
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Speaker 1: and release them to their courageous deeds. Thank you for
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Speaker 1: our Commander in Chief, for his wife and family. Take
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Speaker 1: good care of them and protect him and them from harm.
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Speaker 1: Give good guidance and wisdom to those who whisper in
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Speaker 1: his ear and have his attention when doors are closed.
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Speaker 1: May good direction be given so that this man might
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Speaker 1: be strengthened when it seems as though half the world
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Speaker 1: turns against him. Hold us all close, our Father, during
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Speaker 1: this tender time. Minister through this church and any other
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Speaker 1: like this one that loves your word, stands for it.
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Speaker 1: Encourage those who serve you this day In places unknown
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Speaker 1: to us. Far reaching. In lonely places. In hard places.
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Speaker 1: In persecuted places. May their souls be at peace. And
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Speaker 1: may it be well with them as well. Now our
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Speaker 1: Father we have the pleasure of all things of giving
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Speaker 1: to you.
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Speaker 2: What a privilege it is to do that.
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Speaker 1: We do it. with assurance that you will superintend these
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Speaker 1: monies for your purposes and for your will. As that unfolds,
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Speaker 1: remind us over and over, Lord, that you are blessing
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Speaker 1: the work of our hands. You are using this ministry effectively.
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Speaker 1: And now, our Father, we pray our hearts will be
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Speaker 1: prepared As we prepare ourselves for the sowing of the
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Speaker 1: seed of the good word of God. In the name
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Speaker 1: of the Lord Jesus, who makes it all.
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Speaker 2: Well with us, we pray. And everyone said, amen.
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Speaker 1: Church analyst George Barna is pretty grim as he predicts
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Speaker 1: the future of today's church. He spent 25 years of
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Speaker 1: his life studying religion. American people, the American church scene,
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Speaker 1: and our contemporary culture. He predicts one of two outcomes,
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Speaker 1: either massive spiritual revival or total moral anarchy. He's praying
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Speaker 1: for the former. He's fearing the latter. Listen to Barna's
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Speaker 1: words from his entitled The Second Coming of the Church.
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Speaker 1: Americans today are more devoted to seeking spiritual enlightenment than
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Speaker 1: at any previous time during the 20th century. Yet at
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Speaker 1: this moment of optimum opportunity, Christianity is having less impact
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Speaker 1: on people's perspectives and behaviors than ever. Why is that?
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Speaker 1: Because a growing majority of people have dismissed the Christian
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Speaker 1: faith as weak, outdated, and irrelevant. Interestingly, Barna adds, the
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Speaker 1: stumbling block for the church is not its theology, but
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Speaker 1: its failure to apply what it believes in compelling ways.
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Speaker 1: The downfall of the church has not been the content
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Speaker 1: of its message, but its failure to practice those truths.
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Speaker 1: Christians have been their own worst enemies when it comes
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Speaker 1: to showing the world what authentic biblical Christianity looks like
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Speaker 1: and why it represents a viable opportunity and alternative to materialism, existentialism, mysticism,
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Speaker 1: and other doctrines of popular culture. Now those are the
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Speaker 1: words of a man, a mere man, a church specialist,
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Speaker 1: an analyst, but a man, fallible, could be mistaken, He
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Speaker 1: could be taking the problem to its extreme. He could
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Speaker 1: be himself misguided. Or he could be more right than wrong.
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Speaker 1: So it's the opinion of a man. His book is troubling.
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Speaker 1: But what would it be like if the Lord himself
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Speaker 1: conducted a performance review of the church? What would that
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Speaker 1: be like? How good would that be? The unmistakable, perfect, all-seeing,
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Speaker 1: sovereign Son of God, the risen Christ. What if he
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Speaker 1: Examined the church today, or a group of churches, more compellingly,
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Speaker 1: this church. Wouldn't that be a more reliable piece of work?
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Speaker 1: It would certainly lack faulty judgments, mistakes, and incorrect conclusions. Well,
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Speaker 1: the good news is that God's Word, the Bible, contains
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Speaker 1: just such a performance review. Makes no difference that the
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Speaker 1: churches happen to exist in the first century. What he
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Speaker 1: says in the second and third chapters of the Revelation
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Speaker 1: sound as though they have been written in these recent days.
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Speaker 1: Because these seven performance reviews, if you will, contain relevant, timely, penetrating,
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Speaker 1: I would even say piercing words for any church in existence.
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Speaker 1: If you have your Bible handy, I invite you to
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Speaker 1: look again at the 19th verse of the first chapter
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Speaker 1: of Revelation. We suggested that this is a helpful outcome,
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Speaker 1: I should say outline, given by the Lord himself for
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Speaker 1: the whole book of Revelation. John is instructed to write
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Speaker 1: first the things which you have seen. He did that
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Speaker 1: in the first chapter and we have examined it. John
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Speaker 1: wrote what he saw, and we have, through his pen,
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Speaker 1: seen it with him. And then the second part of
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Speaker 1: the book is in chapters 2 and 3, where John
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Speaker 1: is instructed to write the things which are. In the
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Speaker 1: days of John the Apostle, these churches that we're going
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Speaker 1: to be examining in our study through Revelation were all
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Speaker 1: in existence. They were thriving. They were, some of them, growing.
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Speaker 1: They were, at that time, having an impact, whether positive
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Speaker 1: or negative or neutral. They were there. They were the
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Speaker 1: things that are. And John recorded them. And then in
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Speaker 1: the days to come, we will look at the last
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Speaker 1: of verse 19 toward the things which will take place
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Speaker 1: after these things. And that's chapters 4 through 22 of Revelation.
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Speaker 1: Let's begin by taking a glance at all seven churches.
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Speaker 1: Will you do that with me in chapters 4? two
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Speaker 1: and three, keep a pen handy to make notes as
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Speaker 1: we work our way through this book. You'll return to them.
