"The Book of Revelation has suffered an unfortunate fate. On the whole it has either been abandoned by readers of the Bible as almost completely unintelligible, or it has become the happy hunting ground of religious eccentrics, who seek to construct from it a kind of celestial time-table of events to come."
‍— William Barclay

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Revelation 2:1-7

The Commendation: The Ephesian church prioritized orthodoxy.

We must sharpen our discernment.

The Complaint: They had lost the love they practiced at first.

"While its commitment to orthodoxy is a virtue for this church and is praised by Jesus, it was also apparently a vice. Their greatest strength paradoxically became their greatest weakness. They had become so preoccupied with identifying wicked people, exposing false apostles, and rejecting the sinful practices of the Nicolaitans that a spirit of mistrust and suspicion permeated their fellowship, making it impossible for them to be the caring, compassionate community that they had been in the past. In short, they were a church of loveless orthodoxy."
‍— Jefferey Weima

While we need to sharpen our discernment, we must not do so at the expense of Christ-like character and love.

Bottom Line

Jesus-like love is the litmus test of orthodoxy.

Action Steps

Pray - Create some space with Jesus to pray through the following:

• Where am I going to get my theological understanding?
• Am I consuming more theology from the internet or in community with others?
• Have I fallen into an echo chamber where I only listen to voices who reinforce my beliefs?
• Do I value being “right” more than I value being Christ-like?
• Have I ever cut off relationship over a secondary or non-essential doctrinal matter?
• How has the quest for right belief compromised my commitment to love?‍

Practice‍

• Read your Bible every day this week
• Choose dialogue over dismissal, love over relational cut-off.