Scripture: Revelation 3 v 15 -21: "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
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:
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.
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
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 Seven Churches in Revelation 2 and 3 are where the Body of Christ fits in at any one time in church history. The numbers in each category may change but the errors, rebukes and praises are the same. Jesus wrote letters to each of the seven churches warning them and encouraging them.
Laodicea was a wealthy church, which had no material needs. They became complacent and blind to how lukewarm they were towards Jesus and the ministry. They are today in the same state and through their arrogance have no clue that Jesus wants to spit them out of His mouth. Many churches and denominations fall into this category.
They are misrepresenting Him and His kingdom by heretical doctrines which cause many to fall away from the truth. They are not alert to the dangers all around and for all their much praise and worship, Jesus says their hearts are far from Me. They are paying lip service to the One who saved them by His own death.
If anything in your life is more important than Lord Jesus, that thing or person or career is an idol which will make Him angry. He will give you many opportunities to repent before He removes that idol from your life in order to save your life. Sometimes your response to Him is bitterness and anger. He says in Romans 8 v 28: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."
You need to see things through God's eyes, the Big Picture, the plan to rescue every soul from the wages of sin. He went the whole way to make His plan of sending His Son to save us, work. What more will He not do to reach the backsliders, the fallen, the lukewarm, the lost? His enemy gloats at Him about every soul he entices away from Heaven into his evil traps.
Oh they don't look evil to start with. Like that developing flirtation that feels so good it must be right in God's eyes! Taken to its logical conclusion you are walking a tightrope that could end in divorce, broken hearts and homes, bitter feuds and scarred souls, so where does that ever seem right?
The devil has a really good lie that many fall for......"It won't happen to me!" Like taking drugs won't make me an addict; unsafe sex won't get anyone pregnant; this affair is harmless fun; gambling my savings away won't hurt anyone. Etcetera. Sin always has a consequence, and the only winner is the Devil, who only uses you to flaunt your lost soul as a trophy before your Creator. You have a free will to choose where you want to spend eternity. Choose wisely.
Jesus is reaching out today to the lukewarm souls who need to buy gold tried in the fire. This does not refer to gold stock certificates, but the real treasure of a vibrant life experience with Him. It means humbling yourself and admitting how far you have fallen into the world's ways. You are sinking in the quicksand of carnal sin and the only hand willing to rescue you is Jesus. Will you take that hand?
Those who need it most hate messages like this one. It hits too hard where they are vulnerable. I would rather write about all the good things like everyone else and be well thought of. However, Jesus is urgently shouting out that time is short and the moment to act is right now. If He were to come before the end of the year what good will your millions do for you?
You cannot buy your way out of Hell. You cannot blackmail, bribe or bluster your way out of it. The mercy of God has run out and you will reap what you have sown. If you have loved and cared for the Lord's sheep, and reached out to help the lowly and the despised outcasts of society, you will not lose your reward. If you have despised them and blocked them for no fair reason, you need to get right with Jesus now.
Churches that are in serious danger of losing their candlesticks are those who now specialise in worldly entertainment to attract their congregation. They have eliminated messages like this one as this offends those who pay the most tithes to the church. Sin is an ugly word and holiness is for dummies. The lukewarm state will lead you into the Interfaith movement of the Antichrist. Jesus wants to spare you all from that horror.
Another lie of the Devil is that God loves everyone and He will overlook your errors and forgive your sins automatically. Everyone gets to go to Heaven in the end. You can believe those lies if it makes you feel better, but that would mean that Jesus dying for you on the Cross was unnecessary. God says over and over that He will separate the sheep from the goats; the righteous from the evil. He tells us to come out from among them. Please do not be fooled.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, You have made it clear that You will not tolerate sin in Heaven. You gave us free will on Earth to choose whom we will serve and determine our final destination. I pray that every lukewarm Christian will heed this message and turn their lives around and give You glory. In Jesus' name. Amen.
