Ephesus / Revelation 2:1-7
Well, church, it is good to be with you. If you are just joining us here at The Well, my name is Shay Simon, and I am one of the teaching pastors. You have caught us in week two of a seven-part series through chapters two and three of the book of Revelation. We are studying seven letters that Jesus wrote to seven different churches in first-century Asia Minor—modern-day Turkey. In these letters, Jesus exhorted, warned, and cautioned these congregations concerning what He desires for His church.
Whenever we study these letters, we are given an incredible opportunity for self-evaluation, both individually and communally. We are reminded of what the church is intended to be: a people redeemed and rescued by Jesus Christ.
Last week, Brad kicked us off with Christ’s letter to the church of Sardis. That was a fascinating church. Jesus described them as having a reputation for being alive, but in reality, they were dead. They had synchronized with the world around them, compromising their morality and blending culture with the church. In the eyes of Jesus, that congregation had died in their faith and commitment to Christ.
As Brad was teaching, it started a journey in my own thinking: Why do churches die? Let’s get real practical for a moment. Right here in Fresno, where there are hundreds of churches, why do some local congregations die? When we ask that question, our minds immediately go to the obvious scandals. We think of financial embezzlement, moral failure in the pulpit, or devastating church splits. But are there reasons churches die that we would least expect?
The Movie Trailer for Our Future
I want to invite you to turn to Revelation chapter two. We are going to look at the church in Ephesus. As I evaluate what Jesus says to this church—not only for my own heart but for us corporately as The Well Community Church—this passage hits home.
We have experienced fifteen years of God’s faithful hand on this church. We have seen growth in numbers, but more importantly, we have seen life transformation. But when I think about who we are—our wiring, our strengths, and our tendencies—what is the one thing that could take us out? If we had a movie trailer giving us a preview into our future, what is the one supernova danger that could end our influence?
I believe this passage is that movie trailer. It is an opportunity for serious heart investigation so that we can guard our faith as we move forward, trusting God for another fifteen, thirty, or fifty years of gospel influence in our Valley.
The City and the Church of Ephesus
Most of the seven churches in Revelation are rarely mentioned elsewhere in the New Testament. You do not read much about Philadelphia, Sardis, or Laodicea. But Ephesus dominates the New Testament narrative.
Around the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD, Ephesus became the new hub for Christianity. It was a major port city situated on the Aegean Sea in western Turkey. The apostle Paul visited Ephesus in Acts 19 and later wrote the epistle of Ephesians. The apostle John relocated to Ephesus, likely caring for Mary the mother of Jesus, and wrote his Gospel and three epistles from there. Paul also wrote First and Second Timothy to Timothy while he was pastoring in Ephesus. A vast portion of your New Testament was either written to or from this congregation.
Ephesus was a major cosmopolitan city known for its spiritual darkness. It was the world center for the worship of the Greek goddess Artemis (known to the Romans as Diana). The Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was located there. The entire economy and culture revolved around fertility cults, temple prostitution, and idolatry. Because it was a port city, it was flooded with mysticism, magic, and dark spiritual practices.
On top of that, the Roman Emperor ruling at this time was Domitian—one of the most wicked rulers in history. Domitian demanded to be addressed as “Lord and God.” He built a massive imperial temple in Ephesus dedicated to his own worship. He required citizens who wanted to buy and sell goods to possess a mark verifying their loyalty. He was so tyrannical that history gave him the nickname “the Beast.”
Domitian even had an infant son who died, whom he promptly deified. He minted coins showing his baby boy sitting on a globe surrounded by seven stars, claiming, “My son and I are sovereign over the universe.” After Domitian died, the Roman Senate passed a decree of damnatio memoriae—literally damning his memory to oblivion. They chiseled his name off monuments throughout the empire. If you visit the ruins of Ephesus today, you can still see where Domitian’s name was scratched off the stone.
