When Devotion Falters: Christ’s Call to Ephesus in Rev 2:1-7

SPEAKER 02 : 0:00

We are saved by what the Bible teaches, not by our own works of righteousness. And the ministers of the enemy can appear to be righteous and wonderful people, and we can be deceived. People say of some false cults, but they’re so dedicated to the family. They seem so wonderful. My friends, we can easily be deceived by Satan. Easily.

SPEAKER 03 : 0:48

Welcome to Hope for Today with Bible teacher David Hawking. Today we’re coming to our final look at one of the most sobering messages in the Bible, Jesus’ warning to the church in Ephesus. Now, this church had truth, They had discernment, they had good deeds, but they had left their first love. And the risen Christ, walking among the lampstands, issued a call to repent. To repent or face removal. And this isn’t just a letter to the first century church. This is personal, and it’s right now. Open your Bible to Revelation chapter 2, and we’ll be back in the passage in just a moment. Just before we begin, we want to point you to the homepage at davidhawking.org. That’s our website, and you’re going to find there a selection of free booklets, downloadable, that speak directly to the heart. We have titles like, Does God Truly Love Me?, Revival Now and Your Quest for God. Now, all these are rooted in scripture and available in multiple languages and absolutely free. You don’t have to sign up for anything. Just download the book and you got it. And friend, by the way, if you need prayer today, well, let us know. We count it a privilege to lift you up. And by the way, please pray for us too. We’re asking God to continue using this ministry to reach hearts around the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ and the truth of God’s word. And if you’d like to give a one-time gift to help make that possible, or join us as a monthly partner, well, you can do that online at davidhawking.org. Or call us at 1-800-75-BIBLE, that’s in the U.S., or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. Bible is 242-53. I’ll have our mailing addresses later in the program. Right now, let’s join David for today’s study.

