"Hot, Cold or Tepid?"
When we decide on a drink we always have to decide if we want something hot or cold. Why doesn't it ever cross our minds to have something that is tepid; lukewarm or ever so slightly warm? Is it because we have tried it and decided it wasn't our choice of temperature? Is it even made available to us in restaurants or stores? I don't believe so and the reason is that we enjoy something that cools us or warms us, but we get no satisfaction out of a drink that has adjusted to the temperature of our surroundings. Just think about it for a minute!
Have you ever been in freezing temperatures and had the urge to go get a frozen drink? Have you ever jumped into a really hot car that has been sitting in the driveway and thought to yourself, "I really would like a hot cup of tea, coffee or hot chocolate right now!"?
It's strange, but whenever we crave a drink, we usually think of drinking something that is going to make us feel allot warmer or cooler! We want something that's going to bring refreshment to our mouths and stomachs.
In the passage today I find that the church of Laodicean, that is addressed here in chapter three of Revelations, has become neither hot nor cold. They have stopped bringing refreshment to the body of Christ and they are not desired by God at this point. As a matter of fact, it says that they are as something he would want to spue out of His mouth! The Greek Dictionary describes "spue" as follows;
The greek is emeō
It is pronounced em-eh'-o
Of uncertain affinity; to vomit: - (will) spue.
There is a passage that I have spoke of before that says that God is in us and we are in Him when we put our faith in Him. I believe this is what He means, as we become lukewarm, content with being unfruitful and not involved in the purpose for our lives, when He says he would spue us out.
Let's look at verse fourteen through sixteen ,
Rev 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;
Rev 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
That's pretty graphic! But it gets the point across! We really have to understand that this is a true illustration of how God must feel when we feel we are in Him and He is in us, but we're not living our lives in His purpose. We are not fully enjoying His purpose for our lives.
We have been living our lives following after our own desires ever since the decision was made in the beginning to follow after the temptations of satan. I believe that the desires and dreams that our society sell us today through advertising and word of mouth has become the poison of our generation just as it was back in the days of this passage. We have become obsessed with the pleasures of our own desires and have put the Lord on a shelf to pull out on Sundays and for some of the more diligent believers, Wenesday night too! What is God saying here? What is it that has caused these people to become lukewarm much like the majority of people today?
Let's read on to find out what He means,
Rev 3:17 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:
These people were saying that they were rich, having wealth and do not need anyone or anything.
Then the Spirit of God said to them, you don't know that you are wretched (meaning tested or weighed down in the Greek) and miserable and poor, blind and naked! How is this possible? How can a people who are rich, wealthy and have no needs to speak of also be all the things that the Spirit of God say that they were?
What you may need to understand is that this area was well known for their wealth; their medicines and their textiles. They were very prosperous and they had built a reputation for their abilities to produce these products! Is it any wonder that the Spirit of God pointed out the exact things that they felt strong in to be their real weaknesses spiritually? Isn't it often like God to use the very things that we feel confident in to bring us to a place of learning?
Let's read on,
Rev 3:18 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 eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Rev 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.
The Spirit of God advises these people to seek after the gold that has been purified by fire! (tested and proven) That is the riches that will be most valuable in life, the riches that will last beyond this life! Also the white raiment that is not soiled that represents the spirit of man that has been forgiven and hasn't gone back to the ways of the world and has not forgotten his purpose and love for the Lord, but if forgotten, will eventually lead to embarrassment as if we were naked when we come to our Lord in our time of need. Why would we need if we are prosperous? Because our prosperity always leads to decay and destruction in our lives if we do not continue to seek and commune with our Lord. Finally the eyes that need to be covered with an eyesalve (plaster or paste) so that they may see! This is a medicine of course that the Spirit refers to here to represent the healing of their eyes that they will be able to once again see the truth! How do you think this made the people feel that were so confident in their money, medicines and textiles? You know, I think they may have realized that all that they had accomplished in their life was from the Lord. If not, they may have walked away that day feeling angry or it's possible that they felt like this messenger had no right whatsoever telling them what they needed! After all, they had a reputation for being the best in the field of medicine and textiles! How could anyone tell them what they needed when it was obvious that they were being blessed? They had their big houses; their big expensive twenty horse powered chariots; their top bred messenger doves; their many servants and maids and they may have even had a beach house or two.
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Rev 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.
Rev 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.
The Spirit of God says He comes with love, correcting them and teaching them what is true. All they need to do is repent!