Imagine planting a church in that kind of environment. In Acts 19, the apostle Paul walked into that intense spiritual darkness.
Acts 19:11-20 (NASB)
God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out. But also some of the Jewish exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, ‘I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.’ Seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. And the evil spirit answered and said to them, ‘I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?’ And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived in Ephesus; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified. Many also of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices. And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and [began] burning them in the sight of everyone; and they counted up the price of them and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing.
Paul preached the gospel, healed the sick, and cast out demons. Seven sons of a Jewish priest named Sceva tried to use the name of Jesus like a magic incantation, and the demon responded, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” The demon-possessed man overpowered them and stripped them naked. The spiritual warfare was real and palpable.
Yet, the gospel penetrated that darkness. People came to faith in droves. In a public display of genuine repentance, former sorcerers brought their expensive occult scrolls and burned them in the city square. Idolatry took such a massive hit that local craftsmen began losing business because nobody was buying their silver shrines of Artemis.
Can you imagine the power of the gospel being so pervasive in Fresno that the adult entertainment industry goes out of business because there is no demand? That human trafficking dries up because the community turns to Christ? That is what happened in Ephesus.
The Sovereignty of the Savior
Thirty years after that revival, Jesus dictated a letter to this church through the apostle John. At the opening of every letter in Revelation, Jesus reveals specific characteristics of Himself that the congregation needs to remember.
Revelation 2:1 (NASB)
’To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:
Jesus holds the seven stars in His right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. In chapter one, we learned that the lampstands represent the churches, and the stars represent their messengers or pastors.
In a city where Emperor Domitian stamped his dead son holding seven stars on coins, Jesus declared, “I am the true Sovereign. I hold eternity in My hand. I walk among My churches, and I am the source of your light. You do not need to fear the darkness around you as long as My presence is with you.”
Jesus then commended the Ephesians for four outstanding virtues.
Revelation 2:2-3 (NASB)
’I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them [to be] false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary.
First, they were committed to good deeds, toil, and perseverance. For thirty years, they never stopped doing good and serving God’s people.
Second, they possessed doctrinal integrity. They tested false apostles and exposed them. They obeyed what Paul warned the Ephesian elders in Acts 20 about savage wolves entering the flock, and they lived out John’s exhortation to test the spirits.
1 John 4:1 (NASB)
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Third, they endured hardships patiently for Christ’s name’s sake without growing weary.
Fourth, they hated moral compromise.
Revelation 2:6 (NASB)
’Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
They rejected the deeds of the Nicolaitans, an early sect that taught believers could indulge in sexual immorality and idolatry while maintaining their Christian faith. Ephesus refused to bend to the cultural winds. They guarded the pulpit, they practiced church discipline, and they stood for truth.
If you were looking for a church to join, Ephesus would check every box. They were doctrinally sound, morally upright, hardworking, and courageous.
The Fatal Flaw: Leaving Your First Love
Yet, right after this glowing evaluation, Jesus delivers a devastating diagnosis.
Revelation 2:4 (NASB)
’But I have [this] against you, that you have left your first love.
How is it possible to be fiercely committed to sound doctrine, tireless in ministry, uncompromising in morality, and yet not love Jesus? It sounds absurd.
To understand this, consider a marriage. Imagine a wife who has been married for thirty years. Every day, she posts on social media about how sacred the institution of marriage is. She writes books on the biblical covenant of marriage. She speaks at conferences defending the traditional definition of marriage against cultural distortion. She is fiercely dedicated to the concept of marriage. There is just one problem: she left her husband years ago. She loves the institution, but she has no affection for the man.
That is precisely what happened to Ephesus. In their zeal to defend truth about Jesus, they lost their love for Jesus. Their devotion became mechanical, intellectual, and external, while their hearts grew cold.
1 John 4:19 (NASB)
We love, because He first loved us.
