14 "To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
This letter sent by Jesus through the apostle John to the church at Laodicea is one of the most arresting proclamations that ever came from Christ lips.
One cannot read this passage without being stirred for its words are so gripping that it should startle us as much as the tornado sirens did last Tuesday evening!
Listen to this passage from the Message; – it says “I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking. You’re not cold; you’re not hot – far better to be either cold or hot! You’re stale. You’re stagnant. You make me want to vomit.”
There is an emotion used by Christ in these words that I believe is not used anywhere else in the entire word of God.
Oh yes there are times throughout scripture when Christ is represented as being grieved. There are even times when Christ is seen as being angry, but in this passage of scripture we see him as being genuinely disgusted.
He is not just a little upset but rather he is so upset that he becomes literally nauseated.
Just who is it that Jesus is addressing here in this passage of Scripture?
This is not some daring rude out and out sinner...this is not a decree to a murderer pr the town drunk, or even the prostitute down on the street corner…
No the alarming element of this passage is that we find him addressing the church.
He is writing to a group of people who have organized under the banner of being a force for God. No doubt at one time this was a group of Christ followers whose sole purpose was to see their town won to Christ…their mission was heart felt…they knew where they were headed…but tragically something has gone wrong….Christ is addressing this letter to people who call themselves “Christians”
If you study this church very long you will also find that they pride themselves on not just being Christians, but being a superior grade of Christians.
Yet sadly when Christ addresses them he has not one good word to say about them.
What was wrong do you suppose? Was it the town itself…was this another Sodom…? Had something gone wrong in the town that would disgrace the church?
I did some research on Laodicea this week and found that it was located about one hundred miles due east of Ephesus.
It was in a fertile valley along with Colosse and Hierapolis. And the great Roman road stretching to the inland of Asia from the coast at Ephesus ran straight through its center. This made Laodicea an important center of trade and communication.
Laodicea was actually known for 3 things.
1) It was known firstly for its wealth. It was the financial and banking center of the whole region and had money to burn. So wealthy was Laodicea that after the great earthquake of A.D. 17, which destroyed it, the people refused imperial help in rebuilding the city, choosing rather to do it entirely by themselves.
It would be like New Orleans refusing government aid after Katrina and replacing all the buildings and infrastructure itself. It was rich and had no need of any help.
2) Much of its wealth came from the production of a fine quality of famous glossy black wool which would be exported throughout the known world.
3) It was also famous for its school of medicine and particularly for a special eye ointment. This was famous for its ability to cure of eye defects but for all its fame, Laodicea was also known for something else.
Its horrible water supply. Despite its wealth, it did not have a local water supply sufficient to provide for its population and so an aqueduct was built to bring water from hot springs 6 miles away. On its journey overland to Laodicea, it cooled until it was lukewarm when it arrived. Remember this because it takes on significance later.
So other than some water problems it sort of sounded like a fairly decent place to live and raise a family…
So we can determine that it wasn’t a geographic problem, it wasn’t a slumping economy that was the problem…no friend…plain and simple this was a “spiritual problem.”
Some where in the structure of that once booming church down on the corner, somehow that church with a vision…had gone awry…
Let me hasten to add no where does he fault them for their organization….I find no complaints even about their doctrine…But rather his gut wrenching disgust comes from their “Half hearted limp commitment”
Somehow the drive had gone…someway or another the enemy had snuck in a taken the joy of serving the Lord from these people…
Their passion to see the lost saved has disappeared…
Their earnestness to be all that God wanted them to be has vanished…
Oh the church is full of people, but the church has no zeal…these Christians have no glow of Christ upon the face…
They are sitters on the bench…they are non supportive of the vision that Christ has given them…they have no go left in their walk with God!
And most significant of all they no longer are making an impact upon their town…
Why do you suppose Christ is so irate to Luke warmness?
Why does he hate it more than positive and aggressive sin? Listen again to these words… “You’re not cold; you’re not hot – far better to be either cold or hot!”
Oh Valley Mission Nazarene Church get it this morning…God wants us to be sold out for him today…HE wants us to be on fire for Him…! But he also declares that if we are not going to be positively hot for Him…then HE would rather we be positively COLD!
If we are not going to be genuinely for Him then be genuinely against Him! There is nothing…hear me this morning...there is nothing anywhere else in this printed word that he hates and despises more than Luke warmness!
Let me give you three reasons he hates it so much!
1.He hates it because Luke warmness in itself is offensive to both God and man!
No doubt several of you here this morning are planning on watching the Colts and the Bengalis today…OR you’re going to watch Tony Stewart capture his NASCAR championship….