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Speaker 1: I learned a little statement years ago, thoughts disentangle themselves
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Speaker 1: over the lips and through the fingertips. And I call
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Speaker 1: that to mind. I often take a pen with me
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Speaker 1: and a card, a four by six card or three
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Speaker 1: by five card and have it handy to take notes,
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Speaker 1: to remember things I've observed or things that I could
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Speaker 1: use later on. You might find that helpful as we
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Speaker 1: work our way through this book of Revelation. We have
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Speaker 1: an inspired performance review of Christ as he specifically addresses
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Speaker 1: seven local churches. Now in some cases there are things
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Speaker 1: he says to all of them that are not only
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Speaker 1: similar but occasionally identical. Let me point out four or
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Speaker 1: five of them. You do that with me. Watch as
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Speaker 1: I read through this section. First one to the angel
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Speaker 1: of the church in Ephesus. Verse eight to the angel
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Speaker 1: of the church in Smyrna. Verse 12 to the angel
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Speaker 1: of the church in Pergamum. Verse 18 to the angel
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Speaker 1: of the church in Thyatira. Later Sardis and then Philadelphia
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Speaker 1: and finally Laodicea. First observation. Each evaluation is addressed to
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Speaker 1: the angel. Each one of these evaluations, or if you will,
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Speaker 1: performance reviews, is addressed to the angel. We've learned in
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Speaker 1: earlier days that angel means messenger. I suggest it refers
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Speaker 1: to the pastor who was serving that particular local church.
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Speaker 1: So this is a letter written to the pastor of
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Speaker 1: the church in Ephesus or the pastor of the church
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Speaker 1: in Smyrna and on and on. Each one of them
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Speaker 1: is addressed to the messenger. Let me notice a second observation.
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Speaker 1: Each church is identified by the city in which it was.
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Speaker 1: The church in Ephesus. The church in Smyrna. The church
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Speaker 1: in Pergamum. These are names that mean little to us
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Speaker 1: unless you travel in modern day Turkey and you will
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Speaker 1: see the remains of some of these. Not all. You
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Speaker 1: can't find them all. but you will see some of
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Speaker 1: the remains. These are actual places. If he were writing
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Speaker 1: today to our church, he would be writing to the
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Speaker 1: messenger to the church in Frisco. That's the way it
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Speaker 1: would be if he were writing today. So he identifies
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Speaker 1: the church not by denomination, but by location. In the
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Speaker 1: first century, there were not the preponderance of denominations as
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Speaker 1: there is today. He doesn't write to the Methodist church
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Speaker 1: at Ephesus or to the Presbyterian church in Smyrna or
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Speaker 1: the Baptist church in Pergamum. He writes to the church,
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Speaker 1: probably the only assembly of believers in that particular town
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Speaker 1: or city. Hence the single, the church. There's a third
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Speaker 1: observation I make in each evaluation. Jesus immediately identifies himself,
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Speaker 1: but he does it in various ways. In each one
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Speaker 1: of the seven, he immediately identifies himself. Chapter 2, verse 1,
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Speaker 1: he identifies himself as the one who holds the seven
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Speaker 1: stars in his right hand and walks among the golden lampstands.
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Speaker 1: Chapter 2, verse 8, he calls himself the first and
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Speaker 1: the last who was dead and has come back to life.
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Speaker 1: Same person, but described differently. So in each one of these,
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Speaker 1: it is the Lord himself who gives the performance review,
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Speaker 1: and he identifies himself in various ways. Fourth, in each letter,
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Speaker 1: he makes it known that he knows them well. I've
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Speaker 1: underlined the words, I know, which appear in each one
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Speaker 1: of the letters. To Ephesus, I know your deeds, verse 2.
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Speaker 1: To Smyrna, I know your tribulation and your poverty. verse 9.
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Speaker 1: To the church at Pergamum, verse 13, I know where
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Speaker 1: you dwell, where Satan's throne is. What a statement. Interesting.
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Speaker 1: We'll get to it. They ministered where Satan's throne was.
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Speaker 1: Verse 19, I know your deeds, he says to the
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Speaker 1: church at Thyatira and says the same thing to Sardis
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Speaker 1: and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea. Now, fifth and finally,
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Speaker 1: the similarities would be In all seven letters, there's a
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Speaker 1: same pattern that's followed. He does virtually the same thing
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Speaker 1: in his performance review. It's almost as if he has
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Speaker 1: a form he's filling out. First, he gives them their strengths.
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Speaker 1: He commends them for their strength. Second, he states his
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Speaker 1: concern over their weakness or weaknesses, plural. Third, he offers correction.
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Speaker 1: In order to strengthen this area of weakness, here's a
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Speaker 1: course of correction to follow. So he does that in
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Speaker 1: all seven of the letters. Fourth, he concludes each letter
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Speaker 1: with words of wise counsel. So we have commendations and
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Speaker 1: then concerns followed by corrective words and then counsel so
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Speaker 1: that the church might become even more effective than it is.
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Speaker 1: Let me mention a couple of uniquenesses about these letters.
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Speaker 1: I've read them over and over and I've found a
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Speaker 1: few things are altogether unique. One of them is in
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Speaker 1: Laodicea there were no strengths mentioned. No strengths. No commendation
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Speaker 1: to the seventh letter that he wrote to Laodicea. Second,
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Speaker 1: except Smyrna and Philadelphia All of them receive rebukes or reproves.
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Speaker 1: He's concerned about something in all five of the churches,
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Speaker 1: but two of them he names nothing that we would
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Speaker 1: call a weakness. That would be the second and would
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Speaker 1: be the sixth churches that are addressed, Smyrna and Philadelphia.
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Speaker 1: By the way, in every one of the letters, you
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Speaker 1: will be delighted, as I have been, to find how
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Speaker 1: relevant they are. You would think he's addressing a church
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Speaker 1: down the street or the church in which we find
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Speaker 1: ourselves or maybe the church where we were reared. It
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Speaker 1: is right on target as it mentions some very up-to-date
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Speaker 1: issues that go on. on to this very moment. Now
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Speaker 1: let's take a close look at this performance review of
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Speaker 1: the church at Ephesus. Immediately the addressee is identified as
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Speaker 1: the messenger. Chapter 2, verse 1. The one who ministers
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Speaker 1: to the church. Now here's the way I think it worked.
