Revelation (Written)

Tuesday, 20 October 2020

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelation 3:20

Jesus is speaking to the church at Laodicea. He has had no commendation for them, but He has indirectly told them that He loves them. And more, they are not at the point of total rejection.  However, at some point that may come about if they fail to respond. With that in mind, He now says to them, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.”

The tense of the verbs is perfect (have stood) and present (am knocking) – “Behold, I have stood at the door and am knocking.” Christ is using metaphor to convey a truth. There is a door which obstructs His entry. Being a door, it can be opened; it is not a wall. The door, however, requires someone else to open it. This is the implication of the words “and knock.” The Lord has placed Himself at the door, and He has been making His appeal continuously (am knocking).

This is clearly given to remind the reader of the words of the Song of Solomon –

“I sleep, but my heart is awake;
It is the voice of my beloved!
He knocks, saying,
‘Open for me, my sister, my love,
My dove, my perfect one;
For my head is covered with dew,
My locks with the drops of the night.’” Song of Solomon 5:2

Just as the king (Solomon) is at the door of the one he loves, knocking for entry, so is Christ the King, knocking at the door of those He loves. The word translated as knock means to rap on a door to gain admittance. It is used by Jesus in Matthew 7:7 –

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”

It is also seen twice in Acts 12 –

“And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came to answer. ¹⁴ When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her gladness she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate. ¹⁵ But they said to her, ‘You are beside yourself!’ Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, ‘It is his angel.’
¹⁶ Now Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. ¹⁷ But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, ‘Go, tell these things to James and to the brethren.’ And he departed and went to another place.” Acts 12:13-17

Using this metaphor is purposeful. Elsewhere, Jesus said, “I am the door,” such as in John 10:9. The meaning of this is that He is the access point to heaven. The Greek word can mean either “gate” or “door,” and it corresponds to the Hebrew word translated as “gate” used, for example, in Genesis 28:17 –

“Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.’ ¹⁷ And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!’”

This was when Jacob had his vision of a ladder ascending to heaven where the “angels of God were ascending and descending on it.” Jesus then takes that account and ascribes it to Himself in John 1:52. Christ is the way to heaven, and He is the access point to heaven. And yet, in this verse in revelation, He is shown to be knocking on another door, petitioning the one inside to open it. In other words, man should be coming to Christ, who is the Door, and petitioning Him to allow access through Him into heaven, and yet Christ condescends to stand at the unbeliever’s door and petition him to allow Him in.

With this symbolism understood, He next says, “If anyone hears My voice and opens the door.” This tells us that, like the account in Acts, the person on the inside is not only given a rap to alert them that someone is outside, but they have then been explicitly told who is outside. Further, this is speaking to an individual as opposed to the entire church. While the church may be lost, the person can still be saved.

In other words, the Lord is using these metaphors to relay a truth. God wants fellowship with someone who has failed to come to Him. He initiates the action, alerting him that He is there, and He then identifies Himself so that there can be no doubt who He is. When the heart of the person is willing, he opens the door – meaning he allows the Lord in. The terminology is simple and explicit. Further, it shows the simplicity of the process. To open a door takes little effort. The action occurs and the fellowship is realized. Faith is the key.

When a favorable response is made, and the door is opened, the Lord then says, “I will come in to him and dine with him.” The words here (as well as elsewhere) clearly demonstrate that the Calvinistic doctrine of “irresistible grace” is false. God does not regenerate people in order to believe, causing them to believe, which then saves them. That is not only an illogical doctrine, it is unbiblical.

Rather, when the response is favorable and the door is opened, the Lord promises that He will dine with that person. The imagery here is that of close fellowship and intimacy. To dine with someone brings a state of closeness that is almost unmatched in human experience. To further bolster this, Jesus ends with, “and he with Me.”

In other words, this is not like what happened with Abraham in Genesis 18 –

“So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, ‘Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.’ ⁷ And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it. ⁸ So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate.” Genesis 18:6-8

James 2:23 says –

“And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ And he was called the friend of God.”

