Okay, well good morning everyone. Great to see you again. I think we're a little smaller this morning with the car park being out and a bunch of other things.
We're a little smaller this morning. Last Sunday, Chris kicked off the Revelation series and did so really fantastically.
We looked at, he kind of introduced the series and we looked at Revelation chapter 1.
One, if you are new to Watermark or you weren't here last Sunday, I want to encourage you to download that because Chris really explained so much of this book of the Bible.
And really going to help you get your head around it. And we're going to work through it between now and Christmas.
And so if you weren't here last Sunday, I want to encourage you to download it and listen to that.
The other thing is, if you didn't grab one of these on the way in, make sure you grab one on the way out.
There's a whole lot of reading and information here that's going to help us work through this book of Revelation together.
So if you didn't get one on the way in, make sure you grab one on the way out.
And this morning we're going to continue by looking at Revelation chapter 2.
And before we do that, let me pray and then we're going to listen to the scripture being read to us.
So will you join me as we pray together?
Heavenly Father, we have come to worship and adore you this morning.
Father, many of us come with such a heavy heart this morning.
We've come with confused emotions.
We've come to have our eyes lifted off of ourselves and the circumstances of our world and to draw near to you.
You are the rock of ages upon which we can build our lives and hinge our hopes.
You are God of the ancient of days.
You have seen kingdoms rise and kingdoms fall.
You have existed in glory since before the world began.
And your dominion and your authority and your sovereignty has never ever been threatened or toppled.
You are God of the great I am.
Everything we need is found in you.
And so we come to you this morning to find our rest and our peace and our hope.
God, where we are hurting and anxious, come and bring your healing power.
Where we are fearful and worried, come and bring your reassurance.
Where we are hurt and upset, come and minister your peace, we pray.
God, teach us what you mean when you say in the Psalms, be angry but do not sin.
Help us not to sin in our anger, in our pain, in our confusion, God.
Lord, you call us to love you supremely and for you to be first in our hearts and our lives.
God, we confess that so seldom is this our reality.
Other things capture our heart's attention.
Other fears, other loves, other things promise us the world and yet we fall for their lives.
Other gods and idols lure our hearts away.
Father, we confess this, we do not deny it.
And yet though we sin continually, you continually repeat your kindness to us.
Oh, that we would give ourselves to you forever and never attempt to live on our own or live for ourselves.
Father, we need you to come and reorientate our hearts back towards you.
Shine the light of the gospel into our hearts that we can turn back to you today, we pray, God.
Father, this morning we want to pray for the churches across Asia, this wonderful continent in which we live.
And this morning we especially want to pray for the church in India.
God, that country with millions of gods and millions of idols.
We pray that you, God, will be supreme.
We pray for pastors and church leaders there, for churches across India.
We pray for an incredible outpouring of the Holy Spirit today.
God, revive and encourage and strengthen them.
This morning, God, we want to pray in particular for our friends, Mark Davidson and Anand in Mumbai,
for Aksha and Ranjit in New Delhi.
God, we pray for Jonathan and Rajiv in Bangalore.
God, may they know your presence.
May you draw closer to them.
Father, we pray where they're facing challenges and difficulties, strengthen them and encourage them, we pray.
Oh, God, hear our prayers.
We pray for the innumerable churches and leaders across Asia.
Those we know and those we don't know.
But you know everyone.
Be their hope.
Be their guide.
Be their encouragement.
We pray these things in your precious and glorious name, Jesus.
Amen.
Theo and Echo, will you come and read Revelation chapter 2 for us?
Thanks.
The scripture reading comes from Revelation chapter 2.
Please follow along.
Your bulletins are on the screen.
To the angel of the church in Ephesus write,
the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand,
who walks among the seven golden lampstands.
I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance,
and how you cannot bear with those who are evil,
but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not,
and felt them to be false.
I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake,
and you have not grown weary.
But I have this against you,
that you have abandoned the love you had at first.
Remember, therefore, from where you have fallen,
repent and do the works you did at first.
If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place,
unless you repent.
Yet this you have, you hate the works of the Nicolaitans,
which I also hate.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
To the one who conquers, I will grant to eat of the tree of life,
which is in the paradise of God.
And to the angel of the church in Theotira write,
the words of the Son of God,
who has eyes like a flame of fire,
and whose feet are like burnished bronze.
I know your works,
your love and faith and service and patient endurance,
and that your latter works exceed the first.
But I have this against you,
that you tolerate that woman Jezebel,
who calls herself a prophetess,
and is teaching and seducing my servants
to practice sexual immorality,
and to eat food sacrificed to idols.
I gave her time to repent,
but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality.
Behold, I will throw her onto a sick bag.
And those who commit adultery with her,
I will throw into great tribulation,
unless they repent of their works.
And I will strike her children dead.
And all the churches will know that I am He who searches mind and heart,
and I will give to each of you according to your works.
But to the rest of you in Theotira,
who do not hold this teaching,
who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan,
to you I say,
I do not lay on you any other burden.
Only hold fast what you have until I come.
The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end,
to him I will give authority over the nations,
and he will rule them with a rod of iron,
as when earthen pots are broken in pieces,
even as I myself have received authority from my Father.
