Revelation 3, verse 14. And unto the angel of the church, or unto the minister of the church of the Laodiceans, write, These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. I know thy works, that thou art neither hot nor cold, or cold nor hot. I would thou wert cold or hot. So then, because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing, and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, blind and naked. I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich, and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear, and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous, therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. Amen. May God bless. The reading of the solemn passage and with our Bibles open, can we now pray and ask the Lord to give us a word in season. Gracious Father in heaven, we do thank you for your covenant mercies and your covenant faithfulness. You have said, I will be your God and you will be my people. We thank you today, Lord, for the privilege that any believer here today can have, even calling the Lord God, Jehovah, our father. We rejoice, Lord, that God does not stand before us today as a threatening judge, but, Lord, you stand before us today as a reconciled father, and that we have a father who is a great God and a mighty keeper. We thank you, Lord, that as our keeper you neither slumber nor sleep, that your eye is carefully upon us, and as such you know our needs. We read in your word, Lord, that every creature waits upon you for sustenance because you know what they need and you are inclined to give and meet each person at the point of their need. Lord, physically we have needs and they are different. Spiritually we have needs and many of these needs are the same. Oh God, as we come to the place to address and to speak concerning spiritual matters, I pray that you will be inclined to meet the need of every heart. Lord, some people here today need a very direct word from You. I pray that You will answer that prayer. Some people, Lord, today need direction. Give them the direction they crave and that they need. O God, some people here today need Thy hand of mercy. And I pray that You will cause them to see that there is mercy with God in Christ Jesus. Lord, some today need to be rebuked. And I thank You, O God, that that ministry belongs to the Holy Ghost. I pray, therefore, that you will, as you see fit, rebuke those that need to be rebuked and cause them to see that you only rebuke and chasten those that you love. Gracious God, I ask that you today will give light unto those who are in darkness. I pray that you'd come and unlock the chains for those that are in bondage, even to their own nature. I pray, O God, you'd come and proclaim liberty to the captives, even those who are enslaved by sin and have no hope. because they are alienated and estranged from God and Christ. Lord, come today then and speak to us concerning our need. Lord, I have a great need of you right now and I pray that you will come and anoint my heart and mind and soul even with the power of the Holy Ghost and enable me to be your instrument. an instrument in your hand whereby you will accomplish your purpose both in the Church and those that are here today who are outside the Church of Christ and yet need to hear the word of repentance and faith. Lord, speak to our hearts and give us joy and comfort in the Holy Ghost, for we pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. The second and third chapters of the Revelation contain messages that were sent to the seven churches of Asia, and there is nothing to suggest that these churches were anything else but literal assemblies. There was a church of Ephesus. There was a church of Philadelphia. There was, likewise, a church of Laodicea. We have read this morning the message that was addressed to this peculiar church, the church of Laodicea. Now, actually speaking, That church has passed away over the years with the passage of time. But the spirit of that church lives on today. What do I mean by spirit? The Laodicean church will go down in history as the half-hearted, easy-going, indifferent, complacent church that aimed at nothing and did nothing. The church accommodated itself to other religions. It basked in material wealth. It was content to live a life of ease, and it was a church that failed to press the claims of Christ. Christ described the church as neither hot nor cold, but lukewarm. More graphic still, the Laodicean church will be forever remembered as the church that would make God vomit. The Lord Jesus uses a plain and a vulgar metaphor. I use the word vulgar not to speak rude, but a commonplace description. As lukewarm water makes man's stomach heave, so lukewarm profession is nauseous to the Almighty God. Alexander McLaren said this, he said, it is no lack of charity to say Laodicea is repeated in a thousand congregations, and the Laodiceans are prevalent in every assembly. All our Christian communities are hampered by a mass of loose adherents with no warmth of consecration, no glow of affection, no fervor of enthusiasm. When you recognize that even though the Church of Laodicea has passed into history, Yet the Spirit remains. You appreciate then that this is not an old letter that is to be discarded, but it is above all letters one that is a letter for our times. At the end of the letter is this challenge. