The Careless Church
Rev 2:1-7
Muynak was once a thriving port on the Aral Sea, but today it sits on the edge of a bitter, salty desert. Sand dunes are strewn with the rusted, hollow hulls of a fishing fleet that once sailed high above on the surface of Central Asia’s fountain of life.
Things began changing 30 years ago when Stalinist planners began diverting the Aral water source to irrigate the world’s largest cotton belt. No one, however, envisioned the environmental disaster that would result. Weather has become more extreme, the growing season has been shortened by two month, and 80% of the region’s farmland has been ruined by salt storms that sweep in off the day seabed.
What happened at Muynak parallels the history of the church at Ephesus. Once a thriving spiritual community, the Ephesian believers diverted their attention from Christ to works done in His name. They lost sight of what was most important in their relationship with Christ--their love for Him.
Could we end up the same way? Today, I want us to look at the church in Ephesus and see what we can learn from what God wrote to them.
PRAYER
I. Don?t Forget Who?s In Control
A. Ephesian leadership
1. Ephesus had an all star leadership during Bible times.
2. Paul worked with the church, Timothy, Aquilla and Percilla, Apollos, and probably John.
3. These men, as good as they were, weren?t who controlled the Ephesian church; God did
B. God holds the stars
1. In an era of mega churches and Charismatic preachers, it can get easy to think an eldership or preacher are the keys to being a great church.
2. Many new converts or revitalized churches unintentionally put a preacher in a position of being God rather than God?s gift.
II. What They Did Right
A. Hard work and perseverance
1. This was a hard working church.
2. They were the church that had all kinds of programs,
a) Maybe they had monthly potlucks at the Theater
b) Possibly they picketed the various temples
c) They might have even spearheaded the keep Ephesus beautiful campaign.
3. make no mistake, this was an involved congregation
B. Doctrinally pure
1. God also commends them for being doctrinally pure.
2. I have heard some of our church leaders in the brotherhood say that doctrinal purity isn?t really important.
a) yet, if it wasn?t that important, why would God bother to commend the Ephesians for not allowing wickedness and false teachers to take root in their congregation?
b) The doctrines of God ARE important and we need to rigorously defend them.
c) Where we have to be careful is making sure we don?t equate the doctrines of man with the doctrines of God.
3. They were determined to hold strong to the teachings of the apostles, and no one was going to sneak past them.
C. Suffered for Christ
1. It couldn?t have been easy being a Christian church in Ephesus.
2. It had every imaginable religion in the city with the biggest being the worship of Diana or Artemus. This worship was enacted through sexual acts with the temple priestesses.
3. Much of the city?s money was made by making special charms blessed by various gods or one for worshipping various gods made from precious metals.
4. Whether is was craftsmen who lost income or jobs by becoming Christians, or people who were punished somehow for opposing these religions and standing up for Christianity, they suffered for their decisions.
5. It used to be hard for American Christians to comprehend religious persecution until the last 10-20 years. Now we see persecution in subtle ways and could someday see it in very overt ways if current trends continue.
D. Tireless
1. They did not weary.
2. So many churches and individual Christians start out great guns in one ministry or another and then burn out after a while.
a) Some of the burnout is for valid reasons
b) Some is simply because the people were not committed to the project for the long haul.
c) We see that in our own country. After Sept 11, we were all gung-ho as a nation to root out terrorism. Whatever it takes we will do. Now, 7 months later, our nation is slipping back into lethargy. We aren?t as committed as we claimed we were.
d) How many good church ministries have come and gone because church members weren?t as committed to it as they had claimed?
III. What God Had Against The Ephesians
A. You have forsaken your first love.
1. As busy as the Ephesian church was, as spiritually pure as the Ephesian church was. They were missing the most important ingredient.
2. They were missing their first love, Christ.
3. Look at how the church in Thessonalica was addressed versus this church
a) READ I Thess 1:3 and Rev 2:2
b) Did you see the difference?
c) The Thessalonians works were inspired by their loved for God.
d) The Ephesians doing religious things, but didn?t have the right motivation.
4. A man bought a new hunting dog. Eager to see how he would perform, he took him out one day, hoping to track down big game. No sooner had they gotten into the woods than the animal picked up the trail of a bear. Excitedly the hunter followed close behind. Then suddenly the dog stopped, sniffed the ground, and headed in a different direction. He had caught the smell of a deer that had crossed the path of the bear. A few moments later he halted again, this time captivated by the scent of a rabbit that had crossed the path of the deer. And so, on and on it went until finally the breathless hunter caught up with his dog, only to find him barking triumphantly down the hole of a field mouse.
5. Many new Christians start out with the high resolve of keeping the Savior first in their lives. But it isn’t long before their whole attention is diverted to things of temporal importance.
B. Repent!!
1. READ vs 4-5
2. Maybe you haven?t caught the depth of this statement and how it effects every Christian and church.
3. No matter how busy they were, not matter how right their doctrine, no matter how much they had suffered, without Christ first in their lives, everything else meant absolutely nothing.
4. Jesus brings out that same sentiment in Matt 7:21-23 READ
5. Remember Mary and Martha? Martha was so busy working for Jesus, she didn?t have time to love him.
6. Brothers and sister, we can look the part all we want, but if Christ isn?t first in our lives, he will remove our lamp stand.
7. You can be committed the church all you want, but you MUST be committed to God first above all else, even the church.
IV. Concl
A. Let him hear
1. Again in this letter you see the idea that it more than a letter to one group of people alone.
2. READ vs 7
3. churches, churches like us.
B. Who overcomes
1. John shows us not all is lost.
2. This isn?t a letter of absolute judgment
3. If they overcame, God would bless them.
4. If we overcome, God will bless us.
5. If you overcome, God will bless you.