And I will give him the morning star.
He who has an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
This is the Word of God.
Great. Thanks, Echo and Theo.
Okay, so we are in the book of Revelation,
as you would have heard many times by now.
And it is a book that's written by the last apostle, John.
And he is on the island of Patmos.
He's there because of his witness of Jesus.
He's there in exile.
And while he's there,
God gives him this revelation,
and he writes it down for these various churches.
And this revelation,
the Greek word is apocalypse.
And sometimes when we think of apocalypse,
as Chris said last week,
we can think of fire and doomsday
and comets hitting the earth
and that kind of stuff.
Actually, the word apocalypse
just simply means a revelation.
And the reason God gives John this revelation
is because he wants to show him
what's happening in the spiritual realm.
It's like peeling back the curtain
and revealing what's behind there
or what's obscure.
And the reason for this is that
God is showing John and us
that so much of our lives is lived
merely in response to what we can see.
We think just purely in a physical world,
and God wants to reveal to us
that there's so much more than what meets the eye.
There's a whole spiritual realm going on around us.
And it's kind of like if you're watching a movie
or a series or something,
and let's say there's a villain, okay?
And his name happens to be Dan.
And this villain you see here
has a conversation with his partner in crime
called Justin.
And these two are plotting some case.
And then this good-looking villain called Dan
goes up to somebody innocent
and starts sweet-talking them
and having a conversation,
getting them to try and give them access
to government archives
or some million-dollar deal
or whatever it is.
What's happened is
when you see that scene,
the innocent person,
innocent person Simon,
all they know what's going on
is this nice-looking person called Dan
has come and spoken to them
and is trying to sweet-talk them.
But because you've seen the preceding scene,
you've seen what's happened,
you're thinking,
no, don't give them the access codes.
Don't take that drink.
Don't tell them that piece of information.
Why?
Because what's been revealed to you
is the real plot
that's going on behind the scenes.
On the surface,
it just looks like
these two people having a conversation.
But there's a whole other plot
that's going on behind.
That's what God is doing.
He's saying,
John, churches, Christians, watermark,
I want to reveal to you
to show you what's going on
in the spiritual realm.
And so the book of Revelation is
that's what much of it's about.
As Chris said,
it's also a prophecy.
We see this in chapter 1, verse 3,
where he says,
Blessed is the one
who reads this prophecy.
Now, in the Bible,
prophecy is very seldom
about foretelling the future.
Sometimes we think
prophets are those
that can see into the future
and then tell us
what's going to happen.
Actually, in the Bible,
prophecy is always
a word from God
that demands a response.
Thus saith the Lord.
What are you going to do with this?
And sometimes
when God brings,
or when a prophet speaks,
he'll say,
This is what God says.
And if you don't respond,
then this will happen.
But actually,
when God brings a word
via a prophecy
or his prophet,
it should arrest us.
It should make us sit up
and think,
Wow, okay,
what am I going to do with that?
How am I going to respond?
And that's really important
because as we go through
the book of Revelation,
it's easy to be caught up
with all this imagery.
There's the beast
and the dragon
and this Babylon
and this prostitute.
And we can get caught up
with all the imagery
and try and understand it.
But actually,
this book is meant
to arrest us.
It's meant to make us
sit up and say,
Okay, God, you're speaking.
How am I going to respond
to your word?
And then thirdly,
the book is not only
a revelation.
It's not only a prophecy.
It's also a letter.
And that brings us
to our passage of Scripture today.
Because what we see
in chapter 2
and chapter 3
is that John
writes the book
of Revelation
to seven
very specific
individual
real-life churches
that are facing
real-life challenges
in modern-day Turkey,
the ancient world
of Asia Minor.
And these churches
weren't just,
or the letter
isn't just theoretical.
It isn't just
an analogy
or a parable
that Jesus tells.
These are real letters
written to real churches
facing real challenges.
I think we've got a map
up on the screen.
But what's interesting
is that sometimes
we can think
that these are
seven letters
written to seven churches.
Like the postman
comes with his
stack of letters
and says,
There you go, Ephesus.
There you go, Thyatira.
There you go, Pergamum.
And later,
see at the back
there's even a letter
for you.
But actually,
what's happening
is it's one letter,
it's one book
that is written
and it first gets
delivered to the church
in Ephesus
and they read
the section to them
and then they read
the section to the next church
and then they read
the section to the church
in Pergamum
and Thyatira,
et cetera, et cetera.
And then they go
and they read
the rest of the book
of Revelation
and when they finish
with the whole thing
and they understand it,
they then send it
on to the next church
and then Smyrna gets it
and they read
from the beginning
and they read
the letter to Ephesus
and the letter to Smyrna
and et cetera, et cetera,
the whole thing
and then they take
the entire Revelation
and they pass it on
to the next church.
So they didn't just
each get their own
individual envelopes
with kind of like
a postscript at the end.
The entire book
of Revelation
is delivered
to each one
of the seven churches.
Now what's interesting
is that in each one
of those sections
of the individual churches,
Jesus has some
challenging things
and He often rebukes
the churches,
which is interesting
because as you're
reading the letter,
you know that all
the other churches
are going to read
your mail, right?