The Genesis account of Abraham watching the Lord eat came long after the words cited by James occurred. And yet, despite being called the friend of God, he did not participate in the meal with the Lord. However, because of Christ, not only does the Lord dine with a person, but the person also dines with the Lord. The gospels describe such a meal, where those who dine recline, even leaning on one another –

“Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.” John 13:23

In this, there is the idea of intimacy and fellowship that the Lord is conveying. It is something only possible with the Lord through receiving Christ, allowing Him into one’s heart. This verse in Revelation speaks beautifully of the transmission of the gospel to a dead church. Who will respond?

Although it is fashionable to belittle those who say, “Christ is knocking on the door of your heart,” this is the exact symbolism that is being conveyed. Christ initiated the process, He identifies Himself through the message, and if a response is made, He comes in. It is reflected in the words of Paul –

“But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach): ⁹ that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Romans 10:8-10

Of this verse in Revelation, Albert Barnes provides the following insights –

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(1) that the invitation of the gospel is made to all – “if any man hear my voice”;

(2) that the movement toward reconciliation and friendship is originated by the Saviour – “behold, I stand at the door and knock”;

(3) that there is a recognition of our own free agency in religion – “if any man will hear my voice, and open the door”;

(4) the ease of the terms of salvation, represented by “hearing his voice,” and “opening the door”; and,

(5) the blessedness of thus admitting him, arising from his friendship – “I will sup with him, and he with me.” What friend can man have who would confer so many benefits on him as the Lord Jesus Christ? Who is there that he should so gladly welcome to his bosom?

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Life application: After taking a strong and disapproving stand against the church at Laodicea because of their lukewarm attitude towards Him, He lovingly calls them back to Himself with a most precious offer. When we deal with those we know, the friendships develop in various ways. Some stay friendly but social, some become “go to the movies” friendly, some never really develop, and some make us rejoice when we draw near. But the friendships which become the most heartfelt and personal are the ones that involve a meal.

“Come to my house for dinner” normally means a close and personal friendship has sprung up and the type of conversation is far different than that of other interpersonal relationships. Jesus says to the Laodiceans, “I have offered My life for you and you haven’t respected that offer, but I’m willing to completely change the relationship if you will only let Me.” And so, the Lord stands at the door and knocks. In other words, He isn’t going to force Himself on anyone, but will rather allow those, who are willing, to open the door of their own volition. And it only takes one person to open a door, not the entire congregation – churches are not saved; people are.

That one person may be the inspiration to revive the entire group. If you are in a church that is in a poor spiritual condition, are you the one who will step forward and help revive the hearts of stone? Jesus is knocking and He is patiently waiting. When the door is open, He will flood each of those in the room who respond with His glory.

This verse isn’t meant to be applicable solely to the group, although it could be if the whole group responds. Instead, His terminology is personal – “I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Jesus is calling the individual and he who responds will have a meal with the King of kings.

Someday, a heavenly supper is coming, and it will be a banquet like no other. For those who respond to the call of Christ, what is stated here will be realized in an actual way. Get yourself ready for the choicest dining experience you can imagine… a meal with Jesus!

O God, to sit and dine with our Lord and Savior! It is more than we can imagine – nourishing ourselves with the Bread of Life and drinking wine from the Cup of Salvation. Even now, we have a foretaste of this glorious meal as we join together in the Lord’s Supper. What a joy to participate in this as we await that greater feast to come. And may it be soon! Amen.

Monday, 19 October 2020

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Revelation 3:19

As noted in the commentary of verse 3:14, there is no commendation given to the church at Laodicea. But it would be incorrect that the Lord has nothing positive to say to them, as evidenced with the words, “As many as I love.” This should actually be taken as a sharp note of censure for those who lump entire modern-day Laodicean-type churches into a cart and personally send them off to the manure pile.

In fact, the word “I” is in the emphatic position, “I – as many as I might love…” It “calls attention to the fidelity of Christ’s love in comparison with the weak partiality seen in human love” (Vincent’s Word Studies).

