Christ gives us a profile of believers with the gold digger mentality when he speaks to the church at Ephesus. He says three things…
1. “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance” (Rev. 2:2). These people are hard workers in the church. They are staunch, loyal folks who stick at it with steady tenacity.
2. “You cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false” (2:2). These people have moral integrity, doctrinal soundness, and they’re sticklers for truth—this is commended by Christ.
3. “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first” (2:4). In other words, You are doing the work. You are living the life. But whatever happened to: “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine?” I don’t hear that from you.
So, Jesus says, “Repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove the lampstand from its place” (2:5). Christ is talking about the church here.
The life of a church cannot be sustained by hard work, right living, and doctrinal correctness. The life of the church (and the life of a Christian) lies in our love for Christ, which is a reflection of his great love for us. Beware of the gold digger mentality! Beware of looking to Christ simply for what he can give you, and not really loving him.
When did the Lord last hear you tell him that you love him? Don’t let today, or any day, end without saying that to him.