Revelation 3:14-22--To the Church in Laodicea

Revelation 3:14-22
English Standard Version

To the Church in Laodicea
14 “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation.

15 “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 17 For you say, “I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing,” not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. 19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. 21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered 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.’”

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The message to the Church in Laodicea is probably the most well-known of these seven letters (and it is the last of the seven).  Jesus reminds this pastor and his church that He is the Amen (the final word that will bring everything to completion that will verify that everything God has said and done is true) and He is the Faithful and True Witness (He testified to faithfully to who His Father was and everything His Father said, but He will also testify faithfully as to those who belong to Him and those who don't belong to Him and He perfectly knows the hearts, minds, and works of both groups) and the beginning of God's creation (the Word and the Alpha).

It is from this passage that we have the phrase "lukewarm Christian." (I'll let you judge for yourself if you think this is a correct phrase after reading this passage).  Jesus tells this church that He knows their works as well--they are neither hot nor cold.   Since they are neither hot nor cold, they are like water that is good for nothing and is disguisting when you try to drink it.  Jesus is using and image of something in their local geography and culture that they would understand to paint a spiritual picture (He did that with most of these seven churches, though this one is the most necessary to expalin).  There was an aquaduct that started up in the mountains where there was cold, refreshing water that ran down to another city and by the time that water got to them, it was hot from the Sun heating it up the entire journey.  Laodicea was halfway along the journey and the water they got from the aqueduct was neither hot nor cold--it wasn't the refreshing cold water from the mountain that was great for drinking or the hot water at the end of the aqueduct that was good for bathing--it was lukewarm, disgusting and good for nothing.  The Laodiceans knew exactly what Jesus was referring to--they were just like that disguisting water that they had to deal with every day, and I'm sure it made them want to vomit too.

If this city wasn't known for its water supply, then what was it known for?  They were a rich city where everyone wore nice clothes, had plenty of gold, and they made medicine for people's eyes (eye slave).  Jesus makes reference to all the things that they had in physical realm that they thought meant something, but that He said were worthless in His kingdom.  When Jesus looked at them, He did not see people who had it all together and were in need of nothing.  He saw a people who were wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked in a spiritual sense.  He told them they need to come to Him by faith to use their "nothing" to "buy" from him the spritual version of gold, fine clothes and eye salve--that is eternal life, to be dressed in the righteousness of Christ, and to no longer be spiritually blind, but given eyes to see the Lord and the salvation that only He provides.  If they don't have these things, isn't Jesus saying they are still lost and there is nothing "Christian" about these people?  Aren't they going to a building and listening to a pastor and they are all pretending to be something they are not? I think that's what Jesus is talking about here--if they realized they were lost and acted like lost people, we could deal with that, for they would understand that they needed the gospel.  If they were born again and acted like God's people are supposed to act because they have been changed form the inside out, that would be even more excellent and we would praise the Lord!  However, it seems this group of people are innoculated to their need for the gospel because they don't know they are lost, but they have no relationship with Jesus.  They are like the people in Matthew 7 who will say, "Lord, Lord did we not...." and they will list their many good works, "....in your name?" and He will say, "Depart from me you who practice lawlessness.  I never knew you."  They believe they are saved and they are not--that is what is disguisting about them.

Jesus says that those whom He loves, He discipliens and reproves and corrects so that they might repent and be zealous for Him.  It is in the context of this statement that Jesus says, "I stand at the door and knock."  Jesus is coming one way or another, but He being gracious to give them a sign that He is coming and about to enter.  It is their choice whether He comes to bring them judgment or to rescue them from the coming judgment, but He is coming soon and very soon.  That is even more true today than it was almost 2000 years ago when this was written (probably around 90 A.D.).

There is still time for this congregation to turn things around and to truly have a relationship with Jesus that will end in their joining Him for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb and for them to be victorious over sin and death when He conquers them and the enemies of God, and for them to rulle and reign with Him in His eternal Kingdom.  However, time is running out for them.  This is Jesus' final message to the Seven Churches and the Church today as the Sprit is speaking these words to all of us.

If it hasn't been made clear to you by this point, everyone finds themselves in at least one of these letters individually and corporately with the churches they attend.  They may be a persecuted church or a faithful church or a dying church or a fake church or any of the other ways in which we could describe theese Seven Churches.  This was a message specifically from these pastors of these local churches, but we all have the same issues today and need the same encouragment and admonishment from our Lord and Savior.  This forms the perfect opening for the book of Revelation which tells of the things that are, the things that are not yet, and the things that are to come.  We have spent the first few chapters talking about the things that are, but this also points to the near future and the distant future of the Church.  We're now going to move into the things that are comng "soon" (the time of the Tribulation) and the things that are to come at the very end of days (the judgment of the wicked and the New Heavens and New Earth that have been prepared for the people of God).  This gives us a kind of outline for the entire book.