Lukewarm
The Frog in the Pot
There was a frog who jumped into a large pot of lukewarm water. He felt good. In fact, he was so comfortable that he fell asleep.
While he relaxed, he was completely unaware of the danger he was in. Without realizing it, he was in serious trouble. The pot was on a gas stove and was slowly heating up. The frog didn’t realize that he was being slowly cooked. By the time the water reached the boiling point, it was too late for the frog.
This unfortunately is a picture of many people’s spiritual lives.
Over the past few years with Covid and the many distractions, many have grown complacent and have been just going through the motions.
Many who used to go to church have grown comfortable sleeping in on Sundays. Many who based their lives on certain principles, morals, and values have fallen asleep and allowed compromise to creep in. Over the past few years, without the rise of the woke movement and cancel culture, there has been an outright attack on anything to do with God, and many have just blindly accepted godless philosophies that are opposed to God’s standards.
This has resulted in many drifting away from God and being in danger of shipwrecking their faith.
This slow fade away from God into compromise and complacency has left many thinking all is okay, but not realizing that they are being slowly cooked.
If you find yourself caught in the middle, sitting on the fence in your walk with God, and feel like you have become lukewarm, then I have a word for you.
In Revelation 3, God gave a message to the Church of Laodicea. I believe that this is a word for the times in which we live.
Revelation 3:14-22…
14 To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation:
15 “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!
16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
17 You say, ‘I am rich. I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing!’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.
18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and ointment to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.
20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.
22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
To fully understand this scripture, we need to look at the background.
A Great City (Laodicea)
Laodicea was an incredible city in ancient times. The city was wealthy, popular, and on the cutting edge.
Laodicea was the BANKING AND FINANCIAL CENTER of that time:
Laodicea was an incredibly wealthy area. It was like the most upmarket part of London, Paris, New York, Tokyo, or Cape Town.
Laodicea was known to be one of the richest cities of that time.
In AD 61 Laodicea was hit by a devastating earthquake that caused extensive damage. Rome offered them money to build it up. They refused. They did not need anyone else’s money. They could do everything themselves.
But not only did Laodicea have wealth – Laodicea was the FASHION CAPITAL of the world:
Laodicea had a particular breed of sheep, which had a violet-black wool.
This wool was the “in thing” at the time. Their fashion houses and designers were famous. They created these trendy modern black wool garments, and every socialite and fashion conscience person would be dressed in these designer outfits made from the violet-black wool.
But not only was Laodicea wealthy and the fashion designer capital of the world, but Laodicea was also the GREAT MEDICAL CENTER of that time:
In fact, their doctors were so famous that their faces were imprinted on the coins.
These doctors discovered this miracle eye ointment, which increased vision.
People came from far and near to get this eye ointment.
But people would also flock to Laodicea because it was the HOLIDAY DESTINATION of that time:
Just a short trip out of the city, Laodicea had hot water springs. People would flock to Laodicea during the holidays and over long weekends just to relax and rest around the hot water springs.
Laodicea had everything going for it. They were the wealthy financial center, the fashion capital, the medical center, and the holiday resort of that time.
BUT Laodicea had one major setback…
They did not have any water source of their own
They decided to build an aqueduct from outside the city. Water was brought in from the hot water springs that were situated a short distance out of the city. As the water came from the hot water springs it was neither HOT nor COLD.
It was LUKEWARM.
Lukewarm
LAODICEA WAS SICKENLY LUKEWARM!
LAODICEA was a city with great characteristics, but these characteristics showed the TRUE SPIRITUAL CONDITION of the people living in the city.
For a person living in Laodicea, this passage would have brought a chill down their spine.
Jesus said, “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other!” (Revelation 3:15)
Was God referring to their water supply or to the condition of their relationship with God?
The people in the city were neither hot nor cold! They had compromised their relationship with God. They had become sickly lukewarm.
Jesus went on, “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:16)
If you are cold towards God, you at least know your true spiritual condition. However, many who are living in-between think everything is okay in their relationship with God, but according to Jesus, this is a dangerous place to be, with eternal consequences.
