To the Church in Laodicea (Part 12 - The Book of Revelation)

Revelation 3:14–22 (ESV) — 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. 15 “ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 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. 18 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. 19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 20 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. 21 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. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ”

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This week, our country has experienced cold, blatant violence over and over. Monday, a young girl on a train was stabbed repeatedly. Tuesday, the assassination of Charlie Kirk—our brother in the Lord, and the same day, another school shooting, and there has been more. As the days progress to the Day of Christ’s return, we will see more unrestrained hate, violence, and godlessness. This will especially increase towards all who are godly. And yet, Jesus keeps his people here—His Church, to make an impact in the midst of growing darkness, growing suffering, growing hatred, and growing ungodliness. While He keeps us here, we are to be Salt and Light—a beacon of light that God is alive and still rescues. Reference Matthew 5:13-16.

We are going to look at a church in the city of Laodicea that was not and could not make an impact in its city or the world. Jesus addresses this church, and we’ll read it in Revelation 3:14-22.

Laodicea is commonly known as the Lukewarm Church. This is the only church about which Jesus has nothing good to say. Even Sardis had a few undefiled Christians (3:4).

The church had been seduced by the harlot of Babylon, which represents the love of wealth and prestige of this world rather than fear and obedience to God.

This church defined success and worth by the unbelieving world’s definition. To this church, earthly riches equaled spiritual riches. To these Christians, outward beauty and success equaled spiritual beauty and success. We see this same view in some churches today. The measure of success is how much you have and how successful you appear.

I am unapologetic in saying to you, if a preacher talks more about money and obtaining material goods than the saving power of the blood of Jesus Christ, you can biblically judge him/her as a Laodicean. The Apostle Paul would call them an impostor and not teaching sound doctrine (2 Tim.3:13). These so-called preachers have a heart that loves this world more than the kingdom of God.

The Laodiceans considered themselves spiritually rich in the treasures of grace. The truth was, this church in Laodicea appeared and behaved more like the unbelieving culture of the day, rather than the kingdom of Christ, to which it belonged. What do I mean when I say, “appeared and behaved more like the unbelieving culture of the day”?  You can assess that yourself. What does the culture of the unbeliever today look like? It pursues and promotes self over others. It is okay with the murder of the unborn baby. It loves money and entertainment over God and others. It lusts after the flesh, covets what it does not have, uses people for selfish gain, and values the outward rather than the inward part of a person. It has no concern for the eternal. He/she lives for what he can get out of this world, with no concern for eternity. The worldly heart harbors resentment, anger, bitterness, and unforgiveness. If someone disagrees with the unbelieving worldly mindset, they are belittled, slandered, and they are counted as worthless. We have seen this mindset this week. This world loves everything more than God, and there is no fear or reverence for the God who created them and gives them air to breathe.

The heart transformed by Jesus Christ is the opposite. It begins with a surrender to the authority of Jesus Christ. That needs repeated: It begins with a surrender to the authority of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Christ goes to work. He chisels a heart to be more like Jesus. The Spirit of Christ stirs in Love, humility, kindness, patience, joy, faithfulness, gentleness, thankfulness, and other Christ-likeness. This makes a person beautiful and strong. This is what makes a person a tuned instrument in the orchestra of the Master.  Don’t you want to be a tuned instrument in the Master’s orchestra?

With that said, let’s unfold what is in this letter from Jesus Christ.

Rev. 3:14, Jesus reminds the church who He is, especially in relation to what He has to say to them. He says, ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.’

The Laodicean church’s true situation was not what it thought it was. It looked in the mirror and thought it was being a Christ-glorifying and Christ-obedient Church. It needed “the Amen, the faithful and true Witness” to tell it the hard truth.

Jesus also says that He is “the Beginning of the creation of God.” The Greek word for “beginning” means “originator” or “source.” It is like saying, “Christian, Church, you are in my kingdom because of me. Not because of you. I am the Originator and Source. Stop giving yourself kudos. Stop looking at your accomplishments and feeling good about your achievements. Stop thinking you are saved yourself, or even had any part in it.

Paul’s letter to the Colossians (also intended indirectly for Laodicea, Col. 4:16) called Christ the “beginning” as the originator and ruler over all creatures great and small (Col. 1:15–18).

