THOU ART FALLEN

1.  Did the Pastor go to Hell?

I watched a video recently, a very sobering video, of a pastor and his wife in hell.  He was an active pastor, who often spoke to others about the Holy Spirit, about God, and so on, but there may have been something hidden that only they and God knew, despite their flamboyant spirituality.  Then they moved to a different city, and their neighbours heard, after a silent while, that they had both died.  It was a shock, but those neighbours consoled themselves that they would, after all, meet that pastor and the wife in Heaven.  To their surprise, God said that the couple was in hell.  Very disturbed, one of the grieving neighbours asked God to show her that that was the case.  God granted her a very disturbing trip to hell.  They were there.  Sad.  Unfortunately, such woeful tales have not been few.

A preacher told a similar experience.  He attended the funeral of a great pastor, who was a prophet and an acclaimed holiness preacher.  Sadly, when he got to the elaborate funeral service, with many dignitaries there to honour the dead, as we would usually do, God told him that the man was in hell, not in heaven, as many at the funeral certainly presumed.  Very disappointed, he investigated further.  The doubly grieving wife confirmed sadly to him that he had died in unforgiveness, despite entreaties by the offenders and other interveners.  He had sworn that he would not forgive.  Now he is in hell, forever and forever, after having laboured so hard, so long.  Alas, alas …

If a famous pastor went to hell, but an unknown member made it to heaven, it means that public eyes are sometimes wrong in their elevation of the mighty pastor over every ‘ordinary’ member. It means that, in God’s estimation, the unknown member was worthier than the celebrated pastor.  It means that, many times, we are wrong in our elevation of the titled pulpiteer over the unknown pew-sitters.  If a renowned artist failed an audition, but a village performer won the prize, it means that there was something in that unknown village performer that the unprofessional public had ignored in their adulation of their icon. Sometimes, titles have misled.

2.  The Scorecard of a Church

Reading the book of Revelation recently, I encountered paradoxes so striking that they left an impression on me; paradoxes in God’s urgent letters to the seven churches in Asia.  I will focus on the first letter – to the Church at Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7).

Considering the many positive qualities of that church, elaborately commended by God Himself, whatever was a shortcoming should have been inconsequential, but it was not.  God was not mindless and blind to their great efforts, but those efforts were neither going to blind Him to their dangerous error.

Here are their eleven prominent qualities, of which God Himself testified profoundly:

1. “I know thy works” – they were not a lazy, unproductive church; they had works (plural) to show;
2. “and thy labour” – this speaks not just about works, but much more, about “labour,” which means hard works – works with intensity;
3. “and thy patience” – this is a very quality of the long-suffering God. A church that had patience must have been one where everyone bore reasonably with everyone else, so that there would have been very little friction between members or with the paster.  They were apparently well taught the word of God, and they practised it reasonably;
4. “and how thou canst not bear them which are evil” – they stood out for their holiness, their intolerance for evil in any form;
5. “and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars” – they had spiritual discernment enough to tell who carried the pure anointing, and who paraded a fake title, like ‘Prophetess’ Jezebel in the church at Thyatira (Revelation 2:20). They could never be fooled with anyone’s elaborate titles;
6. “And hast borne” – again, the quality of patience and responsibility; they carried the burdens of others;
7. “and hast patience” – for the second time, God acknowledged this quality in them. It must have been a very strong point;
8. “and for my name’s sake” – there are many who work for their stomach’s sake (Philippians 3:19), or merely to propagate the name of their denomination or to please their high priest, but not this church. They did their many works in the Master’s name;
9. “hast laboured” – again, this quality is revisited. God took note of their hard works;
10. “and hast not fainted” – not many remain standing after much effort; some give up, with reasonable excuses for why they would not (or could not) continue, but not this hard-working church;
11. “thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate” – again, God acknowledged their spiritual discernment, and their separation from evil company; their doctrinal alignment with the heart of God in the matter of the errors of the popular Nicolaitans.

3.  Revelation Paradoxes

Of how many churches or Christians today can we speak of these many qualities?  Yet, of such a church, God had a “nevertheless.”  He said, “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Revelation 2:4-5).  Not many abominations, just “somewhat.”

There were several things for them, but just one thing “against” them, and the one small thing against them towered prominently and dangerously over everything else that was ‘for’ them.  To the natural observer, their one condemnation would have appeared to be at odds with their many commendations, but these were the all-seeing eyes of God.

Despite their impressive and visible qualities, God said of them, “thou art fallen.”  Could someone be so visibly vibrant yet be fallen?  Can such elaborate activities proceed from a fallen state?  I naturally would have doubted so.