Jesus is not very good
at saving face.
He kind of just
puts it all out there,
tells everyone
what He has to say
to everyone.
But here's why
this is important
because our little church
here in Hong Kong,
right,
on the west side
of the island,
hopefully there's
some things
we're doing well,
hopefully Jesus
would commend us,
but there's probably
also some things
that He would
challenge us on.
And so what is Jesus
going to do to us?
Does Jesus write
an individual letter
to every church
in the world,
to you at Watermark,
here's your letter.
To that church
meeting under the tree
in the Sahara Desert,
here's your letter.
To that church
meeting on the corner
of 5th and 17th Avenue
somewhere in Pennsylvania,
what does Jesus do?
He gives us
what He gave
His original churches,
which is the entire revelation.
And here's why
He does that.
Because what we
don't just need
is a performance review.
We don't just need
Jesus come and say,
Hey, Watermark,
I've gone through
the checklist
and you're doing
three things right
and four things badly.
Here I want you to prove.
What we need
is what the church
has needed,
which is a revelation
of Christ in His glory
on His throne.
We need a revelation
of how magnificent
Jesus is.
We also need a revelation
of how Satan
is going to try
and attack the churches
and all the ways
that He does that
through false teaching
and this and that.
But we also need
a revelation
of how Jesus wins
in the end
and how ultimately
Satan is crushed
and Jesus is victorious.
Does that make sense?
And so what we need
is not just
a performance review.
We need the book
of Revelation.
And so Jesus gives us
what He gave
the original churches,
which is,
He has a revelation
of my glory.
Learn.
Read this
and be blessed
by it.
Okay?
Something else
we're going to learn
about these letters
is almost everything
that's written
in the section
to the seven
individual churches
is also written
later on
found in the book
of Revelation.
And everything
we see later on
in the book
of Revelation
is found
in the seven churches
earlier on.
And so,
in a sense,
these seven churches
are almost live
flesh and blood
case studies
for what John
is going to say
later on.
So later on,
you're going to see
these images
of beasts
and warfare
and horses
and all this stuff
and you can kind of think
what on earth
is going on?
But actually,
He's given us
some case studies
to show us
how it plays out
in real life
early on in the book
in these seven churches.
And so,
for example,
in the letter
to the church
of Philadelphia,
Jesus says this,
because you've kept
my word
about patience
and endurance,
I will keep you
from the hour
of trial
that is coming
on the whole world.
But then,
later on,
that's exactly
what we're going to see
in chapters 6 and 7.
There's this tribulation
that's coming
on the whole world
and who's going
to keep God's people?
Well,
at the end of chapter 6
we see God's going
to be the one
who keeps His people.
God seals His people
and He keeps them
even in the midst
of trials and persecution.
All we see
in chapter 2,
the letter
to the church
in Smyrna,
Jesus says,
Be faithful unto death
and I will give you
the crown of life.
In other words,
He writes to this church
and He says,
You're going through
difficulty
even if you have to die,
even if it costs
you your life,
be faithful
because I will vindicate you
and you will come
back to life.
Well,
that's exactly
what we see
in chapter 11.
In chapter 11,
there are these two witnesses
and they are taken
to the town square
and they're talking
about Jesus
and they are killed,
they're chopped down
and they're left for dead
in the town square
so that everyone
can walk past
and mock at them
and scoff at them
and laugh at them
but what happens?
They are vindicated.
They're brought back to life.
And so that's exactly
what we see in chapter 2
with the letter to Smyrna.
In other words,
everything God writes
to His people
in the seven letters,
He then shows
how that plays out
later on in the book
and everything we see
later on in the book
is given to us
an example
earlier on
in the letters
of Revelation.
Okay,
last thing
by way of introduction
and then we're going
to get into one today.
When we read
these seven sections
to the seven churches,
one of the things
we'll quickly notice
is that it follows
a very similar flow
or pattern.
It starts off telling us
these are the words
of Jesus
and then describes
some aspect
of Jesus
in His glory.
And so it says
these are the words
of Jesus
who has eyes
like fire
or these are the words
of Jesus
who holds
the keys of life
or these are the words
of Jesus
who holds
the lampstands
in His hands.
So it says
these are the words
of Jesus
and then it describes
some aspect
of Jesus
and His glory.
Now,
that's really important
because what it means
is firstly
these aren't just
letters of advice.
It's not like
Joe Bloggs
from New York City
or Tim Keller.
Tim Keller
writing to Watermark
saying,
Watermark,
I've done an assessment
and this is what
I think of you.
These are the words
of Jesus,
the sovereign God
and therefore
we better sit up
and listen.
But in addition,
each aspect
of Jesus' glory
that's revealed
in the opening lines
speaks to some aspect
of what the church
is going through
later on.
Either the encouragement
or the challenge
that He brings.
So,
for instance,
look at the letter
to the church
in Philadelphia.
It says this,
These are the words
of Jesus,
the Holy One
who has the key
of David,
who opens doors
that no one can shut
and who shuts doors
that no one can open.
Okay?