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Speaker 1: John wrote the revelation while he was on the island
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Speaker 1: of Patmos. The scroll was then taken by a, perhaps
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Speaker 1: a scribe or someone who was trustworthy, taken to the
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Speaker 1: mainland and then read, or at least given to the
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Speaker 1: messenger to read at each of the seven churches. The
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Speaker 1: messenger would unroll the scroll and would read it to
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Speaker 1: the congregation because no one in those days had Bibles
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Speaker 1: of their own. And this priceless scroll, written under the
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Speaker 1: inspiration of the Spirit of God, was read word for
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Speaker 1: word to the churches. And it has found its way
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Speaker 1: through the years into our Bibles today. This particular church
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Speaker 1: is located in Ephesus. If you travel to Turkey today,
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Speaker 1: as Cynthia and I have done, you will be delighted
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Speaker 1: with what you see when you get to Ephesus. It
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Speaker 1: has been wonderfully unearthed. You will see literal roads that
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Speaker 1: were there, walked on by the apostle himself. You will
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Speaker 1: see the library of Celsus, built a little after Paul's time,
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Speaker 1: but nevertheless of that era. Two-story column structure that is
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Speaker 1: breathtaking as you sit on the marble steps or the
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Speaker 1: rocks outside and look at it. There are roads that
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Speaker 1: tie the town together. You can see places that would
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Speaker 1: have been communities where people lived. And I think the
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Speaker 1: most impressive is one of the places mentioned in the
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Speaker 1: Book of Acts. The theater has been unearthed, and you
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Speaker 1: can literally see the amphitheater and can actually walk and
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Speaker 1: sit in it, a theater that is able to seat
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Speaker 1: 40 or more thousand people. I smiled when we looked
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Speaker 1: at the road out front. There were deep ruts that
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Speaker 1: were dug into the road outside the theater, right in
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Speaker 1: front of the theater. And Cynthia made the classic comment.
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Speaker 1: She said that those were speed bumps for teenage chariot riders.
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Speaker 1: That's a classic comment, I thought, that Slowed the chariots
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Speaker 1: down when they went by the theater. It's at that
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Speaker 1: theater that the Apostle Paul was. It's at that theater
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Speaker 1: where persecution occurred. And when you stand there in that theater,
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Speaker 1: that amphitheater, something happens to you. You are reliving the
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Speaker 1: moment of the middle of the first century. A remarkable city.
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Speaker 1: It was at that time the most... prominent city in
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Speaker 1: the Roman province of Asia. And by the way, if
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Speaker 1: you have a map in front of you of Asia,
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Speaker 1: you will observe that it really is what we call
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Speaker 1: today modern-day Turkey. The reason that the letters first went
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Speaker 1: to Ephesus, if you look at the map, is because
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Speaker 1: Ephesus is the closest in proximity to Patmos. If you
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Speaker 1: took a direct sail west, I should say east, from
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Speaker 1: Patmos to the mainland, you would come first to the
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Speaker 1: harbor of at Ephesus. It's now silted in, and it's
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Speaker 1: several miles from the water, but in those days, there
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Speaker 1: was a harbor that would lead you right to Ephesus.
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Speaker 1: It was along the trade route to the east, wealthy city,
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Speaker 1: prominent city. And by the way, speaking of Ephesus, Paul
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Speaker 1: and Aquila and Priscilla, and for a bit of time,
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Speaker 1: Apollos helped found the church. You can read of this
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Speaker 1: if you Take the time to read Acts, the end
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Speaker 1: of Acts 18 and all of chapter 19. You'll read
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Speaker 1: how the church was founded. Fascinating story. And then Paul
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Speaker 1: pastored there. He ministered there for over three years, followed
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Speaker 1: by Timothy, his son in the faith, followed by John
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Speaker 1: in his aging years before John was exiled to Patmos.
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Speaker 1: So as John is writing this letter, something in his
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Speaker 1: heart must have beat a little faster when he mentioned Ephesus.
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Speaker 1: He has pastored the church. And tradition tells us that
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Speaker 1: after the exile, John returned and lived part of his
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Speaker 1: life in the city of Ephesus. But I should also
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Speaker 1: tell you that it was not an easy place to minister.
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Speaker 1: One of the seven wonders of the world was there.
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Speaker 1: It was the temple of Artemis, or Diana, as she
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Speaker 1: is sometimes called. The multi-breasted figure who and whose lifestyle,
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Speaker 1: followed by its worshippers, was totally immoral. She was the
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Speaker 1: goddess of the continent of Asia in those days. And
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Speaker 1: there were those who followed her in devotion. There were
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Speaker 1: little idols made of her that were sold by craftsmen
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Speaker 1: who carved them. All of that is a part of
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Speaker 1: the lifestyle of ancient Ephesus. Even though it's not mentioned here,
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Speaker 1: I wanted you to know that's the kind of place
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Speaker 1: where this church existed. I'll say more about it when
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Speaker 1: we get to the point of perseverance. Jesus identifies himself
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Speaker 1: as the writer or the one who dictates this letter
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Speaker 1: at the end of verse 1. Notice a little bit
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Speaker 1: has changed. He not only has the seven stars, he's
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Speaker 1: holding them in his right hand. He's not only... There
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Speaker 1: in the midst of the golden lampstands, verse 1 tells
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Speaker 1: us he's walking among them. He knows everything about every church.
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Speaker 1: He knows every one of us completely. He knows all
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Speaker 1: about our background. He knows all about our makeup. He
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Speaker 1: knows every trial, every struggle, every success, every failure. He
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Speaker 1: knows all of that. He knows us thoroughly. It surprises
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Speaker 1: us to read that he knows the hairs on our head.
