Remember from where you have fallen, is a direct rebuke. The bridegroom says: ‘Bride, what happened to your first love? Where is the fire in your heart? The house is perfectly clean. The children are well brought up. You really do your best, and you do it all for me. But where is your spontaneous love? Remember? Once upon a time, when we met, financially and materially we had almost nothing. But we had each other, and that was more than enough! But now, though we have everything, have we gradually somehow lost each other? Do we not risk even losing each other completely?’ Such a scenario can happen in a marriage, and it can also happen in the relationship between Christ and His Church, His bride – a drifting apart — not from His side, but from ours. As an Old Dutch rhyme says: ‘When the churches were made of wood, the hearts were of gold; when the churches became made of stone, love was gone.’
Christ walks among the lampstands in the same way as the Lord God walked in the garden,1 full of love and longing for fellowship with the people He had created. But their hearts may no longer be beating for Him as before. Everything may look in order outwardly, but are our hearts turned to Him inwardly? The Lord asked His disciple, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these”?2 Peter had to answer that question no less than three times, until he said sorrowfully, with tears in his eyes “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.”
The church of Ephesus had not rejected Jesus. They had been prepared to do everything for Him, but the situation had become one of “hot heads, cold hearts”. Peter was prepared to cut off Malchus’ ear3 to defend the Lord but Jesus did not need that kind of defence. ‘My son, My daughter, give Me your heart.’4 Only in that intimate relationship with Me should you go out into the world. Love for Me is able to take you to other people with compassion.’
Mark 12: 28 – 34 records this “One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” The scribe said to Him, “Right, Teacher; You have truly stated that He is One, and there is no one else besides Him; and to love Him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbour as himself, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” The scribe seemed to understand that loving God and loving one’s neighbour hold the key to God’s Kingdom.
True love rejoices with the truth. (The characteristics of love are given in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13). True love includes exposing lies as well as holding firmly to the truth, and persevering persistently when the world turns against you and against the Word of God. But you can stand for truth “not by might, nor by power, but by the power of the Holy Spirit”, Zechariah 4:6. The Spirit will lead you into all truth.5 Hearts and minds should point in the same direction. “Turn around to Me, and walk as you used to walk, in the youthful zeal of your faith and your love,” He says.
What if you do not? Whether you rise or fall depends on your inner motivation and attitude. It is not a question of adding what is lacking. It is not saying that
‘We are almost perfect! O yeah, the only thing we lack is a little more love. So, if we add just that, we are okay! But generally speaking, we are alright!’ No! Either we are full
of love or we are not! The Church will not survive unless true love prevails among God’s people again. Without love as its foundation, the light of the Church will be snuffed out, and the lampstand removed. “Repent!” Christ tells His Church. This is still possible, it can still happen—indeed, we must repent and change!
• Remember! Israel had to remember, to think back to the past and recall how the Lord had found her and espoused her. He married her and took His vows. Again and again the prophets call for reflection and restoration on the part of the Israelites, to repent and return with an undivided heart!
• Remember, the Ephesian church was not asked how they had fallen or how they had failed, but from which height they had fallen. What matters is love and that has all to do with the heart! Out of it are the issues of life.6 NASB: Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life. Repentance is ‘metanoia’ in Greek. This word also appears in Revelation 2:5, 16, 21, 22; 3:3, 19; 9:20–21; 16:9, 11.
Bible References:
1.Genesis 3:8 2. John 21:15–17 3.John 18:10 and Luke 22:49–51 4.Proverbs 23:26 5. John 16:13 6.Proverbs 4:23 KJV
