Chapter 4

Burning with Loving Orthodoxy

Revelation 2:1-7

The church I serve as pastor loves truth. In the classrooms and Fellowship Hall of the church building or around the living rooms and kitchens of the members, you can regularly hear the saints talking of eschatology (the study of the “last things”), having good-natured discussions over apologetics, flipping through their Bibles to support a point they are making, teaching the children the catechism, or sharing about a theological book they have just read. It is encouraging for the shepherd to see the sheep drinking deeply from the Word of God. But being known for loving truth has its limits.

I recall the guy who used to drive an hour and a half to get here. One day he showed up at our house over an hour early for a meeting that night, but did not want to join us at the dinner table. So when we finished eating, I went in to talk to him while my wife was cleaning up. Since I barely knew him, I decided to ask him about his testimony of Christ. "When did you come to know Jesus?" I asked. With profound seriousness, not answering my question he asked one of his own, "Are you a supralapsarian or an infralapsarian?" I never did hear his testimony, and shortly afterwards he left our church shaking his head (literally!) and muttering I was a heretic.

We should be pursuers of truth, especially in this postmodern age that denies absolute truth. Yet here is where we need to be careful, and here is exactly where the church at Ephesus got into trouble. Our knowledge, rather than causing us to mature, can instead cause us to be, in the words of the Apostle Paul, “puffed up.” We can have an inflated mind. The truth of Reformed doctrine, or Biblical orthodoxy, should never have that effect on us. Rather it should make us the most humble, loving, gracious people around.

Here we see that the Fiery Light of the church, the One who holds the stars in His hand and brings light to His church, offers remedies for doctrinal haughtiness. He shows the church how she can burn with a loving orthodoxy rather than stifle people with a deadly pride. We will see that though the book of Revelation is filled with heavenly visions, it intensely addresses practical matters of the church as it dwells on the earth. Listen to Christ’s corrective measures offered to the church at Ephesus.

Remember what is to be your first love

We know more about Ephesus and the church there than perhaps any of the New Testament churches. We read the history of its founding in the book of Acts, discover a letter that was written to it bearing its name, and also hear more about it in two pastoral letters that Paul wrote to Timothy, who was its pastor in the late fifties and early sixties A.D. Paul founded the church at Ephesus on his third missionary journey in approximately 55 A.D. Ephesus used to be an important harbor city, considered by Rome to be the gateway to the trade, politics and culture of Asia. Down its main street you would have found businesses, gyms, bathhouses, temples with their accompanying brothels, and theaters. The temple of Artemis, the great goddess of fertility, was in Ephesus, where it ranked as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Recall that Paul's preaching of the gospel created a great uproar in the city, because the idol makers of Artemis were losing their business as people were converted from idolatry to the living Christ (see Acts 19). It was in this environment that the church was planted. Paul spent three years there instructing this church, which is the longest recorded stay in one place that the Scriptures give us of the ever-moving apostle.

Clearly one of Paul's great concerns for this church was whether she would maintain her doctrinal devotion to Christ or not in the midst of this idolatrous, immoral culture. Even after Paul left Ephesus, he took care to encourage the church. His fondness for this church and concern for her doctrinal fidelity is seen in Acts 20 as he calls for the Ephesian elders to meet with him as he was passing near Ephesus on his way to Jerusalem. His great concern for the church in his absence was that false teachers would arise. In Acts 20:28-30, Paul tell the elders “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.” Some five years later when he writes to Timothy, he expresses the same concern. “As I urged you upon my departure from Macedonia, remain on in Ephesus, in order that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines (I Timothy 1:3; see also verses 6,7,18-20). Men in the church at Ephesus were mingling aspects of Christianity with the pagan superstitions and practices of their day, and they were corrupting the church.

