Revelation 3...Message to Laodicea (Present day Turkey)
-city ruins located on high plain
-(apparently a church was there until 700 AD??? not sure about this)
-Zeus was main god in Laodicea
-Mountains seen around Laodicea in the distance
-only one congregation now, Local Pentecostal Church started 2012 AD
-a tour guide is a Muslim, pray that she comes to accepting Christ
-there is hope; a pastor from Turkey was once a Muslim; then, after his parents saw the transformation in him, his parents accepted Christ. They now drive an hour for church.
-In Turkey, when you become a Christian and denounce Islam as your faith, you are instantly marginalized in the marketplace.
--Laodicea used an advanced aqueduct system for its time. There is evidence of indoor plumbing.
-Laodicea was a rich place, similar to Beverly Hills today.
__example of how rich: After 2 earthquakes, the government offered to rebuild the city, but the locals did not need the gratitude. They decided to pay for it themselves, as they had plenty of wealth.
-the landscape itself illustrates the haughtiness of Laodicea. "Even it is above others."
1. Lukewarm
-Laodicea's aqueducts pulled water from the mountains, but Turkey can get mighty hot and by the time the water reached homes, it could be warm, rather than cold.
-They would have understood what Jesus meant by spitting out the "lukewarm"
(Rev 3:17)
-being lukewarm means... lost passion, no sense of urgency about the community, prayer, sin in the church, etc.
2. Poor/Poor in spirit
-The Laodicea church did not feel it had needs, because it was rich. Even the main road had columns on each side.
-Compare haughty Laodicea to many towns in America-- "We have two theatres, a Sam's Club/Wal-Mart, etc. We have everything" (tongue-in-cheek).
3. Naked
-Laodicea had a black wool that was worn similar to a VIP jacket
-but the church had stopped obeying God there, so they were spiritually naked in His view.
-(Think about how we "dress" ourselves, our loved ones, our homes, our cars. Yet, how does God see us, spiritually?)
4. Blind
-Laodicea actually had created a salve for curing eye problems, so people from all over Asia Minor would have been traveling to them to receive sight, literally.
-Yet a church that fails to point people to Christ is only the blind leading the blind.
-There are congregations of all denominations and no denominations that are guilty of this. We all need to ask, "Am I following Christ and am I pointing others to follow Him?"
--(song comes to mind... "Be thou my vision")
Questions to Ask:
Do we ever feel self-sufficient? Do we worship comfort? In your relationship with Jesus Christ, are you /am I/are we: a) HOT b)Lukewarm c) COLD ?
How is your sharing the gospel, exhibiting Christ in how you live, leading, baptizing, etc? What keeps us HOT/zealous for God?
Prayer, Stay in the Word, I need to keep sharing = "give it away"-- Doug, Spirit
Safeguard those practices which keep you HOT.
What keeps us from those practices? (TV, comfort zone, worldly pleasures, any desire that replaces the desire for God's will, etc.)
____________________________________________________________________
How to return to HOTness.
1. Be earnest
2. Ask God, "Make me on FIRE for You."
3. Repent = change priority, change focus; turn from disobeying God.
-Martin Luther's first item in 95 Theses, "The whole life of the believer should be repentance."
Revelation 3:20, Jesus said, "I stand at the door and knock."
-the artist of that famous picture intentionally left handle off door, because the door is only opened from within. In other words, "We need to let Him." "We need to open up to Him entering and transforming our lives."
Jesus says, "I want to get back in the church"
Finally,
The Pentecostal church at Laodicea today has a wall that has been transformed into a doorway. This is, in part, to remember how God can make a way in our lives.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus,
I recognize, again, only how great you are and how wretched I am without you.
Help me to stay HOT for You. Help me to live repentant, trusting in Your Grace.
And help me to point others to You. Amen.
-city ruins located on high plain
-(apparently a church was there until 700 AD??? not sure about this)
-Zeus was main god in Laodicea
-Mountains seen around Laodicea in the distance
-only one congregation now, Local Pentecostal Church started 2012 AD
-a tour guide is a Muslim, pray that she comes to accepting Christ
-there is hope; a pastor from Turkey was once a Muslim; then, after his parents saw the transformation in him, his parents accepted Christ. They now drive an hour for church.
-In Turkey, when you become a Christian and denounce Islam as your faith, you are instantly marginalized in the marketplace.
--Laodicea used an advanced aqueduct system for its time. There is evidence of indoor plumbing.
-Laodicea was a rich place, similar to Beverly Hills today.
__example of how rich: After 2 earthquakes, the government offered to rebuild the city, but the locals did not need the gratitude. They decided to pay for it themselves, as they had plenty of wealth.
-the landscape itself illustrates the haughtiness of Laodicea. "Even it is above others."
1. Lukewarm
-Laodicea's aqueducts pulled water from the mountains, but Turkey can get mighty hot and by the time the water reached homes, it could be warm, rather than cold.
-They would have understood what Jesus meant by spitting out the "lukewarm"
(Rev 3:17)
-being lukewarm means... lost passion, no sense of urgency about the community, prayer, sin in the church, etc.
2. Poor/Poor in spirit
-The Laodicea church did not feel it had needs, because it was rich. Even the main road had columns on each side.
-Compare haughty Laodicea to many towns in America-- "We have two theatres, a Sam's Club/Wal-Mart, etc. We have everything" (tongue-in-cheek).
3. Naked
-Laodicea had a black wool that was worn similar to a VIP jacket
-but the church had stopped obeying God there, so they were spiritually naked in His view.
-(Think about how we "dress" ourselves, our loved ones, our homes, our cars. Yet, how does God see us, spiritually?)
4. Blind
-Laodicea actually had created a salve for curing eye problems, so people from all over Asia Minor would have been traveling to them to receive sight, literally.
-Yet a church that fails to point people to Christ is only the blind leading the blind.
-There are congregations of all denominations and no denominations that are guilty of this. We all need to ask, "Am I following Christ and am I pointing others to follow Him?"
--(song comes to mind... "Be thou my vision")
Questions to Ask:
Do we ever feel self-sufficient? Do we worship comfort? In your relationship with Jesus Christ, are you /am I/are we: a) HOT b)Lukewarm c) COLD ?
How is your sharing the gospel, exhibiting Christ in how you live, leading, baptizing, etc? What keeps us HOT/zealous for God?
Prayer, Stay in the Word, I need to keep sharing = "give it away"-- Doug, Spirit
Safeguard those practices which keep you HOT.
What keeps us from those practices? (TV, comfort zone, worldly pleasures, any desire that replaces the desire for God's will, etc.)
____________________________________________________________________
How to return to HOTness.
1. Be earnest
2. Ask God, "Make me on FIRE for You."
3. Repent = change priority, change focus; turn from disobeying God.
-Martin Luther's first item in 95 Theses, "The whole life of the believer should be repentance."
Revelation 3:20, Jesus said, "I stand at the door and knock."
-the artist of that famous picture intentionally left handle off door, because the door is only opened from within. In other words, "We need to let Him." "We need to open up to Him entering and transforming our lives."
Jesus says, "I want to get back in the church"
Finally,
The Pentecostal church at Laodicea today has a wall that has been transformed into a doorway. This is, in part, to remember how God can make a way in our lives.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus,
I recognize, again, only how great you are and how wretched I am without you.
Help me to stay HOT for You. Help me to live repentant, trusting in Your Grace.
And help me to point others to You. Amen.