The Cost Of Whatever

INTRODUCTION

“This isn’t a sermon I wrote for you but it’s one God first preached to me.”

A few months ago, on a Tuesday, I came home tired. I told myself, “I’ll pray later.” I scrolled for “just five minutes,” answered a few texts, and let the Bible sit untouched on the table. My wife asked, “Are we going to prayer tonight?” and I heard myself say, “Whatever—maybe tomorrow.” Later I looked at my calendar: meetings, sermons, ministry—busy but not burning. I wasn’t cold. I wasn’t hot. I was… comfortable. And the Holy Spirit whispered, “Maurice, comfort is costing you My nearness.”

Bridge: Have you ever been there? You still come to church. You still love God. But your prayers are thin, your Bible is closed, and your “yes” to Jesus has become “maybe later.” You’re not rebelling—you’re just lukewarm.

Tension line:

“The devil doesn’t need you to say No to Jesus—‘Whatever’ is enough.”

Transition: There’s a church in the Bible that lived there—Laodicea. Let’s hear what Jesus said to them, and to us. Open with me to Revelation 3:15–20.

Read Revelation 3:15–20 “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! 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. So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference. “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.”

Pray briefly: “Open our eyes; set our hearts on fire.”

1-minute context for Laodicea: wealthy city; famous black wool and eye-salve; water arrived tepid—a picture of spiritual condition.

City profile: wealthy banking center; famous for black wool textiles and a medical school producing eye-salve (Phrygian powder).

Water picture: nearby Hierapolis (hot springs) and Colossae (cold, refreshing). Laodicea’s piped water arrived tepid—useful metaphor for spiritual condition (3:16).

Last of 7 letters (Rev 2–3); most severe rebuke, yet rich promises (3:18–21).

Jesus confronts complacency, offers refined faith (gold), righteousness (garments), and spiritual perception (eye-salve), and seeks restored table fellowship (3:20).

Big Idea

Lukewarm faith quietly robs us of presence, clarity, and authority, but Jesus stands at the door to rekindle any heart that will repent and reorder.

I. We have to Diagnose the “Whatever” Spirit (What it is)

Revelation 3:15 ““I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other!”

Revelation 3:17 “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.”

A. Two flavors

Indifference = “I don’t care.”

The priest…

Luke 10:31–32 ““By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.”

Lukewarm = “I care… just not enough to change.”

Matthew 13:22 “The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced.”

B. Three symptoms of a “whatever” spirit.

Detached devotion

Isaiah 29:13 “And so the Lord says, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote.”

Its when you your actions don’t line up with your words.

Minimal obedience

James 4:17 “Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.”

Comfort-first choices

Luke 9:23 “Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.”

C. Root: self-reliance & misdiagnosis

Revelation 3:17 “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.”

Its when we think that we don’t need a thing that we are missing the one thing.

We need to realize that…

Being neutral toward Christ is, in practice, a “no” to Christ.

Transition: “Once we name it, we can see what it’s costing us.”

II. We have to decide, Is it worth it? (What it steals)

Revelation 3:18–20 “So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference. “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.”

Matthew 13:22 “The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced.”

A. Presence — Jesus outside the door (3:20): distance from fellowship. B. Clarity — need for ointment for your eyes (3:18): dull discernment. C. Authority & Purity — gold/garments (3:18): weak witness, thin power. D. Fruitfulness — “crowded out” life (Matt 13:22): busy but barren.

Comfort is costly: it trades nearness for numbness.

Lukewarm coffee—neither soothing nor refreshing.

Transition: “Christ doesn’t just expose; He counsels and heals.”

III. Take the Cure (How Jesus restores)

Not everyone likes to take the medicine the dr prescribes….

Revelation 3:19–20 “I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference. “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.”

2 Timothy 1:6 “This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you.”

A. Repent — Remember → Repent → Repeat first works .

Revelation 2:5 “Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don’t repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches.”

B. Renounce — break agreements with apathy, cynicism, hurry.

Psalm 66:18 “If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.”

Hebrews 12:1 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”

C. Reorder rhythms (free, but costly to pride):

Word that burns Jeremiah 20:9 “But if I say I’ll never mention the Lord or speak in his name, his word burns in my heart like a fire. It’s like a fire in my bones! I am worn out trying to hold it in! I can’t do it!”

Prayer & fasting Acts 6:4 “Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word.” Matthew 6:16 ““And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get.”

Worship as surrender Romans 12:1 “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”

Community that stirs Hebrews 10:24–25 “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”

Witness & service Matthew 28:19–20 “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.””

Revelation 3:19–21 “I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference. “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne.”

Condition: “Be diligent and turn from your indifference” (3:19)

Promise: I will come in and dine (3:20) now; sit with Me (3:21) then.

Tension line: You can’t have regeneration without repentence.

“What does a rekindled life actually look like next week?”

IV. Live the “Whatever You Say, Lord” Life (Marks)

We need to stop the “Whatever” and say, “Whatever you say, Lord.”

Romans 12:11 “Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.”

A. Quick obedience Psalm 119:60 “I will hurry, without delay, to obey your commands.” B. Sacrificial love John 13:34–35 “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

C. Bold witness Acts 4:20 “We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”

D. Holy hunger Psalm 42:1–2 “As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?”

Tension line: Whatever you are passionate for your is where your time and money are invested.

Conclusion & Call (2–3 minutes)

Name the drift (I).

Acknowledge the cost (II).

Take the cure (III).

Commit to the marks (IV).