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Advent HOPE Sabbath School

Alistair Huong

Remember What We Left

As Tim mentioned already, the title of our message this morning, Remember What We Left.

Father in heaven, we thank you for the Sabbath and for your word.

I pray that as we study what the Spirit has to say to your church, that our ears and hearts will be open and soft.

Speak to us by the Spirit we pray in Jesus' name.

Turn your Bibles with me to Revelation chapter 2.

Revelation chapter 2 and 3 is what we call the 7 churches of Revelation.

Today we will be looking at 1 of these churches And as you study the prophecies of the book of Revelation, you will come to realize that the 7 churches outline 7 periods in church history since the time of the Apostles.

However, within each church in Revelation 2 and 3, there is encapsulated lessons for each church in every period.

If you can imagine 7 dolphins swimming under the water all together.

Sometimes 1 dolphin may jump out of the water reaching prominence.

So in the same way the 7 churches, the characteristics of all 7 churches in Revelation 2 and 3, they exist in every single period of God's Church all throughout history, but there are special characteristics that are particularly of note in specific histories, in specific history of the church.

So today, I want to look at the first church, the church of Ephesus.

Look with me in verse 1, Revelation chapter 2.

Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write, These things saith he that holdeth the 7 stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the 7 golden candlesticks.

So Looking at the very first verse of this chapter, who is going to speak to us?

Who is being described as having a message to communicate?

Chapter 2, verse 1, it reveals a picture of someone walking with 7 stars in his hands, meandering between 7 golden candlesticks, which actually, we are told, represents the 7 churches.

This is none other than Jesus Christ himself, as the priest of his people, mediating on their behalf, walking in the midst of his churches.

And Jesus is described as someone in our midst, someone who is holding us in his hands, as someone who is caring about us, as a gardener that is walking through the garden looking at his flowers looking at the fruits of his trees caring about his people and he is about to give this Church of Ephesus a message.

Verse 2, I know thy works and thy labor and thy patience.

Jesus is speaking to a church and through his message, through the way that he speaks, through what he is communicating with his church, we will be able to identify what type of church he is speaking to.

So this is the Church of Ephesus and Jesus is saying to this church, I have seen thy works, thy labor, and thy patience.

The Church of Ephesus is described by Jesus Himself as a church that works, a church that labors, a church that has patience.

And the Greek word for patience is synonymous with the word that is also translated endurance.

So we see a description, this church works hard, labors diligently.

It is a church that endures hard times working, laboring, doing the work of God.

I know thy works and thy labor and thy patience, and how thou hast cannest not bear them which are evil.

This church maintains its integrity to maintain the purity of the faith.

This church cannot stand the people who are evil.

It can't stand anything that even hints at being evil or wicked.

This church is fighting to maintain the truth, the message, the faith that was delivered to the Saints, contending as in the book of Jude describes.

It is handled expediently, quickly, whenever, whenever evil comes in, error arises, this church is quick to meet it.

They are fast at seeing error and mistakes in doctrinal teachings, seeing problems in our lifestyle, and they're ready to root it out.

No compromise, no hypocrites, higher than the highest in all aspects of life.

The Church of Ephesus is the pure church, fighting for that which is right, the pure faith, for the doctrine that is given by the apostles and the Bible and the scriptures.

They can't stand injustice that's in the world.

They fight against the the lifestyle of those in the world that is contrary to what Jesus preached.

They can't stand, they cannot stand them which are evil we continue reading verse 2 and you have tried them which say they are apostles and are not and have found them to be liars.

Not only is this church diligent in its work, faithful in its labor, patient in all of its dealings, not only is this church such that it cannot bear those who are evil.

This church also tests those who claim to be apostles, those people who claim to have a message that is from God.

And these people test the Apostles and find out that they are only liars and this reminds me of a group of people Described in the book of Acts look with me in Acts chapter 17 Acts chapter 17 we're looking in verse 11.

And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea, who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.

Verse 11 These, meaning those in Berea, were more normal than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind and searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were so.

So Paul and Silas were sent to Berea from Thessalonica and they preached in the synagogues and we are told from the Bible that the church members studied the Scriptures daily to check Paul out, to see whether those things were so.

They tried the Apostles, and In that text we see how it is that apostles can be tested it is tested by the unerring standard of the Word of God so the church in Ephesus they try the Apostles which also indicates to me It tells me that this group of people study the scriptures daily They understand what the Bible teaches.

They are sharp when it comes to identifying what is true and what is wrong.

They try the apostles, But find out that they are not teaching according to the Word of God.

They endure all sorts of difficult situations.

They love what is pure and true and right, and they know their Bible.

The doctrines, the faith that was delivered unto them by Jesus and the Apostles.

They listen to the Apostles when they say there will come grievous wolves into your midst.

They study the Bible to fortify themselves against these attacks from the outside and from the inside.

They're vigilant to not just believe any spirit, they try the spirits and they prove all things, holding fast that which is good.

1st John chapter 2 and verse 4 we see an identification of what liars mean or what liars are in the Bible.

1 John 2 verse 4 He that saith I know him and keepeth not his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him." So we see that this Church of Ephesus identifies people who claim to be apostles and are not and has found them to be liars so they identify a specious teaching an erroneous teaching that these apostles falsely so-called are trying to promote and they are saying I know Jesus I am an apostle I was an eyewitness I have a message from the Lord but they study the Bible and they say uh-uh you're not really from the Lord why because you say you know Jesus but you do not keep his commandments and you know something there is a name for this group of people look with me in verse 6 chapter 2 and This thou hast that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans which I also hate." There is a group of people dwelling at this period of time called the Nicolaitans.

And I'm not going to go into the deep Bible study about who they are, but let me just give you what it says in the Spirit of Prophecy.

In Review and Herald, June 7, 1887, it says, Is it the sin of the Nicolaitans, turning the grace of God into lasciviousness?

The definition simply given by the servant of the Lord of the Nicolaitans are those who teach, or those who live, those who promote that we can sin and live.

Turning the grace of God into lasciviousness.

There is that group of people that the Ephesian churches cannot stand.

They say that those apostles claim to be from God.

They claim to have a message from God, but they claim, they teach, that because we are forgiven, because of the grace of God, because of what He has done for us, and what He's willing to do, because of His love and His mercy and His grace that we can just sin and live?

The Ephesian church says these guys are liars.

These Nicolaitans or the Apostles falsely so-called, they're liars because that's not what the Bible teaches.

They're Bible scholars, aware of theological issues, aware of the false teachings that are creeping into the church through influential men and teachers who claim to be apostles but are not, but are liars, turning the grace of God into lasciviousness.

They stood firm on the fundamental teachings of their church.

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Remember What We Left

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