We should remind ourselves that what we have and all that is around us did not come from us. The Eternal Son of God, who has always existed, is the originator and source of all good.  Why is it important to remind ourselves of this? To turn from self-reliance and turn to Christ for his inexhaustible resources. “I don’t want to rely on my abilities or my resources, or someone else’s. I want to learn to remember that God is my daily source of what I truly need. That includes my mental, physical, spiritual, occupational, and the needs in my relationships.

We move now to verses 15-18. They will make sense with some background. Laodicea was situated along a major trade route, which is why it was a wealthy city, home to bankers, financiers, and millionaires. It was the Swiss Bank of ancient times, which meant that it was a city of considerable wealth. So wealthy were the citizens of Laodicea that in A.D. 61, when a great earthquake leveled the city, leaving it in complete ruins, the city declined assistance from the Roman Emperor to rebuild. The citizens of the city rebuilt it from their own wealth. No government loans or assistance.

Additionally, Laodicea was famous for a breed of sheep that produced an extremely fine and desirable black wool. Such wool was the fashion of its social elites. Just a note to ponder, the wool was black. Later, Jesus tells them He clothes his saints with white garments.

Also, Laodicea was home to a famous school of medicine that had developed a special mixed eye salve for eye ailments.

With all of that going for them, the city had one major problem: it was located in the Lycus River basin, which was ideal for trade and transportation, but lacked a reliable water supply.  Six miles north, the city of Hierapolis had hot springs known for their medicinal value. Ten miles to the east was the city of Colosse. It had cool, pure drinking water from a nearby mountain stream. Laodicea had neither. No hot springs for medicinal purposes, or cold water for drinking. The water of the Lycus River was and remains today “lukewarm and white mud” and “nauseous and undrinkable.” Jesus picked up on this issue in writing to the Laodicean church: “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!” (Rev. 3:15). In other words, you are useless. In fact, more than useless, you are nauseating to me.

Jesus never hesitates to speak the truth to them or anyone. Notice verse 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.”

I can hear Jesus say, You are like lukewarm water. You are useless to the kingdom of God. Like hot water, you should be offering spiritual help to those who are broken, sick, and hopeless.  Like the cold waters of Colosse, you should be offering the spiritual waters to those who are spiritually thirsty for God and for the truth. But you do neither. You are neither hot nor cold. You think that because you are rich and prosperous in this world, you are rich in the kingdom of God. You think that “elbowing with the social elites” makes you special in my kingdom. You think that wearing the fashions of the day is the fashion that clothe the soul. You think that having a steady stream of income means you have no needs. But you are wrong on all accounts. Your view of reality is upside down. You do not reflect the kingdom of God. You look and act exactly like the kingdoms of this world.

I like what Richard D. Phillips adds in his commentary. “The problem was not their wealth but what their riches had done to them. Many great believers have been wealthy, such as Abraham in the Bible and such as Robert Haldane, who used his money to support a great revival in Geneva. The question is whether we hold our wealth as a stewardship from God, to be used for his glory, the good of others, and the work of the gospel. Or does wealth cause us to stop thinking about Christ’s kingdom, instead musing on earthly blessings? This was the issue in Laodicea, where God’s people boasted in their hearts and largely forgot about God and the kingdom of Christ.”

Jesus is saying to them, and to all Christians today: Your money does not address your true needs, which is the state of your soul before God. Your social circles do not make you popular and acceptable in God’s kingdom. Your tailored clothes do not hide your shame and spiritual nakedness. Your medical eye salve does not give you spiritual sight and understanding in the things of God. And going through the motions of religion is not an acceptable sacrifice to God.

Richard Phillips comments, “Notice that the Laodiceans drew their attitude from the secular culture around them. This happens frequently to Christians. In a sophisticated culture, Christians take on airs of superiority. In a patriotic setting, we become preoccupied with earthly kingdoms. Among pleasure-seekers, Christians live for the sake of the latest consumer goods. The rich arrogance of Laodicea had infected the believers’ attitudes, making them spiritually poor, blind as to heavenly realities, and disgraced by a shameful absence of good works and a faithful witness. Christians should therefore be on guard against adopting the spirit of the age and of the place where we live, instead cultivating a biblical ethos and the agenda of Jesus Christ. If we do not, the danger is so great that Jesus said he would spit the Laodicean church out of his mouth. Undoubtedly, this indicates that many in that church were not even saved. Apathetic Christianity often masks a spiritually dead unbelief. In his parable of the talents, Jesus ordered that such false professors of faith be cast “into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 25:30).[1]

Jesus’ love for them is a “tough love.” This is the truth, and Jesus speaks it out of his love for them.