But then later on
in the letter,
this is what He says
to them,
I have set before you
an open door
which no one
is able to shut.
I know that you
have little power
and yet you have
kept my words
and not denied
my name.
So,
what's going on here?
The church in Philadelphia
is a small church.
Okay?
This isn't Philadelphia
and USA.
This is Philadelphia
and Turkey.
Okay?
It's a small church.
They're not very powerful.
They're not very rich.
They don't have
a lot of influence,
either economic influence
or cultural influence
or political influence
and they're feeling
the pressure
because the Roman world
is closing in on them
and they feel like
our church doors
are about to be
closed and shut off.
Any minute now,
the emperor is going
to come and close us down
and Jesus writes them
and says,
these are the words
of the one
who opens doors
that no one can shut
and who shuts doors
that no one can close.
I know what's going on
and even though
you feel threatened,
know that there's nothing
that anybody
in the world can do.
If I want your church
to stand,
it will stand.
You see what he's saying?
The words of the one
who has the resources
to accomplish
what you and your church
needs.
And friends,
that's really encouraging
because as Watermark,
there are going to be
a whole lot of things
that we go through
and every resource
that we need as a church
is found,
not in your pastors,
not out there
through some pastor,
it's found in Jesus.
These are the words
of Jesus
who has every resource
we need
to encounter
or to go through
the challenges
that we're going to face.
If we're struggling
with unity,
these are the words
of Jesus
who holds his church together.
If we're struggling
with unforgiveness,
these are the words
of Jesus,
the one who pours grace
into our hearts
and shows us
what forgiveness looks like
so that we can forgive others.
If we're struggling
with feeling unloved
or unloving
to those around us,
these are the words
of the one
who loved us
with an everlasting love,
who pours his love
into our hearts
that we can make
know and make known
his love
to those around us.
Does that make sense?
Should I explain
that all again?
Okay, great.
Thank you, Simon.
Okay, so first thing
is these are the words
of Jesus who...
Second thing is then
Jesus says,
I know what's going on
in your church
and this is so encouraging.
I know every challenge
you're facing,
I know what's going on.
I know how you've endured.
I know how you've put up
with difficulty.
I know how you're
facing persecution.
I know what's going on.
But it's also a warning
because he knows
everything that's going on
and he also knows
where we compromise.
Jesus says,
I know what's going on
in your church.
And often there's
a commendation there,
an encouragement.
And then he says,
thirdly,
but this is what
I have against you.
There's an admonition
or a correction,
a rebuke.
Watermark,
I'm so encouraged
by this is what's going on
in your church,
says Jesus.
But there's this thing
that I want you to be aware of.
Don't forget about this.
And then fourth thing
Jesus says,
is he says,
he who has ears,
I want you to hear.
In other words,
don't just think,
that's interesting,
I'm sure the elders
will think about this.
Listen up.
What is Jesus saying
to us as a church?
And then the fifth thing
is he always promises
some gift of grace.
He says,
to those who endure,
I promise you this.
I will give you this.
I will stand with you
in this way.
And so,
that's how the letters
unfold.
Okay,
now with that introduction,
today we're going to dive
into primarily
the letter to the church
in Ephesus
and we'll reference
a little bit
the second one
that Theo and Echo
read to us,
the church of Thyatira.
And so,
look at Revelation chapter 2
verse 1 with me.
Let's work through
this passage together.
If you've got your Bible,
open up
and let's work through it.
Jesus says this,
to the angel
of the church
in Ephesus,
write these words.
These are the words
of him
who holds
the seven stars
in his right hand
and who walks
amongst the seven
golden lampstands.
Now,
remember from last week,
what does that mean?
Okay,
Jesus says,
I hold the stars
in my hand.
The stars are the angels,
those that are
kind of looking
after the church
and the church
is the lampstand.
Now,
in other words,
Jesus says,
I'm holding you.
Church in Ephesus,
you're going through
challenges,
you're facing persecution,
the Roman Empire
is squeezing in on you.
Your future
is not in the hands
of your pastor,
it's not in the hands
of the Roman Emperor,
Domitian,
it's not in the hands
of any political leader
or the economy.
Your church
is in my hands.
I've got you.
Friends,
we as a church
are going to face
some challenges.
There are going to be
things that are
awkward or difficult
that come our way,
no doubt.
Jesus says,
this church
is in his hands.
The words of him
who holds the church
in his hands.
That's encouragement,
but as we said
just now,
it's also a warning
because when Jesus
talks about a lampstand,
he's not talking
about an Ikea
lampstand, okay?
You pull the little
chain and then
it goes off
and you pull it again
and it goes on.
What's he talking about?
He's talking about
one of those
Jewish lampstands
that's got the
stand in the middle
and then the seven
branches that
come out of it.
Eric,
I don't know
what we call it.
What do we call it?
Menorah?
Is that right?
Okay,
thank you.
It's called a menorah.
Okay,
so it's got
the lampstands
got the seven
branches that
come out of it
and on top
of each branch
is a candle.
And so when Jesus
says,
I'm holding the
lampstand,
I'm walking
amongst you,
it also means
he has the
authority to
blow out the
candle.
