He Who Has An Ear

Sermon Notes

“He who has an ear, let him hear…what the Spirit says to the churches.”
(Revelation 2:1-7)

WHO WALKS AMONG THE CHURCHES AND HOLDS HIS PASTORS IN HIS RIGHT HAND.

• Jesus builds his church and has a vested interest in how they are doing.
• He does not ignore them. He walks among them. He sees them.
• He watches how they handle difficulty and how they treat each other.
• He sees how seriously everyone takes his commands.
• He will not need a witness to speak for or against you. He is the witness.
• God’s messengers to the church are the Shepherds that He puts in place.
• Notice that the pastors belong to God not just to the church they serve.
• He holds them in his right hand. This is a place of honor for each pastor.
• So, pastors should examine every day, “Am I doing what He wants?”
• God himself will be the judge of the faithfulness of His servant.
• The expectation for obedience and communication are absolute.

WHAT POSITIVE DOES JESUS SEE ABOUT THE EPHESIAN CHURCH?

• Because He walks among us, He sees the good that we do.
• I know about your deeds, your hard work, and your perseverance.
• You identify and do not tolerate liars who claim to be apostles.
• You endure persecution and difficult things for my name’s sake.
• You hate what I hate. Information about the Nicolaitans is sketchy!
• Let’s assume from the name (destroyer) that their teaching was destructive.
• Destruction can happen through deceptive doctrine or half-truths.
• Destruction can also be linked to persecution’s effort to muzzle people.
• We know that…Roman deity worship was hostile to the monogamous Christian faith.

WHAT NEGATIVE DOES JESUS SEE ABOUT THE EPHESIAN CHURCH?

• You have lost that zealous love you used to have for me.
• Come back to me! I stand at the door and knock!
• Because Jesus walks among us he also sees the bad that we are involved in.
• Think about the joy you had at new birth. How precious is that memory?
• Jesus asks the church to consider how far they have fallen?
• God does not ask them to go back to the way things used to be!
• He is asking you to go back to the way you used to be! This is a relationship issue.

THE SPIRIT SPEAKS TO THE CHURCH.

• Notice the direction…he who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says…
• THE Spirit is speaking to you…it’s time for you to listen and adjust.
• Listening precedes obedience. You can’t obey what you don’t hear.
• This is not the time to tell the Spirit what you want Him to do.
• Overcomers are those who adjust to the word of the Lord.
• Overcomers will eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God.