Who Is Your First Love?

Revelations 2:1-7 (NASB)

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:

‘I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place unless you repent. Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.’

Devotional:

Here Jesus is speaking to the church of Ephesus.  On one hand He praises the church for their hard work and perseverance.  But then Jesus encourages them to repent.  At some point they lost their first love.  Christ is warning them to return or He will remove the church.  He will remove their “Lampstand.”  Reading through the Old Testament we see where the Israelites time after time fell away, they left their first love.  We can see through the book of Judges as well as through the kings after David.   Eventually Israel bore God’s judgment and was conquered.  The nation was defeat and its people scattered.

Look at your own life.  Can you see where it is that you have left your first love?  Is Jesus your focus, the center of your life?  Reread verses 1-7 again.  Then reflect and compare what is written to your own life.  Paul time and again tells us to run the good race and to persevere.  We are to take up our cross daily.  If we are not careful we can lose our first love and replace it with something of this world.  What is important to you?  Where is your heart?  Jesus says the following in Matthew 6:21 (NASB), “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  Where your heart is will determine what your focus is on.  Do you put your focus on God?  Is your love for God central in your life?  If not I encourage you to make God your “first love.”  God needs to be the number one priority in your daily life.

Things Past, Present, and Future

Scripture:

Revelations 1:12-20 (NASB)

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.

When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades. Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things. As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Devotional:

John turned around and saw Jesus standing before him.  Verse 17 and 18says, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”  Jesus is the first and last, the Alpha and Omega.  Christ died upon the cross and was resurrected upon the third day.  Death has no hold upon Him.  He is victorious and through his victory we are given life.

John is instructed to write what he sees in his vision.  It is my impression that some of them have already happened as well as things that have not happened yet.  In verse 19, “Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.”  Jesus is stating things you have seen, something that has happened.  Then write things that are, presently going on.  Finally write about things yet to come, future happenings. Also in chapter two we will find that Jesus is talking about seven churches, the lampstands.  That He elaborates on things that are going on at that time.  Revelations 2:4 states, “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.”  Each of the seven churches are named and given praise as well as their sinfulness.  

Jesus is the Alpha and Omega.  He has concurred death.  We will either die, ultimately be thrown into the lake of fire, or reside in Hell, or we will live because of Christ.  It is through Him that we are offered life and given a place in Heaven.  Revelations is a book of warnings.  We are shown things from the past as well as what is to come.  We are given the chance to prepare ourselves.  No one knows when, but the time will come.  Where is Christ in your heart?  Are you ready for Him?

The Beginning of the End

Scripture:
Revelation 1:1-8 (NASB)

The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.

John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Devotional:

Revelation, whose revelation and what is revelation?  Who is this letter for anyway?  Surely not me and not today.  Revelation is to take something hidden or unknown and to make it known.  It is to enlighten those who otherwise have no knowledge of.  So we can start by understanding that John received a vision or prophesy about things to come.  This letter was written for all believers.  Revelations is not for a select or elite group.  Luke 11:28 states “But He said, On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.’” 

The next question to ask ourselves is who is giving John these visions of the future.  The direct and simple answer is God.  God revealed these things to Jesus who passed them on to John through an angel.  What authority does the revealer have?  Revelations 1:8, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’” God who is Jehovah our redeemer is the one with ultimate authority.  God is the creator of all things.  Genesis 1:1 (NIV), “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

 You might be wondering what does this have to do with me today.  You might be asking why and does it really apply to me.  I have heard it said that we are in the beginning of the end times.  People believe that Jesus’s return is near.  Certainly there is evidence to support this.  Signs are everywhere.  However, in the Bible there are scriptures to support that the beginning of the end started over two thousand years ago. 1 John 2:18 (NASB), “Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.”  Also Acts 2:16-17 (NASB) states the following.

but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:
‘And it shall be in the last days,’ God says,
‘That I will pour forth of My Spirit on all mankind;
And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
And your young men shall see visions,
And your old men shall dream dreams;  

After Christ ascended into Heaven He sent a “suitable helper” to all believers starting with the Apostles.  God the Holy Spirit is among us and has been since the Apostles first received the Holy Spirit so many years ago.  I do not necessarily believe we are close to the end.  I think it will be several generations at least before Jesus returns and the end times are in full force.  I have several different reasons for believing this and can elaborate on them in a later.  

Regardless of which of these stages we are in we must be prepared.  That makes this passage and the entire book of Revelations relevant to each one of us.  Jesus said in Mark 13:21-33 (NIV), “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.”  Jesus also says His return will be like a thief in the night.  No one knows.  All we can do is wait, watch, and be ready.  We are told what signs to look for.  Certainly those signs seem to be evident, but then they have always been there since the beginning.  

I urge you not to be caught off guard.  Be ready, reach out to everyone you can so that they too will be ready.  OK how do we become ready?  Grow in your relationship with Jesus…

Just A Simple Thank You

Just A Simple Thank You

Scripture:
Luke 17:11-19 (NIV)

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him and he was a Samaritan.

Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

Devotional:

Have you ever done something nice for someone?  Have you gone out of your way for someone?  Only to have them ignore you and not even acknowledge your good deed.  There have been times when someone is trying to pull out onto a street.  Only they are having trouble getting out because of traffic.  I let them in and they race off without even a nod from them.  There have been times I would open or hold a door for someone only to have them whip past without even looking toward me.  It is as if they don’t look at me I don’t exist.  Most of the time though when I hold open a door I get a smile and a word of thanks.

If doing for others is only for acknowledgement or to receive thanks I think we missed the boat.  One out of ten people returned to Jesus to give Him thanks.  Jesus healed knowing only one would return.  Jesus didn’t heal the men so that they would all come back to give Him thanks. 

What is our focus?  Are our tasks motivated on praise or thanks back to us?  Is the focus on us?  Instead our focus should be on others.  We should focus on God and what pleases Him not our own gratification.  Getting a thank you is nice, but shouldn’t be why we do something.

Next time don’t get upset if you do not receive a thank you.  Just know you did it for God.  Also when someone does something for you don’t forgive to give thanks.  You are not only giving them thanks but you are thanking God.

So thank you God for all you have done and given.