This is the subtle trap of religiosity. We begin with a vibrant encounter with the grace of God. We are overwhelmed by the fact that He rescued us from our sin. But over time, our pursuit of knowledge—which is good—can morph into cold orthodoxy. We become obsessed with theological precision and moral rule-keeping, while our personal affection for Christ quietly slips away. We end up looking like the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz—clanking through the motions of Christian duty, completely devoid of a beating heart.
I have been there. I know what it feels like when ministry becomes routine and my heart feels spiritually dry. Some of you are in that exact place right now.
Remember, Repent, Repeat
What is the remedy when your heart grows cold toward Christ? Jesus gives three clear commands.
Revelation 2:5 (NASB)
’Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place– unless you repent.
First, remember. Look back and identify where the train derailed. What stole your affection? For some, it was deep pain—the loss of a loved one, a painful divorce, a medical diagnosis, or a betrayal that made your heart grow guarded and bitter. For others, it was not suffering, but good things that became ultimate things. It was a career, a hobby, social media, or financial pursuits. Common graces became thieves that robbed your heart of its devotion to God. Trace the steps back to where you lost your warmth for Christ.
Second, repent. Repentance means breaking up with the thieves. It requires a radical, decisive change of mind and direction. You have to confess, “Lord, I have allowed these secondary pursuits to displace You on the throne of my heart.” You must let them go.
Third, repeat the first works. Return to the simplicity of your early devotion. Do you remember what it was like when you first grasped the gospel? You were clothed in Christ’s righteousness, forgiven of all your sin, and adopted into God’s family. You did not serve out of obligation; you served out of pure delight.
When I first surrendered my life to Jesus, I was so overwhelmed by His grace that I went into my fourth-period history class wearing a giant cross necklace. I boldly announced to a classroom that was mostly Jewish, “I got baptized last night, and you guys need Jesus too!” My delivery was thoroughly unrefined, but my heart was on fire. I simply loved Jesus and wanted everyone to know Him.
Jesus is not asking us to invent new spiritual acrobatics; He is calling us to do what we did at first, motivated by adoration rather than duty.
The Threat of the Removed Lampstand
Jesus attaches a solemn warning to this call:
“Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”
To remove a church’s lampstand means to remove its spiritual authority, gospel effectiveness, and divine presence. A church can continue to hold services, pay the building mortgage, and run programs, but the power of the Holy Spirit will be entirely absent. An unloving, hyper-critical, doctrinally rigid church loses its right to shine the light of Christ.
There is tragic irony here. Thirty years before Revelation was written, the apostle Paul concluded his letter to the Ephesians with this benediction:
Ephesians 6:24 (NASB)
Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible [love].
Paul prayed that their love for Christ would remain incorruptible and undying. Yet thirty years later, that very love had cooled.
When people think of The Well, they often say, “That is a church that teaches through the Bible verse by verse.” I praise God for that reputation. But Jesus told us what the greatest commandment is.
Matthew 22:37-38 (NASB)
And He said to him, ’‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ ’This is the great and foremost commandment.
If we have deep theological knowledge but lack love for God and people, we have missed the point entirely.
Stirring and Stealing Affections
When was the last time you were overwhelmed by the love of Jesus? When was the last time you sat in His presence and simply told Him, “Lord, I love You”?
As we close, we have an opportunity to do some intentional heart evaluation. The apostle Paul gives us a practical framework in Colossians.
Colossians 3:1-2 (NASB)
Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
Colossians 3:5 (NASB)
Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.
Paul tells us to seek the things that are above and put to death what is earthly within us. This comes down to two questions:
- What stirs your affections for Christ? What spiritual habits, environments, or practices draw your heart closer to Jesus?
- What steals your affections from Christ? What habits, distractions, or compromises are dulling your love for Him?
As our worship teams come forward across all our campuses, take a few minutes right where you are. Examine your heart. Identify the things that stir your love for Christ, identify the thieves that steal your devotion, and ask the Holy Spirit to grant you a spirit of genuine repentance. Let us return to our first love.