When the relationship becomes secondary to the program, you're living in sin. Dr. Tony Evans says Christian activity alone can't guard against letting the world crowd out Christ. There's pressure not to put him first.
So you gotta overcome that pressure. This is the alternative broadcast, featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans. Over time, our love for God either tends to grow more rich. or more routine.
Today, Dr. Evans explains that when routine becomes the norm, it's time to take a serious look at our priorities. Let's join him as he helps us do that. God wants you to win. Which means there's something that you need to overcome.
Something that is seeking to defeat, oppress. to make you a victim and not allow you to be a victor. The number seven in the scripture means to come to completion.
So, when we unpack each one of these seven messages to the seven churches, You will have enough. to overcome You can overcome in a number of different ways, but the principle should be operating in your heart and in your life. The first church we come to is the church at Ephesus. To appreciate and understand Ephesus, all you have to do is understand New York. Ephesus was the New York of Asia Minor, now known as Turkey.
Ephesus was the center of commerce. of culture Of civic Focus. A fashion If you wanted to go on vacation, Ephesus was the place to go. It was a tourist city. It was well known throughout Asia.
as the place to go. It was an economic boom town. It was like a Wall Street. It dealt in. significant financial matters.
because of its strategic location. But here in the book of Revelation, he is not writing because all is well. He is writing because of uh situation that needed to be addressed. For people who wanted to be overcomers. as I hope that we do.
He makes it clear in the first verse that this was written. For the angel of that house That is, God's messenger, the word angel from the Greek word angelos means messenger. That the messenger, the pastor, if you will, Was to proclaim this message to the congregation at. Ephesus Bible Fellowship. And if you and I will hear what he has to say, he that hath an ear, let him hear.
Verse 7 says. then you are on your way to being an overcomer. An overruler. of that which is ruling over you. He starts off with a compliment.
A commendation, if you will. He wants to congratulate the church first. He says, I know your deeds. I know what you do. I know that you are a serving church.
I know about your Programs. Your ministries. Your outreaches. Your small groups. I know about your Bible classes.
I know about the support systems you have to help people get victory. I am well aware of all of the programs that you do. I see what your deeds are. I know what you do. You are a model congregation, and I know it.
But The commendation Now turns to a Criticism Or a condemnation. But I have this against you. You have left your first love.
So evidently, you can be doing right stuff and be in wrong relationships. Suppose a husband would say to his wife, No, no. I want you to know you're not going to be first. I'm going to fit you in where I can, but nothing's going to change. I'm still going to go to work.
I'm still going to bring my money home. I'm still going to do what I'm supposed to do. I'm going to fulfill my job, but you're not going to be my priority. I'll get around to you when I can. When I got a little extra time, I'll give you some of it.
When I got a little extra resources, I'll give you some of it. When I got a little extra attention, I'll give you some of it. But I'm going to do my duty. See, this church and these believers were doing their duty. He gave them five compliments.
Yeah. But God was no longer First. In other words, The duty had trumped the devotion. The regulations. was ruining the relationship.
So what do we do about this? And why will it matter? Verse 5 tells you what to do. Three things. He says, remember from where you have fallen.
The three auras. The first one he says, I want you to remember. Remember. Remember back there when you were just in a house? And you had to depend on me for everything.
All you had was me, so I mattered most. You remember. You go back to that time When you didn't have to manage all this and have all this, and all you had. Was me. You you remember that?
Remember when you were as a couple in that apartment when you couldn't afford a house and all you had was each other, but that was enough. He says, remember from where you have fallen. Remember where you came from. Because you ain't always been up here, you haven't always been doing this, you weren't always blessed like you are now. It says remember.
Remember when I'm the one that mattered most. Second aura, he says, repent.
Okay, there's only one thing you repent of in the Bible and that's sin. It's the only thing you're ever called to repent of, and that's sin.
So guess what? Leaving your first love is sin. It's not just a bad habit. It's not just a mistake. When the relationship become secondary to the program you're living in sin.
I'm living in sin. We collectively are living in sin when the relationship is secondary to the program. He's not just calling it, oh, my, I got to get my priorities together. No, you got to get your sin fixed. Because he says repent.
You only repent of sin.
So he doesn't review this just as a scheduling issue. He views it as a sin issue. He says, and then you must Repeat. Do your first works over again, verse five says. Do what you did.
when all you had was me. Because when all you had was me, you had time for prayer. When all you had from was me, you had time for... I'm spending time in my word. When all you had was me.
You found out. But I was kind of all you needed. Because I kept coming through for you. You found out how real I could be. But now You're a little spiritually seditty.
You can do it without me. You can do it on your own. You can be your independent self while carrying on the program. Repent. and go back and do your first works over again.
You remember when you were first married, if you're married, how hot the relationship was? You on the phone, don't want to hang up, nobody talking, but nobody wants to go. Just on the phone. Just hang out on the phone. Can't wait to connect the next day or whatever.
