(image from http://www.welcometohosanna.com/REVELATION/index.html)

This week in our L3 journal, we have begun reading John's book of Revelation. He begins by describing the context in which the subject matter of the letter was given to him, and then jumps right into the words that Jesus had for seven churches in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). You can see the location of these churches next to the bluish dots in the image above. Some receive praise, while others receive a rebuke for straying from the path. One of these letters is to the church at Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-22). This one in particular is often misunderstood, so we will deal with it here.

The city of Laodicea was situated on the bank of the Lycus River and on two major Roman roads. One of these roads Went from northwest to southeast through Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Colossae. The other went from west to east through Ephesus and Miletus and to the rest of Asia. Because of its location, Laodicea became a key city for trade and industry, and it became extremely prosperous as a result. The city was also a banking center, one that Cicero recommended to others in his writings. For income, Laodicea offered a rare, glossy black wool; it had developed a special eye salve. It was the wealthiest city of the seven mentioned in this section of Revelation. The city was so wealthy that when a devastating earthquake struck in 60 AD, they refused the help of the Roman government and rebuilt it with their own resources to maintain their independence.

(Google image of Laodicea's mound, with most of the ruins buried beneath the surface)

Neither Cold Nor Hot- Jesus' first and major judgment against the church at Laodicea is that they are neither cold nor hot. Jesus says to them, "Would that you were either cold or hot! So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." These two verses have probably been misused or abused as much as any other in the Bible. The usual understanding that people have is that "hot" means near to God or "on fire for God, that "cold" means far from God, and that "lukewarm" means somewhere in between.

My question is this - why would God want anyone to be far from Him rather than somewhere in between? This understanding does not stand up to scrutiny. For the proper understanding, we must look to the geography of Laodicea. The city was located between Hieropolis and Colossae. Hieropolis had hot springs and Colossae had cold springs, but Laodicea had neither. They had to pipe in their water via aqueduct in order to have cold or hot water. However, by the time it made the long journey from either city to Laodicea, it had become tepid. 

Have you ever drank lukewarm water? It never feels right. If you're not a water drinker, imagine drinking lukewarm coffee or Mountain Dew. It's just plain gross. What do you feel like doing when that hits your mouth, when you were expecting something cold or hot? That's right - you want to spit it out! This was an image that the church at Laodicea would understand from experience. The water they got from Hieropolis and Colossae was never what it was intended to be. It didn't live up to the billing. It wasn't what it was expected to be. So it was with the church at Laodicea. They were not following God's will. They were not what they were intended to be. Rather, they became complacent. This is what the image conveys to us today. When we get complacent, satisfied, and independent, we are not longer living the life that Jesus has called us to, and that is an unpleasant taste in the Lord's mouth--so much so that it is nauseating.

Complacency - Jesus explains how they have come to this complacency: "For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked." Because of the wealth they experienced living in Laodicea, they stopped depending on God and felt that they had all they needed on their own. Notice how the descriptors Jesus uses answer to each of the supposed strengths of their city - wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. However, Jesus offers His own heavenly resources in place of what they thought they had, saying, "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." Essentially, what Jesus is saying is this: "You think you have all these things, but what you have in this world is temporal and meaningless. Come to me for the things that will truly last - eternal treasure in heaven, cleansing through Christ that makes you righteousness before God, and correct sight to see the things that really matter and to be generous (see Mt. 6:22-23; having a "good" eye in Hebrew thought was being a generous person and a right perspective of material possessions)."

Knocking at the door - Jesus tells the church at Laodicea that He is standing at the door and knocking. This verse is often used (I think incorrectly) to refer to evangelism and someone believing for the first time. In this context, however, it is referring to believers whom Jesus is disciplining and calling to repent from their errant ways. When we stray from God's best, He disciplines us. He calls us back. He loves us and won't rest until we live up to the potential He sees in His children.

The takeaway - May we never become complacent in our lives, thinking we have everything we need on our own and that we can be completely independent. We will never cease to need Jesus. We are hopeless without Him and without His help. We have nothing of any eternal significance or consequence apart from Him. He is everything, and we should desire Him and His resources more than the things of this world. May we never lose sight of this truth. May we be the people God desires us to be in Christ, living according to His perfect will.

In the Son,

Bill Horn
FBC Worship & Arts Pastor