“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. ‘So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. ‘Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. ‘Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore 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 will dine with him, and he with Me. (Rev.3:14-20)
The church at Laodicea is famous for the rebuke they received from Jesus rather than any praise. The church is mentioned several times in Paul’s letter to the church in Colosse. He mentioned how hard he had been working to establish the church in Laodicea and how much prayer he and others had been pouring into that church. Apparently he had great hopes for it. By the time John penned the Revelation he received from Jesus, Paul has been martyred for the faith and the church at Laodicea has slipped to a dangerous place.
Laodicea was a town famous for wealth and commerce in a region that produced medicines, including eye salves, along with wool for clothing. They were also famous for hot springs and fresh cold springs in the region that people travelled to for therapeutic reasons. Apparently the church there had prospered rather than being persecuted. Jesus does not mention any false teachers or persecution from the Jews or Romans. The church there had simply settled in to the good life and had stopped doing the works of God.
They considered themselves rich and in need of nothing which, biblically, is a very dangerous place to be. Apparently, their contentment and prosperity had taken the spiritual edge off their lives. Undoubtedly their prayer life was withering, their evangelism was probably aimed at the other prosperous citizens of Laodicea with whom they did business, and it’s possible that the poor had completely dropped off their radar because they didn’t live in “that part of town” anymore. Sometimes wealthy Christians and churches cocoon themselves off from poverty and suffering and take pride in great music, facilities and programs that rarely if ever touch the poor, the outcasts or the lost.
Jesus warned them that their worldly contentment made them of no use in the kingdom of God. Cold water and hot water both had therapeutic uses but lukewarm water had no healing properties so Jesus said he would spit it out on the ground. As believers we are to be salt and light for this world. We are to provide healing for the hurting and reconciliation for the alienated. Laodicea got not honorable mention for being any of that.
The church in Laodicea undoubted took their prosperity as a sign of God’s approval when, in fact, it was just the opposite. Jesus declared that, from the walls of heaven, those at Laodicea appeared poor, naked, miserable and blind. Jesus counseled them to reconsider their hearts and their position and to do business with him once again rather than the world. He counseled them to seek treasures in heaven where true and eternal riches could be stored up rather than pursuing what the world valued.
The most sobering part of this letter is the revelation that their self-sufficiency and prosperity had pushed Jesus out of their church. He was on the outside, knocking at the door, and seeking fellowship with them again. Their hearts had become misaligned with his and they were no longer walking together. This letter is not an indictment of prosperity because prosperity can fund the works of the kingdom but it is a warning that prosperity can give us a false sense of security and a false sense of God’s approval.
In the oil rich Permian Basin right now, many people are making more money than they ever imagined but in many churches giving has gone down, non-profits are not seeing their donations soar, and many believers are rarely seen on Sunday mornings because of work or travel. The prosperity God has provided seems to be flowing away from the kingdom rather than toward it. That is certainly not true for all but is apparently true for many.
One of the dangers of prosperity is that it forces believers to do business with the world and in doing so often promotes compromise and unequal yoking for the sake of business. Eventually, Jesus can be crowded out of our hearts by the priorities of the world and worldly thinking. Wise believers who are being blessed financially have to guard against those things. All of us need to listen carefully to make sure there is not a knock on our door because Jesus has found himself on the outside of our lives. If you hear it, open it quickly and let him back in. Ultimately, he is the only business partner you will ever need.
