Are You Lukewarm?

My son, Marc, gave me an outside weather station for Christmas.  I wasn’t sure I would ever use it, but I put it on a pole.  It didn’t work at first so I replaced the batteries, but I still couldn’t get it to work.   Finally, I called the company and they explained how to reset the whole system.  To my delight it worked!  I now know the outside and inside temperature.  I know what the humidity is and how much rain we got.  This gadget that gave me a fit when it was new is now something that Carolyn and I use all the time.  We like knowing how cold or hot it is outside and when we have thunderstorms, we keep each other up to date on how much rain we got.

Jesus used temperature to describe the “lukewarm” church in Laodicea, one of the richest of the seven cities cited in the Book of Revelation.  It was a bustling city but it had a poor water supply.  The city built an aqueduct to carry water from a hot spring.  By the time the water came down the aqueduct, it was neither hot nor cold. This sounds like the church of today.  Jesus said, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot.  I wish you were either one or the other!  So because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:15-16) Christ explained, “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.  So be earnest and repent.” (vs. 19)

The church at Laodicea is much like the church of today.  We’re neither hot nor cold.  We attend when we feel like it.  We give when we want to.  We serve when it’s convenient. Jesus is calling us to not be “lukewarm”.  Jesus wants us to be “fired-up”!  We are called to live an earnest faith that is ready at all times to serve others.  What is the temperature of your faith?

Prayer – Is your commitment to your faith lukewarm?  If your faith is lukewarm, ask Jesus to send you the loving heat to awaken you and warm up your faith.  Amen.

 Revelation 3:19 – Be earnest and repent.

Author: Tommy Herndon