seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Revelation 3:14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Let's learn something new today.... This is from the easy English.
Laodicea was about 40 miles south and east of Philadelphia. It was the richest city in the region. The people there had sheep with soft black wool. The city was famous for this wool. With it, the people made clothes, which they sold. With so much wealth from farms and commerce, they had successful banks. The banks had large stocks of gold.
The people in Laodicea were proud of their medical school. The school produced a wide range of medicines. The two most famous medicines were ointments for the ears and the eyes.
There was no supply of water in the city. So, they had to bring water from about six miles away. The water came through a system of pipes. But the supply could dry up when the weather was hot.
Amen may seem a strange word to use as a description of Jesus. But the word means, ‘It is true.’ And like Jesus (Hebrews 13:8), the truth never changes. It is that which is. It is what will be. It is that which is real and permanent. The Lord Jesus calls himself the loyal and true witness. What he says is always true. He speaks what he knows. He talks about what he sees. We can believe all that he says. We can trust him.
The hot weather warmed the pipes. The water was warm, not cold or hot. It was not nice to drink. Such water made one feel sick.
The Lord said that these Christians were like the water. They were not like cold water. Cold water is good to drink. They were not like hot water. Hot water has many good uses. But they were like water that is neither cold nor hot. They were of no use to the Lord. It was as if they made him sick. He would throw them away as one does with bad water.
They had plenty of gold but they were poor. The gold from the banks was no use to God. Everything that has real value comes from God. What he gives is better than the purest gold. God told them to buy from him. We buy without price (Isaiah 55:1). We receive from God, as we believe in him.
They could buy clothes of black wool in the market. The Lord told them to buy white clothes from him. To wear white clothes means to be clean and innocent. These wonderful things can only come from the Lord. Jesus took all our sins and blame. He suffered and he died because of them. When we trust in him, he can declare us innocent. He alone can make us clean.
I had learned about the black wool they made way back when I was a kid. I remember how odd it seemed to hear people happy about all those black sheep when the Bible always had white sheep around Jesus.... in all the pictures... there aren't any black sheep.... but this town had nothing but black sheep. Isn't that odd?
Then there's the talk about the warm water..... I've moved out to Arizona.... I live in the desert right now.... I'm looking for a place up on the rim... but for now I'm in the desert near the Superstition Mountains. It was over 110 degrees for days and days and days and weeks this summer. When that happens.... the dirt gets hot. The dirt heats the pipes in the ground and no matter how long you run the water..... it's always warm in the summer.
Now I have to admit... I don't drink the water out of the tap here anyway..... it's so full of minerals... I might as well swallow a penny.... but I have, on occasion, put a little in the bottom of the glass to get a tylenol down..... and I never ever take a second gulp.... because it's nasty tasting. I know what Jesus means.... spitting it out is a natural reflex.
Hot pipes is a money saver though..... I'm just throwing this tidbit in for the "oh wow"..... we turn our hot water heater off in the late spring.... the water is warm enough... right out of the pipes to shower with. So I do understand..... when Jesus says "I wish you were hot or cold"..... I'm not thrilled about lukewarm showers in the late spring.
I'm not going to preach anymore today.... we all know that the rich aren't really rich.... and Christians who are barely making a living are richer than Bill Gates.... I think that part is evident. I will note.... no one invited Jesus to have dinner with them..... so they weren't really a "Christian" church. How many people, who lost someone in the past year to COVID... will still consider setting a plate for them at the table..... these people weren't even considering setting the plate... they were over all of that Jesus stuff.... it's all about the rich stuff... the full bank.... the fat accounts.... they had no need for prayer or kindness... they were busy making more wool....
Hot pipes heat the water...... and hot water shrinks black wool.....
This town had no real use for Jesus the Messiah...... or the Church..... This town was about hot pipes and black wool....
