Sermon 13th March 2016

In the season of Lent, we will be urged to listen to the messages that Jesus sent to selected churches in First Century Asia. 

Today, our Vicar, Cameron Barker, preaches. The reading is from Revelation 3: verses 14-22.

“You make me sick!” That is essentially what Jesus has to say to the church at Laodicea: “You make me sick!”

It may not be a genteel way of putting it; but it’s accurate. It’s deeply shocking; but it needs saying, because this church is in acute danger. As today’s reading sets out, Jesus says that he is going to spit them out of his mouth unless they accept his discipline and change their ways. And the worst part of it is that they clearly haven’t got a clue of trouble that they are in.

So what had this church done to put themselves in such danger? Surely it must have been something dreadful, to make Jesus this angry with them. Well, the answer is in today’s reading; but you may have missed it: because this church had done nothing. And that was problem: they had done nothing.

The one-word summary of the church in Laodicea is ‘complacent’. “I know what you’ve done”, Jesus told them. But in contrast to his other letters to the churches in Revelation, this was all he could say to the Laodiceans: “I know you are neither cold nor hot. How I wish you were either one or the other! But because you are lukewarm - neither hot nor cold - I’m about to spit you out of my mouth”; laying out both the problem and its consequences in three devastating sentences.

Sadly this has been all too common a problem in churches throughout the ages, that they have done nothing for Jesus. But how could that be? How can a church, which in theory exists above all to love, serve, and worship him, do nothing for Jesus? There are several classic traps that can lure a church into complacency; and the church at Laodicea had fallen into all of them. So today we need not just to examine what those traps are, but also to ask whether we have fallen into them ourselves.

Don’t expect this to be a comfortable exercise, then; it shouldn’t be so! One key purpose of this Lent series has been to encourage precisely this sort of honest self-examination, as we prepare for Easter. We all need to do it; and probably rather more often than we do. Today we have been starkly reminded of the consequences if we don’t get things right: expulsion from Jesus’ presence. We have also heard the wonderful rewards that he promises to those who do change their ways, though: to sit with him on his throne! In terms of choices, it’s a right no-brainer, you’d have thought; but …

And so to the traps that the church at Laodicea had fallen into. The first can be seen in the way that Jesus told John to address the letter to the angel of this church. “This is the message from the Amen, the faithful and true witness, who is the origin (or ruler) of all God has created”. You see, it is – as we’ve often been hearing here in recent times – all about Jesus. Or it’s meant to be, at least. He is the one through whom everything was created at the beginning of time; he is the one who holds it all together now: the universe that he made; his church; us. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is the guarantor of all God’s promises. Jesus was faithful, even to the point of death on the cross for us. He is the Lord, that’s to say, the ruler, of the church, and the sole reason that it exists. 

Yes, it really is all about him, then; and he won’t ever let us forget that. So, whether we’ll listen or not, Jesus will still speak to his church. And he’ll speak in ways that are as relevant as he can make them. So if you’ve been wondering why Jesus called this church ‘lukewarm’ it’s because that image spoke very loudly to them. Laodicea’s biggest issue was its water-supply. It came from hot springs 5 miles away; by the time it reached the city, the water was only lukewarm. In those days hot water was for washing, cold water was for drinking. Lukewarm is good for neither; and Jesus said that the same was true of this church: if he wasn’t at the centre of who they were and what they did then they were good for nothing; and that fact made him sick.

The problem was that this church couldn’t see the problem. Jesus reminded them how they saw themselves. “You say, ‘I’m rich and well off; I have all I need’”. And here’s the second danger that can quickly lull a church into complacency: having too much money. Laodicea was a rich city, renowned for its very successful banking, clothing, and medical industries. When it was mostly destroyed by an earthquake, the city turned down the financial help that was offered by Rome. They were so rich, proud, and self-sufficient that they wanted to rebuild the city out of their own resources. As is often the case, the church in the city reflected their society; they were rich, and thought of themselves as self-sufficient. Like so many people (including us, perhaps?) who don’t have to pray for daily bread, they had stopped depending on God for their needs. 

They thought they already had everything that they needed. But here’s how Jesus saw them: “You don’t know how miserable and pitiful you are. You are poor, naked and blind”. This church which saw itself as rich was actually dirt-poor. In the home of designer labels, they were, in reality, naked – which was the ultimate humiliation in that society. In the city that produced a healing eye ointment, this church was blind to their spiritual state, which is the only one that truly matters. And they were so blind that they couldn’t see any of this reality!

