Ephesus: the Church That Left Its First Love

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Ephesus: The Church That Left Its First Love

During the return segment of his second missionary journey, the apostle Paul made a quick stop in the city of Ephesus (Acts 18:19). He preached in the synagogue there and his fellow Jews wanted him to stay longer, but he had to press on to Jerusalem (Acts 18:20-21). He left Aquilla and Priscilla in Ephesus, where they remained for a very long time, as they were instrumental in building the Lord’s church there. While Paul was away, Apollos came to Ephesus and Aquilla and Priscilla helped him to know the way of the Lord more perfectly and he was thus able to continue his travels to Corinth, where he proved to be a capable preacher (Acts 18:24-28).

On his third missionary journey, Paul returned to Ephesus, where he remained for a period of three years, the longest he ever stayed in any one place in his preaching career (Acts 19:1-12). From Ephesus, brethren who were personally taught by Paul ventured out into neighboring cities, until the whole province of Asia had heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. The work that Paul did there was some of his finest!

During the return segment of his third missionary journey, Paul stopped near Ephesus and had a meeting with the elders of that church (Acts 20:17-35). It was a sorrowful meeting, since Paul informed them that it would be the last time they would see his face (Acts 20:36-38). From his imprisonment, in Rome, Paul wrote a letter to the church in Ephesus, in which he expressed his great love for the brethren there and offered them some valuable instruction.

By the time of the Revelation, the church in Ephesus was still going strong, but they were showing some signs of weakness (Revelation 2:1-7). The Lord said that they had “left thy first love,” leading many to believe that they had been neglecting fundamental aspects of the faith. They were told to “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works.” Even a church like the mighty one in Ephesus can go astray.

“Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write, These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake has labored, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” – Revelation 2:1-4