Lukewarm

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.’So because you are lukewarm and neither hot or cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 2:14-16.) A lot of people don’t know what it means to be lukewarm. In all actuality the majority of Christians in America make a huge blunder, because often times they mistake lukewarmness for New Testament Christianity, I know I did. I thought that just as long as I showed up to Sunday service because “that’s what Christians do” I was ok with God. Yet, I found myself saying “well I guess I’ll give x-amount this morning,” not “Man I really want to give X-amount and I will!” I found that the only time I’d pray was over a meal or when I was asked to pray at worship and even then it was, for the most part something that I’d used as my canned ”in case someone asks you to pray” prayer. I thought by showing up, or even on Sunday’s when I was asked to preach, that by simply being there or preaching that Sunday morning God and I were ok. However, this is not the case, So many times Christians think that if they follow the “check list” they are ok. You know, the “check list” all the things which CHristians shouldn’t do, like drink, cuss, have pre-marital sex, do drugs, go to parties,miss worship… and the list could go on. Now don’t get me wrong these are definitely Christian principles and definitely apart of staying pure before God. These are principles which should be apart of our Christian walk with God. But whatever happened to the aspects of Christianity which we are suppose to DO! you know like feed the poor, help the broken, look after orphans and widows, teach, preach, spread the gospel to our neighbors, friends, or even total strangers? why are these so overlooked? They are overlooked because we become so comfortable with obeying the do not’s and we are uncomfortable with the do’s. Therefore, our Christianity is simply lukewarm… We get so use to the “system” of Christianity we forget the relationship which we have been invited into, the relationship which we agreed to upon our conversion, the relationship which requires certain do’s and do not’s based on love. We forget that relationship and our Christianity becomes a “have to” not a “want to” thus we are lukewarm. I know because I’ve been there, I was addicted to Lukewarm Christianity because it was so easy, so appealing, until I read what went on in the New Testament, until I read what Christ said about Lukewarm Christians and that most of all, is what scares me. Because there are those today who I’ve views in the 8 years I’ve been a Christian who simply will not move from Lukewarm to on fire and their fate is no different from those at the church of Laodicea….Christ will vomit them out of his mouth. So based on this post, are you lukewarm? These are just a few short confessions of a former lukewarm Christian.