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. If we have not been keenly interested already, that this challenge invites every one of us to listen carefully. And what did God say to the churches? Well, if you can sum up all the letters, He was suggesting what was pleasing to Him and what was displeasing. Friends, that ought to concern us. What does it really matter at the end of the day if we are content with our church if the Lord God Himself is not? What does it matter if visitors coming into our assembly are pleased with what they see if Christ is not pleased with what He sees? Above all other things, a church must seek the blessing of God in its endeavors even if it never obtains the blessing of man. It is better for us to be a church of 50 people esteemed by God than to be a church of 5,000 and be astute of Him. Because the Laodicean spirit is in every church, and in some measure in every heart, even our hearts, then I want to consider this morning, in light of this passage, the danger of becoming a complacent church. The danger of becoming a complacent church. And friends, you know what a church is. It is a collection of individual souls. And so as the danger is real to the collective body of becoming complacent, so likewise the danger then is real to everyone who is a professing believer within the body collective. The first thing I want to leave with you is the state into which a church can fall. We're talking about the danger. And I say the state into which a church can fall is a dangerous thing. Let me suggest to you from the passage here several states that a church may fall into. The first is this here. A church may fall into a state where she appears to be better than she really is. The Lord comes to this lady to see in church and he says, I know thy works. He says, I know thy works as much as to say, well, nobody else knows you, but I know you. Men think better of you than you deserve. You don't know yourself. You think yourself to be of excellent works, but I know that you're very much different. You notice here that our opinion of ourselves and Christ's opinion may be very different, and that is sad. I love this church, and I love the denomination that we are in. But we must all be careful never to esteem any church to be greater than Christ esteems it. The honor of Christ is of much greater value than any earthly denomination. To the church at Smyrna, the same statement was made, I know thy works. But you see, in that case, it was a word of comfort. The church at Smyrna had been sorely persecuted and tried They would have imagined that the things they had done, their faithfulness, went unnoticed to God. The Lord comes to them and He says, I know thy works, that gives great comfort, that everything we do in the name of Christ, though it may appear to go unnoticed, the Lord sees and He will reward accordingly. When the Lord comes to the Laodicean church and says, I know thy works, the context is entirely different. God knows the works of this church. He knows the ministers. He knows the elders, He knows the deacons, He knows every member, and He knows every adherent, and He knows who we really are. Now, there's no use trying to appear better than we are. People call the church on occasion, and Pastor Craig or I answer, and their questions are, well, who are you as a church, and what are you all about? And we tell them, and sometimes we'll send to them a welcome package outlining who we are as a church. The public can read reports, but the Lord sees for Himself. And as such, He judges a church not by its external activities. Do we have a youth ministry? Do we have a college career ministry? Do we have a woman's fellowship? Do we have this? Do we have that? Do we have the other? God does not judge a church by external activities, but rather by internal pieties. What does that mean? It simply means there's no point us going around patting each other on the back if what we do is not approved by God. As a church, and as a denomination, we absolutely must have the mercy and the grace of God if we're ever going to remain true to Him. I know thy works. Word upon this church should ever cause us to be cautious and careful in everything we do, because God knows who we really are. What is true of the church collectively is true of the church individually. Let me ask you this morning, what is it that God knows about you? We read in Philippians, let nothing be done through strife or vain glory. Do you know what vain glory is? Vain glory is when we try to appear better to others than we really are. When you stop and think what you do and how you do it, what you say, how you conduct yourself, I think if you're honest with yourself, you'll appreciate that there's a lot of things you do that must be attributed to vain glory. We try, do we not, to appear to be more virtuous than we really are. And we try sometimes to be more spiritual than we are, and more zealous than we are. But what's the point? Because God Himself, Christ who is in His Church, He said, I know your works. I know who you really are. In light of that, I wonder, are you the real thing, or are you living a complete fabrication? Well, there is some amount of hypocrisy in us all. And I think that there's more in us than we'd care to admit. But I wonder, are you really who you profess to be? I say that's something we've got to strive for. We've got to strive to be true to God. And we've got to strive to be true to ourselves. And then we have got to strive to be true one to another. What is true of the church? They say it's true of every member. God knows who we are. I