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I'm Dr. Ryan Dellamater.

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Now, I've been a student of the Bible for over 30 years.

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I'm glad that you could be with me today as we're continuing our series through the book

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of Revelation, the last book of the Bible.

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Now, if you're new to this, if you could please like and subscribe and tell some other people

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about it.

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I have over 258 free Bible teachings to help us all learn the Word of God a little bit

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better.

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Now, today we're going to be looking at Revelation chapter 2 verses 1 through 7.

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Now, if you have your Bible, if you could please turn there and you could follow along.

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Now, before I read the text, I want to point out that the city of Ephesus is portrayed

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here as a bustling and influential metropolis in the Roman province of Asia Minor, which

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was the recipient of part of this letter.

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This is modern day Turkey.

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You can look it up on a map if you want to learn a little bit more about it.

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Ephesus was renowned for its grandeur and its cultural significance during the first

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century.

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Now, Ephesus was a lot like California today.

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It was a melting pot of diverse cultures and customs.

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It was known for its vibrant marketplace where goods from various regions were traded.

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It was a port city.

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The city was deeply rooted in tradition, but it was also influenced by Roman customs due

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to its status as the capital of that province.

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Now, the religious practices were diverse.

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It included the worship of Diana at the Temple of Artemis.

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In fact, they held a large annual gathering there.

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That temple was actually referred to as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world

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at that time.

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Now, Greek was the predominant language spoken in Ephesus.

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It reflected its Hellenistic heritage coming from the Greeks.

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Its inhabitants would have spoken Koine Greek, which is like the common language of that

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time for the people that spoke Greek.

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This language would have been used to transact in commerce and administration and everyday

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life, just like in California, a lot of people speak English.

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Now, Ephesus was a cultural center of learning.

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It had a renowned theater and it had profound philosophical discussions that took place

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within the context of the city.

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Their ideas and religious beliefs coexisted at the same time.

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This would prove to be fertile ground for the spreading of the gospel at this time because

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Ephesus was a mix of both Western and Eastern ideas.

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There's a little bit of a background before I read this to you today.

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Now, in this context, the message of the church in Ephesus takes into account all of this

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rich cultural tapestry and it underscores the challenges presented by this vibrant city

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for the practice of following Jesus at this specific time.

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Now, Revelation chapter two, verses one through seven reads like this.

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It says, to the angel of the church in Ephesus write, the words of him who holds the seven

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stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands, I know your deeds,

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your toil and your patient endurance and how you cannot bear with those who are evil but

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have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not and found them to be false.

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I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake and you've not grown

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weary, but I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love that you had at first.

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Verse five, remember therefore from where you have fallen, repent and do the works that

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you did at first.

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If not, I will come to you and I will remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent.

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And verse six, yet this you have, you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also

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hate.

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Verse seven, he who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches, to the

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one who conquers, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the paradise of God.

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So let's break this down a little bit at a time.

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Now in verse one, Jesus addresses the angel of the church in Ephesus.

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What does this mean?

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Well, and Jesus identifies himself as the one who holds the seven stars and walks among

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the golden lampstands.

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Now the angel as a representative or messenger of the church rather than a celestial being.

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Now the seven stars are likely the church's leaders or pastors or ministers and the lampstands

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represent the churches themselves.

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It really helps to understand what it is that we're talking about here.

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Now this imagery symbolizes Christ's authority and presence within Christian communities.

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Now verse two and three, Jesus commends the Ephesian church for their diligence, their

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patience, their intolerance of evil.

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They have also discerned false apostles and remain steadfast in their faith even during

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persecution.

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This praise reflects the historical context at this time.

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Were there false prophets?

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Yes.

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Bad teaching?

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Yes.

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Do people need to endure?

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Yes.

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It's the same today.

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Now look at verse four, Jesus offers a rebuke.

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He says to the Ephesian Christians, they're chastised for abandoning the love that they

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had at first.

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This is interpreted as a decline in their fervent devotion to Christ that they first

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had when they first believed.

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Think about our lives and how that can also be true of us.

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Over time, they had grown cold and they had lost their zeal.

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It creeps in in a subtle way.

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Jesus calls for repentance from that.

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In verse five, he urges them to remember their former love, to repent from their spiritual

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decline and to return to the initial devotion that they had at first.

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The consequence of not repenting is the removal of their lamp stand signifying the withdrawal

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of Christ's presence and blessing from their community.

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In verse six, Jesus commends the Ephesian church for their hatred of the works of the

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Nicolaitans, a group associated with false teachings and immoral practices.

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This demonstrates their commitment to sound doctrine, the Bible and moral purity in their

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personal life.

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And then in verse seven, Jesus concludes with the promise to those who conquer or overcome,

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they will be granted access to the tree of life in the paradise of God.

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This promise echoes the hope of eternal life for those who remain faithful despite the

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challenges that they face.

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Life is just a series of unending challenges that we have to learn to navigate.

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Now the recommendation and the rebuke and a call to repent address their context.

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It emphasizes their devotion to the initial love that they had for Christ when they first

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met him.

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Now the warning about losing their lamp stand underscores the consequences mentioned in

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these letters that were relevant to them.

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It serves as a cautionary message to maintain spiritual fervor and not up to allow our love

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for Jesus to grow cold.

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It also reminds us to avoid false apostles.

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There were false apostles then and there were false apostles now.

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We always want to measure what is said and what is taught by this book.

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So we always want to go back to what does God say about what is being said.

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Not everything that is said is what God has revealed to us in scripture.

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So we need to be like the Bereans in the book of Acts.

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They were kind of more worthy and they were kind of more noble because they searched the

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scriptures to see if what Paul said was true.

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Now there's a few questions that we should think about in light of this.

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Have you ever experienced a time when your initial passion and love for your faith waned

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over time as mentioned in Revelation 2.4?

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What factors contributed to this change and what steps can you take to rekindle your fervent

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love for your faith and for Christ?

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Two, in Revelation 2.2 the church in Ephesus is commended for its discernment in recognizing

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false apostles.

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Let me ask you a question.

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How vigilant are you in discerning the teachings and influences in your life?

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Are you actively engaged in studying and understanding the Bible every single day to make sure that

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all of the ideas that you interact with throughout the day are lining up to scripture?

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How can you strengthen your ability to discern truth from falsehood in matters of faith and

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spirituality?

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And then lastly, Revelation 2.5 encourages us to remember and to return to our first

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love.

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Think about your life.

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Are there aspects of your faith and relationship with Jesus that have taken a back seat to

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other priorities such as work and relationships or your personal pursuits?

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What steps can you take to reorient your life and re-prioritize your relationship with God

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as the number one thing?

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Man, thanks so much for joining me.

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I love doing this.

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Until next time, I hope you have a beautiful day.