The Kind of Church The Devil Wants
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Moving into 2021, I’m interested in Shining Light Baptist Church becoming the kind of church that God wants, unfortunately though, it’s easier to become the kind of church the Devil wants.
I’m interesting in being and doing everything that God wants, and being pleasing to Him, making much of Him, and making His name known throughout this community! He gives us examples in the Bible of what we are to do and what we are not to do. Tonight, we will look at a church that we should be like, but this morning, I want to focus on a church we should try very hard to never, ever be like.
At the end of today, I want you to search yourselves and answer the question of which church is Shining Light Baptist Church more like?
This is not easy to preach, but it’s what the Lord has given me, and so it is what I will give to you.
This passage before us contains the last of seven letters the Lord Jesus sent to the seven churches of Asia Minor. This letter is harsher than all the others. The Lord Jesus comes to this church with no words of blessing and no words of commendation. He examines this church and sees nothing in it that is worthy of praise.
Laodicea was famous for three things: Finance, Fashion, and Pharmaceuticals.
Laodicea was a very important city. The church that existed in Laodicea was important as well. It was very important to God. This church was the human representation of the invisible God. How the church was perceived, was how God would be perceived. That is why the spiritual condition of every local church is important to God.
The Lord’s words to this church are particularly relevant in our day. Churches like Laodicea, dominate the landscape in our world. We need to look at our church and place it alongside the church of Laodicea. We need to compare this church to that church, and see if there are any similarities between us and them. If there are, then we need to deal with those areas and bring them into line with God’s Word and His will.
It’s easy to tell if a church has inherited a Laodicean mindset. The characteristics of that kind of church are revealed here. Laodicea was definitely the kind of church the Devil wants us to have...
The Problem
The Problem
I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
Go back to verse 14 real quick, Jesus is “the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;” Jesus is God’s “Amen” or “yes” to all his promises. Notice though, “the church OF the Laodiceans” - In all of the letters to the churches in Rev. 2-3, it’s important to notice whether it says OF or IN…On most of them, it says, the church IN…then the name of the city…You want to know what significance that has?
It means the difference between the Lord’s church or not... In Laodicea, it was their church, and not the Lord’s! It was their church and they did as they pleased, not considering either the will, or the word, of the Lord.
As a result the church is effectively useless.
Revelation 3:15–16 refers to the water from the hot springs in nearby Hierapolis which were channelled to Laodicea. By the time the water reached the city it was lukewarm—too cool to heal, too warm to refresh.
Jesus tells them, that like the water in their city, they have become lukewarm. This means they have lost their passion for the Lord. They were indifferent and apathetic. They were going through the motions, but they were unmoved by the things of the Lord. They were indifferent toward the things of God. The cross of Jesus; the Word of God; and the condition of the lost people around them no longer moved them. They were not burning with passion for Jesus, but neither were they totally dead and cold. They were somewhere in between. Their condition was sickening to the Lord!
For the most part, church people are no longer moved by the cross! We read about the crucifixion, we hear about it, and we sit unmoved! We know people are lost and we know they are going to Hell, but we really don’t care. We say, “That’s terrible, I wish they would get saved.” We don’t pray or witness; We really don’t care! As long as the members of our immediate family profess to be saved; we are satisfied.
We enter the church, we take our seats, and we are finished. We lack a desire pray. We lack a will to testify and praise the Lord. We just come and go. We are satisfied with one or two services a week, if we can make it. We are not moved by the need of the lost, the need of the church, or the will of the Lord. We are here, but just barely.
Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
This verse tells us that we need to remember how we see ourselves and how He sees us may be two different things altogether.
Many churches are right here today. There is a sense that they have arrived. If the Lord walked into the average church today and told them that they needed to get right with Him, they would be offended. If He encouraged them to get on fire for God, they would say, “Look at us and all we have! We are doing fine and we need nothing!”
The sad truth is that some get more excited about money in the bank than they do souls on the altar.
We need more than money; crowds; buildings; recognition in the community; more than many of the things in which we place such great value. Church we need Jesus and we need what He can do for us!
I would rather have Jesus, His presence and His power than anything material you can name!
We need Him! We must seek Him! We must welcome Him! We must worship Him! We must honor Him! We must follow Him! We must obey Him!
Why should the Lord desire that they be cold rather than lukewarm? The word "cold" in the Greek language does not mean once hot and now grown cold. The meaning of this word is "dead."
The Greek word for "hot" means "at a boiling point."