He's the one
that's holding it
but he also
has the authority
to snuff it out.
Jesus says
to the church
in Ephesus,
the one who's
holding the
stars and the
lampstands.
Look at verse 2.
I know your works,
your toil,
your patience
endurance,
and how you cannot
bear with those
that are evil,
but have tested
those who call
themselves apostles
and are not,
and you found
them to be false.
I know you are
enduring patiently
and bearing up
for my namesake,
and you have not
grown weary.
So what's Jesus
commending here?
What's his
encouragement to
them?
He says,
I know your
righteous deeds,
I know you are
swimming upstream
against the tide
of your culture,
and I know that
you love my word
and you've taken
my word seriously.
You see,
what's happening
in Ephesus is
there are two
great cultural
pressures,
or two other
things that were
distracting the
Christians.
The first is
Ephesus housed
the temple of
Artemis.
And the temple
of Artemis was
one of the
seven wonders
of the ancient
world,
and Artemis
was worshipped
everywhere in
Ephesus.
It was the
icon of Ephesus.
People would
come from far
and wide to
worship the
goddess of
Artemis.
And Artemis
was the goddess
of life and
fertility.
So if you are
struggling to
have kids,
your family
would say,
go and pay
homage to the
goddess of
Artemis.
Go to the
temple and
burn some
incense.
She will
look after
you.
And so
Artemis is
everywhere in
Ephesus.
And remember
in Acts chapter
20, I think
it is,
21, the city
of Ephesus is
unhappy with
the Christians
because they
say, now
Artemis is not
going to be
worshipped.
And they
drive them
out of the
city.
And so the
Christians,
those facing
persecution,
are persecuted
because their
family members
would tell
them, it's
okay to
follow Jesus.
just don't
forget to
every now
and then
pay homage
to Artemis.
But the
other great
thing in
Ephesus, or
the other
terrible thing,
challenge, is
that Ephesus
was the
primary city
of imperial
cult worship.
And so the
first, the
emperor Domitian
came to
Ephesus and
they set up
the first
temple and
the first
shrine to
the emperor.
And so at
the Agora,
which is the
marketplace where
you do business
and networking
and you meet
people and you
do your weekly
grocery shopping,
as you walk
into the
Agora, you
have to take
a pinch of
incense, throw
it at the
feet of the
shrine to the
emperor Domitian
and pay homage
to him.
And so for
the Christians
who go to
the Agora to
also do business
and meet
people and
network and
do their
shopping, what
are they going
to do?
And maybe
they're in
their company,
they all go
after work for
drinks down at
the Agora and
there's only one
person that
follows Jesus.
What's he
going to do?
Sorry, am I
making a noise
here?
What's he
going to do?
And so the
Christians are
constantly faced
with this
pressure.
And so Jesus
here commends
them, he says
you've stayed
faithful, you
focused on
Jesus, it's
required serious
work, serious
endurance.
Jesus says I've
seen it, I
know your
works, I know
your toil, I
know your
patient endurance.
But now look
at what he
says.
He says I
know you
cannot bear
with those
who are evil.
Now who's he
talking about
when he says
you cannot bear
with those
who are evil?
He's talking
about the
emperor?
He's talking
about villain
Dan and
his sidekick
Justin?
Who are the
evil people
that Jesus
is talking
about?
Look at what
he says.
He says but
you have
tested those
who call
themselves
apostles and
are not and
you found
them to be
false.
You see
what's happening
here in
Ephesus is that
some people are
coming in and
they're saying
we know that
Paul came and
taught you the
Bible and he
said some good
things but if
you really want
to know God
we'll show you
some other
things.
We'll teach you
some other
things.
And they're
coming in with
all sorts of
false teaching
or they're
coming in saying
do you think
the Bible says
that?
Yeah Jesus is
good but he's
not God.
You know.
Or worship
Jesus but don't
forget to also
pay homage to
Domitian or
Artemis or
Deceitism whatever
it is.
They were coming
in with false
teaching and what
did the church
in Ephesus do?
They would open
up their Bible and
say really?
Just show us in
the scriptures where
does it say that?
In other words they
would test what they
heard from the
stage on Sunday
according to God's
word and sometimes
they found what
people were saying
was false and so
they would reject
it.
Here was a church
which was strong
theologically and
dogmatic about we're
only going to listen
to what God says in
his word.
We're not here to be
impressed by false
teachers or eloquent
teachers or great
orators.
We're here to see
what does God say
and that's what
we're going to
follow.
And all this makes
sense because when
we read the rest of
the New Testament
remember the books
of 1 and 2
Timothy?
They're written by
the apostle Paul to
this young man
Timothy and
Timothy is leading
a church and where
is he leading the
church?
Do you remember?
In the city of
Ephesus.
And as you read
the books of 1
Timothy and 2
Timothy Paul says
again and again
and again,
Timothy I want you
to guard the good
deposit of the
doctrine that's
been entrusted to
you.
Timothy I want you
to preach the
word.
Timothy dedicate
yourself to the
public reading of
scripture and to
the teaching of
God's word.
Paul writes to
Timothy about a
hundred times and
says whatever you
do make sure you
stick closely to
God's word and to
the theology and to
doctrine that you've
heard.