Can one be fallen and not know it?  Can falling sometimes feel as imperceptible and unconscious as drifting into sleep?  Could the awesome God have been in a place and still described it as “fallen”?  If a fallen state implies some absence of God, could a people so bereft of God be so active ‘for’ Him?  Is it possible that, sometimes, the works of our hands are not a true measure of the state of our hearts?

God advised, or warned: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works.”  Consequences were to follow if something was not quickly done: “I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent” (Revelation 2:5).  It will appear that the Ephesian church did not properly heed that warning.  Ephesus is in modern-day Turkey.  Today, in that place where there once stood that vibrant church, what you would hear is the Islamic calls to prayer in the morning.  God had warned: “… I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.”  That candle burns no more in Ephesus, but it took many years to happen.

To fall is to crash from a high place to a lower place; it means a violent descent from top to bottom.  That church used to be a spiritually vibrant church, as we might say from reading the epistle to the Ephesians: spiritual warfare, spiritual insights, etc.  Now, they are “fallen.”  They are no longer where they used to be, although they are still a very active church.  Those who still judged them by their glorious past were simply blind, mistaking religion for godliness, rituals for holiness, noise for anointing, practised performance for inspiration, entertainment for exhortation, and church membership for true salvation.

Given the glowing opening commendations for their rigorous religious activities, it is surprising that “thou art fallen” would be the conclusion about such a church.  Did they never know their true condition, until that letter had to be sent?  How were they able to discern so much about the spiritual condition of others, but not their condition?  How come their great teachings did not illumine that one critical area?

4.  The Profile of the Church

Let’s see the profile of the Ephesian church again, and take their qualities in further detail:

• “thy works” – the works are reported in the plural, not singular, which means many works, or at least, more than one. It was not the works of others, but theirs; works (in missions, on social media, in charities) that carried their brand, their logo.  Not everyone has something to boast about. Many would boast in the works of their ancestors or close affiliates, but not the Ephesian church.  God could speak about “their works.”
• “thy labour” – this is something more than works. It qualifies works as not mere activities but as rigorous efforts: “labour.”  Not many are prepared to inconvenience themselves physically, financially, in prayers, in long and difficult travels, make sacrifice of time, and endure other physical exertions.  The Ephesian church did not just have works, they had labour.
• “thy patience” – that described their approach in dealing with issues and persons; their relational skills. You could not get them to be easily angry.  It must have taken much teaching and discipleship to get a people collectively to such a point of great self-discipline, self-control, which became one of the characteristics or strong points of that church.  A church like that would have had little fight among members, and their pastors would have been very happy with the peace over that flock.  Unfortunately, with this very cultured and respectful church, God was not fully pleased.  The peace among themselves did not represent peace with God.
• “thou canst not bear them which are evil” – this speaks of ability to discern good and bad, consecration, and separation from evil people. It means that they did not tolerate evil, which must have marked them out as a kind of holy people.
• “thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars” – that is discernment, suggesting further separation not only from the “evil” people outside the church, but also from titled and entitled religious fakes within the ecclesiastical structure. The Ephesian church was not one to be fooled by the large title of a person.  “Prophetess” Jezebel would not have survived in this church as in the church at Thyatira, where she had such elevated honours as being the instructor of servants of God, despite her personal depravities and spiritual unfitness (Revelation 2:20).
• “And hast borne” – to bear is to carry a load. We cannot say whose burdens they bore; maybe the burdens of other churches, or the mockery of their ungodly society.  God took notice all the same that they had “borne” much.  Any church like that in my generation would have earned many public trophies, but God thought otherwise.  They were a fallen church, who had lost their old fire.
• “and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted” – this is a further acknowledgement of qualities previously noted. Such double-acknowledgement should mean great commendation, but…  The quality of patience in the church had previously been noted, as was their labour, except that it is further qualified here as untiring labour; labour for God without fainting.  According to the Master, they had been involved in those many activities for His “name’s sake,” not for personal glory.  Of how many Christians can we speak of untiring labours for God?  I am neither putting myself forward for such a claim, yet …
• “thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate” – they were, as we would say, a no-nonsense church. Here, their passion was aligned with that of God: they hated what He also hated.

5.  Busy Hands and a Cold Heart

If I were to score such a church, God knows, they would get 100%, or, at the least, 98%, but surely a glowing “A.” They were a great church.  The one case against this church was: “thou art fallen … thou hast left thy first love.”  They had lost relationship with God in their much labour for God.  Their fire had gone cold, and they still were unaware, distracted by activities when God was calling for a relationship.  While doing so many things, they had lost the one important thing to “do,” which did not seem as glamorous as the many things that everyone saw them ‘doing.’  Their spiritual charities had dwindled into social philanthropies, like any NGO; the same works, but with a lesser heart.