He says, “Repent or I will spit you out of my mouth!” (3:16). Is this a threat to throw these believers into Hell? No. It is a threat to be severely disciplined by the Master. Verse 19, “… those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.”  This is what Hebrews 12:5-6 says, which is taken from Proverbs 3:11-12. He loves them; they are his. He disciplines his own for their good. Read Hebrews 12:7-11 and John 15:2. If the Laodicean church will not repent and return to him, He will discipline them to turn them back. He will not sit back and watch them be devoured by the enemy. That is what love does.

Isn’t it obvious that this message from Jesus applies to modern churches? We cannot be a reflection of the culture of this unbelieving world and be effective in showing them the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ. This suffering world needs to see a church that is different. They need to see a community that has something beyond this hurtful, hateful, and hellish world. They need to hear from a community of faith that there is a different way, a way that gives hope of another life. They need to see and hear that there is someone who can rescue them, wash away their shame, guilt, and regrets. They need a church to be the church.

This is the purpose of the church. We are Ambassadors from the kingdom of Christ to this dying world (2 Cor.5:20). They don’t need us to mimic them. They need the church of Jesus Christ to be the church of Jesus Christ! They need to see a clear difference in us, that we are set apart by God as holy. They need to hear a clear, different message. And the only way for a church to be this way is to be transformed and conformed by the Word of God. We need to throw off anything that repulses Christ. We need to put on holiness. We need to show the unbeliever who is driving towards eternal damnation that there is a living Savior who died for them and is ready to give them a new life with God. All they need to do is put their faith in Him by stepping to Him.

Verse 18 is Jesus’ solution to their problem. “I counsel you to buy from me …” The remedy for the Laodicean sickness comes from Jesus himself. Jesus is the remedy. Jesus is telling them to stop expecting their needs to be met from the Laodicean marketplace. The unbelieving world does not have what you need. Instead, come to me and do business. Come to me and receive grace.

No doubt Jesus had in mind the market economics expressed by Isaiah: “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price” (Isa. 55:1). To trade with Jesus is to come to him empty-handed, seeking saving blessings by his grace alone. He says to them and to us, “I have what you need. Come to me with a humble heart and believe. I will give you what you truly need.”

Dennis Johnson comments, “Laodicea’s repentance must be expressed in zeal (Rev. 3:19), which will come only when they discover their destitution and Jesus’ sufficiency. Jesus’ advice is paradoxical: When you see how poor you are, then I counsel you to “buy from me gold refined by fire … and white garments … and eye salve to anoint your eyes” (3:17–18). How can paupers buy such precious commodities? Jesus echoes the divine Marketer who spoke through Isaiah: “Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost” (Isa. 55:1). This transaction is not a conventional purchase, for only those who cannot pay may partake. Everything we need must be the free gift of the Beginning of God’s creation. Only he can clear our sight, cover our naked shame (Gen. 3:7, 21; Rev. 16:15), and make the poor rich (Matt. 5:3; Luke 1:52–53; James 2:5).”[2]

The Christians in Laodicea and we today need to realize that Jesus runs a completely different economy from that of the world. By “economy” I mean the way his kingdom operates, flows, and grows, and flourishes. His economy is by grace and faith. We obtain more grace with a humble heart. See James 4:6-8.

Augustus Toplady put it well in a hymn: Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling; Naked, come to thee for dress; helpless, look to thee for grace; Foul, I to the Fountain fly; wash me, Savior, or I die.”

I also hear the lyrics of the great hymn by Joseph Hart, “Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Wretched”: “Come, ye sinners, poor and wretched, weak and wounded, sick and sore; Jesus ready stands to save you, full of pity joined with pow’r.… Without money, without money, without money, Come to Jesus Christ and buy; come to Jesus Christ and buy.”

Let’s take a look at a well-known verse, Revelation 3:20. “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 of us have seen the painting of Jesus knocking on a door. I grew up seeing this painting in my church. The late G. Campbell Morgan tells a story of a boy viewing it and said, “Father, why don’t they open the door?” His father answered, “I don’t know; s’pose they don’t want to!” The boy answered, “No, it isn’t that. I think I know why they don’t; they all live at the back of the house!”

