The Church In Ephesus (Part 2)

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Mission of the Church of Ephesus today and I just want to talk a little bit before we open up in prayer want to set a scene for you as it were in the scene is a man who was taken by the spirit hears a voice in the voices the sound of the one who is a trumpet and as this man hears this voice with the sound of a trumpet he tells this man to write in a book all the things that he will see and hear innovision. Now being in the presence of one who has a voice of the Trump of being the presence of an all the almighty. Excuse me, we know that there's only one logical thing that can happen in that is falling down to the feet as if Dad we've come into the presence of a holy God. That is our only truly proper response is to fall down as if we were dead because we're in absolute awe and reverence of Our Lord this man falls down dead at the feet of the one who holds the Seven Stars and walks among the seven lampstands know what fear must have been in John's heart what care that must have. Vista to be in the present of the all-consuming fire again, as I said Falling Down is the only true proper response in to hear the words though as he falls down as he has tear he hears Jesus say fear not he hears the words do not be afraid for I am the first and the Last Olympian one the one who is dead and behold now is alive. So John hears these words that all of a sudden he has great comfort coming upon his heart and as he has discomfort in this scene all the sudden there is an urgency for him to ensure that not only what is being said, but what is written is absolutely accurate because of the consequences of it not being written in the way it appears. So the servant rights and as he writes he writes to the first church and as you've rights to the first church, we learn that as we are in the Church of Ephesus, there's a sense of encouragement there is a sense of understanding and there's a sense of approval from Jesus Christ that what the Church of Ephesus is doing has his approve. But then the atmosphere changes it goes from approval the disapproval and you hear these words. I have this against you. Think about that. Perhaps this scene is too separated from us today, maybe in our day and age of of all kinds of media and reading the same scriptures over and over again, which is beautiful, but we accidentally become numb because we lose the Majesty of what's being said. So, let me try to paints for you another scene. You're sitting at your table in the morning and you have your Bible open. You have a cup of coffee you're sipping on it. You're reading the scriptures. And of course, this is just a scenario just can't actually happen. So, you know, I don't want the email saying I believe Jesus can actually come and visit you but you're sitting at your table for this scene. and as you're sitting there Jesus walks in and there he is sitting down with the other side of the table. You look up at him. He looks at you and he smiles. And as he smiles, you look straight into your soul. He actually expressed as hey. These are some things that I'm pleased with. I'm pleased with your toils. I'm pleased with your perseverance. I'm pleased how you study the Bible and show yourself approved. I'm pleased that you hold onto sound Doctrine, but then as he takes a breath, he gazes even deeper into your soul. And with the most absolute words of The Sovereign says, but I have this against you.

What reaction would you have? What reaction would I have? Would you argue? Would you justify the things that he is expressing?

Would You Weep Well this morning we come back to the church of Ephesus and we're going to look at this account once again, but now we transition from what the Lord was pleased with the church of Ephesus into what displeased the Lord and as we do this we're going to tie personal application to our lives this morning. So I pray that we will be able to get through it together and I'm just a mere finite mortal man who's not able to deliver this message without prayer and we're not able to hear it without first. So let's take this time now and pray. Father this morning as we have come and raised our voices. For some of us the words that we sunk do not even penetrate the heart and it's nothing more than lip service.

Some of us have grown weary these past weeks in months. Some of us know we're supposed to love you, but we're in love with so many other things.

Now as we look at this church in Ephesus, it's so quickly to think of it as some kind of historical account or some kind of vision and prophecy for church that doesn't actually mean us.

Morty chassis born that you weigh the thoughts in the hearts in the attentions of Matt. As always Lord if there's anything that I'm going to say this morning, that's out of Pride Lord. Please keep me mute protect the ears of all those were going to hear in this room or online. The only what you have determined to be said this morning be set and we pray that we would not just be hearers but doers of the word. We thank you and we give you the praise in Jesus name. Amen.

