Wednesday Bible Study: Apocolypse now-Laodicea

Today we come to the penultimate study of our 3:16 series- Revelation.  And this is one of the more famous verses on the list.  As per usual here towards the end, I'm adding some context:


Rev 3:14  "And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: 'The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation. 
Rev 3:15  "'I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 
Rev 3:16  So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 
Rev 3:17  For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 
Rev 3:18  I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. 
Rev 3:19  Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 

As I studied this, I wondered what the key God wanted here was.  Was it the facts on the field about the city?  The comparison to our present-day church?  What they had versus what they needed?

In the end, I found it in not one, but two of the commentators, and it was not in our main verse, but in v18:

I counsel (sumbouleuō). Present active indicative, old compound from sumboulos, counsellor (Rom_11:34), as in Joh_18:14. Almost ironical in tone. (Robertson's Word Pictures)

Irony.  What was the irony in what Jesus said?  First, go back a verse to the self-opinion of the Laodicean church:

Rev 3:17  For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 

"I am rich, I am getting richer.  I need nothing."  Now, you could say, "Boy there's the Catholic Church for ya," but it's EVERY denomination.  Every denomination who is saying, "Let me be more inclusive.  I need not the Bible, I can look at society and say, it's all right to be gay, to be Muslim, to do what I want.  I need to be a church that reflects society, not God.  Surely God will be pleased with that."  And which denominations are saying that?

Which ones aren't?  Even the Southern Baptists faced a sexual cover-up scandal the last couple of weeks.  By now you will have read last Sunday's message and James McDonald's fall.  You've seen the Catholic Church divided over both the Pope's lack of action on THEIR sex scandals, and his devil's deal with China.   EVERY church is having their Laodicean moment now, whether they have meekly accepted or are tearing themselves apart resisting.

Because the Laodicean church- past and present- has chosen to promte society to God and demote God to adviser, Jesus says, "I cousel you..." in v18.  The Laodicean church is one He NO LONGER COMMANDS.  Because, they don't need Him, they have everything.  In their eyes...

But what does God see?  He sees the back half of v17.  The word used as "wretched" means that they are enduring a trial-and failing.  They are pitiable- a word Paul also uses when he says that if Christ did not rise from the dead, 'then we are of men the most pitiable'- so here, it means they entertain a false hope.  The word for poor is a typical Paul word used by John, to denote the most abject of poverty.

Irony continues in the fact that, instead of being like the other churches, who have a relationship with Christ and receive the gifts of grace, Laodicea is "advised" to "buy from Him".  AND THEY WON'T BE ABLE TO, because the grace He offers is not for purchase.  It was bought with Christ's blood.  This reminds me of God's challenges to Job:

Job 40:6  Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: 

Job 40:7  "Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. 

Job 40:8  Will you even put me in the wrong? Will you condemn me that you may be in the right? 

Job 40:9  Have you an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like his? 

Job 40:10  "Adorn yourself with majesty and dignity; clothe yourself with glory and splendor. 

Job 40:11  Pour out the overflowings of your anger, and look on everyone who is proud and abase him. 

Job 40:12  Look on everyone who is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked where they stand. 

Job 40:13  Hide them all in the dust together; bind their faces in the world below. 

Job 40:14  Then will I also acknowledge to you that your own right hand can save you. 

Jesus talks to them in these impossibles, because they have lost the idea of grace and replaced it with what society calls wealth.  He wants them to see for themselves how little their "wealth"- both in money (like McDonald's elders) and their "spirituality"- will actually buy them.

But He does 'advise' them what they are lacking:

First, Gold refined in the fire.  1 Peter 1:17 teaches us that what is referred to here is faith tested by adversity.  This church steers away from adversity- they choose the path of least resistance, so they can get along with everybody.  What faith do you have when you reject the Bible and allow for LGBTQ acceptance, vote for politicians who support abortion, define 'tolerance' as accepting whatever the rest of the world accepts?

Second, white garments to hide the shame of your nakedness.  A few verses above, when Jesus addresses the Church in Sardis, he GIVES white robes to those who conquer, "who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy." (v4)  These people in Laodicea, not only have they soiled garments, they have NO garments- they are not only failing Christians, they are NON-Christians!

Third, 'salve to annoint their eyes'.  And what kind of eyesalve are we talking about?  I think perhaps the kind expressed in Ephesians 1:

Eph 1:17  that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 

Eph 1:18  the eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 

Eph 1:19  and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us, the ones believing according to the working of His mighty strength 

By the things they are counselled to buy, we see that Christ does not see the church of compromise as a real church, or even saved believers.  The last verse I printed shows this:

Rev 3:19  Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 

That they find themselves rich and needing nothing should be making them question whether they are included in the love of Christ.  If the world accepts us, WE should question it as well.  If faith for you is easy street, there is a problem.  Turn to Christ while He gives grace freely, before He 'counsels you to buy from Him...'