The Lukewarm Church

Revelation 3:14-22

The Lukewarm Church
14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write,
‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God:
15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot.
16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.
17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked—
18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.
19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.
22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”

The Church in Laodicea is not hot or cold but lukewarm in the sight of God. The Christians there think that they are rich as they have become wealthy and do not need anything.

But they do not know that they are really miserable, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. They are exhorted to buy gold from the Lord. Yes, gold that are purified by fire. Then they can be truly rich. They should also buy from the Lord clothes that are white so that they can cover their shameful nakedness. They should also buy eye lotion from the Lord to put on their eyes so that they can truly see.

The Lord will correct and punish those whom He loves. So let us be eager to do right, change our hearts and live in Him. He is standing at the door and knock. If anyone hears His voice and opens the door, the Lord will come in and dine with him.

To anyone who overcomes, the Lord will grant to sit besides Him sitting on His throne, as He also overcame and sat down besides His Father sitting on His Father’s throne.

2 Timothy 3:1-5

Perilous Times and Perilous Men
1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:
2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good,
4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

We must always remember that there will be many troubles and tribulations in the last days. In those times, people will love only themselves and money. They will brag and be extremely proud. They will say evil things against others. They will not obey their parents. They will not be thankful or be the kind of people God desires.

They will not have love for others. They will refuse to forgive others and will speak bad things. They will not control themselves. They will be cruel and will hate what is good.

In the last days, people will turn against their friends. They will do foolish things without thinking. They will be conceited and proud. They will love pleasure. They will not love God. They will continue to act as if they serve God, but they will not really serve God. Stay away from those people.

Like the lukewarm church, many Christians today think that they are serving God but they are not. They think that they are rich but they are truly poor and miserable. They think that they are elegantly dressed but they are totally naked.

A Danish author, Hans Christian Andersen, wrote a folktale about a vain emperor who was exposed by walking naked before his subjects. It was entitled "The Emperor's New Clothes."

This tale was first published in Copenhagen, Denmark on 7 April 1837, in Andersen's "Fairy Tales Told For Children."

Once upon a time, there was an emperor who cared for nothing but his physical appearance. He loved to wear the finest clothes. As he was not easily contented and satisfied, he would change his outfits several times a day.

One day, two swindlers arrived in his kingdom. They claimed to be weavers of the most magnificent fabric beyond imagination. They boasted that their cloth had a superior and magical quality. It would appear to be invisible only to those who were foolish or who were not qualified to see its true beauty.

The emperor was fascinated by the mesmerizing idea. He then decided to hire the swindlers to create an outfit for him. This new outfit would allow him to identify those people who were unworthy of their administrative and governing roles in his court.

The emperor paid the two swindlers handsomely with gold coins and delicate silk. But little did he know that the swindlers were merely pretending to weave while pocketing all his money.

As time passed, the emperor grew impatient and sent one of his trusted ministers to check on the progress.

“I’ll send my honest old minister to the weavers,” the emperor decided. “He’ll be the best one to tell me how the material looks, for he’s a sensible man. No one does his duty better.”

The old minister arrived at the weavers’ shop but saw nothing on the looms.

“Oh, no!” he thought as his eyes flew wide open, “I can’t see anything at all.” But he did not dare to admit and report what he saw. Instead, he deceived himself by exclaiming, “Oh, it’s beautiful. It’s enchanting!”

He examined carefully through his spectacles. “Such an outstanding outfit! What wonderful colours!” He returned and told the emperor that he was completely pleased with the outfit.

When other officials were sent to inspect the work, they, too, saw nothing but lied about its magnificence out of fear of being branded as foolish.

Finally, it was the emperor’s turn to see his new clothes. When he arrived at the workshop, he, too, could not see anything. But he also pretended to see the awesome outfit when there was none.

On the day of the grand procession, the emperor proudly put on his new clothes, which were actually nothing at all. As he paraded through the streets, everyone admired his outfit, not wanting to appear foolish by admitting they saw nothing.

Finally, a young boy in the crowd shouted out, “But he isn’t wearing anything at all!”

The boy’s father immediately apologized, “Sorry. He is just speaking innocent nonsense.”

And one person whispered to another what the child had said: “The emperor hasn’t got anything on.”

“But he hasn’t got anything on!” cried everyone.

The truth rang out through the streets. Everyone began to whisper in agreement.

The emperor realized he had been deceived but he continued to walk proudly, unwilling to admit his own folly.

As he walked on in silence, feeling both humiliated and angry, he tried to maintain his dignity despite being exposed as a fool.

The crowd continued to keep talking quietly and laughing silently. However, deep down inside the emperor, a terrible sense of realization hit home.

From that day onwards, although he still loved beautiful clothes, he learned that true worth comes from honesty and humility rather than appearances alone.

The people of his kingdom also learned an important lesson. It was always better to speak the truth than to remain silent out of fear and intimidation. If the emperor was naked, he would still be naked no matter how much they tried to deny it. In doing so, they were deceiving not only themselves but also others!

As we are living in perilous times, there will be perilous people! If one is not doing right, we should not say that he is doing right. If one is walking naked, we should not say that he is not. No matter who they are. A pastor, a prophet, an apostle, a king, an emperor, a president, a prime minister or even ourselves.

Hopefully, we will not remain lukewarm and naked. Hopefully, we will renew our love for Christ as He continues to shine in us and warm our hearts!

Written on 15 April 2025