The first point I have this morning is called leaving our first love now two weeks ago. We spoke about the geographical in the cultural setting in the Church of Ephesus. We spoke about what we needed to learn about the context of the Believers who were within this church. We also talked about the fact that there was both Greek and Roman at temples that were erected. So we learned that individuals were worshipping false gods and false deities were able to tie that into the Econo context of where we lived in our day and age being within the city of Mississauga in the surrounding areas. We learned a couple weeks ago about all the influences that were hitting this church in Hidden the individuals of this church, but none of the last the Church of Ephesus was able to hold firm and be able to stand upon the word of God. They show that they had Integrity that they were persevering that they were continue to be steadfast amongst all this that was taking place within them, but we know there's a time frame that's going on because the church that once was Not necessary to church that now is in the sense in the way. Jesus is addressing John to write to the Chief Elder in the Church of Ephesus to Oz we went through that two weeks ago. We now come down and transition into verse for and write out a verse for we read these words, but I have this against you that you have abandoned the love that you had at first. Now, this is a very important point for us this morning because we need to understand what is going on about this word Love Now many people in our game need within the church and watching online. You are actual Scholars. You already know some biblical Greek. In fact, would you see this word? Love you may very well go. The word Agape is that the agape love and which is being spoken about here in Revelation for a 2 vs 4 and yes, you are, right. We are talking about agape. Love Agape Love is a love which centers in moral preference. Okay. It's typically referred to as a divine. Love some were talking about the love you had at first. We're talking about a love again. That is morally perfect. We're talking about a Divine love in which the Church of Ephesus had no more talking about such lovely then have to figure out where is the source of such love are we as people able to bring this love upon her own Hazard flash able to somehow conjure up this type of love? No, we can't there's a source of love the Ephesian church and even our church in the church across the globe has a central source of love. In fact, we can find that Source in 1st John 4 7 through 8. So first John Chapter 4 verses 7 through 8. It's up on the screen for you. And it says beloved. Let us love one. Another for love is from God and whoever has been born of God knows God anyone who does not know God has anyone who does not love does not know God because God is love. That is quite important that is not underlined in your Bibles. Perhaps it should be we're going to get back to the first point in the second. But in this verse we learn something and we understand a very important point for us as individuals and for a corporate church and that is what love is love is from God because God is love this standard and which we are talkin about love this morning is so much higher. It is so much better. It is beyond anything that we can even fathom in our mind because love itself is an attribute of Your Love Is God God is love you cannot talk about God without talking about love and so this is so we're getting into this and back into first John Moore talk about the say off. Okay talking about the Creator. The owner of all things God God is the one who himself as displayed in our holy scriptures. He is loved so going Beyond and declaring simply as Believers that God is real God loves you, you know going to be on the fact that we have a God who indeed love. Good to say once in awhile, but we need to boil it down. Here is the proper dip in that definition is the complete whole God is love. The reason why God loves people is cuz he himself is love itself. He is the pureness of love. He is the better way and so we're talking about it back in the fusions to for that. You have abandoned the love that you had at first. We have to remember that we're talkin about love. We're not talking about the love that you and I may exhibit to our spouses or to a family member or to an object in our life God. What is always and will forever be so much better. In fact when you look at Isaiah 55 8 through 9, we learn quickly that God's ways are not our ways his thoughts are not our thoughts his These are higher than our ways his thoughts are higher than our thought it's as far as the heavens are higher than the earth. So God's way are higher than our ways that's a loose translation. But that what we want we understand if our minds are down here in God is always up there. So again, the nature of God is love and when an individual then as a person is a church moves past referring to God as simply as a God who loves or the or the god of love what happens we start trying in God and love together is when you get struck immediately in our understanding that there is no ability in our cells to love in the biblical standard without God. That's kind of what I'm doing in here. There is nothing in your flesh. There's nothing in your Fallen State. There's nothing in the who you are that can love in a way that is proper and pleasing to God, okay because he is So the only way that we can truly love is Christ Christ in us the spirit of God the Holy Spirit guiding Us in enabling up and bringing us into New Life. There is no biblical way to love outside of Jesus Christ each and every person here online and across the globe have a complete dependency on Christ to love in the context of Revelation 2:4 that you have a bin at the love that you had at first. This is a massive rebuke. It is huge. It's not that you loved your flavor of Doritos. You love the Lost of your sports team. It is going straight to something Divine. It is going vertical first that will present itself horizontal now I shared this with you this morning because what we have to do is really understand that we are called as a church to truly love but not love in the way we perceive in our mind that we could love the love is a Biblical standard of love and John 15:12 says this is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. You don't get to pick and choose in this I don't get to pick and choose church around the globe. We are called to love the way Christ loved us. That's feeling a lot. So the aspect this love that we're reading about with the church of Ephesus. They need to understand that the Commandment to love again is divine to love one another the way Christ has loved them or has loved us in our application to scriptures are true for us. So in a church to love is always vertical. Why do you do what you do? Why do you act the way you act? Why do you say the things that you say? It is always God Focus first and when that is proper, then it comes out horizontal. It's mathematics. Now it chapter two not chapter 2 in 2 chapters previous to John 15. We actually learn something in John 13:35 by all this people will know that you are my disciples how if you have love for one? Another again to love is a higher standard. The love is Abby is is is not even possible in our own flesh. Show pursuing and learning about God who is love as us to understand. What true love is Christ is the source. He is the fountain he is the fresh spring of love. And in this this love is poured upon us the elect to do what? will to love and to work So when this Foundation we understand the church in Ephesus, they were steadfast in guarding the treasure in which was important to them. That is the gospel them the message and it and it teaches that leads to Salvation. They had endurance. They were United together their love for Christ was observed horizontally, right that was all talked about in the first two verses of her message two weeks ago. The Church of Ephesus is understood. They were as a church in fact up the Apostle Paul's faithful teaching tells us exactly what this church was. Like if you read Ephesians chapter 2 verses 1 through 5, we get an understanding of this church in Ephesus. This church was as a scripture say and you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked along the course of this world Fallen the prince of the power of the air in the spirit this now in the work of the sons of Disobedience among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh. Out the desires of the body in the mind. We're by Nature children of Wrath like the rest of mankind, but God being rich in Mercy because of the great love which he loved. Even when we were dead in our trespasses made us to live together with Christ by Grace you have been saved. God who is love made this church alive. They work together in Christ. They had love they had passions. They had lived lies that exemplified service. They have lives that exemplified gratitude. They had lies that exemplified Thanksgiving. There were called as an expression to be faithful Believers according to Romans 12 verses 5 through 15. So we understand the beginning aspects of this church. So the question then comes to mind what happened what happened to the Church of Ephesus. I mean previously we read from the beginning of the first couple of verses that the church was doing well and now all the sudden the Lord says, but I have this against you so what is going on in this passage for Christ to say that you have abandoned the love that you had at first. Well, there's a couple things we can say but I believe one good answer is that they lost their fire? They lost their fire this church lost their Zeal for Christ. In short they were going through the motions of church. Think about that they were going through the motions of church and even worst this church demonstrate that the motivation was no longer of vertical motivation. It was no longer allowed for Christ any longer, but the focus was on them self. That is bad. It is bad when individuals of a church have so much focus on themselves that they no longer longer Focus On Christ. That is an indictment. And friends the Ephesian Church once walked in a deep love for God and then again, this was displayed in their works. But once was a relationship focusing upon Christ morph into something dangerous. Their love for Christ that they once had the love for each other. They once had morphed into something dangerous and you know what that was religion. religion 1 take away that we can gain from this point is that there is a danger no hear me very carefully here TuneIn. There is a danger of adopting for ourselves a religion that is close to ord blanketed in Christianity. But within it is nothing more than secular humanism.