God wants you either to be fully sold out for him or to reject him – hot or cold.
Either be fired up for God or let go of God, but don’t be in between. When we compromise, or live half-in and half-out in a state of lukewarmness, it makes God sick. This middle zone of compromise can give us a false sense of security, but according to Jesus, he wants to spit us out when we live this way.
Jesus then said, “You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.” (Revelation 3:17)
Materially, the people living in Laodicea were wealthy.
What was Jesus saying to them about their money and material possessions? Most of the people in the city were rich! But spiritually they were wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.
Jesus continued, “So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich.” (Revelation 3:18)
They were rich in money, but spiritually they were poor. Jesus challenged them to rise out of their complacency and indifference.
Jesus continued, “Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness.” (Revelation 3:18)
Jesus told them that they needed to exchange their black garments for white clothes, pure clothes.
Was God referring to their outward appearance or their hearts?
They may have had the best clothing of their time, but it couldn’t cover the true condition of their lives – they were spiritually dark, shamed, dirty, and naked.
Jesus then told his people that they needed, “ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see.” (Revelation 3:18)
God told the people that they needed eye ointment.
Was God referring to their natural vision?
God was saying that they were spiritually blind. They needed spiritual eye ointment!
God used everything about the city, all its wealth, resources, fame, and materials, to show the city’s lack.
The people living in Laodicea had grown LUKEWARM.
They had grown complacent in their walk with God. They had compromised on their values and had neglected God. The worst thing is that they were completely blinded and unaware of their true spiritual condition. They were just like the frog in the pot that was being slowly cooked!
How about you? Where do you stand in your walk with God?
In John 10:10, Jesus told us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.”
The enemy wants to lead you astray.
He wants to deceive you. He creeps in with the aim of bringing destruction and death.
He wants to compromise your walk with God. He is wanting you to drift from God, feeling comfortable but leading you into a downward spiral that will lead you to destruction.
On the other end, Jesus has come to “bring you life, and life more abundantly.” (John 10:10)
Hear this warning from Jesus. Don’t drift. Don’t compromise. Don’t become lukewarm.
It is time to return.
Reset.
Related Post: The Great Reset – You can rest your life with God
Put God first.
It is time to get fired up for Jesus.
Jesus is Supreme
In Revelation 3, Jesus is shown as the ruler of God’s creation.
“These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” (Revelation 3:14)
Jesus is the Amen. He is the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
He is the faithful and true witness. He is the ruler. He has all power and authority. He is the King. He is sovereign.
He is the ruler of the universe. He is ruler over this planet. He is ruler over your world. He is ruler of your city. He is ruler over the church. He is ruler over your life. He is in control. He can do what he wants. Thank God he wants what is best for his people!
He sees all. He knows all.
Jesus sees all that you do. He sees through the walls of your home. He even sees through the fragile cobweb of your flesh and bones. He sees your heart. He knows the real you. He knows everything you do.
Jesus sees everything that is happening in your life. He knows your thoughts. He knows your heart. He sees what happens behind closed doors. He knows what is up in your life, in your family, in your bank account, and in your heart. He knows everything.
Where do you stand with God?
Are you living in compromise?
Have you allowed being lukewarm to creep in?
If so, return to Jesus. Call on him to be your Lord and Savior.
If want to start or restart your walk with God, click here to pray a simple prayer we have set up for you.
God’s people living in the luxury of Laodicea had lost their desire to grow spiritually. They were going through the motions. They thought all was hunky-dory, but they had compromised. They were limp.
Jesus told his people that they did “not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” (Revelation 3:17)
Jesus told His people that they had become sickly lukewarm and that He was about to “SPIT THEM OUT”.
The other day I played tennis with my son. It was crazy hot. I needed an ice-cold drink to quench my thirst. My water bottle had been in the sun. It was lukewarm. I was desperate for some cold water. I had a sip of the lukewarm water. It was gross. I spat it out.