want you to notice secondly here, not only can a church appear better than it really is, a church may fall into a state of indifference. To the Laodiceans, the Lord said, thou art neither cold nor hot. Mr. Spurgeon made this observation. He said of the people of Laodicea, they were not infidels, but they were not earnest believers. They did not oppose the gospel, neither did they defend it. They were not working mischief, neither were they doing any great good. They were not disreputable in moral character, but they surely were not distinguished for holiness. They were not irreligious, but they were not enthusiastic in piety, nor eminent for zeal. They were not bigots, but they were not Puritans. Good things were maintained among them, but they did not make too much of them. They had prayer meetings, but few were present, for they liked quiet evenings at home. In such communities, everything is done in a half-hearted, listless, dead and alive way, as if it did not matter much whether it was done or not." It's kind of remarkable that Mr. Spurgeon could write something that would so apply to our own hearts. So many years ago, If the Laodiceans had never heard the gospel, they would have been cold in the spiritual sense. But the Lord says that they were not cold. We assume that the first generation Christians in Laodicea accepted the gospel and were a glowing with spiritual fire and enthusiasm. There was a faithful and a hot Laodicean church at one time. The question is, why were they hotter and longer? Based on two references concerning this church in Corinth or Colossae, you'll find that the church that once was fervent over the process of time had become decayed and degenerate. There had been a cooling down from the former ardor and now they had become careless, lax and indifferent. What we seem to see here is not the first generation Laodicean church, but rather the second generation Laodicean church. It's their descendants. Now, the first church was warm with enthusiasm, but now they're descendants. And that raises a very important thing. The question we have to ask is this, do we or have we or will we allow the spirit of Laodicea to come into our church? If right now you're thinking about the lukewarmness of any other person in this sanctuary other than yourself, well, then it is an indication that you have already been infected by the Spirit. Because every man is called to examine his own heart first. As a second-generation Christian in your home, are there already signs of decay? How do you compare with your parents spiritually? Speaking to the second generation in the Free Presbyterian Church in Northern Ireland, they're really on the third generation. But here in North America, the church was established just over 25 years ago. We are really just coming now to the second generation. Many of you have come to our church in recent times, but there is a core group here that have been here for some time. The first generation of this church, you have been saved from ungodly backgrounds. So I'm thinking more particularly now, those who are growing up in this church, having had parents who've been faithful before you. How do you compare to your parents spiritually? You know, there's no reason why you should be any less spiritual. In fact, you ought to be more spiritual. Because the benefit that you today have, they perhaps never had. There's no reason then why you should not surpass your parents in godliness and spirituality. And sometimes I wonder, If the first generation all of a sudden was removed from this church even, what state would the church really be in? You know, you can't help but notice when you read the history of the Church of Christ that with each generation there has been a slow and sometimes imperceptible decay within the church. Standards begin to drop. Attendance begins to waver. Contribution seems to wane. Prayer is left off. And sometimes fellowship is broken altogether. Ah, but it won't happen here. Yes, it will. Yes, it will happen here. And I think if we're honest with ourselves in some measure, it has already begun. The term lukewarm in this instance is very interesting. You see, the water supply for Laodicea came from a distance of six miles. It came from a town called Hierapolis via an aqueduct. In Hierapolis it was a spring, a burning hot spring. But as it traveled down the viaduct towards Laodicea, it became laden with calcium carbonate. When it arrived in Laodicea, It had cooled considerably and because of the carbonate in the water, it had a nauseating effect upon the people who drank it. Notice how the Lord speaks so graphically in every instance to the right people. You're neither hot nor were you cold. I will spew you out of my mouth. What are we to understand from that statement? I think none other than this, God is completely sickened. by lukewarm Christianity, and he will not endure it. I would that you were cold or hot, but this lukewarmness, how do we understand that? Why would God rather us to be cold than lukewarm? I think He prefers to work either with people who are aflame with energy to do His bidding. or with those who have never been told the message of salvation are willing to listen and to do. This lukewarm water that was laced with calcium carbonate-induced vomiting, it is recorded in the history of that land. We now recognize this nominal Christianity that is so prevalent in this nation is utterly distasteful to God. Now, in light of that, let me ask you, how do you describe