Jesus was saying to this church, "Instead of being lukewarm, if they were so cold to feel the bitterness, severity, and deadness of the cold, they would flee to the true warmth of Christ for refuge."
Jesus would rather they be either spiritually dead or boiling hot for Him.
God's greatest desire is that we be on fire for Him. This church did not deny the Gospel. Their major problem lay in the fact that they were not hot.
They had no enthusiasm, no emotion, no zeal, no urgency, no commitment for Christ. They had religion without power.
The Plan
The Plan
I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Jesus tells them where they can find all they need to fix their problem...
Just as Jesus had described their problem in terms He knew they would understand well, He now describes His Plan in terms He knew they would understand...
Jesus talks the language of merchants when He tells them to buy gold tried in fire. The gold is figurative of the righteousness of God that is produced by trials in our life.
The righteousness of Christ would make them rich.
Lukewarmness leaves a person spiritually naked. Jesus told them to buy of Him white raiment. The fancy wool garments that they were known for making were not sufficient for their spiritual problems. They put so much emphasis on outer garments and neglected to clothe their souls. White raiment was a picture of the righteousness of Christ. They were proud of their own righteous deeds, but the Lord considers those as filth.
For their spiritual blindness, Jesus told them to anoint themselves with eye salve. They were in need of having their eyes spiritually opened for they did not comprehend or see the true condition of their church. Spiritual perception is needed today too. God gives discernment through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit.
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
This church was in need of repentance and chastening to wake it up. God's instructions were to be zealous, to be on fire for Him. He wanted to fellowship with these people and be close to them, but they had to open their lives up to Him. The Lord is a gentleman. He does not force His way into our life.
Jesus is saying all of this because he loves them, and He wants the best for them! I’m thankful He doesn’t just do what they did, and push them out of His mind! Isn’t it just like our precious Savior!
He tells the TRUTH! And the TRUTH sometimes hurts, it hurts real bad, but He does it in order to save, He does it in order to heal! He doesn’t do it to make anyone angry, He doesn’t do it to turn anyone away, He does it so they people can see their condition and do something about it!
This leads us to...
The Promise
The Promise
There’s a Call to Open Up
There’s a Call to Open Up
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
The Lord Jesus is pictured outside the church wanting to get in. The church at Laodicea had excluded the King. They had no place for Jesus in their midst. The verb knock is in the continuous present tense. That means that Jesus is always standing and always knocking. This is a sad picture of much of the professing church today. The Lord Jesus is trying to get into the church buildings, into our homes, into our lives, into our hearts.
I recently read a church sign that says what many people believe today. On the church sign it read: In this New Year let Jesus be part of your life. That is the problem with the church today. All we have done is let Jesus be a part of our lives. The Word of God calls for us to die to ourselves and deny ourselves and take up the cross and follow Jesus. The Lord Jesus is not to have just part of our lives, but He is to have all our lives. The Lord has bought us at a price and we belong to Him totally and completely.
He's not only at the door knocking—He's at the door calling out! The Lord says that if anyone hears His voice. What is the Lord saying—He's saying repent—open up your heart and let me in! He's saying “I am at the door—let Me in!”
Did you pick up on that? The church only gets right by the individual getting right!
Jack Hyles wrote, “Just one person can turn the tide sometimes. If just one person would get on fire, many churches would get on fire.”
There’s a Call to Overcome
There’s a Call to Overcome
To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
The Lord Jesus gives a great promise to those who overcome. Those who overcome will be granted the right to sit with the Lord on His throne. He will honor the Christians and lift up the Christians.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Every Christian is confronted on a daily basis with the question, ‘What will we do with Jesus?' Some of us will surrender to Him and serve Him, while others will rebel against Him and run from Him. When we love Jesus Christ with all of our hearts then it will be impossible for us to be lukewarm.
Are you saved by His grace? Was there a day when the Lord convicted you of your sins, called you to Himself and saved your soul?
Are you zealous for God and committed to the Lord and His work? Do you get excited about the Bible, the church and prayer? Does the thought of sharing the Gospel and seeing others saved thrill your soul?
Are you indifferent and apathetic toward the things of the Lord? Could you really care less whether or not you go to church? Do you lack the desire to read the Bible, pray, to go church, share the Gospel, or serve the Lord?
Do you know that you are lost? Do you need to come to Jesus today for salvation?
Can you hear His voice calling? If you can, that is the Lord calling you to come to Him. Why not come to Him and take whatever steps He is calling you to make to day?