TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2025

REKINDLING THE FIRE OF FIRST LOVE

Author: Pastor Chris Oyakhilome DSc DSc DD

THEME: FIRST LOVE

MEMORISE: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” (Revelation 2:5)

BIBLE READING: 1 Thessalonians 1:2–3; Colossians 1:28–29; Revelation 2:4–5 (KJV)

1 Thessalonians 1:2–3: 2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; 3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

Colossians 1:28–29: 28 Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 29 Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me might¹ily.

Revelation 2:4–5: 4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

INTRODUCTION: THE CRISIS OF MECHANICAL CHRISTIANITY

The early church was not merely known for spectacular miracles and signs; more profoundly, it was known for a tireless, sacrificial labour motivated by a fiery, unquenchable love for Jesus Christ and for the souls He died to save. This affection was not a fleeting emotion; it was an actionable force that drove them into the streets, into the prisons, and to the ends of the known world, preaching the message of the Kingdom.

The Apostle Paul captured the defining characteristic of these early believers, commending the Thessalonians for their “work of faith, labour of love, and patience of hope” (1 Thessalonians 1:3). These three virtues were not optional slogans; they were the very operational definition of their spirituality. They were sacrificial actions that defined a life fully committed to Christ.

However, the Lord Jesus, addressing the Church in Ephesus in the Book of Revelation, reveals a profound crisis that can creep into even the most active and doctrinally sound assembly: “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Revelation 2:4). The Ephesians were commended for their works, their labour, and their patience—they were busy, they endured, and they tolerated no evil doctrine. Yet, the source of their power, the motivation behind their toil, had dried up. Their machinery was running, but the engine of first love had been disconnected.

Today, many believers find themselves in this same spiritual dilemma. They are active in church, serving on committees, attending meetings, and participating in programs, but they are not aflame with first love. Vision 2032—our divine mandate to reach the world with the saving knowledge of Christ and achieve specific global objectives—cannot be sustained by mechanical programs, religious duty, or ambition alone. It must be powered by hearts on fire for Jesus and souls. Without this love that labours, vision becomes a tedious obligation. But when love burns again, the revival we seek becomes unstoppable, irresistible, and eternal.

The call today is not simply to work harder, but to dig deep and restore the foundational elements that compel true, effective Kingdom labour: Faith that acts, Love that toils, and Hope that anchors.

I. THE ANATOMY OF FIRST LOVE: WHAT WAS LOST

To recover first love, we must first define it. It is not the emotional euphoria of the conversion experience, but rather a priority of affection and a fervour of devotion demonstrated by a willingness to sacrifice everything for the beloved.

A. The Priority of Affection

First love places Christ first in every single category of life: time, resources, energy, and decision-making. When you first fell in love with Jesus, your thoughts were consumed by Him, the greatest joy was spending time in His Word and presence, and your greatest passion was sharing Him with others. The Word of God was a daily necessity, not a casual hobby.

B. The Fervour of Devotion

This devotion manifested as “first works” (Revelation 2:5). These were works born of pure, unadulterated passion, not external pressure. You served the Lord simply because you loved Him, not for recognition, reward, or career advancement. The Ephesian Church was challenged not because their current works were bad, but because they had abandoned the motivating reason for the original works. They had maintained the action but lost the affection.

The Lord’s diagnosis is stark: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works.” We must recover the passion that translates effortlessly into tireless, joyful, and relentless effort for the Kingdom.

II. THE FOUNDATION: THE WORK OF FAITH

(James 2:17–22; Hebrews 11:6–8; John 6:28–29)

The first pillar of Kingdom labour is the Work of Faith. Faith is the bedrock upon which all effective labour rests.

A. Faith That Acts, Not Waits

The Bible makes it clear that faith is not a feeling; it is a force that moves believers into action. James 2:17 states unequivocally: “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” A faith that is merely intellectual assent or passive belief is useless to the Kingdom.

Every genuine Kingdom work—be it winning a soul, setting up a new church, starting a missionary endeavor, or giving sacrificially—must be rooted in trust in God’s Word and His power. Faith is the conviction that what God has promised, He is able to perform.

B. Obedience Before Outcome

The Work of Faith is defined by action taken before the visible result appears. It builds, serves, and evangelizes, believing that the harvest is certain, even when the field looks barren.

Noah built an ark by faith without seeing rain (Hebrews 11:7). He obeyed a divine instruction based on an unseen reality.

Abraham left his country by faith, not knowing where he was going (Hebrews 11:8). His movement was powered solely by the Word of God.

The early church, scattered by persecution, “went everywhere preaching the Word” (Acts 8:4). They acted not because they saw massive results initially, but because they believed the Word they carried was the power of God unto salvation. This is the Work of Faith in practice: You obey the commission—Go ye into all the world—even when the outcome seems impossible. Vision 2032 demands believers who act on divine instructions, who move before outcomes appear, and whose actions are a living testament to their trust in God’s infallibility.

