See How Christ Disciples His Church

Today's sermon text is in Revelation chapter 2, very end of the Bible, Revelation chapter 2.

Revelation 2 · chapter mention Revelation 2 · chapter mention

We'll read from verses 1 through 7.

For our visitors, I'll just give some context that on the past one year as a church, we were mostly preaching through the gospel of John.

We left off around John 14.

Once we're finished with this series on the church, we'll pick back up where we left off and we'll finish preaching through the gospel of John.

Over the summer, we also had a special little break and we looked at one psalm every Sunday.

So we started at Psalm 1 and we ended with Psalm 8.

Lord willing, next summer, we'll start with Psalm 9 and we'll keep that going.

And so today, we'll have our fourth of seven in a series called Life in the Father's House.

And that's a reference to what Jesus said in John 17, that he's going to his father's house to prepare a place for you, his church.

And while we're on earth, the church is the way that God prepares us for heaven, for his father's house.

Today's focus is church discipline.

And that just comes because we're following through our constitution three or four pages at a time.

And that's the section we got to in Sunday school.

So I wanted the sermon to complement that focus.

And so in our constitution, we looked at formative discipline and corrective discipline.

And so as a point of reference, this text, I see it as Christ providing formative discipline, ongoing discipline as he walks among and speaks to his church.

As I read this, keep in mind, we believe this is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, and sufficient word.

It's God's very own word for you, his church.

So when I'm done reading, I'll say this is the word of God.

And if you believe this, you respond, thanks be to God.

Revelation 2, 1 through 7.

1 through 8.

Verse 3.

And as born and as patience for my name's sake, you have labored and has not fainted.

Verse 4.

Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee because thou hast left thy first love.

Remember, therefore, from whence thou art fallen and repent and do the first works,

or else I will come unto thee quickly and will remove thy candlestick out of this place, except thou repent.

But this thou hast, that thou hast hated the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

Verse 7.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Thanks be to God.

You may be seated.

The Bible says that the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord, it endures forever.

Let's pray.

Father, we ask that you will give the eyes of faith and the ears of faith.

That though we're in this world that's fallen, and though the darkness hides you,

that by the power of your Holy Spirit, you will open our eyes to behold the glory of Jesus Christ

as he ministers to his church.

That you will minister here yourself, Lord Jesus.

We pray, Lord, that we can hear the gospel,

that we can hear the truth that Jesus Christ desires for his church,

from his throne room in heaven,

and from his ministry as the great high priest.

We ask all of this for your glory alone,

and for Christ's sake.

Amen.

Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

my prayer for you and for me today is simply that we would see Christ discipling his church.

We read the word, you hear the word,

but in Revelation, when John hears the voice, he sees a vision.

That's why I think it's appropriate that we would ask the Lord to help us to see Christ

through his word as it's ministered from this glorious text.

And to see how Christ disciples his church.

Let me ask you that question.

What do you think?

How long does Christ need to disciple his church?

How long does Christ disciple you?

I read this week of a young man as a teenager,

and he lived in England in the countryside,

later moved into London.

His name was Robert Robinson.

As a teenager, he and his buddies were mocking this lady who was on the street,

and she was known to make predictions,

and so they went around to mock her and ask her what the prediction was,

and she looked at this man, Robinson,

and said that one day your grandkids will know how to read,

which was more than he could say for himself or his entire family.

But that stirred in his mind,

and it actually led him to go hear a preacher preach for the first time.

It happened that that preacher was George Whitefield,

the first great awakening evangelist.

And the Lord did not save Robinson when he first heard the gospel,

but the gospel, like Pilgrim's Progress, it worked on him for three years,

and his own sin became like a burden on his back.

And later, the Lord saved this man and brought him into a church to be discipled.

The church he was taken into was the church in London.

The pastor at the time was John Gill.

John Gill came about 100 years before Charles Spurgeon in that same church.

The reason I tell you about Robinson,

after he was saved, after he was discipled in a wonderful church for many, many years,

he wrote this hymn, and the hymn begins this way.

Prone to wonder, Lord, I feel it.

Prone to leave the God I love.

Is your heart prone to wonder like Robinson?

I know mine is.

And doesn't that thought terrify you?

