To walk into Ephesus is to step into another world, a Roman world, where one gets a glimpse of one of the four largest cities of its time. Over a quarter of a million people lived here during the first century—that is until the harbor eventually silted, Roman power waned, and earthquakes shook things to their foundations, making the city irrelevant.
At the end of the day, I was left with some impressions: First, you can’t help but notice Rome was all about glory. No expense was spared to build beautiful columns, cover even the most mundane areas—like latrines—with marble. Artisans spent years to put finishing touches on nearly everything—statues of people are everywhere. It is here the emperor Domitian erected a great altar to himself, with a statue that is almost oppressive. Ephesus was a narcissist’s dream. The temple to Artemis was one of the Seven Wonders of the World, four times the size of the Parthenon in Greece. And in this temple, it was largely about consumption of the four basic groups—food, wine, sex, and entertainment.
Second, Ephesus is a testimony to the priority and power of discipleship. Paul spent a significant amount of time training disciples, according to Acts 19:10. The result was staggering. Even amidst an intrusive, abusive culture, “all in Asia heard the word of God”—which is an astounding statement. In spite of the odds, the church became the poster church of the ancient world. Unlike Corinth and Colossae and Galatia, the emerging church at Ephesus was composed of devoted followers who were missional to the core. And their devotion to God began to have a radical effect on culture. The idol industry went into a recession, and when it did, rioting broke out.
Maybe there is a lesson here for us. All too many contemporary churches have substituted discipleship with fellowship and entertainment, leaving the church a mile wide, an inch deep, having little impact on culture…certainly not the kind that leads to riots.
Towards the latter part of the day, we made one more stop, going to the church where the apostle John was assumed to have been buried, once his exile in Patmos was over. And here God left me with a third impression. This seemed to be an appropriate place to read Revelation 2, one of the seven letters addressed to the church—this one to the church at Ephesus. Some years had passed since Paul’s letter, and they still seemingly had it altogether. In the vision to John at Patmos (where we head tomorrow), God complimented them on their commitment to stand against the paganism of the day, the false prophets, as well as the temptations of the empire. Jesus said: “You have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary” (vs 3).
But Ephesus was no longer the poster church. Something had changed. The church was no longer the same. Something that happens to so many churches took hold—a certain coldness towards God set in. And so He declared “I have this against you, that you have left your first love” (vs 4). I don’t know why this happens—I just know it does. You can still find churches known for their commitment to doctrine, to a strong pulpit, and yet known for their coldness.
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