Jesus’ love of those in these churches is based on the fact that they are in churches that bear His name. At some point, they came to the sad state in which they now exist, most assuredly by taking their eyes off of the true intent of the church, which is to proclaim the gospel, praise God through Jesus Christ, and to hold fast to the word of truth that He has been given.

Laodicea probably started out as a great church, but it got misdirected, smug, over-confident in what they possessed, and they eventually forgot what the purpose of the church was. Jesus’ words to them are to correct these defects and to get them back on track. His love for them is not in question. But His tolerance for their lack of love for Him, which has been replaced with a love for worldly ease, is called to the forefront with the words that He loves them, as proven by the words, “I rebuke and chasten.”

This is exactly what He has been doing and continues to do. In this, the word rebuke, elegchó, is one of the purposes originally given for the coming of the Holy Spirit, translated as “convict” –

“And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:” John 16:8

It is variously translated as convict, reprove, rebuke, convince, and so on. The Holy Spirit was given to do this. He does it as much through the word He has inspired as through any other means. It is one of the great purposes of the Bible. Those at Laodicea have forgotten even this, they had also forgotten any internal conviction of the Spirit, and they now require direct words from the Lord. But even those words are now included in Scripture – as a warning to all such churches that they also stand in jeopardy.

With the completion of Scripture, new warnings are no longer necessary. We must be faithful to proclaim the word as our final source of such reproving. To dismiss the word will only lead to sorely unhappy results.

The word translated as chasten, paideuó, speaks of the training of “a child under development with strict training.” It is the word used in Hebrews 12:6 which was brought forth from an Old Testament passage (Proverbs 3:12) –

“For whom the Lord loves He chastens,
And scourges every son whom He receives.” Hebrews 12:6

Because of the surety of Christ’s love for this church, and because He is taking the opportunity to both rebuke and chasten them, they are expected to take action. As He next says, “Therefore, be zealous and repent.”

Here, Jesus uses the verb form of the adjective used in verse 3:16, translated as “hot.” Just as they were not “hot” and bubbling over for the Lord, He is asking them to redirect and bubble over with their desire to correct their deficiencies. The word here gives the sense of setting their heart on what is right and remaining focused and intent upon obtaining it.

The word “repent,” as always, signifies a changing of the mind. It is to think differently about the direction one is taking and to correct that by taking the new direction. Their thoughts were, “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.” Their thoughts are now to be, “regardless of what state I am in this physical world, I need to rely solely on Jesus for my right-standing before God in all spiritual matters.”

Life application: Jesus really slammed the Laodiceans for their lukewarm attitude, but He hasn’t departed the halls of the church yet. They still have their lampstand and He is still walking among them, if only they will repent.

Because He loves them, His words are not simply to condemn. He is personally making the plea and there is nowhere left for them in His presence should they reject His words of kindness.

Jesus’ words are as a Father to his child, correcting them for their good so that they will not end up in a bad place. Eventually, we will all stand before Him for either judgment leading to rewards or losses, or for judgment leading to condemnation. Let us strive to gain understanding before that day and let us take to heart His words of rebuke.

The word translated as “be zealous” is written in the present tense. It is, therefore, a continuing action and something that is needed constantly. May each one of us evaluate ourselves closely and hold fast to the words of our Lord, Master, and Savior. Let us hold fast to Jesus.

Glorious and wonderful Lord! Even in the midst of Your strongest words of correction, Your love for us is evident. Help us to never take this love for granted, but to hold fast to it as a precious jewel of truth. When our thoughts are wrong, may we repent and turn from them to You for our eternal joy! Thank You for Your patience with us. What a wonderful, glorious King You are! Amen.

Sunday, 18 October 2020

I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. Revelation 3:18

Jesus just said to those at Laodicea that they were “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.” Now, to correct those deficiencies, He says, “I counsel you.” This is the first of the ironic ideas that will issue forth from the Lord. The church was quoted by Jesus in the previous verse as having said that they were in “need of nothing.” Jesus shows them that they were, in fact, in great need of His counsel.

