4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word Podcast

The Mind of Christ: A Unified Church

As many of you know, recently I’ve developed a deep passion for the Church Renewal Movement. In other words, help struggling, sick, dying and dead churches find new life through revitalization and replanting. In my studies on the subject, one thing has become very clear to me: The cause for most sick, dying, or dead churches can be boiled down to simple lack of unity. Forget the back-biting, politics, and sneering faces that represent the absolute worst many churches have to offer. It’s honestly as simple as people (many of whom are good and friendly) doing their own thing for their own reasons and under their own power. They scramble for footholds and build strongholds to cement their place of prestige within a local church and to ensure their own influence. And gradually, over a time, a church is laid to rest because of it. Many of you know what I’m talking about. Many of you have seen it or experienced it first hand and if you haven’t, then maybe you are the one placing your own prestige above everything else. Either way, it’s a shame to see, but very common. So, one might wonder if it’s that common, how any church can fix their issues? The simple answer: they must attain unity. That might be a simple answer, but putting it to practice is the real trick, right? Well, stick with me because thankfully, Paul addresses that very question in today’s passage! If you have your Bible, open them to Philippians 2:1-11 Philippians 2:1–11 (NASB 2020) ~ 1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross. 9 For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Before we continue… Here’s a little point-by-point background on the occasion of the letter. * The book of Philippians is primarily a thank you letter. * While in prison (actually, house arrest) awaiting trial in Rome, the Philippians sent Paul a gift (he doesn’t say what this gift is, but he treasured it). They sent this gift along with a guy named Apaphroditus, who was sent to take care of Paul’s needs. * Apaphroditus was so committed to Paul he became ill and nearly died, so Paul wanted to commend his service to his church when he was well enough to travel back to them. * While he’s thanking them, Paul takes some time to address some potential issues he sees developing within the church: * Judaizers (and maybe a couple of other anti-Paul groups) have been creeping into the church. Judaizers were a group of people (mostly Jewish Christians) who believed that Gentiles should be required to follow Jewish law in order to be saved (ie circumcision). * Paul had already taken care of this heresy among the other Apostles, but many Judaizers were never satisfied with the outcome, so they caused problems for him wherever he went. * This group (and others) were causing some division among the church in Philippi. * In this passage, Paul is asking the Philippian church to unify and wants them to know that by doing so, joy will abound! The first thing we want to take a look at is the Joy of Unity! The Joy of Unity Philippians 2:1–4 (NASB 2020) ~ 1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. From these four verses, what kind of Unity are we, as a church, suppose to have? We are to have Unity of Mind * It’s about being unified in attitude. * …In purpose. * …In mission. * And most importantly, in theology. * If we don’t agree with what God says, how can we unite on anything? If we don’t know who God is (THEO-logy = The study of God (i.e. His character, attributes, nature, etc), how can we agree on what He expects from us. * If we say God is love, how can we agree on what love is if we don’t have an understanding of God’s definition of love? * When I talk about unity in the church, I’m not talking about ecumenical nonsense, by the way. Ecumenicism would say the Church Universal needs to have a unified front despite differences in theological ideas. If a church excuses sin or teaches a Jesus outside the confines of Scripture, we have no business unifying with them. We are to have Unity of Heart * We are to have the same love. * …love of God. * …love for one another. * …love for the community. * …love for a lost world. We are to have Unity of Hands This is essentially a church’s ministry. It’s service to the community. The Church has one dedicated purpose that is realized in various ways: * To glorify God through reflecting Christ within our community. * Tending to others’ needs above our own - our church’s needs, our community’s needs, our neighbors’ needs, etc. So, the real question is, how do we attain this unity? Attaining Unity Philippians 2:5–8 (NASB 2020) ~ 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant andbeing born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross. So, from these three verses, how do you think we attain unity? Well, if you’re a Star Trek fan, think of it like a ‘Christian Mindmeld!’ We attain this unity as a church by adopting the same attitude (or Mind) of Christ! The word translated as ‘attitude’ literally means ‘mind.’ That being said, the translators of the New American Standard Bible (as well as several others) felt that ‘mind’ was a little too archaic and might cause confusion, so they opted to get to the heart of the word by translating it ‘mind.’ Personally, I think a better word might be ‘mindset’ or even ‘worldview.’ So, what exactly is Christ’s mindset or attitude that we’re supposed to adopt? Well, let’s look at the text above again. * First, Christ didn’t cling to his divinity. Although He was in every way God—pre-existent, all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent, etc—He was willing to set that divinity aside for us! * He emptied Himself. This doesn’t mean He stripped Himself of His divinity altogether. He certainly limited it during His time on earth, but it was always at His beck and call. Instead, He chose not to take advantage of His divinity and live just like the rest of us (only without sinning). He emptied Himself of His majesty…of His privilege and power and might. * If you want to fill a cup with a fresh beverage, you must first empty it or else, you’ll have a mixture of old and new. Christ emptied His cup so He might become fully Man, as well as fully God. * Not only did He empty Himself, He lowered Himself and became a servant. Not just a servant, but a bond-servant. A slave. Someone whose rights have been stripped away and forced to work for a master. Here Jesus was…the Creator of the Universe…the one who spoke everything into existence…and we see Him at the end of His ministry washing the filth and grime from His disciples’ feet! * He obeyed to the point of death on a cross. He emptied Himself. He became a servant. And He obeyed God to the point of giving up His life on a cross—the most appalling and humiliating form of capital punishment at the time. Therefore, in order to attain unity within the church, we need to conform to Jesus’s example of all these things. We do that easily enough with starting at the beginning. In other words, we adopt the mind of Christ by emptying ourselves. No matter our position, prestige, or power, we must ‘empty’ ourselves of it all. And by the way, that not only includes emptying ourselves of the positive stuff, but also the negative as well! Lamenting our misfortunes is no different than bragging on our triumphs. Both are different forms of pride. It is still putting ourselves above others. Still putting ourselves above Christ! So, when I say ‘empty’ ourselves, what am I talking about exactly? Well, in essence, ‘emptying’ ourselves is dying to self. Not living for ourselves, but living 1) for Christ and 2) for others! Through that, we begin to serve obediently with humility. If each of us did that, we, as a church, would automatically become unified because no one would be doing anything for status or applause or self-interest. By emptying ourselves of our own desires and wants, we become unified in the mission itself. We become unified in Christ! So, what happens when we start living with the Mind of Christ? What happens when we truly unify in Christ? There’s an exaltation! Exaltation Through Unity Philippians 2:9–11 (NASB 2020) ~ 9 For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. When a church comes together and unifies with the same mind as that of Christ, something miraculous happens. Christ is glorified in our lives! He’s glorified in our church. He’s glorified in our community. And most amazing, He’s glorified in our nation and the entire world! There will come a time when every knee on earth will bow to Him in complete humility. Every tongue will one day confess His Lordship. It will happen to every man, woman, and child who lives and who has ever lived…no matter how rebellious they’ve been. No matter how prideful they’ve been. No matter how much they have despised Christ throughout their lives. Everyone single one of us will bow the knee at some point or another. Isn’t it far better to do it now, voluntarily? Our lives were designed to be in communion with God. If we’re not in communion with Him, there is no way to fulfill our purpose. No way to fulfill the ‘meaning of life!’ Humbling ourselves now…bowing the knee now…confessing the Lordship of Christ Jesus now…is our first step in fulfilling that purpose for our lives. And it’s not just a one-time thing either. Yes, salvation is forever. Once saved is always saved. But we need to continually bow that knee as a means of maintaining our fellowship with God. We should continually confess His lordship to remind us of our need for humility. In doing so, we grow and grow more to have the mind of Christ! Picture it now…a single church that becomes unified with the mind of Christ!! Imagine what such a church could accomplish? That’s the kind of church your church could be. All it takes is stepping out now and committing to have the same attitude as that of Christ. All it takes is one person to do this and set the example. All it takes is you! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.4n6ministries.com [https://www.4n6ministries.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Q&A Reflections: How do we forgive without being taken advantage of?