Now notice that some time later Jesus is in this passage praising the Ephesian church because it had stood against the false teachers (Revelation 2:2-3). They had labored in understanding doctrine, dealt patiently when tried by those teaching contrary to the faith, and had persevered through these attacks on the church. The leaders in the church had tested the spirits of these false teachers who had claimed to be apostles and had purged the church of them. Note that striving for doctrinal purity and ridding the church of heretical teaching are commended by the Lord of the church. The church must be ever-guarding itself from the crafty lies and schemes that Satan brings into its midst through the false teachings of cunning men. The Lord of the church desires for it to be lovers of truth.

Yet in their process of standing for orthodoxy, the Ephesian church had forgotten the goal of orthodoxy. In their early formation, there had been a great bond of love and fellowship in the congregation. But these trials had caused a hardening, and coldness had crept into the church. They had forgotten what Paul had told them through their minister Timothy, namely that, “the goal of our instruction is love” (I Timothy 1:5). For Jesus tells them these chilling words in verse 4, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have forgotten your first love.”

In front of our church building three new bushes we had planted died. We replaced them with three new ones, and though we watered them, these three other ones also died. All the other bushes we planted were fine, just the ones planted in three certain spots turned brown and never recovered. The only thing we could figure is that there was too much fertilizer applied in the soil. What was supposed to cause them to grow had actually resulted in their death. That's the danger of doctrine. Like fertilizer, doctrine can either bring life or death. It can result in our edification if handled rightly, or our condemnation if treated unfaithfully. That was the message of the Lord to the church at Ephesus. Though she has been doctrinally faithful, she had lost her capacity to love. Doctrinal faithfulness and loving care are never to be separated.

Perhaps seeing this danger is why when Paul had written to the Ephesians, he had told them he was praying that they “would be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses all knowledge” (see Ephesians 3:14-19). This prayer does not mean knowledge is worthless and love is all we need, but that Christ’s love is so boundless that one can never fully know its lengths and depths. Is your study of God’s Word, growth in the knowledge of truth about God, and reading of theological works leading you to more greatly appreciate how wondrous is the love of God in Christ Jesus to you? Jesus tells us that if we have fallen away from our first love, to once again remember it (verse 5). Never forget the love God has shown you in Christ. How does one do this?

Repent of any laxity to your first love

This word “repent” found in verse 5 would have stung the ears of the churchgoers at Ephesus. “Repent,” Jesus says twice to them in this verse. Hearing this would have stung because that is what they would have been saying to others. They had been calling those promoting erroneous teachings to repent, and now they are hearing their Lord speak this same word to them.

Repenting would have been especially difficult for this church to swallow if we truly grasp what they had been up against. In verse 6 we read that the ones whose teachings and false deeds they had been opposing were known as the “Nicolaitans.” This is in reference undoubtedly to their leading teacher who some early fathers identify as the Nicholas of Acts 7, who had apostatized. Later in this chapter we read that these Nicolatians were also active in the church at Pergamum ( 2:14-15), and they were subtlety teaching that idolatry and immorality in the congregation were compatible with Christianity. The Nicolaitans had a disdain for Christian fidelity, as they lived in compromise with the Greek and Roman culture around them. They considered sexual relations outside of marriage to be acceptable, and they did not worry themselves about engaging in pagan rituals such as eating meat sacrificed to idols. It is interesting that Jesus says they follow the teachings of Balaam ( 2:14), the Old Testament false prophet who led Israel into idolatry and immorality (Numbers 31:16; Jude 11-13). Interestingly the name Nicholas in the Greek of the New Testament and the name Balaam in the Hebrew of the Old Testament mean the same thing – “to conquer.” Jesus Himself says that He hates these types of people, for He sees how these sins were enslaving or conquering the people of God. The church at Ephesus had call those involved in these sins to repentance, and when they had not turned from their sin they had removed them from the midst of the congregation. They had been faithful during a great trial.

Yet now the church was having difficulty getting out of the “hunt down the heretics” mode. Like the hysteria surrounding the Salem witch trials, instead of greeting one another as Christian brothers the Ephesian believers were looking at each other with suspicion as another possible enemy. They no longer showed their fellow believers they cared about them. Though we should avoid seeking to be a church whose goal is to give people the “warm fuzzies,” being a church that gives them the “cold pricklies” is no cure! Thus Christ comes and says to them, "You repent, or your lampstand shall be removed from its place." In essence He is saying, “You removed the Nicolaitans from your congregation – good. But if you keep this overdone zealotry up, I'll remove the whole congregation.” The church is being threatened by Christ to repent or face the consequences. This call to repentance involves the threat of chastisement.

