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THE SEVEN CHURCHES OF REVELATION ALIVE TODAY


Chapter 1 of "WAKE UP CHURCH"

The Seven Churches of Revelation, are also prevelant in these last days!

I need to preface this stark but truthful expose, which is inclusive of several popular ministries. By many, this will be judged as an “attack” on those ministries and even as “condemnation.” It is neither. The following most definately can be construed as judgment, however. Current belief in Christian circles today, wrongly insists that we are not to judge anyone, especially not any other ministry. That ungodly judgment is at the center of the very spirit of antichrist, which has allowed all sorts of apostacy and deception to become “mainstream Christian thought.” The Lord said that “by their fruit you shall know them.” We mustn’t judge people personally (unless there sins are obvious and precede them) but we must judge every word being preached and taught today before we absorb it or begin to apply it. Errant statements, beliefs and doctrines are anathema to the real church and must be exposed. Many assume that the large numbers of people who follow them and their popularity, equals biblical fruit. This is not necessarily true. We must all contend for biblical and orthodox faith in Christ and decry wrong doctrine. Not all are called to the same ministry. Part of my calling is to sound the alarm about the dangerous doctrines and lack of biblical doctrine in the modern church and call us to repentance. There is a major difference between stone throwing condemnation and biblical correction and warning. NO MINISTRY IS PERFECT. NO CHURCH IS PERFECT. HAVING SOME ERRONEOUS DOCTRINE OR TEACHING DOES NOT MAKE ANY ONE MINISTRY APOSTATE OR WE ALL WOULD BE. I AM NOT ADVOCATING A WITCH HUNT TO EXAMINE EVERY LAST BIT OF LEAVEN IN A MINISTERS LIFE AND MINISTRY. By examining some of what they do and preach, I am not saying that they are bearing only bad fruit, nor that they are necessarily dangerous. When Paul rebuked the powerful Apostle Peter, he did it in public so that all would know that Peter was in error. By doing so, Paul layed down his life to spare the church from inevitible division or even destruction. Peter went on to highly admire and love Paul and in Peter’s epistles admonished all to follow Paul’s teaching (2Peter 3:15,16). To Paul was given the doctrine of Christ and we must apply his teachings! “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.” (1Timothy 4:16)

In the opening chapters of the book of Revelation, Jesus judges seven different churches. Most are found wanting and in grievous spiritual trouble. These churches represent the seven types of churches that would exist throughout the ages. These seven types of churches are in operation today and need to heed the warning that Jesus gave to these early churches. In fact many churches display multiple characteristics of all seven churches. It does not surprise me at all that the first church that Jesus addresses, is the one that had lost it’s first love for Him. This is still the most rampant problem in the church and it is sometimes the most subtle for that kind of church to discern. How dissappointing it must be for Jesus when after establishing a loving, trusting relationship with a child- they fall out of love with Him and willingly wander away. I wonder how our sweet and loving Heavenly Father copes with the heartbreak that all of us have brought Him at times.

