We find that urgent concerns have a tendency to crowd out important matters. In the book of Revelation, the Apostle John identified several ways that churches may go astray and lose sight of what is most important. The church at Laodicea was an example of a church that was materially rich, but spiritually poor. The people had become inured to the ways of the world. They were neither hot nor cold but lukewarm.

Why is it unacceptable to be lukewarm? Laodicea had a form of godliness, but they denied it’s power. They appeared good on the outside, but they had lost their spiritual passion and zeal. Jesus’ warning to the church at Laodicea could apply to many of our churches today. Jesus identified the problem and He proposed a remedy:

Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. (Revelation 3:19)

At times God may appear to be a difficult taskmaster, but it is because He loves us. God loves us as we are, but He loves us too much to leave us as we are. The word reprove means to reveal sin so that it results in conviction. The word discipline was a common word used to chastise children. Rather than being lukewarm, the church needed to be zealous for God. This required that they repent of their complacency. Jesus then offered an invitation to renew fellowship and intimacy with Himself:

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. (Revelation 3:20)

The word stand is in the perfect tense indicating that Jesus has been waiting for us to respond. The word knock is in the present tense that signifies a continuous action. Jesus wants a deeper relationship with us. The antecedent to a deeper relationship with Jesus starts with us hearing Him. Our world can be so noisy and our schedules so busy, that we don’t hear Him. We must take time and be still so that we are able to hear the still, small voice of God.

We must also open the door. The door represents opening our lives to experience fellowship with God. Jesus wants to be at the center of our lives, not on the outside. Do we realize that Jesus is standing at the door of our lives? Dining conveys the idea of intimate fellowship. Jesus indicates that we will experience fellowship and intimacy with Him as we invite Christ into the center of our lives.

The church at Laodicea could take comfort in the fact that Christ wrote them a letter of warning because it indicated His love and concern for them. They were not beyond His loving care and neither are we. We too, have a responsibility to hear and respond to Jesus’ appeal to come into our lives.

Rick Higgins

Associate Pastor – Discipleship.  The Church at LifePark