Church In Ephesus
Author: Pat Aman
““To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”
Revelation 2:1-7 NIV
When we are first saved, we are on fire…And this is quite natural to have an excitement and zeal for learning and living by God’s instructions.
But as time goes by, just like the smell of a new car, our excitement starts to decline. Our excitement for God can fade or dissipate. Maybe because we are in a church congregation that does not teach us about life, or building one another up in prayer. Even the Pastor and other members are in a sluggish routine and has fallen into the same trap. Maybe we get slack in prayer time and Bible study. Maybe we let life’s ups and downs take us away from assembling together with other Christians.
What apparently happened to these members at Ephesus was that over time, they began drifting away from God. Christ told them that they needed to “repent and do the first works” if they wanted to remain a part of the Church of God (Revelation 2:5).
We must remember that God will remove any and all candlesticks in our lives that we put before Him. Anything that becomes an altar of self indulgence, and removes God from our lives.
Just as God told the Church In Ephesus to get back to Him, and the ministry set before them, we must do the same.
Return to God our first love.
God bless you,
Pat
Devotion Written By: Pastor Pat Aman Book © 1996/2020 “Coffee With Pat Daily Devotionals” and Christian Faith Publishers ….
Study Notes: The NKJB
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