A Journey Through John

I have always wanted to go back into the Bible with a new and fresh approach but I have been stymied the past couple of years. I've had a break through lately. The Lord has led me to the book of Revelations to show me the similarities that I have had in my own life with the Christians at the church in Ephesus.

Revelations 2: 1-7

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.


I clearly identify with the Christians in Ephesus. I have been a hard worker and have persevered through many things and in doing so I have at times lost my first love and passion. My heart has been very heavy over this the past few days and I have ask the Lord to help me. I have already made some significant decisions and one of them is to go back and do one of the things that I did at the beginning. I paraphrased scripture continually. I read the Bible and allowed the Lord to give me insight and interpretation. I was full of His Spirit and in my spritual infancy He would give me clarity as I read His word.

Here's what I have come to grips with concerning reading the Bible. Reading the Bible is very dry and uninspiring without a relationship with God. It is very difficult to comprehend the things of the Spirit with the natural mind and so I attribute spiritual dryness while reading the Bible to be the result of trying to relate to God without first having an on going relationship with Him and in so doing we are unable to make the proper connection with His Spirit. The Bible is not a book of concepts that needs to be understood. It is a compilation of true stories about the continuing saga between God, Man, and the Devil and hear this, the story is not over and what God has to say has never been limited to the words only written in the Bible. He is still speaking and has much to say if we have the ears to hear and eyes to see. Haven't you ever wondered why we cannot hear from God? Doesn't He have anything to say" Things are a mess down here. Surely He has some input. Folks, it's not Him. It's us. We are the culprits. We can shut down the voice of God into our own life because we want to do it our way. A self serving heart cannot hear the things of God.

When I read what the Spirit says about the church in Ephesus, I begin to see how human effort in God's name can be used against us and deceive us into thinking our duty is all that is necessary to please God. The Lord doesn't look at the effort first. He looks into our heart to see why we are doing what we are doing. He wants our love for Him to be our supreme motivation.

I have decided to to take a journey through the Gospel of John on this blog. I am very excited about hearing from God as we move along together. Feel free to contribute as we journey together and expect to hear from the Lord. Wow, that sounds life changing. I can't wait.

Lord, come lead us.

We desparately need to hear from you