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Sunday 4/19/26
Title: Faith of our Fathers Pt. 2
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Faith of our Fathers Pt. 2
Go ahead and turn to Revelation 2…
As I said at the beginning of last week, we’ve been covering faith and hope for months now.
One thing we highlighted was that faith is not just something exercised for initial salvation but is part of the living relationship we continue in with God throughout our lives.
“The just, will live by faith”
Perhaps the most often emphasized expression of faith, mentioned throughout the New Testament is our faith in Jesus to complete and bring to maturity His image within us.
This requires growing in our knowing.
To come to know Him more and as a result trust Him more.
You can only trust God to the degree that you know Him.
But after weeks of bearing down on this, I felt as if we had bitten off more than we could chew – so to speak. And so I felt we needed more bite sized or baby stepped examples lifted from scripture to illustrate in everyday examples HOW to live our life of faith in Christ.
So using the stated condition of the early church in Acts 2:42-43 as our starting point, we opened up the book of Revelation to see the encouragements Jesus gave to the churches.
These are the very churches which arose from the group we find in Acts 2:42-43, some of which we have letters written to in the New Testament.
In Revelation chapters 2 & 3 Jesus addressed 7 churches in Asia which by then had existed for 30-60 years. So they, like we, had time for the strength of their initial conversion to experience the buffeting that time brings.
The first church we run into is from Ephesus. This is very convenient for us since we have spent so much time in Ephesians in the past few years. We know the history of this church and in many ways we mirror some of its troubles.
So let’s begin in verse 1 of Revelation 2.
Revelation 2:1-7,
“(1) To the angel of the church in Ephesus, write the following:”
That Paul had established it, spending quite a bit of time there over the years – even living there for just under 3 years at one point.
He had left Aquila and Prisca (or Proscilla) there.
Later he sent Timothy to Ephesus, as we know from the letters Paul sent to Timothy while helping to establish pastors over this little church.
It was imperative to strengthen these people in the faith or they would be wiped out through nothing more than neglect of the maintenance of sound doctrine.
You may remember that the saints in Ephesus were WAY outnumbered by the pagan citizens of that city by 99.98%.
For a visual, consider that Palmetto (not including Ellenton or Parrish – but just Palmetto) is about 2,800 acres and as recently as the 2020 census was populated by under 14,000 people.
Ephesus had 250,000 people in an area 5x’s smaller than Palmetto!
So, you can imagine that in these conditions, encountering false doctrine was not simply a daily affair, but was immediate and never ending. They were literally drowning in a Pagan culture which was itself an epicenter of Pagan worship.
You see, the city of Ephesus was where the Temple of Artemis (or Artemision) was located – or rather just outside of the city proper. This temple was dedicated to the Greek goddess of hunting and fertility and was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was the center of economic and religious life in the city.
The temple was a massive structure, a full four times the size of the Parthenon in Athens. It was also known as the “bank” of the ancient world. It literally served as a safe depository for massive amounts of wealth deposited by kings, cities, and private individuals, shielded by religious immunity from looting. It functioned as a financial hub managed by priests.
So this had it all. It had religious power and appeal, architectural power and appeal as well as financial power and appeal.
Christianity offered none of that!
So you can imagine, the pressure to conform was enormous!
This is to say nothing of the daily objections they likely faced regarding the defense of their beliefs!
Now these Ephesian believers, like all the churches of the first century, did not meet in one central building, but from house to house – which in large part, is what kept this church from fading away in the annals of history as a sad footnote of failure.
Paul’s last contact with this church was through its pastors. Paul visited the elders on his way to Jerusalem near the end of his third missionary journey, around 55–57 A.D. – this is recorded in Acts 20:17–38.
It was at this time that Paul warned these pastors of wolves who were going to rise up among them to lead the flock away into false doctrine, charging them with the responsibility to watch over them with tenacity.
Here are the words Paul used,
“(28) Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. (29) I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; (30) and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. (31) Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears. (32) And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”– Acts 20:28-32
Notice the last big warning these pastors received from the apostle’s mouth was regarding the need to solidify the saints in sound Doctrine.