Next, the Lord speaks more irony, saying, “to buy from Me.” One must question how someone who is poor could make a purchase, much less the things Jesus will lay out. But the thought takes the reader of the Bible back to the words of Isaiah –

“Ho! Everyone who thirsts,
Come to the waters;
And you who have no money,
Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without price.” Isaiah 55:1

Some things can be bought “without money and without price,” meaning even someone who is “poor” could afford what is offered. But with what is such a purchase made? The Hebrew of Isaiah 55:1 is b’lo keseph u-b’lo mekhir – “in no silver and in no price.” The implication is that what is to be bought cannot be bought with money or a hire. Rather, it requires “everything that one has.” It takes the reader back to Matthew 13 –

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
⁴⁵ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, ⁴⁶ who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” Matthew 13:44-46

There are some things that money cannot buy. Instead, they call for everything to be put forward. In this, Jesus is instructing those at Laodicea to put aside everything else and come to Him alone for salvation, not trusting in their own accomplishments, possessions, or goodness. He doesn’t want their stuff; He wants them. In this, they will buy “gold refined in the fire.”

The verb is a perfect participle, it is “gold having been refined ‘out of’ the fire.” The sense is that the gold is right out of the fire, shining and pure. It is free of any dross and imperfection. Jesus is equating a right relationship with Him in this. The purity of spiritual wealth is contrasted with the false wealth possessed by those at Laodicea. What they have is tainted and impure. What He offers is of the most precious quality. And, He says this offer to them is so “that you may be rich.”

They had claimed in the previous verse, “I am rich.” Jesus says it is otherwise. The cost of heaven is a coin of grace. Nothing else can pay the fee. But that grace must be received by faith, as Paul notes in Ephesians 2. They were trusting in self; Christ says, “Trust in Me.” He then tells them of something else they are to buy from Him saying, “and white garments.”

It has been noted that Laodicea was famous for rich black wool that was processed there. If true, it would make an ironic contrast to what has already been spoken of by Jesus to those at Sardis –

“You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. ⁵ He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments.” Revelation 3:4, 5

The garments offered by the Lord signify purity without any defilement. In other words, sinless perfection. Those at Laodicea, like all people, were sinners. Without the imputed righteousness of Christ, which comes by grace through faith, they could not enter into heaven and the presence of God. Christ offers them these white garments (as He says) so “that you may be clothed.”

The implication is that to Him, they were just like their first parents in the garden. He then says this explicitly with the words, “that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed.” Without the imputed righteousness of Christ, the sin of man is all that God sees. But being clothed in Christ, God only sees the sinless perfection of His Son.

The symbolism is hinted at even just after the giving of the Ten Commandments to the people of Israel. Immediately after that, the Lord gave the instructions concerning the building of an earthen altar. There it said –

“And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it. ²⁶ Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.” Exodus 20:25, 26

The symbolism of hewing stones, and of walking up steps, is that of works. It is self-based righteousness. In this, the “nakedness,” meaning the sin of the offeror, would be exposed on the altar and the offering would be unacceptable. The sacrifice must be pure and undefiled, and no personal merit of the offeror could be included in the offering.

Jesus next says to those at Laodicea, “and anoint your eyes with eye salve.” The word translated as “eye salve,” kollourion, is found only here. It comes from a root signifying “to cling together,” or “glue.” Thus, it was a mixture held together as a small cake that was then applied to the eyes. One of the things Laodicea was famous for was the production of eye salve made from Phrygian powder mixed with oil. That is being used as an example of how to cure the blind state they were in. As Jesus says, “that you may see.”

The words are reflective of what occurred in John 9. There, Jesus made a mixture and applied it to the eyes of a blind man. In this, the man was healed. In verse 9:38, the man professed belief in Christ and worshipped Him. After this, the narrative says –

And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”
⁴⁰ Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?”
⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains. John 9:39-41

Those at Laodicea thought they could see all things clearly, but they were blind to who Christ truly is. Only by faith in Christ can the spiritual eyes be opened and discern spiritual things. As Paul says in Ephesians 1:18, “the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.”