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Speaker 1: For some, it's not a big thing to know that,
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Speaker 1: but for most, it's an amazing thought to think that
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Speaker 1: every person's hairs are numbered. Every thought is recorded. Every intention,
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Speaker 1: every motive is known by our Lord and Savior. He
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Speaker 1: walks among the candle stands or the lamp stands, and
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Speaker 1: he holds us in his hand. And with that in mind,
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Speaker 1: or not surprised to read, I know. Immediately in verse 2,
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Speaker 1: and he names three strengths that were true of the
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Speaker 1: church at Ephesus. First, they were actively energetic. They were engaged.
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Speaker 1: I know your deeds and your toil. They were known
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Speaker 1: for their hard work, busy in the service of the king.
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Speaker 1: There was no sloth. There was no indifference there. They
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Speaker 1: were known for their exhausting and impressive toil. There were
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Speaker 1: people who visited the sick. There were those who mended clothes.
27:24
Speaker 1: There were those who cooked the meals. There were those
27:27
Speaker 1: who served the meals to shut-ins. There were people who
27:30
Speaker 1: were part of the leadership. There were committees held. There
27:33
Speaker 1: were activities going on. There were those who worked in
27:37
Speaker 1: the chariot parking lot. I don't know. All kinds of
27:40
Speaker 1: things were going on in the church at Ephesus. And
27:44
Speaker 1: he says, I know all about that. I know all
27:47
Speaker 1: about your deeds and I know all about your toil.
27:49
Speaker 1: And he's commending them. There's not a word of criticism.
27:54
Speaker 1: And then he mentions their patient endurance. He calls it perseverance.
28:00
Speaker 1: I prefer the word endurance. I know you're In fact,
28:07
Speaker 1: look at verse 3. You have perseverance and have endured
28:12
Speaker 1: for my name's sake and have not grown weary. If
28:20
Speaker 1: you had lived in and ministered among the people who
28:24
Speaker 1: worship Diana of the Ephesians, the mother goddess, you would
28:29
Speaker 1: be terribly unpopular. You would be a marked individual, snubbed
28:33
Speaker 1: in public and maligned in private. Your business would be boycotted.
28:38
Speaker 1: You'd be marked as one who wasn't a worshiper of
28:42
Speaker 1: the emperor or of the goddess. You'd be like the
28:46
Speaker 1: Jewish merchant in Berlin in 1930s. Not an easy place
28:52
Speaker 1: to be. He says, I know you are people who
28:57
Speaker 1: hold up under the load. They were active and they
29:04
Speaker 1: were faithful to stay true to the truth. And they endured.
29:12
Speaker 1: They bore up under the load. Hupomone is the word
29:17
Speaker 1: translated perseverance more than once here. Once in verse 2
29:21
Speaker 1: and verse 3. Remember, it's the four-footed beast that carries
29:26
Speaker 1: your burdens. Back in ancient days, when you made a trip,
29:29
Speaker 1: you piled all of your belongings, and the animal was
29:32
Speaker 1: said to hupomone, to endure under the load. Under the
29:38
Speaker 1: load of persecution.
29:39
Speaker 2: They endure.
29:41
Speaker 1: There are churches today who do that. You and I
29:47
Speaker 1: may be in touch with some of them, and there
29:49
Speaker 1: is a deep sense of respect we have for the
29:53
Speaker 1: odds they work against and the role of unpopularity that
29:57
Speaker 1: they fill. Some of them must meet in secret. due
30:00
Speaker 1: to the persecution that would ensue. So he commends them
30:06
Speaker 1: for their patient endurance. Third, they were doctrinally discerning. I
30:11
Speaker 1: hope you saw that when we read through the verses earlier.
30:15
Speaker 1: He says, you cannot tolerate evil men. He goes further.
30:22
Speaker 1: You put to the test those who call themselves apostles,
30:27
Speaker 1: and they are not. And you found them to be pseudice. Pseudice,
30:34
Speaker 1: interesting word. You put your lips together and say S. Pseudice.
30:37
Speaker 1: We get our word pseudo from it. It means liars.
30:41
Speaker 1: They look like apostles, but they're liars. And you spot that.
30:47
Speaker 1: Just because they walk around spouting verses from the Old Testament,
30:51
Speaker 1: just because they say they are prophets of God, just
30:54
Speaker 1: because they wear the garb of the evangelist does not
30:57
Speaker 1: make them true apostles or prophets. We recently brought out
31:04
Speaker 1: into the open a man who calls himself a prophet
31:06
Speaker 1: of God who kidnapped a young girl in Salt Lake
31:10
Speaker 1: City and took her to himself in that strange and, uh,
31:19
Speaker 1: wayward way of thinking. You and I discern that cannot
31:24
Speaker 1: be of God. You don't do that as a man
31:29
Speaker 1: or woman of God. And these people spotted that kind
31:33
Speaker 1: of error and they didn't mince words. They called a
31:37
Speaker 1: spade a spade. They called a liar a liar. In fact,
31:42
Speaker 1: they weren't growing weary in doing that. Verse 6 tells
31:46
Speaker 1: us specifically you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which
31:52
Speaker 1: I also hate. We're intrigued by that. I'll go further
31:56
Speaker 1: into it when we get to the church at Pergamum,
31:58
Speaker 1: because it was really a problem there. Nicao is to conquer,
32:03
Speaker 1: and laos is people. It's a conqueror of people. I
32:08
Speaker 1: take it to mean it was the early signs of
32:11
Speaker 1: those who believed in the hierarchy of the clergy. the
32:16
Speaker 1: unaccountable and untouchable role of leadership. And they took advantage
32:20
Speaker 1: of people, and it led ultimately to an immoral lifestyle.
32:24
Speaker 1: And you hate that. And Jesus, please notice, says it also.
32:27
Speaker 1: I also hate that. I read verses like the end
32:32
Speaker 1: of verse 6, and I nod knowingly, grateful that it
32:38
Speaker 1: helps clarify who Jesus Christ is. He is not some spineless...
