To the Church in Laodicea

Mission and Vision

So glad to be back home

Thank you to our guest preacher last week… Anneleise!

Today we are wrapping up our sermon series titled dear church

The 7 letters to the churches in reveleation

Laodicea

Context

Laodicea was a very wealthy city in this time

They were the swiss bankers of the Roman empire

There was also a very profitable textile industry in Laodicea where a fine black wool was woven in to clothing

They had a medical center that created a salve that was used as healing for the eyes

Also… the city was located equidistant from Colossae and a city called Hierapolis

Hierapolis had a natural hot springs that served as a spa for those in the area

Colossae had a natural spring that had cool drinking water

Scholars believe that Laodicea piped in water from hot springs and from drinking springs into the city

Of course the cold water would heat up along the path and the hot water would cool giving the city lukewarm water

We see all of this come into play in this letter

Laodicea is one of the churches that only has rebuke in Christ’s message to them

He doesn’t pull any punches with this church so lets dive into the scripture

Jesus starts by telling us something about himself that is going to be important to what we are about to hear

The words of the Amen

Amen means and Let it be so

Jesus is the fulfillment, the conclusion, the amen to all of God’s promises and to all his authority

The Buck Stops Here

The faithful and true witness

Speaking again of his divinity.

the faithful and true… being one that can be held as true

The one who co-signs on God’s creation

The beginning of God’s creation

This isn’t saying that Jesus is a created being

The word in Greek Archay αρχη Means origin, ruler or beginning

This means in the creation it all starts with Jesus. It’s like saying the alpha and the omega

He is the ruler of all creation, the most important thing in all creation

Jesus isn’t saying that he is a created being but that for created beings he is preeminent

His word, his truth, his rebuke… who He is is more important and must take the front seat to anything else in all creation

I know your works

WE see the pattern

No hiding from God who is preeminent in all thing

You are neither cold nor hot

This is preached a lot to say that you need to be hot and not cold

People use this passage to point to being on fire for the lord and to being either pursuing Christ or Rejecting Christ

This is why context is so important

Hot for healing… Cold for Drinking… lukewarm is good for nithing

I wish that you were one or the other… either be good at healing or be refreshing… be effective is what he’s saying

whatever you’re good at… do it well

Whatever I’ve blessed you to be, do it to the best of your ability

Don’t do this halfway thing

he says that because you are neither good at one thing nor the other… I’m going to spit

better translation would be vomit

I’m going to throw up

Any one ever seen the little rascals from the 90’s?

Dear darla, I hate your stinking guts. You make me vomit. You are scum between my toes. Love alphalpha

Jesus isn’t saying all that. But what he is saying is that the tepidness of your good-enough churchgoing is sickening

You’re not doing anything well

You’re just good enough… But you’re sense of good enough aint good enough

For you say I’m rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing

We see over and over again in these letters that the church to which we are speaking has taken on so much of the identity of the town they are in

The negative that is in the town… the identity that the town prides itself on becomes the identity of the church

Instead of standing out and being a light for Christ in that space, the church becomes a meeting place for the worldly ideas of that region and manifests as a social club saying that they are the church

This church was acting just like the town where it was placed

They thought because their tithes were coming in, because the new building plan came through, because they could expand their children’s wing… that they were good

They identified the gifts that they had been blessed with, primarily monitarily, and they mistook them for the giver who is the true source of all wealth

They thought that because they didn’t have a financial need that they were doing okay

This is so like us… if we have money we’re good. If we don’t were not

But the kingdom of God doesn’t act like the world

Jesus says Not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor...

I don’t care how much money you have if you are not rich in the things that matter you are poor and pitiable

If you are the wealthiest person in the room and yet you don’t have Christ… you are in fact the one to be pitied

Jesus says it like this… What good is it to gain the whole world and loose your soul?

I don’t care how good your church looks on the outside… Jesus sees the heart and says you guys are wretched.

So what you have the who’s who of whoville?

So what everyone in your midst drives a brand new chariot with golden wheels… who cares!

You are still wretched. And no amount of outward shining up can clean the heart

Jesus called the religious people of his day whitewashed tombs

The outside may look nice but the inside is nothing but death

He also says you are blind and naked

Remember that Laodicea had a happening arts and fashion district with a distinct clothing that made the town lots of money

They also had the famous eye salve that helped people see

Jesus is using these physical things that the church people took so much pride in and called them the weaknesses that they truly were

Don’t care how much clothing you have on… I see through all that and if you are not clothed in righteousness… then you are naked and ashamed

I don’t care how good your health is…if you are not walking by the light of the lord you are blind

Jesus tells them to buy from Jesus godl refined by fire so that you may be rich

purchase at the cost of yourself something that cannot be taken

When you buy something there has to be a transaction

Jesus isn’t asking for money… he’s telling the people of God to lay down the broken and blind and naked self serving person they are and recieve from Jesus a wealth that has been tested and will never let you down

Refined gold is pure. It’s worth more

Jesus is telling us to stop waisting our time our resources on things that aren’t worth as much

An white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen

Again the town had a black wool that they were famous for

Jesus isn’t saying that black is bad and white is good

He’s using the color white as a symbol for purity and for righteousness

Stop putting your trust in the things of this world to try to hide your shame

Your reputation, your ability, your image, your family, your self-righteousness

Instead cover yourself in the purity of Christ.

Cover your shame and your nakedness in his grace and his mercy

The righteousness of Christ that is imputed… that is given to you. Rest in that and not in what you think you can do for yourself

And salve to annoint your eyes so that you may see

again using an earthly reality to point to a heavenly one

You think youre good because you got eye drops… but you still can’t see

instead you need to annoint yourself or be annointed by the spirit so that you can see the things of the Lord

So that you can view things as they truly are and not through the corruption of the flesh and this broken world

Those who i love i reprove and discipline...

Jesus wounds to heal

he only rebukes those who he is calling back into relationship

If you are feeling conviction… that is not Nick Smith. That is God bringing conviction into your life so that you can repent

So that you can come back into relationship and not be cast off not be lost

Behold he stands and knocks

That tugging at your heart is Christ knocking and asking for you to respond. To open the door so that he may come in and eat and commune and be one with you

The one who conquers will be given rest and authority and rule

Jesus says just as I sat down with my father you will sit with me on my throne

You will be able to not have to work and strive and stress and try by your own might but you can rest in the righteousness of Christ’s might.