In other words, we need profess to have belief but what is actually evident in our lives is that we are actually guided and we live by the expressions of our flesh. Many people who profess Christ have nothing more than a belief that as people. We are capable of some kind of acceptable morality and self-fulfillment without God. Many churches are like this they sing songs about them meetings about them. It's nothing to do with God and many places have adopted the religion of secular humanism. Now, I am not targeting those outside the walls of Love of this local congregation. I'm targeting us as people to do a self-examination. And for those who are watching online as well. Do we Rely Upon Our Own intellect are we trusting in our own heart and our own motives as a supreme guideline for ethical and moral Behavior? Do we change our convictions with the flavor of societies day or real Sun going to alter the gospel message? Because it has been deemed offensive in 2020. Are we now going to get on the political mainstream because what's happening is cool. So we're going to completely more fun what we are going to do the flavor changes and so are do our convictions. Will hear the church in Ephesus lost its first love the one who profess to be baptized by the living. Holy spirit of God has become nothing more than a gathering group bound together by the principles of utilitarianism.

What that means is where people can determine right from wrong based on an outcome.

Not by the basis of the Holy scriptures. Is it possible that this church? Yes, the Mill Christian Fellowship. Is it possible that any church gathering this morning in person or online are now churches that are run more with ideology that whatever works for the greater good or whatever is working for the majority is the best way to deal with things because if you say well that's not us may I remind you how most churches work instead of them taking themselves to prayer and fasting and meditating upon the holy word of God to make a decision for a church. What do we do as churches all in favor? I and the majority wind even if it goes against the very Council of God.

