Jesus and Lukewarm Christians // Overboard with Jesus, Part 1

Have you ever had a lukewarm cup of tea? There’s simply nothing worse, so imagine … I mean, just imagine … what a lukewarm Christian feels like to the God who sent His Son to suffer and die for you and me. Just imagine.

 

DON’T BE A LUKEWARM CHRISTIAN

One of the things that hits me between the eyes over and over again is how honest and direct God is. That may sound a little odd. I mean, you’d kind of expect God to be honest and you’d expect Him to be direct, I guess, but one of the habits I established over a couple of decades ago now is to spend some time in God’s Word (the Bible) pretty much each and every morning. Sometimes when I’m travelling or I’m under severe time-pressures it doesn’t quite work out, and on those days the things that I remember from His Word … well, those things sustain me. But to live a life of joy, a life that’s full and fulfilling, let me tell you there is simply no substitute for listening to God speak; seriously, and that’s what reading the Bible is all about: Listening to God speaking to us.

Just this morning, around 3:15 am it was, before I sat down at my desk to prepare this message, I was in God’s Word. Psalm 32 is where I was up to, and the sheer power of what God had to say just blew me away. We’re going to chat about that particular Psalm later on in this series of messages, but right now, I want to head off to the other end of the Bible – the book of Revelation, where Jesus is talking to a church, and He’s talking to them about being lukewarm. Have a listen. Revelation 3:14-22:

“And to the angel of the church of Laodicea, write: The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the origin of God’s creation: I know your works; you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were either hot or cold, so because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

For you say, “I am rich; I have prospered and I need nothing.” You don’t realise that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked. Therefore I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may be rich, and white robes to clothe you and keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen, and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. I reprove and discipline those whom I love; be earnest, therefore, and repent.

Listen, I am standing at the door knocking. If you hear My voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with Me. To the one who conquers I will give a place with Me on My throne, just as I Myself conquered and sat down with My Father on His throne. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”

To be perfectly honest with you, I’ve been to many churches like the one in Laodicea. I’ve met many people who call themselves Christians, who would have fitted comfortably into a pew in that church. That lukewarm cup of tea I mentioned earlier … You know what that’s like. You take one sip and you just want to spit it out. Right? Hot, sure; that’s nice. Cold – well, you know, ice tea is a very refreshing drink. But lukewarm? Puke! Right? What a vivid picture, and to the lukewarm Christian, that’s exactly what Jesus is saying here.

Like I said, God is really honest and direct on the things that count. Sometimes you hear preachers trying to … I don’t know … soften the blow; put a better spin on the message; try to make sure that people don’t feel too uncomfortable with what Jesus is saying. I mean, what spin merchant these days would let Jesus get out there and say, “If you want to be My disciple, take up your cross every day and follow Me because if you want to save your life, you’re going to lose it, but if you’re prepared to lose it all for Me, you’ll find it?”

It’s not a particularly popular message, but then Jesus … well, Jesus is a straight shooter. He knows that on the really important things in life, and this whole hot-cold-lukewarm thing is actually really important … He knows He has to cut straight to the quick, and so as we launch into this series today (it’s called ‘Overboard with Jesus’), please don’t expect me to mince my words. There are people listening to this broadcast today who are living out a lukewarm brand of Christianity: A form of Christianity where they say they believe in Jesus, but they don’t live as though they do.

You see, what you say only tells the rest of us who you want to be; it’s what you do that tells the rest of us who you really are. And for so many people, ‘I believe in Jesus’ comes out of one side of their mouth, but in their hearts, they say to themselves, “Well, I’m rich, I’ve prospered, I really don’t need anything.” As author Michael Green once put it, my job here is to strip you naked and to show you tha