Kindness, A Word Study

By: Rev. Joseph R. Kramer

Today we are looking at the biblical concept of kindness. The Bible is written, primarily, in Hebrew and Greek. So, to get a deeper understanding of the concept, we must spend some time in these languages.

Old Testament Usage:

There are many words that we translate using the word kindness, but the one used most often carries the thought of loving kindness; acts that are done out of love which is shown in our loyalty to God and others. Kindness carries with it faithfulness. This means being faithful in our families, work and spiritual lives; doing what we say we are going to do and doing what is right.

New Testament Usage:

There are a few Greek words that translate into kindness. Most of them carry with them the idea of God’s relationship to those that are saved (i.e. turned away from their sinful life and belong to God by faith). These verses focus on the fact that while we were sinners Christ died for the ungodly (Romans 5:6-8; Ephesians 2:6-9; John 3:16-17, etc.).

These words also focus on how we should treat each other in light of the kindness that God has shown us (Ephesians 4:29-32; 1 John 4:20-21). If we say that we are saved, but are not kind to one another then we are not showing Christ’s nature to others. If we are truly saved, then the act of kindness comes out of us naturally to others (Romans 5:5). This doesn’t mean that we don’t struggle with the sin nature that is in us, there will be times when we aren’t kind. In those times we should repent and ask God to help us to show kindness.

This has been just a short study. There is so much more about kindness coming from the Love of God that we could look at today. Alas, we just don’t have the room for it here.

Is Jesus Truly Your Master?

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
– Ephesians 1:2 (ESV)

Paul writes something that we often overlook. He says Grace and peace to the Ephesians. We see this as just an opening, like “Hey Brother.” But it is much more profound than that. How?

He is telling them that as Christians grace and peace have been conveyed to us. What does this mean? We will get to that, but first there are some things about grace that we need to clear up. Grace is not something that we can work up and it is not something that can slowly leak away. Grace is God’s unmerited favor to Christians. We are a bunch of sinners and can do no good in comparison to God’s Holiness (Jeremiah 17:9, John 8:34). Our good works are nothing but filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). But through God’s unmerited favor toward us, grace, He has made a way.

Through Jesus we have been given the gift of salvation. This comes to us by Grace. It means He saves us not because of anything in us, but because it is His desire (Ephesians 2:8-9). But what are we saved from? That is where peace comes in. Peace in the Biblical sense is not just absence of conflict. It is being made right with God, Holy and blameless. Before salvation we are an enemy of God, being selfish and only doing what we desire. But through Jesus we are no longer enemies, we have been brought into a state of peace with God(Romans 5:10).

Notice Paul says that grace and peace come from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The use of the term Lord here shows that He is equal in power and authority with the Father. The term Christ is not His last name. It is a title that means savior and redeemer, the one who brings salvation.

You could say this verse like this. Jesus the savior has given us unmerited favor before a Holy God and brought peace between us and Him.

How about you today? Can you truly say that Jesus is your Lord? Have you submitted all to Him? Can you say that there is now peace between you and God due to the work of Christ? If not, then today may be the day you talk to God, ask for forgiveness and receive the work of Christ in your inner being; allowing Him to transform you and regenerate you. It is a life changing event for a person. Are you ready for eternity?

Rev. Joseph R. Kramer

Christians, Holy?

“When was the last time you felt you were holy, set apart and faithful?”

 “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus:”
~Ephesians 1:1 NKJV~

In verse one we find that Paul (formerly Saul) is laying out his testimony to the Ephesians. He is reminding them who he is and how he was called by God. This establishes his authority as an Apostle (Find out more in Acts 9).

He tells us he was called not by man or by anyone else other than the will of God. It is not by our will that we become ministers of God. God is the one who calls and prepares His people to do the work of ministry, whether that is vocational ministry or lay ministry (ministry coming from christians who are not called by God to vocational ministry).

Paul then uses the word that we translate as “saints.” There is much misunderstanding about what saints are in our culture today. Saints are not the people the Catholic Church calls saints. The word in Greek means the Holy ones, those set apart to God. That means all Christians. But some would say that they don’t feel holy or set apart. To make matters worse Paul also describes them as faithful. When was the last time you felt you were holy, set apart and faithful? If you are honest your answer should be in the negative category. But the key to this verse comes with the words “in Christ Jesus”.

