Returning to Our First Love and Dying to Self

A Call to Repentance, Surrender, and Genuine Revival

From the Pastor's Desk | Pastor Eric SchroederRadiant New Life Church

There is a call going out to the Church today, and I believe it is one we cannot afford to ignore.

We must return to our first love.

Somewhere along the way, it is possible to become so busy doing things for God that we lose sight of the importance of simply being with Him. We can attend church, serve in ministry, participate in programs, and even stand firmly for biblical truth, yet slowly drift away from the intimate relationship we once had with Jesus.

We can become comfortable with the routine of Christianity while losing the passion that once drove us to our knees.

The question we must ask ourselves is simple:

Are we still in love with Jesus the way we once were, or have other things taken His place?

When the Church Loses Its First Love

In Revelation 2:2–5, Jesus speaks to the church at Ephesus. He acknowledges their hard work, perseverance, and commitment to standing against false teaching.

On the surface, this church appeared to be doing everything right.

They were working. They were enduring. They were defending the truth.

Yet Jesus confronted them about something serious.

They had left their first love.

Think about that for a moment.

A church can be busy, organized, doctrinally sound, and actively involved in ministry, yet still be missing something that matters deeply to Jesus.

Their activity had not replaced their need for intimacy with Him.

And the same warning applies to us today.

We can become so focused on church programs, attendance, ministry responsibilities, and even confronting the darkness around us that we forget the very reason we are doing any of it.

Jesus must remain the center of everything.

Not our programs. Not our personalities. Not our traditions. Not our accomplishments.

Jesus.

He is the reason we gather, worship, pray, serve, and share the gospel.

If we lose our love for Him, everything else eventually becomes nothing more than religious activity.

Remember, Repent, and Return

Jesus did not simply point out the problem at Ephesus. He told them what they needed to do.

In Revelation 2:5, He calls them to remember where they had fallen from, repent, and return to the works they did at first.

There are three important things we need to understand.

First, we must remember.

Remember when spending time with Jesus was something we looked forward to. Remember when prayer was more than a routine and worship was more than singing songs.

Remember when we were hungry for His Word and eager to hear His voice.

Remember when our greatest desire was simply to please Him.

Second, we must repent.

Repentance is more than feeling sorry about something. It requires a change of heart and direction.

We must be willing to allow the Holy Spirit to search our hearts and reveal anything that has taken the rightful place of Jesus.

It might be pride, fear, bitterness, unforgiveness, personal ambition, worldly distractions, or the desire to remain in control.

Whatever it is, we must be willing to lay it down.

Third, we must return.

It is not enough to recognize that something has changed. We must respond.

Return to prayer. Return to the Word. Return to genuine worship. Return to obedience. Return to that place of complete dependence upon Jesus.

And most importantly, return to loving Him above everything else.

Dying to Self Is Not Optional

There is another part of this call that we cannot overlook.

We cannot genuinely return to our first love while continuing to hold on to the very things that have pulled us away from Him.

Jesus made the requirements of discipleship clear in Luke 9:23–24.

He calls us to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow Him.

Notice that Jesus did not say to take up our cross occasionally, when it is convenient, or when everything is going our way.

He said daily.

Every single day, we must make the decision to surrender our lives to Him.

Dying to self means that our desires no longer get the final word. Our pride does not get to lead us. Our fears do not get to control us. Our personal ambitions do not get to override the will of God.

It means choosing obedience when obedience is uncomfortable.

It means forgiving when our flesh wants to hold on to an offense.

It means trusting God when we do not understand what He is doing.

It means laying down our need to control everything and allowing Jesus to truly be Lord of our lives.

This is not always easy, but it is necessary.

Following Jesus requires surrender, not simply agreement.

We cannot call Him Lord while continually refusing to follow His direction.

Standing for Truth Without Losing Our Love

Another concern I have for the Church today is how easily we can become distracted by everything happening around us.

We see compromise, false teaching, moral confusion, and an increasing willingness to reshape Scripture to accommodate personal desires.

Paul warned about this in 2 Timothy 4:3–4. He described a time when people would no longer tolerate sound doctrine but would seek teachers who tell them what they want to hear.

We must never compromise the truth of God's Word.

However, there is something we must be careful about.

We cannot become so focused on confronting sin that we forget to love the people Jesus came to save.

Jesus never compromised truth, but He also never lost His compassion for the broken.

Consider His encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4.

Jesus knew her circumstances. He did not ignore the truth, but neither did He turn away from her.

He offered her living water.

That is the heart we must have.

People do not need a Church that simply points out everything wrong with them. They need a Church that will faithfully speak the truth while showing them the love, grace, and transforming power of Jesus Christ.

