One of the idols of contemporary Christianity is the idol of activity. You would think that busyness always meant godliness. Undoubtedly there is the true work of God that is a labor of love, night and day (1 Thessalonians 2:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:8), but it is very possible for a child of God and a community of saints to be very orthodox and very busy, and yet be absent of the love of The Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 2:4).
Never underestimate the power of the flesh to produce a flurry of religious activity. If the truth be told, it happens more than we would like to admit. We mechanically rush through our morning devotions; we mechanically rush through the Sunday or midweek service; and despite all the good intentions, if we are not careful to check our motives, we can find ourselves drifting further and further away from The Lord Jesus. How can this be? It is simple. Instead of keeping a constant focus on Christ (Hebrews 12:1,2; Philippians 3:8-14), we simply do things in a mechanical routine.
Our motive behind all that we do in The Name of Christ is to be love (Galatians 5:6; 2 Corinthians 5:14). The Lord is not only looking for those to worship Him in Spirit and in truth (John 4:20-24), He is also looking for people who will worship Him and serve Him out of a heart that loves Him. Paul tells us in 1st Corinthians 13 that we can do some of the noblest religious things but lack the love of God (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).
Jesus is giving the church at Ephesus and Koinonia a heart check in this epistle. Did you ever stop yourself in the middle of “doing” something in the Name of The Lord and ask, “Why am I doing this?” Anything that is done for loveless motives and not for the glory of God is nothing but wood, hay and stubble (1 Corinthians 3:12-15). You would think that a church which was orthodox in their doctrine, desired holiness, and showed perseverance in their hard work and toil (Revelation 2:2,3,6) would get a thumbs up from Jesus. Way to go, Ephesus! Not at all! Yes, they were commended by The Lord for doing these things, but they were in danger of losing the presence of The Lord because of why they were doing them.
May the Spirit of God baptize our church community with a fresh unction of the love of Christ, in order that all that we do, both inside and outside the church walls, would be an offering of worship, acceptable to The Lord, and all for His glory.
