“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write the following:
“This is the solemn pronouncement of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the originator of God’s creation: ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot! So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of my mouth! Because you say, “I am rich and have acquired great wealth, and need nothing,” but do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked, take my advice and buy gold from me refined by fire so you can become rich! Buy from me white clothing so you can be clothed and your shameful nakedness will not be exposed, and buy eye salve to put on your eyes so you can see! All those I love, I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent! Listen! I am standing at the door and knocking! If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come into his home and share a meal with him, and he with me. I will grant the one who conquers permission to sit with me on my throne, just as I too conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’” Revelation 3:14-22
New English Translation
Laodicea gets the worst acknowledgement from God: they are neither hot nor cold, making Him want to spit them out! They’re just “lukewarm,” making them unsatisfying and undesirable. What does this mean faith-wise, though? Let’s break this down.
In terms of faith, you either are for, against, or the “in-between.” The church in Laodicea was “in-between,” meaning this is what we need to dig a little deeper into. There’s an interesting thing about the “in-between,” which is that it’s more a mindset than anything. It’s not truly there, it just is how people think they can be. The “in-between” is where the Christian by title alone lives. They think they can ride the fence and get all the benefits of Christianity (blessings, not burning in hell, etc.), but they don’t (and often won’t) put in the effort to live as a Christian. This right here describes a large majority of America.
Since declaring oneself a Christian is so easy and doesn’t really cost us anything, there are a lot of people willing to call themselves Christians and not do anything about it. That’s how we get people like Laodicea. The lukewarm, spit-it-out set.
Let’s talk about reality for a minute. We’ve already established that the “in-between” is a mindset and not reality. So what is reality? The truth is, people can only choose between following Jesus and not. There is no magical space where you can dabble in both. When you choose to pretend like there is “in-between” space, you’re choosing to reject Jesus because you’re saying He’s not worth you surrendering your life to Him. Instead, you choose to follow the world while viewing Jesus as a “nice idea.”
Here’s the beauty: even though the church of Laodicea was not in a good place faith-wise, God loved them and cared about them enough to tell them of their faults and offer them help. When God was telling them to buy gold refined by fire from Him, He was telling them that they needed to surrender their lives to Him. When we give ourselves fully over to Him, we’re being refined and our true value begins to show! He also wants them to buy white clothes, which is referring to His forgiveness. He is ready and willing to forgive anyone who returns to Him. Lastly, He wants them to buy eye salve. There are so many beauties to this part. He wants them to be restored; He’s ready to come alongside them and heal the brokenness of their lives. He’s also bringing “healing to their eyes” in a sense by helping them to see the world the way He does, and to see themselves the way He does.
God’s not just asking people to make a hard decision of turning away from the world and following Him without any help. Reread what we just listed. He gives more help than most people are willing to offer those around them! He makes the way for people to be made right with Him. The same is true for us, too. He sees us day after day and endlessly offers us chances to repent and follow Him. He never gives up on you and never says you can’t be helped. If He’s not giving up, then why are so many people stuck believing the “in-between” exists and is good enough?
I think some of that falls on the church. We can get so focused on numbers that we forget about making disciples. Then, after awhile, we go so long without discipleship that people start to think it’s not necessary, or they think that just calling Jesus Lord is enough.
Right here, right now, I’m stating that discipleship is essential. There is no way to follow Jesus without being a disciple. Every step He takes requires us to grow and surrender to Him if we’re going to follow. If you’re not having to transform your life day after day, then you’re not walking with Him.
Here’s my question: Where do you stand with God?
Remember, you are always able to change. You can, right here and now, ask God to help you live with Him. We have no guarantee of tomorrow, so please don’t wait or ponder on this. Either you want to be with Him, or you don’t. That’s the truth of the matter. So, what do you choose?