C. The Link: The Word and the Work

Jesus identified the Work of Faith perfectly in John 6:29: “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” Belief is the primary work. Once that belief is established, the action that follows—the evangelism, the serving, the intercession—is simply the outward manifestation of that inward conviction. It is impossible to not work for a reality you genuinely believe in. The Work of Faith is therefore the obedient response to the Rhema—the spoken, specific Word of God.

III. THE ENGINE: THE LABOUR OF LOVE

(1 Corinthians 15:10; Galatians 6:9–10; John 21:15–17)

If faith is the foundation that moves us to act, love is the engine that provides the sustained power for that action. Labour is not just work; the Greek word often used for this kind of service, kopos, implies toil, effort, and exertion to the point of weariness and exhaustion. This is the kind of effort God expects: a selfless expenditure of energy.

A. Love Overcomes Weariness and Rejection

Love is the only motivation powerful enough to make service a joy rather than a struggle. When first love dies, service becomes a heavy, tedious struggle; it becomes a burden. But when love burns, labour becomes a privilege.

True love makes us go the extra mile, even when that mile is painful, even when we are unrecognized, unrewarded, or utterly depleted.

It enables us to persevere when the new convert falls away, when the missionary trip is difficult, or when our financial giving requires real sacrifice.

Paul himself attributed the intensity of his service not to his own strength, but to the grace of God enabled by love: “But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10). His abundant kopos (labour) was a response to the boundless charis (grace/love) he had received.

B. The Peter Model: Love Qualifies for Ministry

Jesus demonstrated the essential link between love and labour when He restored Peter after his denial in John 21:15–17. He did not ask Peter about his skill, his plans, or his ability to lead. He asked one question, posed three times: “Do you love Me?”

“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?… Feed my lambs.”
“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?… Feed my sheep.”
“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?… Feed my sheep.”

This sequence is the Master’s ordination process: Love qualifies us for ministry. The depth of your love for Christ determines the tenacity and efficacy of your labour for the Kingdom. Our love for Christ is not abstract; it must translate directly into a passion for His people and a commitment to their welfare (feeding His sheep). Love-driven believers are not spectators; they are soul-winners, intercessors, compassionate givers, and diligent discipleship builders.

C. The Agape Tax: Sacrificial Service

The Labour of Love operates by a principle of sacrifice, an Agape Tax, where you gladly spend and are spent for others. “I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved” (2 Corinthians 12:15).

Paul was willing to be exhausted, drained, and unappreciated, all while maintaining an overflowing love for those he served. This is the heart of first love: to serve tirelessly, irrespective of the recipient’s gratitude or responsiveness. In the context of Vision 2032, this labour of love must be the force that builds churches, starts missions in difficult territories, and perseveres to transform cities and nations.

IV. THE ANCHOR: THE PATIENCE OF HOPE

(Romans 8:24–25; Hebrews 6:10–12; James 5:7–8)

The Patience of Hope is the third virtue, and it is the necessary anchor that sustains the soul when the Work of Faith and the Labour of Love meet resistance, delay, or failure.

A.Endurance That Outlasts the Incubation Period

Hope, in the biblical sense, is not wishful thinking; it is a certainty regarding the future reward and the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promises. It is the assurance of what we do not yet see (Hebrews 11:1).

Many believers start on fire, full of faith and initial love, but they fade when the fruit takes time to appear. They confuse the incubation period—the time between sowing the seed (preaching) and harvesting the crop (repentance/maturity)—with failure. First love, sustained by hope, stays the course.

James 5:7-8 likens this patience to the farmer: “Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.” The farmer sows in faith, but he waits in hope.

Psalm 126:5–6: “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” The promise of the coming again with rejoicing is the hope that powers the present weeping (labour).

Evangelistic labour, discipleship, and intercession often germinate underground for a long time before they bloom. Vision 2032 requires steadfastness—workers who don’t quit when growth is slow or when applause is absent, because they know the reward is secured in Christ.

B. The Eternal Perspective

Hope allows the believer to correctly weigh the cost of present labour against the glory of the future reward. Romans 8:24-25 clarifies that hope deals with the unseen: “But hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.”

This certainty provides the strength to endure hardship. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 gives us the secret:

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

The patience of hope means we endure trouble because the eternal reward makes the temporal difficulty insignificant. We are running to win an incorruptible crown (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).

V. THE MODEL AND THE MANDATE: PAUL AND CHRIST

To fully embody the labour of first love, we must examine the ultimate examples provided in scripture: the Apostle Paul and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

A. Paul’s Intensity: A Love That Refuses to Rest

The Apostle Paul personified the perfect integration of the Work of Faith, Labour of Love, and Patience of Hope. His description of his work in Colossians 1:28–29 reveals an incredible intensity:

“Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily².”