SPEAKER 02 : 2:45

Revelation chapter 2, verses 1 to 7, the church at Ephesus. Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write, These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks or lampstands, I know thy works and thy labor and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them who are evil, and thou hast tried them who say they are apostles and are not, and hast found them liars, and hast borne and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast labored and hast not fainted. Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” Remember therefore from where thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works. Or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy lampstand or candlestick out of its place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches, to him that overcometh. Well, I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. Let’s take a look at five things. First of all, in chapter 2 of Revelation, verse 1, we have the centrality and control of Jesus Christ brought to our attention. The second thing I draw to your attention is in verse 2 and 3 and also verse 6. And that is the commendation which Jesus gives to this church. And he does commend them. He commends them for four things. And we need to understand that. These are four things that we need to emulate. We need to follow. We need to have them in our ministry, in our life. The Lord is telling them, you’ve done a good job here. He commends them, first of all, for their dedication to the work of the Lord. He says, I know thy works and thy labor and thy patience. They were serving the Lord, but with labor and patience. Number two, he commends them for their discernment in the work of the Lord. Number three, he commends them for their devotion to the Lord in being faithful in the work of the Lord in difficult circumstances. Let’s hear it for people who are devoted to the Lord and faithful under difficult circumstances. You have this beautifully expressed in verse 3. Number 4, he also commends them for their decision regarding the deeds of the Nicolaitans. Now this is a little difficult problem in verse 6. As a matter of fact, we’re going to see these Nicolaitans again. in the message down in verse 15 to the church at Pergamos. And there, they’ve got people holding the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing the Lord hates. The Lord hates this, whatever it is. And he commends the church at Ephesus for something that was not true of the church at Pergamos, that they had decided to hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, these people who argued that it’s okay to do whatever you want to do and still have Christ. But it’s not. And so there’s a very powerful point here. So I look at the commendation Jesus gives to the church. Let’s come to verse 4. The concern of Jesus Christ for his church. Although they’re commended greatly for their efforts and their loyalties, the problem in the church is very serious. And that’s why the opening word, but, in contrast, or nevertheless, as it says in Old King James. Notice he said you’ve left your first love. He didn’t say you lost it. It’s important to see the dangers as they progress. You’ve left it. You’re departing from what’s most important. What is the first love? I believe the first love is love for the Lord himself. And I think Jesus indicated this in Matthew chapter 22. If I’m right, we all need to do some heart searching here, don’t we? Some real serious searching of our hearts as to whether we really love the Lord himself. Jesus said, I have this against you. Not I’m just concerned. I am against you. So the whole work of God is being hindered by one thing. What is it? The lack of love for the Lord himself. Come back to Revelation 2 and look at the challenge to the church. Verse 5. The challenge to the church. It’s interesting what he says. I wonder how many churches would speak of this kind of a revival. It says, remember therefore from where thou art fallen and repent. We apply repentance to many, many things. Usually sinful conduct. But do we understand that we need to repent when we have left the first love? Remember from where thou art fallen and repent and do the first works. Now, three things are said there, if I’m reading that right. You look at it for yourself. One is to remember from where you have fallen. In 2 Timothy 3, verse 4, he speaks about those who are lovers of themselves more than lovers of God. What is the number one hindrance to our loving God? What is the place that we need to remember from which we have fallen? Apparently, the number one competition to loving God is loving ourselves. And closely related is loving pleasure more than loving God. Check it out in 2 Timothy 3. 1 John 2 says, Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passes away in all of its lust, but he that does the will of God will abide forever. Interesting. Interesting. Remember from where you have fallen. Do we love ourselves more than we love God? Do we love pleasure more than we love God? We’re not only to remember, we are to repent. That word means a change of mind as well as conduct. We need a radical change. When this starts, it’s serious. It’s not to be treated lightly. And I have grown up, and so have you, in what I call a performance-oriented Christianity. And I fight it all the time. I’ve been taught to do a lot more than to love. And my books that I have read in my library are filled with it. God wants us to love him. And we’re not only to remember and repent, we are to return and do what the first works. How many of you have the New American Standard Bible? It says, do the deeds you did at first. Right? That’s an interpretation. This is not an issue of timing. It’s an issue of priorities. It should read the first works. That’s what the Greek text says. King James is right here. The efforts that flow from an intense love for God himself. It doesn’t mean do the deeds you did at the first. You could do those and still not love God. Do the first works is related to the first love. It’s dealing with priorities. What is the number one priority in our life? It should be to love God with all of our hearts. Our efforts for Christ will flow right out of it. In verse 5, look at the consequence which the church will face if it does not repent. He says, and will remove thy candlestick or thy lampstand out of its place, except thou repent. Notice there’s an immediate reaction that comes from the Lord himself. I will come unto thee quickly. He’s not talking about the second coming here. He’s talking about God moving in and dealing with the church and removing its influence. There’s a complete removal here of its light and its presence. I will remove thy lampstand out