Revelation 3:14-22 – 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. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor,
blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. 20 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.
21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
There are always a couple of things that I always get out of reading the passages regarding the Laodicea Church.
One, Jesus wants you to be hot for Him, if you’re going to be His. Luke warm means you know about Him
and you refuse to further your love and relationship with Him. Those who are cold, He expects to be cold,
but His church?
I don’t know about you, but when the Lord uses the words spit you out of My mouth, that doesn’t sound good at all. That’s a God that’s pretty disgusted with part of His church.
Two, people who have acquired wealth don’t seem to need to depend on the Lord. They lean on themselves. Also they have appeared to have fooled themselves. They think they are something totally different then how they are viewed by God and Jesus.
The Lord advises them to buy gold from Him. Do we do that with worldly wealth that we chase after? No.
When we die to our “me” nature and put Him and others in His name first, we’re beginning to buy gold from the Lord. Store up treasures in heaven He tells us in Matthew.
Matthew 6:19-21 – 19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Third, the Lord disciplines those He loves. He wants to get our attention so we don’t blow it. He doesn’t want to spit people out of His mouth. People choose that by being on the wrong side of God. What’s the wrong side? Giving the Lord no love and living completely contrary to His Word.
He says to those who overcome He’ll give the right to sit with Him on the throne. So what about those who don’t overcome these things?
Today’s church in America has a lot of Laodicea roaming around in it and Jesus wanted to warn those who are willing to listen.
We need to allow Him to put the salve on our eyes and buy the refined gold from our Lord.