DEAR LAODICEA: YOU MAKE ME SICK AT MY STOMACH (7 OF 7)
by Ken Trivette
Scripture: REVELATION 3:14-22
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Dear Laodicea: You Make Me Sick At My Stomach (7 of 7)
Ken Trivette
Revelation 3:14-22
One writer has said that the letter to the Church at Laodicea was the saddest of the letters sent by Christ. I would agree and add that it was not only the saddest, but also the sternest.
B.H. Carroll compared this Church to a man in a canoe who lost his paddle in the swift stream and prayed, "Good Lord, help me3/4Good devil, help me."9 Stott says of all the letters' none is more appropriate to the twentieth century than this letter.10 It of all letters is best descriptive of the Church in this day.In the other letters we sense our Lord's disappointment. But in this letter we sense our Lord's disgust. In essence Jesus said, "You make me sick at My stomach."
1. THE INDIFFERENCE OF THE CHURCH!
What Jonah was to the whale, this Church was to God. The words that Jesus used describe the pathetic condition of this Church.
A. The Condition That Was Described By The Lord.
Jesus said, "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot" (Vs.15). Then Jesus declared, "thou art lukewarm" (Vs.16). The word "cold" that Jesus used speaks of that which is icy cold. The word "hot" speaks of that which is boiling hot.
Jesus was saying they were neither frozen or fiery. Instead, they were lukewarm. The word speaks of that which is "tepid, half-hearted, unenthusiastic." It was one way of saying that the Church was marked by indifference and apathy. The Church was sitting on the premises instead of standing on the promises. They were satisfied and complacent. They did not get excited about anything and did not get alarmed about anything.
On one occasion Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln debated the matter of slavery. Douglas was concerned only about his political fortune and future. Lincoln was concerned about his convictions and the welfare of the people. Douglas said, "As far as I am concerned, I do not care whether slavery is voted up or down." Lincoln replied ...
Ken Trivette
Revelation 3:14-22
One writer has said that the letter to the Church at Laodicea was the saddest of the letters sent by Christ. I would agree and add that it was not only the saddest, but also the sternest.
B.H. Carroll compared this Church to a man in a canoe who lost his paddle in the swift stream and prayed, "Good Lord, help me3/4Good devil, help me."9 Stott says of all the letters' none is more appropriate to the twentieth century than this letter.10 It of all letters is best descriptive of the Church in this day.In the other letters we sense our Lord's disappointment. But in this letter we sense our Lord's disgust. In essence Jesus said, "You make me sick at My stomach."
1. THE INDIFFERENCE OF THE CHURCH!
What Jonah was to the whale, this Church was to God. The words that Jesus used describe the pathetic condition of this Church.
A. The Condition That Was Described By The Lord.
Jesus said, "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot" (Vs.15). Then Jesus declared, "thou art lukewarm" (Vs.16). The word "cold" that Jesus used speaks of that which is icy cold. The word "hot" speaks of that which is boiling hot.
Jesus was saying they were neither frozen or fiery. Instead, they were lukewarm. The word speaks of that which is "tepid, half-hearted, unenthusiastic." It was one way of saying that the Church was marked by indifference and apathy. The Church was sitting on the premises instead of standing on the promises. They were satisfied and complacent. They did not get excited about anything and did not get alarmed about anything.
On one occasion Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln debated the matter of slavery. Douglas was concerned only about his political fortune and future. Lincoln was concerned about his convictions and the welfare of the people. Douglas said, "As far as I am concerned, I do not care whether slavery is voted up or down." Lincoln replied ...
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