So for how long does Christ disciple you?

Think about the perspective of our author here to give some context on Revelation.

It comes from the pen of the Apostle John.

John was most likely the youngest of all the disciples of Jesus

who walked with him in his ministry for three years.

And John, his last thoughts before our Lord Jesus was crucified

was of all of the disciples wandering away from Christ,

forsaking him and abandoning Jesus.

They did not love Jesus to the end, did they?

And maybe that's why the main message on John's tongue

that he wanted to preach or that he wanted to put in every epistle

and in his gospel, the main message is that Christ loves you to the end.

For how long do you need to be discipled?

Look at our sermon text, verse 4.

Verse 4 is the heart of this passage.

And not only do I want us to see where the church in Ephesus needed reprimand,

I want us to see how Christ discipled them and brought that to them.

In verse 4, John writes,

You, church of Ephesus,

you abandoned the love you had at first.

Remember and repent.

So we need Jesus Christ to disciple us,

to call us to himself,

for as long as our hearts are prone to wonder, don't we?

That's how long Christ keeps discipling the church.

The word discipleship, according to the Oxford Dictionary,

it comes from the Old English, a Latin phrase,

or a Latin word called discipulus,

and it means a learner.

A learner, and it comes from the term to discern.

So what was it that John learned?

He was a disciple of Christ.

Well, when John introduces himself in the Gospel of John,

he doesn't say I'm the last living apostle.

He doesn't say I'm the senior pastor

at the wealthiest, most prominent church,

which was the church of Ephesus.

He says,

I am the one whom Jesus loved.

That's all you need to know about me.

I ran away from Christ,

and he loved me to the end.

All of John's letters

elevate the theme of love

more than any other New Testament writer.

To give a comparison,

1 Corinthians uses the word love 15 times,

and that's our glorious love chapter.

But by comparison,

the Gospel of John uses that word

of the love of God

and to love his people 39 times.

And in that short little epistle

called 1 John,

26 times he writes

for the church to have that love.

John's main point

is stated really well

in that epistle,

1 John 3.1.

He says,

See what kind of love

the Father has given to us

that we should be called

children of God.

And so we are.

See, it's the love of God

shown in Christ.

You get to belong

to the family of God.

If you're a Christian,

by the love of God,

you are in the house

of the Father.

Well now,

this vision that he gets

in Revelation,

it comes from banishment

to the island of Patmos.

Most likely before this time,

tradition has it

that John had been

taken and tortured,

a boiling vat of oil,

and he was dipped inside of that

and pulled back out

before he could die.

So there's this old,

disfigured man

with chronic pain

in exile,

away from the church.

But by God's grace,

the Lord,

he says,

I'm worshiping on the Lord's day

and I'm in the Spirit.

And what God gives him

in Revelation 1.17

is a vision of heaven itself

opened up.

John writes,

I saw Jesus.

I fell at his feet

as though dead.

What was it that Jesus said to him?

Fear not.

I am the first and the last,

the living one.

I died and behold,

I am alive forevermore.

And I have the keys

of death and Hades.

Verse 19,

write therefore these things

that you have seen,

those that are,

and those that are

to take place

after this.

And so we come to our sermon text

and what I want to walk you through

are five descriptions

that John gives

to all the churches

of how Jesus disciples his church.

The first one is this.

See how close Christ is

to his church.

By the language John uses,

we see that Jesus Christ

is very, very close to his church.

Three evidences from the text.

First,

John tells us

that it is Christ himself

who speaks to his church.

Look at verse 1.

Revelation 2,

Revelation 2:1

verse 1.

To the angel,

the word angel is messenger,

of the church in Ephesus,

write the words of him.

The Lord Jesus Christ

wants John

to write these letters

telling the church,

Jesus Christ speaks to you.

that phrase,

the words of him.

It's used 60 times

in the minor prophets.

You've heard it translated,

thus saith the Lord.

Jesus Christ

is the final prophet.

And he stands

from his throne in heaven

as prophet

speaking to his church.

How close is Jesus?

He speaks

through his word

to his church.

Jesus is acting

like one of those

minor prophet

covenant prosecutors.

But he's not

prosecuting

the Mosaic covenant.

He's shepherding.

