I would like to apply the churches to our pastors, to our leaders in the church and to ourselves. Why? We are the church. It is not a building, nor a program, nor a denomination. We are the Body of Christ, and unless a body moves, grows and responds to its environment, it is dead.
In Revelation 1:1, we find the letter is written to "his servants"--us. We are all servants of Christ to be sure, but if our calling is more specific and we serve those around us and people look to us for that help and guidance, then these letters can prove an antidote to false teaching and false belief.
Jesus, in His majesty, instructs John to write a letter to these seven churches, specifically to the "angel" or messenger of that particular church. A pastor is in effect, a messenger. He brings the Word of God that he has received as he ponders what the Holy Spirit would have him bring.
The strength of any church really emanates from its leadership--the people who lead by example the very Word of God. We all are serving the Lord, but as James 3:1 says, "Not many [of you] should become teachers [serving in an official teaching capacity], my brothers and sisters, for you know that we [who are teachers] will be judged by a higher standard [because we have assumed greater accountability and more condemnation if we teach incorrectly]." (AMP Bible)
Exactly. Churches are a top-down affair; Jesus as our Head, and those who are called serve to bring the Word forth, by preaching, teaching and living it.
Yes, church leaders say that Jesus is the Good Shepherd, but then do they truly take from Him how to lead His sheep? Or do they tailor the message to make the sheep happy? The primary concern of godly leadership is not to ponder, "Are the sheep happy?" It is, "Are the sheep growing in the knowledge of the Shepherd and will be well equipped to carry His message wherever they go?"
It must begin with the leaders of any church: Are these leaders themselves growing in the knowledge of the Shepherd? Are they equipped to carry His message wherever they go?
So, let us begin this journey into being a messenger/leader/pastor of His truth, and how we can learn from these seven churches in Revelation on what godly leadership looks like.
Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.
7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. (Rev. 2:1-7 KJV)
God walks amongst His people, in His churches. Each of these churches in Revelation have strengths and weaknesses, and God watches carefully what each church that honors Him is doing.
Yet, Paul indicates that anyone who preaches "another gospel" is accursed, and says this twice. (Gal. 1:8-9) This raises an interesting question: Does God walk among those churches that have erred doctrinally, and who have prioritized human wisdom over the Holy Spirit's? Are those churches who pursue an agenda that relies more on human effort than on guidance provided by the Holy Spirit still under His care?
We have all walked into churches and sensed God's presence; we have all equally walked into churches and sense a kind of energy but not a divine one. Everything looks like church, but the people lack something as they congregate.
Has God removed His presence? He sees the evil in us, in the world, and sent His Son to die for that very evil and to redeem us from the curse of sin. Evil doesn't drive God away; otherwise He have nothing to do with this planet. He is very well aware of what goes on in churches that claim His name, but does He give His approval? That is another thing entirely.
Does He leave once a particular church no longer honors His Word and His Son? He certainly dwells in those individual sheep who cling to His truth in that church, and in those leaders who stand unflinchingly upon the Word. But what if the overall leadership has moved away from His truth? What if the church is increasingly sustained only by the energy of its leaders who "allow" the Holy Spirit's guidance as an add-on to what they have already planned?
Perhaps the leaders think that every thought they have regarding their church is from God. If the thought is not obviously antithetical to the Word, they jump right in. But just because it's a good idea doesn't make it from God.
Regardless of why, many churches today are lead by well-meaning leaders who are swayed by the world's values, and have been ignoring the Word when "inconvenient."
God chastens those He loves and that leadership will feel the rod. (Heb. 12:6-11) Why? Who is the leadership really following? It's an essential question, especially in today's church, where seminars touting business-like approaches to church growth, pastors claiming supposedly new revelations, and organizations providing pre-packaged food for the flock are tempting frustrated leaders to get off their knees and head to the Internet.
Meanwhile, back in Ephesus, we hear how pleased the Father is, for the leaders have done good deeds, have been hard at work and have persevered. "Wicked people" are not tolerated, and those who bring false doctrine are evaluated and then are labelled as such. Again, their perseverance in times of trouble, standing in the fire for His name and not allowing weariness to take over are commended by God.
The sheep have consequently benefited from their leaders, and the church receives Heaven's praise.
So, looking a little deeper, let's ask a few questions:
- What deeds are considered good by God?
- What kind of "hard work" is honored by Him?
- How does a leader persevere in trials and challenges?
- How does a leader discern false teachers and their claims?
- How does a leader not become weary and keep pressing on when faced with hardships?
Jesus taught an key concept here about good deeds: “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven." (Matt. 6:1) [emphasis mine]
Good deeds are not at issue here; it's the motivation behind the good deed. Otherwise, Jesus' words of "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." (Matt. 5:16) seem contradictory. My emphasis in Matthew 6:1 is what matters the most to the Father: Are you doing good deeds to glorify you or Him? Good deeds are well, good: you are not openly rebelling against the Word and doing something sinful. But your heart is not aligned with the servant-heart of Christ.
Is that why the Spirit in Ephesus is reminding them of their "first love" and "first works"? (Rev. 2:4-5) The Spirit is calling this loss from the church's "first love" a fall that requires repentance, and a return to what the Spirit celebrated about this church in the first place. The Spirit calls this church to repentance twice. This is a serious error on the church's part, on the leaders' part, and will cause the church to be removed from its sphere of influence if the leaders and people do not repent.
The Spirit is warning them that time is short; with all the events soon to unfold, the church leaders must realign with the Lord, giving Him the glory as they work in His name. The times to come will not allow church leaders to serve God without a full commitment to Him and to Him alone.
So, we have the answer to the first question: Deeds considered good by God are done by those leaders who glorify Him and show by example this attitude to their congregation. These leaders will repent quickly when they are shown that they have erred by stealing God's glory--any of it--for themselves.
This is gonna be fun! Stick with me and I will post more often on this subject. I am not done with Ephesus yet, and we have six more churches/leadership qualities to go! Boo-yah!
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