Scripture
Revelation 3:14-17
14 “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the origin of God’s creation:
15 “I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 For you say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.’ You do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked." (NRSV)
Devotion
I have a bad habit of losing my coffee mugs. One moment, I'm delightedly sipping my steaming hot beverage. Fast forward a 15 minutes, and I'm working on something and distractedly asking myself where on Earth I set my mug. Sooner or later, I rediscover the forgotten cup of room-temperature coffee. I take a sip, grimace, and then head to the kitchen to either heat it up or add a few ice cubes. My mother says that whenever I visit, she expects to come across least two cups of lukewarm liquid per day.
God's warning that the church in Laodicea is about to be spat out for being neither hot nor cold makes me think about all of those sad cups of coffee I've leave scattered throughout my parents' home. It's not that the church in Laodicea is full of particularly bad or sinful people. The true problem is that they don't stand out as being any different from their surroundings.
Perhaps the church in Laodicea feels lukewarm because its members are afraid of what would happen if they stand out as being too radical or too different. Perhaps they are comfortable with the way things and don't feel like they have to say or do much to demonstrate their faith. Perhaps people just want to keep the peace. Whatever the reason for their lukewarm nature, what Laodicean Christians have to offer is uninspiring and unappealing. They are not making a case for Christ. What's worse, they are so caught up in being lukewarm people, that they don't even realize what a wretched excuse for a church they are turning out to be. They feel rich and content, but they are poor in spirit.
Jesus's faith and actions, by contrast, were not lukewarm in the slightest. Christ's radical commitment to God's justice, mercy, and love stood out so much that it shook the very foundations of his society. People couldn't help but take notice and try a sip. As his body on Earth, Christ's Church is called to keep standing out from our surroundings. When it comes to our demands for the creation of a truly just society, The Church should be almost too hot others to handle. When tempers and hatred flare, the Church is called to cool society down through it's "chill" example of love, peace, and forgiveness. By being noticeably different from the "temperature" of the world around us, the Church witnesses to the Good News It challenges others to take a sip of what we have to offer. Once they find it good, they too will be inspired to share that Good News with others.
When it comes to the way I live my life, I want to be a hot cup of Christ...but if I'm honest with myself, my words and actions often quite tepid. My problem is that a like to be liked...and I know that not everyone will enjoy that spiritual temperature God calls us to be. To be noticeably different--to challenge what is wrong and point out the things that need changed and live in a different way than what others expect--means that I must expose myself to being criticized, ostracized, threatened, and hurt. It feels safer and less dramatic to just go along with a lukewarm existence. I worry that if I keep choosing a lukewarm existence over the temperature that Christ calls me to be, then one day God take a spiritual sip of my complacency, grimace, and and spit me out.
The Good News is that we don't have to stay lukewarm forever. Just as I can warm up that cold cup of coffee or throw some ice in it to make a refreshing treat, the Holy Spirit can help us recommit to being noticeably different. Through Christ, we can get fired up for justice and demand change. Through him, we can also become cooling and calm voices of mercy. We can challenge what everyone else accepts but that we know needs changed. We can hold onto things that the rest of the world wants to leave in the dust. And our witness can make a difference. All we need to do is trust in Jesus enough to let ourselves be different from our surroundings.
There is a lot in the world right now that needs changed. There is a lot that requires us to take a stand. And so I challenge each of us to stop being so lukewarm. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to hep us truly live into that radical message that Jesus proclaimed. Whether God heats us up or cools us down, the world will take notice that we are different. We are worth trying out. Indeed, those who prove themselves up to the challenge of drinking our message down will discover that both we and the Christ we represent are delicious. And though our society may feel like spitting us out from time to time, we will know that God does not. After all, we will be at just the temperature that Christ likes. That temperature will be one that helps change the world.
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