Return to Your First Love “But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.” — Revelation 2:4–5a (CSB) Background Decades after Paul’s ministry ended and the Ephesian riot faded, the church he helped … Continue reading Sacred Places: Ephesus
Early Church
Sacred Places: Ephesus
The Farewell at Miletus “But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.” — Acts 20:24 (KJV) Background Paul didn’t … Continue reading Sacred Places: Ephesus
Sacred Places: Ephesus
The Riot and the Remnant “Soon the whole city was in an uproar; they dragged Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling companions, into the theater, and the assembly was in confusion: some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there.” — Acts 19:29, 32 (NIV) Background … Continue reading Sacred Places: Ephesus
Sacred Places: Ephesus
Where the Spirit Confronts the Stronghold “God was performing extraordinary miracles by Paul’s hands, so that even face cloths or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, and the diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them.” — Acts 19:11–12 (CSB) Background By the time Paul returned to … Continue reading Sacred Places: Ephesus
The Sacred Places: Ephesus
Just Passing Through “They came to Ephesus, and he left them there, but he himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews.” — Acts 18:19 (CSB) Background Ephesus was no ordinary city. It was one of the most powerful and influential cities in the Roman Empire—famous for its harbor, culture, commerce, and especially … Continue reading The Sacred Places: Ephesus
Truth in Bloom 