He's using words

of encouragement

and words of exhortation

to shepherd his church

in the covenant of grace

until they're ready

for heaven with him.

And it's words

of encouragement

and exhortation

because we need both,

don't we?

That's how our Lord Jesus

speaks to his church.

Why is he telling

these words

to the church in Ephesus?

Think about

what a powerful church

this is.

The apostle John

became the elder

of the church in Ephesus.

Can you think of that?

You know,

the longest living apostle now,

one of the elders,

shepherding,

preaching to the church

in Ephesus.

Apollos,

a very gifted

man of rhetoric

who was discipled

on the side

and then came back

preaching the glorious gospel.

He was a preacher

to the church in Ephesus.

Paul was a pastor

or at least apostle

ministering and preaching

and teaching

in Ephesus

for three years.

And when Paul left,

you know who he left

as the pastor,

one of the elders

to preach to the church

in Ephesus.

It was Timothy.

This is the church

we're talking about.

A mature,

well-established church

that had been discipled

through Christ's messengers

one after the other.

And yet,

they still need Christ

to disciple them now.

They didn't arrive

after all of that.

Now,

don't think that this message

is only for one church

at that time in history.

Look at verse 7

of our sermon text.

He who has an ear,

let him hear

what the Spirit says

to the churches.

So,

from the island of Patmos,

the closest church

would have been

the church in Ephesus,

right off the coast.

And then,

the Roman courier circuit

would have included

these seven churches

in this exact order.

Why seven?

Well,

there are many more

than seven,

and these letters

were to be circulated

among all of them.

Seven represents

the number of completeness

and fullness.

So,

by addressing

individual churches,

he's lifting up

like case studies

for all of the churches,

even those who have

an ear to hear now.

This is the ministry

of God to you, church.

My first application

is that Christ

actively speaks

to his church

every day.

Whoever has an ear

to hear

must hear

the words of Jesus Christ.

He is close to you,

and he speaks.

So,

what the church needs today,

just as much as ever before,

to use the phrase

from Haggai 113,

is the Lord's messenger

in the Lord's message.

He speaks

through his messengers

at every faithful

biblical church

the message

of Jesus Christ

himself.

You see how close

Christ is to his church?

He speaks to his church.

Second evidence

of how close Christ is

is that he holds

his church.

Verse 1

describes Jesus

as he who holds

the seven stars

in his right hand.

In each of these

addresses

to these seven churches,

there's a little prologue.

It describes the speaker.

It describes Christ.

And each prologue

has a point.

And the point

is customized

to what that church,

that congregation

needs to hear.

To give you an example,

the church in Smyrna

was persecuted.

And what Jesus

tells them

that they need to hear

is a message

from he who died

and came to life.

You're persecuted.

You're going to be martyred.

Hear the message

from him who died first

for you

and came to life.

His resurrection

is your hope.

To the church

in Pergamum

in the prologue,

they had allowed

false teaching

and heresy

to creep in.

And the message

to them is this.

It's the words of him

who has the sharp

two-edged sword.

In Ephesians,

back to Ephesians

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6

tells us

that's the sword

of the Spirit,

the Word of God.

That's what they need.

So what is the message

to the church

of Ephesus?

What is it

that they need to hear?

In verse 1,

it's that Christ,

he is the one

who holds

the seven stars

in his right hand.

Jesus Christ

holds the messenger.

He holds

the spiritual

representation

of every congregation

in his right hand

in heaven.

They need to hear

that this is

Christ's church.

Christ

is the one

who holds it.

I think that

this is an inference,

but my best guess

is that the church

in Ephesus,

based on what comes next,

they might have been

tempted to think

that the kingdom

of Christ

on earth

will rise or fall

on them.

Think of all those

who had preached to them.

Think of how well

established this church

was.

They need to hear

Christ

holds his church.

It is not

by your works

that anyone

will be saved.

You be faithful

and you serve

in the church

out of love for Christ

because he is the one

who holds you, church,

and there is no amount

of manly effort

that you can bring

to the table

because if you lose

the love for Christ,

your lamp

will go out.

It is Christ's church.

You cannot hold it

all together

by your own strength.

Isn't that a relief

to us?

It is Christ

who holds his church.