32:45
Speaker 1: sort of wimp out individual who sort of shuffles through
32:50
Speaker 1: life saying, love, love, love, you know, everywhere he goes.
32:54
Speaker 1: There are things that are false that he hates, and
33:00
Speaker 1: he commits the church for hating that kind of error.
33:04
Speaker 1: And boy, this church spotted it, and they named it.
33:07
Speaker 1: They were a discerning body of people. You know when
33:10
Speaker 1: you're around discerning folks, by the way. You know. When
33:14
Speaker 1: I preach in churches that are discerning churches, there are
33:17
Speaker 1: people that have their Bibles open. And when I refer
33:20
Speaker 1: to things, I'll see them go back and check it
33:24
Speaker 1: with that verse and frown and look back at another verse.
33:27
Speaker 1: And then they'll go over here and then they'll listen.
33:29
Speaker 1: And they're listening. They're not impressed. They shouldn't be impressed.
33:34
Speaker 1: They're there to grow and to learn and to develop
33:37
Speaker 1: their knowledge of the word and their relationship with Christ.
33:41
Speaker 1: And they're not going to be led astray. They can
33:44
Speaker 1: spot error. They can tell about what you say or
33:46
Speaker 1: what you leave unsaid. Those who are discerning get both sides.
33:52
Speaker 1: That's the Ephesians. I mean, this is some kind of place.
33:57
Speaker 1: I like the way Stephen Lawson describes the church at Ephesus.
34:01
Speaker 1: This is one dynamic church, he writes in his book,
34:04
Speaker 1: Final Call. We need more congregations like this. Toiling, persevering, strict,
34:09
Speaker 1: sound church. Steadfast and strong. They had all the right stuff.
34:14
Speaker 1: If you attended one of their church services, you would
34:17
Speaker 1: immediately sense you were with God's spiritual marines. The few,
34:21
Speaker 1: the proud, the Ephesians. They had something for everyone. Ministries
34:27
Speaker 1: were abounding. People were plugged in. Programs were busting loose.
34:31
Speaker 1: The place was hopping. What could possibly be wrong with
34:34
Speaker 1: a church like this?
34:35
Speaker 2: Plenty.
34:37
Speaker 1: Plenty. Plenty. Look at verse 4. In the midst of
34:45
Speaker 1: the strengths and all the commendations, you find that little particle, but,
34:54
Speaker 1: and it's Allah. It's not a simple little particle. It's
34:57
Speaker 1: an emphatic negative to turn the corner. But, or however,
35:03
Speaker 1: it's kind of like when your boss calls you in
35:05
Speaker 1: for a performance review. And he starts, or she starts,
35:09
Speaker 1: by naming the things they're really appreciating. And they go
35:13
Speaker 1: on and on. What are you thinking? There's a but
35:16
Speaker 1: in this somewhere. I know there's going to be another
35:20
Speaker 1: shoe that's going to fall when it gets to it.
35:22
Speaker 1: But there is something I need to make. All of
35:25
Speaker 1: a sudden, the people in Ephesus sat on the edge
35:28
Speaker 1: of their seats as the messenger read the letter to them.
35:32
Speaker 1: But what? Now look closely. I know you who've been
35:37
Speaker 1: in church since you were born have read verse 4.
35:41
Speaker 1: so much that you maybe have missed something. But I
35:45
Speaker 1: have this against you, that you have left your first love.
35:54
Speaker 1: It's too important to go over quickly. In fact, it's
35:58
Speaker 1: too important to just leave it in English. We'll go
36:02
Speaker 1: to the language in which it was written, which says
36:06
Speaker 1: your love, the first love. you've abandoned. In the Greek language,
36:15
Speaker 1: there are occasional syntactical constructions in a sentence that shout
36:23
Speaker 1: certain things, if you will. One of those unusual constructions
36:28
Speaker 1: is called a restrictive attributive. Here's a case in point
36:32
Speaker 1: where the adjective is placed with a definite article following
36:37
Speaker 1: the major term for emphasizing the adjective. For example, I
36:43
Speaker 1: am the true vine. My father is the husbandman. That's
36:45
Speaker 1: a restrictive attributive. I am the vine, the true one.
36:49
Speaker 1: You hear it? As opposed to all who are false.
36:53
Speaker 1: John 15, 1 says, I am the true vine. In
36:57
Speaker 1: the Greek language, when you want to emphasize the adjective,
37:00
Speaker 1: in this case, first, you put it after the term
37:06
Speaker 1: that it would normally come before, love. You have left
37:09
Speaker 1: your love. The first one you've abandoned. In fact, the
37:16
Speaker 1: word called rendered left suggests not a rapid departure, but
37:20
Speaker 1: an erosion. It's a slow process. No one suddenly wakes
37:26
Speaker 1: up some morning and says, I don't love Jesus anymore.
37:30
Speaker 1: I'm tired of Jesus and I'm finished with all that stuff.
37:32
Speaker 1: That's not going to go on anymore in my life.
37:34
Speaker 1: How naive could I be? It doesn't happen like that.
37:37
Speaker 1: Happens over the years. After hardship, questions you can't get answered,
37:44
Speaker 1: trials that don't seem to have reason, loss of health,
37:49
Speaker 1: loss of hope, loss of a loved one. Little by little,
37:54
Speaker 1: something happens that you, if you were visited by a
37:59
Speaker 1: Robinson Crusoe in your life who looked back on the
38:02
Speaker 1: way it once was and now sees you as you are,
38:04
Speaker 1: that person may say, you're not like you once were.
38:08
Speaker 1: Something different. Their love had cooled off. Stay here. Stay
38:18
Speaker 1: right here. You don't have the same devotion for me
38:24
Speaker 1: that you once had. Remember when we met together and often?
38:30
Speaker 1: Just you and me? The tide of warm affection has turned. Oh, you...
