7 Letters to 7 Churches: Being the church God Intended Us To Be
Week 2 – The Church in Ephesus
Sermon-Based Discussion/Reflection Questions
SERIES OVERVIEW:
7 Letters to 7 Churches: Being the church God Intended Us To Be
There is a fascination about the book of Revelation in the Bible. We get preoccupied with what we don’t understand, but within this letter are 7 letter to the early church that are very clear about what is important. As we explore these letters to the early church, and 7 churches written to specific churches, we will find what God what values in His people who gather together on Jesus’ mission to reach all people and make disciples.
TODAY’S OVERVIEW:
Week 2 – To The Church in Ephesus
Jesus had one issue with the church in Ephesus. And it was important. They had forgotten their first love. How can we keep love at the center of our church today? The way we return to our first love is by returning to our “first works”—worship, the Word, and witnessing.
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DISCUSSION/REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
- *If your group is new or has new people, spend some time getting to know each other.
Would you rather spend a week doing math problems or book reports? Why?
Tell a story about yourself about a time you received mail that you were excited about receiving. What was it? Who was it from? Why were you excited to receive it?
- Think about when you were new to the faith. When you first got saved, what aspects of spending time with God were you most excited about? What did your worship and prayer look like? Did you talk to others about God when you first became a Christian? Who did you share with and what did you tell them?
- Read: Revelation 2:1–7. Make observations about that passage. What stands out to you in this passage
- How would you feel if Jesus was saying this specifically to you?
- The church in Ephesus had “forsaken the love you had at first”. Read Matthew 22:37-39 and Matthew 6:33 for insight on what it looks like to be true to your first love.
- Doug said God wants your whole heart and that whatever has first place in your heart shapes you. What are things in your life that can take first place?
- What are some reasons people can leave their first love? How can the normal busyness of life cause us to become distant from God?
- Doug pointed out that in Revelation 2:5, that they were told to consider how far they have fallen or drifted, and told to repent, turn from their sin and turn toward God. What do you think could keep people from considering their spiritual condition and checking their spiritual vital signs?
- Repent doens’t just mean saying your sorry. It means turning away from the sin (literally making a 180 degree turn). What do you think keeps people from repenting?
- Doug used the phrase “faithful endurance” and defined it as keeping God’s commands and staying faithful to Jesus. How might you personally define faithful endurance.
- Doug talked about spiritual vital signs that show our heart and grows a loving heart toward God: Works, the Word, Worship, and Witness.
If your group is on the larger side break into 2’s or 3’s and discuss the following…
What area of your life is the strongest:
WORKS: Love God and Love People
WORD: Engage and Apply God’s Word
WORSHIP: Value Him above all with all your heart
WITNESS: Tell others about your first love
Which area could use some more focus from you?
- What else stood out from the sermon this week?
NEXT STEPS:
Everyone has a next step to apply what we have learned. What is your next step? Be specific.
MEMORY VERSE: *Challenge yourself or your group to commit this verse to memory:
Revelation 2:4-5 “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”
PRAYER:
Spend some time praying for each other.
Scripture References:
Revelation 1:1-3; 2:1-7; Matthew 22:37-39; Matthew 6:33; Acts 3:19-20; Psalm 119; John 14:21; Genesis 2:9; Genesis 3:22; Revelation 22:2