The boy was describing those who come to church but have their minds on the things of the world, who are eager to be done with worship and just want to get back to “their own lives” and doing “their own things.”  The boy was describing those whose bodies are present but whose hearts are not open to the Lord’s presence. It could also be said that these believers prefer Jesus outside and not inside their church service and the way they run the local church. They do not want Him interfering. They have been deluded into thinking they are better at doing church than the Master of the Church.  I know, this sounds crazy that anyone would think this way. Yet, we see it happening in churches across this county, state, and country. Instead of searching the Scriptures to understand what the Church is, how it operates, and what it believes, too many groups prefer to mold it to suit their own ideas.

In verse 20, Christ knocks as Lord of this Church, not as a beggar trying to get in. His knocking is His insistence on being sovereign over their priorities, affections, and choices. His insistence on being the Lord and Master of His Church. I think Jesus is knocking on the heart of His church—this local community of faith and saying, “I want to be present in your midst and reveal myself to you. Do you not want me here? Do you prefer to align yourselves with the culture of this world, this world that rejected me and crucified me? Or do you want to make me the Lord of this church, the Preeminent One? Do you want to seek me?”

As the Pastor and Shepherd of this church, my response to Jesus would be: “YES! We want you here among us. We want you to be the Preeminent One, the Foremost One among us. The reason we gather each week is because of you and for you. You are the reason! We long to eat with you and be with you. There is nothing better and no one more important than you. You have rescued us from the darkness and hell and have filled us with your life and with heaven. You have built Your Church. You have set down in Your Word who and what we are, and why we exist. We are for Your glory, and Your glory alone. AMEN!”

There are more applications to the church that we can unfold from this letter to the church in Laodicea. But we will start with a question. How effective can a lukewarm church be in its community? How impactful can a lukewarm Christian be? We’d all agree that lukewarm spirituality is ineffective and Useless.  How influential can a lukewarm Christian be in his/her home, workplace, and community? Ineffective. That leads me to ask, “How can we, as a church, be more effective in making a difference in this lost and broken world? How can we be more impactful in the lives of others? How can we be salt and light?”

Last Monday, I was sitting in my office with a young man who was desperately wanting to grow in his faith and understanding of the Bible. He asked, “What is the Church supposed to be doing? What is the purpose of the local Church?”

I led him to turn to Matthew 28:19-20.  “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

We read these words of Jesus and see that He told the disciples to “Go make disciples.” That is what the church is supposed to do. How and where they do it comes in many forms. But that is what the church is supposed to be doing.

Then I said to this young man, “We don’t make disciples of ourselves or disciples of our church or denomination. We make disciples of Jesus Christ. Once they become a disciple of Jesus Christ by faith, we baptize them.” Then verse 20 gives us the next steps in two verbs: teaching and observing/obeying. We teach them the Word of God and teach them to obey it.

There! That is what the local church is supposed to do. Make disciples of Jesus. Baptize them. Teach them what Jesus taught and did, and teach them how to live it. Simple, right? Are churches doing this? If the church is lukewarm, it will not do this. A lukewarm church has lost its way. It has become ineffective. It is not carrying out the will of Jesus. A church cannot do Matthew 28:19-20 unless Jesus is the Lord of the Church; unless Jesus is the Supreme One, the Preeminent One, the Foremost One.

I challenge everyone to an assignment this week. Find time to stop and ponder this personal question: “How can I be bolder in my faith for Christ Jesus and for others?” This leads to the next question to ponder this week. “What way can I, individually or with others in my church, make a larger stamp of Christ Jesus in someone’s life?” 

Those are my questions. “How can I be bolder in my faith for Christ Jesus and for others?” and “What way can I, individually or with others in my church, make a larger stamp of Christ Jesus in someone’s life?” What that looks like may be different for each of you. How can you be like the hot springs to someone wounded or hurting? How can you give fresh cold water to someone who is thirsty for God? It may be taking some Gospel tracts or literature with you and giving them out. It could be by befriending someone who needs a friend, and eventually sharing what Jesus has done for you. It could be inviting someone to WOW or the men’s studies, or revisiting someone you once invited to church. For some, it will be a simple step. For others, it is a bigger and bolder step. But whatever it is, it needs to be more than what you have been doing in Christ’s name.

We need to remind ourselves what the Master calls us to do, and push ourselves out of our comfort zone and do it. Once you ponder those long enough and come up with ways to be the church, do not procrastinate. Take a step of faith and say to the Holy Spirit, “Okay, I am not sure what I am doing, but I will put myself in your hands. Lead me, strengthen me, use me. Here I am!”

^[1] Richard D. Phillips, Revelation,

^[2] Dennis E. Johnson, Triumph of the Lamb: A Commentary on Revelation