So far we've named the symptoms. Lukewarm worship. Sin that doesn't sting.
Today we look for the root.
Jesus wrote to the church in Ephesus. On paper, they were a model church.
He praised their works, their labor, and their patience. They tested false teachers. They endured hardship for His name and didn't quit.
If Ephesus had a website, it would have looked great.
Then Jesus said, "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love."
Not lost. Left.
You lose your keys by accident. You leave something by walking away from it, usually slowly.
Ephesus kept doing everything right. They just stopped doing it out of love.
That's how a lot of us went numb. We didn't quit. We kept going. But somewhere, the relationship became a routine.
Prayer became a task. Bible reading became a box. Church became a schedule.
You can be busy for Jesus and distant from Him.
Think about a marriage. A couple can keep paying the bills, raising the kids, and showing up to family dinners. Everything looks fine. But they haven't really talked in years.
They're roommates who share a last name.
That's what happened in Ephesus. And it can happen to any of us who've been around church long enough to run on autopilot.
So how do you know? Ask what your mind drifts to when it's free. What you get excited to talk about. What you make time for without a reminder.
First love doesn't need a reminder.
Here's what I love about Jesus. He doesn't just diagnose. He gives the cure.
"Remember therefore from where you have fallen." Remember when grace amazed you. When you couldn't stop talking about what He'd done.
"Repent." Not just feel bad. Turn around.
"Do the first works." Go back to what you did when you were in love. Simple, eager, unhurried time with Him.
The root of numbness usually isn't a lack of information. It's a loss of affection.
And affection returns the same way it started. John said, "We love Him because He first loved us."
You don't rekindle first love by trying harder to love Him.
You rekindle it by letting Him love you again.
Today's Challenge
Take fifteen minutes and write the story of when you first met Jesus or first really understood His grace. Where were you? What changed? Then read it out loud to Him as a prayer of thanks. Before the week ends, tell that story to one person.
Prayer
Jesus, I've kept busy and called it faithfulness, but I've drifted from You. I remember when Your grace amazed me, and I want that back. I repent of loving the work more than I love You. Take me back to the first works. Love me back to life. In Jesus' name, amen.
Reflection
- Am I doing things for Jesus out of love, or out of habit?
- When did my relationship with God start becoming a routine?
- What did I do in my first-love season that I've stopped doing?
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.