Have you ever read the book of Revelation? It can be scary, controversial and honestly, a bit confusing. But there are some things from that book that are perfectly clear. Early on, John records Jesus’ words to the seven churches. In many of these letters, he encourages, reprimands and warns against the actions of these churches. By reading these letters, we can know God’s heart when it comes to certain thoughts and behaviors of those who call themselves believers. One that always sticks out to me is what He says in chapter 3 verses 15-16 in his letter to the church in Laodicea which says:
"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."
I was reminded recently that when something is lukewarm, its original purpose was for it to be hot. So, don’t let this portion of scripture confuse you. God most certainly wants us to be hot for him, not cold. But this shows just how much God hates the state of being lukewarm when it comes to our thoughts, dedication, deeds and affection towards him. He would rather that we’d never known him or that we were opposed to him than we be lukewarm. I encourage you not to let your fire for God cool to the point of being apathetic toward him. Heed this warning, and keep your fire blazing for him.
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“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.” It isn’t difficult for us to let our spiritual fervor cool for the Lord, but it is a serious mistake if we do. God sends a warning to us through the church of Laodicea that this is the absolute worst place we can find ourselves in. It is so bad that he’d prefer that we’d be cold - or totally against him than to be lukewarm. So, I encourage you to remain hot for the Lord. Do everything you can to keep your thoughts, love and affection on him. It is my goal, and I hope it is yours to, to be not only hot, but boiling hot - scalding hot, for him. Because that’s where he wants us.