Every so often, I’d like to take some time to answer any questions my listening friends might have. I’d love to answer pastoral and practical questions, but I’m open to any biblical or theological questions as well. This week, someone sent me a screen capture image of a prayer she received in her daily devotion from (gasp!) another online devotional (how dare her!). Here’s the prayer that bothered her so: “Heavenly Father, keep our hearts soft and tender toward one another. Help us release irritations quickly before they harden into resentment. Give us the wisdom to forgive preemptively, extending grace before wounds deepen. Teach us to guard our hearts against bitterness.” My dear friend texted me after reading this and asked: “Okay, question: How do you do this and balance not getting taken advantage of? I know I’ve let people do that because I’ve been ‘too’ forgiving and now I’m worn plum out and just don’t want to anymore. This one really spoke to me because I actually prayed about trying to not be mad, resentful, and hurt this morning as I have many times.” So, to my friend, this is a fantastic question and one that bears some consideration. Forgiveness is hard enough, but preemptive forgiveness? First, before we get into the meat of my answer, let me just say this: It took me a bit to truly understand what the writer of that prayer was saying. Not having read the the full devotion to see the prayer’s context, I thought they were suggesting ‘preemptive’ meant forgiving someone before they’d even had a chance to do us wrong. Which was weird to me because it assumed someone was going to do us wrong to begin with and that’s no way to live at all. Furthermore, such an attitude does a disservice to the transforming power of Christ in a regenerate heart. So, like a good scholar, I thought it best to take a look at the actual passage the devotional prayer was referring to and asked my friend to send me the whole devotion. Here’s the verse: Ephesians 4:32 (ESV) - “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Ah! Great verse! And now, I understood. I realized what it’s saying. It’s saying that we should forgive before even being asked to forgive. To forgive without an apology. To forgive for Christ’s sake, not just for the sake of the one doing us wrong. In this, I wholeheartedly agree. But there’s some nuances I think we should discuss in order to paint of a picture of what that looks like or how it’s done. But it’s only one verse, and what do we always say here at 4N6 Ministries? Using a single verse to teach a biblical doctrine is never a good idea. We need more context. So, let’s expand it a bit: “25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil. 28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. 29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” ~ Ephesians 4:25-32 (ESV). Ah! That’s better isn’t it? It gives context to that one verse and fills in some gaps that helps us better understand how to carry that prayer out in our lives. The full passage itself easily holds the answer to my friend’s question. Can anyone guess what that answer is? I’ll wait a moment to let you ponder… Ready for the answer? Take a look at verse 26a (‘Be angry and do not sin.’) The way the devotional prayer is worded, it would lead one to believe we should be chipper and happy all the time, despite the pain someone inflicts on us. All one has to do is look at David…a man the Bible says was “after God’s own heart” to see how ridiculous this notion is. How many Psalms are written by David concerning his enemies? Often, he would ask God for justice against them. Sometimes, he asked for more than simple justice…the shepherd-turned-king was seeking outright vengeance. Thankfully, by the end of these same Psalms, he always seems to calm down and just ask for justice rather than the alternative. Or rather, he ends up seeking God’s will for David’s enemies. Even Jesus didn’t act in a manner the devotional prayer implies. Despite popular opinion, Jesus got angry. He became disappointed. He was hurt emotionally. Point is, there is nothing sinful about being angry. So, be angry…for an appropriate time, that is. Anger is a natural human emotion. We shouldn’t suppress those emotions for the sake of some ridiculous sense of piety. The Bible allows for anger. The key is the second part of that sentence: “…and do not sin.” We’re allowed to be angry, but we can’t allow that anger to dictate our reaction. Our response. In our anger, the propensity is to lash out. To attack. The seek retribution. And when there’s no immediate outlet for that anger, we store it up within ourselves and let it boil. Doing these things is to place our own pain and discomfort over that of others. I’d say the key essential to “being a Christian” we all need to learn is that we are to put others ahead of ourselves. Philippians 2:1-11 speaks of this, but let me focus in on a couple of verses from that passage: “3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Going back to the original passage of Ephesians 4, Paul helps us out further by giving us instructions on ‘how to be angry without sinning’ by stating the following things: 1) “…do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.” (Verses 26b-27) - Essentially, if you’ve been given cause for anger, don’t go to sleep without TRYING to resolve the issue with the one who sinned against you. Go to them. Talk to them. Tell them how you feel and how they’ve hurt you. Make an attempt to resolve those issues so that Satan can’t use it to further drive a wedge between you. 2) “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Verse 29) - Are you passive aggressive? Do you hold things in, but complain about what’s troubling you to others? Do you talk bad about the people that have hurt you? This has to stop. If you can’t resolve the conflict with the individual as discussed in point one, purge it from your system. Forgive, even if they didn’t ask for forgiveness and if you struggle with doing that, ask God to remove it from you. He will. I often get angry without drivers around me on the street. I want to yell at them. Growl at them. Even cuss at them. Instead, I pray to God, “Lord, help me to love these people.” And before I’m even through with the sentence, I’m usually smiling at my silliness regarding the whole thing and a sense of love washes over me for the idiotic drivers around me. So, if you’ve have to bad mouth someone, bad mouth them to God. He’ll take care of the rest for you. 3) And finally: “31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” - I think this is pretty self-explanatory, but if it’s not, check out point two. I pretty much covered this on that one too. So, friends, this is how we live in a spirit of forgiveness…even when no apology is forthcoming from the wrongdoer. And to my friend and her original question…specifically about being taken advantage of…this, I’m sorry to say, is something we can’t worry about. We will be taken advantage of. But that’s between them and God. You’re only responsible for your response to such moments. Remember what I pointed out from the passage in Philippians 2: “…in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” John the Baptist put it this way: “I must decrease and He must increase.” Our pains are only temporary. Momentary. Our rewards are eternal! Let’s Pray Father God, help us to rightly forgive. Help us, Lord, to learn how to be angry, yet not sin in our anger. Give us strength to forgive and take away any animosity we might struggle to hold onto. Help us each day to become more and more like Jesus. Amen. Thanks for reading 4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word! This post is public so feel free to share it. Thanks for reading 4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.4n6ministries.com [https://www.4n6ministries.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Oh, Pergamum! Where is your Integrity?