But Jesus has good news for the church at Laodicea too. The problems are not beyond fixing. He only says that he is about to spit them out of his mouth. They have got time to sort it out; it’s not too late for them – just as it’s never too late for us if we fall into these traps. Because he loves his church Jesus warns of the problems. Indeed that’s a sign of his love for us. Jesus says, “I rebuke and discipline [not ‘punish’ as GNB has it but rather ‘discipline’] all whom I love”’. It’s because he loves, and wants the best for, us that Jesus won’t leave us to stumble into the disaster that our actions will inevitably result in.

Of course we need to be listening to Jesus to receive his discipline. But that’s why each of these 7 letters ends by urging whoever has ears to listen to what the Spirit is saying. And, if we do listen, we’ll hear not just the warning but also the solution. Jesus does have the solution for this church as well: “I advise you, then, to buy gold from me, refined in fire, in order to be rich. Buy also white clothing to dress yourself. Buy also some ointment to put on your eyes so you may see”.

This is Jesus advice to the church at Laodicea. Taking that in reverse order: if they do want to get right with him, they first must see the problems for what they are. Jesus can help them do that. He has ointment that can make us see the spiritual truth – just as the ointment of Laodicea healed people’s eyesight. He says that we must buy it from him, but the only payment that is needed is of hearts open to him.

And once our eyes are open to see our shameful nakedness before God, we can then buy the clothes that we need from him. Jesus told the church at Laodicea to shun the values of their society. They didn’t need the ancient equivalent of Gucci or Giorgio Armani in the black wool clothes that were unique to their city. No, they, we, need the white robes of righteousness that Jesus alone gives to those who are faithful to him.

So how will he sell them this clothing? If they look to him for their true riches, Jesus writes. Jesus alone can give them what’s of lasting value – this gold that he mentions. But it’s not just any gold; it’s been refined in fire. And to be clear, he means the fire of suffering. Jesus reminds the church in Laodicea that this is the example that he himself has set them. If we want to be rich in God’s sight we have to prove that we can stand for him when times get tough. As one commentator has put it, the church that’s under fire must go through fire to be on fire for Jesus.

Jesus make that even more clear in the reward he offers them. To this church with the biggest problems, Jesus offers his greatest reward. “To those who win the victory – or overcome – I will give the right to sit beside me on the throne, just as I have been victorious and now sit with the Father on his throne”. How did Jesus get to sit on that throne? By going to the cross for us. And how will we get to sit with him on his throne? By enduring the suffering that will come our way if we take a stand for Jesus. And make no mistake: those who do take a stand for Jesus have always, and will always, suffer. But remember what glorious reward awaits those who stand for Jesus, and go on standing through suffering: a place on his throne.

So far we’ve not touched on one of the best-known verses in the Bible that’s in this passage. It’s often used in isolation, as an invitation to faith; but it matters that it follows Jesus saying: “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent”. It’s those who repent, who turn to Jesus, who can then hear him say this: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in and eat with them, and they will eat with me’. It’s a magnificent invitation, full of love and generosity. There’s a sure promise of intimacy with Jesus for all those who respond. What’s staggering, though, is that this is what Jesus offers to the church. Jesus says that he stands outside this church and knocks to be let in! How dreadful that Jesus should be being kept out of his church; and yet how easy it is to do! 

Hearing about this complacent, self-sufficient church at Laodicea challenges us to ask about the ways in which we keep God out. What about our wealth; what about our materialism; what about the security that we place in our property, or careers; what about our designer lives? Are they all ways to say to God that we don’t need, or want, his help? If they are, maybe we need to hear him say that we are the ones who are poor and naked; and blind to those realities. Maybe we are people who need to hear him outside; knocking to be let into our lives today, then.

As we come to the end of this Lent series, we do need to ask ourselves such hard questions. It’s urgent that we ask if we have shut Jesus out of his church here. It’s crucial we consider whether we are so self-sufficient that we can’t hear Jesus’ voice. We must look at ourselves honestly, and ask if we are naked before God. Jesus can fix all of that, if he needs to; as he promised to do for the church at Laodicea: if they would open the door to his knocking. But first we have to know what the problems are. And for that we have to ask Jesus to open our eyes to see him, and our ears to hear voice of his Spirit that is speaking to his church today.

Dare we do that? In this series we have heard some of the issues that Jesus confronted his First-Century church with. Whether the issues that he would confront us with are the same or different, how do we need to repent: as a church; and as individuals? Above all, are we willing to say to Jesus: “You are Lord: so say what you want; do what you want: to this church; and to me”? Can we truly say to him, “We depend on you; without you we are nothing”? As the letters to these churches in the book of Revelation have each reminded us, without Jesus as the Lord of the church, there is no church at all. So let’s pray that we will be his people, then; listening to him; and living for him alone: this Easter; and beyond …