Bible Reading: Psalm 40; Rev. 2:1-10
“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love,” – Revelation 2:4 (KJV).
First love is intoxicating. It is often so strong with so much emotion, deep rooted trust and desire. Sacrifices are made with joy, willingly and freely. First love is so exciting and fulfilling, it causes so much pain to break the first love because of the strong soul tie. Apostle John wrote to the church of Ephesus by the promptings of the Holy Spirit indicting her of the loss of her first love. From this letter, it is evident that the church of Ephesus was once so much in love with Jesus. One has not experience joy to its fullness and peace that transcends all human understanding if one has never fallen in love with Jesus. It is better experienced than explained. No word can express or explain the depth of affection and bonding of first love.
You probably have fallen in love with the opposite sex at a much younger age. Think of the difficulty of breaking such bonding when you latter realized that it was blind and misguided “love” best known as lust. If you are still yoked to such bonding, you probably will need counseling or deliverance through external help of matured Christians. I had that experience as I was growing up as a young man. It took the gospel of salvation to break the yoke and free me from the bonding. That deliverance happened when I fell in love with Jesus. The love of Jesus drowned the lust; Jesus changed my passion and cravings. He became my first love, so real, so enriching and so fulfilling. When I first fell in love with Jesus, I hit the street to tell other folks about Jesus, my new found love. Fellowship, Bible Study, prayer meetings and evangelism were things of joy and they were all given priority with great excitement.
Each time, I remember my first love, the joy, peace of heart, hope and excitement it brought to my life, I crave and pray for revival and restoration. No wonder David prayed, “Restore unto me, the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” – Psalm 51:12 (KJV).
PRAYER: Dear Lord; help sinners out there to experience this love of Jesus.
Rev. Vincent Diolu