IS WORKING FOR THE LORD ENOUGH?

“I know thy works, and thy labor,and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil:

and thouhast 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 hast labored, and hast not fainted.

Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” (Revelation 3:2-4)

Will the Lord not be pleased with us if we just work for Him? The answer to that question is, “no.” He sees the heart and desires whole-hearted devotion as we labor.

In His letter to the Ephesian Church(Revelation 2:1-7) the Lord wrote, “I know thy works,” and proceeded to describe them in some detail; but He also wrote, “nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.”

This was a deliberate choice on their part, they had deliberately chosen another love. It was not obvious by their outward behavior, but Him who “seeth” the heart knew it immediately. He required repentance from them and a returning to the first love.

The Lord desires for our love to be boiling hot, not lukewarm. He desires us to do as Mary of Bethany, spend time learning at His feet before we go forth in His name to labor in His vineyard.

In His marvelous grace,

Pastor Ed Bowen

August 22, 2010