So what happens then when you have this utilitarianism type of church? Why don't you could be left with nothing more than dead cold Orthodoxy?

dead cold Orthodoxy and your friends as believers who profess Christ we make such a profession. We are professing that we truly love Jesus Christ Above All Else. we sang the song All In All so this profession then there is a visual relationship between us and Christ and this relationship is evident amongst one another and a church can have all of its Doctrine in a row can have all of its Ministry serving well, but no one ever can substitute the Holy Spirit or a holy Reverend love for Christ and a genuine love for one another to make a church successful. It will fall. It may look alive. It may have the seats packed. It may have all kinds of programs on the radio, but it does not mean it pleases the Lord whatsoever. Love is an important aspect of a church love for God Paramount love for one another the Apostle Paul tells us and 1st Corinthians 13 verses 1 through 3. If I speak in the tongues of men in the tongues of angels, but not love. I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal next slide and if I have the prophetic powers and understand all Mysteries and all knowledge and if I have all Faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love. I am nothing if I give away all that I have and if I deliver up my body to be burned but have not love I gain nothing.

love

so we talked about that. We need to go to point to let's talk about remember remember?

What brings a fall? Not a trip but a fall what I'm talking about fall somebody who falls from Grace somebody Falls from political office, you know, you're watching the news one day and you find out Senator so-and-so has had to step down from their position because they've had an affair with their you know, their secretary wallet efail. And when somebody Falls like back in was it the 80s or 90s? He had a very large well-known mainstream Pentecostal Pastor in the US fall and people look at go. How did he fall? What happened in this life? Why did he fall? What we also know something don't we there's the old answer that a public fall took place in private long ago. Snowfall doesn't just happen. Somebody doesn't just have an affair. So many doesn't just disqualify themselves from Dentistry. Something was going on in the background and what that was was deterioration. Something was deteriorating or did Cain over time there was neglect in the background over something. So I want you to hold on to that that a public ball doesn't just happen if there's a consequence for a hay for neglect for deterioration of things over time because I was becoming tour next verse John is instructed to write to the Chief Elder of the Church of Ephesus disbursed by remember therefore from where you have fallen repent and do the work you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent No, of course, we have our timing from the first point here that they are to repent and there to do the work they did at first again back to the vertical love displaying a horizontal relationship within the church, but we go deeper into what's actually taken place here because we have 2 as Scholars ask what does this mean? All the scriptures provide the absolute Clarity. In fact, if we were to go back to Paul's words to the Ephesian church and Acts chapter 20 vs 29 through 30, we get them Paul says, I know that after my departure Fierce wolves will come in among you not sparing the flock and from among your own selves will arise men speaking Twisted things to draw way the disciples after them, isn't it? Amazing that the holy scriptures actually say people will rise up within a church and speak things and teach things that are perverted in Twisted and actually draw people away from a local congregation.

Amazing one quick note that we learn from that is when you see them people leave a church in Mass Exodus. It doesn't always mean that the church's is danger. It can also mean that something's going on with individuals who are walking in sin and being enticed Away by false teachers in false doctrines and they're being lured by such things in which Paul's warned us about in Acts chapter 20 So in our context of application and keeping ourselves within the text, it is possible that the Church of Ephesus had false wolves come in or rise up among the very people that were in the church and they were speaking Twisted things. They were men and people being drawn away by these individual and we don't necessarily have all the answers maybe these men were quite sincere maybe that there is persecution under Nero because of the persecution these teachers are saying hey, you know what just water down that message a little bit, you know, don't be so emphatically clear that there's only one King Jesus Christ, you know, we don't be so offensive with your gospel message. Just put a little bit of Leaven in there. Maybe he's never like listen. I know that we talk about sexual immorality the the people the temples rise up and dies who are a listening prostitute within the Temple's are mad or trying to kill you. So, you know what just simmer it down just a little bit just fly under the radar. You don't have to alter the the whole message just alter a few things here and a little things there. In fact tell you what may be there people who advised these individuals of the church, you know what the world is getting hot. So maybe you need to worry about yourself go into hiding go buy yourself. Some camo gear some some food for preserves go live in a Hut in the middle of the forest. Just hide away from all the responsibilities at the church is called to do because it's getting too tight here. Maybe again, these are all speculations from your pastor. Do your own Bible studies and look in your own commentaries and dig deep to get their answer. These are my speculations. But one thing we do know is things change over time things change over time in church has changed over time. Am I short 22 years of life as a joke. Thank you. So am I short 42 years of life. I have seen the fall of the USSR and the Berlin Wall fall down and my short life. I have seen Princess Diana killed in France in my short life. I seem to Iraqi War take place in the war in Afghanistan in my short life. I seen the complete economical collapse of certain countries in South America. So what does that tell you just as Empires and countries and regime regimes change over time? So can the church listed do not neglect that working in a church and serving the church even here at the Mill is a constant <