LEARNING DAILY

 

Revelation2:4-5, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first work, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place – unless you repent. “  Jesus

 

I think of these verses once in a while, especially when I am considering my walk on the narrow way. Just what does (or did) “first love” look like? Is the expression of “first love” different for each person? I suppose each of us express this differently. “First love” must be centered in the love felt for Christ when realizing how much the Father loves us through the Son; because of His great love for us, we are made new, alive in Christ. Ephesians 2:1 states it this way, “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sin”. Because God’s great love and mercy, He gave us the free gift of salvation through faith because of His Son’s death on a cross. The new life we receive is expressed through gratitude and thanksgiving. It is expressed through a sincere desire to worship Him, draw close to Him in prayer and to know Him through the study of His Word. It is a time when we turn our attention to Him in humility. How this is expressed to others is an individual matter.

 

 What happens to that expression of “first love”? I would never have considered compromise of any sort when I got saved. I spent hours daily studying His Word. I spent time talking to others about the Bible. I have written often about watching, being alert to what interferes with our walk on the narrow way, and making sure we are not complacent about our relationship with the Lord. If we are not diligent about this the less important stuff begins to be our focus.

 

This particular page of the blog is about repentance and returning to our “first love”, when we first got saved and concentrated on the joy of walking with Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Have you been reading about or hearing about what has happened on the campus of Asbury University? Students went to the regularly scheduled chapel on February 8; during that chapel, the Holy Spirit moved in such a way that students and faculty stayed in the auditorium for days singing, worshipping, and giving thanks to God. Revival. I read a definition that seems pretty good: a spiritual awakening from a state of dormancy or stagnation in the life of the believer. Sounds like repentance and doing the work of one’s “first love”.

 

If we think back to when we decided to follow Jesus, we remember the love we felt for Him, the deep awareness of sin in our lives and sin around us. Do you remember the desire you had to repent and to grow in the righteousness of God? Returning to our “first love” brings that back. Jesus desires each of us to walk deeper in our faith and to walk in truth not deception of the world; it involves a freshness to living in obedience to God and His Word. It involves once again turning our attention to walking on the narrow way and pleasing God. The worldly desires are shown for what they are and aids us to live in this world without being controlled by it.

 

Revival begins with each individual realizing their need to repent and return to their “first love”. Doing so helps us to understand we can no longer be satisfied with outward forms of religion; instead, we must be filled every day with the power of the Holy Spirit. Complacency has plagued the church for too long. It is time for every Believer to bear fruit. The sign of revival in our lives is a changed life. Those that were and are involved in this movement at Asbury University will no doubt be changed. Each of us can experience this revival as we spend more time, quality time, in worship, prayer, and the study of God’s Word.