Jesus is God made flesh. It is only in his taking of our sins upon himself (imputation) at the cross that we can be seen as holy (Penal Substitutionary Work).He paid your debt to that He did not owe, so that you may be seen as holy, set apart and faithful. A saint before God. Only in/through Jesus and his work are you seen this way. You can’t work to gain or keep your salvation. It is by Christ alone, in faith alone.

Through Jesus we can rejoice that we are His separated ones. This verse should not be taken negative, but joyous! We are saved and set free from sin and alive, set apart, holy and faithful due to the work of Jesus at the cross!

God is Our Refuge

God is Our Refuge
By: Rev. Joe Kramer

¹ God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
² Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
³ though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.^[c]

⁴ There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
⁵ God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
-Psalm 46:1-5 (NIV)

Alright so it has been a while since I have written anything (due to some life changing events).  So I have decided, for the time being, that I will post something small every day. Perhaps a small scripture and a few thoughts.

So this scripture has been on my mind today due to some problems we have been having financially as cars are literally breaking down and as Murhpy has seemed to move into the house (Murphy’s Law roughly states that if anything can go wrong, it will go wrong.)!

So this scripture keeps coming to me. Also, while I have you, could you pray for God’s provisions and grace? Thanks and may God bless you!

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Get Rid of the “Churchy” Gimmicks and Get a Revelation of God
By: Rev. Joe Kramer

(8) The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

(9) He will not always accuse,

nor will he harbor his anger forever;

(10) He does not treat us as our sins deserve

or repay us according to our iniquities.

(11) For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his love for those who fear him;

(12) as far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

(13) As a father has compassion on his children,

so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
-Psalm 103:8-13 (NIV)

(21) So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. (22) For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; (23) but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. (24) What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? (25) Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
-Romans 7:21-25 (NIV)

If we get a revelation of how much we have been forgiven then we can say with our whole being as Paul did, “Oh wretched man that I am.” But this revelation does not come to us on our own, but must be revealed by the Holy Spirit. This Christian life makes no sense to the unbeliever. This concept makes no sense until it is experienced by the individual. When a Christian draws closer, and closer to God and sees just how wretched they are, then they will lament as Paul did, “Oh Wretched man that I am!”

 

Christianity is not meant to be some set of rules and regulations, but a revelation that is lived out in our lives by the power of God. How do we manifest the life that has been deposited by God in our beings? We must draw close to God. (“Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. – James 4:8 – NIV). Drawing close to God is about a relationship (Again, this is a concept that unbelievers cannot understand until they experience it.). We draw near to Him by spending time with Him, through His word and prayer. For the person who has a relationship with God these are not static experiences, but experiences that the believer is changed. Through these experiences there is a sense of peace and drawing near to a Holy and loving God (Yet another thing that an unbeliever will not experience until they become a believer and indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God.) In our culture we just want to jump from one “mountain top experience” to another. These are great, but they do not produce change. Only through Study and prayer is one drawing near to God, and be changed thereby. Study and prayer is the only way to become like Him.

 

Through drawing near to God we begin to manifest His attributes in our lives, albeit dimly at first and then more brightly. We are like the moon reflecting the sun, we manifest God’s attributes, even at our best, very dimly. This is not done by sheer will, but by a relationship with a Holy, loving and powerful God.

 

Christianity is the only religion that does not depend on pure will to reach some kind of reward in the hereafter. This is the only religion in the world that says, “Come as you are and Let God do the changing of your life. He will forgive and cleanse you; not because of your will, but because He loves you.”

 

Now some people won’t even initially come to God because of the so-called “hypocrites in the church.” I like to say that just because the messenger is a mess, doesn’t mean the message is any less valid. The message is important. Now the messenger may have to do some “drawing near to God” to get their life cleaned up a bit, but the message is still valid.

 

When the church (universally speaking) gets a true sense of what God has done and draws near to Him and sees how wretched they are, only then will people come to Christ in droves. This simple message, amongst all the “Christian gimmicks,” has been lost in modern day Christianity. When we get back to just drawing near to God, then people’s lives (believers and unbelievers alike) will be changed forever.

How about you today Christian? When was the last time you drew near to God and began to reflect His “Resplendent Glory”? If it has been a while then take this time to get on your knees (spiritually, showing humility) and ask God to forgive you and cleanse you so that you can reflect His light to a lost and dying world. The Choice is yours.

What Does a Wise Person Look Like?

What Does a Wise Person Look Like?

By: Rev. Joseph R. Kramer

15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.