Labour (kopos) – The tireless effort.
Striving (agōnízomai) – The intense, agonized wrestling, like an athlete or a soldier.
The Goal: To present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.

Paul’s life was an endless loop of preaching in prisons, enduring storms, facing hunger, and suffering persecution (Acts 20:31-35). His love for Christ made him unstoppable. He served under pressure, persecution, or poverty. His passion was so complete that he considered past achievements as rubbish to pursue the excellence of knowing Christ (Philippians 3:13-14).

Vision 2032 needs Paul-like believers who will not rest until Christ is formed in others (Galatians 4:19). It requires us to honestly reflect: Does my Christianity resemble Paul’s tireless passion for souls—or am I serving only when it’s convenient?

B. Christ’s Endurance: Love Until the End

The absolute and perfect model for the love that labours is the Lord Jesus Christ. His entire life was an act of selfless service driven by love for the Father and love for us.

Hebrews 12:2–3 directs our gaze to Him: “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

The Labour: Endured the Cross.
The Love: Despising the shame (because love cancels shame).
The Hope: For the joy that was set before Him (our redemption).

Christ’s love endured beyond betrayal, beyond pain, and beyond rejection. He loved until the end (John 13:1), demonstrating commitment, not comfort. The cross was the ultimate act of labour of love, securing the salvation that now fuels our own Work of Faith and the Patience of Hope. To quit because the ministry is hard is to forget the price He paid and the endurance He modelled.

Can my love for Christ still endure hardship, rejection, and weariness? The answer to this question determines the success of our global mandate.

VI. THE VISION AND THE HARVEST

The ultimate goal of this rekindled, labouring first love is twofold: the fulfillment of Vision 2032 and the populating of Heaven.

A. Propelling Vision 2032

Vision 2032 is not merely a set of numerical targets; it is the current Kingdom agenda for impacting the nations of the world. It requires an extraordinary outflow of spiritual power, physical exertion, and financial resources. Only a love that burns can provide this sustained energy.

When the Church operates with its first love restored, the three virtues align perfectly to propel the vision:

Work of Faith: We act decisively on the Word, planting churches and establishing ministry centres in every nation, regardless of logistical or political obstacles.
Labour of Love: We serve the people we reach, disciple them, and invest our lives into securing their destinies, making the Church a true centre of spiritual transformation.
Patience of Hope: We endure the processes of building and growing, knowing that the ultimate, overwhelming success of the Vision is guaranteed by the Master who commissioned it.

B. Populating Heaven

The final result is eternal: the populating of Heaven. Every soul won, every life discipled, and every church planted is a direct contribution to the eternal congregation. Our labour, fueled by love, is directly preparing people to stand blameless before God. This is the most valuable, most rewarding, and most necessary labour in the universe. We are working to secure eternal destinies.

CONCLUSION: THE CALL TO FIRST WORKS

Love that does not labour is mere sentiment; it is not spirituality. Faith that doesn’t work is dead. Hope that doesn’t endure is empty.

If Vision 2032 is to shake nations, if we are to truly finish the work given to us, we must stop the spiritual decline and return immediately to the First Love that labours.

The command of the Master is both urgent and remedial: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works.”

When love burns, evangelism becomes irresistible.
When love dies, ministry becomes mechanical.

Today, make the decision to return to the heart of devotion. Ask the Holy Spirit to set your heart ablaze again with the same fervent, self-expending love that characterized your early walk with Him. Dedicate yourself anew to the Work of Faith, the Labour of Love, and the Patience of Hope, knowing that you are fulfilling the Master’s most passionate desire. Go and do the first works!

PRAYER

Dear Father, I thank You for Your Word which is the mirror to my soul. I acknowledge that anything less than love-fueled labour is unacceptable to You. I repent of any instance where my service became mechanical or where I allowed the fire of first love to diminish. I receive the grace now to remember, repent, and do the first works. Fill me with the Holy Ghost fire; let my faith compel me to act, let my love enable me to toil tirelessly, and let my hope secure my endurance until the great Harvest is complete. I commit to being a relentless labourer for Vision 2032 and for the populating of Your eternal Kingdom, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

FURTHER STUDY

Colossians 1:29: Striving according to his working.

Galatians 6:9: Be not weary in well doing.

1 Corinthians 9:24–27: Running to obtain the incorruptible crown.

Hebrews 6:10: God is not unrighteous to forget your labour of love.

DAILY BIBLE READING PLAN

1 Year Plan: Hebrews 13 & Ezekiel 16
2 Year Plan: John 12:30-41 & 1 Chronicles 17