Sermon Tone Analysis

Laodicea

Over the past number of weeks we have been looking at the seven churches found in the book of Revelations, chapters 2-3.

And not only have we been studying what was happening historically 19 centuries ago in the church, and what Jesus had concerns about in the church, but we have done our best to see if there is anything we can learn and apply in 2019 for our own benefit.

Or to state it another way, is there anything we are doing or not doing in the church of 2019, that Jesus spoke about 1900 years ago where we need to change?

I mention this idea of change, because we also want to remember as we go through this final study, Revelation is the only book in the Bible that promises a blessing to those who will read and obey what it says.

Today, we’re going to look at the church found in Laodicea.

And of all the churches, Laodicea, is the only church out of the seven where Jesus does not offer one single word of commendation or affirmation.

Jesus can find nothing in this church to praise them about.

As a matter of fact, the only word of hope Jesus offers to this church is a word of repentance, which is the Lord basically saying, they still have a chance to get their act together, if, they will follow Me.

Tonight, we’re going to look at the church found in Laodicea.

And of all the churches, Laodicea, is the only church out of the seven where Jesus does not offer one single word of commendation or affirmation.

Jesus can find nothing in this church to praise them about.

As a matter of fact, the only word of hope Jesus offers to this church is a word of repentance, which is the Lord basically saying, they still have a chance to get their act together, if, they will follow Him.

To give you an idea of where we are going tonight, I want you to think ahead to the warm days of summer.

And let’s say the temperature is 30-35 degrees outside.

Have you ever been to an amusement park or maybe a zoo when in that temperature outside and you are walking around or standing in a line?

It can be downright miserable can’t it?

And then somewhere along the path you see one of those misting machines.

Cool water is spraying either down or attached to a fan spraying out.

And you walk through that mist of water and you sigh “aaahhh.”

That cool mist of water feels so good doesn’t it?

It revives you for just a split second.

It’s almost like someone splashing cold water into your face or putting an ice cube down your back.

Well, in our text tonight, Jesus is going to splash some cold water into the face of the Laodiceans.

Jesus wants to wake them up because they have been drifting.

It’s similar to one of those water rides where you are buckled in and the ride twirls in circles carrying you along a rapid current with multiple waterfalls spilling and crashing down all on top of you.

That waterfall wakes you up doesn’t it?

It gets your attention.

Well, I believe Jesus was trying to get the attention of this church in Laodicea.

Well, in our Scripture today, Jesus is going to splash some cold water into the face of the Laodiceans.

Jesus wants to wake them up because they have been drifting.

It’s similar to one of those water rides where you are buckled in and the ride twirls in circles carrying you along a rapid current with multiple waterfalls spilling and crashing down all on top of you.

That waterfall wakes you up doesn’t it?

It gets your attention.

Well, I believe Jesus was trying to get the attention of this church in Laodicea.

You might say Laodicea is a church that sits on the fence because they have become complacent, with an attitude which says - I can take it or leave it, it makes no difference to me.

I'm not hot for Jesus, but neither am I coldly against Him.

And personally, I think this is a very common attitude in our community and country.

An attitude of indifference, questioning whether it really matters or not to have faith in Christ.

Or if we do believe in God, it’s a half-hearted measure, only recognizable when convenient or an emergency arises beyond our control.

In response to this attitude, we read Jesus' famous rebuke - "...because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."

Not too fetching of a picture is it?

Sort of reminds you of an old time baseball player chewing of big wad of tobacco as he spits some brown slimy crud along the base line.

When applied to the church, this rebuke from Jesus signals disgust, warning, and uselessness.

I’m going to spit you out - because I cannot use you the way you are.

Well, if you are ready, let’s finish our journey of the seven churches of Revelation as we read the Scripture together regarding our final church.

There is a story told of a man who was having trouble sleeping at night.

He tossed and turned all night long.

Telling his friend about his lack of sleep - he was offered this advice.

"Keep rolling as close as you can to the edge of the bed, you'll drop off in no time."

Here’s the connection to that horrible pun.

The church at Laodicea had a problem.

Their effectiveness as a church had dropped off.

They rolled neither one way or the other.

They weren't conservative, they weren't liberal, they didn't practice evangelism nor a social gospel.

As a church they were spiritually dead and useless.

And the question is – how did this happen?

How does a church that began spiritually alive fall away?

We believe when this church was first started, probably with Epaphras (), a fellow worker with the Apostle Paul, that the church was excited about their faith and shared the gospel to bring others to Christ.

But something happened a few generations down the line.

They became self-sufficient, confusing their material prosperity, which is a trap many of us can fall into.

(And with prosperity we can begin to drift away from God can’t we, because we really don’t need God to take care of our needs anymore?)

And slowly, inch by inch, they lost their zeal for the Lord, their purpose and mission and why they were a church.

We don’t know of any persecution they faced.

This may clue us in that their gospel message was not a threat to other beliefs, such as Jesus is one of many ways to heaven, not the only way.

Actually, many scholars wonder if they were really Christian at all, except by name.

Origen, who was an early church writer and Christian theologian dying in the third century (254 A.D.), concluded they were not born again at all.

Hot or Cold  

Jesus describes their deeds in verse 15 & 16 as lukewarm, being neither cold nor hot.

And you may find it interesting, the word lukewarm is found no where else in the entire Bible, except here, where Jesus uses it.

And this verse makes a lot more sense once you understand Laodicea utilized a six mile long aqueduct (mostly underground) from the hot springs of Hierapolis.

By the time the hot water made the 6 mile route, the water became lukewarm and distasteful, full of calcium carbonate and sediment, inducing nausea when drunk.

The people at Laodicea knew their water was poor.

And they knew Jesus was talking about their spiritual condition when He told them you are lukewarm.

You are in a distasteful condition.

I can’t use you the way you are.

When you eat at a Chinese restaurant, they offer you two drinks don’t they?

Either hot tea or ice water, because both are pleasant to drink.

But does anyone ever offer you lukewarm tap water?

No, of course not.

And why is that?

Because lukewarm water is worthless, it doesn’t satisfy.

And because Jesus says Laodicea’s spirituality is lukewarm, worthless, I believe Jesus was saying the members of this church did not know Him as Savior, they had not been born again.

They were playing church, but they did not understand what it means to be a disciple.

I believe this is what happened to John Wesley, founder of Methodism.

As a young man, Wesley tried to be a good Christian as both a minister and performing good deeds.

But he failed miserably and knew there was nothing he could do to guarantee his salvation in Christ.

Several years later, he discovered it was by God’s grace that one is saved, and his heart conversion came on May 24, 1738.

And today, if the enemy of our souls can convince people in the church to believe somehow they are a Christian simply by sitting in a pew and throwing in a couple of bucks, then the enemy has won a decisive victory.

Without being spiritually born again, baptized by the Holy Spirit, we will be useless for God’s kingdom.

Now I love what Jesus does in verses 17 & 18. Jesus uses what the Laodiceans are familiar with to make a point.

Jesus uses three areas Laodicea prided itself on.

Financial Wealth

The first area of pride was financial wealth.

From an earthly perspective, Laodicea did not have any tangible needs because it had acquired great wealth.

The city was strategically located where three major trading routes intersected, which made Laodicea a prominent center for banking.

Actually, Laodicea was so self-sufficient, that when an earthquake damaged the city in 60 A.D., the people turned down Emperor Nero’s government funding.

They would finance their own rebuilding.

[Can you imagine today a city like Detroit or in Japan turning down federal disaster assistance after an earthquake?]

           

Jesus tells the Laodiceans, you may think you are wealthy and have all you need, but spiritually you are poverty stricken.