your relationship with Christ. Are you cold? Maybe you have no idea what it means to be saved. You have absolutely no comprehension that you are accountable to a higher power and that you have been estranged from God because of your sin, born in sin. You have no idea that the gospel is a message whereby you, who have to this point been estranged, you can be brought back into fellowship with your Creator. through the Creator's Son, Christ Jesus. If you're cold, you've got to consider your state, because if you're cold now, you'll be cold for all of God's eternity. Cold and blind and darkened to truth. Perhaps you'll look warm. Maybe there was a time in your life, and likely so, when you did bubble over like that spring in Hierapolis with warmth and passion and excitement and truth. Now as that water traveled the six-mile journey down the aqueduct to lay in the sea over the passage of time, you have become lukewarm, and you're content to sit back and just go along in a status quo condition. Maybe you're hot. If you're hot, may God make you hotter still. May He give you the spirit of Jeremiah, who's explained the word of God burning in him as a fire, passionate for Christ, Might we get passionate about the New England Patriots? Oh, to God that half the passion invested into that game that has absolutely no consequence in eternity were invested into the gospel of Christ that will save a man from everlasting fire. You see that lukewarmness is so contrary to who Christ is. I mean, we speak of the passion of Christ. And how can we really talk about the passion of Christ? Souls that are so lukewarm, so indifferent, caring nothing of what the true passion of Christ is all about. May God give us real passion. May He give us real excitement. May He give us zeal again. Because the possibility that every church will fall into indifference is a very real one. Let's notice thirdly here, as we think of the spirit or the state that a church may fall into. Spiritual indifference can be traced back to spiritual complacency. Why were they so lukewarm? Well, it's because they were complacent. Laodicea took pride in being a very independent city. There was an earthquake in that town in AD 17. At that time, Rome came to their aid and supplied them with all the financial aid to rebuild the city. In A.D. 60, there was another earthquake. This time they rejected the financial aid. They were known as a financial center themselves. And soon after the earthquake of A.D. 60, they were determined of their own effort and ability to rebuild and thereby prove how self-sufficient they were. It seems this independent spirit carried over into the spiritual realm. Notice, because thou sayest, I am rich, I am increased with goods, and have need of nothing. I've got everything I need. To use a New Hampshire phrase, I'm all set. I'm all set, I really don't need anything else. These people have become content with their spiritual achievements. What's worse than that, they've begun to celebrate them. I'm rich, I'm increased with goods, and I have need of nothing. What they had was self-conceitedness and self-delusion. The Lord comes along and he says, you know not that really you're wretched, you're miserable and you're poor, blind and naked. They were poverty stricken in the midst of their abundance. They had every material thing you could ever imagine. But they were poverty stricken soul. They were blind, yes, to the real condition. They couldn't see it. They did not understand that they were out of touch with God. They may have looked at others, but could not see it in themselves. And then they were naked, exposed to the gaze of God. What a strange contrast. Here's a people who had every thought that they were straight on their way to heaven. Matthew Henry said, doubtless there are many in hell who thought they were on their way to heaven. Not to have need of anything is inconceivable for a true believer. You see, a believer, a true child of God, is one who depends upon God every moment of the day. Day, night, for drink, for home, for shelter, for clothing, for protection, for spiritual nourishment, for encouragement, for comfort, for love, for happiness, and for numerous other blessings. But to say, I have need of nothing, That's the height of spiritual arrogance, for faith and trust in the Lord no longer function. Now there are very few professing Christians that would ever dare say, I don't need Christ. But how many of us live as if that were the case? We come to church and we sing, I need Thee, I need Thee every hour, every hour I need Thee. You know, when you look at our lives, there's something of a disconnect between our profession of needing Christ and how we manifest that on a daily basis. A man who is conscious of his ongoing need will be a man characterized by several things. First of all, he is going to be a man of prayer. When do you pray? When do I pray? I'm overwhelmed by a sense of need. Does our prayerlessness not suggest that we don't really see ourselves to be as needy as we are? Remember the parable of the Lord, the friend at midnight. Someone comes to his house, he's got nothing to set before the guests. Because he has a need, he leaves the home and he goes to his neighbor's home and he begins to knock on the door. And he's persistent. Why? Because he's got nothing in his home to set before the guests. God gives a man a sense of need, he's going to be of necessity a man of prayer. A child of God, a genuine believer. Pray to God today that