How many of you know the story of Balaam? A few, I’d say, but probably not the entire story. A few more might remember that there’s a talking donkey—yes, an honest to goodness talking donkey—in the Bible. This donkey is part of the story of Balaam. The entire affair can be read in Numbers chapters 22-25, and the first section of chapter 31. Much too long to discuss via blog, so I recommend reading the account for yourself. But nutshell idea goes like this: the king of Moab freaks out because the Israelites are heading his way. As the Israelites march, their God decimates the armies that stand in their way. Naturally, Balak (king of Moab) is concerned. He remembers hearing that in Midian, there’s a guy named Balaam claiming to be a prophet. It is said that whoever Balaam blesses will be blessed and whoever he curses will be cursed. So Balak sends an entourage to Balaam and offers him a ton of money to come to Moab and curse the Israelites. Balaam asks God if it would be okay to do this and God says “No.” God goes on to say that the Israelites are blessed and that God Himself is the one who blessed them. Balaam tells Balak’s entourage this and they go back to their king. Balak sends the entourage back with offers of even more money and this repeats another two times. Eventually, God allows Balaam to go to the king, but to tell him in person that the Israelites cannot be cursed because God has blessed them. In the end, after several attempts by Balaam to convince God to curse the Israelites, he gives up and heads back home to Midian. What we find out, however, in chapter 31 is that Balaam offered Balak a little piece of advice before he departed. He told the king that if he wanted the Israelites cursed, he would need to do something that would bring God’s wrath upon his own people and then, he suggested two ways to do it. We’ll get to those ways in a bit, but for now, I wanted to begin today’s Bible study with this story to set up what we’re going to talk about today. The Church of Pergamum, the Compromised Church of Asia. 1. Blade and the Battlefield Revelation 2:12–13 [https://ref.ly/logosres/LLS:1.0.30;ref=bible.87.2.12-87.2.13] (NKJV) “And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ‘These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. The Two-edged Sword The first thing we notice when reading this passage is the reference of Jesus with a “sharp two-edged sword.” This comes from Revelation 1:12–16 [https://ref.ly/logosref/bible.87.1.12-87.1.16] “Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength.” The question that probably immediately comes to mind to you upon reading this is, “What in the world is going on here? A sword coming out of Jesus’s mouth?” What is John seeing here? What did he put on his pizza before bedtime? Why a sword? Why is it coming from a mouth? Short answer, because the sword is the Word of God! Hebrews 4:12 [https://ref.ly/logosres/LLS:1.0.30;ref=bible.79.4.12] (NKJV) For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. The thing we forget—and the thing we should never forget—is that God’s word is an offensive weapon. We should not be surprised when it offends so many people. It encourages and uplifts, yes, but it also cuts deep. It slices away sin and bad attitudes. It impales the wicked. It hacks away at the filth of this world (important to remember in the coming verses). You might say, “But that sounds awfully violent. Why use such imagery? Jesus was all about peace, right? He was all about love and unity? A sword is a weapon of war. Why use it as a symbol for God’s word?” Matthew 10:34–39 [https://ref.ly/logosres/LLS:1.0.30;ref=bible.61.10.34-61.10.39] (NKJV) ~ “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it. And if that’s not enough of an answer to you, understand this…the church at Pergamum was in the heart of Satan’s kingdom…a spiritual battleground of epic proportions. Satan’s Throne - The Battlefield A little background on Pergamum: It was a major multicultural hub, teaming with temples of all kinds to various Greek/Roman gods, chief among them the temple of Zeus. Zeus’s temple was built on the summit of a large mountain overlooking the city. One of its world-renowned features was an enormous throne in the center of the structure. But Pergamum wasn’t just a one-hit wonder. It had temples to all the usual deities of the Roman Empire, as well, including an extravagant one to Caesar. And if you remember what we discussed last time about the Caesar cult, the Romans didn’t really care whether someone worshipped their gods, but worshipping Caesar was a test of loyalty to Rome. It was mandatory. Another feature many of these temples had were that they would have had regular rituals of animal sacrifice. And many of them would have boasted temple prostitution as a form of worship. Finally, in this city was a temples dedicated to Aesculapias Soter, the Roman god of medicine. This temple itself included a working hospital for the ill. The term ‘Soter’ was a title—the Greek word for ‘savior’. The Romans had given the title to Aesculapias, which would have been blasphemous to the first century Christians because they associated the word with Christ. The point is, Pergamum was one of the most pagan cites of all the Roman Empire with hedonism practiced with absolute abandon. Holding Fast to the Faith So, after Jesus identifies Himself to this church, describes the sword coming from His mouth, and telling them that He knows where they live…in the city with the Throne of Satan…He goes on to commend them for holding (grasping) to faith in Christ. Remember, from chapter one, Jesus is walking among the seven lamp stands (churches). Jesus is always within our midst. He sees our struggles. He sees our successes and He sees our failures. Despite the evil that thrived in this city, Jesus has seen that the church at Pergamum are ‘standing firm in my Faith’ even when their brother, Antipas, was martyred for Christ. They didn’t renounce Christ when this happened, which might have been easier to do when faced with that kind of decadence and hedonism. But they held onto their faith and they stood strong. As for Antipas, we know nothing about him as a person or his martyrdom other than what’s mentioned here, but his death must have been public (probably in the arena as a gladiatorial spectacle) and most likely a result of some perceived slight against the Roman religious system. No matter who Antipas was or how he died, Jesus’s words to this church is a worthy commendation indeed. The problem is, there were apparently ‘a few’ within their congregation that had compromised themselves in regards to righteousness, which brings us to point 2: Balaam and the Blockades. 2. Balaam and Blockades Revelation 2:14–15 [https://ref.ly/logosres/LLS:1.0.30;ref=bible$2Bnkjv.87.2.14-87.2.15] (NKJV) But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Notice the use of the phrase “you have there those who…” It implies that it’s not widespread. That it’s just a few of them who have fallen into Balaam’s trap. Or the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. But one or two germs are enough to infect the entire body. So, what exactly are these ‘few’ doing? What are the doctrines of Balaam and the Nicolaitans? Well… Balaam’s Doctrine As mentioned at the story of this study, the story of Balaam can be found in Numbers chapters 22-25, and 31. Go and take a look for yourself. It’s worth the read through. But in discussing the doctrine of Balaam—or what I call ‘Balaam’s Trap’—it all boils down to the advice he gave King Balak after he finally gave up trying to curse the Israelites himself. Once again, Balaam advised Balak to send a throng of harlots into the Israelite army’s camp and seduce the men. They did so and the men of Israel fell for it hook, line, and sinker. The women also got the men to eat sacrifices to Baal. And yes, God brought down a curse via a plague upon them because of it. Numbers 31:16 [https://ref.ly/logosres/LLS:1.0.30;ref=bible.4.31.16] (NKJV) ~ Look, these women caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the Lord in the incident of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the