Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries
Advice from headquarters in Heaven to those who have neglected their most important love.
Sunday, March 10, 2002
What is it that God desires from you?
PSA 51:6 Behold, Thou dost desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part Thou wilt make me know wisdom.
DEU 6:5 “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart” PSA 119:2 How Happy are those who observe His testimonies, Who seek Him with all their heart.
JER 29:13 “And you will seek Me and find {Me,} when you search for Me with all your heart.”
The seven historical stages the church would go through. The seven different types of churches or individual believers in every generation.
REV 2:2-3 - those at Ephesus had good deeds, produced divine good works, persevered, and had not grown weary.
The church of Smyrna, REV 2:8, went through tremendous tribulation and poverty.
Pergamum, REV 2:14, was warned about the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel and committed acts of immorality.
REV 2:18-20 - Thyatira tolerated false doctrine and false teaching even though, REV 2:19, they had deeds, love, faith, service, and perseverance.
Sardis, REV 3:1-2, “to wake up and strengthen the things that remain.”
REV 3:8 - Philadelphia is described as having divine good deeds and a little power, and they have kept with doctrine and have not denied the Lords name.
REV 3:14 - the Lukewarm believers of Laodicea.
The Ephesus type believer who has some divine good production but has left their first love. The Smyrna type believer who is willing to accept suffering for blessing.
The Pergamum believer warned about compromising and becoming a stumbling block to others.
The Thyatira types who tolerate false doctrine and false teaching, even though they have love, faith, service, and perseverance.
The Sardis types who need to “Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain.”
The Philadelphia types who need to be careful that they do not let the distractions of life take them away. The lukewarm Laodicean believer.
The seven stars refer to the teaching pastors of the Church-age.
The pastors of the Church-age are called stars because the stars in the celestial heavens were once the voice God used to communicate His word all over the earth.
The lampstands refer to the believers in the church where the stars are teaching the light of Bible doctrine.
REV 1:20 - the seven lampstands are the seven churches or the different types of churches or individual believers in every generation.
MAT 5:14 You are the light of the world. MAT 5:16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
The stars are pastors teaching Bible Doctrine, while the lampstands are believers of the local church learning and applying doctrine.
against you = kataV [kata] + sou' [sou] = against you, concerning you, in respect to you, with regard to you, in reference to you, or as it relates to you.
you have left- aor-act-ind - aphiemi = to leave, abandon, desert, forsake, lay aside, omit, disregard, to neglect.
Youre not against Him at all; youve just become familiar with Him which causes apathy, indifference, passiveness, complacency.
ISA 53:3 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face, He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
MAL 3:16 Then those who reverenced the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord gave attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who respect the Lord and who esteem His person.
first - prwvthn [proten] = first in the sense of most important, used for rank or degree.
aor-act-imp - metanoeo = strictly a mental function, to change your mind, change your system of thinking, to rebound and recover.
PRO 23:26 Give me your heart, my son,
PRO 4:23 Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.
MAT 9:13 “I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,” 1CO 16:22 If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed. Maranatha.
lampstand - lucnivan [luchnion] is in the singular because it refers to individual believers.
Knowing Him all begins with one very simplistic word, simplistic but valuable.
Time!
God is not on a timetable and He is not in a hurry in His progress of their spiritual life.
As new believers, we often begin and continue growing for some time at a very fast rate.
Many times when it seems like we are receding or going backwards, it is not a matter of backsliding, losing your first love, apostasy, or reversionism.
PHI 1:6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who has begun in you an absolute good work will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. PHI 2:13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work above and beyond His good pleasure.
Because the spiritual life matures and becomes productive through the principle of growth, 2PE 3:18, rather than by adversities and experiences, much time is involved.
Unless the “time factor” is acknowledged from the heart, there is always danger of turning to the false enticement of a shortcut of blessings from the cosmic system.
ECC 3:1 There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven.
GAL 6:9 And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.
EPH 5:16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil.
Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately most of the time it kills all its pupils.
Two principles of “time” - sanctified time and waiting on the timing of God = the first priority of “knowing Him” and not leaving our first love.
Robert R. McLaughlin All Rights Reserved 2002