First Love

October 28, 2013

“First” – pro’-tos (Greek): The reason you went after it in the first place.

I know your deeds and your toil . . . and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first. . . Revelation 2:2-5a

1. Remember. This verse is a snapshot of how God reignited the church of Ephesus when they had grown cold in their first love. The Lord commends them for their endurance and hard work, but something else had happened—there had been a priority shift and self-reliance had set in. God is urging them to get back to the basics and remember the beginnings of their faith.

2. Repent. Repentance is a moment of commitment and change that prompts us toward healing, breakthrough, and progress. With the Ephesian church, the strategy of the devil was to dampen their fire and reduce their effectiveness. If you’ve let worries, cares, or dead works choke your love and devotion to God, simply repent. God wants to help you rekindle the fire in your heart.

For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Galatians 6:8

3. Do. Sow to the spirit by developing your spiritual life—pray in the Spirit, spend time in God’s Word, and worship Him. Get up tomorrow morning and choose to put Jesus first. Spend time talking to Him. When we remember it’s all about Jesus, and we repent for letting other distractions hinder that first love, God will help us restore our connection with Him so we can stay effective and on fire our entire lives!

God bless you,
Pastor Jeff

Copyright © 2013 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.