[The Lord] loves, and cares, and sympathizes, and understands, and seeks, and saves, and forgives, and helps, and encourages, and walks by our side taking care of us in life when we cant take care of ourselves. . In Christ, the victory is won. The library among the ruins of ancientEphesus (photoby David Treybig). He was from a priestly family, and he undoubtedly looked forward to serving God in Jerusalems temple. Look for opportunities to do both. To first-century leaders in the Roman world, the imagery was familiar: A victorious Roman general returning from battle leading his soldiers and their captives into the city. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Jesus repeatedly said that He only did what the Father showed Him to do (John 5:19), and prayer was His means. . He and his wife, Teddi, have two grown children and seven grandchildren. But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Until next time, may the grace and peace of Christ be with you all. D. L. Moody, In my thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. Article URL: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/revelation/seven-churches-of-revelation/ephesus/. He healed the mans paralysis. The hardest part of forgiving another person isacting like the offense never occurred. Print subscriptions available in U.S., Canada and Europe. Yet you remain true to my name. First, he believed the promises of God about the future God had planned for him (Hebrews 11:8-12). They told the king they would not divide their allegiance, that they would maintain their faith in God and His promises. He targeted the church at Thyatira because of its strength. Are you a whole person or a fractioned person today? Through the Gospel, brings them to faith. To the one who overcomes I will give the right to eat of the tree of life that is in the midst of the paradise of God. We also have a strong and powerful defense to thwart the lies of Satan, brought by his agents disguised as servants of righteousness. Goodbye hardship and heaviness. 2 Peter 1:13-14, NIV.

Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission.

Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. America is full of them. This has nothing to do with how much money you do or dont havea poverty-stricken person can covet just as much as a billionaire. The next time Paul came through the city, he found that some people, including about twelve men, had become disciples (Acts 19:1, 7). Why did Paul say we glory in tribulations? For this reason, we may, with some degree of probability, assume that what this abandoned first love is that Jesus speaks of is nothing less than their love for Him, the One who first loved them. You can place your steadfast trust in Him. Prayer and a holy life are one. These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. Jesus said He was going to prepare a place for you if you belong to Him (John 14:1-4). Citizens lined the streets applauding while the aroma of celebratory incense filled the air. Goodbye trials and troubles. And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. The ease of traveling to the city, either by land or sea, made it the most accessible populated destination in Asia. The treasury of Scripture will enrich your mind, refocus your goals, replace your doubts, and redirect your pathbut only if you read it and heed it. The city stood at the entrance of a valley that reached far into the province. Hello golden streets, glorified bodies, endless days, and the fresh air of New Jerusalem! Colossians 3:1 tells us to seek those things which are above, where Christ is. In verse 5 were told to put to death the passions that come from below"fornication, uncleanness, passion, and evil desire. Then the Lord added the sin of greed or covetousness to the list, calling it idolatry. (AK) 16Repent(AL) therefore! (1 Corinthians 5:1-5), Why should we be ruthless about corruption or compromise in our own life? And they accompanied him to the ship (Acts 20:37-38). He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. How Should a Christian Deal With the Coronavirus Pandemic? You did not renounce your faith in me,(AD) not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness,(AE) who was put to death in your citywhere Satan lives. Both Scripture and church history teach us that, through the Law, God calls His saints to repentance. 26To the one who is victorious(BG) and does my will to the end,(BH) I will give authority over the nations(BI) 27that one will rule them with an iron scepter(BJ) and will dash them to pieces like pottery[b](BK)just as I have received authority from my Father. After all, according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 13, love is known by its actions more than its words. Moses reminded the Israelites that God was taking them into a land of hills and valleys, of water and streams, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year (Deuteronomy 11:11-12). Priests began their temple duty at the age of thirty. As Ignatius letter to the Ephesians commends them for their faith, so also does Jesus letter to them some years prior. John begins transcribing this first letter from Jesus to the Church of Ephesus, the Ephesians, his home congregation. Such is the picture David paints with his words in Psalm 32a drought of spiritual vitality brought on by his own sin. Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them (verses 11-12). Pray for holiness in the Body of Christ. He is the Conqueror and the Victory. (S) I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not,(T) but are a synagogue of Satan. We have victory now and for eternity only because of the victory Christ won for us. If Jesus, the Son of God, needed to go to His Father in prayer for strengthening and guidance, how much more do we (Psalm 32:6)? Are you sustaining this love or is it waning? Mark 2:5. For Luther, those who refuse Christ as a curse want their sin removed not in Christ but in themselves. He listed them in verses 710. During the time of the apostles, it may have seemed an impossible task to discern true apostles from the false ones. (Galatians 5:9; Ephesians 4:26-27). He is the Victory. Modern folk, Indian Pale Ales, Scotch, Cigars and good conversation are some of Brandon's favorite vices. Whether we realize it or not, it is part of our past, and it will be part of our future. Dont let your past keep you from trusting God for a second (or third, or fourth) chance. (see verses 51-54), How did Paul act ruthlessly in the case of immorality in the church in Corinth? If youre prone to worry yourself to sleep each night, turn your thoughts upward and close your eyes thinking of heaven and its eternal throne. However, according to Eusebius, their antinomian influence was short lived. In this statement Jesus advises us to heed the messages given to all of the churches so we can be in the Kingdom of God. God gave him a second chance. Or is it things below? Thats just when God appeared to him as he was among the exiles by the Kebar River. Concluding His message to the church of Ephesus, Jesus said, He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 20Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel,(AW) who calls herself a prophet. 1517 creates and distributes theological and apologetic resources anchored in the central message of the Bible: that Christ died for sinners and rose for their justification. Paul writes that we belong to God and we are to glorify Him with our care and use of our body. The city stood upon the sloping sides and at the base of two hills, Prion and Coressus, commanding a beautiful view; its climate was exceptionally fine, and the soil of the valley was unusually fertile (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1939, Ephesus). As Peter wrote, we look for a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13). For many years Ephesus was the largest city in the Roman Empire next to Rome and boasted a population of more than a quarter million inhabitants. When Jesus says He will grant this to the one who conquers to eat of this tree, we may be tempted to look at this as works righteousness, as our part to play in our salvation. Ephesus, founded primarily by those from the city of Athens, was the capital of both Ionia and proconsular Asia. List all the things Paul says cannot separate us from Gods love in Christ. In Johns words, In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother (1 John 3:10). Tradition states the apostle John lived in the city after being released from Patmos. When his thirtieth birthday came, he must have struggled with questions of why and if only.. 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). If you need a victory in your life, begin every day by renewing your faith in Christ in whom all our victories are to be realized. The meaning of first love in this passage (Revelation 2:4) is the zeal and commitment to God these Christians had when they initially learned of Gods way of life. Therefore, if we are to experience victory in this life, it will come only as we depend on Him. Here, then, we can see clearly, as Scripture interprets Scripture, that our victory, our conquering anything that grants us a bite from the fruit of the tree of life, is not our works, but it is Gods work of bringing us by the Holy Spirit to penitent faith and trust in Jesus Christ. As Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, the life we now live is the life of Christ in us as we keep our faith in Him. The first, the First Council of Nicaea, met to agree on the nature of Jesus of Nazareth as both Son of God and Son of Man, as both fully divine and fully human. There are no "new" temptations in life. With pride? Then we can also say, with Paul, But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Marine litter is a huge ecological problem. The patriarch Isaac could have written that book about his father, Abraham. ohn begins transcribing this first letter from Jesus to the Church of Ephesus, the Ephesians, his home congregation. Colossians 3:5. That means communing with Him, walking with Him, living for Him, and above all, trusting Him and His promises. With that background, Paul exhorted believers not to make the same choices the Israelites madenot to provoke God's discipline by willfully sinning. There is always a righteous choice to be made if we are willing to seek it. The humanity of Christ, while at the same time divine, is hard to understand. Ezekiel looked up and saw remarkable visions of Godthe throne of God surrounded by angelic beings.