A Call To True Repentance Putting the Love Back in the Beloved

Revelation 2: 2-5 "I know all the things you do. I have seen your hard work and your patient endurance. I know you don't tolerate evil people. You have examined the claims of those who say they are apostles but are not. You have discovered they are liars. You have patiently suffered for me without quitting. "But I have this complaint against you. You don't love me or each other as you did at first! Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don't repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches. (NLT)

The church has a purpose to fulfill; a destiny outlined by God. That purpose is not to generate mega-churches. It is not to have the best conferences, flashiest worship teams, or even the most watched television programs. No, the purpose of the church is the same purpose we have for being created:

Bring all who claim me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them.'" Isaiah 43: 7 (NLT)

When our focus is on glorifying God, then we are fulfilling the purpose He has for us individually and corporately. Missions do not work without glorifying God. Outreach to the neediest in society does not work without glorifying God. Sure, temporary needs can be addressed but eternal needs are left to continue to rot? It should not be. A church service that is more about show than substance will not bring glory to God. Backbiting and malicious gossip will not bring glory to God. Attacking leaders and dividing the body of Christ will not bring glory to God. The sad truth is we often can lose our way as people and as a church if we take our eyes off of glorifying God.

This is where we find the Church at Ephesus in our key verses today. Unfortunately, it is also where we can find our own church today in America. First, let us look at what the church was doing right, realizing that it is not enough. It is not the purpose for which we were called. The speaker here is Jesus and He openly acknowledges that the church is hard working and patient in its endurance. Hard work and patience are important in how we approach the work of God but they are not enough. We can also find ourselves working tirelessly for the kingdom of God. We put in extra hours at no cost. We commit ourselves feverishly working 12 hour days, sacrificing our personal time and convince ourselves that it is a sacrifice for God. The truth today though is God doesn't need us to burn out unnecessarily. Remember, the idea of the Sabbath, a day of no work, was created by God. But in our relentless pursuit of the Martha within us, Mary often gets sacrificed.

The Gospel of Luke tells the story of Mary and Martha, sisters who were friends of Jesus. The Lord was visiting with them and Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to Him. Here is how the Bible describes Martha at this same time:

But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" Luke 10: 40

Truth be told, Martha represents a lot of us in ministry. We are distracted by the necessary work. We get sidetracked by the meetings, the preparation, the ministry work we have been assigned. We too like Martha can lose sight of Jesus who is sitting in our home talking to us! Then when we do finally approach Him it is to complain about the work we have allowed ourselves to be distracted by! Or even worse, to complain about someone else and the efforts they are making. We can start to see the Mary's of the church as somehow lazier or not as serious in their approach to God but here is the response of Jesus to Martha and to us "Marthas" today:

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." Luke 10: 41-42

Mary has chosen what is better. To sit at the feet of Jesus listening to what He has to say. This is not to say that Martha does not have a role someone has to work but what is sacrificed for that work? Too many pastors work too many hours and while they advance the kingdom, they do so at risk to themselves. Too many ministry leaders burn out from working too much and eventually feeling unappreciated. Truth is we can lose sight of whom we are really working for. Jesus can be sitting in the same room as us and we cannot even see Him.

The same goes for churches. A church can work hard like the church at Ephesus and be patient in endurance but lose sight of the glorifying work that needs to be done. We can even correctly apply doctrine as the key verse indicates. We can see who are false apostles from real ones . We can suffer too. Go through wilderness periods and stay faithful not quit. We can even not tolerate evil people. These are all positive things Jesus is speaking here; but they are not enough. They are not enough for us individually or as a church. Having hard working ministers and flashy programs are not enough. Correctly applying doctrine, suffering without quitting and denying evil is not enough. Where is the love?

That is the question Jesus asks in this key verse and what He is asking us today. Where is the love in the beloved? Note that Jesus accusation here falls into two different problems. First, our love for God can wane. The Christian walk is just that, a walk. We start out usually on fire for God but somewhere that fire grows dim. We can go through the motions of our Christianity but be actually moving farther and farther away from God personally. Our personal devotional time can be sacrificed first or maybe our prayer time is not as consistent as it once was. There is an old Christianism that says if you feel farther away from God today than you once did, I know who moved! God doesn't move beloved. He is always in the same room with you, talking to you, and wishing you would stop being so distracted and just sit at His feet to listen to Him.