38:40
Speaker 1: You work hard and you toil with vigor, but it's
38:43
Speaker 1: without love. You endure patiently. You hold up under the
38:49
Speaker 1: pressure of those around you who are idol worshipers, but
38:53
Speaker 1: you do it without love. And you find error and
38:55
Speaker 1: you point it out and you discipline, but you discipline
38:58
Speaker 1: without love. I like the way Earl Palmer describes it.
39:09
Speaker 1: The first love has been abandoned and in its place
39:12
Speaker 1: is the starchy, high cholesterol diet of activity and church
39:17
Speaker 1: work that will never nourish the human soul. Oh, you
39:23
Speaker 1: got busy. I mean, you're a member, aren't you? Hey,
39:27
Speaker 1: here's a job. We need you to be here. You
39:30
Speaker 1: need to work there. We need people in the parking lot.
39:33
Speaker 1: We got more chariots than we've ever had before. I mean,
39:36
Speaker 1: this place is running over with folks and, oh, we need,
39:39
Speaker 1: we got a lot of sick people. We need you
39:41
Speaker 1: to be in the prayer group. We need you to
39:42
Speaker 1: meet on Thursday and we've got the committee that you,
39:45
Speaker 1: you get, get at it and, and you do it.
39:49
Speaker 1: You do it.
39:53
Speaker 2: But you don't have your heart in it.
39:57
Speaker 1: It's dried up. Didn't happen fast. As a matter of fact,
40:05
Speaker 1: I thought about this. I thought, how much time has
40:08
Speaker 1: lapsed between the year Paul wrote them and the year
40:14
Speaker 1: John wrote them? 35 years.
40:17
Speaker 2: 35 years.
40:19
Speaker 1: From 61 to 96, we got a 35-year gap, right?
40:26
Speaker 1: Go back to Ephesians.
40:27
Speaker 2: Let me show you something.
40:29
Speaker 1: Let's see if they've always had this problem. 1 and
40:33
Speaker 1: 2 Corinthians, Galatians. There it is, Ephesians. 1, 15. Look
40:43
Speaker 1: at this. Paul writing to them, early 60s. For this reason,
40:49
Speaker 1: I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus,
40:52
Speaker 1: which exists among you and your love for all the saints.
40:55
Speaker 1: So they were known for their love for one another.
40:57
Speaker 1: Do not cease to give thanks for you while making
41:01
Speaker 1: mention of you in my prayers. Do not cease to
41:06
Speaker 1: give thanks while making mention of you in my prayers.
41:10
Speaker 1: They have a love for one another. And he mentions
41:12
Speaker 1: that in his prayers.
41:16
Speaker 2: Interesting.
41:17
Speaker 1: Look at the end of the letter. See how he
41:20
Speaker 1: ends it. Maybe there's, yep, there it is. A little
41:23
Speaker 1: blessing where he says, peace to the brethren, love with
41:26
Speaker 1: faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus. Now
41:28
Speaker 1: that's God's love to them. It's a blessing placed upon him.
41:31
Speaker 1: Then he adds, grace be with all those who love
41:38
Speaker 1: our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love. See the word
41:43
Speaker 1: love in italics? It's not in the original text. It's
41:46
Speaker 1: been added. It's implied by the editors of our Bibles,
41:49
Speaker 1: but it really says with incorruptible. Meaning, grace be with
41:54
Speaker 1: all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ incorruptibly. They
41:58
Speaker 1: had incorruptible love. It was pure. It was impressive. It
42:04
Speaker 1: was the kind of love Paul wrote about in 1
42:06
Speaker 1: Corinthians 13, that without it, you're like a noisy gong
42:09
Speaker 1: or a clanging cymbal. And even though you give your
42:12
Speaker 1: body to be burned, if you don't have love, it
42:14
Speaker 1: rewards you with nothing. And even though you have all
42:18
Speaker 1: knowledge and all faith to remove mountains, says 1 Corinthians 13,
42:22
Speaker 1: if you don't have love, zilch, zero. And then he
42:27
Speaker 1: lists 15 characteristics of love and of all things. At
42:31
Speaker 1: the end of this great treatise on love, he says,
42:34
Speaker 1: now abides faith and hope and love. But what? The
42:39
Speaker 1: greatest of these is love. This church had everything but
42:46
Speaker 1: the greatest thing You say, well, Chuck, I think you,
42:50
Speaker 1: I mean, don't forget what they were putting up. I mean, don't. Well,
42:54
Speaker 1: let me ask you, ladies. Let's say you've been married 25, 26,
42:59
Speaker 1: 27 years and it's a Friday evening and your husband
43:03
Speaker 1: worked a little later and came in tired and your
43:07
Speaker 1: kids were gone doing a lot of different things. So
43:09
Speaker 1: it's just the two of you. You sit down to
43:11
Speaker 1: a sandwich and your husband sighs and pulls his tie
43:14
Speaker 1: loose and says, now that we're alone, I need to
43:18
Speaker 1: tell you something. I just don't have the love for
43:26
Speaker 1: you that I had when we got married. I just
43:30
Speaker 1: don't have it anymore. Now, I'm not walking out. I'm
43:35
Speaker 1: going to keep being a good dad. I'll continue to
43:41
Speaker 1: eat at this table and we'll sleep together and we'll
43:45
Speaker 1: live together and we'll go places together. We'll even vacation
43:49
Speaker 1: as a family.
43:50
Speaker 2: I'm not going to stop that.
43:55
Speaker 1: I'll make enough of a good living that we can
43:58
Speaker 1: pay our bills and we'll buy Christmas gifts at Christmas
44:02
Speaker 1: and we'll celebrate the holidays. We'll go to church and
44:07
Speaker 1: we'll watch TV and we'll watch the kids grow and
44:11
Speaker 1: graduate and leave. But I've got to tell you, I
44:15
Speaker 1: just don't love you anymore.
44:17
Speaker 2: Is that okay?
44:20
Speaker 3: Okay.
44:23
Speaker 2: No. Nothing's right, is it?
44:29
Speaker 1: Nothing. It's just a series of activities to deaden the
44:34
Speaker 1: pain of an empty life. If he doesn't love you anymore.
