Today’s passage: Revelation 2:1-7
Helpful thoughts:
- This is the first of seven letters Christ gave to seven churches in Asia Minor: To the church in Ephesus.
- Each letter begins with a description of Christ, then shares the message of Christ, then provides a promise from Christ.
- The Nicolaitans are believed to have been a group of people within the visible church who taught that our salvation was secured in such a way that would allow believers to live a life of sin without fear of judgment.
- Their teaching would encourage people that since Jesus already paid for all our sin, we could live in and of the world and practice all the sin we desired (Romans 6:1-2). They wanted Jesus to be their savior, but not their Lord.
Questions to consider:
- For what does Christ commend the church at Ephesus? What seemed to be their strengths and areas of faithfulness?
- For what does Christ rebuke the church at Ephesus? In what way might they have made the mistake of thinking knowledge of the word should be equated with maturity in the faith? What do mature Christians increasingly do as a result of their knowledge of the revealed will of God in His Word?
- How is the Lordship of Christ emphasized throughout this passage, in all three sections of the letter to the church at Ephesus?