Don't take in these
other teachings.
Make sure that
whatever you're
teaching is found in
the scriptures.
And so here the
church in Ephesus is
rock solid.
They are theologically
strong.
They've been taught
well by Paul.
They've been taught
well by Timothy and
they're a church that
know their theology and
they know God's word
and they love God's
word.
And Watermark, can I
say, can the elders
say, we would love for
this to be true of us
as a church.
When I think about
Watermark, one of my
dreams for Watermark is
that in 50,
60, and in 100
years time, we are a
church which is rock
solid theologically and
doctrinally because we
know God's word.
We've been built on
God's word.
I pray that when my
kids are grandparents,
that anyone who comes
to Hong Kong will know
if you want to be taught
God's word, there is a
church called Watermark
Church.
You can go there and
they will teach you
God's word because that
is a church that loves
God's word.
And so Jesus writes to
this church and he
says, well done.
You've tested what you've
heard against God's
word and you've tested
what's false and you
love and you love my
word.
Look at what he says in
verse 6.
He says, you hate the
teachings of the
Nicolaitans, which I also
hate.
The Nicolaitans were a
group of people that were
teaching, worship Jesus,
but you know, it doesn't
matter if you also take on
some other stuff and
they were teaching,
teaching that was
promoting sin and
unholiness and lack of
purity in the church and
Jesus says, I want you to
follow my word.
Now, unfortunately, that's
not all that Jesus says to
the church in Ephesus because
look at what he says in
verse 4.
He says, but I have this
against you, that you have
abandoned the love that you
had at first.
Here is a church which is
absolutely rock solid in
theology and doctrine.
They love God's word, but
unfortunately, rock solid
theology can sometimes lead
to ice cold hearts and
cold hearted worship.
Listen to what Tim Chester
writes.
He says, we can pride
ourselves on not letting our
theology, sorry, I just lost
my place.
We can pride ourselves on not
letting our theology be
infected by worldly ideas, but
all the time our lives and
hearts can be infected by
worldly priorities, living for
the treasure of earth, seeking
our security in that.
We may be strong on doctrine
and moral orthodoxy, but are
our churches characterized by a
passionate love for Jesus and
his people?
That's an amazing, amazing
thought.
We can be dead straight,
absolutely spotless in terms of
what we believe in our heads,
but our hearts characterized by a
passion for Christ and for his
people.
Jesus says, Ephesian church, I
know your works.
I know your toil.
I know your patient endurance.
I know that you've tested those
who call themselves apostles and
teachers.
You found them to be false.
I know how you are enduring
patiently and you're bearing up for
my namesake, and you have not
grown weary, but I have this
against you.
You have abandoned the love that
you had at first.
Now the church in Thyatira that
Echo and Thea read to us, their
problem is the opposite problem.
They are a church which is
characterized by great love.
He says here, I know your love
and your works exceed what they
were at first.
In other words, you love the
people around you and you love me
more now than you did previously.
But this is what I have against
you.
You welcome teachers into your
church that promote sin, and you
welcome teachers that don't tell
you about the holiness of God and
the purity of the church.
And Jesus rebukes them.
He says, I've given them time to
repent, but they refuse.
I will strike them, and all the
churches will know that I am he
who searches the heart and mind, and
I will deal with them according to
their works.
So we mustn't swing to the
opposite side where we think
theology is bad.
Theology is just academic.
What really counts is just if we
love people and love God.
Because that's where Thyatira was,
and God says, no, that's not good
either.
Friends, if the history of the church
tells us anything, it's that when
churches abandon God's word and
doctrine, it's only a matter of time
before that church and that city no
longer knows God.
And so if we want our future
generations in Hong Kong to know God
and to love Him, we dare not abandon
the Scriptures.
We mustn't do what Thyatira did, the way
we abandon the Scriptures.
No, no, let's not swing to the
opposite side.
And yet, we cannot be a church that
just knows God's word, but it hasn't
dropped from our heads to our hearts.
Friends, FG, who Jesus is, and the
message of the gospel, that you and I,
because of our sin, because of God's
righteous holiness, because of His
justice, you and I deserve to be
condemned to hell for all eternity.
And God would be absolutely just to do
such a thing.
But instead of that, Jesus took our
condemnation in our place.
Where our destiny was death, it's now
life.
Where our future was condemnation, it's
now reconciliation.
Where once our fate was wrath and
judgment, it's now that we are called
sons and daughters of God.
Friends, if that magnificent truth of
the gospel is inside our heads, but it
doesn't penetrate our hearts, what's the
point?
What's the point?
Because being a Christian is not only
somebody who has a knowledge about
Jesus, it's someone who loves God and
walks with Him by faith.
See, friends, a Christian isn't just
someone who believes that Jesus is God.
That's important, but that's not enough.
Even the devil believes that Jesus is
God.
A Christian is not just someone who
believes that the Bible is true.
You do need to do that, but that's not
enough.
Even the devil knows that the Bible is
true.
Friends, a Christian is someone who's come
to see that Jesus is God.
That Jesus is our only hope in life and
death.
That outside of Christ, there is not one
single drop of salvation.