Lord. So, we can guess what the ‘few’ in Pergamum were most likely advocating given the Balaam’s doctrine reference and sexual immortality, along with the reference to eating things sacrificed to idols. At the very least, even if they weren’t actively participating in sexual immorality, they most likely weren’t speaking out against it. They might have been condoning it. Worse, the use of the word ‘doctrine’ here implies that someone in the church was most likely teaching that sexual immorality was okay. They might have been even advocating that temple prostitution was okay. The question I have is: why? Why would we they do this? Why would they hold fast to ‘the faith’ only to turn around and participate in such activities? Well, it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to figure that out. All it requires is taking a look at modern churches to see that many of them are teaching Balaam’s doctrine today. They tell their congregations that it doesn’t matter who they’re with. Doesn’t matter what their sexual or gender identity is. For the sake of bringing more people into their specific church, they lower the bar for the way Christians are told to live. They strive to be more tolerant. Not tolerant of sinful people, mind you, but tolerant of sin itself! Even worse, I’m afraid many of the pastors and overseers are participating in such activity themselves and use their doctrine as an excuse for their behavior. Still though, why? How does such false teaching happen? Well, I have a feeling it had something to do with the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. The Nicolaitans and Antinomianism We talked about the Nicolaitans when we were discussing the Ephesians. They apparently despised the ‘works of the Nicolaitans (Revelation 2:6 [https://ref.ly/logosref/bible.87.2.6])” and Jesus told them that He did to. When we talked about that, I told you no one really knows what those works were. That being said, given the context of this passage, along with the few second century documents regarding them, a picture begins to emerge that might give us a little insight. The most likely view is that the Nicolaitans advocated for an antinomian viewpoint. Antinomian is just a fancy five-dollar word to describe a heretical view that stated that because salvation is by grace through faith alone, there is no need to be morally upright. Antinomians are extremely anti-legalistic in nature and feel that morality (or immorality) is immaterial and doesn’t matter to God at all. They most likely espoused that morality should be done because the individual desires to do so and not because of some outside influence. This makes sense given that the doctrines of Balaam would give free license to sin all they want with the temple prostitutes or eating things sacrificed to the Roman gods. But Jesus expects the church of Pergamum to repent. Just because there were only a “few” advocating for Balaam’s doctrine, the thing we have to understand is that the rest of the church were most likely aware of these trespasses and were doing nothing about it. In the context of a local church, it is essential to maintain a church’s integrity and purity. That’s why God has given us steps for church discipline. If we see someone (or multiple people) behaving or advocating behavior contrary to God’s will revealed in Scripture, the church has an obligation to lovingly put a stop to it for the sake of the church body. And for those who do repent, Jesus promises certain boons to those who overcome. 3. Benefits and Boons Revelation 2:16–17 [https://ref.ly/logosres/LLS:1.0.30;ref=bible$2Bnkjv.87.2.16-87.2.17] (NKJV) Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.” In the context of a battlefield then, some of those within the Pergamum church were hanging out with the enemy and participating in fellowship with those in which they were to do battle. Although perhaps not outright traitors, they had compromised themselves to the point in which their loyalty and devotion could be questioned. So many churches today have done the same thing. The ‘Come as you are’ churches. The ‘seeker-sensitive’ churches. Churches who tell their people it’s okay to love who you want as long as you love. There’s nothing wrong with with being sensitive to seekers as long as the truth of the gospel is always proclaimed. As long as the biblical Jesus is proclaimed. As long as excuses for sin aren’t provided. Excuses for sin are precisely the heresies of Balaam and the Nicolaitans. Jesus calls the Pergumians to repent of these things. And if they don’t, what does he say He’ll do? He will ‘fight against them with the sword of My mouth.’ In a war, the last thing we’d want to be is an enemy of Christ. The Israelites found this out the hard way after falling for Balaam’s trap in Numbers when God sent a plague against those who consorted with the harlots. Balaam also found out in chapter 31 when God had the Israelites kill him along with everyone else in Midian. And to those who do repent? To those who overcome? To those who win this battle in Pergamum…what does He say will happen? * First, He will give them Hidden Manna. As we know from Israel’s exodus out of Egypt, God provided manna (an unknown food substance that fell from the sky every morning. The food was sweet, like honey, and lasted for a single day. The next day, more manna would be provided. Therefore, for those who repent and overcome, Jesus promises to provide for all our needs. * Second, He will give them a white stone. A white stone? What in the world? What’s that? Well, remember last week when I told you that when someone was sentenced to die in the gladiator arena, it was legally required that they be incarcerated for at least ten days? I said that was to make sure there was enough time before death in case the Caesar or proconsul pardoned the convicted criminal. If they were acquitted, they would be awarded a white clay tablet with their name on it. This tablet was proof that their sentence had been rescinded. For those who repent and overcome, the death sentence intended for them is rescinded as well. The white stone is testimony to that. Isn’t that awesome? But here comes the best bit! * A new name given by God is written on that stone. This name is only known by two beings—the one who receives the stone and God, who created the name. This name was unique and specific to the individual. In ancient times, names had power. Know a full name of an individual and a witch could hex you. At the same time, names denoted a person’s essence. We get many of our surnames from aspects of our ancestors’ lives. Smith came from blacksmiths or metal smiths. Thatcher came from those who built roofs. You get the point. Names are important. And for those who repent and overcome, God will provide them with a brand new name completely unique…completely unknown to anyone else! Why? To provide unparalleled intimacy between us and the Creator of the Universe! Seriously. Imagine the intimacy of sharing a secret name with the one who made us! Ever share a secret with a best friend? You and that friend are the only two people who know it. What did that feel like? Didn’t it make your relationship all the more special? That’s what God is doing here with this brand new name. And that, my friends, is something to praise God for! So watch out for the Trap of Balaam in your church. Watch out for the teachings of the Nicolaitans. If you see these things being practiced within your congregation, speak out. Hold people accountable…even your pastor if necessary (but only out of love and only by following the steps of proper church discipline as laid out in Scripture). Maintain your church’s integrity. And while we’re at it, let’s ensure our own integrity is properly tended and maintained as well. Thanks for reading 4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word! This post is public so feel free to share it. Thanks for reading 4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.4n6ministries.com [https://www.4n6ministries.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Oh, Smyrna! Where is Your Hope?

