Sunday January 21, 2024 | Dan Kent
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands: “I know your works, your toil and your endurance. I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers; you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not and have found them to be false. I also know that you are enduring and bearing up for the sake of my name and that you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember, then, from where you have fallen; repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. Yet this is to your credit: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers, I will give permission to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God.
Jesus addresses the church of Ephesus in the first letter to the seven churches, telling them what they did well and what they need to work on. Specifically, Jesus confronts the fact that they have abandoned the love that they started with. They were good at orthodoxy, but struggled to live a life characterized by love. This is an important message for us today in the midst of perpetual divisiveness over ideological differences.
This is the first sermon of our new sub-series in Revelation called “Dear Church,” where we are expounding upon Jesus’ progress report to seven churches. This sermon addresses the first letter, written to the church in Ephesus. Jesus first speaks about the strength of this church, which is their ability to protect right thinking about matters regarding God. They know how to defend the faith. Then he challenges them regarding the fact that they have walked away from their first love, which had been so central at the beginning of their journey with Jesus.
There are two main points to recognize. First, it is important that we defend against wolves. We see this from Paul’s word to the Ephesian church in Acts 20:19-20. It is crucial that we maintain the truth of who God is and protect this truth from distortion. We must test teachings that lead us astray. There is a singularity of truth that we must focus on, but there are many untruths that will attack that truth.
Secondly, the church in Ephesus had forsaken their first love. While they emphasized the truth about God, it appears that they have focused on orthodox beliefs so much that they have fallen short of love. It might appear that they love God because of their beliefs, but love is no longer central to their way of life. Orthodoxy demands nothing, but love costs us everything. We might defend the truth of orthodoxy, but the power of Christ is not found in orthodoxy. Love is actually what conveys Christ’s power.
According to the book of 1 John, love of God and love of one another cannot be separated. The love of one another is the mark of God’s people. Orthodoxy by itself is not enough. Only the action that comes through love fosters the life that orthodoxy aims to bring us. In Ephesians 4:13, Paul says that the goal of our faith is to grow into the “measure of the fullness of Christ.” This is not merely about agreeing with an orthodox set of beliefs. It’s about embodying a way of life that reflects the way of Jesus.
In our culture today, we are living in the midst of division, criticism and intolerance. The fullness of Christ is about compassion, patience, unconditional love, mutual understanding and forgiveness. While orthodoxy is important and should not be ignored, love is paramount. We can get the former wrong in some ways, but we must understand that our ideas do not make us Christlike. 1 Corinthians 13 makes it clear that ideas without love are of no value. Orthodoxy is meant to serve as a foundation that fosters love. It’s not meant to stand alone.
We need to heed the instructions to the Ephesian church and return to the way of love. We do this in a myriad of ways, like valuing people over our ideology, delighting in others, and praying for enemies. In our world today, it will take focus and effort, but it will produce fruit in our lives.