RECAP

• Letters to the 7 churches in Revelation
• Past, Present, Prophetic - we can learn from this
• Revelation TO John FROM Jesus
• “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.” (1:3)
• Last week: “The Voice” - WHO is doing the talking
• Two points:
  • Jesus is among His church. (within the lamp stands, his location matters (1:3)
  • Jesus knows about His church (8x “I know”) {encouragements as well as conviction}

EPHESUS

• center of travel, business, commerce, hub of three major roads to Babylon, Smyrna, and south into Meander Valley
• Paul planted church about AD52 (Acts 18:19) during second missionary journey
• Paul’s third journey 3-4 years later, he spent about 3 years there teaching in the city (Acts 19:8-41)
• Paul met with Ephesian Elders on island of Miletus (Acts 20)
• 10 years after church started (AD62), Paul writes to them the letter Ephesians
• Church had been growing, multicultural, multinational, multigenerational, were doing pretty well
• A few years later, things start to change: 1 Timothy 1:3-4 - doctrinal drift, gnosticism, new special revelation of God while denying son of God, raised to life, other non-biblical concepts, blending pagan religions
• apparently underwent a church split/division

THE LETTER TO EPHESUS

• Jesus/The Lord’s title: “The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lamp stands”
• THE GOOD
  • toil
  • patient endurance
  • not tolerating evil
  • not grown weary
  • hate the works of the Nicolaitans
    • > “Christian” sect {Pergamum}
    • > didn’t have to separate themselves from the world and its practices to be a Christian
    • > antinomian position: belief that God does not expect Christians to obey moral laws
    • > Iraneus - ‘men who lead lives of unrestrained indulgence’
    • > “I can have my cake and eat it too”, a foot in both worlds
• THE BAD
  • false teachers/disciples in the church
  • they have abandoned their first love
• THE MESSAGE:
  • Remember: how far you have fallen
  • Repent: turn to God & His ways
  • Return: Go back to what you did at first & should be doing