And therefore, someone who has thrown
themselves at the mercy of Jesus.
But in addition to that, a Christian is
someone who is living their life loving
Christ, trusting Christ, and obeying
Christ because of the gospel.
Friends, the history of the church tells us
that there are hundreds of churches, and
unfortunately, it's the church leaders'
fault, that we get 100% on a theological
exam.
Every dot, every tittle, be able to answer
every question perfectly.
But our hearts are not filled with love for
either Christ or one another.
And so what's the point?
What's the point?
Now let me ask you this question.
What do churches like that generally look
like?
What's the feeling?
What does it feel like on the ground?
What does it look like when you come in to
a church on Sunday?
Tell you what it feels like.
It feels like arrogance on one hand.
We know our stuff better than the church
down the road.
But it also feels like judgmentalism, doesn't
it?
It feels like that church down the road, if
only they knew things as well as we did.
If only they knew the Greek and the Hebrew
and if only they could really know what was
going on.
Or, sometimes churches like that, there's
fighting inside and there's judgmentalism
and the pastor can look down at his people
and think, I wish these people knew their
Bibles better.
If only they could get their act together.
Friends, how many times have we heard of
one church attacking another church because
they're not theologically perfect?
And this is particularly relevant for us
because at Watermark, our elders are
passionate about not neglecting the truth of
God's Word.
We never want to be a church which is
careless about the way we handle God's
Word.
We want to be a church which knows God's
Word and is changed by it and is radically
committed to it, even in the face of
opposition.
We want to be a church which encounters God
and His Word and has God speaking to us from
His Word and are submitting to it and
surrendering to it.
But friends, if we are absolutely doctrinally
precise and theologically as straight as an
arrow, but our hearts are not moved by love for
Christ, it's all in vain.
And so remember how Jesus comes to the
religious leaders one day and He says,
You search the Scriptures because you think
that in them you will find eternal life.
And don't you realize that they bear witness
about Me?
The Scriptures are there to bring you to Me,
says Jesus, to show you the wonder of
Christ and who He is.
I've got a hero called Ray Ortlund and he's
becoming a hero of mine.
He's just handed over his church actually in
America and he wrote a book many years ago.
The book is called The Three Priorities for
a Strong Church.
Now when I see a book like that, I want to
read it, right?
Because I want Watermark to be a strong
church.
The Three Priorities for a Strong Church.
What do you think those priorities are?
He says, number one, you love Christ.
Number two, you love one another.
Number three, you love the world out there that is
dying because they do not know Christ.
Friends, more important than getting every perfect
thing right and understanding every verse
perfectly, are we a church that loves Christ,
that loves one another and loves the city in which
we live and is dying because it does not know
Jesus?
Tim Keller says, God doesn't just want us to know and
obey him as a citizen obeys a king or merely follow him as
sheep follow a shepherd.
He wants us to know him and love him as a wife loves her
husband.
You see, friends, to be a Christian is not just to have
knowledge about Jesus.
It's to love him and to walk with him by faith.
And that's what Jesus is calling this Ephesian church to.
In the midst of all the imperial cults, in the midst of the
persecution, in the midst of the challenges that they're facing,
he says, will you love me?
Will you trust me?
Will you obey me?
Domitian, the emperor, would say, Caesar is Lord.
The Christians weren't just to know academically that Jesus
were Lord, but to love him as Lord.
And still, friends, today in our world, the devil will come to
us and say, Watermark, you can love Jesus, just also love
money as well.
You can love Jesus, just love this as well.
The devil would come to us and say that we are mature Christians if
our theology is all straight, even if we're seduced by other
loves.
Do we love Christ?
Do we love one another?
Do we love the city in which we lived?
Now, as we come towards the end, look at what Jesus says in verse
5.
Jesus says this.
He says, remember therefore from where you have fallen.
Repent and do the works that you did at first.
If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its
place, unless you repent.
Now, remember what we said earlier.
Jesus, when he's talking about a lampstand, is not talking about an
Ikea lampstand, he's talking about this Jewish menorah, right?
And there's candles on top.
But in the ancient world, the candles didn't rely on wax.
They were full of oil.
And so the oil would burn and keep the candle going.
And if you wanted the candles to keep them going, you had to top up
the oil.
Remember, Jesus tells a parable about some people that didn't bring
enough oil and so their lamps go out because they weren't prepared.
They weren't ready.
Well, in the Bible, oil is almost always a symbol of the Holy Spirit.
So what's Jesus saying here?
Jesus is saying that when he says, I'll remove your lampstand, he's
talking about closing down the church.
But how is he going to do it?
He's not going to do it by just magically closing down the meetings.
Jesus is not going to close down the church by sending a meteor to, you
know, smash our building or something.
How does Jesus close down churches?
How does he snuff out the lampstand?
He removes the oil.
He takes the Holy Spirit from the church.
And so if we just go through the motions until eventually we die out.
Friends, the scary thing is that you don't even realize it's happened until
years down the road, there's no more life left in the church.
Friends, all around the world, there are hundreds of churches, thousands of
churches which gather each week in church buildings.
And they sing some songs and they listen to a message.