And with that also

is the promise

that no matter

what happens

to his church

on earth,

spiritually,

we are held

by Christ.

He holds us

in his hands

and we are persecuted

but we are united

to Christ.

In the week ahead,

the next five days,

each of us

in our different industries

and lines of work,

we will go through

hardship.

In this world,

we will have trouble,

various kinds.

Christ holds you

because in Christ

you are united

to God himself.

We get this promise

in 1 Corinthians 6,

15, and 17.

Your bodies

are the members

of Christ

and he that is

joined to Christ

is one

spirit.

You and I

are only truly

held by Christ

if we enjoy

that union

with Jesus himself

as mediator.

The third evidence

that Jesus is very

close to his church

is that he walks

among his church.

Look at verse 1 again.

Jesus describes himself

as one

who walks

among

the seven

golden

lampstands.

this is a word

picture of the

menorah.

The menorah

was the seven

lamps

that were set

in the holy

place

so that the

priest would go in

and trim the wick

and clean up the wax

and add oil

so they would be

continually burning.

And the purpose

of these

seven lamps

was to light

the way

into the holy

of holies.

So Jesus

is describing

himself

as the high

priest

who ministers

as a high

priest

leading you

by the light

of his work

to the holy

of holies

itself.

That's who

Jesus is.

He's the one

who walks

among his

church.

He is the

great final

and everlasting

high priest.

Church,

it is Christ

who trims us.

It's Christ

who pours the

oil of his

Holy Spirit

in us,

in our lives,

our hearts,

in a congregation.

He is the one

who keeps the

lamp burning.

He ministers.

He prays God.

Do you see

how close

Jesus is

to his church?

The second thing

I invite you

to see here

is how well

Christ knows

his church.

He is so close

to his church

and he knows

his church

so well.

in verse

two we read

Jesus says

to the church

I know

your works,

your toil,

and your

patient endurance.

He gives this

list of three

and it's called

a triad.

He gives three

of those.

So three triads.

This is the first

one.

I know your works,

your toil,

and your patient

endurance.

that's how

the church

of Ephesus

was known.

Christ says

I see you

getting up early.

I see you

arriving

and going

the extra mile.

I see you

sweating

and laboring

alongside one

another.

I see how

you heard

my message

and you've

been living

it out.

The message

in Ephesians,

the same church

Ephesians 4.28

was labor.

Do honest

work with

your own

hands

and share

with anyone

in need.

And it seems

like the Ephesian

church was

obeying that.

Paul had

written to

Timothy.

Paul probably

worked anyone

under the ground.

Paul was a

hard worker.

And Paul

admonished

Timothy,

though he was

weak and frail

in the body,

Timothy,

labor in

preaching and

teaching.

Christ sees

the toil of

his church.

What else

does Christ

know?

Well,

Christ commends

his church

for also

hating what

Jesus hates.

Look at

verse 6.

He says,

this you have,

you hate the

works of the

Nicolaitans,

which I also

hate.

And Christ

commends them

for this.

The Nicolaitans

was a heresy

and it got

long gospel

wrong.

Nothing new

under the sun,

right?

We get long

gospel wrong,

all kinds of

problems creep

into the church.

The Nicolaitans

had said that

there is a

special type

of enlightenment

that some

people can access

and when you

do that,

it doesn't

matter how

you live.

So it led

to licentiousness

and all kinds

of evil sin

and the

Ephesian church

says,

no,

that's not

what the

apostles revealed,

that's not

what God

gave in his

word,

that's not

what our

Bible says.

Paul had

been there

for three

years and

he is using

disciplined

language by

saying this.

He's saying,

it's right for

a biblical church

that knows the

Bible well,

it's right for

such a church

to hate what

Christ hates.

When there is

false teaching

that's harmful,

you need to

hate that.

He's saying this

is a good thing.

Why?

Because I hate

that,

says Jesus.

They're preaching

a lesser gospel.

They're distorting

the good news

and they're distorting

all that I have

revealed in my

word.

You need to

know my word

and it's good

that you hate

heresy.

So Christ knows

that they worked

hard,

he knows that

they hated the

right things

and in verse

two he says,

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.

That's our

second triad.

Let me give

some context

to this.