We are called to stand for holiness, but we are also called to reach the lost.

We must do both.

It Is No Longer I Who Live

Galatians 2:20 gives us a powerful picture of what a surrendered life looks like.

Paul describes himself as crucified with Christ, with Christ now living in him.

That should become the testimony of every believer.

The more we surrender ourselves to Jesus, the more His character should be revealed through our lives.

Our attitudes should begin to change.

Our conversations should change.

The way we respond to difficult people and situations should change.

The way we treat our families, neighbors, coworkers, and fellow believers should reflect the love of Christ.

When someone encounters us, they should encounter something different.

Not because we are perfect, but because Jesus is transforming us.

Dying to self is not simply about what we give up. It is about allowing the life of Christ to be revealed through us.

And when Christ is truly living through us, we become more sensitive to His voice, more willing to obey, and more available for His purposes.

Revival Must Begin in Our Own Hearts

We have been praying for revival throughout Bay County, Florida, our nation, and beyond.

We have been asking God to awaken the Church, pour out His Spirit, bring salvation, heal the broken, and transform our communities.

And we must continue praying for these things.

But I believe there is an important question we must ask:

How can we expect God to transform our communities if we are unwilling to allow Him to transform our own hearts?

Revival is not simply about having powerful services, large gatherings, emotional experiences, or witnessing extraordinary things.

Genuine revival should produce repentance, renewed devotion to Jesus, holiness, obedience, and transformed lives.

It should bring us closer to the Lord.

It should increase our hunger for His Word and His presence.

It should cause us to love people more deeply and become more committed to sharing the gospel.

It should move us beyond simply attending church and into actively following Jesus.

We need more than another program.

We need more than another event.

We need hearts that are completely surrendered to Jesus Christ.

And when that happens, we become available for the Holy Spirit to work through us in ways that reach far beyond the walls of our churches.

The Church Must Return

I believe the Lord is calling His people back to a place of genuine devotion.

Back to prayer.

Back to holiness.

Back to His Word.

Back to humility.

Back to complete trust and dependence upon Him.

Back to the place where His presence matters more than our plans and His approval matters more than the approval of people.

We cannot allow the noise of this world to become louder than the voice of the Holy Spirit.

We cannot allow ministry activity to replace intimacy with Jesus.

And we cannot expect to follow Him wholeheartedly while refusing to surrender the areas of our lives that He is asking us to lay down.

The call is simple: Return to your first love. Die to self. Take up your cross daily. Follow Jesus.

A Personal Challenge

As you reflect on this message, I encourage you to take some time alone with the Lord and ask yourself these questions:

• Has anything taken priority over my relationship with Jesus?

• Am I spending time in His presence, or have I become comfortable with religious routines?

• Is there an area of my life that I have refused to surrender?

• Am I allowing God's Word to transform me, or am I trying to make it fit my desires?

• Do my words and actions reflect the truth and compassion of Jesus?

• Am I truly following Him daily, or only when it is convenient?

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Do not rush through these questions.

Allow the Holy Spirit to search your heart.

And whatever He reveals, respond with repentance, humility, and obedience.

A Prayer for Renewal

Father, we come before You with humble hearts.

Forgive us for the times we have allowed distractions, responsibilities, pride, fear, or personal desires to take priority over our relationship with You.

Forgive us for becoming so busy doing things for You that we have neglected spending time in Your presence.

Lord, restore our first love.

Rekindle our passion for Your Word, prayer, worship, and obedience.

Search our hearts and remove anything that stands between us and You.

Teach us to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow Jesus wholeheartedly.

Let our lives reflect Your holiness, truth, compassion, and love.

Awaken Your Church. Restore our families. Draw the lost to Jesus. And let genuine revival begin in our own hearts and spread throughout Bay County and beyond.

We surrender ourselves completely to You.

In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Final Thoughts

Church, I want to leave you with this reminder:

Returning to Jesus requires repentance. Following Jesus requires surrender.

The cross is not only where Jesus died for us. It also reminds us of the daily call to die to ourselves so that His life can be revealed through us.

Let us be a people who love Jesus more than anything else.

Let us be a Church that treasures His presence, stands firmly upon His Word, and reaches the world with His love.

And let us never become so busy doing things for God that we forget the importance of simply being with Him.

🔥 RETURN TO YOUR FIRST LOVE. DIE TO SELF. TAKE UP YOUR CROSS DAILY. AND FOLLOW JESUS WITH EVERYTHING WITHIN YOU!

With love and prayers,

Pastor Eric Schroeder

Radiant New Life Church

Empowering, Mobilizing, and Reviving the Body of Christ