GOING BACK TO SQUARE ONE IN OUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY
Did you play hopscotch when you were a kid? In the version I played, we diagramed a pattern of 8 or 10 squares in the dirt or on the pavement, took turns tossing an object into square one; if it landed within the boundary lines we would hop to the turnaround square at the top of the diagram, then back to the square where we began. If along the way we landed out of bounds, even partially, we went back to square one to start over, and kept on until we got it right.
In our spiritual journey, no matter how far along we have gotten, there are times when we need to go back to “square one” to rediscover that initial joy and excitement that propelled us from the start of our journey “toward the goal“, as Paul put it, “to win the prize for which God called us heavenward in Christ Jesus”.
How much greater will be our joy and excitement once we reach our final destination IF we arrive there totally committed, fully surrendered, and as mature as we can be!
We have confessed our faith in Christ . . . are called by His Name . . . have committed our lives to Him as the Way, the Truth and the Life; so we have been given the opportunity to arrive Home fully capable of appreciating the wonder of it all . . . recognizing the quality of it all . . . experiencing the joy of it all, provided our Christian life in the here and now is rooted and grounded in the kind of love “agape” which marked the life of our Lord . . . granted to every believer who lets Jesus come into their heart . . . expresses itself as a “doer” of the Word!
For 50 years I have remembered the exact words of James B. Sullivan as he spoke to our congregation of believers: “When we all get to heaven, we will all be in the same heaven, but our ability to grasp it all and experience the fullness of heaven will depend on the quality of our Christian life in the here and now.” And folks, there was no doubt in my mind then nor is there any doubt in my mind now that Dr. Sullivan spoke the truth in love.
For half a century, my own experiences and biblical studies have convinced me that Christ the epitome of love, John the apostle of love, Paul the apostle who defined love meant for Christians to understand that Christian love was to be the theme of a life worthy of going Home to be with the Lord forever.
Thus, In the very first of his letters to the Seven Churches of the Revelation, John the author of the Book highlighted the significance of maintaining, above all else, that spirit of Christian love which they first experienced– Revelation 2:1-7 . . .
A brief history lesson to help understand John’s letter to the Church at Ephesus and to all other churches:
They were actual churches . . . Each of the seven was a center of a group of churches - representative of all churches . . . Actual situations are addressed by John . . . All of the letters were finished by John, then sent to the churches by one messenger who traveled from Patmos to Ephesus, and from there in a clockwise route until the letters had been delivered to all seven churches - to be read locally then circulated to all.
There was no ecclesiastical system during that period; the individuality of each church was respected. There was no “overseer” per se, but there was an “angel”, presumably assigned to the churches by the Head of The Church, Jesus Christ the Exalted One!
Henry Blackaby: “When Christ speaks to His Church, He speaks to the whole Church!” So, you might say that a simple, democratic form of government was the form created by Christ himself.
An ominous foreboding - to all churches throughout history - emerged in the first century inasmuch as doctrinal disagreements surfaced soon after Paul became involved - a disagreement that led to the Jerusalem Council made up of Peter, Paul and other church leaders - BUT toward the end of the first century there erupted a very real threat to the survival of the Christian movement as the gospel began to spread, first in Asia, eventually to the uttermost parts of the earth
Specifically John names the “Nicolaitans” whose heretical “practices” he hated, as did the church at Ephesus; for resisting those heretics John commended the church. Which raises the question: Who were these disrupters?
The answer is: They represented a sect known as “Gnostics” who claimed to “know” the mind of Christ better than anyone else.
They were pagan “sympathizers” who taught that the soul is so separated from the body that there is no way the soul can be contaminated by sin.
Therefore, they falsely claimed, Christ would broaden the meaning of love to allow for licentious behavior. These “know-it-alls” concocted what they called a new view of Christian liberty - which led to social acceptance of pagan practices such as sexual orgies, prostitution and idolatry. In the process, heathen emperors were cozied up to, and cooperated with, as if it were “the Christian thing to do”! God forbid and God help us as we witness a similar heresy occurring in our day!
