Has my love grown cold?

Write this letter to the angel of the church in Ephesus. This is the message from the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand, the one who walks among the seven gold lampstands: 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 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. - Revelation 2:1-5 (NLT)

But I have this [charge] against you, that you have left your first love [you have lost the depth of love that you first had for Me]. - Revelation 2:4 (Amplified Bible)

How would you feel if your spouse told you that they did not love you anymore, but would stay with you, be faithful, and continue to perform all of the duties that a good spouse would until death?

To be a Christian is to love the Lord Jesus Christ. But the Ephesians' passion and fervor for Christ had become cold, mechanical orthodoxy. Their doctrinal and moral purity, their unblemished zeal for the truth, and their disciplined service were no substitute for the love of Christ they had forsaken. - John MacArthur

When was the last time you memorized a Bible verse?

When was the last time you shared your faith with another person?

When was the last time you read your Bible more than four times in a week?

The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7b (NLT)

How can I return to my first love for Christ?

A survey from the Center for Bible Engagement revealed the following:
A person who engages with the Bible four or more times a week is:

407% more likely to memorize Scripture
59% less likely to view pornography
30% less likely to struggle with loneliness
228% more likely to share their faith with others

Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. To everyone who is victorious I will give fruit from the tree of life in the paradise of God. - Revelation 2:7 (NLT)

For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. - 1 John 5:4-5 (NLT)

For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call on Me and you will come and pray to Me, and I will hear [your voice] and I will listen to you.  Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. - Jeremiah 29:11-13 (Amplified Bible)

Am I pursuing Jesus with all my heart?

Read the Bible every day. Make it a part of every day’s business to read and meditate on some portion of God’s Word. Private means of grace are just as needful every day for our souls as food and clothing are for our bodies. Yesterday’s meal will not feed the worker today, and today’s meal will not feed the worker tomorrow. Do as the Israelites did in the wilderness. Gather your manna fresh every morning. Choose your own periods and hours. Do not hurry your reading. Give your Bible the best and not the worst part of your time. But whatever plan you pursue, let it be a rule of your life to visit the throne of grace and the Bible every day. - J. C. Ryle

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. - Romans 12:1-2 (NLT)

Be Encouraged to read and pray every day!



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Am I a Daniel?

Image
Then Darius the king wrote to all the peoples, nations, and men of every tongue who were inhabiting all the land: “May your peace abound! I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom, men are to fear and be in dread before the God of Daniel; For He is the living God and enduring forever, And His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, And His dominion will be unto the end. He saves and delivers and does signs and wonders In heaven and on earth, Who has also saved Daniel from the power of the lions.” So this Daniel enjoyed success in the kingdom of Darius and in the kingdom of Cyrus the Persian. - Daniel 6:25-28 (LSB) Impacted by Daniel and by the Lord, Darius the Mede expressed himself as if he had come to a point of personal trust in God for his salvation such as Nebuchadnezzar had before him. Daniel illustrated the evangelistic potency of a godly, uncompromising life. - John MacArthur Now when Daniel knew that the written document was signed, he entered his house (now i...
Read more

What is my response?

Image
Then I saw a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing between the throne and the four living beings and among the twenty-four elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which represent the sevenfold Spirit of God that is sent out into every part of the earth. He stepped forward and took the scroll from the right hand of the one sitting on the throne. And when he took the scroll, the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they held gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. And they sang a new song with these words: “You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth.”   Then I looked again, and I heard the voices of thousands and...
Read more

What is the way?

Image
“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am,  you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going. How do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me. - John 14:1-6 (LSB) If you were to die tonight, meet God at the gates of heaven, and He asked you, why should I let you into my heaven, what would you say? We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ...
Read more