A while back, I popped in at one of my favorite coffee shops. I was enjoying a good cup of coffee. My phone rang. I answered. 20 minutes later I returned to my coffee. It was lukewarm and a yucky skin had formed. I had one sip and gagged. I wanted to spit it out.
That is how Jesus feels when we are lukewarm. It makes him want to vomit. It makes him feel sick in the gut.
He genuinely loves his people. He wants a close walk with you and me, yet when we compromise, just go through the motions, and become lukewarm, it makes Jesus feel sick.
He knows there is more to life and hates seeing his beloved people being slowly cooked and putting themselves on a road to destruction.
You can’t just be lukewarm, neither hot nor cold.
Today Jesus says, “Don’t be in between. Either be hot or cold. If you are lukewarm, I will spit you out.”
God obviously wants you to be hot for him. He wants you to have a passion in your heart to serve him. He wants you to put him first.
If you are not sold out for God, he would prefer for you to be cold and indifferent to him.
You will then at least know the true condition of your heart and where you stand with God. But if we are lukewarm, we often are going through the motions, having a form of spirituality that makes us think all is okay. But we are actually deceived and in a really dangerous place with God.
God wants us to be single-minded for him.
Often, we are double-minded. We become wishy-washy – half-in and half-out.
We have “a form of godliness but denying its power.” (2 Timothy 3:5)
We “honor God with our lips, but our hearts are far from God” (Matthew 15:8)
We try to live by faith, but we live fearfully too
We say we believe in God, but we live like there isn’t a God.
Sometimes we say we are following God, but we live contrary to God’s ways. Sometimes we live in doubt instead of trusting God.
Have you become double-minded?
It is time to be single-minded. It’s time to return to God. Put your eyes on Jesus. Live for God. Live to please him. Put God first.
It’s time to be hot for Jesus.
We often live in a state of flux. What plans are you making? Are you trying to fit God into your plans or are you prepared to align your life with God? After all, he is the ruler. He is the inventor of life. He is the creator. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
Be Hot for Jesus
It’s time to invite God to be the center of your life.
This is where you come in:
If you have grown lukewarm in your faith, today God is calling you to repent, to turn from your half-heartedness, and return to Him.
If want to start or restart your walk with God, click here to pray a simple prayer we have set up for you.
Today the world accepts an anemic version of Christianity as balanced:
“Don’t go over the top. Don’t be hot, neither be cold. Just be in between. Don’t go overboard. Don’t get too spiritual. Don’t become too fanatical or excited about God. Just go to church now and then. Don’t be too hot, nor too cold, just stay in the middle.”
But Jesus said he would “spit you out” if you live in a state of lukewarmness. It’s not safe to be in the middle. God wants a 100% commitment.
Choose to be hot or cold for God.
Being lukewarm is like driving in the middle of the road. If you do you can have a head-on collision!
We are actually saying to Jesus when we are in between, “I love you a little bit Jesus”
Pause!
For a moment, I want you to pause and examine your life before God.
- How is your relationship with God going?
- Where do you stand?
- Have you grown cold?
- Have you become half-hearted?
- Is your walk with God lukewarm?
- Are you possibly using religion as a cheap substitute for a real relationship with God?
- Have you drifted from God? Have the things of the world distracted you?
God desires a close walk with you. He wants you to get fired up for Jesus.
God hates it when his children become half-hearted and wishy-washy in their relationship with Him.
It breaks his heart when we just go through the motions and live in a state of compromise.
God is saddened when we live half-in and half-out, sitting on the fence, dabbling with sin while neglecting our walk with Him.
God’s heart is broken we he sees his children troubled and living in a state of complacency, and it makes God feel sick when we live in a state of lukewarmness.
God loves you so much. He made you. He has a plan and purpose for you. He desires a close walk with you.
Lukewarmness, being half-hearted and having a lack of zeal and passion for Jesus, MAKES GOD SICK. But God still loves you.
Wrap-Up…
Laodicea had everything by worldly standards:
They had money, fame, great healthcare, and the finer things in life, but they were spiritually poor. They were bound without knowing it.