The same concept applies for the church as well. Maybe the church services started out very spiritual, seeking God on our faces, crying out in prayer. Maybe the years take their toll. Maybe the service time gets shortened. Worship goes from seven songs to five. Sermons go from 45 minutes to a half hour. Bible study classes go from four per semester to two. Little changes here and there that move the purpose of the church away from glorifying God and more into pleasing man. Jesus is still there in the room watching the distracted church and waiting for it to slow down long enough to simply sit at His feet again and listen. The work is important but not without glorifying God. Without bringing glory to God it is just white noise.

The second problem Jesus is speaking about here is just as important and that is our love for each other has waned. How important is loving each other? Jesus considered it so important it was given to us a new commandment:

So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." John 13: 34-35 (NLT)

The world is desperately seeking a reason to believe. Unfortunately, they will also accept any reason to not believe. A loveless church, where one member is backstabbing another does not serve the purposes of God and it certainly robs Him of His glory. Just as Jesus loved us! That is how we are supposed to love each other. Jesus loved us while we were still sinners! He loved us unconditionally. He was faithful when we were faithless. He overlooked our failings. Yet how do we treat each other? What level of mercy do we show to each other? When someone fails or falls are we showing the love of Christ or do we assume the self-righteousness we did not earn? Do we extend the same grace that we had been given? This applies on the individual level as well as the church as a whole.

A church can also get lost sometimes. We can get self absorbed, have our pride blind us and start to undo the work God is trying to do. God help us if we actually allow ourselves to be used by the enemy to the point that we start getting in the way of something God is trying to do. Motives do not matter to God, obedience does. We can convince ourselves that anything we do, any cause we undertake, is somehow given by God but He will not be fooled. We need to truly examine our hearts and ask if what we are doing glorifies God or does it serve something in our flesh. Either way, the call Jesus was making to the Church at Ephesus in our key verses is the same call He is making to us today repent!

The repentance Jesus is speaking about here is clearly defined. First, we must see "how far we have fallen." Repentance always begins within ourselves . It is always easier to look at other people and say they need to repent. It is always easier to feel better about ourselves than to examine ourselves. It is easier to pretend we are helping by praying for people instead of asking for prayer ourselves. If you are going to lead a cry for corporate repentance, you need to be the first one at the altar.

Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor. James 4: 8-10 (NLT)

Let there be tears for what YOU have done. Not someone else beloved. Not for the person(s) you deem as being in the wrong. We all play a part in the falling away. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. None are righteous. Yet too often, we can stand and point the finger at the person the enemy has accused in our hearts. They become the representation of all that is wrong within the church when God is trying to get us to look in a mirror.

Repentance next involves a turning away. Jesus says turn back! Stop going in the direction you are currently heading in because it is leading you away from God. Turn back to me, Jesus says. The implication is obvious. The direction we are currently in is leading away from Jesus if He is imploring us to turn back to Him. It is leading away from glorifying God the purpose for which we have been called individually and corporately. Turn around because God is still in the room waiting for you to listen to Him.

Part of the process of turning back is to do the works we did at first. When we were first saved we were on fire for God. Now we may be on fire for serving God and there is a stark difference. Christianity is a religion but Christ is Lord of our lives. God does not want religion He wants relationship.

And what union can there be between God's temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: "I will live in them and walk among them.  I will be their God, and they will be my people 2Corinthians 6: 16 (NLT)

We are the temple of the living God but sometimes we can err. We can start to defile that temple individually and corporately. We can go through the Martha motions of the good little church or the good little believer. We can work hard, endure patiently, and refuse evil yet still grow farther apart from God. Where is the love in the beloved? Do we love God as we first did? Do we tear down the body of Christ instead of loving them as Christ first loved us? Do we extend the same grace and mercy God has lavishly poured on us? Are we fulfilling the very purpose God has saved us for to glorify the name of the Lord? Or are we glorifying the works of the enemy? Repentance is the message for us today as believers and as the church. True repentance however begins within each of us. It is inward searching, not seeking whom to blame. Turn back and do the works we first did, when we first fell in love with Jesus. Only His glory matters. Only His will be done. Let us not lose our calling and purpose. Let us not lose our standing as a star in the hand of Jesus Christ.

Reverend Anthony Wade August 19, 2010