Antisthenes' story is set almost 2,000 years ago in what was
then the most important city in Asia Minor - Ephesus. It was a
city that lent itself to every opportunity. It was a major
seaport. It was a city through which all sorts of traffic
passed. Ephesus was called "the market of Asia." There was a
degree of political freedom there, despite the fact that the
whole world at the time was under the domination of Rome.
Ephesus was one of those rare "free" cities - self-governing
within its own limits; the citizens were not even forced to
garrison Roman troops. But Antisthenes did not care too much
about politics. As long as he was able to conduct his affairs
without too much interference, he was content to "go along to get
along."
Actually, what consumed most of Antisthenes' energy was his
religion. In a way, that might not be thought of as unusual
because most of the rest of the people of Ephesus were right
religious as well...in their own way. The city was home to one
of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Temple of the
goddess Diana where many people chose to worship...but not
Antisthenes.
Of course, Ephesus also had a temple to the goddess Roma -
after all, the emperor claimed that he was directly descended
from the gods and was worthy of public veneration. Most folks
did not seem to mind that. After all, the emperor did not say
that he was the ONLY one to be worshiped. If people came and
paid him the proper respect once a year, they were free to serve
any god they chose all the rest of the time. But Antisthenes
could not even go along with THAT.
You see, something special had happened to him. A friend of
his had invited him to come and meet a man from Jerusalem, a man
named Paul. Antisthenes had gone to his friend's home and heard
Paul speak. This traveler had come with a message of hope and
joy and forgiveness of sin, a message of love.
Paul had said that the God of heaven, the God above ALL gods
- above Diana, above the emperor - had come to earth in human
flesh, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus had taught that real religion
was not just ritual but proper relationships between people and
their neighbors, between people and God. It was a message that
made sense. But what Jesus had had to say had offended the
religious hierarchy of his day - it threatened their powerful
position among the people. In fact, they felt SO threatened that
they arranged to have Jesus murdered. But the grave could not
hold him, Paul said. After three days in a tomb, Jesus arose,
victorious over not only those who hated him but even victorious
over death itself. Finally, Jesus returned to heaven where he
reigns once again over all the earth.
Antisthenes was impressed. But the message did not stop
there. Paul said that same victory was now available to anyone
who would want it. People no longer needed priests or temples or
sacrifices to earn favor with God, to be forgiven of their sins.
The final sacrifice had already been made - Jesus on the cross.
And now salvation was offered as a free gift of God's grace to
all who believed.
Antisthenes believed, and he became a Christian. He became
a part of that small band of loving folks who affirmed "Jesus is
Lord," not Caesar or Diana.
Paul stayed on in Ephesus for about three years. It was a
special time for Antisthenes and his new-found friends. They
spent hour upon hour listening to the apostle teach and preach.
They saw miracles of healing. They even saw people bring
handkerchiefs and aprons for the apostle to touch hoping that
their sick friends and relatives might be cured of their ailments
by contact with them.
That probably could have been anticipated. Truth be known,
the most important religion of Antisthenes' home town was
superstition. Ephesus was particularly famous for what were
called "Ephesian Letters," amulets and charms which were supposed
to be infallible remedies for just about anything. Our friend
had about the normal amount of superstition in him (as we all
do), but it did not control his life. No, Antisthenes was now a
Christian.
To be sure, that fact did occasionally cause some difficulty
in the city. There was the time when the silversmith Demetrius
accused Paul of destroying his trade in little shrines to Diana.
Too many people were becoming Christians; that meant not enough
were interested in the goddess, at least not as many as before.
Paul barely escaped being thrown to the lions. It took the
intervention of public officials to get him out of that one.
Those were special years for Antisthenes and his friends.
But, all good things must come to an end. Finally, it was time
for Paul to leave. He had other churches to see, other cities in
which to preach.
The apostle did eventually get back by Ephesus some time
later. His ship had put in at the port of Miletus about 30 miles
to the south of Antisthenes' hometown. So Paul took the
opportunity to send for the elders of the Ephesian church for a
brief reunion. By this time, that select group had come to
include our friend, so he and the others went down to the ship to
say goodbye to their mentor.
In many eyes there were unshed tears. It was an emotional
meeting - this was the last time they would see one another.
Paul too was emotional. His parting words to his friends were
full of heart-felt warning about those who would come later to
teach and preach in their church. Paul wanted them to be careful
about what doctrines they listened to, about what teachings they
would take to heart. He said, "I know that after my departure
fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and
from among your own selves will arise men speaking perverse
things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be
alert..." (Acts 20:29ff.). They ended their reunion on their
knees in prayer. Then Antisthenes and the other elders slowly
left.
The little band talked together as they made their way back
to Ephesus. What could Paul have meant about "fierce wolves" and
people in their own church speaking "perverse things?" They were
not quite sure what to make of it at that moment, but in time
they would learn.
The church in Ephesus continued to grow. Under Paul's
preaching their numbers had expanded remarkably, and now that the
apostle had passed on the mantle of leadership to a resident
pastor, the growth continued. The gospel was being preached; the
needy were being cared for. Just as in the church in Jerusalem,
no one felt that he or she was being taken advantage of when
asked to give of time or talent or treasure. They were in this
magnificent adventure together. It was one big, happy family.
But that was a while ago...some years, in fact. Oh, the
church had continued to grow. People saw the great work that
Christians did to provide for one another and for those who had
special needs. They heard the good news of forgiveness in Jesus.
There were opportunities for worship and learning. And more and
more wanted to be a part of it. And for a while that was fine.
True, there were some folks becoming a part of the church family
who were a little different, folks with whom decent people might
not normally plan on associating - thieves, drunkards,
prostitutes. But they had been saved from their lives of sin by
the power of the gospel; they had been won to new lives in Christ
under the influence of the church. Now, they too were in the
family, brothers and sisters to Antisthenes and the others.
