The Faithful and True Witness
Notes
Transcript
The Big Idea
The Big Idea
The Big Idea: God disciplines His people; therefore, the church must return with zeal to dependency on and intimacy with Jesus.
Sermon Structure
Sermon Structure
Structure of the Sermon
Introduce you to the church
Call your attention to the truth about Jesus
Weigh the implications of the truth for the church both then and now.
Sermon Text: Revelation 3:14-22
“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.
“ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.
I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.
Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ”
The Church of Laodicea | Self Sufficient
The Church of Laodicea | Self Sufficient
The letter to the church of Laodicea possesses one of if not the most recognizable or familiar passages in this series of letters. Most if not all of you have heard Revelation 3:20 or at least a reference to it by a pastor or teacher. It says
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
Many have used this verse to make various points, but if we are to really understand it and its significance we must understand that this verse functions as the solution to the problem identified by Jesus in the church of Laodicea. Jesus is addressing an issue; he is bringing an accusation or an indictment against the church. Verse 20 is the solution. This forces us to ask the question, “What does Jesus have against the church?”
Unlike in the other six letters, Jesus acknowledges nothing good in the church at Laodicea. Jesus acknowledged that Ephesus was “enduring patiently and bearing up for [his] name’s sake (Rev. 2:3). He commended Smyrna for their faithful endurance of tribulation and poverty. He mentioned how Pergamum held “fast to [his] name” even though they dwelled in the locale of Satan’s throne. He pointed out how the church at Thyatira had grown in their works, and how even the lifeless church at Sardis possessed a few who remained unstained by the world. In the letter to Philadelphia Jesus spoke of how they did not deny his name nor abandoned his word. The inclusion of something positive in every letter would bring us to this text expecting at least some minor note pinpointing some positive aspect in the church of Laodicea. Instead, Jesus goes straight to the problem and never shifts away from it.
We find the issue at Laodicea in Revelation 3:15-17
“ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.
As in the other letters, Jesus says I know you; therefore, what I am about to say is a true, accurate assessment. Not only does Jesus know them, but what he knows about them makes him disgusted. Just as they might spit out with disgust room temperature water, so he finds them disgusting.
Coming Home to Hadley
One of the happiest moments of my day occurs immediately after I walk through the front door. As soon as I walk through the door Hadley my two year old will drop whatever she is doing immediately; she will declare to the rest of the house and the neighbors, “Daddy is home!” While repeating her proclamation she will rush through the house slowing down only to tip toe around any perceived obstacles in the floor and come crashing into my leg with arms wide open. Her excitement is heart melting, and it is an effective way to get daddy wrapped around her finger.
For her Daddy coming home is good news. She is ready to sit with me. She is ready to talk with me. She is ready to play. Most of the time her excitement is met with open arms by me. Im ready to pick her up and reunite with her. Her anticipated joy at my presence finds fulfillment in my coming home. However, sometimes her excitement at my presence quickly turns into something different. Sometimes when I come home she is not greeted with excitement and playfulness from dad. Sometimes I have to come in the door and say, “I know your works. I know what you did today. Your mommy called me on the way home and told me how you acted and what you did!”
It’s funny how, I do not even have to identify what she did. My knowledge is enough to instantaneously change her mood.
I imagine that is the effect this letter had on the church at Laodicea. Perhaps they read through the first six letters growing with anticipation as they wondered, “What is Jesus going to say about us!” As we will see they had a pride problem. Maybe they even thought the opposite would be true. Maybe they thought that when they got to their letter they would find all the good things Jesus had to say about them. Maybe they thought that Jesus would have nothing bad to say.
I could be wrong, but I suspect the way Jesus starts this letter had a similar effect on the church at Laodicea that my knowledge sometimes has on my two year old. They open this letter from Jesus and Jesus takes a serious tone and gives a very sad announcement. “You disgust me!”
The reason he is disgusted in found in Revelation 3:17.
For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.
