Revelation 3:14-22

“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.”

When I was in seminary about 38 years ago, we used to go out on Tuesday mornings, if I remember correctly, and do evangelism. We had memorized an array of verses to use at the doors we knocked on (Romans 3:23, Romans 5:8, Romans 6:23, Romans 10:9-10, John 3:16), and then we had to know Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

This was our call to action; Jesus is at the door of your heart, and He wants to come in and fellowship with you. Over the years, I have used this verse countless times in soul-winning, and I am sure others may have as well. But as I have studied and come to understand things like context, it is clear that this verse has nothing to do with soul-winning, and it has everything to do with the leadership and guidance of the Holy Spirit in one of His churches.

In these first 3 chapters of Revelation, we see seven letters to churches in the local area near where John was imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos. Each kind of these churches has existed throughout the last 2,000 years of the church age, but as we study history, we see that there are pre-dominant trends of churches. And as we get closer and closer to the rapture (see Revelation 4:1-2), the entire narrative reverts to Israel once again. Churches like the one at Laodicea will be the prominent type of church.

The Laodicean church is mentioned in the letter to the church in Colosse (chapter 2:1). Paul loves this church as we can see that it has a history. Paul died in the mid-60s AD, so this church is at least 40 years old when we see the letter in Revelation. In this letter to Colosse, we see that the Laodicean church is ‘knit together in love’; they long to see Paul, and he to see them. In Colossian 4:16, Paul reminds the Colossian church to make sure that the letter he is writing is also read in Laodicea and that the letter to them would be read in Colosse. This Laodicean church wanted to serve the Lord and honor Him, and they longed for good, Biblical instructions. So, what happened?

We get a glimpse of this in the letter to them written by John. Now, some 40 years or so later, we find that they are plagued by being a rich church (Revelation 3:17). But they are also plagued by a lukewarm approach to serving the Lord. They are not hot enough to properly affect their society towards holiness, and they are not cold enough to be refreshing like a cold drink. They are of no use to anyone, God included, and Jesus writes to put them on notice.

He addresses the letter to the ‘angel’ of the church, and in this context, we understand this to be the pastor or elder. This church had become ‘rich’ according to earthly standards, and they were doing ‘church things,’ ministry of whatever kind they wanted to do. Some in this church were not even saved. Notice in verse 18 that some need to get ‘white garments’ to cover the ‘shame of their nakedness.’

You will go back and see that Adam and his wife covered their nakedness with manmade clothing because they were ashamed; this happened once they had sinned (Genesis 3).

Obviously, some were saved, and this was still a local church addressed as such in Revelation 3:14. These folks were doing church without the leadership of the Holy Spirit. In verse 20, Jesus, the supposed Head of each local church, was on the outside looking in; He longed to be invited in.

Sadly, this happens to a lot of our local churches; we do church out of habit and not in true submission to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. This Laodicean church is doing church but without Jesus. How many of our churches do that? We have the money and the resources to do ministry, do an outreach, and we just do it. We do not ask Jesus if we should do it and submit to His leadership. Remember that Paul wanted to go to Asia to preach the Gospel, but God sent a man in a dream to call him to Greece, called Macedonia at the time (Acts 16: 9-12). Asia needed Jesus, too, but at that time, God wanted Paul to go to Macedonia. I do not think that God’s headship of the local church has changed.

These folks in Laodicea think they are laying up treasure in Heaven, but Jesus tells them in verse 18 that they need to counsel with Him to buy ‘gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich’ spiritually speaking. This local church was no longer seeking Jesus’ counsel in her decisions; she did not need to ask. She had so many resources that she could just do the ministry without Jesus.

Our world is populated with very wealthy churches; we have large buildings, lots of staff, and program after program, and I wonder if this has all become a business. Not all ‘rich’ churches are this way, and some ‘poor’ churches are probably this way. But what we see from the Laodicean letter is that many churches, as we come to the end of the church age, will not be led by Jesus. He will have little or no say in the work they are carrying out in His name.

This is a reality check for me as a pastor. How much of what we do is actually Spirit-led and not simply the actions we are accustomed to doing, kind of like spiritual muscle memory? Is Jesus truly the Head of the local church that you attend? I understand this to be a question that needs to be answered in churches as we get closer and closer to meeting Jesus.