To be painfully honest, though, the Ephesian church had
stopped feeling like much of a family. Through the years there
had been some strange teachings which had gotten loose among them
that caused problems. There were some who had come under the
influence of teachers who taught that since Jesus was born a Jew
and had lived life as a Jew, all Christians now had to observe
Jewish ritual. There was some division because of that. There
were some called the Nicolaitans who came saying, "Look, why not
go ahead and make that annual trip to the Goddess Roma's temple
and say `Caesar is Lord?' We know it is not true, but what is
the harm in it? A little compromise never hurt anybody. That
way we will not get in trouble." As might be expected, there was
division about that. As those things happened, Antisthenes and
the other elders remembered what Paul had told them years before
about "fierce wolves" and "perverse" teaching. They had taken
that to heart, and any time a doctrine came along which would
deny the power or grace of God, they would stamp it out like a
bug.
Frankly, they got right good at it. As teachers came and
went, Antisthenes and the other elders began to sit, not so much
as learners anymore, but rather as judges, testing everything
that they heard by a system of doctrine that by now was carved in
their minds in stone. Their attitude became "No new ideas
allowed," no matter how good those ideas might be.
But there was a problem with that. You see, the rest of the
congregation picked up on the attitude and let it spread into
other affairs. The old guard began to look askance at anyone new
coming into the fellowship. They began to murmur to each other
about how the church was not the same anymore, how the "family
feeling" that used to be there was gone. And they were right.
The church at Ephesus had lost something.
Antisthenes could feel it. He had been a part of this
fellowship for almost 40 years. He remembered the way it was in
the beginning - the sense of excitement, the joy they all felt
when they were together, the feeling of commitment that each one
shared. But now things had become routine. It was not so much
of a struggle for someone to commit his or her life to Christ and
the church as it once had been.
To be sure, it still was not easy - there were times when
people had to pay a price for their faith: the rejection of
parents, the discrimination in the marketplace, the annual
problem of having to get around mouthing "Caesar is Lord" so the
legionnaires would let you alone. Being a Christian in Ephesus
was no bed of roses. But the church was not the same. Something
was gone.
Antisthenes and the rest of the old guard were not the only
ones who felt it. Even the bishop knew. The bishop too was one
of those who had come to know Christ in the early days of that
Ephesian church. He could not worship with them from week to
week any longer, and not just because of his responsibilities for
overseeing the ministry of the other churches in the region. No,
Bishop John had run afoul of the empire in his outspoken
opposition to the requirement of the once-a-year affirmation that
"Caesar is Lord." John proclaimed that "Jesus is Lord," and no
earthly emperor could claim that title. So John had been exiled
to a prison camp on the island of Patmos. But even in exile,
John worried about his churches, and especially his home church
there in Ephesus.
One Sunday, as Antisthenes and the others gathered for their
weekly worship, the pastor stood up to speak. He said that he
had received a letter from Bishop John that he wanted to read to
them. John was writing, not just as their friend and fellow
Christian, but in the name of their Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ.
It began on a most complimentary note, a word of
congratulation for their ability to withstand the emperor's
pressure. There was mention of their care in adhering to sound
doctrine and keeping false shepherds from leading the flock
astray. So far, so good.
But then a bombshell: "BUT I HAVE THIS AGAINST YOU." What?
How could the Lord have anything against this church? We have
done what we were supposed to. We have kept the faith. We have
made sure that everyone toed the mark, and we have even gotten
rid of some who just did not fit. What have WE done wrong?
"But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the
love you had at first." Oops. That is what had been missing.
That is what had caused Antisthenes and the others to notice that
something was different. There WAS a difference. That "family
feeling?" Of course it was gone. They no longer loved each
other like in the old days. Oh, the old ones, the ones who had
been in on the early struggles, still loved each other well
enough. But as for them loving the new ones...well...
Toleration, maybe, but not love. "But I have this against you,
that you abandoned the love you had at first."
What a sad thing. But as I said at the beginning of all
this, it is a story as old as Christian history and as new as
tomorrow's newspaper...the church that loses its love.
Fortunately, the Lord, speaking through Bishop John, offered
a remedy, not only for the church at Ephesus but for any
congregation that begins to fall into that same trap. "Remember
then from what you have fallen, repent, and do the works you did
at first."
First, "Remember." Just like the Prodigal Son, the first
step for a Prodigal church is to recall the way things used to
be. That is why the philosopher can say, "Those who refuse to
learn the lessons of history...those who refuse to remember...are
condemned to repeat them."
Second, "Repent." Which means more than simply feeling
sorry for what has happened. It means taking responsibility for
your own sin. And then it means a change of direction.
Finally, "Do the works you did at first." If the church is
different now than it used to be, get back to DOING the things
that made it special in the first place. The Lord's message is
that Christians cannot be content with inaction. Because a lack
of action on this kind of problem ends up killing the church.
But there was a word of hope at the end of Bishop John's
letter. "To everyone who conquers, I will give permission to eat
from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God." The
message to the church which had lost its love was clearly, "Clean
up your act." But the promise that followed was eternal life.
How well did Antisthenes and his fellow members do after
they heard the bishop's letter? Who knows? The city of Ephesus
is no longer around to tell us. But Henry Ward Beecher once
said, "The churches of the land are sprinkled all over with bald-
headed old sinners whose hair has been worn off by the constant
friction of countless sermons that have been aimed at them and
glanced off and hit the man in the pew behind." Hmm.
Antisthenes and the story of lost love. The tale can only
end with the words that Bishop John used to end all his pastoral
letters: "Let anyone who has an ear listen..."
Amen!
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