the Lord gives you a sense of your need, because it's much greater than your prayer life is presently indicating. Not only will he be a man of prayer, he's going to be a man of humility. There's no way that that man left the house having had nothing in his own home to set before his guests, going to his neighbor's home, and now, in an obnoxious and arrogant way, is he going to demand? No, please! As a beggar he comes to the door. And that is the character of a man who sees his need. He is going to be a beggar before God. A spirit of humility. Taking from the hand of God whatever God should give. A man who has a conscious need of Christ will also be a man of mercy. You can't receive. I say, look and lay the parable. That man could not have received the bread to set before his guests and gone home and ate it himself. Having received such bounty as a beggar, it was incumbent upon him now to go into share. and to use that which was given unto him as a means for distributing to others. Child of God, we've got to be men of prayer and men and women of humility and men and women of mercy. Be kind and tenderhearted one to another. Why? Because God has forgiven us for Christ's sake. Therefore, how can we, having received so much from the one from which we've needed so much, can we not now go out and give? to those who are also in need. Don't be alarmed, child of God, if you are thoroughly discontent with your present achievement in grace. As you look at other people, you say, well, you know, that person has excelled in so many ways, and I am less than the least of all saints. If that's the way you feel this morning, then thank God, because that's an indication of grace in itself. You don't feel that way by yourself. By yourself, you're like the Laodicean. I have need of nothing. I have this and I have that. And you're complacent. You're content to be where you are at the time. The more you walk with Christ, the more He will reveal to you how much you need Him. Do you need Christ? How is it evident in your life? Your fervency will be in direct proportion to your sense of need. If you really need them, my then it will come out in your life in every different way. The church was complacent and that was the reason why it had become indifferent. I want you to notice further here as we think of a church, the state in which it might get into. A church can get into a condition where they chase the Lord away from the door. When the Lord is in a church, It's a happy church. It's a holy church. It is a church where there is mercy. It is a mighty church. It is a triumphant church. But the possibility of grieving Him is very real. The Lord, through His prophet Hosea, said unto the children of Israel, I will go and return unto My place until they acknowledge their offense and seek My face. Notice Revelation 3 verse 20. Very familiar verse, 98% of the time taken completely out of its context. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. This is not the portion or the position which our Lord occupies in reference with a truly flourishing church. If the Lord is at the door, then the church is not going to be flourishing. If we're walking a right with him, he's in the midst of the church. And he's dwelling there and he is revealing himself unto his people. Being shut out from the spiritual life of the individual members of the Laodicean church, Jesus figuratively stands outside the door and he knocks to gain admittance. It ought to be the earnest desire of every true believer to make sure that Jesus Christ is in the middle of this church. The Lord says, grieve not the Holy Spirit. What does that mean? In another case, it says, quench not. The Spirit of God is likened unto a fire. And sin is that which effectively takes the bucket of water and pours it on top and thereby quenches the influence of the Holy Ghost. Now, you stop and think what this church is without the Holy Ghost. The thought should give you Shut her down your spine. David said, cast me not off from thy presence, take not thy spirit from me. If the Holy Ghost departs, then everything of any substance and of any value will depart with him, because without Christ we can do nothing. And I say this is a state into which a church may fall. There is a danger then of becoming a complacent church. And Christ will not tarry long in a lukewarm church. Let us go on and consider that very thing as we look now at the danger of the state. We've looked into the state that a church may fall, but let's consider the danger. The danger we might look at as being twofold. The first danger is this, being rejected of Christ. I will spew thee out of my mouth. The church must first of all be in the mouth before it can be spewed out. What are we to understand from this figure? Churches are in Christ's mouth in several ways. A church is in the mouth of Christ as that instrument used by Him as a testimony to the world. As the Lord spoke to the entire surrounding Gentile nations, through the Old Testament church, the nation of Israel, so He speaks to the entire heathen world through who? Through the lives and the testimonies of His church. When God is with a church's minister, the words that come out are out of the mouth of Christ. Revelation out of His mouth. Not out of the mouth of the minister. Out of the mouth of Christ went a two-edged sword. In a church where the Holy Spirit resides, the minister nothing because of Him. He is an instrument. He is the mouthpiece of whom? He becomes the mouthpiece of the