-James 3:15ff (NIV)

19 For it is written:

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;

the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”

20 Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him.

-1 Corinthians 1:19ff (NIV)

The scriptures are replete with words of wisdom and talking about wisdom. However, I just want to focus on these two passages. First lets us get a definition of wisdom.

What does wisdom look like in action?wise 1

1. having or showing experience, knowledge, and good judgement.
2.  (wise to) informal aware of, especially so as to know how to act.

■ verb (wise up) informal become alert or aware.[1]

When we think of a wise man what is the first image that comes to your mind? For most people it is an image of some old monk with a long white beard sitting in a lotus position giving out words of wisdom that will change people’s lives. This image is WRONG.

We must remember that there are really two kinds of wisdom that the Bible speaks about. The first is “Worldly Wisdom” (i.e. wisdom not given by God) and the second is “Godly Wisdom.”

Worldly Wisdom

We do have to recognize that worldly wisdom is of some value. Time and experience is a teacher. However, we must recognize that worldly wisdom is often wrong. Why? Because God has set into motion principles in His word that run contrary to worldly wisdom. The New Bible Dictionary says, “Worldly wisdom is based on intuition and experience without revelation, and thus has severe limitations.[2]” Proverbs 14:12(NIV84) puts it this way; “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.”

Godly Wisdom

What is Godly Wisdom? James gives us a definition of “Godly Wisdom” in James3:17 (NIV84) “17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”

James gives us some characteristics of what wisdom in action looks like. He says it is pure, peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy, has good fruit, impartial and sincere. Notice that all of the actions listed are not aggressive. But they show love and mercy.

Warren Wiersbe puts wisdom like this.

The wise person uses gentleness and persuasion with patience; he or she does not threaten or accuse. “Easy to be intreated” (v. 17) suggests a willingness to yield, or to be reasonable. Wise people are full of mercy, not quick to judge or condemn; their lives are full of good fruits. There is no wavering (“partiality,” 1:6 and 2:4); though they are willing to yield, they are not willing to compromise with the truth. Finally, true wisdom will not allow for hypocrisy; the truth is spoken and is backed with a true motive.[3]Conclusion

With this in mind we must remember how we respond to situations and circumstances is up to us. Will we respond out of God’s wisdom or out of worldly wisdom? When you are about to respond to a situation do you do it with the characteristics that James shows us here?

When responding to any situation or circumstance we know that we can seek God and He will give us wisdom. How does He do this? He does this through the Bible. If we don’t study the scripture, bathed in prayer, how in the world do we think we will respond properly? How about you today? Are you purposefully seeking God about situations and circumstances or are you trying to handle problems in your own strength. The choice is yours.

 

 

[1] Soanes, C., & Stevenson, A. (2004). Concise Oxford English dictionary (11th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[2] Hubbard, D. A. (1996). Wisdom. In D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, A. R. Millard, J. I. Packer & D. J. Wiseman (Eds.), New Bible dictionary (D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, A. R. Millard, J. I. Packer & D. J. Wiseman, Ed.) (3rd ed.) (1244). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1992). Wiersbe’s expository outlines on the New Testament (729). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

What is the Core of Christian Belief?

What is the Core of Christian Belief?
By: Rev. Joseph R. Kramer

16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

-John 3:16–18 (NIV84)

I recently received an email with a whole list of questions. I have been wondering how best to respond. The reason is that all of the questions are in the form of one question with multiple parts. So I will attempt to answer them simply and concisely, as each question that was proposed you could literally write a doctoral thesis about.

Someone has asked what are the core beliefs amongst Christians?

What we have to remember when answering these questions is that Christians believe in an objective truth, not a subjective one that has been accepted by many in our world today. I could spend a lot of time talking about this subject, but suffice it to say that the statement that truth is subjective is an objective claim and there the statement falls apart. The Bible, and all of life, is based on an objective reality. We must come to this understanding first before we can answer what Christians believe.

So how do you answer this question simply? It is very hard! We must remember that there are issues that Christians disagree about and ones that are essential to our faith. The core of Christianity is summed up in the following statement, taken from the Apostles Creed (I updated it in modern English and updated it to be more accurate).

 

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. 

I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son the second in the Trinity (God become man), our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead.  On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, The Universal Church established by Jesus Himself, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. AMEN.

