Revelation 2 Jesus gives John a message for the Ephesian church. He commends them for their hard work and standing for truth, then He says this : “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.” That is, they have abandoned their love of God and, consequently, love for others. They don’t love Jesus the way they used to. They love truth, but they’ve lost their love for Jesus. The Ephesians have replaced that love with a zeal for doctrinal purity. As they work hard, their hearts are moving away from Jesus.
While teaching truth is absolutely vital, teaching that truth with the right motivation is just as necessary. Where there’s a lack of love and passion for Christ, there’s a lack of love for people. And that matters because love opens people’s hearts so they can hear and receive truth. Love is what moves a heart and demonstrates that truth is real. So both truth and love are crucial if we are going to be effective for the Kingdom.
One commentator painted the basic scenario. A person becomes a believer and in their zeal and giftedness, they get so involved, the work becomes the priority and a shift occurs. They become motivated more by the organization and its goals, so their first love gets replaced by a habit of activity that never would have brought them to Christ in the first place.
What might be drawing you away from putting Jesus first? If that’s happening, what’s the remedy? What’s the remedy when you or I or a church loses its love for God and others? Jesus says, verse 5, “Consider how far you have fallen!” That is, examine yourself to see how you may have changed.
Posted in Staff Blog