living God. That's why this office is so, so dangerous, if I say. When we grew lukewarm, Christ says that Your teachers will not profit you, for I have not sent them, neither am I with them." We can go to many churches and see that that's the case. Preachers up there speaking, people are getting nothing. Now there are all different kinds of gifts and abilities within the body of Christ. But you know the difference between the humble, laborious efforts of a man who is called of God, And that man who stands at the front as a man who has not the new birth and the experience of it in his own heart and he speaks as an empty shirt, there is nothing in him. And so when a church becomes lukewarm, God spews them out of his mouth. The church is in his mouth a second way by intercession. In John 17 we read that The Lord does not pray for the world, but He prays for those of His own that are in the world. God will never leave off praying for His own elect. Never. But for churches, as corporate bodies, He may cease to pray. Listen to Mr. Spurgeon. I do not think Christ ever prays for the Church of Rome. What would he pray but for her total overthrow? There is no need, you say, to say things like that. You don't need to say things like that in this day and age. When churches refrain from saying things like that, they are well on their way to becoming lukewarm. When a church ceases from earnestly contending for the faith It's only a matter of time before that church is also spewed out of the mouth of God. And it appears that there are other churches that are coming very close to the same fate. They're not clear in the truth. They're not honest in obedience to his word. They are following their own devices, and as such, they have become lukewarm. As we think of the church In the mouth of God by intercession, think of the pleadings of Christ for His real body. He loves them, and countless then are the blessings which the real church received as the recipients of the intercessions of God the Son. On the other hand, it will be an awful day when Christ casts the church out of that interceding mouth. Although today we might pray that God would never remove us from His prayer list, To the Ephesian church he said, Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works, or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of this place, except thou repent. The sad thing is there are Christians who today are attending churches that I believe that Christ surely prays against. What is the command to people who are going to such churches? Wherefore, come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you. To be rejected of Christ. What a dangerous state then is suggested by this solemn passage. Notice the second danger is God will leave such churches to their own devices. Already the Lord says they're poor, they're blind, and they're naked. Let's look a little closer to home for an illustration of it. Those three words characterize, I think very well, apostate Protestantism. Poor, blind, and naked. Poor. Perhaps you've read in recent times of The desperate problem that apostate Protestant churches are having, there are no people, there is no money, they cannot keep their buildings open any longer. And there is a record number of closings with an apostate Protestantism in this last year. But that's not half the poverty. The poverty is the spiritual poverty. If they are bankrupt physically, they're doubly bankrupt spiritually. They are poor, they are poverty stricken, and they have got no message to preach. When Jesus Christ and his exclusive claims are removed from the church, it's a matter of time before the church is no longer a church. What about blinds? If you live in Londonderry, you will have noticed that there is a gay men's chorus moving through some of the churches at the Christmas season. I tell you, as long as I'm in this pulpit, there will never be a gay man's chorus in this pulpit. I believe with all my heart that the sin of sodomy is like any other sin. It is reprehensible in the sight of God, and where there is mercy for the adulterer, there is mercy for the sodomite. But we wouldn't think, nor do I think any church would think, of having an adulterer's man's chorus. It would be too much of a shame. And yet we celebrate this peculiar sin that is doubly offensive because it is so outspoken. They're blind. They don't see it. Naked. They're naked. Notice here it speaks about the shame of nakedness. We looked at that the last time we met around the Lord's table. Nakedness is a shameful thing. How shameful it is to drive by churches that once heralded forth the truth of God. Churches that had Christ in the midst. Where Christ was sent to the door and then Christ was removed forever. Drive by and say that was a church of Christ. God will leave such churches to their own devices. If God leaves us to our devices, we're finished. We need the Spirit of God and we need Christ to be our portion. There is a great danger. I want you to notice finally the remedies then which the Lord employs. This is a state that any church can fall into. It is a dangerous state. But thank God the passage speaks of great remedies. The first remedy is found in this, that Christ gives a clear discovery of the church's true state. He comes and He says, Thou art wretched, Thou art miserable, Thou art poor, Thou art blind and naked. He told them exactly where they were. Although God might let us know where we are this morning. There's no point in us knowing where