Are Churches Today Lukewarm?


Does it seem as though the church today isn't as vigilant in its defense of basic biblical truths? Is the church more concerned about appearing in step with the rest of the world, than it is with upholding God's holy commands? Does the bible prophesy about times such as these? Parallels can indeed be drawn between today's church, and that of the church of Laodicea, found in the Revelation Of John. Let's start by reading that text, found in the third chapter, beginning at verse 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. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. 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. 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. 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 salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. 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 him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."


It would be easy to dismiss this passage of scripture, knowing that the church of Loadicea has long since disappeared. The instruction provided is as applicable in the church today as it was nearly 2000 years ago. "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." Before we delve into this very important section of scripture, it is worth noting that the church of Laodicea was once a solid, healthy church. We can infer this from Paul's letter to the Colossians where the church of Laodicea is mentioned five times. In none of these verses was there even a hint that the Laodiceans were slipping into a state of disrepute. Over time, the zeal that was evident in the young church must have been replaced with an indifferent spirit, a coolness toward things eternal. Perhaps they became proud of their wealth with a dependence on self and not the Lord. Perhaps because they did not suffer persecution, their prayer life was not strong. Does this not sound like the state of the church in the United States today? We do not suffer persecution for our faith, and we are a materialistic society that depends on the wealth that we accumulate, and not on what the Lord provides to us. I pray that this message to the Laodiceans is hear loud and clear by Christians today.

The first thing that jumps out is that the Lord knows their deeds, which is another way of saying, "I know what you've done, and the motives behind those actions. You think you're doing great and wonderful things, but I know better." The Lord knows and searches our hearts. He knows not only our deeds, but why we have done them. He is not impressed by deeds that appear wonderful on the outside, but have motives other than for the glory of God. The church of Laodicea was obviously once a church that was richly blessed. The apostle Paul wrote a letter to the Laodiceans, but it was not deemed to be inspired by the Holy Spirit as so many of his other letters were, so we do not see it in our bibles today. Paul also mentions the Laodiceans in his letter to the Colossians (2:1, 4:13,15,16). He provides no hint that the Laodicean church is less than sound. Therefore I don't think I would be treading on thin ice by presuming the this was once a strong, vibrant church that was on fire for the Lord much in the same way as the church at Corinth or Colosse. The Laodiceans were probably proud of their former character, and relied on this reputation to continue to give an outward appearance of being a solid church.

We can also see that they were neither "cold nor hot," indifferent might be a good description of their condition. I often think of the time we spend in prayer as a good indication of our spiritual condition. My children got into the habit of saying a bed-time prayer like, "Now I lay me down to sleep…" yet this became a mindless task of rote repetition, not a time of heart-felt, fervent praise and worship of the Lord. When we recognized that their prayer had become a time of "going through the motions," we encouraged them to abandon the memorized prayers and tell the Lord just how thankful they were, how much they loved him, and intercessions for friends and family members who were in need. It was amazing to see the spiritual growth once they began to actually talk to God. The same can happen in our worship at church. If you have been in a church with a liturgical service, you know how easy it is to come in, Sunday after Sunday, and say all the right words, yet your mind is on something else. We say all the right things, yet we do not say them with a conviction, or with all your heart mind and strength - a concept that would be foreign to a Laodicean. They were not so cold as to stop praying, worshiping, or believeng the gospel. If they had, the Lord could have convicted them of their error, and brought revival and repentance.

The Laodicean church was noted for its pride and self-sufficiency, having said, "I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing." Compare this with the churches today in China and other oppressed areas of the world. In these araes, the Christians need God. They do not have material posessions or comfort. They are impoverished, oppressed, and yet, are on fire for the Lord who is their rock and their redeemer.

Another sign of lukewarmness is the attitude toward sin. We all know that God hates sin, but what about us? Do we have churches today that are so liberal as to be permissive about things that the bible clearly teaches are wrong? Many a church has become indifferent to sin, a gathering place for people who want an easy religion which enables them to enjoy the pleasures of sin, yet having an aire of piety due to their church-going status? Indeed, these churches make it so easy - the member is not expected to help out much, pray much, or live a life worthy of the Lord; where the ministers/pastors/priests are not so clear in their message of salvation and sin, but rather are concerned with the entertainment value of their sermon. Such churches are proud of their clever preacher, and as for his doctrine and hunger for saving souls, well, that's all secondary.

So what really is the danger of being in such a lukewarm state? Christ says he will spit them out of his mouth! They disgust the Lord. What does it mean to be in his mouth? We are the very words of Christ to the world. The church is his mouthpiece, testifying of himself to the world. When the church ceases to be a good witness, Christ threatens to spit them out of his mouth. It would be a dreadful day, to be spit out of His mouth. In his warning to the church of Ephesus, Christ said, Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do thy first works, or else I will come unto thee quickly and remove thy candlestick out of thy place, lest thou repent." (Rev 2:5, KJV) Indeed, this is exactly what happened - there is nothing left of the church of Ephesus, in fact the entire city lies in ruins. A sobering testimony for those of us who follow in those footsteps.



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