They acted indifferently to what was happening around them. They did not know what to do with their money and fame. They were blinded and had drifted.
They could buy everything they thought they needed with money. They needed no one else, not even God.
Today I need to tell you that you need to put your hope in God.
You cannot put your hope in people: while most people will try to do their best for you, people are flawed. They make mistakes. They will let you down from time to time, but God will never let you down. He will never abandon you. His love for you is perfect and pure.
You cannot put your hope in money and your material possessions: Money can buy you nice things, but it doesn’t fill the void. Only God can do that. One day you will also die and leave this earth. You cannot take it with you.
Jesus told us, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Mark 8:36)
Don’t put your hope in people or money. Put your hope in God.
Laodicea was spiritually blind:
They needed ointment for their eyes. They were on a one-way track to destruction, without knowing it.
Are you spiritually blind?
Helen Keller lost her sight through illness when she was a young child. She defied the odds and grew up to be an author and an inspiration to many.
One day she was approached by a young boy who asked her, ‘Ms. Keller, what is it like to be blind?’ She answered, ‘Not half as bad as having two good eyes and seeing nothing.’
Helen Keller is also known to have said, ‘Keep your face to the sunshine, and you won’t see the shadows.’
It’s time to look to the Son of God. If you have been blinded or deceived, I pray that the scales will fall off and that you will regain your spiritual vision.
Laodicea was covered in sin:
They needed pure, white clothes. They needed to change their black fashionable garments for pure and holy ones.
BUT the worst was that they did not even realize what was happening to them.
They thought all was ok. They thought they were “rich; wealthy and they did not need a thing,” But they did not realize that they were, “wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” (Revelation 3:17)
God felt sick. He wanted to spit them out.
Where do you stand with God? Do you think that God is getting sick and tired of the way you are living?
God told his lukewarm people: “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. (Revelation 3:19)
In other words, turn from your indifference, from your lukewarmness, and return wholeheartedly to God.
It is time to turn from a compromised half-hearted Christianity back to God.
Jesus wants to fan into flames a new passion in your heart. He wants to bring you peace. He wants us to be single-minded and steadfast. He wants you hot for Jesus.
If want to start or restart your walk with God, click here to pray a simple prayer we have set up for you.
Do You Realize What Jesus Did For You?
Jesus died for us for all our sins.
Think back to what Jesus went through for us. Before being sentenced to die on the cross, he could have walked away, but he didn’t. He loved us so much. He was too hot for us. He was prepared to give his life for lukewarm people so that they could be reconnected to God.
Jesus was beaten for your peace. He received 39 lashes with a whip laced with shell, bone, and metal objects – that would have ripped the skin off his back. Many never survived a Roman flogging, but Jesus took that whipping for you and me.
Isaiah 52:14 tells us that the Messiah took such a beating that “his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness.”
Related Post: The LOVE of Jesus and the POWER of the Cross – What Jesus did for us on that cross.
A crown of thorns was pushed into his skull. He was nailed to the cross. Thick nails were driven into his hands and feet.
See the blood. He shed his blood for you and me.
Isaiah 53:5 tells us, “He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.”
It goes on, “All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)
Jesus shed his blood on the cross so that we could be set free and come back into a relationship with God. That is why it makes Jesus sick to see people living in lukewarmness.
See the passion of Christ. See his love for you.
Jesus then died on that cross. As he died, the sky grew dark.
The curtain in the temple tore in two, symbolizing how God had made a way for all people, no matter who they are or how far they have fallen, to come back into a relationship with God.
Earthquakes erupted and the dead began to rise. They must have known he was Christ!
Jesus paid the full price for sin, the very sin that cut us off from God.
As he died, he shouted, “It is finished.” (John 19:30).
Jesus was saying, “I have paid the price so you can go free.”
He was buried in a tomb, but on the third day, he conquered death.
He rose, defeating hell, sin, and death. Through the love of Jesus, we can accept the free gift of eternal life and come back into a vibrant relationship with God.
Does Jesus deserve similar treatment that was dished out to him at Calvary? Does he deserve lukewarmness? Jesus doesn’t desire us to be lukewarm. He wants us to be hot for him.
