Rev 2: 1-3, 1 To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, …2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil… 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary
This letter is written to one of the 7 churches in the book of Revelation. At first glance, the church of Ephesus would be an ideal church to be part of until you read the next, vs. 4, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.” This church had great highlights with one downfall, it was a loveless church. They spoke, preached, and defended the truth, what they lacked was love. The first love could be summed up in loving God by communing with Him in prayer. They lost the foundation on which everything else was built on.
The ministry of Christ here on earth was marked by His prayer life. As the house was turned into a house of commerce, the zeal of His house consumed Him and in holy anger He cleansed the house, restoring it to be a house prayer. Jesus’ never permitted His service to cloud His communion with the Father. If anything, He would frequently withdraw from the crowd to be alone with the Father. The rest were the results of that time. This church in Ephesus may have loved doing God’s work without God’s spirit revealed and empowered as we pray. This leads me to ask, are we becoming a generation that has light (the word) but little to no heat (prayer)? One thing for sure, you cannot separate the heat and the light from the fire. May we follow the example of Christ by returning to our first love.