There was so

much corrupted

living in the

city of Ephesus.

The temple in

Ephesus was called

the temple of

Diana and people

would come from

all over the

world to worship

the goddess

Diana which

would then,

it was syncretism

where it was

combined with

Greek mythology

as well.

So like the

twin sister of

Apollo got

merged with

Diana and it

was the goddess

of fertility.

So around this

temple were all

kinds of sexual

practices that

were extremely

perverse.

There were

those who would

take the silver

and make it into

little statues so

all these pilgrims

who came to

worship at the

temple of Diana

could take back

a silver souvenir.

Well when the

gospel arrived in

Ephesus they wanted

to kill Paul

because the

gospel undermined

this entire

industry.

And because

there was so

much worship

and people

giving money

to the temple

of Diana

it became a

banking system

so it was like

the London of

all of Asia

Minor.

And Paul had

written to them

those who go

the way of the

world and those

who bow down

their knee to

Diana this goddess

of perversity.

It's Satan.

It's represented

in Revelation as

Babylon and other

things.

You are choosing

idolatry over the

love of the true

God.

You're rejecting

the love of Christ

and you're turning

to adultery.

And so he's

admonishing the

church to you

need to discipline

within the church

any that are

loving an idol

more than they're

loving Christ.

If they're loving

their sin more

than they love

the Lord Jesus

their Savior

it's right for the

church to test that

and to call it

false and to not

bear with that

evil anymore.

It's right for the

church to do

that.

Well Christ

he knows their

toil he knows

they hate the

right things and

he also commends

them for patient

endurance for his

name's sake.

This is the third

and final triad in

verse 3.

Jesus says to the

church in Ephesus

I know you are

enduring patiently

and bearing up for

my name's sake and

you have not

grown weary.

Praise God.

In Ephesians 4

they had been told

as we are to walk

in a manner worthy

of Christ's calling.

Do you remember

that last week?

And they're to walk

with all humility

and gentleness and

patience bearing with

one another in love

and the Lord Jesus

Christ saw them obey

what he told them by

the spirit and he

commends them for

doing just that.

You have been walking

together as I called

you to do.

We've seen how close

Christ is to his

church and we see how

well Christ knows

his church.

Number three, see

what Christ cares

most about for

his church.

Verse 4.

The words of the

Lord Jesus Christ.

Church, I have

this against you

that you have

abandoned the love

you had at first.

He brings correction.

He brings exhortation.

But there were nine

words of encouragement,

specific affirmation

to this church.

Nine of them to one

correction.

That's the ratio

Jesus sets up.

Who are we to make

up a different ratio

than that, right?

We should always be

speaking the truth

in love, encouraging

one another, building

one another up.

And when we need

to, there can be a

place for correction,

but it's wrapped in

so much love and

specific affirmation

that it's not

critiquing and it's

not nitpicking and

it's not discouraging.

I'm convicted of my

flesh and my tendency

to bring any

correction that way.

I need to learn from

the example of the

Lord Jesus.

This is how he

disciples.

This is how he

disciplines his

church.

There's a tradition,

I'm not sure, you

know, if this is, you

can prove it anywhere,

but, you know, the

message in 1 John is

little children love

one another.

And the one historian

has it that the

apostle John, before

he got exiled, he

had been imprisoned

and he had to, you

know, leave Ephesus,

but he didn't get to

come back one last

time as an old man.

And what did he

preach to them?

He said, little

children of Ephesus,

love one another.

And that's the theme

that's on John's

heart as an apostle

and it's not because

it's John's idea,

that's because that's

what Jesus taught

John.

And that's what the

Lord Jesus himself

had to say to the

church in Ephesus.

Love one another.

John Owen makes a

good observation and

I don't know of

anyone who gets law

and gospel better

than John Owen,

at least more

thoroughly than

John Owen.

And he said that

some abandoned their

first love for

Christ because they

think that abiding

in Christ is a

plant that needs

neither watering,

fertilizing, or

pruning, but that

will thrive to

itself.

Have you fallen

into that?

Well, we know it's

true from Ephesians

2.8 that by grace

we have been saved

through faith and

this is not our own

doing, it is the

gift of God.

Amen.

We're not saved by

works that no man

should boast.