But the Holy Spirit is not there.
There is no life there.
There is no light there.
And there is no church there.
And Christ is not there because they have long since forgotten their first love.
Their first love.
And so the question is, what do we do about this?
Well, Jesus says something very interesting.
Look at verse 5.
He actually says it twice.
He calls this church, which is a pillar of theological and doctrinal strength, he calls
them to repent.
Look at how he says it.
Remember therefore from where you have fallen, repent and do the works that you did at first.
If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent.
And Jesus calls us to repent of our lovelessness.
Now that's interesting because we typically think that if you don't, we think of love as
an emotion that you feel.
You either love something or you don't.
Love is like a ditch.
You fall into it and you fall out of it, right?
Not really.
But that's how we typically think of love.
If I love something, great.
If I don't, there's not much I can do about it.
It's just a feeling.
It's an emotion.
But actually Jesus says, I want you to repent of your lovelessness.
How do you repent of losing and abandoning our first love?
Well, sorry, I'm making a noise of this thing.
I don't know what I'm doing wrong.
Anyway, we're almost done.
Let me tell you a story.
Sorry.
About a year, a year and a half ago, Claire and I were going for a walk up the peak.
And we're going for a walk on the ring road.
And Claire says to me, how's our marriage doing?
Now, I think you know what's happening, right?
When Claire asks that question, she's not asking because she doesn't know.
She does know what's going on.
It's a kind of way of saying, our marriage sucks at the moment, doesn't it?
Right?
And so I know that Claire was saying that for two reasons.
One, because after being married for 10 years, I know what she means when she says, how's our marriage doing?
But secondly, because I knew how our marriage was doing.
And it wasn't at its best.
It wasn't sweet.
It wasn't full of life and joy.
It felt like hard work.
And so we'd both noticed this.
And so we go for this walk.
And Claire brings it up.
Which, can I be honest, wasn't easy.
We talked through it.
It wasn't an easy conversation.
But it was a good conversation.
And so one of the things Claire says to me in that conversation is she says, Kevin, I see the way that you're serving around the house.
I see the way that you wash the dishes.
I see the way that you try and come home and have dinner with the kids.
I see the way that you're helping and you're serving.
And I'm grateful for all those things.
But if I'm honest, I don't sense that there's much tenderness.
I don't sense there's much gentleness.
You're doing all the right things.
But it feels like there's lacking this tenderness, this sweetness, this love in your actions.
You're going through the motions because that's what a good husband does.
But it doesn't feel like your heart is really in it.
Now, to be honest, she was absolutely right.
And I think I knew exactly what she meant because we had recently moved to Hong Kong about four or five months before that.
And my heart and my mind was so focused on the job and the work and what am I trying to not mess everything up that actually something else, in other words, the job, had captured my attention and my heart.
And so even while I'm at home and I'm trying to do the right things, my mind is elsewhere and my heart is elsewhere.
In other words, over a matter of time, Claire was no longer first in my heart.
Something else had captured my heart's affection and my heart's attention.
Something else had become first in my life.
And so even though I'm trying to go through the motions, actually, while I'm trying to serve at home and I wash the dishes and the kids and Claire's saying, hey, can you make sure you're home for dinner?
Part of my heart is getting frustrated because I'm thinking, you're taking me away from what's actually first in my heart.
And so what did my wife need in that moment?
Well, what is going to bring back the sweetness?
What is going to bring back the joy and the tenderness?
What is going to revive our marriage again?
What Claire needed was firstly for me not to be defensive.
Okay, that's a good start.
She needed for me to admit where she was right and where I was wrong.
But what she actually needed was for me to go away and repent.
She needed me to go away and do business with God and say, God, you're right.
She's right.
God, I'm sorry.
Something else has become first in my heart.
And I want to put that right.
She needed me to not just go through the motions and stir up my love.
She needed me to repent.
Friends, can I say repentance always feels like death because it requires us that we humble ourselves and admit that we're wrong.
But repentance always, always leads to life.
And Jesus calls the Ephesian church and he calls us today to put right our lovelessness.
Not by just stirring up our emotions.
Not by doubling down and working twice as hard.
Not by being twice as dedicated.
But by repenting.
By coming to him and saying, Christ, something else has captured my heart's attention.
Something else is first and foremost in my heart.
Something else has come before you.
By coming to him and returning to him and making him first in our lives again.
And so how do we do that?
How do we turn to Christ in faith and repentance?
In one of his final letters in the New Testament, the Apostle John writes and he says this.
This is how we know what love is.
Not that we love God, but that he loved us.
And he sent his son to be an atoning sacrifice.
Indeed, we love because he first loved us.
Friends, when we had done nothing right.
When all we had done to God is scorned him and mocked at him and laughed at him and rejected him.
Jesus came to us in profound love.
For God so loved the world, you and I, that he gave his only begotten son.
That we can be welcomed in back to his family, his children again.
That he might pour his love into our hearts and bring us back to him together.
Jesus comes to us and says,
Friends, turn away from the things that have captured your heart's attention.
I have this and this is what I'm calling you to.
Return to your first love.
Come and love me again.
Repent.
Come to me again.
Come and love me again.