Part 3 The Seven Churches in Revelation… A Case Study of Love Grown Cold
The Seven Churches In the Book of Revelation... An Explanatory Case Study of Love Grown Cold
Part 3
Tuesday April 29, 2025
Deuteronomy 32:1-4 NKJV
"Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; And hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. [2] Let my teaching drop as the rain, My speech distill as the dew, As raindrops on the tender herb, And as showers on the grass. [3] For I proclaim the name of the LORD: Ascribe greatness to our God. [4] He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.
The church in Ephesus… the unloving church, or Christian.
Revelation 2:1-7
Charge: Left first love
Revelation 2:4 Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
Hope/Correction: Repent, Return
Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else, I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place— unless you repent.
The Ephesian church used to love the Lord but along the way some things happened that lured their hearts away from their first love.
Love for God is always hindered by love for self.
3 Important Questions of the day.
What does love for God look like?
What are the biggest obstacles to loving God?
How can I know if my love for God is waxing cold?
Question 1: What does love for God look like?
Love and Pleasure
Love and pleasure always go hand in hand… the one we love is the one we seek to please.
Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken, he had this testimony that he pleased God.
John 14:15 LSB
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
John 14:21 NKJV
He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."
2 John 1:4 LSB
I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we received commandment from the Father.
3 John 1:3-4 NLT
Some of the traveling teachers recently returned and made me very happy by telling me about your faithfulness and that you are living according to the truth. [4] I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the truth.
The one we seek to please is the one we love.
The greatest expression of true love was uttered by our Lord Jesus when He said, “Not my will but Yours be done.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-5 NLT
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud [5] or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.
This is a good home-test kit for us to help us know if we love God. In every decision we make, do we seek to please God or ourselves? In other words, whose will is paramount to us?
God is not opposed to our pleasure. Infact, God seeks our pleasure.
Psalm 103:1-5 NKJV
Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! [2] Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: [3] Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, [4] Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, [5] Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
James 1:17 NKJV
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
1 Timothy 6:17 NLT
Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment.
Seeking to please God will serve as a safeguard against corruption.
Every good thing can be corrupted if it is pursued for selfish reasons.
1 Timothy 6:17 NKJV
Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor
to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.
All the 9 elements of the fruit of the Spirit can be corrupted if we seek
them for ourselves. We get them for ourselves, we get to enjoy them only
when we seek them for the benefit of others.
A great paradox of our faith is that the more we give of a thing, the more of it we get, and the more of it we keep for ourselves, the less of it we have.
Luke 6:38 ESV
Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken
together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure
you use it will be measured back to you."
It can be easily observed that givers always have something to give while
selfish people seem to never have enough.
True givers give so that others may be blessed and they are happy and
fulfilled just at the opportunity to give.
Transactional givers give only with their own increased blessings in
mind and will not be happy until they get a return on their investment.
And even then, they may still remain unhappy, if they get less than they
were expecting.
Love is of the heart while work is of the hands.
“How are you,” is a more important question than, “What do you do?”
The first question asks about the condition of the heart, where you are
and who you are. The 2nd asks about your work, your accomplishments.
Without any doubt, work is important.
John 5:17 ESV
But Jesus answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I am
working.”
John 9:4 LSB
We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is
coming when no one can work.
2 Thessalonians 3:10 LSB
For even when we were with you, we used to command this to you: if
anyone is not willing to work, neither let him eat.
As important as work is the quality of one's work in God's eyes is determined by one's heart, one's motives, etc.
1 Corinthians 3:9-15 LSB
For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. [10]
According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master
builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man
must be careful how he builds on it. [11] For no one can lay a foundation
other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. [12] Now if anyone
builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay,
straw, [13] each man’s work will become evident, for the day will indicate
it because it is revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of
each man’s work. [14] If any man’s work which he has built on it remains,
he will receive a reward. [15] If any man’s work is burned up, he will
suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.
Philippians 1:15-18 LSB
Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but
some also from good will; [16] the latter do it out of love, knowing that I
am appointed for the defense of the gospel; [17] the former proclaim
Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to
cause me affliction in my chains. [18] What then? Only that in every way,
whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in this I
rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice,