While this is a bit different than the Apostle Creed, I believe it is very accurate. That being said, we must keep in mind that a creed (while helpful) is not scripture but a guide to what our faith means. All of this (which I have modified above) is the core belief of a true Christian.

So the question is not what do Christians believe that make them Christians, but what have you done about Christ. He is not some figure that cannot be known, but is living and wants to have a relationship with everyone. This can only happen as one yields control of their lives to Christ and accepts Him as their personal Lord and Savior. We must believe John 3:16 in order to be seen as a Christian.

Out of this belief and the change that is wrought by the Holy Spirit does one’s life begin to line up with right living before God (Sanctification).

A good thought to ponder is the following, As a Christian I am not perfect, but am being perfected. Someone once said, “I am saved, I am being saved, and I will be saved.”

How about you today? Have you had a life changing experience that can only be explained by the life changing work of Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit in your life? If not why not? We aren’t promised tomorrow. Would you cry out to God to receive you as a son? If so it is simple, it is not about the words you say, but the cry of your heart. You can say a prayer like this; “Jesus I know I am a sinner and I know my sin separates me from you. Come into my heart and be my master and savior. Thank you Jesus, Amen.” Or, you could just say “Jesus come into my life!” Again, it is not about the words, but your heart.

I hope this has answered the most important question in your life. That is, what have I done about Jesus Christ? What have you done? Have submitted? The Choice is yours today.

Sometimes, Christians Need to Be Quiet!

Sometimes, Christians Need to Be Quiet!
By: Rev. Joe Kramer

So it has been a long time since I wrote anything. Mainly because life has been very demanding over the past couple of months. My wife’s dad died, I got a new job (YEAH!), and I started volunteering to do some Sunday School Directing (God is really moving amongst our 35+ teachers!).

So here we are. I don’t have a lot to write today, just some thoughts about churches in general.

3 Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.

3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both freshwater and saltwater flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

-James 3:1-12 (NIV)

 

Now this is specifically talking to people who teach/preach God’s word. However, we can all receive some direction here. As I think about everything that goes on in churches, I wonder how much time our leaders spend putting out fires? By fires I mean gossip and “wrong words.” These are the kind of words that should never, ever be spoken. However, our church leaders spend a ton of time, that should be doing God’s work, trying to make church members get along with one another, trying to “hold the boat together.”

In the first century this terminology about fire (verse 6) would have been widely known and understood. You see these people had braziers (fires) in their homes for cooking, warming, and light. Now if they were to open a window and a breeze came in, it could be a very bad thing indeed. The fire from a small spark could spread and burn the home, and everything in it, down. This could happen due to the fact that most things were made of flammable materials (i.e. Wood). The problem with a fire during this time is that it was almost impossible to stop in that day, and could easily spread and hurt people, as well as damage property.

James uses this understanding to communicate to us what the untamable tongue can do to a body of believers. How many times have we seen splits from churches over someone who can’t keep their mouth shut? This is an insult to God. We are to tame our tongues and make sure we are doing God’s work and not our own.

How about you today? Are you guilty of this? If so, then it is time to repent! Do you know someone guilty of this? Maybe they don’t even know they are doing it, let them know (in love!) so that they can be restored to a proper fellowship with God and their fellow believers. The choice is yours.

A Free Gift From Joe!

Hebrews & You: A Reader’s Companion to The Book of Hebrews

I wrote a quick booklet some time ago on the Book of Hebrews.

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The hard copy is found 

@ 

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http://www.amazon.com/Hebrews-You-Readers-Companion-Book/dp/1470170175/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1356898065&sr=8-2&keywords=hebrews+and+you%3A+a+reader%27s+companion+to+the+book+of+hebrews

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I have attached a Digital Copy for you to have. You may NOT freely distribute to whomever you like; please contact me for permission or send them to this post. This will be up for a LIMITED TIME ONLY. Enjoy!

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[DOWNLOAD HERE]

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The following is a quoted description

“In this book you will find a summary of each chapter in the book of Hebrews. In each summation there will be answers to the most common questions found in Hebrews. Books and commentaries fall into different scales. Think of it as an onion. An onion has many layers. This book falls into the most outer layer of understanding when it relates to Hebrews. This is not an all-encompassing commentary on Hebrews. It is for the first-time reader of Hebrews. It should be a part of someone’s beginning journey to spiritual enlightenment through the book of Hebrews.”

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What this book is not:

• An extensive commentary on the book of Hebrews.

• An extreme in depth look at the theology and doctrine of the book of Hebrews.

