Again we know that summertime is quite unpredictable and chaotic with cheer and football camps, vacations and mission trips. Through all of that it is refreshing to be able to have our consistent Life service where we can worship with you guys and study God's Word. Since we have not jumped into a new book yet, we are taking a few weeks to just hear what the Lord might have for all of us. Last night we were in Revelation 3 because in many ways our American Church looks very similar to this lukewarm church that is being disciplined by the Lord. Here is a recap from last night...
~Revelation 3:14-16: Laodicea was being called out for being lukewarm- neither hot nor cold- when it came to their faith. They were "fence riders" and this was not okay with Jesus. In order to show His displeasure with this He let them know that being lukewarm made Him want to throw up. God cannot stand apathy- and this is what the Laodicean church was guilty of.
Q: When you look at your life and your faith- would you say that your faith is hot, cold or lukewarm? If it is not "hot," what are some changes that you feel the Lord calling you to make so that it will be?
~3:16: What does it look like for our faith to be lukewarm? 2 Timothy 3:1 states that in the last times (which many believe are now) people (even in the church) will be lovers of themselves. They will have a form of godliness but deny its power. A lukewarm "Christian" is someone who knows all of the right answers about Christianity and Jesus but still lives a self-serving life void of the power of God. There is no evidence in this person's life of the Spirit of God coming to change them- they just have memorized a bunch of facts that they hold on to thinking they can be saved by knowledge alone. God did not come for us just to know a bunch of bible verses. He came to give us NEW LIFE- to change us through His Son and Spirit.
Q: Do you see evidence of the Holy Spirit changing your life or do you look exactly the same now as you did before confessing Christianity? We ask that you really evaluate your life to see if your faith is genuine or if you are just clinging to a bunch of facts hoping it will be enough.
~3:17: Lukewarm people do not think they need anything. The city of Laodicea was known for their finances, fashion, and medicine. They thought they had it all together and they did not acknowledge a need for the Lord. God calls them out on this. Though they thought they had everything figured out, they were really wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked (the exact opposite of how they viewed themselves).
Q: What are some areas in your life that you think you have "all together?" Do you realize on a daily basis that everything good in you is from Him and that He is really the one that holds all things together? We know that pride comes before the fall and we ask that you check your life to see if there are any areas in your life where pride has crept in. Confess that and repent this week, acknowledging again that He is the one who sustains and grows us.
~3:18: God calls the Laodicean church to come back to Him and buy from Him gold refined by fire so that they would really be rich. What does this mean? In Isaiah 55:1-5 God tells His people what this looks like. We are to come and buy from Him without money because HE has already paid the price. 1 Corinthians 6:20 says that we were bought with a price and should thus glorify God with our bodies. Christ already paid for us to have eternal riches- an inheritance with Him that is imperishable (1 Peter 1) and will not fade away. Our call is to come to Jesus and accept His payment on our behalf and thus be "clothed, rich, and actually see."
Q: Do you realize that Christ paid the penalty for your rebellion so that you could be redeemed from your spiritual blindness, nakedness, and poverty? Are you coming to Him to be filled or trying to fill yourself through worldly means that will never satisfy? We pray that you will see the emptiness of trying to satisfy yourself with anything other than Jesus.
~3:19: Just as God is calling the Laodicean church to repent and return- He is calling us. Here He is calling them to experience genuine salvation- to realize their complete depravity and come to the Lord to have complete restoration through the work of Christ on the Cross. We have nothing. He has everything.
Q: Have you ever really come to grips with your complete depravity and the holiness of the Lord? Do you realize that you were "miserable, poor, blind, and naked" with Christ's blood being the only "cure"? We pray that you will spend time meditating on the Work of Christ on your behalf and that you will walk in thankfulness this week for His salvation.
~3:21: Jesus ends His talk with this church by reminding them that those who overcome will be able to sit with Him on His throne. At first this might discourage us because very few of us would think of ourselves as over-comers, but looking at 1 John 5:4 we see what it means to be an overcomer: being born of God! Our faith in the Cross is what overcomes. Christ overcame through His death and resurrection and we share in that through belief that His death was on our behalf! We are overcomers through Him!
Dear students,
We are so thankful to get to worship with you every Wednesday. We pray that you will mediate on Psalm 51 this week- thanking the Lord that we have been washed by Him and asking Him to restore to us the joy of our salvation!! Praise God for what He has done! We love you all and are praying for you this week.
With hope,
Sonny and Casi
