第169章

The Revelation.

In the days of the apostles the Christian believers were filled with earnestness and enthusiasm.So untiringly did they labor for their Master that in a comparatively short time, notwithstanding fierce opposition, the gospel of the kingdom was sounded to all the inhabited parts of the earth.

The zeal manifested at this time by the followers of Jesus has been recorded by the pen of inspiration for the encouragement of believers in every age.

Of the church at Ephesus, which the Lord Jesus used as a symbol of the entire Christian church in the apostolic age, the faithful and true Witness declared:

"I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: and hast borne, and hast patience, and for My name's sake hast labored, and hast not fainted."Revelation 2:2, 3.

At the first the experience of the church at Ephesus was marked with childlike simplicity and fervor.The believers sought earnestly to obey every word of God, and their lives revealed an earnest, sincere love for Christ.They rejoiced to do the will of God because the Saviour was in their hearts as an abiding presence.

Filled with love for their Redeemer, their highest aim was to win souls to Him.They did not think of hoarding the precious treasure of the grace of Christ.They felt the importance of their calling; and, weighted with the message, "On earth peace, good will toward men," they burned with desire to carry the glad tidings of salvation to earth's remotest bounds.And the world took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus.Sinful men, repentant, pardoned, cleansed, and sanctified, were brought into partnership with God through His Son.

The members of the church were united in sentiment and action.Love for Christ was the golden chain that bound them together.They followed on to know the Lord more and still more perfectly, and in their lives were revealed the joy and peace of Christ.They visited the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and kept themselves unspotted from the world, realizing that a failure to do this would be a contradiction of their profession and a denial of their Redeemer.

In every city the work was carried forward.Souls were converted, who in their turn felt that they must tell of the inestimable treasure they had received.They could not rest till the light which had illumined their minds was shining upon others.Multitudes of unbelievers were made acquainted with the reasons of the Christian's hope.Warm, inspired personal appeals were made to the erring, to the outcast, and to those who, while professing to know the truth, were lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.

But after a time the zeal of the believers began to wane, and their love for God and for one another grew less.Coldness crept into the church.Some forgot the wonderful manner in which they had received the truth.One by one the old standard-bearers fell at their post.Some of the younger workers, who might have shared the burdens of these pioneers, and thus have been prepared for wise leadership, had become weary of oft-repeated truths.In their desire for something novel and startling they attempted to introduce new phases of doctrine, more pleasing to many minds, but not in harmony with the fundamental principles of the gospel.In their self-confidence and spiritual blindness they failed to discern that these sophistries would cause many to question the experiences of the past, and would thus lead to confusion and unbelief.

As these false doctrines were urged, differences sprang up, and the eyes of many were turned from beholding Jesus as the Author and Finisher of their faith.The discussion of unimportant points of doctrine, and the contemplation of pleasing fables of man's invention, occupied time that should have been spent in proclaiming the gospel.The masses that might have been convicted and converted by a faithful presentation of the truth were left unwarned.Piety was rapidly waning, and Satan seemed about to gain the ascendancy over those who claimed to be followers of Christ.

It was at this critical time in the history of the church that John was sentenced to banishment.Never had his voice been needed by the church as now.Nearly all his former associates in the ministry had suffered martyrdom.The remnant of believers was facing fierce opposition.To all outward appearance the day was not far distant when the enemies of the church of Christ would triumph.

But the Lord's hand was moving unseen in the darkness.In the providence of God, John was placed where Christ could give him a wonderful revelation of Himself and of divine truth for the enlightenment of the churches.

In exiling John, the enemies of truth had hoped to silence forever the voice of God's faithful witness; but on Patmos the disciple received a message, the influence of which was to continue to strengthen the church till the end of time.Though not released from the responsibility of their wrong act, those who banished John became instruments in the hands of God to carry out Heaven's purpose; and the very effort to extinguish the light placed the truth in bold relief.

It was on the Sabbath that the Lord of glory appeared to the exiled apostle.

The Sabbath was as sacredly observed by John on Patmos as when he was preaching to the people in the towns and cities of Judea.He claimed as his own the precious promises that had been given regarding that day."I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day," John writes, "and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last....And I turned to see the voice that spake with me.And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;and in the midst of the seven candlesticks One like unto the Son of man."Revelation 1:10-13.