I once knew a man that had a six hundred acre plantation and all that a person could possibly imagine having in a lifetime. He was worth millions of dollars. He had been very successful in his business of thirty plus years and had been able to provide many things for his family and friends. He had spent his entire life attending church and regularly. He had been on various boards and involved in local organizations. He had a reputation for being a very wise man.
For some reason I had been allowed by God to come in contact with this man in his later years when he needed someone to talk to about things that mattered most. We had some talks as we walked about his property looking at the things that he had done to create an absolutely incredible nature wonderland for everyone to enjoy as they came to visit. Even with all of this, he had missed something in his life and I couldn't believe it as he began to open up and talk to me about this.
He told me that he was in the last years of his life and that he hoped he would do what is most important and when it came time to stand before the Lord, he wanted to hear the Lord say, "well done". He even shed some tears as he shared this with me. I was somewhat touched by his words and I wondered what I had to do with this and why he would be sharing this with me. He then began to share with me how he had spent most of his life trapped in sinful temptation and how it had tortured him day and night! I couldn't hardly believe my ears!
How could someone so prosperous and blessed be so wretched (weighted down) and miserable?
He then went on to tell me how he had everything! And yet, he told me that he still could not get a satisfaction within because the things that he wanted were the things that were forbidden by God. He told me that he couldn't get free of his habits and his desires! He truly was a poor man because he might as well of had nothing! It sounded to me that his eyes were blinded by satan due to the decisions he had made. In the Greek dictionary the word "blind" is described as follows;
The Greek word is tuphlos
It is pronounced toof-los'
From G5187; opaque (as if smoky), that is, (by analogy) blind (physically or mentally): - blind.
I think it would be really important in this lesson for us to look at the definition for G5187 mentioned above;
The Greek word is tuphoō
It is pronounced toof-o'-o
From a derivative of G5188; to envelop with smoke, that is, (figuratively) to inflate with self conceit: - high-minded, be lifted up with pride, be proud.
Wouldn't this be a fair description of someone who has everything and still insists on needing the things of the world no matter how much it hurts others or even himself? He was so proud and highminded that he actually thought that he might just be able to pull it off!
He thought he could pull off being faithful in church, being a tither, being a member of the board of local organizations; participating in mens business groups; knowing all of the local popular religous leaders on a first name basis and secretly chase the temptations of his flesh that he refered to as habits he couldn't break.
Guess what? He didn't pull it off! According to this passage he was neither hot nor cold. He was tepid, lukewarm, room temperature and he was miserable as God spued him out of his mouth! It's no wonder that he couldn't find any satisfaction just as the majority of our world today! As I read the last part of this passage today I couldn't help but think about this poor man and the embarrassment he must have felt whenever God revealed the naked truth one day when he was found out by his friends and family a few years before.
I suddenly realized that the advice that is found in verse eighteen and nineteen was all that this man needed to know! I'm sure he had many advisors who were board members in his businesses that stretch all over the world but the advisor that he needed, more than any of the others he had chosen before, was the Spirit of God! He would have been very wise to accept the counsel that is given here!
Rev 3:18 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 eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Rev 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.
Wouldn't that be awesome to have the company of God as we open the door for His Spirit to come and dine with us today!
As far as I knew, that man spent the rest of his life living a lukewarm life. Because of his earthly success and pride he felt that he would be able to pull it off! But the Spirit of God says that the lukewarm man is spued out! How will we choose to finish our lives? Will we wait until it's too late or will we choose as the Spirit chastens us today to be zealous and repent?
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
What would we do today if the Spirit of God appeared and asked us to do the same things that the Leodicians were asked to do? Would we admit that we had become lukewarm? Would we have the desire to make changes that would make our lives refreshing to our Lord? Would we overcome (have victory) as our Lord also overcame and be granted to sit with Him on His throne one day?
The Spirit of God is here and is speaking today! He is speaking through the Word of God to you and I today! Don't ignore his counsel and make the same mistake as the man who had it all and yet died in his misery!
Let's pray,
My Lord, give us this day the love that only you can truly give as our heavenly father! Help me each day to keep my sights and my goals set on the pure treasures that I might become rich in the things that give true satisfaction and clothed in a raiment that is not stained by the corruption of sin but rather a pure white covering so that the shame of my human nature would not remain visible but forgiven and unseen by even my own eyes as you anoint my eyes with the eyesalve that heals the way we see the things in this world. I accept your love, your rebuke and your chastening Lord as I repent of my weaknesses and sins today! In Jesus name I pray! Amen.
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