God bless you,

Dr. Sean Gooding

Pastor of Mississauga Missionary Baptist Church

How to Connect with Us

On Facebook (live broadcast of Sunday’s Message at 11 am): https://www.facebook.com/MississaugaMissionaryBaptistChurch

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Online: https://www.mmbchurch.ca

Email: support@mmbchurch.ca

 

2 Corinthians 11:1-6, 12-15

“Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly—and indeed you do bear with me. 2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it. 5 For I consider that I am not at all inferior to the most eminent apostles. 6 Even though I am untrained in speech, yet I am not in knowledge. But we have been thoroughly manifested among you in all things…

12 But what I do, I will also continue to do, that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the things of which they boast. 13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.”

As we approach the Christmas season, the Gospel will be heard by billions of people all around the world. The Nativity Scene will be seen in malls, churches, street corners, postcards, and the like. Some radio stations will be playing both secular and Christian Christmas carols for the next month or so.

I have been surprised by how many doctrines have been attacked of late. Sadly, some of these attacks are coming from what should be trusted sources. This kind of thing is nothing new; the fundamental doctrines of the Gospel have been under attack from the very beginning, and no doctrine has been so attacked as that of the Gospel. In Jude, we are encouraged to ‘earnestly contend for the faith, and in the passage we are going to consider today, Paul tells us to be wary of those that would ‘be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.’

Somebody posted a short video – I am sure it is old – asking about our theology and the thief on the cross; his simple prayer, “Lord remember me when you come into your Kingdom,” was met with, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.” No baptism, no Lord’s Supper, no church membership, just a simply trusting act of faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

We are told in Romans 4, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Romans 4:3). He was not circumcised at the time; that came after. But the simple, one-time act of believing God at His word was sufficient to declare him righteous (Romans 5:1, Romans 8:1). Simple faith in Jesus is still the only way.

Paul, in our text, warned the Corinthian church to be weary of those who came in and had better speech than Paul, maybe looked better, and presented themselves better, but their teaching corrupted the simplicity of the Gospel. Take a look at Genesis 3: The woman tells the serpent that they are not allowed to ‘eat of the tree nor touch it’ (Genesis 3:2). But that was not the truth; they were not allowed to eat of the tree as the commandment was given to Adam in Genesis 2: 15-17:

“Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

By adding man’s rule to God’s rule actually made it easier to sin. Once she had touched the fruit, it was easier to eat it. This is the danger of adding to God’s clear and direct instructions. The Bible is the completed Word of God. In it is all we need to know to serve God faithfully and in holiness. But there are people who tell you they have a new word from God for you. A word that you cannot verify in the Scripture as it is not in the Bible. This is how deceit begins; this is how doctrines get corrupted.

Sadly, churches today are still looking for the chiseled jaw, tall, good-looking, and well-spoken brand for their church. But Jesus, we are told, was not good-looking as far as man was concerned, and it would seem from this passage that Paul did not fit the mold either. If we venture back to 1 Corinthians, we can see that even the seemingly vocal accomplishments of Apollos were enough to cause division. Not division over doctrine, but over style.

But we are called as the Lord’s churches today, as in the days of the church at Corinth, to keep the simplicity of the Gospel. Christ died once and for all. He did all the work. We, like the thief on the cross, come by faith and faith alone in what Jesus has done for us. We have stolen eternal life from a lot of people; we have cheated them of their security in Jesus when we add anything to what Christ has done. In Acts 8:34-38, we find this:

“So, the eunuch answered Philip and said, ‘I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?’ Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?’ Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.”

The man made a simple statement of belief in who Jesus was and is, and that was all that was required. In Acts 16:30-31, the Philippian jailer asked, “What must I do to be saved?” And the answer came back in a simple and clear statement from Paul and Silas:

“So, they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Let us all be diligent both as children of God and members of conservative local churches to keep the simplicity of the Gospel; Jesus died to save sinners; He did all the work. Thank the Lord for His kindness and grace.

God bless you,

Dr. Sean Gooding

Pastor of Mississauga Missionary Baptist Church

How to Connect with Us

On Facebook (live broadcast of Sunday’s Message at 11 am): https://www.facebook.com/MississaugaMissionaryBaptistChurch

Join us on Zoom every Sunday (10:30 am) for Sunday Service AND every Tuesday at 8:00 pm for Bible Study: Meeting ID: 700 794 460 Passcode: 032661; https://us02web.zoom.us/j/700794460?pwd=M3NFRG91ZW5Sa2Z3amVyWkFnYXd6QT09

Online: https://www.mmbchurch.ca

Email: support@mmbchurch.ca