Life application: From time to time we need advice, and so we seek out a person we can trust – whether we know them personally or not. If we need financial advice, we will find a sound advisor for our money – “Mr. Kane, I’m facing bankruptcy…help!” If we need marital advice, we may talk to a pastor – “Pastor Bachman, my husband isn’t caring enough. What do I do?” And if we have had psychological trauma, we may go to a world-renowned psychologist – “Dr. Collins, I’m struggling with the memory of my car accident from a year ago…I don’t know what to do.” In the case of all spiritual matters, the advice comes directly from the Author of our existence – Jesus.

We don’t need to ask others for the answer to most spiritual matters because they are already given right in the pages of the Bible, including the cure for a spiritually lethargic or dead state. This verse in Revelation has been given to show those who are in that state how to correct it.

If you have trusted in your own deeds, your own wealth, your own righteousness, or anything else that stems from you for your salvation, you have placed your trust in the wrong place. Be freed of this attitude, take yourself out of the equation and come to Christ without any such thing. Give Him of yourself by giving Him your faith in His offering of grace. In this, you will be found pleasing to God.

Lord God, help us to take to heart the advice You have given us in Your word concerning how to be saved. It is not of ourselves, but solely through what You have done in the giving of Jesus. Help us to realize this, accept the offering by faith, and to be reconciled to You through the precious blood of Christ. And then, give us the opportunity and the desire to share this wonderful word of reconciliation with those we meet upon life’s path. To Your glory we pray. Amen.

Saturday, 17 October 2020

Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— Revelation 3:17

The Greek is very forceful in this verse. A more literal rendering would be –

“because thou sayest — I am rich, and have grown rich, and have need of nothing, and hast not known that thou art the wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” YLT

The word “you” (thou) is in the emphatic position. This highlights the arrogance of the attitude being professed – “Because YOU say.” With that in mind, Jesus begins with, “Because you say, ‘I am rich.’”

It is debated whether the word “rich” is speaking of worldly wealth or spiritual riches. However, the debate is really unnecessary. The reason for this is found right in Scripture. The most “super spiritual” of the people in Israel were the Pharisees. This is made evident again and again in the gospels. But the gospel of Luke shows an important connection between their supposed spiritual wealth and their earthly state –

“Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him. ¹⁵ And He said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.’” Luke 16:14, 15

And again, in all three synoptic gospels, this is recorded just after His discussion with a rich young ruler –

And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
²⁶ And those who heard it said, “Who then can be saved?” Luke 18:24-26

What can be inferred from these passages is the same thing that can be inferred from people’s attitude today in churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, and etc., all over the world, and what was surely the case in Laodicea as well. It is that people generally assume that because they have great wealth, God favors them. It is a fallacious category mistake, but it is an easy one to make. In our minds, we equate temporal blessings with divine favor.

Jesus clearly showed in both instances from the gospels that this is incorrect. He now reminds those at Laodicea that this is not so with His words here. Rather, they should pick up their copy of the gospels, read it, and take it to heart. And so, He continues with, “have become wealthy.”

Here, the verb form of the adjective, translated as “rich,” that was just used is given. Keeping the word consistently translated gives a better sense (as seen in the YLT referenced above) – “I am rich, and have grown rich.” Thus, it seems to say, “I am rich (worldly wealth), and have grown rich (in divine favor).” Those of those at Laodicea have conflated the two in their minds, leading them to a very false sense of security. As James notes –

“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! ² Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. ³ Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. ⁴ Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. ⁵ You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. ⁶ You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.” James 5:1-6

James, writing to those who feel secure in their wealth, reveals the spiritually poor state that they are really in. Further, he shows them that even their earthly wealth can disappear in a moment. In this, they are left with nothing but sorrow and anticipated judgment. For those at Laodicea, they had not taken such lessons to heart. Instead, in their smugness they said that they “have need of nothing.”

