“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” — Revelation 2:4–5 (KJV)

Briefly, I want us to look at Revelation chapter 2 verses 4 and 5. It says, “Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come quickly unto thee, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.”

Recently we’ve been hearing consistent words: obedience, intimacy, relationship, repentance, surrender, forgiveness, alignment, light, salt. These words resonate with us, but we don’t want them to only resonate—we want the fire of God to rekindle in our lives through these words.

“Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee.” — Genesis 12:1 (KJV)

God wants to take us to places, but are we ready and willing to go? Abraham came from the line of Shem, the oldest son of Noah. In the days of Noah, he preached for 120 years that people would repent and turn to God, yet only eight souls were saved. And the Word of God says, as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in these days. We are seeing those days with our own eyes.

We know the coming of the Lord is at our door. Matthew 24 tells us to be ready, for in such an hour as we think not, the Son of Man cometh. It does not only mean Him coming in the clouds—it means in a moment our lives could be required of us. We must be ready.

Just as the church of Ephesus lost its first love and risked losing its lampstand, the world in Abraham’s time had lost spiritual light. That revelation was not for people living in sin—it was for the redeemed. It was for the church. It is for us. If we hear His voice, harden not our hearts.

God is calling us to worship. God is calling us to spend time with Him. In Abraham’s day, people built the Tower of Babel. Nations were full of idolatry, violence, pride, rebellion, and independence from God. The light of truth had nearly gone out. And if we look around today, we can see the light has grown dim again—even within the church.

When the world’s light grows dim, God always raises a man or woman whose heart still burns for Him. Could that be you? Could it be us? Could it be the church He uses to stir revival in the place He has planted us?

If we have forgotten our first love, we must return. It is time to take our salvation seriously. We have grown complacent. We have grown materialistic. But it is time for change. This is an awakening.

God woke me up. He shook me. I had to repent. I had to ask forgiveness. I don’t want to miss heaven. Whenever God calls me, however God calls me, I want to be ready.

The lampstand represents the church’s place of influence and light. Removal of the lampstand means the withdrawal of God’s presence. And what causes this? Forsaking our first love.

We grow cold. The fire of God flickers. We lack substance. We replace God with comfort, routine, distraction, possessions. We grow distant from prayer, fasting, worship, fellowship, intimacy with God. We don’t recognize that it’s time to get on our knees again. It’s time to pray. It’s time to seek Him.

The cure is repentance and restored intimacy. God desires love before labor. Intimacy before activity. When relationship becomes routine, the flame fades. But when intimacy returns, the light returns.

God called Abraham to restore worship, to form a covenant family, to reveal salvation through the seed leading to Christ, and to bless nations. In the same way, He calls us out of compromise, out of comfort, out of spiritual coldness, into consecration and relationship.

God cannot ignite what we refuse to consecrate.

“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.” — Matthew 5:14 (KJV)

A lampstand is not for decoration—it is for demonstration. God lights us so we can shine for His glory. Let us remember our first love. Let us return. Let us rebuild the altar of worship. Let us reignite obedience, faith, prayer, and devotion.

Let us carry His light in every dark place. Let intimacy, obedience, faith, and love be our flame. Let the fire of our first love make us a lampstand in this generation.

I encourage us and I implore us—seek God with all of your heart. God bless you, and thank you.

Father, thank You for Your Word. Thank You for ministering to each of us the way You know best. As Your people, we need You. We want to return to our first love.