John 21:15-17
"So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep."

Revelation 2:1-4
"Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; I know thy works, and thy labour, 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 laboured, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love."

The church at Ephesus seemed to be doing everything right!

They were patient,
They hated evil,
They recognized false apostles,
They had worked for the Lord,
They had not fainted.

That's a formidable list of commendations for a church! But even though they had so much good going for them, they had something amiss. They had left their first love. They had forgotten for whom they were working! Their love for God had begun to wan. Oh, they were still working for God. They were still going through the motions. But their hearts had grown cold. As a married couple who still lived together but has forgotten why they ever got married in the first place - the excitement of the relationship was gone. They have fallen into a routine and are just going through the motions of marriage. They have the marriage certificate to prove they were married but all the joy of the first few years is gone! We repented and came to Christ. We were probably baptized and joined a church. We have proof of our first love but now the initial excitement and zeal is gone. We drag ourselves out of bed on Sunday and go to church. We can't wait until church is over so we can get back to our lives (or dinner)! We used to feel bad if we missed church but we've even lost that feeling over time. We are just going through the motions of loving and serving the Savior. We have lost our first love.

God demands to be first in our lives. He will not settle for second best. The first commandment given to Moses was: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." We must put Him first in everything we do. He know our hearts and He knows if we are just going through the motions of worshipping Him or if we truly love Him and put him first in our lives.

In John 21, Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him "more than these." These, supposedly meaning the other disciples. Peter had declared his love for Jesus saying he would never deny Him and even casting himself on the water to walk out to Jesus. Peter never does really answer the question, he just says, "thou knowest that I love thee." And Jesus did know that Peter loved Him but He also knew that Peter had denied Him three times after having said, "Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended."

How do we keep from losing our first love? The same way we keep a marriage from growing cold and dying. If your spouse came home every night and sat down in front of the TV, didn't speak to you, didn't even acknowledge your presence in the house, you would soon believe that he no longer loved you! Married couples have to work to keep their marriage alive and well! You need some romantic dinners or weekends away now and then. You need little, considerate gifts and cards. You celebrate your anniversary - another year together! You must tell your spouse you love them every day. It's not like they forget that you told them that 20 years ago when you got married, they just need to hear it often! God is no different! He wants us to keep our relationship with Him alive, too. He wants to hear about our day, He wants us to tell Him about our problems, He wants us to tell Him how much we love and appreciate Him. He wants to be and remain our
First Love!

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MARK 12:30
"And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment."

LOVEST THOU ME

Modern times have brought us many comforts,
People live in wealth and luxury;
But the Master still asks this question,
Lovest thou Me, lovest thou Me, more than these?

I love Thee more than this old world can offer,
All sinful follies I deny for Thee;
My love, my life, my all, I pledge Thee,
I love Thee, Lord, I love Thee, Lord, more than these.

Lovest thou Me, more than these, my child,
What will your answer be?
O precious Lord, I love Thee more than all of these.
More than fame, more than wealth, more than the world.

Words and Music by
William J. Gaither - 1962

Music playing on this page
Recorded by Meme's Midis

I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A WEEK FILLED WITH LOVE!

LOVE, MEME

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