That is really really important to our lesson today!
History reveals that these pastors took their warning seriously and labored hard in teaching and preaching!
The struggle within the saints there was to strike a balance between rigor in regard to sound doctrine, while simultaneously not losing the intimacy of relationship with Christ – which is in fact, what happened to the Ephesians.
THAT is what Jesus is addressing here in Revelation 2 which was written nearly 35 years later!
In Jesus’ address to them He praised them for…
- Their adherence to sound doctrine.
- For not being able to tolerate false teachers and apostles.
- For hating the teachings of the Nicolatians which He also hates
BUT… He had one thing against them which was every bit as dangerous as their previous condition of instability in doctrine.
Let’s finish reading verse 1… (ESV)
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of Him Who holds the seven stars in His right hand, Who walks among the seven golden lampstands.”
Notice Jesus has the angelic messengers of these saints in Ephesus within His firm grasp.
Also since we read in chapter 1 that Jesus Himself walked among the seven golden lampstands, which represents the churches, we see that Jesus was diligent to keep His promise that if “two or more were gathered together” in His name He would be among them.
To bring this to an immediate application to us this morning I want you to challenge your mind to be equally aware of this fact. Not just this morning, but we must reverently and respectfully remember that God never changes. That if Jesus ever walked among the churches, then He still does.
It is our claim that we truly want to worship Jesus “in spirit and in truth” and so here is an opportunity to do just that! Discipline your mind to acknowledge and bow the knee to the fact that Jesus Himself is among us at this very moment.
That was in large part, why I included the song “Wont Relent” this morning into our worship. That song includes a line which we would encourages us to nap out of our trance and engage with Christ as we worship Him. It says,
“I don’t want to talk about You, like You’re not in the room. I want to look right at You – I want to sing right to You!”
There was a day in Ephesus you would never have had to tell the believers such an encouragement. It was their common experience, just like it may have been for you at some point. So our encouragement to live our our trust in Christ begins here this morning – in a very practical and accessible place.
Discipline your mind to focus on His promise that He IS HERE.
Sing your praise. Express your worship – not about Him, but TO HIM!
He IS in fact here. Not due to any feeling or virtue we possess as a church but only in order to watch over and be among His Own even as He promised.
After all, in all practicality, what would we think of a shepherd who is not among His sheep, especially when they are in the sheepfold and being fed?
This means a lot! The intimacy of this is so intense that the soul wants to look away. Holding the gaze of God is unnerving. As the writer of Hebrews said, “we have not come to the mountain that can be touched” The one that Moses, the friend of God said, “I tremble with fear” when he stood before the mountain God had descended upon.
No, the writer of Hebrews said, “we have come to the city of the living God, and to God (Himself), the judge of all, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant. See that you do not refuse Him Who is speaking. At that time His voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, to shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”
“It is a fearful thing!”
It is THAT Jesus, Who walks among His churches – this church. As small and insignificant as it may appear. Is it just a coincidence that Jesus said He is present if it were only two gathered in His name? For such were the gatherings of the early church.
And yet, Jesus Himself tells us “to not be afraid”.
Since each of the addresses to the 7 churches ends with a warning that could lead to Jesus removing their church – His presence among us is both comforting and ominous.
The shepherd does not bear the Staff and the Rod in vain.
Verse 2
“‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false.”
One of the first things we see is Jesus knows what we are doing.
His eyes are open and He is full understanding.
As the scripture says, “everything is open and exposed to the eyes of Him to Whom we must give an account” (Hebrews 4:13).
This is not a threat but rather a blessed assurance. And if ever it feels like a threat it only does so due to a conscience which is not settled and at rest in the presence of their Shepherd.
It serves as a litmus test or a shot across the bow. A warning and encouragement to seek Him and settle down before Him in gentle submission for our Shepherd is good!
Verse 3
“I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary.”
We see here too that He not only knows what we ARE DOING but He is immediately aware of what we HAVE done.