“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days.” Revelation 2:8-11 (NKJV) Sometime between the first and second centuries, at the end of the Apostolic Age, a young man named Polycarp sat under the tutelage of none other than the Apostle John. As Polycarp studies under the last remaining Apostle, his faith grows stronger and stronger. So does his knowledge. He shows in many of his writings a strong familiarity and understanding of several of the letters written by Paul, Peter, John, and others (he quotes many of them). Eventually, he becomes the bishop (or overseer/pastor) of a little church in the big important city of Smyrna in Asia Minor and the church grows in spite of (and maybe even because of) a growing danger of persecution by the Romans. Around AD 155, Polycarp is brought before the Roman proconsul and given an ultimatum: renounce Christ, worship Caesar, or else he’ll be thrown to the beasts in the gladiator stadium. Polycarp’s response was to tell the proconsul to repent and turn to Christ. The proconsul then threatens him with being burned alive if he doesn’t renounce Christ and worship Caesar. Polycarp famously proclaims: “Eighty and six years have I now served Christ, and he has never done me the least wrong; how, then, can I blaspheme my King and my Savior? You threaten me with a fire that burns for a season, and after a little while is quenched; but you are ignorant of the fire of everlasting punishment that is prepared for the wicked.” After that, Polycarp is tried and convicted, becoming an early martyr for Christ. It is said that he was placed on a pyre and tied to a stake and set afire. Tradition and legend says the fire wouldn’t consume him, so the Romans ran him through with a sword. I tell you this story to set up today’s message to the church of Smyrna as addressed in Revelation 2. Keep Polycarp’s story in mind as we study it. Now, as you read it, you’ll notice this passage is considerably different than the one we read for the church of Ephesus, isn’t it? On the surface, you have to be wondering whether or not the Ephesians had it better off, right? I mean, this revelation of Christ to the church at Smyrna is pretty grim. Background Smyrna (the modern city of Izmir in Turkey) was considered by Rome to be the ‘Golden Jewel’ or Golden Crown of their Asian empire. The city itself was established roughly 3000 years before Christ and, unlike most cities of the ancient world, didn’t get thrown together Willy-nilly over the centuries. It was actually planned. Designed. Smyrna’s foundation was built at the foot of a large mountain called Mount Pagus and the buildings of the city—marvels of architecture—were built going up the side of the mountain until the entire city looked like an enormous crown. Eventually, over the centuries, the city itself died and became somewhat of a ghost town for about 300 years until Alexander the Great and his men came. They rebuilt the city, bringing it proverbially back to life and as the Grecian empire gave way to the Romans, it prospered more and more. Not only was Smyrna the Golden Crown of Asia for the Romans, a great temple to Caesar was built there and became one of the primary cities in which Caesar worship was established. While there were many temples in this city, none were as important to Rome than Caesar’s. In fact, it became so important that the Romans didn’t care whether you worshipped their pantheon of gods or not, but the worship of Caesar became mandatory. After all, if you didn’t worship Caesar, then how could you possibly be loyal to Rome? Around the time John wrote the Revelation (circa AD 95), Domitian was emperor and he definitely demanded the worship he felt entitled to. Of all the religions out there, none gave him more hassle than that group of ‘atheists, incestuous cannibals known as Christians’ and he started a severe persecution against them because of it. So, with all this in the backs of your mind, let’s take a closer look at the passage itself. We’ll start with ‘He Who Promises.’ He Who Promises Revelation 2:8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life:” Last week we discussed what ‘the angel’ of these churches are most likely referring to…their pastors/bishops/overseers. And the time in which this was written, we have a pretty good guess as to who the Angel of Smyrna was who would be reading this letter to his congregation…that’s right, Polycarp. First and the Last Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” This bring to mind the pre-existence and the eternity of Christ. While being born in the flesh two thousand years ago in Bethlehem, He has always existed. He was there at the beginning when God said, “Let US create man in our image.” He visited with Abraham. He wrestled with Jacob. He was seen time and again throughout the Old Testament. A key component in the Gospel of John is his high Christology, especially in chapter one…’In the beginning was the Word (Logos) and the Word was with God and the Word was God.’ By starting this way, John introduced Christ not simply as a good and godly man/teacher, but as the Living God of the universe. In the light of a pre-existing Christ and a Christ who will still be here when everything else withers away, temporary suffering seems almost trivial. Who was dead, and came to life A better translation is ‘I am He who became dead and is alive again’.) Brings to mind Smyrna’s own demise several centuries earlier and its resurrection at the hands of Alexander. The big difference here is that Smyrna is not eternal and Christ’s allusion to being ‘first and last’ reminds the church of this. Why do you think Jesus begins his address to the church of Smyrna this way? He’s giving his credentials. He’s about to provide great encouragement to them over the coming persecutions they will face. He’s about to make promises. He wants to assure them that of His position over the world and the power He has to work things out according to His will. This should be a source of great comfort not just to Smyrna, but all of us who face trials and tribulations and suffering. And with this assurance of just WHO is speaking to them, Jesus moves onto ‘They Who Persevere.’ They Who Persevere Revelation 2:9–10 “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Works, tribulation, and poverty Like I said, this is kind of heavy stuff. Honestly, it flies in the face of what’s called the Prosperity Gospel (people like Joel Osteen) that states God wants us to be happy, healthy, and wealthy. Notice here that Christ doesn’t say in this passage, I know you your works, tribulation, and poverty, but don’t worry…I’m going to take that away from you. In fact, He states in other places that this would be the norm for those who followed Him:Matthew 10:22 “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.” John 15:18–20 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.” Paul goes on to say this: 2 Timothy 3:12 “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” Truth is, many pastors and churches bend over backwards to try to downplay this aspect of following Christ. I can understand the reasoning, after all, these things are only temporary and God has already won the War, so why dwell on the negative? But I think glossing over these things is ultimately detrimental to the health of the Church. It produces fair weather believers. The moment the heat turns up, many often head for the hills. Or they simply give up altogether believing that Christianity is just another false religion. But the cold hard truth is that if we are faithful and obedient and give ourselves over to Christ, we’re going to suffer for it. Jews and the Synagogue of Satan That’s an interesting statement isn’t it? At this time in church history, Christianity isn’t viewed as a separate religion, but a sect of Judaism. And yet, Jews, who were equally being persecuted by Rome for their refusal to worship Caesar as well, turned on the Christians. They began pointing the fingers at them to Rome. Making accusations against them. So, the church at Smyrna was caught in a persecution sandwich of sorts: Romans on one side and Jews on the other. In many ways this reminds me of the Baptist spiritual forefathers, the Anabaptists. They existed long before Luther and the Protestant reformation. The Catholics persecuted the Protestants, but both Catholics and Protestants persecuted the Anabaptists as a common enemy…merely because they practiced believers baptism. Ever seen a lame dog be attacked by a pack of other dogs? The injured dog is unable to defend itself. The others take advantage of this and pounce. All too often, we as both Christians and churches have a tendency to do this as well. We see when a fellow Christian is struggling and instead of coming alongside them and helping them, we join in on the attacks. Same is true with struggling churches, denominations, etc. How do you think Jesus feels about this? He called these legalistic ‘Jews’ a Synagogue of Satan, if that helps clarify His thoughts on the subject. He could just as easily call a church a Congregation of Satan or an Assembly of Satan. We must be unified in the gospel of Jesus Christ. We must share in each other’s sufferings as much as we share in our successes. We are not Local Baptist Church against Local Methodist Church. We’re not small country church vs big city mega church. We are the Church (collective)…the whole body of Christ. Don’t fear the coming suffering…Faithfulness and the Crown “…the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days…” Jesus warns this church the persecution is going to get worse. Tribulation in the form of imprisonment for their beliefs is coming. Worse, He tells them they will have ‘tribulation for ten days.’ What does this mean? Ten days was the general amount of time someone sentenced by Rome could remain incarcerated until they were thrown into the gladiatorial games (the ten day restriction was set up in case new evidence came about to exonerate someone or if Caesar would provide a stay of execution). You see, being tossed into the arena was a death sentence. Many Christians in Smyrna were going to die (the first well-known of which was Polycarp about 50 years later). Augustine of Hippo ~ “The martyrs were bound, imprisoned, scourged, racked, burnt, rent, butchered—and they multiplied.” It’s the weirdest thing. The more tribulation Christians face, the more and more the Church tends to grow. Third world nations where Christianity is illegal have a thriving underground churches. Just last weekend, churches across America saw a surge in attendance due mostly to Charlie Kirk’s assassination. So, how are we supposed to react to persecution exactly? How are we supposed to deal with it? 1 Peter 4:14 “If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.” And how do we deal with those who are doing the persecuting?? Romans 12:14 “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.” Seems REALLY hard to do, doesn’t it? But note that the verse here is an imperative statement. It is a command. There’s no wriggle room. This is how we are supposed to respond to such adversity. I’m reminded of Stephen, who was stoned to death by a young unbelieving Paul and the Sandhedrin. Acts 7:60 Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. Wow. That is an amazing testimony, isn’t it? How many of us could do that? And yet, that’s what Jesus means when he tells us that if we who prevail will be faithful unto death! We Who Prevail Revelation 2:10b–11 “…Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.” Be faithful until death… “The staying power of our faith is neither demonstrated nor developed until it is tested by suffering.” ~ D. A. Carson. To be honest, it is only through suffering and persecution that any of us face real testing of our faith. Is our faith and our faithfulness dependent on circumstances in our lives? Do we serve Christ is name alone, or are we truly willing to take up our cross and follow Him? For some of us, ‘taking up our cross’ isn’t a metaphor. It could well be a real circumstance we’ll have to face. Romans 8:35–37 “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.’ Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Tribulation doesn’t tear us away from God’s love. Does it tear our love away from God? If we hold steady…if we endure…if we continue to trust in His mercy, grace, and love, we become conquerors against Satan’s mechanizations. “Persecution is like the goldsmith’s hallmark on real silver and gold; it is one of the marks of a converted man.” ~ J. C. Ryle Crown of life and Surviving the Second Death James 1:12 “Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” Does this teach a works-based salvation? Absolutely not. It merely means our faith is true. It also goes back to what those who live in Smyrna refers to their city as: The Crown of Asia or the Golden Crown. Some even called the city ‘the Crown of Life.’ Here, Christ is reminding the church that there is a crown far more glorious than that of man’s architectural marvels. One far more enduring…that will never crumble or fade away. So, what about us? Are we ready for the tribulation that is to come, because friends, it’s coming. The key to understanding biblical prophecy: there is almost always an immediate fulfillment and a future fulfillment. While the Smyrnans saw this prophecy fulfilled in their lifetimes, rest assured, another round is fast approaching. Another Rome is on the horizon. Already, we see the beginnings with anti-Christian laws surfacing in Canada (especially during COVID). We see it in the murder of Charlie Kirk (and the celebratory aftermath of it all). And I’m not even talking about the persecution during the Great Tribulation either. As a pre-tribulation guy, most alive today will have been raptured up before that starts. But just because we live in the USA, doesn’t mean it can’t happen to us today. Doesn’t mean they can’t imprison us for preaching the Bible and being labeled Nazis and using hate speech. It’s on the horizon, my friends. Are we ready? Are you ready? Will we endure the way Stephen did? Or Polycarp? Are we willing today to totally die to self, take up our cross, and follow Jesus? I hope so. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.4n6ministries.com [https://www.4n6ministries.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Oh, Ephesus! Where is your love?

