Lukewarm

Q: What does Revelation 3:16 mean?

A: For reference, here is Revelation 3:15-16:

Revelation 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I
would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will
spue thee out of my mouth.

In checking sources, I found several elaborate ideas about the uses of
hot and cold water in the area around Laodicea. To me, it is best to take
the most simple approach. Lukewarm means barely or moderately warm.
People tend to enjoy drinking liquids that are either cold or hot. I like
iced tea and sometimes drink hot tea. However, a barely warm tea does not
taste good to me. Evidently, this is an opinion that cuts across many
cultures and many centuries of time.

Therefore, just as many people find lukewarm beverages the least
appealing of all temperatures, God finds lukewarm believers the most
disgusting kind of believer. And, just as someone getting a mouthful of
lukewarm beverage in their mouth may desire or actually spit the drink
out, so God prepares to do the same with the church of Laodicea.

In picture, this passage divides people into those who are cold, those
who are hot, and those who are lukewarm. Those who are cold would either
be the lost or the backslidden believers. Either way, they are so far
from God that they simply need to be reached. They are the mission field.
They do not know the warmth of God in them. They do not rouse God's anger
as much as the lukewarm because they make no claim on spirituality. They
are cold and know it.

Those who are hot are those who are on fire for God. They are full of
zeal and vehement desire for God (2Corinthians 7:11). They have addicted
themselves to the work of Christ (1Corinthians 16:15). They are sold out
to God and the cause of Christ.

Those who are lukewarm know the working of Christ in their hearts. They
want to be known as Christians and consider themselves to be adequately
spiritual. However, they have never sold out to God. They continue to
dabble in the world and hold on to the pleasures of this life. They are
half-and-half Christians. They are lukewarm. Below are some verses that
describe the lukewarm saint either directly or in type.

Genesis 49:4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel...

1Kings 18:21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long
halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if
Baal, then follow him...

Jeremiah 10:5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they
must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for
they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.

Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the
one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the
other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

2Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers:
for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what
communion hath light with darkness?
15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that
believeth with an infidel?
16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the
temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and
walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

James 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that
wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the
Lord.
8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

When God deals with the lukewarm believer, He is angered by his halfway
measures. He is disgusted with his pretense of spirituality. His desire
is to spue him out of His mouth. This describes the judgment that is
about to come on the church of Laodicea. This can be compared to the
warning given to the church of Ephesus - "Remember therefore from whence
thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come
unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place,
except thou repent" (Revelation 2:5). As with Ephesus, the church of
Laodicea is about to be removed. God is about to spue them out of His
mouth.

Many compare the seven churches of Asia (Revelation 2-3) with the history
of the believers since the time of Christ. Although John was writing to
particular churches that existed in his lifetime, the application does
seem to line up with history (though we must remember that this is an
application and not the primary interpretation of the text). Often, we
are said to be in the Laodicean church age because of this interpretaion.
Certainly, we can see many of the characteristics of the church of
Laodicea today in that which calls itself Christianity. Will God then be
spueing churches out of His mouth? Will He be turning His back on them? I
believe that this has already happened. I have seen it many times over.

However, no period of time since the coming of Christ has been totally
filled with one kind of church. The churches of Asia in Revelation give
us seven types of churches that can be identified throughout Christian
history. Even if this is a Laodicean church age, every church does not
have to be a Laodicean church. Even in this age, some churches are like
the persecuted church of Smyrna remaining faithful to the Lord
(Revelation 2:8-11). Other churches are like the powerful church of
Philadelphia walking through open doors that no man can shut. We must
always strive to establish churches that are patterned after these
commended churches and not the churches that are warned of impending
judgment like the church of Laodicea.

I hope this is a help to you. May the Lord bless.

Till He comes,

Pastor David Reagan

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