The emphatic nature of the words continues by saying more literally, “and of nothing need I have.” They were so filled up with their riches, or supposed riches, that they adamantly state they have no lack at all – Q: “What need do you have?” A: “Need? Of nothing am I in need. I have all I could ever need.” Their words reflect the attitude of the rich fool spoken of by Jesus –

Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. ¹⁷ And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ Luke 12:16-20

Like this rich fool, Jesus tells those at Laodicea that they are in dire shape. They have trusted in the wrong thing, and they must consider their state carefully. And so, He adamantly continues by saying, “and do not know that you are wretched.” As seen above, the Greek has an article before “wretched.” They are “the wretched.” It is a way of emphasizing their state. Thus, it is not speaking of their consciousness of the state, but of the state itself. They don’t even realize that they are the wretched, but they are. While they are looking at their bank accounts, Jesus is looking at a spiritually impoverished group of people that are on the wide path to destruction.

Next, He says, “miserable.” The Greek reads, “and miserable” to highlight the new category. The word is found only elsewhere in 1 Corinthians 15:19. It signifies “to be pitied.” While they were walking around showing off their fancy clothes, big carts with well-fed dual ox propulsion, and speaking of their latest vacation to the Mediterranean Sea, the angels of heaven were looking down on them in pity, knowing that what they thought was of value was temporary, of no value, and was actually leading them away from the true treasures of the paradise of God.

Jesus next says they are “poor.” Again, the Greek reads, “and poor.” Here they trusted in their riches, and yet, Jesus shows that these things led them directly to a state of poverty. It was not divine favor that brought them worldly wealth, and so it was not divine favor that rested upon them because of their worldly wealth. What they thought led from one thing to another actually led in the opposite direction.

Again, the Lord continues with, “blind.” And again, the Greek reads, “and blind.” Their eyes were so focused on the worldly that their spiritual eyes were covered over, even to blindness. Contrariwise, this is probably a part of why Paul said these words to the Ephesians –

“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: ¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, ¹⁸ the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” Ephesians 1:15-18

The “eyes of your understanding” speaks of spiritual matters. Paul prayed that those he ministered to would have them opened and enlightened. Laodicea needed this in a giant way. The things they looked to only further closed their minds to the truth of their state.

Finally, Jesus says, “and naked.” The words take the reader alllllll the way back to the first account of man. In the Garden of Eden, our first parents disobeyed the word of the Lord and a realization came upon them –

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked.” Genesis 3:7

They stood naked and exposed before their Creator. Since that time, all humanity has been born into the same condition. But our minds have become dull to the state we are in. We no longer realize the shame of our sin. Until that occurs, we cannot call out for a covering – the only covering – that can hide it, meaning the imputed righteousness of Christ. This is a theme that goes throughout Scripture. The garments provided by the Lord are the only things that can protect us from the coming judgment upon our naked state. This is the condition of those at Laodicea, and the Lord poignantly warns them of this.

Life application: What was the root cause of the lukewarm state of the church at Laodicea? There are two major views on it. One view is that the people of the church were wealthy and prosperous, in money and possessions, and felt secure in their lives of comfort. If this is the case, then they can be equated with a large portion of believers in the wealthier nations of the world today. “Look how God has favored us! We have a big church and nice cars, money in the bank, and not a care in the world. We ‘have need of nothing.’”

The other view is that the church felt they were spiritually prosperous and had a command of the things of God. This church then would have felt much more “spiritual” than those around them and that they were somehow better than the other congregations. “Look at our religion! It is pure and undefiled, and we are not like the rest of the sinners around us. We have dotted every ‘t’ and crossed every ‘i,’ and no one can tell us the error of our ways.”

Unfortunately, they missed the fact that “t’s” need to be crossed and “i’s” need to be dotted. They made the fundamental error of trusting in religion for the sake of religion. In this, they missed the point of true faith and worship.

As noted above, there is a third option, and one that is more than likely. The people at Laodicea fit both views. They had worldly wealth and also a superior attitude in their religious dealings. You see, the two go hand-in-hand quite well. The poor generally have a heart for the things of God, but as societies or groups become prosperous in material possessions, they also tend to solidify their religious lives in a way that exalts the mode of worship over the object of worship – which should always be the Lord Jesus.

