We’ve all seen the commercial where an older man in kakis and a blue button up shirt comes walking down a dirt road lined with tin houses. The man seems the same, the babies with the sad eyes give us the same wish-I-could-help feeling. And the pleas are always about the same. A dollar a day, fifty cents a day and you could give a child food, and a good education. We see it on our t.v almost every day don’t we? As foreign as it seems to us, it’s true if 100 people were in a room 53 of them could, and do live on two dollars or less a day. Two dollars a day! I spend more than that on gas a day.
Living with so much wealth puts us in a dangerous category.
In Luke 18 A rich guy comes to Jesus and He says “Teacher what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Great question! But I can see you in your head start to separate yourself from this young guy. You are in one of the wealthiest if not the wealthiest country. You are going to church, doing your Christian thing looking for an opening, just one chance to grab onto eternal life! You are alike, this story is about you.
So here we go the kid comes to Jesus asking how to get into heaven. Jesus answers “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments” The guy “Oh yea all of these I’ve kept since my youth!” He’s getting excited but when Jesus hears this “ One thing you lack;sell all that you possess and give it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come follow Me.”
But how does this scene end? It says “But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich.”
He just didn’t get it did he? He’s holding the riches of the world in his hands and being offered eternal life. But he’s turns away sad. He has just hit the jackpot but is so blinded by the security that his riches offer him in this life he can’t see the treasure of the next!
Jesus turns to His disciples and says “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” When the people around Him heard Him say this they started getting nerves “Then who can be saved? But He said, ‘The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”
Keeping that in mind let’s jump to the Book of Revelation, going through the churches in Revelations I finally came to the last church. I read the Amen’s disgust and had to admit that He was talking to the American church as well as the church of Laodicea. He says
“Because you say ‘I am rich, and have become wealthy and have need of nothing’ and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.” Revelations 3:18
Have we not become the church of Laodicea? Are we not the rich young ruler? We need God yes, but we need Him to keep our schools safe and our churches fat and happy. Sure we need God to make us feel better. Have you ever like Moses had to cry to God for deliverance? Have you like Daniel been willing to lay everything-even life- down for your Creator? No we are the rich young ruler that doesn’t get it, we’re stuck in comfortable mode. We are the church in Laodicea that says we don’t need God we and our money have it all under control. It is an attitude that sickens The Almighty.
Look the church that is rich and feels secure because of their money. That church that has no need for God because the have everything they need. Look what God says to them. “I know your deeds that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.” I wish you were on fire for me or black out lost. “So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold,” Because you sit in the pews at church, because you’ve taken just enough Jesus to make you feel better about your life but not enough to convict you of sin “I will spit you out of My mouth.”
What does that mean exactly? You’re a glass of water that’s sat out in the car all day you’re not cold and refreshing or hot and good to stick a bag of tea in. You’re stale repulsive.
I’ve hear it debated, are the lukewarm saved? I’ve heard that yes their just not so into their savior anymore so they were hot but now their just warm-ish. But look how the lukewarm church is described.
“And you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.”
Have you ever heard of a poor Christian? How about we change amazing grace around a little bit “I once was blind but now I’m blind” Doesn’t have quite the same meaning does it? A naked Christian, a wretched pitful Christian? Not going to happen
But look at this beautiful promise to the rich, self righteous church that doesn’t get it!
“Behold I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and will dine with him, and he with Me. He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me in My throne,” Revelations 3:20,21
Look at the description of that throne in chapter 4 starting in verse 2
2-6"I was caught up at once in deep worship and, oh!—a Throne set in Heaven with One Seated on the Throne, suffused in gem hues of amber and flame with a nimbus of emerald. Twenty-four thrones circled the Throne, with Twenty-four Elders seated, white-robed, gold-crowned. Lightning flash and thunder crash pulsed from the Throne. Seven fire-blazing torches fronted the Throne (these are the Sevenfold Spirit of God). Before the Throne it was like a clear crystal sea. "
Prowling around the Throne were Four
Animals, all eyes. Eyes to look ahead, eyes to look behind. The first Animal
like a lion, the second like an ox, the third with a human face, the fourth like
an eagle in flight. The Four Animals were winged, each with six wings. They were
all eyes, seeing around and within. And they chanted night and day, never taking
a break:
Holy, holy, holy
Is God our
Master, Sovereign-Strong,
The Was, The Is, The Coming.
9-11Every time the
Animals gave glory and honor and thanks to the One Seated on the Throne—the
age-after-age Living One—the Twenty-four Elders would fall prostrate before the
One Seated on the Throne. They worshiped the age-after-age Living One. They
threw their crowns at the foot of the Throne, chanting,
Worthy, O Master! Yes, our God!
Take the glory! the honor! the power!
You created it all;
It was created
because you wanted it.
“And they chanted night and day, never taking a break; Holy , holy, holy is God our Master”
We just don’t get it. Our giving is lukewarm, our praying is lukewarm our sharing is lukewarm, thinking maybe we’ll still get into the glories of heaven holding onto our stuff. Maybe He’ll hold us in His mouth long enough for us to slip in. What an attitude, what a sick attitude.
The kingdom of heaven is like a guy who finds a massive treasure in a field and goes and sells everything so he can buy the field with the treasure. Not a man that goes home and debates if it’s worth loosing his favorite couch or his fluffy blanket. God faithful and true sits in heaven glowing like diamonds with flashes of lightening shooting out of him. Four living creatures full of eyes with six wings, then there are 24 elders around who fall and worship and over a hundred thousand angles with loud voices saying “Worthy is the Lamb!” God is surrounded by all of this wonder and your sitting here still going
“uhh I dunno? Is it really worth it? Can you still not figure out why your lukewarm, comfortable life makes God gag?
It’s not a works salvation it’s a transformed life salvation one only the all sufficient can accomplish. We as a church as a nation need to be on our knees searching our hearts and lives to destroy they areas that are lukewarm.Pray ask the Holy Spirit to transform your life, into a Romans 8 life “ God’s spirit beckons, there are things to do and places to go! This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God like a child, ‘What’s next Papa?” Romans 8:14-15.
- Marey
To Contact Mary for speaking to your youth, Please contact Aidan at AidanMc This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it