The book of Revelation includes a set of letters to churches in which Jesus commends, instructs, and challenges various congregations. One of these is a letter to the church in Laodicea. It is noteworthy as being the only letter in which Jesus has nothing good to say about the church; every other contains some positive comment.
Apparently, the error at Laodicea was bad enough, or important enough, that it left no room for praise.
For some reason, this letter has captivated me as a way to seek understanding of the faith’s shrinking impact today, and have found that meditating on it suggests new opportunities that, at least for myself, may be helpful in challenging ourselves to reach our broken world.
To begin with, here is the text:
“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.’
“ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 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 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.
Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 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. 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. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ ” Revelation 3:14–22 (ESV)
Jesus first reminds the church who is speaking, then immediately describes their problem as being lukewarm – neither hot nor cold. In visceral terms, Jesus warns them that, because of their lukewarmness, He is about to reject them. Therefore, they need to change.
What could be so bad? What is meant by being “lukewarm”?
The picture of lukewarm water comes from the nature of the water supply in Laodicea. Nearby Collosae had springs of cool water, refreshing and good for drinking. Another nearby town, Hierapolis, had hot springs, where the bubbling mineral waters were believed to be good for healing.
Laodicea had neither of these, and so had to bring water from these two towns for its own needs. Remnants of the pipes used for this still exist.
Unfortunately, the water was no longer as good by the time the water made it to Laodicea. The cool water had become warmer, while the hot water had become cooler. Both had become lukewarm, losing much of their original value. They had become useless.
This was the picture that Jesus used to describe Laodicea’s (spiritual) condition. Useless, ineffective, having lost their original usefulness.
But what had caused this?
Jesus described how the Laodiceans thought they had everything they needed, but in reality they were helpless.
In fact, history shows that Laodicea was a wealthy and successful town because of the success of its banking, textile, and medical (specializing in eye salve) industries. They were so well off that, when a major earthquake struck in 60 AD and caused significant damage, the city actually refused help from Rome, preferring to restore the city from their own means.
Given this, what could Jesus mean by saying that they were actually helpless? The answer can be found by looking at the fix that Jesus gave them. In three pictures that paralleled their secular successes, He pointed them back to Himself as the source of what they really needed. In other words, although they thought their secular successes were enough, in reality they needed to be depending on Him.
This isn’t new teaching, of course. Throughout Scripture we are taught that true success comes only from God rather than worldly power or ability (Ps 20:7, Isa 31:1), that we must not rely on our own understanding, trusting instead on God to guide us (Prov 3:5-6). Even our basic needs will be supplied when we seek the kingdom first (Matt 6:33) and walk by faith rather than sight (2 Cor 5:7).
Jesus plainly stated that we can do nothing apart from Him (John 15:5). The admonition to the Laodiceans was really a reminder of this fundamental truth. Perhaps they had become so convinced in their own abilities that they neglected to seek the Lord’s guidance and provision.
After the initial warning, Jesus gave them a list of changes to make, described symbolically. Refined gold, white clothes, and salve for eyes are all Biblical metaphors. As such, there may be multiple interpretations, perhaps representing opportunities to seek for different individual circumstances.
For myself, here are interpretations that have occurred to me.
Refined gold, and riches in general, often refer to wisdom or guidance, and empowerment from the Lord. For example, Paul describes the riches of understanding Christ in us, in whom are treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:2-3). In a practical sense, this can be a reminder of the importance of prayer and being filled with and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Clothing is often a metaphor for our walk, such as fine linen representing the righteous deeds of the saints (Rev 19:8), or when Paul discusses putting off the old self and putting on the new self (Col 3:9-10). So, perhaps Jesus is reminding the Laodiceans that behavior is important. Think of all the admonitions in the various New Testament letters to not walk as the pagans do, that our behavior must set us apart from the lost world.
