7. THE CHURCH OF LAODICEA

 THE CHURCH OF LAODICEA

7.        7. Laodicea — The Lukewarm Church (Revelation 3:14-22) -- the church with the lukewarm faith (3:16).

History of the City:

Laodicea was an expansive, wealthy city. It was built on a major highway and became a commercial and banking center. It was known for ear and eye medicine and for its black wool. Laodicea was known as a primary hub for the Roman aqueduct water system, and the water that flowed into the city was tepid and unpleasant, but nearby Hierapolis gushed hot thermal springs and also nearby, Colossae was the home of pure, cold water. 

The churches in Hierapolis, Colossae, and Laodicea were relatively close and seemed to have a relationship with one another. The apostle Paul instructed that his letter to the Colossians be read also in Laodicea (Colossians 4:16), and was encouraged by their strong faith in Christ (Colossians 2:5). Something seems to have changed, however, in the thirty years after Paul’s letter when John penned the book of Revelation. Wealth and independence had weakened their commitment to Christ. 

(Revelation 3:14), “And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;” Jesus identifies Himself. These titles: The Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation, emphasize the Lord’s faithfulness, sovereignty, and power to bring all things to their proper completion (The “Amen”).

(Revelation 3:15-17), “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:” 

The church of Laodicea represents many people in this generation. They value worldly wealth more than spiritual wealth. They are seeking worldly riches in the name of blessings showing-off how blessed they are but in reality, they are poor, miserable, and naked.

The Laodicean church works were neither hot nor cold but lukewarm. It has often been pointed out that both cold and hot water are good. Cold water is refreshing when you are sweating and unbelievably thirsty. In the same way, hot water for tea or coffee can be very soothing, hot water can cleanse or purify. But lukewarm water is disgusting. It doesn’t refresh you nor does it soothe or purify. Water that is warm and stagnant will cause you to spit it out.

In the formulation many of us hear, “lukewarm” represents Christians that are only mildly passionate about Christ. Many may say it’s better to be hot or cold than lukewarm - better to be sold out to God or not at all. But, I don’t believe that’s the point Jesus is trying to make, there are only two points to be made: those who follow Jesus and those who don’t. Jesus said, “he’d rather you be cold or hot”, he’d rather you be refreshing and cleansing. The deeds of the true believer will be “hot” or “cold” -- that is, they will benefit the world in some way and reflect the spiritual passion of a life transformed.  “Lukewarm” deeds, however -- those done without joy, without love, and without the Spirit -- do harm to the watching world, and can cause God to spew you out of His mouth.

Jesus isn’t calling them “less devout” and encouraging those Christians to be more on fire for Him. Jesus is not saying that He wishes they were either spiritually hot or spiritually cold rather than spiritually lukewarm. Nowhere does God desire for His people to have cold hearts. Rather, Jesus explains what He means by being lukewarm in the next verse, “you say, I am rich; I have acquired wealth and need nothing. But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.” The lukewarm person is not one who is mildly passionate about God. Rather, the lukewarm person is one who has lost his dependence on God. In his arrogance, he believes he has no need of Christ’s righteousness because he has enough of his own. A lukewarm Christian is one that shows up for church but does not live a sold-out life. A lukewarm Christian is one that does not know he is lukewarm. Jesus is not saying he’d rather you not follow Him at all. He’s saying, “that you are deceiving yourself and He is about to spew you out of His mouth.”

When we take pride in our own moral goodness, we have fallen into the perilous sin of the Laodiceans. We are like lukewarm water. We are forgetting that all of our righteous deeds are nothing more than filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). Jesus finds this sort of spiritual pride so offensive that it makes Him sick. He will spit out of His mouth all those who think that they are rich in their own righteous works.

If we are not careful our hearts will become addicted to salvation by works. As a result, we will wear our good deeds like spiritual merit badges on preening chests, thinking we can impress God with our righteous acts. Like the Pharisee in Luke 18, we pride ourselves that we are not like other men. After all, we are not engaging in the perversity of our culture. Instead, we fast, tithe, read our Bibles, and serve the church. If we are not careful our labor can become a substitute for love. It is deadly to relate to Jesus on the basis of our works and labors rather than on the basis of His love. It is just as deadly to become confident in a life of mediocrity. 

(Revelation 3:18-19), “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore and repent.” Unless we see that we are poor and needy, Jesus will have no part of us. We do not begin the Christian life poor and then grow into the riches of our own righteousness. Rather, we begin the Christian life spiritually bankrupt. As we grow, we come to understand even more the depth of our sin and our great need of a savior. It is only when we see our poverty and neediness that we can truly become rich.

There is only one market from which you can buy the goods Jesus offers -- from Him. Jesus wants to do business with the Laodicean church. He counsels them to buy a certain kind of gold -- a refined gold of character that comes from the fire of testing.  Gold that has been purified in the fire represents faith. When we go through adversity and cling to God for the duration, He goes to work deep in the core of us, strengthening our character and our trust in Him (1 Peter 1:7-9).

He wants them to purchase white raiment from Him so that the shame of their nakedness does not appear -- white is a symbol of purity and holiness. We are called to be holy because He that called us is holy (1 Peter 1:15-16). It is a symbol of righteous acts as well (Revelation 19:7-8). He that overcometh shall be clothed in white raiment (Revelation 3:5) -- we must adorn ourselves in purity and holiness (white raiment) to overcome the sins of this world. Again, he that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment. (Revelation 3:5).

He wants them to anoint their eyes with spiritual eye salve -- that is to seek and pray for Jesus to open their eyes to see -- heal their spiritual blindness.

As many as He loves, He rebukes. If Jesus does not rebuke you, examine your spiritual life. His rebuke is not born of animosity but of love. The Lord disciplines those He loves (Hebrews 12:6). The desired response to God’s reproof is zealous change and true repentance.

(Revelation 3:20), “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Even though Jesus rebuked the church in Laodicea, He encouraged them to respond and turn to Him. You can hear the love in Jesus’ words. Though the church was treating Him with mixed feelings and he was locked out of their hearts, instead of rejecting them, He stands at the door and knocks to be invited back in. If anyone will hear Him knocking and open the door of their heart, Jesus promises to come in and sup with them which means He will restore full fellowship and communion. 

(Revelation 3:21), “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in His throne.” In His final message to the seven churches, Jesus offers us the chance to sit with Him on His throne in the same way the Father has given Him access to sit with Him on His throne. This is a phenomenal promise to give a church that is known for being lukewarm and mediocre.

(Revelation 3:22), “HE THAT HATH AN EAR, LET HIM HEAR WHAT THE SPIRIT SAITH UNTO THE CHURCHES.”

LESSONS FOR US:

Again, what a phenomenal promise to give a church that is known for being “lukewarm”. This promise tells us that if we find ourselves lukewarm or mediocre in our walk with the Lord the story does not have to end there. If we will hear with our ear we can hear Jesus welcoming us with great reward. If we find ourselves in the same place of compromise as Laodicea, or any of the other churches, there is still time to turn and Jesus will reward us significantly. He wants to give us great reward. He wants to share His authority with us. He wants us to rule and reign with Him. He wants us to overcome in the same way that He overcame.