Our Good Shepherd acknowledges those things that we have done out of respect, devotion and love to Him, His name and His kingdom Authority. He shows appreciation and approval.
But He is our Shepherd and as such He holds, as I said earlier, His staffand rodin His hands.
You remember what David said in the 23rd psalm – “Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me”
What is the difference between the rod and the staff?
In Psalm 23:4, the “rod” and “staff” represent God’s protection and guidance as a shepherd.
The rod is a short, blunt weapon used to fight off predators as well as an instrument for inspecting and disciplining the sheep.
“Well that later part doesn’t sound too comforting” you might say. But we know that only those the Lord loves does He chasten and scourge every child He receives.
I will tell you, having even recently been corrected by God, it is one of the most intimate times any child can experience with the Father. Along with His correction is a very intense and inescapable awareness of belonging and protection that if you have ears to hear – eyes to perceive – will encourage humility in your heart as well as submission with gratitude!
As for the staff, it is a long, slender stick with a hook used to guide, rescue, and draw sheep close for more gentle correction.
Together, these are our Shepherd’s tools of the trade, offering safety and guidance, signaling that the Shepherd is present and actively caring for the flock which we see in these next two verses.
Verses 4-5,
“But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.
Remember therefore 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.”
The warning “if you do not repent” primarily implies a shift from a complacent, lukewarm state (rather than overt, angry rebellion) that, if left uncorrected, becomes a conscious, defiant decision to ignore Christ’s direct instruction.
The Ephesians were not being rebuked for scandalous immorality, but for having “forsaken their first love” (Revelation 2:4). This is characterized as a gradual decline, a settling into a “manageable, nice, even orderly” routine where hard work remained, but heartfelt passion for Christ was replaced by mechanical duty FOR Him.
Jesus‘ encouragement and command was a call to “repent“. This does not merely mean feeling sorry; it is a call to change the mind and reverse course, specifically to “do the works they did at first“.
By adding “if you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand,” Jesus turns this apathy into a crucial test. If they know they have fallen from their first state because he has made them consciously aware of it, but they refuse to change their course, they are effectively choosing to defy Christ’s authority.
So this phrase highlights that failing to take action to return to their initial fervor and ardor towards Him will be viewed as a serious form of disobedience, essentially showing indifference to the warning of their Shepherd, which, if ignored, constitutes disobedience and bears the consequence of their assembly being removed.
Now I do not want to bear down on this too hard, but this is important. None of the New Testament letters were written to the pastors and neither were the letters to these 7 churches in Asia. These letters were written to the church itself. Now to be sure the pastors were part of these churches and were therefore included in the letter and the need for obedience, but it was written to everybody!
This is not to imply that sometimes churches fall into states like this one largely due to their leadership. But in the end, each person is still responsible for their own walk with God.
It is an all too familiar refrain in today’s world, to pass the buck or a failing Christian walk to the leadership of a church. To claim “woundedness” or “abuse” (not that these things do not legitimately happen) but to use them as an excuse for Vice. This might work to garner sympathy and an excuse for complacency here on Earth when those you are living before are just simpletons who are looking for an excuse themselves.
But when we stand before God, I doubt very seriously any of us will even have the brass to mention such excuses. There standing in His presence… staring into His eyes – we will at once be aware of how hollow these excuses sound and in fact have always been.
We see in a few of the letters of Paul that regardless of all of his efforts and prayers and investments into various city churches, that there were times that he was afraid that he had “labored over them in vain”.
I want you to take stock regarding this because on the earth, pastors are nothing more than under-Shepherds – they are not the Chief Shepherd.
Flocks that under-shepherds have devoted themselves to, can through negligence, determine whether or not that Shepherd will be able to continue to do his shepherding work.
If they do not repent, Jesus Himself will remove the church and this can happen through no fault of the leadership at all.
Of course, you all know me well enough to know that I am very transparent about my faults and I am not claiming that my influence is always perfect. That is clearly not possible!
So I’m not attempting to pass the buck either. But what I am trying to do is press upon your consciousness the seriousness of what we do to one another.