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What this book is: 

• This book was designed to be a reader’s companion to the book of Hebrews. It’s designed for the individual who has never read the book of Hebrews to be able to pick it up and come to a cursory understanding of its pages.

• This book attempts to summarize and highlight difficult passages in order to broaden the reader’s perspective.

• This book tends to combine chapters for better understanding and flow of the content in Hebrews. When using this book Most people who have used this book find it helpful to open in prayer, read the sections on the chapters they will be covering in Hebrews, read the chapters in Hebrews and then re-read the section in this book. This will make the book of Hebrews come alive to the reader and broaden the reader’s understanding.”

Christians Can Be Awful to Those Who Don’t “Fit In”: The Church at Ephesus

Christians Can Be Awful to Those Who Don’t “Fit In”
The Church at Ephesus
By: Rev. Joe Kramer

(1) “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands. (2) “ ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. (3) I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. (4) But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. (5) Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. (6) Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. (7) He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’
-Revelation 2:1-7 (ESV)

I thought that we might start looking at the churches in the book of Revelation to see how they would relate to us in our day. I am thinking of doing one church per article and doing a small series of them.

When we come to verse one it says “to the angel of the church in Ephesus…”. The original word used here is Angelos, which is used throughout the rest of the book in relation to supernatural angelic beings, not human pastors or human messengers. If we are to be true to the context of the book it must be interpreted to mean angels. it says He walks amongst the golden lampstands. These are representative of the churches in the cities to which John is writing.

Now Ephesus was a large metropolitan city. It was a wealthy city of trade and was a place that had many religious movements and great temples to multiple false gods. We must keep this in mind as we read what John is writing.

God commends them in verse two for their works and patience, their endurance in hard times and their weighing of evil people, false religions, and false prophets in their midst. He continues His commending in verse three by saying they are patiently holding up Christ’s name and have not grown weary in their diligence to test doctrine and their love of the Truth.

However, we now come to verse four where there is a grievance against this church. They have lost their first love. Some have interpreted this to mean they lost their love for Christ. While I can’t be dogmatic about this, I would respectfully disagree. To me it seems they still loved Christ, because of the way they defended the truth, but they may have lost their love for the body of Christ. We are the body of Christ, so I submit to you that they may have lost their love for one another. They may be like some of the churches today who have gossip in them, who have cliques in them; they may have started to divide amongst themselves.

How many churches are dogmatic about their doctrine? Who cling to the truth, who love God and His Word? These churches tend to be quite good on their teaching, but the churches are marked with DRAMA. There is so much contention, gossip and vying for power that people get hurt and the body of Christ suffers. In this kind of situation the “little people,” the people of the church get hurt.

In verse five it talks about what the people of Ephesus need do in order to get right before God. He says they need to repent, to stop being the way they are and to do what is right. The judgment on them is that if they do not, they will be removed; meaning the church will not survive.

In verse six he talks about a group named the Nicolaitans. Most scholars believe that this goes back to one of the original deacons. This deacon was named Nicholas. According to tradition, Nicholas left sound doctrine and started teaching that Christians can do whatever they want because of the Grace that has been bestowed on believers. He encouraged people to sin in many ways, but primarily sexually, stating that God’s grace will cover it. When it comes to this kind of teaching the Apostles rebuked it, especially Paul when he wrote the following in Romans chapter six verses one through four (ESV).

(6) What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? (2) By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? (3) Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? (4) We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Ephesus was one of the churches that hated this teaching. Unfortunately many Christians were led astray by this teaching. Which is why, so i think, it is condemned by name in this book.

Verse seven is one of those verses that can be interpreted in many different ways. That being said, I do not believe that it has anything to do with one’s salvation. Remember that this is talking about the entire church in the city of Ephesus. It is talking about this church surviving and thriving for God. This verse says that they must overcome their shortcomings in order to please God and thereby doing they will prosper before a Holy God. God would bless them, but if they did not overcome, then God would dissolve the church in that city.

Now how does this apply to you and I personally? Let me ask you a question, when it comes to gossip, cliques and causing people who “are not the right kind of people” to leave the church what part in that do you play? Many churches have their doctrine right, but they have no love, even if they say they do, and the end up doing more harm than good. Many churches (Christians) like this just have a mean spirit in them toward people “who don’t fit in.” This is not right and God does not like it. What will you do? Will you repent? Will you continue in this despicable behavior? The choice is yours.