But in verse 4 of

Revelation 2, we read

that they had a love

at the beginning

that they no longer

have now.

The word there is

that the love that

you had, and that

verb is possession,

to have a love.

The Greek term, it

brings all these

connotations.

It means to have

and to hold.

It's to possess in your

mind in a way that

agitates the emotions.

It's to cherish, to

hold fast, to keep,

and to highly regard.

That's how they

viewed the Lord Jesus

when He first saved

them out of their

sin.

That's how they

viewed one another

when they first got

started.

But somewhere along

the way, by not

watering and

fertilizing and

tending to that

love, it was

abandoned.

It was neglected.

That little plant of

their love, the

leaves are starting

to turn yellow.

You can see some

other stuff starting

to grow.

It's smaller.

It seems dried up.

And the Lord Jesus

is the gardener, and

He's walking in the

midst, and He says,

you need to tend to

this.

You love because I

first loved you.

now grow in my

love.

He gospels them

back to that kind

of love.

He gospels His

church.

They need to

remember how the

letter of Ephesians

began.

Ephesians 1.5,

In love God

predestined us for

adoption to

Himself as sons

through Jesus

Christ.

How in love He did

that.

Ephesians 1.15,

Paul encourages the

church at that

stage.

He says, I have

heard of your

faith in the Lord

Jesus, and I have

heard of your love

toward all the

saints.

You need to get

back to that place.

You need to do

that again.

So fourth, I want

us to see together

how Christ

disciplines His

church.

Three observations

on how Christ

disciplines.

look at verse

five.

Remember, therefore,

from where you

have fallen.

Jesus doesn't

say, think about

how you fell or

why you fell.

He says, remember

from where you

fell.

Think back.

Recall.

Remember, therefore,

from where you

have fallen.

Put your sight on

that.

That's what I've

called you to.

Grow back into

that.

It's going to take

work.

It can't be

neglected and

abandoned.

You must grow into

that.

Remember that vision

I have for you.

I was trying to think

of a good illustration

of this.

And I picture a

family going on a

hike up a climb.

And I'm not going

to put an age on

this child who

loses the love,

okay, but you can

picture whatever you

need to.

One of the children

in this family is

still walking along,

but they are

emotionally checked

out.

They're still taking

the steps, but they

are very bothered by

their sibling.

They don't want to

share their water.

They're not enjoying

this.

They're just putting

one foot in front of

the other out of

duty.

Remember what it

was like when we

first started, when

there was more shade,

when the dirt smelled

good and wet, and

when you're having fun

jumping up on the

boulders and back

down.

Remember that.

That's how we want

it to be.

We need to get back

to that.

And the Lord Jesus

next says not only

remember it, but he

calls them to take

action.

He calls his church

to repent in verse

five.

Repent and do the

works you did at

first.

A mature, well

established, well

taught church needs

to repent.

They need to return

to the love that

Christ first put in

their hearts.

He says to them,

you are mature, you

have sound doctrine,

and you have worked

hard for a long

time.

But now you need to

preach the gospel to

yourselves again.

You need to have joy

in all those little

things like you used

to.

Remember the gospel,

church.

Never forget that.

Ephesians 2, 3

through 5.

You once lived in the

passions of your flesh.

That's who you were.

You were carrying out

the desires of the body

and of the mind.

And you were by nature

children of wrath,

like the rest of

mankind.

Have you forgotten

that that's what you

were?

But God, being rich in

mercy because of the

great love with which

he loved us, even when

we were dead in our

trespasses, made us

alive together with

Christ.

That's what God did

because he is love.

And if you think of the

gospel, it will be a

reflex to obey.

You will do the works

you did at first.

At first, remember how

you used to serve

others.

You used to have

someone else over to

your home.

You used to encourage

others, even when you

were tired yourself.

You will do those works

again when you gospel

yourself back through

this.

When you ask God to

fill you with his love

because you ran out on

your own, you will do

all those little things

again.

And God will bring your

joy back into your heart

as you serve one another.

It's an expression of

your love for him.

How else does Christ

disciple and discipline

his church?

He uses covenantal

terms.

He brings them curses and

blessings.