How or where we worship is far less important than Who we worship. This doesn’t mean that chaos should rule in our meetings, but it does mean that formal gatherings with no heart for the Lord leave us wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. We stand shameful, hopeless, worthless, confused, and exposed before the eyes of the One who observes our hearts and attitudes.

Lord Jesus, may our hearts not be stolen away from You by worthless material gain, nor by worship which is cold and lifeless. May we not cling to having showy presentations that then make our type of worship the very object of our worship. Rather, help us to use our hearts, breath, actions, and souls to glorify You alone. Amen.

Friday, 16 October 2020

So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Revelation 3:16

The Lord just noted that the church at Laodicea was neither hot nor cold. With that in mind, He now says, “So then, because you are lukewarm.” This is the only use of the Greek word chliaros, or lukewarm, in the Bible. It is exactingly translated. It is that which is tepid or lukewarm. In this, it is used figuratively to speak of the state of this church. There is nothing either invigorating or refreshing about it; it is blah. With that noted, Jesus says, “and neither cold nor hot.”

Various manuscripts reverse the order, saying “hot nor cold,” but either way the point is made. There is nothing about them that is worthy of honorable mention. Instead, the church is in a state of existence that is devoid of any true life. Jesus will explain what this means, but before He does, He gives a very stern warning, saying, “I will vomit you out of My mouth.”

The translation is incorrect. It should say, “I am about to vomit you out of My mouth.” The word is melló, signifying something that is coming or about to happen. But more, the context shows that a chance for them to change and avert this happening (verse 3:19) is given. Thus, the violent action to be taken can yet be averted.

In His statement, another word unique in Scripture is given, emeó, or vomit. It literally signifies vomiting, but it figuratively speaks of utter rejection and a desire for total separation because of extreme disgust. The comparable Hebrew word, qo, is found several times in the Old Testament, such as in Leviticus 18, where the Lord says of the inhabitants of Canaan, “For the land is defiled; therefore I visit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land vomits out its inhabitants.”

Of this wretched state of Laodicea, John Gill says –

“I will spew thee out of my mouth; this shows how nauseous lukewarmness is to Christ, insomuch that on account of it he would not own and acknowledge her as his; but even cast her out, unchurch her, and have no more any such imperfect church state upon earth, as he afterwards never will, this is the last; nor is there any church state, or any remains of one in Laodicea; it is indeed quite uninhabited.”

Life application: What is it that makes you sick enough to vomit? Sometimes a certain smell can affect us enough to make us throw up. Sometimes people will get sick when they see something happen – maybe a car accident or they come upon something dead. Certainly, tasting something revolting will cause us to retch. These are all associated with our natural senses and this is the description Jesus uses for comparison – something lukewarm.

In our natural senses we have a strong distaste for what is lukewarm. But to Jesus, drawing from this comparison for our benefit, He tells us that a lukewarm state of spiritual life is what is revolting to Him. In order for something to be vomited out of one’s mouth, it must be in that mouth first.

Jesus is telling the church at Laodicea that if they don’t change and return to a state of spiritual activity and vibrancy, He would no longer confess them as His people. Their status as “Christians” would be by name only, but they would have no affiliation with Christ in any meaningful sense. Therefore, to be spewed out of His mouth would mean that He would no longer even speak of them; they would be disavowed.

Just look around at denominations and churches today which once held to the Bible as the rule and guide of the faith. If they have been replaced with a catechism, a book of order, a book of discipline, or any other general guideline, then they may no longer be a group on fire for the Lord. Instead, they are on fire for themselves, setting up channels of self-satisfaction and personal theology.

Don’t just rely on the words of the local church you belong to, but go online and check the overall doctrine of the denomination you are in. You may be appalled at what you see. If you are, how much more is Jesus? Don’t get cut off from the prize because of your love for a church when it is a heart for the Lord that matters.

Lord, we certainly enjoy the fellowship of the congregation we attend, but help us to love You far more. Open our eyes to know whether You are pleased with where we worship. Should we be working to restore it to a spiritually alive state, or is it too far gone? Should we be looking for another church home? May we honor You first and foremost by being in a church that pursues You through Your word. To Your glory we pray. Amen.