Search your hearts. In your stand for truth, have you spoken and acted in love? Doctrine is to be our strength, as it gives us spiritual muscle and fortitude. Have you used doctrine like a club to beat others up, or do you use it like a well-placed hammer to build up the church of Christ? Doctrine does separate, as it separated the Ephesian saints from the Nicolaitan followers. In a desire to protect Christ’s sheep, we must warn against harmful teachings and their teachers, and remove them from the church if they refuse to repent. Yet doctrine is also to unite the church into a common confession and spiritual maturity as we speak the truth in love (see Ephesians 4:14-16). If your learning of Christian truth has led you to pride and disdain for your brethren, then repent! Make this change in your life in the following manner.

Renew yourself to obey your first love

Jesus commands the church "to do the first works" (verse 5). This is a call to renewal. The loving deeds the church at Ephesus had practiced “at first” (verse 5) were what she was to renew herself in doing. Repentance involves a change of direction of our lives. Repentance means action, and to repent and renew one’s self in loving others is not seen unless it is demonstrated.

Recall that it is the Apostle John who is writing these words, the one known as the “apostle of love,” the one whom Jesus loved. No separation existed in his mind between doctrine and love, between sound orthodoxy and charity. Listen to him in I John 5:2-3 "By this we know that we love the children of God (here's the test), when we love God and observe His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome to us." This agrees with the founder of the Ephesian Church, who said "Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law… if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no wrong to a neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of the law" (Romans 13:8-10). To fulfill the law means we must be orthodox and know what the Bible teaches; but to fulfill it also means we obey it by loving. In other words, you can see right doctrine, beloved.

Obeying God’s commands will lead you to show love by praying even for your enemies, because you know apart from God's grace that you would behave like your enemies (Matthew 5:46). It will cause you to boldly stand up for truth in the face of opposition, yet do so with a spirit of gentleness that God may use to convict your opponent of error (II Timothy 2:14-16). Love can cause you to give even your enemies food and drink (Romans 12:31), or sing a song of mourning at their death (as David did over King Saul in II Samuel 1:17-27). Notice how active and passionate love is! Christ is telling us that even when purging the church of sinful behavior we hate and deeds that are not to even be named among the children of God, we can still do it and maintain a spirit of love. Is that not what Jesus Himself showed at the cross? In the midst of hatred and murderous treachery, God’s Son actively and purposefully went to the cross for us, praying for His enemies as He did.

Christ calls us to overcome not only heretics, but also doctrinal pride (verse 7). The word overcome is from the same Greek word that Nicholas’ name comes from! The power of loving orthodoxy is that it can overcome all that rages against it. "Many rivers cannot quench love," says the Song of Solomon. That type of love will result in eating from the tree of life located in God’s Paradise (verse 7). A congregation who loves truth but also loves people will be filled with heavenly life.

Conclusion

Of this church at Ephesus Sir William Ramsey comments, "...nothing could have saved the infant church from melting away into one of those vague and ineffective schools of philosophic ethics except the stern and strict rule that is laid down here...An easygoing Christianity could never have survived; it could not have conquered and trained the world; only the most convinced, resolute, almost bigoted adherence to the most uncompromising interpretation of its principles could have given the Christians the courage and self-reliance that was needed. For them, to hesitate or to doubt was to be lost." Yet in her zeal to stamp out heresy, Ephesushad grown bigoted, and had almost been conquered by the very thing she was fighting against – Christless living. For whether it is the false teaching of the new fad heresy, or the false teaching of orthodoxy that produces hatred, they are both without Christ. May we overcome the idolatry and immorality of this age by burning with a loving orthodoxy that exalts the person of Jesus Christ, the Lord of His church!