Like an Old Testament

prophet, like Moses said

this pattern in Deuteronomy

28 and 29.

If you go this path that

leads to death, there are

warnings.

There is eternity at stake.

But if you walk the

narrow way, there are

blessings for those who

belong to Christ.

He lays out curses for

disobedience and blessings

for obedience.

Jesus is a covenant

prosecutor.

What is the curse or the

threat that he brings

them for disobedience?

Look at verse 6.

If you do not remember

and do not do those

works, I will come to

you.

Jesus Christ himself will

come to his church and

remove your lampstand from

its place unless you

repent.

That means that that

congregation's light in

heaven will be

extinguished.

Their lamp will be turned

off.

Let me clarify.

I don't see anywhere here

that necessitates this to

be referring to an

individual losing their

salvation.

I see this as

congregational accountability.

That congregation, the

doors will be closed.

It will become a junior

college.

church.

The work of Jesus as

prophet and as priest is

to fill the lamp with

oil, the Holy Spirit, the

love of God to trim and to

manage it, maintain it so

that it does burn brightly

pointing the way to the

Holy of Holies.

When a church does not do

those things for which God

intended it to do, what

purpose does it have?

It should shut down.

It's Jesus himself who

brings judgment and his

judgment starts with the

church.

When Christ comes, his

second coming, it will be a

day of terror.

And the ones who should

tremble the most are those

who are in a church.

You need to look around and

be ready for that day within

whatever church you're at.

He begins his judgment with

his own people.

1 John 4.20

If anyone says, I love God

and hates his brother, he

is a liar.

For he who does not love

his brother whom he has

seen cannot love God whom

he has not seen.

That's why it's so important

to remember the love, the

union you have in Christ.

It will play itself out in

all your other relationships.

All those works that I'm

calling you to do, that's a

simple expression of whether

or not you belong to Christ.

Revelation 3.19

He reminds them, it's those

whom I love, I reprove

and discipline, Jesus says.

So be zealous and repent.

And I will praise God if

right now he's convicting you

like he's convicted me this

week and again now.

I need to repent.

I need to remember that love.

Praise God.

Because that means that Christ

loves you.

He reproves and disciplines

you if he loves you.

What does this mean for

congregational church

discipline?

That's our focus in the

series a little bit with

Sunday school.

Well Hebrews 13.17

is the admonition that the

elders of each congregation

are to keep watch over your

souls as those who will give

an account to Christ

Christ himself.

Church discipline has Christ

in mind from the very

beginning to the very end.

We will give an account to

Christ for every single soul

entrusted to the care of a

congregation.

And if the congregation as a

whole has gone so far from

forgetting Christ, they deserve

to be shut down.

Let that congregation close its

doors.

That's what Jesus says.

He'll do it himself.

The church is the dwelling

place of God in Christ.

So church life is life in

God's house.

He judges his own house first.

So what do you pray?

What's your response with the

thought of Christ coming to

judge and his judgment

beginning within his own

church?

Let's go back to that hymn.

Prone to wonder, Lord, I feel

it.

Prone to leave the God I love.

Take my heart, Lord.

Take and seal it with your

Holy Spirit in thy courts

above.

I don't trust myself with my

heart, with my soul.

Seal me, Lord.

May your Holy Spirit live in me

and fill me so that I don't

need to question that.

Do I belong to you?

Your Spirit will reassure me of

that.

And you seal me, Lord, in a

place that I can't touch, in a

place I can't mess up, in

heaven itself.

And then the fifth, last

heading I've got here is, see

how Christ disciples his

church.

We saw how he disciplines

through covenant curses and

threats, but he disciples by

also extending covenantal

blessings.

Blessings promised for

obedience.

Look at verse 7.

To the one who conquers.

He's not talking about an

entire congregation.

He's talking about an

individual now.

To the one who conquers.

I will grant to eat of the

tree of life, which is in the

paradise of God.

The Lord Jesus stands in

heaven and he, he prosecutes

his covenant of grace to his

church.

Respond to my love and I will

bless you.

I am the second Adam, he says.

But remember with the original

Adam in the garden of Eden, he

was under a covenant of works.

Adam had to obey Christ, obey

God personally, perpetually and

perfectly in every way.

And Adam fell short of the glory

of God.