Sight is often used to represent spiritual sensitivity. Paul said that he looked at the unseen things rather than the seen (2 Cor 4:18), and regarded no one according to the flesh (2 Cor 5:16). Jesus demonstrated this when challenged about eating with sinners, when He described them as needing a physician, clearly describing their spiritual condition (Luke 5:31). Perhaps Jesus was likewise reminding the Laodiceans that they needed to be aware of the spiritual state of those around them (in addition to their own), and to see spiritual needs as well as physical.
So, three possible themes are spiritual wisdom and empowerment, right living, and spiritual sensitivity.
Given that the emphasis of this site is to explore new approaches for evangelism, here are some thoughts about how they might apply, and how I’ve tried to walk in these principles.
An obvious starting point for spiritual wisdom and empowerment is prayer, of course, and we saw in an earlier post how prayer was essential in Jesus’ teaching and to the early church. Similarly, we’ve also seen how the Spirit explicitly empowered people to speak effectively, just as Jesus said He would and as Paul prayerfully sought. So it seems that both of these are aligned with Jesus’ direction.
Right living is a pretty broad category, and while we can all do better, the focus in evangelism may especially include having a good reputation before unbelievers (Matt 5:16, 1 Pet 2:12, Rom 2:23-24) and love of the Brethren (John 17:20-21). The latter seems especially important since Jesus pointed out that our unity would lead the word to believe that He was sent by the Father. As such, it may be that ecumenical activity can be considered evangelistic. For myself, I strive to maintain connections with believers from different churches, even helping out when it makes sense. I’ve found that unbelievers find this sort of activity surprising and very positive.
Lastly, spiritual perspective in evangelism helps us remember to pay attention to people’s spiritual needs, not just their behavior or physical needs. In doing so, we may find that many who are all around us are far from God. This is the perspective discussed in earlier posts on having a spiritual interpretation for the “ends of the Earth”. Personally, I’m trying to develop ways of reaching people who are not reached by the most current evangelism, through completely non-spiritual activities like art and technology.
Again, these pictures from Jesus may best be thought of as tools for seeking direction in our own lives, so different people may come to different conclusions and applications. But for myself, the observations above seem to agree with the other spiritual perspectives that I’ve developed from studying Scripture.
In addition, it seems that these observations may help address some of the limitations I’ve seen in my own involvement with evangelistic activities, perhaps some of which may exist elsewhere and contribute to the growing unprecedented darkness.
- Prayer, although sometimes involved, is rarely persistent or nearly as based on Biblical principles as when praying for ourselves.
- We are often taught approaches that are highly scripted, rather than taught to seek the Spirit’s leading for each encounter. Things like sharing our testimony, quoting the Roman road, using canned gospel scripts, and so on, run the risk of quenching the Spirit when compared to seeking His guidance for each encounter, as evident in Scripture.
- The common approach of inviting people to church, rather than inviting them into the kingdom, in my experience quickly narrows the audience to those who are already comfortable with Christianity at some level, definitely not those who are far from God.
- The growing importance of church political involvement, essentially bringing the kingdom through worldly power, often ends up estranging those outside the faith such that even mention of Christianity becomes a barrier to sharing the gospel.
- Focusing on physical ministry without addressing people’s spiritual needs not only limits the audience to those for whom we can minister with worldly means, it teaches that God’s love is essentially the same as the world’s love.
- The historical trend to isolate different denominations and even different congregations, has led to a perception of Christianity as a shattered group of people, rather than a unified whole.
I don’t know how common these are, but they do seem to come up regularly. Also, when considering the message to the Laodiceans, they seem like good examples of relying on worldly power, wisdom, and perspectives, instead of Jesus.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. Psalm 20:7 (ESV)
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the LORD! Isaiah 31:1 (ESV)
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5–6 (ESV)
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
for we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7 (ESV)
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5 (ESV)
that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:2–3 (ESV)
it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. Revelation 19:8 (ESV)
Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Colossians 3:9–10 (ESV)
as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18 (ESV)
From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 2 Corinthians 5:16 (ESV)
And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Luke 5:31 (ESV)
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:16 (ESV)
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. 1 Peter 2:12 (ESV)
You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” Romans 2:23–24 (ESV)
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. John 17:20–21 (ESV)
Exploring Antioch 