“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.”
Revelations 2:4
Every day should be as joyful as the first day you were saved.
One day Sam, a city guy, decided to visit his brother, Jerry, who lived in the country. Jerry showed Sam around his farm, pointing out the milk cows, the old barn, and his new dog. “What you don’t know,” said Jerry, “is that this here dog can do something none of your city dogs can do.” With a whistle from Jerry, his dog began to corral the cows from the field, drive them into the barn, then shut the barn door and secure it with his paw. “That’s amazing!” exclaimed Sam. “What is your dog’s name?” Thinking for a minute, Sam asked, “What’s that flower called that has the thorns on it?” “A rose?” Jerry replied, “Yeah, that’s it.” Then Jerry turned to his wife and said, “Hey Rose, what’s the dog’s name?”
We all forget things now and then. Have you ever forgotten an appointment, a child’s sports game, or perhaps even a deadline at work?
Forgetfulness is common to us (sometimes we can’t even remember what we had for breakfast yesterday!), but it should not be common in our spiritual lives. We shouldn’t forget our first love as the church did in Revelations 2:4, “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.”
Remember when you were first saved? Remember the joy in your heart, the constant smile on your face, the willingness to help wherever needed? Do you remember how eager you were to tell everyone about your decision? What about giving-do you remember when it thrilled you to be able to give to missionary families, church projects, and God’s word? What has taken you from that?
So often as time goes by, we can lose that initial overwhelming love for Christ. A loss of love doesn’t come from not serving God, for as our verse shows, the church at Ephesus was busy about God’s work. There simply was no love behind their actions.
Take time right now to reflect on those first few days of your spiritual life. Remember how you were saved? Do you remember the peace that swept over you and the joy you felt? Remember how you wanted to tell everyone you knew about your decision? What has changed since then? Do you still feel the same way or have things “cooled off” since then?
Don’t let the fervor and love you feel for Christ wane as you grow older in your Christian life. Keep that passion alive as you serve, give, witness, and obey God. Let the joy of salvation fill your heart today and serve God out of love for Him!–By Paul Chappell