And all who are under Adam as the

first federal head are under the

curse of death because of sin.

Adam's sin as well as our own sin

added on to that.

And Jesus says, I am offering to

you the blessing of heaven as the

great and final Adam.

Why can Christ offer this?

That we get to eat from that

tree of life that Adam could

never touch?

It's because Christ already has

it.

He fulfilled that demand of the

law.

He himself put himself under the

law.

He accomplished the covenant of

works that Adam fell short of.

And Christ holds, he holds that

fruit of the tree of life.

So when he says that to the one

who conquers, I will give this,

it's because he already has it.

It's in his hands.

There's nothing that can take that

out of Christ's hands.

He merited it, not because he

lacked anything, but because we

lack everything.

And the Father has placed that in

his hands.

And it's to the one who conquers.

To the one who conquers an apathy

toward others.

To the one who conquers being

passive in your walk with the

Lord.

You conquer by remembering that

love of God for you, by

gospeling yourself back through that

once again.

Do you see how Christ disciples his

church?

He's the good shepherd.

His rod and his staff, they comfort

us.

His rod of correction puts us back on

the path when we stray.

And his staff, it guides us in the

way of life everlasting.

Christ's true church, every believer,

has love only because God first

loved you.

And he calls us to tend that love,

cultivate it, take care of it.

On this earth, it will always feel

like a battle to cultivate this love

that comes from God.

And that's because we have remaining

sin in our flesh.

Our hearts are prone to wonder.

So how long does Christ need to

disciple his church?

As long as your heart is prone to

wonder in mine.

How long does Christ keep discipling

us, his church?

He keeps discipling us as long as he

loves us.

And his love is unending for his

church.

How long does Christ disciple his

church?

As long as we are still on this

fallen earth and he is in heaven.

And there will be a day when he

comes and his kingdom of heaven is

fully on earth.

That day will be prepared for

eternity with him.

But in the meantime,

remember, beloved congregation of

our Lord Jesus Christ, how close he

is to you, his church.

How he speaks to you.

He holds you.

He walks among us.

Stay close to him one step at a

time.

I love the picture of the Lord

Jesus of his yoke, his light.

You're yoked to Christ.

But he does all the work.

He's pulling and plowing and you're

walking in step with him.

And as you walk with him, he teaches

you.

And what he loves, you love.

What he hates, you hate more and more

and more.

What you lack, you see right here,

yoked to Christ, I have it all.

In John 13, 34 through 35, Jesus said,

just as I have loved you, you are to love

one another.

And by this, all people will know that

you, dear church, are my disciples.

If you have love for one another,

your little lamp will be burning bright

and the weight of the Holy of Holies

will be visible.

Don't hide that light.

Let it shine brightly that the world

can see you are ones who I've saved

and I put my love in you and you point

the way to the only one who can give

such love to sinners that have been saved.

Never forget, beloved church,

what Christ cares most about.

And it's that we love him,

that we love one another.

Christ's heart never wonders from his church.

His love never runs out.

He loved you until the end of his death

on the cross and he loves you

until the very end

and into all eternity.

Praise the Lord of love.

We're going to sing this in a moment.

Crown him the Lord of love.

Behold his hands inside,

rich wounds yet visible above,

in beauty glorified.

All hail, Redeemer, hail,

for thou hast died for me.

Thy praise and glory shall not fail

throughout eternity.

We welcome the discipline

of our loving Christ.

He is so near to his church

and he is so worthy of our love.

And we do have the promise

as a congregation,

by God's help,

that as long as his love remains in us,

the lamp of this congregation

will never go out

because he is the one

who holds his church.

And he who rescued us

from our sin

because he is love,

he is the same one

who disciples us

because he is love.

Praise this God we have.

Would you pray with me?

Lord, our love for you

and for yours,

it is so prone to wonder.

But Father, we put our eyes

back on Christ.

We see him ministering to us

and we see how you rescued us

from sin and danger,

how we are purchased

by your blood.

And we ask, Lord,

that by your help

we will walk on earth

as a stranger

because we are sons

and heirs of God

in heaven.

Amen.

Take some time

to reflect on the gospel

that you have heard.

Let the Lord stir back up

your love for him.