We are not an island unto ourselves and what we do affects everyone else within our sphere of influence.
As Martin Luther said, “there are but two days on my calendar – this day and That Day”. So it is that we have two days in which these things come home to roost.
Today in which we are being called by Jesus to judge yourself that we might not be judged.
Then we have THAT Day, when we will stand before Him and our words pass before us, being tested by the fire to see if they are worthy of the honor and praise and glory of Our Lord.
May I press upon your consciences even as the spirit of God pressed upon mine, that what we treated with less than ardor and passion regarding the Lord today, will on that day be the only thing that matters at all.
Do not let the deception and the blinding effect of this age deafen your ears to the One Who speaks. Because the One Who speaks in these verses is still speaking today.
This isn’t just my words but in just two more verses we will see Jesus saying, “those who have an ear to hear Let Them hear”.
Verses 6 & 7
“Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
To the one who conquers (or overcomes) I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’
Just to bring this back around to ongoing faith in Christ – like Paul said,
“I have been crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live. And the life I now live in the flesh I live BY FAITH in the One Who loved me, and gave Himself for me. I DO NOT set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness came by the law, then Jesus died for nothing!”
1 John tells us that what empowered us to overcome the world, is our faith! – 1 Jn. 5:4
So this assembly of believers in Ephesus had their doctrine down – that problem had been successfully addressed by the pastors following the warnings given them by the Holy Spirit through Paul. And not only that, the congregation diligently heeded these sound words of teaching, correction and encouragement.
I can’t press upon you strongly enough that these people took their doctrine seriously.
But over the course of time, they had lost the passion of their youth.
They possessed a real knowledge and zeal for sound doctrine, but it read and communicated like an accounting ledger rather than a love story.
All the facts were there, but it didn’t take their breath away! (also sounds like something we covered two Wednesday nights ago in the Song of Solomon chapter 6) – [See – Reveling].
Now this makes this first church of Ephesus a great introductory template for where I believe we are.
I have invested a veritable TON of teaching in you all.
I am of course personally, a work in progress both as a person and a pastor – I will not deny that. But one thing I know, I have labored hard in the Word and in doctrine. Perhaps even to the fault of not always being as open to inspiration as I once was.
These believers had SO MUCH going for them! They had the perfect environment in which to thrive, but even still it was SO EASY to fall off on the right or left side of the ditch.
Believers tend to live more consistent lives when they are in the midst of some type of opposition if not outright oppression. It causes them to stay close to their center – to what anchors them.
Close to their small gatherings of brothers and sisters they spiritually “grew up with”.
To their leaders, many of whom they knew, “back when” and had therefore witnessed first hand, the transforming resurrection power of Christ in their lives as witnessed in their true maturity in Christ. The lasting impact Jesus’ investment in them had made and finally in Jesus honoring them by placing them into the ministry over His sheep.
There was no real sense of safety in their greater society, no sense of truly belonging in the world since they knew and had partaken of the truth.
The world held little attraction to these Ephesian believers and was in fact, at least to a limited degree, hostile to them.
This kept them pretty close to home.
These believers had the right circumstances in which to thrive, yet still they wandered.
So how did they fall out of love? Well that’s a loaded question and one we will address next week. But I want to set something before you that I will no doubt mention again.
Notice, Jesus did not say to them “You no longer love Me at all”.
He said, “You’ve lost your first love”.
Obviously this means they love Him, but they loved Him less than they had. The coals were still smoking but the fire had gone out and Jesus said, this is serious enough for Me to remove you Church if it remains uncorrected.
If I have asked myself this once, I’ve asked it a thousand times. “I wonder how many churches today have been removed, but are still gathering crowds”?
The unavoidable follow up question is, “where are we?”
Well one thing I know, there is compassion and restoration with God. So that regardless of where we are, nothing is too far gone.
What did Isaiah say to an Israel that was FAR more gone than this church in Ephesus ever was?
“(6) Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; (7) let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (8) For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.” – Isaiah 55:6-8
Blessings!
Blessings!