Now, we could pull this sentence apart and take a very in-depth look at each one of these characteristics. We see that they think they are rich, prosperous, and independent. In reality they are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked. I have dug into each one of these and I encourage you to maybe do the same this coming week. There is much to be learned. However, today I just want to put my finger on what I believe to be Jesus’ overall point and issue rather than these characteristics of the issue. The issue I think Jesus is getting at is the issue of “self-sufficiency.” If I understand the text right, Jesus is looking at the church of Laodicea and he is saying, “You disgust me, and the reason you disgust me is because you boast in your self sufficiency.”
Laodicea was a rich, wealthy and secure place. They had the type of pride that when an earthquake demolished their city they refused help from outside the city. They said, “No, we will rebuild ourselves. We are fine! We need no one’s help.” Apparently the church shared the wealth and the pride of the city in which they lived.
The claims concerning themselves tells us a few things about the proud and self sufficient.
They consider themselves secure and satisfied - “I am rich!” they say. With riches come two primary things - security and freedom, freedom to do what pleases you. If you want something, you can buy it and indulge yourself. There is no limit when you are “rich.” At the same time, you have nothing to fear. If something unforeseen comes along, you are prepared. You go to your bank and make a withdrawal. Your way of life is not under threat because you are rich!
They consider themselves wise - “We are prosperous!” they say. Prospering is tied to discernment. We know one is wise because from his decisions comes good effects. We call the good effects of decision making prosperity. Wise people flourish, they thrive, they prosper! We express this sentiment of understanding when we examine the effects of someone’s work - maybe they have lots of stuff, maybe they have built their team into a dynasty, or maybe their business continues to grow - when we see this we say things like, “They must be doing something right!” Or, “They must know what they are doing!” How do we come to such a conclusion? Because we see they are prospering and we conclude they must be wise!
They consider themselves independent - Convinced of their security and freedom along with their wisdom they announce, “We have no need!” This is certainly not a claim that needs never arise, but an assertion that when a need does arise they have the capacity in and of themselves free of all outside assistance to obtain it. It is a boast in their self sufficiency. The church at Laodicea had come to the conclusion that in their own power they could meet any need or satisfy any want they had without looking outside themselves for anything.
Not only do we learn about the self-sufficient from their claims, but Jesus’ right assessment of them reveals a few other characteristics.
They are miserable. That is what wretched in this verse means. What comes to mind when you think of “miserable.” Have you ever been miserable? What we need to understand about the self sufficiency is that it always leads to misery. The reason the self sufficient are miserable is that self-sufficiency is a lie. It is a falsehood. It is such an obvious falsehood, that even those who pound their chest as the church at Laodicea and boast in themselves, they know they cannot secure themselves. Everything around you suggest you are not in control. You cannot meet your own needs. You cannot secure your future. Sure you can have an appearance of togetherness. You can seem to the outside world that you have it all together that You have all your ducks in a row. You are well setup. But, when you retreat to solitude in the car on the way to work, or when you retire to your pillow for the night, the thought of all the scenarios which remain out of your control haunt you. What if.......? Do you see? God has surrounded you with all forms of evidence that in a moment all your wisdom and all your resources can be brought to nothing. This makes the self-sufficient miserable, for they know, regardless of their proclamations, that their riches and their wisdom cannot secure and maintain the meeting of their needs and wants.
They are pitiable. This description must have stung the prideful Laodiceans. To be pitiable is to be in a place that stirs up pity or compassion in those who encounter you. When you look on a prince robed in his fine linen and standing at his castles door you do not feel pity. You might feel jealousy. You might feel awe. You might day dream about what it might be like to be him with all the resources and freedom and power and security he possesses. What you do not feel for the prince is compassion. On the other hand, when you see the poor and powerless you do not feel jealousy or admiration. You do not day dream about how nice it would be to join them on their endeavors to sort through the trash for food. You do go home and make plans to exchange your closet full of clothes to put on their rags. You do not go quit your job to join them on the street corner begging for bread. No, what you do feel - if you believe you are truly lookin at one in need - you feel pity. You feel compassion.