I mean, you know, you're talking about, you know, you didn't have to be. beg to talk about that person. You whipping out pictures when folk don't want to see it. Why? Because the connection was hot.
You couldn't afford McDonald's. But it didn't matter because the relationship trumped the location. First love is where there is a fire. For him. And everything else surrounds that.
He's not just fitted in. when we have an extra moment or two. John 14, 21 is a powerful verse. He says, If you Love me, you will keep my commandments. And to the one who loves me.
Watch this. I will disclose myself to him. Whoa. I will talk to him. I will show him or her.
I will reveal myself. The reason why. We're not hearing from God, the reason why we're not getting guidance from God, the reason why we're not experiencing victory from God is because he doesn't feel free to disclose himself to somebody who's gonna treat him second. He drives it home now. He says now, I do have to compliment you because verse 6, you hate the deeds of the Nicolaidans.
The Nicodaidans were professing Christians who were abusing grace. They thought grace was an excuse to sin. Because I have grace, I can just go do anything. He says, I know you hate that, so I want to commend you. I want to commend you.
But this first love thing Watch this. He that hath an ear, let him hear. Pay attention now. He that hath an ear, let him hear. What the Spirit is saying to the churches.
So I'm talking to the churches, but are you listening as an individual? He that hath an ear, she that hath an ear. Forget your neighbor right now. The question is, what are your ears picking up? Dr.
Evans will return in just a moment with more about how to make what's coming into our ears come out in our actions. But first, today's lesson is part of Tony's exciting series, The Jesus Challenge. and I want to tell you about a great set of resources we've put together as a way to follow up on what we're learning. It starts with all eight full-length messages in this collection to study in depth. available to download instantly as well as on either C D's or USB flash drive sent straight to your home.
Along with these, we'll also include the Living as an Overcomer book, workbook, and Bible study video. that go hand in hand with the material from this series. We'll send you this package with our thanks for the donation God leads you to make. to help us keep Tony's teaching on this station. Visit TonyEvans.org today to make the arrangements to receive the Jesus Challenge and Living as an Overcomer resource bundle.
That's Tonyevans.org. Or you can call our resource team at 1-800-800-3222. where they'll be happy to help with your request. That's one eight hundred eight hundred thirty two twenty two.
Well, Dr. Evans is back now with the second part of today's lesson. He wants to know, are you paying attention to what is being said here about the primacy and prioritization of God in your life? And if you have an ear that is willing to hear and to reprioritize relationship over religion, devotion over duty, he says, if you have an ear, this is what happens. To him Who over comes.
It's our word. The cattle Naki. Swish. Victory. That's what the word means victory.
To the one Who overcomes? Overcomes what? overcomes the pressure to not put me first. Because there's pressure. You gotta go against your inclinations.
You gotta go against other people. You have to go against your schedule. You have to go against your, there's pressure not to put him first.
So you got to overcome that pressure. You gotta overcome that schedule. That may mean getting up a few minutes earlier and not just praying at bedtime when you know you're gonna fall asleep after one minute. I'm going to overcome that. And yes, Lord, even if I start out with five minutes, I'm going to give you the first five minutes.
The first day of the week. See, what we're doing is We're putting God last while still expecting him to show us something. You got people all over the place waiting for that blessing. Why they make God last. Pick him up as needed, make him Santa Claus.
He's not first in the time, first in the talent, first in the treasure, first in the allocation of focus. And he does not request to be first, he demands to be first. Because he says, if I am not going to be first. Verse 5 says, I will remove your lampstand out of its place. I will shut that mama down.
You'll go to church, but I won't be there. No love, no light. Yeah. You'll run your life. But I won't be hanging with you.
Who else died for you? Who else paid for your sins? Who else has given you eternal destiny? Who else do you call on when life shuts down on you?
Well, if you think that they are your Savior, Go to them. Go to them. But if you really want me to be all that, I I need to be first. And to him who overcomes. The pressure not to put me first.
To that one. To he, because he says he who overcomes. I'm gonna reward him. Her. He who overcomes.
I will grant to eat of the tree of life. which is in The paradise of God. He is speaking about a future reward that will come. But that future reward receives a down payment. in this life.
It's not all experienced here now because we live in a sinful world. Whenever I go to speak for a pregnancy center, I speak for a number of pregnancy centers around the country. who are promoting life. They always asked me, would I come an hour earlier?
So, If it begins at 7, they want me there at 6. All of them ask this. And the reason they asked me to come at six is because they have. A special donor reception. This is a reception for major donors to the pregnancy center.
to thank them for their support of their center. These are people who have gone above and beyond. to make sure the center operates with strength.
So they asked me, because I'm the guest speaker, to come and meet the special guest. At The reception. The reception is held in a separate room from the general banquet. The banquet may have a thousand people, but there may be just a hundred people who are the specially invited guests to the reception. They have their own special food.