Against the backdrop of a threat to the survival of the Christian movement, God’s messenger commended the Ephesian church established by Paul. He had spent much time there due to its location at the crossroads of world trade . . . its prominence as the capital of the province of Asia . . . its recognition as the center of communications and cultures . . . its worship of the sex goddess Diana whose magnificent temple was celebrated as one of the seven wonders of the world.
In this place where “the East met the West”, Christian moral influence was met by pagan-empathizing resistance not only from without, but also from within, the “Christian” Community. The leading church, therefore, had to be addressed in terms of commendation, yes, but also a word of caution. Beware! Danger ahead!
The old apostle in his wisdom knew the danger of the loss of influence that lay ahead if the church continued down that road of cloudiness of conscience and compromise with the rulers of darkness. In Paul’s way of thinking, to have begun a descent is to have already descended. So, in his mind, the First Church had “left” or “forsaken” their “first love” already.
Folks, it’s not a good thing to “take leave of” or lessen the fervor of your “first love” which in essence is to gradually but surely lose intimate contact with that “true love” epitomized by Jesus Christ . . . eloquently preached by John the Beloved . . . poetically defined by Paul in his letter to the Corinthians which by the way he wrote while he was right there in your midst years ago!
Never let go of your love for, and your fellowship with, each other. Stick by one another. Make sure you are a caring Christian, concerned always by the need for all people to know the Lord in the forgiveness of their sins and saving faith.
To give in to society’s sinfulness for fear that you might rub some folks the wrong way or find yourself at odds with a majority of the population would be a mistake of huge proportions because, before you know it, your devotion to Christ wanes, your effectiveness in His service is diminished, and the Cause for which Jesus died is hindered.
Therefore, go back to square one if necessary and renew your commitment to, and your relationship with, the Lord.
Remember your “first love” . . . your first valid and vivid encounter with Christ the Lord. Retrace the initial steps of your spiritual journey. Recall your first contacts with those you wanted to share your experience with. Rehearse in your mind your initial actions, prayers, devotionals, searching for answers, discussions with fellow believers, thirst for righteousness, testimonies, and longings for Jesus. I know it’s hard to recondition our minds so as to recapture that initial spirit of love which Jesus brought into our hearts and lives.
Unwelcomed noises made by the news these days – fussin and cussin over social and spiritual issues, disgusting acts of licentiousness, almost daily attacks on Christian Faith and Practice – have shaken our calmness of spirit, disturbed our moral conscience, clouded and confused our minds to the extent that it’s hard to stay in touch with that inner spirit of Joy in Christ.
Yet, we can and must recapture that close communion with the Lord! For, you see, when we as sinners prayed, “Into my heart, into my heart, come into my heart, Lord Jesus, come in today, come in to stay, come into my heart, Lord Jesus”, Christ came in . . . to stay. His Spirit of Love is there now, and shall remain.
It’s not that we might have “forgotten” but that we might have “forsaken”. It’s not His Spirit which departs from us. It’s we who depart from His Spirit.
We acted our way out of touch with His Spirit. We must act our way back in touch with His Spirit. True love is something you do for your sake as well as for the sake of others. Oftentimes it means that we must give up something impertinent or unimportant, and go back to square one.
When we do review and reflect on our “first love”, we are well on our way toward recapturing a sense of well-being and restoring peace of mind and heart.
Remember the bliss of your first kiss? Rather emotional, right? Yet, sort of restores that inner warmth and reassurance of the blessedness of reunion. Well, so it is with our relationship to Christ. Oh, the bliss of our remembrance of Christ coming into our hearts to stay!
In Touch with Him is where we need to be, stay! As we stay in touch - in all the ways that we have of staying in touch - oh the bliss of that glorious thought, “It Is Well, It is Well with My Soul”! Amen.