Let me ask you…how exciting would that Stadium be in Cincinnati today if both of those teams came out and said “yea we are dressed and all, and the stadium is packed…but we just don’t feel like playing football today…Here you guys can just pass it around and when the clock runs out we‘ll all just go home…Who cares who wins!
What would happen if Tony decided “Ahh…I’ll just run at the back of the pack today...in fact I may pit and eat some cookies and Kool-Aid”
Would you be upset…if you had paid big bucks to see the race or to be a the football game and a half hearted. Limp Lifeless team came on the field or an unenthusiastic driver got behind the wheel…I dare say you would be so angry… Oh come on church are you seeing it this morning…
This Laodicean church had become so half hearted…or sure they came or sure the place was packed, they even dressed the part….but there was no joy!!!
When God looked down from the corridors of heaven and he remembered the incredible plan of salvation that he had made and the enormous price that it cost heaven…and he saw the lethargic effort of this Laodicean church…he was offended and became so angry that it made him nauseated!
2.God hates Luke warmness because it robs its victim of all possibility of progress!
You see this is true because Luke warmness is a by product or an offspring of self-satisfaction.
This Laodicean church was well satisfied, well content with the way things were. I think they had just finished building their new facility, they has the latest in video projection systems…their parking lot was well maintained…their nursery was fully staffed, they choir sounded wonderful, the teen department was doing well, their sound system never squeaked…in fact they had all the knowledge of God and all the spiritual power they cared to have. They might even have actually thought they had arrived!
But in the midst of their satisfaction hey lost their earnestness for God and his direction for their church! Without knowing it their drive, their purpose for existence had died!
The goals that God had for them had been arrested and handcuffed by status quo!
Their forward progress had stopped!
They had climbed as high up the spiritual mountain as they wanted to climb!
They had learned as much about god and his holiness as they wanted to learn!
They had grown as large as they wanted to grow.
They had seen as many at their altar as they cared to see…
They were happy and content just to be left alone going thorough the motions week after week…
And God looked at them and said ““I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking. You’re not cold; you’re not hot – far better to be either cold or hot! You’re stale. You’re stagnant. You make me want to vomit.”
3. God hates Luke warmness because it kills our possibilities of usefulness!
Their battle to spread the good news had been lost…
Their Luke warmness had made them become tasteless and ineffective.
Impossible had become their secret password…
They had become tasteless in Gods mouth!
His blessing upon them was GONE!!!
Oh Church can you see the awfulness of their situation…like so many congregations today, they were meeting and going thru the motions…but their usefulness to the kingdom was GONE and they didn’t even realize it!
They had become so wrapped up in their predictable service and their customary style that their was no room left for Gods blessing and he declares I HAVE NO USE FOR YOU…you make me sick!
In closing this morning…I wonder how many today if you examine your heart…yes even those of you that have been at this thing for a long time...How’s your spiritual temperature this morning? Are you as hot for God as you once were, or have you settled for a lukewarm non productive ride straight into the pearly gates…?
I wonder church leader, department officer, SS teacher, elected official do you still have the zeal and enthusiasm that was felt around here a year or two ago or have you settled into the routine and unintentionally became content with status quo…
I wonder new convert, are you still as excited about Christ as you were when you first invited him into your heart, or have you sort of forgotten Him?
I wonder unsaved friend…do you get up every morning excited to face the day…or are you in reality dreading life because it seems you have no purpose?
Is there a cure for this Luke warmness…?
Can our dead enthusiasm be revived?
Can our half hearted attempt at seeking him become whole-hearted?
Oh thank God YES IT CAN….
Jesus is the cure!
Church I must confess to you today that I NEVER want to be a pastor or a part of a church that makes God vomit!
Church I must confess to you today that I NEVER want to be a person that makes God vomit!
I don’t know who here today needs to pray, but I know I do….all this past week God has been speaking to me and he has shown me that I have allowed situations and comments to steal my zeal and my enthusiasm for what he wants me to do and lead this great church to do and so this morning as your pastor as we close this service I need to do two things…
1. First I need to apologize to you as a congregation for becoming lukewarm in my enthusiasm to propel the vision that God has given me for Valley Mission Nazarene Church. I cannot lose that passion that drive and ever expect to please God!
2. I am going to be the first at the altar today and I am praying at God will forgive me for my Luke warmness…for if the pastor is lukewarm…how can one ever expect the church to be hot…And to be perfectly honest I don’t know if anyone else need ed to hear this message toady or not but I did…I’m going to pray and if you care to join me the altar is open!