44:43
Speaker 1: This broke the Lord's heart. We don't talk like we
44:49
Speaker 1: used to talk. We aren't intimate like we used to
44:54
Speaker 1: be intimate. Well, I know you're busy, and I know
44:59
Speaker 1: you're putting up with a lot, and I also know
45:03
Speaker 1: that you're dealing with difficult times.
45:10
Speaker 2: But I miss you.
45:14
Speaker 1: The you that I met at the cross. One of
45:23
Speaker 1: the things I love about God's word is it doesn't
45:26
Speaker 1: leave us in the enormity of our guilt. And by
45:31
Speaker 1: the way, this isn't a verse just for first century's sake.
45:37
Speaker 2: I just described you.
45:40
Speaker 1: Are you? Are you? There have been times in my
45:49
Speaker 1: life when my love for the Lord grew thin. It
45:55
Speaker 1: was awful. It was dreadful.
46:02
Speaker 2: I preached. I served.
46:05
Speaker 1: I stayed married. But it wasn't like it used to be.
46:15
Speaker 1: So he says in verse 5, therefore, I want you
46:19
Speaker 1: to do something about it. Here's a course correction. Let's
46:24
Speaker 1: stay with this.
46:25
Speaker 2: Get your pen.
46:26
Speaker 1: Mark, remember, repent, do the deeds.
46:33
Speaker 2: It's right there in the text.
46:36
Speaker 1: Let's fix this. Let's turn this corner. He's no longer criticizing.
46:47
Speaker 1: He's saying, let's do something about this. This is like
46:50
Speaker 1: a good counselor who says, okay, We got our finger
46:53
Speaker 1: on the problem. All right, wait. Don't walk out. Here's
46:57
Speaker 1: what's got to be done. First of all, remember from
47:03
Speaker 1: where you have fallen. Memory can often be the first
47:07
Speaker 1: step on your way back to where you were. The
47:12
Speaker 1: prodigal son in the pigsty remembered home.
47:17
Speaker 2: It is daddy.
47:19
Speaker 1: And remembering how it was, He began to turn, and
47:23
Speaker 1: it wound up at his return. At the arrest and
47:26
Speaker 1: trials of Jesus, with the Lord sitting isolated in the
47:31
Speaker 1: midst of his captors, he turns and looks at Peter,
47:34
Speaker 1: and it says Peter remembered and wept after he had
47:40
Speaker 1: denied him three times. Joseph's brothers, when they remembered what
47:44
Speaker 1: they had done to their brother and came to realize
47:47
Speaker 1: they're standing in front of their brother, who is now
47:50
Speaker 1: prime minister of Egypt, remembered what they had done and
47:55
Speaker 1: feared and turned. David, sitting with Nathan alone, smeared with
48:06
Speaker 1: the dirt of adultery and Murder and hypocrisy remembered when
48:16
Speaker 1: Nathan said, you are the man.
48:19
Speaker 2: And he turned.
48:22
Speaker 1: Just remember where you started.
48:25
Speaker 2: Go there.
48:28
Speaker 1: Repent.
48:30
Speaker 2: What a great word.
48:32
Speaker 1: What a great word. The first term, remember, is a
48:35
Speaker 1: present tense. Keep on remembering. Remembering. Keep on fueling your
48:39
Speaker 1: mind with reminders of how it once was. But now,
48:42
Speaker 1: in a point of time, repent. Change your mind. Turn
48:48
Speaker 1: your course. Do it now. Take responsibility. Acknowledge your part
48:54
Speaker 1: in the cooling off. The Lord hasn't moved. We've moved.
49:02
Speaker 1: And then he says, do that. Do the deeds you
49:06
Speaker 1: did at first. Go back to the beginning and repeat
49:13
Speaker 1: your life, your habits. And he adds, or else.
49:21
Speaker 2: Boy, look at that.
49:23
Speaker 1: Or else. I'm coming and I'm going to remove your
49:29
Speaker 1: lampstand out of its place unless you repent. What does
49:33
Speaker 1: that mean? Well, a lampstand held light. Added warmth. I'm
49:39
Speaker 1: going to take your light and I'm going to turn
49:41
Speaker 1: it off. You're not going to have an impact. It's
49:46
Speaker 1: not going to be like it once was. You stay
49:50
Speaker 1: like you are, the light goes out. Many a church
49:54
Speaker 1: today with the light out, having lost its first love.
50:01
Speaker 1: It's time for me to give you a statement I
50:03
Speaker 1: hope you'll never forget. I want you to write every
50:06
Speaker 1: word of it down. It is never too late to
50:09
Speaker 1: start doing what is right. It is never too late
50:16
Speaker 1: to start doing what is right. That will save you
50:25
Speaker 1: from more heartaches than you can name. Now is the
50:29
Speaker 1: time to turn. Now is the time to remember. Now
50:33
Speaker 1: is the time to do what you once did. And
50:37
Speaker 1: then strong words of counsel come at the end. I
50:40
Speaker 1: see two things. He who has ears to hear, let
50:42
Speaker 1: him hear. First statement I would say is listen to
50:44
Speaker 1: what the Lord is saying. Take it personally. Listen to
50:49
Speaker 1: what the Lord is saying and take it personally. And
50:53
Speaker 1: then he says to him who overcomes, I think is
50:57
Speaker 1: a synonym for repenting, for returning, for doing the deeds.
51:01
Speaker 1: I will grant to eat of the tree of life.
51:03
Speaker 1: That's a place of fellowship, which is in the paradise
51:05
Speaker 1: of God. That is all the joy. It's a picturesque
51:08
Speaker 1: scene in the apocalyptic literature of intimacy with the Almighty,
51:13
Speaker 1: of endearing and enduring love. It'll all come back. We
51:20
Speaker 1: got time for some practical advice? I think so. Here's one.
51:27
Speaker 1: Jesus knows us completely. No reason to run and hide.