God spoke of a lost “love,” a condition of the heart.  While they focused on their acts, God was concerned about their heart.  He spoke about a spiritual condition despite their physical engagements.  He spoke about an unseen condition, despite their public works.  God was concerned about a closet matter, despite their community commendations.  He was looking beyond their busy hands to their cold hearts.  Who would have thought that such great labours could come from a fallen state, a cold heart?  What are the true signs of a backslidden church?

6.  The Three Endangered Ministerial Species

This brings to mind a message received months back, based on Matthew 7:22-23: the three categories of ministers that will be shockingly disappointed on Judgment Day, and they would be “many”:

22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity (Matthew 7:22-23).

If they prophesied, then they may have been prophets, by title and by works.  These were not false prophets but people who prophesied truly in the name of the Lord, but who combined the life of public prophecy with the secret life of ungodliness.  They were not heathens; they were those who frequently or doubly called Jesus “Lord, Lord,” but more as a religious lingo than as a lifestyle commitment.

If they cast out devils, they were deliverance ministers; men and women that even Satan feared, but who allowed themselves, like Judas Iscariot, to be cast out of the Kingdom of God by the devils they had cast out of others; people who, in the midst of the many accolades of ‘Satan falling from heaven,’ had not also ensured that their names were still retained in the heavenly register (Luke 10:20).

If they did “MANY wonderful works,” they were great performers, miracle workers.  Their works were not few but “many” – of which the world was well aware.  The source of their power was not sorcery, like Rev. Simon of Samaria and his contemporary kinds in the modern-day church (Acts 8:8-23).  They did true miracles, mercifully by the power of God, in the true name of the Lord.  The blind saw, the dead were raised, the sick were healed, and the lame walked.  The headlines were often ablaze with their latest feats, their “many wonderful works.”  Unfortunately, they combined anointing with “iniquity.”

All three categories represent the most popular ministries any day.  They are the big names, the crowd pullers, the media masters, but while mortals acclaimed their mighty works, God also noted their hidden iniquities.  Society ignored their sins to hail their works; God noted their sins that diminished their mighty works.  Their souls were endangered in the same process by which they saved other souls from hell.  While they seemed to care for the salvation of the others, they had neglected theirs.  God had seemed like their colleague, who was no longer to be feared.

7.  The Prescription

To the church at Ephesus, the Master did not only offer a diagnosis; He also gave a prescription.  He did not only tell them where they had missed it; He also showed them the way out: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works.”

Let’s break that down: this was a fallen church, yet unaware, or so it seemed.  While they “tried” the Nicolaitans and other false apostles, while they pointed one holy finger at others, they were themselves in grave danger.

There were three prescriptions to this church: “remember from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do …”  Simply put: remember, repent, do.  RRD.

If God told them to remember, it meant that they had forgotten something very important.  Can an entire church be so distracted as to forget what matters more to their existence?

This church was in need of repentance while they preached it to others.  By natural eyes, nobody would have judged such a vibrant church as a backslidden one, in need of repentance.  No. Repentance is what we preach to others, not to ourselves.  But God said to them, “Repent …”  They were a church in sin – sin that only the holy eyes of the Father could see, and lovingly reprove.

It amazes me that God should say to such a church, “do,” when they were already doing so much.  How could God say that to a people whose much “works” and “labour” He had already commended?  Wasn’t that a contradiction?  Does it suggest that what they were ‘doing’ did not stand as important as the one thing that they had failed to “do”?  Does that also suggest that repentance ignored blurs our much works from the sight of God, who would rather have obedience than sacrifices (1 Samuel 15:22)?

8.  The Prayer of David

With what eyes does God see me?  How does He judge my many apparent labours?  We have established our own standards, by which we compete with ourselves and congratulate ourselves as better than others, even when Heaven cries, “REPENT!”  Could a people be fallen yet not know it, amid their much labour for God?  Is it possible to be busy for God yet be in danger of perdition?  Is it possible to not see oneself as God sees one?  Is it possible to not see in oneself what God sees?  Like the church in Sardis, is it possible to have a name that one is very alive, yet be very dead (Revelation 3:1)?  Is it possible to live a secret life not matched by one’s public adulations?  Is it possible to not be the name that one is called?  Could that amount to living a lie?

This possibility of falling without knowing, of drifting without being aware, of glamourous public works out of order with the sorry state of a heart, of being in danger of which only God can properly warn, must have explained David’s cry to the Lord, rather than to fattened priests at his dining table, who might have hailed him on until a sudden destruction.  His prayer is my cry:

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24).

 Amen.

From The Preacher’s diary,

July 17, 2025.