A Reflection on Revelation 2:2–5
Revelation 2:[2] “‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how 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. [3] I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. [4] But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.
It is hard to comprehend that Christ was not pleased with the church at Ephesus. This was a church commended for its tireless labor, intolerance of evil, and steadfast endurance for His name. How can such commendable deeds still fall short?
Perhaps the issue was not what they were doing, but why they were doing it. It seems their works, though outwardly commendable, were driven by wrong motives.
The Work Of A Workaholic
“I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance…” (Revelation 2:2a)
The workaholic is one who serves tirelessly, but to find his sense of identity in what he does. His self-worth is bound to his work and ministry accomplishments become the measure of his value. Without them, he struggles to see himself as significant.The labour is genuine, the endurance is visible, but the motive is misaligned.
The Work Of A Dogmatic
“…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.” (Revelation 2:2b)
The dogmatic is one who upholds truth, but with a self-righteous spirit. Blinded by his own ego, he assumes he is always right while others are wrong. In his zeal to defend the truth, he comes to love the fight more than the faith, focusing more on being right than on being righteous.
The Work Of a Heroic
“I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary.” (Revelation 2:3)
The heroic is one who suffers for Christ, but for sake of self-justification. His endurance becomes a badge of honour, a way to merit God’s favour rather than an expression of genuine devotion.
In short, the Ephesians were busy doing Christ’s things but not for the sake of Christ but for the sake of self. They pursued Christ for personal agendas.
Christ’s rebuke was piercingly simple: “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.” (Revelation 2:4)
What Kind of Love Is That?
What is this love that Christ speaks of? I believe it refers to that “first affection” we had when our spiritual eyes were opened to the beauty and blessedness of the gospel. It does not necessarily refer to the early days of our conversion, for there are indeed some of us who came to genuine faith only later. Rather, it points to that moment when we first truly grasped the depth of our sin—and yet, even more, the greater depth of His grace. Our hearts were overwhelmed by His mercy, and our longing to know Him ran deep. In those days, we read Scripture not out of duty but delight; we prayed not from discipline but desire; we served not to prove our worth, but to please the One we love.
Abandonment Is Not Mere Forgetfulness
To abandon this love is not merely to forget it, but to walk away from it. It is an intentional drift — a quiet turning from the One who once held our hearts. Perhaps Christ no longer feels as essential; we discover we can perform the motions of faith without truly engaging Him. We can speak of Christ, defend His truth, and serve in His name — yet all the while lose the intimacy of truly knowing and loving Him.
Remember...
“Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.” (Revelation 2:5)
We cannot return to something we do not remember—and we cannot remember what was never truly there to begin with. The question we must ask ourselves is this: do we possess genuine faith? Have we discovered Jesus as the treasure hidden in the field, the pearl of great price for whom we would give up everything? Have we known the joy of loving and serving Him? Has His mercy and love ever moved your heart? If not, I urge you to make it your utmost priority to truly know the gospel. We cannot return to what was never truly there.
Remember and Return
The church at Ephesus began well. They once knew the “first love” for Christ, yet somewhere along the way, they abandoned it. Their problem was not the absence of works, but the loss of wonder. They had exchanged love for workaholism, devotion for dogmatism, intimacy for heroism. Their issue was not that they were doing the wrong things, but that they were doing the right things with the wrong heart.
Christ does not call us to reject the works of the Ephesian church, but to recover the heart behind them—to serve tirelessly out of delight in pleasing Him, to defend truth passionately out of love for His ways, and to endure suffering patiently because He is worthy.