51:32
Speaker 1: Hard to hide from omnipotence and omnipresence. Omniscience. Jesus knows
51:40
Speaker 1: us completely. You're known. You can kid us, but you
51:45
Speaker 1: can't kid him. He knows us completely. Second, Jesus loves
51:50
Speaker 1: us unconditionally. Isn't that a great thought? Knowing all he
51:55
Speaker 1: does about us, you'd think he'd say, well, that is
51:58
Speaker 1: the end. But he doesn't. I am fed up. He
52:05
Speaker 1: doesn't do that. He still comes back to the Ephesians
52:08
Speaker 1: and says, come on. So he loves us unconditionally. So
52:13
Speaker 1: there's every reason to return and abide. Third, he rewards
52:20
Speaker 1: us abundantly. He says he'll give us this kind of
52:22
Speaker 1: fellowship that Adam and Eve knew. You'll eat the tree
52:27
Speaker 1: of life and you'll enjoy the paradise of God. You'll
52:29
Speaker 1: have a fellowship that was once rich and enriching for
52:33
Speaker 1: you as well as rewarding. He rewards us abundantly. You
52:41
Speaker 1: know what else?
52:42
Speaker 2: He calls us tenderly.
52:43
Speaker 1: You hear him? I can almost hear his voice. He
52:51
Speaker 1: calls us tenderly. Fanny Crosby wrote it back in the
52:57
Speaker 1: mid-19th century. Jesus is tenderly calling you home. Calling today.
53:03
Speaker 1: Calling today. Why? From the sunshine of love.
53:07
Speaker 2: Will you roam.
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Speaker 1: Farther and farther away?
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Speaker 2: He's calling.
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Speaker 1: Clarence Edward McCartney, longtime pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
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Speaker 1: used to love to tell the story of the Scottish
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Speaker 1: people who lived in the highlands. And especially of a
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Speaker 1: highland shepherd who lived in a village and reared his
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Speaker 1: little daughter who meant the world to him. McCartney writes,
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Speaker 1: he would take her with him when he went out
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Speaker 1: over the moors to tend and fold the sheep. Most
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Speaker 1: of all, the daughter liked to hear her father call
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Speaker 1: the sheep with a shepherd's call, sounding free and beautiful
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Speaker 1: down the wind and over the moors. By and by,
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Speaker 1: the little girl became a beautiful young woman and went
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Speaker 1: off to the great city of Edinburgh to take a job.
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Speaker 1: At first, her letters came regularly every week. Then there
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Speaker 1: were intervals between them that were longer, and finally they
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Speaker 1: ceased altogether. There were rumors, too, in the village and
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Speaker 1: among the shepherds that the shepherd's daughter had been seen
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Speaker 1: in rough company and in questionable places. One day a
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Speaker 1: lad from the village who knew her well saw her
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Speaker 1: in the city and spoke to her, but She pretended
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Speaker 1: she had never seen him before. When the shepherd heard this,
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Speaker 1: he gathered a few things together and clad in his
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Speaker 1: shepherd's smock with his plaid wrapped around his shoulders and
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Speaker 1: his staff in his hand, he set out for the
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Speaker 1: city to find his lost daughter. Day after day, he
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Speaker 1: sought her on the avenues and in the slums. in
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Speaker 1: the closes of the city all in vain. Then he
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Speaker 1: remembered how his daughter loved to hear him give the
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Speaker 1: shepherd's call. Again he took to the quest and out
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Speaker 1: of sorrow mixed with love this time he sounded out
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Speaker 1: loud and free the shepherd's call. Passersby turned with astonishment
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Speaker 1: to look on the old shepherd in his smock and
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Speaker 1: with his staff as he went up and down the
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Speaker 1: streets Sounding the shepherd's call. At long last in a
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Speaker 1: house on one of the degraded streets of the city.
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Speaker 1: His daughter. Sitting in a room with her loose living
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Speaker 1: companions suddenly looked up.
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Speaker 2: With astonishment. There was no doubt about it. It was
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Speaker 2: her father's voice. It was the shepherd's call.
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Speaker 1: Flinging wide the door, she rushed upon the street and
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Speaker 1: there was her father who took her in his arms
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Speaker 1: and carried her with him to the highland.
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Speaker 2: Home and loved her back to decency and to God.
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Speaker 1: May we bow our heads together. What a love letter
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Speaker 1: written in the first century for the 21st. What a story.
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Speaker 1: That tells our story. He tenderly calls you home. Wouldn't
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Speaker 1: you like to come to him today? Wouldn't that be
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Speaker 1: the greatest thing? Wouldn't you like to come back into
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Speaker 1: the love relationship that's cooled off over the years?
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Speaker 2: Come today.
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Speaker 1: You're surrounded by a flock of people who would love
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Speaker 1: to talk with you. Most importantly, you have a Lord
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Speaker 1: who's missed you. And waits for you to come. Our
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Speaker 1: father we thank you for speaking to us. So directly
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Speaker 1: about the savior. Thank you for the tenderness in the
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Speaker 1: midst of the reproof.
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Speaker 2: So like Christ.
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Speaker 1: Thank you for caring for us even when we've lost
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Speaker 1: our way. And never cooling in your love for us.
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Speaker 1: Thank you for accepting me back when I had cooled.
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Speaker 1: Thank you for putting us on a new course. That
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Speaker 1: brings such sense of satisfaction and fulfillment. Minister deeply to
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Speaker 1: our hearts today. From this ancient passage. about an ancient church.
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Speaker 1: May the message be vibrant and real and enriching and life-changing.
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Speaker 1: I ask it in the name of Jesus, our magnificent Savior.
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Speaker 2: And everyone said, Amen.
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Speaker 3: The preceding message, The Church with Everything, But the Greatest Thing.
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Speaker 3: was copyrighted in 2003, 2006, and 2024, and the sound
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Speaker 3: recording was copyrighted in 2024 by Charles R.
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Speaker 2: Swindoll, Inc.
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Speaker 3: All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for
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Speaker 3: commercial use is strictly prohibited.