We stand up and we take pictures with the various guests. They give special gifts and special recognition because they are special people, although they are among the bigger crowd. God says, I have a private reception. In a private hospitality room called the Paradise of God. with a special tree called the tree of life.
but only the invited guests get in there.
Now, yeah, you're gonna go to heaven if you've accepted Jesus Christ, but you don't get to the reception. Where you get this private audience and this private participation and this private interaction when you've lived your life. Making me second, third, fourth, and fifth. And I've given you eternity. No, the reception for those who buck the pressure.
To make me anything less than the risen Lord that I am, who bucked the temptation. To yield to the world's exclusion of me in order to be safe, secure, and popular. He says, for that believer. Yeah. No, they get a private audience.
They get special consideration.
So the question is do you want special consideration? Ultimately there, but He will disclose himself beginning now. John 14, 21 says. to you and me. When I first went to seminary, I remember how Excited I was.
I mean, I jumped out of bed because I'm just blown away by learning the Bible like this and all the stuff it had. And I'm just loving the Lord more. But as the years went on and the work piled up. I got to learn Hebrew, Greek, German, French. All Bible, but now I got to read all this stuff.
I got to learn all this stuff. I'm up all night trying to study this stuff. And so I want to do good. I want to make A's. I want to graduate with honors.
So I'm working like crazy, doing papers like crazy, getting a headache, getting bad health, all that, because I want to make A's and I want to get all this stuff. And after a while, it was no longer. loving the Lord through his word. It was making A's by passing tests. to finish the program feeling good and smelling myself.
The problem was I was getting deeper in the word and further from the Lord. I was getting deeper in the word but loving the Lord less. It wasn't that I wasn't going to class. I never missed a class. It wasn't that I wasn't learning.
It wasn't that I wasn't making A's. It was that I had left. The purpose of the word and the purpose of the word is not to become a Bible scholar The purpose of the word is to get to know the author who wrote the word by looking and seeing him through the word That's the purpose of the Bible. Not so you can quote verses, but so you can know the master who wrote the verses.
So don't even let Your knowledge of Bible teaching. cause you to lose your first love. Dr. Evans will return with a final story for us in just a moment. But if you've never experienced that first love he described to day, there's no better step you can take than to learn what it's all about.
You can do that right now. Just visit tonyevans.org. and click on the link that says Jesus. There, Tony will explain what it means to become a real Christian. and tell you about some free resources to help you follow up on your decision.
Take a moment and stop by to day.
Now, before Dr. Evans returns to wrap up today's teaching, If you'd like to get the complete full-length version of today's message, It can be yours as part of Tony's current series, The Jesus Challenge. As I mentioned earlier, we are offering all eight messages in this powerful collection, digitally as well as on either C D or USB flash drive. along with the Living as an Overcomer book, workbook, and Bible study video. They're all yours as our thank you gift.
when you make a contribution to support Tony's ministry. Contact us at tonyevans.org to get the details and make the arrangements. Again, that's tonyevans.org or call our Twenty Four Hour Resource Center at one eight hundred eight hundred thirty two twenty two and let one of our team members help you. That's 1-800-800-3222. It's not as easy to be a Christian in America as it used to be.
and it's likely to get even harder. doctor Evans says that means commitment and faithfulness to Christ are more important than ever. and that's what he'll explore with us to morrow. Right now, he's back with his closing illustration for today. One year.
We went on a family vacation to Niagara Falls. They had lights on the falls and even though I was a long way away in the hotel room, I was just awed by the sight even from a long distance. I just went. Whoa. The next morning we got up and had breakfast, and we went to the Canadian side of the falls.
And on the Canadian side of the falls, there's a park.
So we stood in the park. Oh, this was different than the hotel room. Hotel room, I couldn't hear a thing, I could just see it. But now I'm standing on the Canadian side, and that water is going over the precipice and going into the basin of the falls. I could hear the thunder of the roar as the water splashed down in the falls.
And as the wind blew up the water, it actually crossed the street. I got dots of water on my face from the fall. You see, when I was in the hotel room, I could just see it and be impressed by it. But once I got a little closer to the park, I got affected by it because I could hear the sound and I got little drops of water on me.
So I felt a little something, something because I had relocated myself. Oh, but there's another way you can see the false. It's called the Maid of the Mist. These are little boats down in the basin of the fall. If you decide to get on the maid of the mist, they're gonna give you a raincoat and they're gonna give you an umbrella.
because you about to be drenched by the falls. because you are so close. See, some Christians are satisfied to see Jesus from their hotel room. They look out. They never hear from him.
They never get to see him up close. They just impressed from a distance, and every now and then they look his way. But then there are a few Christians who will come to the park. And they like the sound and they will be a little closer. And every now and then they'll feel a little something, something.
But they mad oh few Christians. who are not satisfied to look at it from the hotel room. They're not satisfied to look at it from the past. They want a raincoat on. They want an umbrella over them because they want to be drenched by his glory.
May God raise up saints who leave the hotel room, not satisfied with the pomp, but want to be drenched with his glory. and overwhelmed by the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