other churches are at. We've got to know where we are ourselves. And as individual members in a church, so we have got to know where we are. That's wrong. It's wrong for us to sit in judgment over other lukewarm churches if the same indifference, albeit in a smaller measure, is within us. The F Church of Ephesians might have said, or the Ephesian church might have said, well, the Lord said to us that We've done many good things, but we've lost our first love. Well, that's much better than the Church of Laodicea. When the problem of Ephesus is not addressed, it soon develops into the problem of Laodicea. If that heart that is no longer in tune with God and warmed by the blessedness of Christ, it's not long before then we become completely lukewarm and complacent and blind to His mercy. Is it not a mercy today that God is revealing to you who you really are? We will never get right with God until we lose our confidence. You're not what you say you are. You're not what you're pretending to be. The truth is you're wretched, you're miserable, you're poor, you're blind and you're naked. I wonder, does the Lord speak to you today? I wonder, individual, is the Lord not uncovering your schemes and your lies? If God shows you who he is, it is a sight a sense of the greatest mercy, because now he means to pour out your heart after him. I want you to notice here, the further as we think of the remedy, the Lord gives gracious counsel. Notice verse 17, Because thou sayest, I am rich and increased with goods, and of need of nothing, and knowest not that thou art wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked, I counsel thee. Notice the first word of verse 17, because. Because you think this and you've been self-deceived, For that reason, I counsel thee, or I advise you to buy of me gold fried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich." Instead of a harsh rebuke and a sharp command, Christ counsels the Laodiceans and demonstrates His divine grace. You have not listened to my counsel to this point, but I advise you again. There is no one as longsuffering as our Lord. Anybody else, they would have turned away, but the Lord comes again afresh and He says, you've refrained from listening, but I'll still advise you still. What does He say? I counsel thee to buy of me gold, fry in the fire, that thou mayest be rich. There is so much within the text here, that thou mayest be rich. These people were already, if we can say, filthy rich. He lets them know where they might have true riches how they might have them. The Lord says that we're to come without money. Yes, but if we're to get this richness that he talks about, there's got to be the parting of something. One man said if we part with sin and self-sufficiency and come to Christ with a sense of poverty and emptiness, he will fill us as his hidden treasure. I wonder today, do you see yourself as God sees you? then come not with money, but come with your sin and your self-sufficiency and exchange it for that fullness that Christ alone can give you. Not only is there gold tried in the fire, but there's white raiment. White raiment that thou mayest be clothed. That's interesting. Laodicea was a city where the garment industry provided work and income for most of the people. So these words had direct appeal. Laodicea was known for its black clothing. The black wool that the sheep produced was the color of the great majority of the clothes manufactured there. Laodicean black, that's the way it was thought. So here they are supplying the whole world with their tunics and clothing materials all in black and the Lord says, why don't you come? Adorn yourself in a white raiment that you might be clothed. If you're unsaved today, you need the white garment of Christ's salvation. You need the righteousness of Christ attributed to your account. And if you're saved already and you need to put away the black garments and accept again that righteousness that is in him and take your standing in Christ. Notice the final part of the counsel. Anoint thine eyes with eye salve that thou mayest see. Again, these words have direct appeal. There was a medical school in Laodicea and they had become acquainted with the healing properties of the Phrygian stone. Now take this stone that they found in the region nearby, they would grind it to powder. Laodicea was known for its water. Laodicea was known for its black clothing. Laodicea was known for remedy for the eyes. The Lord says, Anoint your eyes with eye salve that you may see again. Notice the way the Lord operates. Here's a people that are producing ointment for the curing of sight for so many. The Lord says what you need is the eye salve that's found in Christ alone so that you can see yourself as you really are. Come to the Word of God and see your sins in light of His truth. So there is gracious counsel. I want you to notice the Lord gives gracious chastening. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous therefore and repent. Why do we chase in our children? Because we love them. Christ will chase in his church because he loves them with a far greater love. He will chastise us at times corporately. How does Christ chase in his church? He does so with hard sermons. He does so with sharp words and sore smitings of conscience. He sometimes chastens us with losses and with crosses and with lack of gospel success and troubles. But why does the church face up under hard times? So they might see their need and get back again knowing that God only chastens those that He loves. He chastens us corporately at times, then He chastens us individually. Maybe God has entered into a season of chastening with you. Perhaps the reason is because your lukewarmness is ill-affecting his people. Perhaps your indifference is ill-affecting your own children. Maybe your indifference is affecting somebody else's children. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous. Be zealous in your repentance is the sense of the word. Zealously repent and ask God to forgive you for your decline in grace. Not only does the Lord give counsel and chastening, but the Lord invites us to communion. He says, I stand at the door and knock. This verse, as I've said already, is most often used as a gospel appeal to the lost. I stand at the door and knock, imagining that the Lord knocks and if you will open your door, he will graciously come in. This verse belongs to the Church of God and not the unconverted. It is addressed to the Laodicean Church. There is Christ outside of His Church, driven there by their unkindness, but He's not gone far away. He loves His Church too much to leave her altogether. He longs to come back, therefore He waits at the doorpost. He knows the church will never be restored until he comes back and he desires to bless her. So he stands waiting and knocking and knocking. How does Christ knock? He knocks by earnest sermons. Christ knocks by providences. Christ knocks by impressions upon the conscience and quickenings of the Holy Spirit. He will employ all means to awaken his church. And if you ever questioned the mercy of God before, see the mercy of God in this passage. He says, I will spew you out of my mouth. I am disgusted, but I will not leave you. I have taken my presence from you, but I love you and long to be invited back in. Christ never forces himself into a church apart from her will. He will not break the bolts and the bar and come in as he often does in a sinner's heart. The Lord sometimes breaks into a sinner's heart and carries away that soul in mercy by a storm. But rather to his church he says, I wish to be among you when you open your door. Notice the latter part. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock, if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." Interesting to note the singular usage of the word him. We're talking about the church, the whole epistle is addressed to the church, and yet the one standing at the door now says, I will sup with him, and he will sup with me. The truth of this is, the recovery of a lethargic, lukewarm church is the recovery of its individuals, one at a time. The church will only get right by each man getting right. And as God stands outside the door, He says, notice, I will come into him and will sup with him. Notice the posture. I will sup with him. The man is looked upon as being the host and Christ the guest. I will sup with him, then notice the reversal, and he with me. Christ goes from being the guest, now he's the host, and he invites his people on to commune with him. May God give us the presence of Christ where he's not only invited, but may our church be characterized by Christ being the host. inviting us in to commune with Him. Our lives impact the lives of one another. We're talking about the recovery, one by one. If you're lukewarm, you and your own heart, your lukewarmness is a cancer to the rest of this body. I wonder, has the Lord spoken to your heart this morning? You've got to examine yourself. You've got to confess your fault if you've declined in grace. And what you must not do is talk about the matter. Talk about letting the Lord back in. The quietness of your heart as we close in prayer, will you invite Christ into your life to make it right? Will you invite the Lord to open up his word to you? Will you invite the promptings of the Holy Ghost afresh? Maybe the Spirit of God has been striving with you about a particular issue and you will not let go. Perhaps the fact that he's brought to your attention this morning is the very evidence that he's striving, and he will chase it because he loves. May God set our church ablaze, and may he do it by setting each one of us on fire for him. May it not be said of any one of us that we're cold or lukewarm, but may we spend the remaining days that we have hot and passionate for Christ, a God who deserves Everything we've got and more. May the Lord minister then this word to our hearts and give us great comfort in it. We serve a God who is pardoning. He pardons the transgression of the remnant of his heritage and he restores to fellowship. If you've lost out with God in recent times, come today and prove him and his word to be true. Especially I would speak to our younger ones. The second generation of this church The first generation passes off the scene. What will it be for us? If there is a decay between or from your parents to you, there will be a decay from you to your children. And that's the way the life of the church is proven. Be hot for Christ and spare your children. May God seal His word for His namesake. Let's all pray. Thank you for listening to the pulpit ministry of Grace Free Presbyterian Church. We invite you to worship the Lord with us as often as you are able. Our service times on Sunday are 9.30 a.m. and 6.00 p.m. and our Wednesday Bible study and prayer meeting is at 7.00 p.m. If you would like to obtain further information about the church and its available ministries, you can call us at 603-429-2979. you.