Reading Rev 3:14-22
"To the angel of the church in Laodicea
The postman has reached his final destination.
This is the last of the 7 churches written about in the Book of Revelation. The city of Laodicea was located roughly 45 miles south of Philadelphia. It occupied an almost square plateau several hundred feet high, about 2 miles south of the Meander River in the Lycus valley..
Antiochus II founded the city in the middle of the 3rd Century BC and named it after his wife Laodice. The city was a prosperous centre of banking and commerce. It was famous for clothing made from the wool of black sheep, and for a popular eye ointment produced by its medical school.
The city was so well-off that, unlike Philadelphia, it was rebuilt after the earthquake of AD 17 without any financial assistance from Rome.
In spite of its prosperity, the city had a major strategic weakness - the lack of an adequate and convenient water source. Water had to be piped in using an aqueduct from springs 6 miles away. An enemy could easily cut off the water supply, leaving the city helpless.
This letter to the Laodicean church contains Jesus’ harshest appraisal. He says nothing good, no commendations. Jesus begins by identifying Himself in vs 14 as the "Amen", a divine title used by the prophet Isaiah, who speaks of "the God of Amen".
The Amplified Bible puts it this way
So it shall be that he who invokes a blessing on himself in the land shall do so by saying, May the God of truth and fidelity, the Amen, bless me; and he who takes an oath in the land shall swear by the God of truth and faithfulness to His promises [the Amen] Isaiah 65:16
This word we use so often in worship is an acknowledgment of that which is true and valid. It literally means “I agree”.The faithfulness of Christ is seen in sharp contrast to the half-heartedness of the Laodicean church. They were blasé, indifferent to the Truth.
In vss 15-16 Jesus tells this church, in a manner they could easily understand, that they were neither hot nor cold, but
They were just lukewarm.
North of Laodicea was Hierapolis, which means Holy City and was famous for its hot mineral springs, a popular place to bathe for health reasons (like a spa). South of Laodicea was Colossae, known for its pure, cold mineral waters which were refreshing to drink.
In the middle was Laodicea.
By the time fresh water arrived from six miles away by aqueduct to Laodicea it was lukewarm. Hot and cold water were useful; lukewarm water wasn’t particularly good for anything. Sometimes we think of something hot as passionate and something cold as indifferent - but not in this context.
Christ tells the church, "I know your deeds-you are neither hot or cold; I wish you were one or the other!"
The church’s lack of devotion was distasteful to the Lord. It had become useless, bland, and repellent to Christ. The consequence of complacency is found in vs 16, "I am about to spit you out of My mouth."
Jesus is disgusted with nominal, half-hearted commitment. The church that ceases to actively serve God ceases to be a church. Laodicea was a Christian church in name only. Jesus’ advice in vss 17-18 reveals that this congregation was unaware of its true condition.
Satan’s most effective weapon is to give people a comfortable, prosperous life. If you have no needs you may well not need God either. But our true wealth isn’t measured by how well the economy’s doing. Laodicea was "caught up" in the whole success fantasy, the idea that material prosperity is an indication of spiritual prosperity. They were so well off and self-sufficient that they thought they didn’t need God. Being wealthy isn’t necessarily a blessing.
Many churches today preach a ‘prosperity gospel’. This basically means that if you are rich and healthy it is because you are spiritual. On the other hand if you are poor and unhealthy it is because you don’t have enough faith.
The "gold refined in fire" refers to spiritual riches that have been tested and found to be genuine. Our true wealth is found in Christ.
The "white clothes" mentioned are to cover spiritual nakedness. Like Hans Christian Anderson’s story of the Emperor’s New Clothes, these affluent, well-dressed believers were actually spiritually exposed.
Their sense of spirituality was an illusion. Laodicea’s woollen textile industry couldn’t provide garments of righteousness.
The cause of these problems was spiritual blindness, and so Jesus suggests, a bit tongue-in-cheek perhaps, that they use some of their own local eye ointment to enable them see the truth.
The church was penniless despite their bank accounts, it was naked despite their textile industry, and it was blind despite their eye medicine. They could manage without an Roman subsidy, but no one can manage without the grace of God.
Jesus next urges the church to "be earnest, and repent" (vs 19). He proves His love and concern by disciplining us. Paul writes to Corinth, "We are disciplined by the Lord so that we won’t be condemned with the world" (I Cor 11:32).
A far greater punishment would be for God to simply leave us alone, to let us go our own way and do nothing about our sin. If God hadn’t cared about the church, there would have been no letter to Laodicea. Jesus cared enough to confront them about their lifestyles..
Jesus isn’t merely telling us to attend church on a Sunday and be good the rest of the time. No, it’s more than that, He wants our unconditional commitment. He’s telling Laodicea (and us) to have a change of heart and direction. He’s saying, "Be hot or cold, but at least be useful!"
We need to enthusiastically devote ourselves to knowing and doing the will of God.
Verse 20 says Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.
This verse is often quoted as an invitation to people who are not yet Christians. Jesus wants people to open the door of their hearts to let Him come in. Notice that Jesus knocks He doesn’t force Himself in. He wants us to respond to Him voluntarily.
In the well-known painting of Christ Outside the Door by Holman Hunt, the door has no handle.
People thought this was a mistake, but the artist explained that this door must be opened from inside We can invite Christ into our lives, or leave Him outside, that is our choice.
One thing that distinguishes Christianity from all other religions is this: we do not need to look for God; He takes the initiative in looking for us.
But in this letter He is speaking to the church. He tells these self-centred believers that they've left Him out of their plans and their programmes.
They’re too busy, too far away to hear God knocking on the door. They had shut Jesus out of their lives.
And so we have before us an image of Jesus, knocking on the church door and requesting permission to enter and re-establish fellowship.
The promise to these believers is fellowship; the picture given is that of a meal. We re-enact this fellowship when we take communion together, a physical representation of the spiritual feast we enjoy with God.
Psalm 34 invites us to "taste and see the goodness of the Lord" (vs 8). In the Beatitudes Jesus declares, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled" (Mt 5:6).
In vs 21 we see that if we allow Christ to enter and sit at our table, He will allow us to sit on His throne.
This is in anticipation of Christ’s 2nd Coming. Paul writes “if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; (II Tim 2:12).
While correction and commendation have varied among the 7 churches, the challenge to overcome goes out to all, along with the persistent urging to "hear what the Spirit is saying". Jesus stands before His church, to exercise His control over His church, to give us the gift of His salvation, and to receive our submission.
If He were to evaluate our love for Jesus, would we be found genuine or artificial? Are we hot, cold, or lukewarm? Is Jesus outside of our plans, or does He play a vital role in our lives? Is He inside our homes, or outside the door? In these 7 letters we’ve seen the characteristics of a genuine, living church, and we have seen some typical church problems as well.
Perhaps as we've considered these struggling First Century congregations, we might wonder: what could they have hoped to accomplish under the power and authority of Rome?
Yet chapters 2 and 3 are hardly the end.
As chapter 4 opens we see another door, and God Almighty assures these believers under Rome’s tyranny that they are the Church Triumphant.
The following chapters leave no doubt as to the security and victory of God’s people. We have a place of safety in the shelter of God’s throne.
When Jesus enters the door of our hearts, we enter into a living relationship with Him, a relationship that affects everything we do, every day, every hour, every minute of our lives.