of its place. And that’s what happened in history to Ephesus. The church is no longer there. Many of you have been associated, no doubt, with churches or denominational groups that have long since departed from faithfulness to the Lord. But it can happen so quickly. And what happens is we don’t see where it starts. The seed that leads to the decay starts when we lose. Our love for the Lord himself. The number one reason we should gather together is not to hear a man entertain us, is not to hear musicians entertain us. The number one reason is the worship and praise of Almighty God. To come into this place and say, I love you, Lord. I love you with all my heart. And to say it over and over again. And to express the praise and worship of our hearts to him. That’s the number one reason we should gather together. In verse 7, notice the comfort which the Lord gives to individuals. I was kind of struck by this, that while he writes to the churches as a whole, in his comfort he says to him, the individual. Because sometimes the church is lost, but the individual is appealed to. To him that overcometh. I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. Let me just give you real quickly some statements about this. Verse 7. One, it is a message from the Holy Spirit. Did you notice that? Verse 7. Hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. The Holy Spirit is talking to us through his word and tells us that we’ve left the first love. Very important to understand. It’s a message for all the churches. He says, hear what the Spirit says, undo the churches. It’s not just for Ephesus. It’s for everyone. And third, it is for the one who overcomes. Who is the one who overcomes? I’ve heard people say about this, because it’s the same statement in all seven churches. They say, boy, I hope I can be an overcomer and really lick sinful habits in my life so I can eventually, hopefully get all these promises. Right? Turn to 1 John chapter 5. 1 John chapter 5. Who is the one who overcomes? According to John, the same man who wrote the book of Revelation wrote 1 John. Chapter 5, 1 John, verse 4 and 5. Who is the one who overcomes? Verse 4. For whatever is born of God overcometh the world. And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world? But he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God. Do we got any overcomers here? Go back to Revelation 2. Notice it is given by Jesus Christ, this comfort. He says very clearly in chapter 2, verse 7, To him that overcometh will I give. The Lord is giving. John 10, 28. Jesus said, I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. It’s given by Jesus Christ. What is this? It says, Folks, this is a promise of eternal life in the heavenly city. The tree of life was in the Garden of Eden. Genesis chapter 2 verse 9, chapter 3 verses 22 to 24. The tree they weren’t supposed to eat of was the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But in the middle of the garden was the tree of life. And after they had sinned, the angels were to send them out of the garden and then protect the way into the garden so that they wouldn’t come in and partake of the tree of life. Why? Because if they did, it would perpetuate the state of being eternally separated from God. Why? Because the tree represents eternal life. Very interesting point. We also see the tree is back in the book of Revelation, chapter 22. Turn there, please. Revelation 22, verse 2. God’s promise to those who are the overcomers, who truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, that he’ll give us to eat of the tree of life, the symbol that God’s always had of eternal life. And it’s in the middle of the paradise of God. Revelation 22, verse 2. In this heavenly city, it says, In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bore twelve kinds of fruits, and yielded a fruit every month, and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No more sickness, no more curse, no more death anymore. Look at verse 14. Blessed are they that wash their robes, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. And finally, verse 19. If any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the book, and many manuscripts read, from the tree of life and out of the holy city and from the things which are written in this book. The whole point is that it’s the promise of eternal life in the heavenly city of God. And it’s given to everyone who overcomes, and all those who are overcomers are those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. How interesting that he would end the whole book which says, I have this against you, you’ve left your first love, but by the way, I love you, and you’re going to make it anyway. So some of us will say, well, then it doesn’t really make any difference. I guess I’ll go out and continue to love myself and love pleasure, because after all, I’m going to make it anyway. Wrong. Bad attitude. Good. Do you know who is really being hurt by the failure to love God with all of your heart? Well, certainly God, you say, in an emotional way is hurt and grieved, yes. But do you know whose life is getting really messed up? Yours. Yours. Forget yourself for now. Have you ever met anybody that’s really in love with the Lord? I mean, they’re weird. They look happy when they should be sad. The world’s falling apart. But they just kind of, they’re kind of dingy. They walk around with just this joy and, hey man, isn’t it great? Praise the Lord. Hey, there’s no plumbing. My house just fell over the cliff. The rains, everything. Hey, praise the Lord. We needed a new one anyway. Love the Lord thy God with all my heart. I lost my job. Isn’t it exciting? I can’t wait to see what God’s going to do. And then you see the exact opposite. Because we love ourselves and we love pleasure and we’re loving the world and all of that. We’re all bent out of shape and everything’s a big burden and hassle and all of that. It’s obvious something’s wrong. What’s wrong? We’ve lost or left our first love. Let’s pray. Lord, you know us better than we know ourselves. And you know how easy it is for us to say the words and yet to lack the heart commitment to you. And Lord, for all of us who claim to be Christians, God, use this message you gave long ago to the church at Ephesus to stir our hearts to the major priority of life is to love you. Oh God, help us to focus on the worship and praise and love of our blessed Lord. Father, I pray for those that may be in the meeting right now who are not even sure that they will be in the heavenly city. We’re not sure they are the ones who have overcome. They’re not sure of their commitment to Jesus Christ. God, help them to do something about it now before it’s too late. We thank you in Jesus’ name. Amen.

