Dear Holy Holy Holy God,
Praises to Your Name O God Most High. Open our eyes, ears and hearts that we may see, hear and love Jesus as we ought. For blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. My heart is not pure, but because of Christ's love for me as He took my punishment on the cross as my substitute, Jesus forgave me, and I am washed as white as snow. One day, I shall see You face to face, which will be every Christian's ultimate joy. So yesterday, I reunited with a coworker who I hardly ever see anymore. But she had to cover a shift and so I had a chance to talk to her. She introduced me to some trivia game online and one of the categories was Religion. She's not a Christian but was willing to play. I chose Books of the Bible trivia game, which led into a long discussion of Jesus, and how the whole Bible pointed toward/centered around Jesus. I pray that You O Holy Spirit will open her eyes, to see and accept Jesus for who He claimed to be.
Observations:
- Rev 2:1 - this motif was carried from 1:16
- 2:2 - when You Jesus gave this report card for this particular church, it seems I should take note what You liked about it--for whatever You liked, is something I should also strive towards (ie: patient endurance, cannot bear evil, testing if apostles are false)
- 2:3 - You list more good points such as, bearing up for Your Name's sake, not growing weary. How is my walk with You compared to that of this particular church at Ephesus. Am I enduring patiently? Am I growing weary of doing good?
- 2:4 - Then You list bad points (ie: they had abandoned their first love/Jesus) I don't get it--How is it that they could abandon You yet do good things that please You? If the root ain't right, how can the fruit off the branches exist at all? Whatever the case, it seems that they were more focused on doing good works, rather than focusing on You Jesus. When a good thing (ie: good works) becomes a god thing, it's a bad thing.
- 2:5 - Then You give 3 points to return:
- "remember where you have fallen" (this acts like a measuring stick to assess the grim reality of their situation)
- "repent" (unlike all fads that come and go, repentance is one 'fad' that ought never wear out for the Christian)
- "do the works they did at first" (hmm, it seems that the works Jesus wants them to do must be different than the ones listed in v2-3. I wonder what works Jesus must be referring to? (not that any work man does can save ourselves, but only trusting in Jesus' perfect work on the cross)
- 2:6 - Then You give another positive point (ie: hating the works of the Nicolaitans) --not sure who these guys were but I'm reminded that true love includes, having a true hate for its antithesis.
- 2:7 - Then You give a reward to the one who conquers--You will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. Wow! This alludes to the time in Genesis 3, where Adam and Even were banished from the Garden after they sinned. What a reversal! Before, mankind represented in Adam, was cut off from living eternally by eating from the tree of life, but now, to the one who conquers--You will grant to eat this tree of life--I love full circle plot lines. One question though--so how/what exactly do I conquer? In context it would seem I would have to conquer through patient endurance while representing Christ's Name while here on earth. What trials/sins do I face today that I can conquer by Your help LORD?
"...He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden..." --Gen 3:22-23
Tree of life, access denied
Heard His walk, I tried to hide.
Name blame game, so full of shame,
Both ground and birth, cursed and pain
So the Master Gardener planted a tree
To take my shame, to die for me
That we may walk in the garden again
Paradise lost will be regained
With seven stars in My hand,
I walk among the seven lampstands
To those who conquer, access is given--
Tree of life, no longer forbidden
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who conquers, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."--Rev 2:7
in Jesus' Name, Amen.
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