Do you see what Jesus is saying here? He is bursting the bubble of the Laodiceans. He is saying you are not princes to be admired. You are beggars to be pitied.
They are poor. Do you know what fools gold is? It looks like gold. When people stumble upon it, they think they have found something extremely valuable. For a moment or more they think, “I am rich! We are rich!” The thought of possessing something so valuable leads to assumption that moving forward they are secure and that they will spend the rest of their life purchasing and enjoying what makes them happy. In reality, however, they have nothing. The currency of this world is temporary and holds no value in the eternal age to come. The riches of this world act as a fools gold. They give a sense of security where there is no security. They promise the ability to indulge in pleasure which is actually poison.
They are blind. Remember they thought they were wise, but Jesus comes and says, “No, you are not. You are blind men leading blind men and together you will fall into the pit of destruction.” You cannot perceive truth from falsehood. Your version of the real world is clouded. Because they are blind they do not see their riches clearly. They do not see their current situation clearly. They perceive not the soon coming of Christ clearly. They have misread everything!
They are naked. In Scripture this could have many connotations, but I think the best way to understand this is through the lens of the rest of the book of Revelation and we find a major clue in Revelation 16:15-16. This passage is given in the context of God coming to judge with wrath.
Jesus says,
(“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”)
And they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
This leads me to believe the reference to the church’s nakedness is a reference to their unpreparedness. Jesus is about to come to their home and pay a visit. And if he came on this day, he would find them laying around in their boxers watching tv in a messy house. Do we not all know this shame? Have you not had an unexpected guest knock on the door producing instantly a tinge of anxiousness in your soul? Is the toilet clean? Is their anything embarrassing like underwear out in the open? Does the kitchen at least look like we do dishes every once in awhile? Do I have pants on? When we are caught unexpectedly, we are found unprepared and exposed. The result is shame. This is what Jesus is saying. He is saying I am coming, and you are naked. You are unprepared. And, when I arrive it will not be good for you for your shame will be evident to all!
The church had tasted success and prosperity leading them to conclude they were good. They had all they needed. But the success, the prosperity had blinded them from the truth and left them exposed and vulnerable at the return of Christ. They went about their lives relying on themselves.
Unless they changed, they would remain unprepared for Christ.
Truth | God Disciplines Those He Loves
Truth | God Disciplines Those He Loves
As in each of the letters, John calls to the mind of the church a specific truth about God that addresses the problem. In this case, John tells us to look at Jesus, “the Amen, the faithful and true witness, and beginning of God’s creation.” Rev. 3:14.
“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.
This description of Jesus is a call to the book of Isaiah, specifically chapters 43 and 65. I wish I had time to walk through each of these texts, but for now I will just summarize what I believe is the significance of this description.
God will discipline you.
God will discipline you.
Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.
Frustrated plans
Unpredictable Tragedy
Exposed Sin
God in his mercy crushes your idols.
God will extend his hand.
God will extend his hand.
I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here I am, here I am,” to a nation that was not called by my name.
I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices;
God will deal with you according to your response.
God will deal with you according to your response.
The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ”
God will be effective.
God will be effective.
Instruction | Return to Jesus
Instruction | Return to Jesus
Returning to Jesus includes dependency on and intimacy with Jesus. Each of us has a decision to make. Will we take our lives into our own hands. Will we look to self to seek our security and satisfaction? Will we lean on our own wisdom rather than acknowledge God? Will we respond to God extended hand with, “No that is ok, I am good?”
I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
Self-Sufficiency and Pride makes communing with Jesus difficult on several fronts.
What makes coming to Jesus so hard?
Grace offends pride.
Dependency requires trust.
Intimacy demands clarity.
Fellowship hinders freedom
Exultation follows Condescension