Scripture Passage: 1 “To the angel of the church of Ephesus write,‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: 2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 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. 6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” (Revelation 2:1-7 NKJV) Recently, I accepted the call to become a church planter for the North American Mission Board (NAMB) of the Southern Baptist Convention. Along the way, something strange happened. I became aware of a growing issue with churches in our nation. I began to see just unhealthy so many of them were and how many of them were either dead or dying. I became burdened with this knowledge and wondered why on earth we would be focused on planting new churches when there was so many established churches out there that needed God’s healing touch. You see, the Southern Baptist Convention is the largest Christian denomination in the world with approximately 47,000 churches. Of those churches, recent statistics show that nearly 1200 to 1500 SBC churches are shutting their doors every single year. Nearly 40% of SBC churches are facing imminent closure within the next 5-10 years. Only around 18% of SBC churches are showing any signs of growth at all with a few that have plateaued. The vast majority, however, are dying. And so, as my burden for struggling churches grew, the Lord led me to a ministry I’d never heard of before. Replanting. Instead of starting a church from scratch like a church planter, a replanter takes a dying or sickly church and nurtures it back to health. And that’s where my ministerial calling lies, I believe. But you can’t nurture a church without first knowing what made it sick to begin with? Is this unhealthy trend because the world is increasingly antagonistic toward us? I don’t think so. The world has always been hostile toward Bible teaching/Bible-proclaiming Christ-centered churches. We know, by knowing the character of God and Christ’s promise that his Church will never be taken away that it’s not God who’s causing the decline. So if it’s not the world’s hostility, then what could it be? Well, in the next few weeks, I am hoping we can explore that very question in depth. As we draw nearer and nearer to the return of Christ, I have a feeling the modern church will grow closer and closer in appearance to those churches mentioned in John’s Revelation…also known, by the way, as John’s Apocalypse (apocalypse, by the way, isn’t an event or a time period in the future…the word literally mean ‘the revealing’ or the revelation). So, with that in mind, I thought we’d take a look at each of those seven churches discussed in the Apocalypse by Christ himself for a possible answer to our question. Background We learn the origins of the church at Ephesus from Acts 19. Paul preaches in Ephesus for three weeks and baptizes around twelve believers during that time who had been baptized originally under John the Baptist (in other words, they’d been John the Baptist’s disciples, not Jesus’s). As the church grows, Paul moves from the synagogue into the quad at the School of Titanus (a kind of public space for teachers and preachers) and the church continues to grow from his teachings there. Eventually, the church catches the attention of several merchants who sold silver shrines for the temple of Artemis (Diana), which the city of Ephesus was best known for. As the church grew, people in Ephesus began to reject Diana and their sales began to tank. Naturally, this upset the merchants and a riot broke out one day. It is through this foundation of the church of Ephesus we should remember when we study Revelation 2:1-7. The Ephesians started out with such passion for Christ that it led to a riot in the streets. By the time Jesus Himself addresses them, their passion seems to have fizzled. They are strong adherents to doctrine, orthodoxy, tradition, and purity…but Christ tells them they’ve got one thing going against them. And if they don’t change their ways, He promised to remove their candlestick (close down the church). So, with all that being said, let’s get into the meat of the passage by taking a closer look at the first three verses. The Commendation Revelation 2:1–3 “To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary.” In chapter 1, John sets up the vision he’s having while exiled on the island of Patmos. He explains being caught up in the spirit and being visited by Jesus in Heaven, who was walking among seven lampstands while holding seven stars in his hand. Jesus explains that the lampstands represent the seven churches of Asia and that the stars represented the seven angels of each of those churches. After this explanation, Jesus tells John to write seven letters to these churches and he starts with ‘the angel of the church of Ephesus.’ Many have speculated on who this ‘angel’ was. Is Jesus telling us that every church is granted their own guardian angel? [First of all, the Bible doesn’t even teach that individual Christians are given their own guardian angel despite what’s commonly believed.] And while Jesus could have been referring to a supernatural being, there is nowhere in the Bible where supernatural angels appear and ‘read’ a letter from God to a group of people. There’s no need for them to read a letter, afterall. They pass on God’s message because God has told them directly what to say. So, the identity of this angel should best be interpreted in the strictest translation of the Greek word ‘angelos’, which literally means ‘messenger’. In the context of these seven letters then, a church’s angel…or messenger…most likely would be their pastor/bishop/elder. They would be asked to read the letters written by John to their congregations, interpret them, and lead the congregation to repentance and change. A local church is only as strong as their pastor. It’s only as strong as a given church allows their pastor to be. They have to have the courage to teach God’s word with boldness and without fear. They have to be given the freedom to be the church’s primary leader in discipling his congregation. This is probably the first mark of a healthy church. A strong, faithful pastor (faithful to God and His word). High Marks for Ephesus! Now, as to the message contained in the letter itself, at first glance, one would think the Ephesians church was top of its class. I mean, they received some very high marks from Christ in His assessment of them. If a Southern Baptist Church was going to be evaluated and critiqued by Jesus, what he says here would certainly be a source of pride for most of us. Their ministry programs, patience toward each other, and intolerance for the things that are immoral and wicked are certainly commendable. Additionally, the Ephesians seem to be masters at doing what John commands Christians to do in 1 John 4:1 “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” And they have persevered throughout tribulation and hardship (the Diana cult of Ephesus were extremely hostile toward them during their entire existence), and they seemed, despite all the trials, to not grow weary of it all. They kept going on despite the odds stacked against them! Seriously, this church seemed to be doing everything right! They had a strong work ethic. They were doctrinally sound. They refused to give up despite the animosity toward them in their city. Any modern day church would certainly be pumped for Jesus to say these things about them, right? The Condemnation Revelation 2:4–5 “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 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.” “Nevertheless” Ouch. How quickly a single word can bring elation to a crashing halt! “Nevertheless. However. But.” These three words and others like them have a way of letting the wind out of our sails, don’t they? After the glowing praise, Jesus gets real with the Ephesians church. He tells them he has a major bone to pick with them. “…You have left your first love.” Now, that’s an unusual turn of phrase. What do you think Jesus means by ‘you have left your first love’? Well, we need to examine what a first love is before we can know what He means by it. Is it a first crush? A first romantic love? Well, since this is Jesus talking, I’m doubting that’s what ‘first love’ means. So, let’s take a look at something else Jesus said regarding love, shall we? Matthew 22:34–40 “But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” The greatest and second greatest commandments: 1) Love God with everything you have and 2) Love your neighbors the same as you love God (ie, with everything you have). So, the question is: what happened in the church of Ephesus? Of all the good things Jesus said about them, how had they lost this passion for Christ (the church was built on a riot in the city…that’s how passionate they were in the beginning about Christ). What happened? What does Jesus mean by this? Well, It’s honestly quite an old story really. The church starts out strong with excitement and zeal. They begin doing everything right. They remain deep in the study of God’s word. They hold amazing worship services that draw more and more people in. They perform church discipline on those claiming to be Christians, but were really false teachers. Maybe they start a Sunday School program or Awanas to bring in the children. They have weekly visitation. They hold business meetings and vote on the color of the new church pews. In a short amount of time, they become experts in ‘doing church’. And before they know it, everything about them can be categorized or pigeon-holed into some program. For the sake of efficiency, they have bureaucratized everything within the church. Things are run on committees. It’s almost autonomic now. Their Bible knowledge has increased, but now it’s mostly academic in nature. Maybe a little pride on who can memorize the most verses? Which Sunday school teacher is considered the most dynamic teacher or who has the highest attendance records. And all the while, they become more and more internalized. More inwardly focused. They view the church in terms of inside the building and in the internal dynamics and programs that are going. Their windows get stained glass maybe and they can no longer see outside into the increasingly wicked city in which they reside. Church has become a safe haven for them…a place to get in off the streets. A sanctuary they feel comfortable, respected, and needed. And the more internalized they become, their zeal and fire for Christ dwindles until it’s little more than an ember. And as their focus on Jesus becomes less and less, so does their focus on the community. There’s no longer any outreach to the community and if there is, it’s because a program was established years ago and it’s just ‘what we do’. There’s no love behind it. No compassion. They have become automatons merely enacting their programming. All those wondrous positive compliments Jesus gave this church? They’re all hollow because the motivation behind them has become more about programs and traditions than shining the love of Christ on a wicked, hurting world. Christ’s Judgment So how does Jesus address this issue with the Ephesians? He does so by offering a very stern warning of His coming judgment against them. Jesus calls the Ephesians to repent! To remember that love they once had and renew their zeal for God and their neighbors. What does he say will happen if they don’t? He’ll remove their lampstand. He’ll close the doors to their local church. Jesus promised that the Church (capital C/church universal) will never pass away (Matthew 16:18 “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” ). But that doesn’t mean that a local church is protected when they have lost their first love. When they aren’t doing things for the right reasons or are doing right things for the wrong reasons. If a local church dies, Christ can easily raise up a new one in its place…but he would rather an established church repent and return to their first love again. The Cooperation Revelation 2:6–7 “But this you 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 give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” Here, Jesus provides a bit of a praise sandwich. He once again commends them. What does he commend them on this time? “…that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.” Now, who exactly were the Nicolaitans? Hate to break it to you, but no one knows for sure. At least, there doesn’t seem to be any agreed upon theories. The most prominent view is that they were the followers of Nicolas, a deacon in the Jerusalem church as described in Acts 6. Tradition states that Nicolas became apostate and began following a certain type of Gnosticism. What they believed is unimportant. Take a closer look at the wording here: “…that you hate the DEEDS of…” Jesus doesn’t say they hated the Nicolaitans. He said they hated their deeds. Their practices. Later, when we talk about the church at Pergamum, Jesus will mention the need to hate the TEACHINGS of the Nicolaitans, for the teachings lead to the deeds. But it’s important to note here that we are not to hate the people (actually, quite the opposite), but rather the actions or deeds of those contrary to God’s word. This reinforces the attitude of FIRST LOVE that is so important in this passage. Overcomers! Finally, Jesus tells the church, “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life…” So what is Jesus saying here? Overcome what? Is he saying whoever ‘overcomes’ the issue of losing their first love? That would be a works-based salvation, wouldn’t it? It would imply you could lose your salvation. We know neither of those things are true, so overcoming must mean something else. Let’s skip ahead a bit to see a possible explanation of this word ‘overcome’. Revelation 12:11 “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” In this passage, it’s talking about how Satan and the antichrist comes for the Church in persecution. And yet, the Church ‘overcomes’ the devil by…The blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony (Romans 10:9 “…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” ) Jesus further states that they ‘…did not love their lives to the death.’ (Matthew 16:24 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” ) This, my friends, is the gospel of Jesus Christ. We overcome the devil and our sinful nature by dying to self and confessing with conviction that Christ’s blood has washed us of all our sins. That confession is a confession of our first love…our love for Jesus Christ. For God in the flesh. The Confession So what does a church in such a state need to do? Jesus tells us exactly what to do in verse 5: repent and do your first works. Repentance: changing directions. It’s recognizing we’re going the wrong way, so we turn around and get back on the right path. We do this individually, but I also feel that we must do this as a body of believers as well. For a church to survive such a state, they not only need to rediscover their love for God and others individually, but also as a community of believers. That means, not only looking inward and upward, but outward as well. Let me ask you this (it’s something the director of Replant at NAMB asks in his amazing book ‘Reclaiming God’s Glory’): If your church was to close its doors this Sunday, who in your community would notice? Would anybody? Of all the programs and ‘ministries’ a church boasts, how many of them are reaching the community around them? How many lives are being touched on a regular basis by a specific church? How is God’s glory being reflected in the community a church belongs? Given that there is no longer a church in Ephesus, we can assume they didn’t do this. They didn’t repent. They didn’t rediscover their first love. And Jesus withdrew their lampstand from the world. They should be a warning for any church that has fallen into a similar state of folly. What folly? Doing church work for church work’s sake. If this is us, as an individual, let’s repent today. If it’s us as a local church, let’s agree together to put Christ first and the community a close second in everything we do…and consider our own wants and desires the least to be considered. Thanks for reading 4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word! This post is public so feel free to share it. Thanks for reading 4N6 Ministries: Investigating God's Word! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.4n6ministries.com [https://www.4n6ministries.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]