Jesus wrote the message not to the citizens of Laodicea, but to the Church of Laodicea. He was speaking to people who professed to be Christians, but who had become lukewarm and complacent in their walk with Him.
He warned them, telling them everything about their lives, telling them that he was extremely concerned that they were “neither cold nor hot.”
He then warned them and said, “I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:15-16)
At the end of his warning Jesus told his lukewarm people, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3:20)
There is a famous painting from Holman Hunt based on this scripture. I saw this painting hanging in St Paul’s Cathedral in London a few years back while on a business trip.
In this famous painting, Jesus is standing at a door, and he is knocking. If you look closely his hands are scarred because he took the nails on the cross for you and me. The door, which represents our hearts, is overgrown with weeds. If you look closely at the door, you will notice something odd, there is no handle on the outside. Jesus can’t open the door. He is knocking with his scared hands on the door of our hearts. You and I have the choice to open the door.
And there Jesus stands, with his lamp, exposing our sin, but also offering us the comfort of his presence, and an opportunity to step out of the darkness and into his marvelous light.
He is asking, “may I come in?”
Jesus, The Light of the World, wants to come into our hearts. He wants to set our hearts on fire so that we can be hot for Him. Although our lives are overgrown with weeds, with sin and the cares of the world, Jesus wants to come in. He is waiting. He so dearly wants a close walk with us.
He says, “Here I am. I stand at the door and knock. If anyone opens the door, I will come in.”
God is wanting to have an intimate relationship with you and me. We must be sincere, and we must repent. We must open the door.
Will you open the door of your heart to Jesus?
If want to start or restart your walk with God, click here to pray a simple prayer we have set up for you.
This verse is probably one of the most often misquoted scriptures in the Bible. This scripture is not written to the person who has rejected God. It is written to God’s people who have compromised their walk with God and become lukewarm.
Will You Spit in Jesus’ Face?
During the Vietnam war, a group of brutal Vietnamese soldiers walked into a little church during a service.
They held the group of Christians hostage. One of the soldiers found a large picture of Jesus and stuck it on the door. The soldiers then lined the congregation up and told them that they would let them go free if they were prepared to curse Jesus and spit in Jesus’s face.
The first person in the line looked at the picture. He cursed Jesus and spat in his face, and he then walked out into his “apparent freedom”. The next person in the queue did the same thing, he cursed Jesus and spat in his face, and walked out into “freedom.”
The third person in the queue was a little girl. She walked up to the picture and stared at Jesus. She then took her sleeve and began to wipe the spit off Jesus’s face. She then turned to the cruel Vietnamese soldiers, and said, “You can rather shoot me, but I will NEVER spit in My Jesus’s face.”
These crazy militant soldiers were about to shoot her. However, as they lifted their rifles to this little girl’s head, they started to shake and tremble.
Something happened as God poured out his supernatural presence. Do you know how this event ended? These soldiers ended up letting all their hostages go free, except for the two people who had cursed Jesus and spat in his face.
Related Post: Our world needs a demonstration of God’s power – When we lift up Jesus, God will show up and show off!
Will you spit in Jesus’s face? Will you be prepared to compromise on your faith in God?
Jesus says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” (Revelation 3:20)
Jesus continues, “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3:21-22)
You and I have the opportunity to step out of darkness, and into a relationship with Jesus.
The Light of The World is wanting to have a close walk with you and me!
When Jesus gave the message to the Church in Laodicea, it was written to followers of God who had gotten dried out and who had become lukewarm and complacent in their walk with God.
It was written to those who have compromised and to people who have backslidden and lost their way.
Today Jesus is still knocking. If your door is overgrown with weeds, if you have drifted away or grown cold, it is time to come back into a vibrant walk with God. He wants to revive your heart and ignite a deep passion in your heart.
Invite him in! What are you waiting for? Open the door!
If want to start or restart your walk with God, click here to pray a simple prayer we have set up for you.
“But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” (Ephesians 5:13-17)