SPEAKER 01 : 18:51

You know, one of our strong objectives here at Hope for Today is to proclaim the gospel, to make it so clear that people listening to our broadcast want to know, how do you get born again? How do you get saved, as we often hear it said? Well, folks, the first thing I would recommend is to repent of your sin. Confession of sin is a part of getting right with God. And I don’t know what’s going on in your life, but don’t try to hide. Come clean with the Lord. Secondly, understand that a church, an organization doesn’t save you. Hope for Today can’t save you. Now, we can tell you how to get saved, but the only one who can save you is our Lord. The Bible says, I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no man cometh unto the Father but by me. The one who paid for your sin and will deliver you from sin, death, and hell is is our Lord Yeshua, our Lord Jesus Christ. And right now might be a good time for you to just open your heart to Him. Lord, I know I’m a sinner, and I need to confess my sin to You and to trust what Your Son has done for me. He’s my Savior. I receive him as my Lord and my King, and thank you for loving me as you do. And I give my heart to you, and I want to see you in heaven. God bless you.

SPEAKER 03 : 20:46

Well, that’s David Hawking. And friend, if you’d like to know more about becoming a Christian according to God’s Word, let us send you David’s free booklet called What Is Christianity? in a Bible study by mail. Both of these are great tools to help you discover what it means to be a Christian according to the Word. and if you’re a new believer, to help you get started in your walk with God. Call us at 1-800-75-BIBLE to request yours. That’s in the U.S. Or in Canada, call 888-75-BIBLE. And Bible is 242-53. Well, just before David returns to close out our time, Matt Hawking is here, and we have something that might just change the way you think about the subject of Babylon.

SPEAKER 04 : 21:30

This month, we’re featuring a special price on my dad’s book, Babylon, its history and prophecies. It’s a study guide and commentary of scriptures addressing Babylonianism. Normally $15, but just $10 in June.

SPEAKER 03 : 21:43

Matt, the ancient city of Babylon holds a pivotal place in Bible prophecy, symbolizing human pride and the idolatrous world system opposed to God Babylon was famous for.

SPEAKER 04 : 21:55

You know, scripture declares that Babylon’s ultimate fate is one of sudden divine judgment.

SPEAKER 03 : 22:00

Revelation chapter 17 and 18, John describes an end times Babylon the great doomed to fall under God’s wrath.

SPEAKER 04 : 22:08

Yeah, as an angel announces, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen. And a heavenly voice calls God’s people to come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins.

SPEAKER 03 : 22:17

It’s an authoritative warning that reminds you and me and everyone listening that no matter how powerful the Babylonian world system appears, and it is prevalent and powerful today, isn’t it?

SPEAKER 04 : 22:27

And the Lord’s going to ultimately judge it, urging God’s people to remain faithful and untainted.

SPEAKER 03 : 22:32

Well, again, we’re featuring a special price on David’s book, Babylon, Its History and Prophecies. Now, normally $15, just $10 in June.

SPEAKER 04 : 22:41

Order at davidhawking.org, davidhawking.org, or call us in Canada at 1-888-75-BIBLE. In the U.S., call us at 1-800-75-BIBLE. And Bible by the Numbers is 242-53.

SPEAKER 03 : 22:55

By the way, if you’ve been studying Revelation with us here on radio, we want to strongly encourage you to request David’s complete study notes for the series. Now, these aren’t just surface bullet points. They’re full outlines for all 48 messages packed with scripture references. cross-references, historical background, and clear biblical insight to help you follow along more closely with David and to study more effectively and maybe even teach others. The complete set, all 48 messages, just $10, and we have this available in print or download format. To order the Revelation series study notes, you can do that online at davidhawking.org. And from the website, you can purchase and download right away, or call us at 800-75-BIBLE for the print version, or in Canada at 888-75-BIBLE. And by the way, if you’d like to include a donation, maybe a one-time gift or a monthly contribution, you can do that online by phone or by writing to Hope for Today, Box 3927, Tustin, California, 92781. In Canada, it’s, hope for today, Box 15011, RPO, Seven Oaks, Abbotsford, B.C., V2S, 8P1. Let’s get back to our study. Here’s David.

SPEAKER 01 : 24:16

Thanks for listening, friends. We’re excited about the book of Revelation, and I hope you are too. We’re going to wrap up chapter 2, verses 1 to 7, and that’s the message to the church at Ephesus who had neglected priorities. They had left their first love. And by the way, we’re going to get into our next study, chapter 2, verses 8 to 11, and that’s the church at Smyrna. I’ve been there. Beautiful place. but something’s wrong. When we teach the book of Revelation, it’s hard to not go over and over and over again. I read it all the time. This is God’s message. It’s the Lord’s last words to our churches. Therefore, it’s extremely important for us to study carefully and to know what He was telling them. And I hope that you will check out our website, davidhocking.org, and look at all the resources that are available to you related to Bible prophecy and the book of Revelation. So plan to be with us. God bless you.

SPEAKER 03 : 25:37

Well, thank you, David. And next time on Hope for Today, we move into one of the most intense and faith-building sections in the early chapters of Revelation. Jesus has a message for the church in Smyrna, a church facing poverty, persecution, and even death. And with all of that, they’re called to remain faithful. The title, Satanic Opposition. It’s real, it’s relentless, and it’s something believers still face today. Well, join us as we press into Revelation chapter 2, verses 8 through 11. And be sure to invite a friend to listen along with you as we bring you the Bible, the whole Bible, nothing but the Bible, right here on Hope for Today.