Jesus was grieved with the church of Ephesus because it fell out of love with Him. This is the sad reality of the majority of today’s churches. The major spiritual disease facing the church today is an explosion of “self” and it’s many induldgences. Self-centeredness (the flesh) has always been our primary enemy but has become a multi-faced, stealthy hybrid, often legitimized in the modern church today. It has become like a stealthy, multi-headed hydra that rarely exposes it’s true nature to the congregation but is easily discerned by certain individuals. This massive induldgence of “self”in the church, has it’s roots in pagan psychology and philosophies–– not the bible. Words like “validation,” “self-fulfillment,” and “recognition,” have become the mantra of many leaders in the church. These worldly concepts have nearly displaced true biblical edification, which is how the body is supposed to be built up and cemented together. These shallow leaders have unconsciously and consciously substituted pagan religion (psychology) for the truth of the gospel. This ugly self-centeredness is the opposite of the way of the cross but the majority of today’s churches are more concerned with status quo and political correctness than they are with having a loving abandon for Jesus and obedience to His word. It was their cold love and abandonment of biblical truth that caused them to turn to worldly methods like psychology–– now a major tool used by modern day “ministers.” Loving talk about Jesus and His word, is considered corny, unsophisticated and even offensive in many churches today–– glaring testimony that their love for Him has gone cold, although teaching about love for “self” is at an all time high. There is a preoccupation with making people “feel good” about themselves instead of preaching the need to die to self. They are more absorbed with maintaining their social structures and allegiances, far above there devotion to Jesus. The natural churchmen is foremostly dedicated to himself. Having more things, more control, more status. The “spirit of the world,” is unfortunately what also drives alot of people that call themselves “Christians.” “Looking out for number one,” is the deepest mantra of most people today and is the predominant religion. Many churches have just tried to find a way to legitimize it. Robert Schuller even spouts that “the cross sanctifies (legitimizes) the ego trip.” Robert Schuller has tickled millions of itching ears with such apostacy. In fact, most popular “movements” strive to relieve the Christian of His guilt but do little in the way of deep repentance and restoration with God. The apostate teachings of Schuller have had a significant deceptive effect upon the church, spouting his wilted brand of “positive Christianity.” (You see, “dying to self” doesn’t seem very positive, does it?) He is just a retread of Norman Vincent Peale’s “power of positive thinking.” Is Christianity simply a “mind over matter” religion or even just a “discipline” which we simply have to learn? This subtle demonic doctrine is so sugar coated and seemingly well meaning, that it is now pervading the evangelical church, though in even more subtle forms. Much of the evangelical church is presently trying to cover a fatal wound with a band aid and have no clue what danger they are in. Television evangelists like Schuller have reduced Christianity to a self help/success course, riddled with new age deceptions and gross perversions of the Gospel. The unfortunate effect of Schuller’s popular apostacy, has been the massive absorption of several of his premises. (“let’s keep the gospel light and fluffy so it doesn’t offend, it tends to be so negative”... “let’s throw out all those stuffy doctrines, nobody understands Paul’s teachings anyway!” “Give the people what they want!” “They want cheap love, cheap mercy, cheap grace, and phony acceptance.... they won’t even know the difference because they’re so shallow and superficial anyway” “lets make them feel good about themselves and inflate their “self-worth”.... that will open their pocket books!”) With these phony beliefs as a foundation, how can preachers call the church to repentance? Sin and deception MUST be spiritually discerned and openly identified in order for true repentance to come forth. We are warned by Paul in Colossians to “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the basic principles of the world and not according to Christ.” (Colossians 2:8)

I openly and loudly declare to the church, that many have been seduced and have fallen–– wake up and repent church, before it is too late. Jesus is calling you to repentance and He is coming soon!

The whole “seeker church” movement is based on presenting a “popular” “unoffensive,” gospel that will appeal to the masses. In fact, Bill Hybels sought out Robert Schuller quite extensively while he was creating Willow Creek Church. Robert Schuller loves to brag about that fact. Schuller considers Hybels to be a disciple of his–– he loves to take credit for Bill Hybels “success.” The much more insidious effect and fallout from the “seeker church” concept, has occured in other churches that now idolize and admire the popularity of Willow Creek church and are now following their example and bowing at their altar. The result has been the dilution of the gospel in many churches, which has precipitated a “falling away,” (spiritually, doctrinally) of many churches that were historically sound and vibrant. Many pastors are now proverbiably worshipping at the foot of Bill Hybels and his “seeker church” concept and now feel hamstrung to really call thier churches to repentence because of this perversion... the pervasive effect on the whole church of the phony, “positive gospel”(another gospel). Many pastors have made “being positive not negative,” an absolute centrific idol in thier ministries. Some of these pastors, must have never fallen under the conviction of the Holy Spirit, which is not always very pleasant. But, “anything so popular and so successful must be of God and must be duplicated!” WRONG! “Marketing techniques,” ARE NOT A GODLY REPLACEMENT FOR THE GOSPEL, NOR FOR MAKING DISCIPLES.

We need much more than just social and denominational walls to “fall down.” Repentance from self centeredness, the worship of idols (homes, TV, recreation, jobs, relationships, cars, things) and having lost our “first love” for Jesus, is where most should begin. (When you truly fall in love with Jesus many of these other problems suddenly seem like nothing and are easily vanquished. Their is power and victory in Jesus and His gospel!) American Christians are certainly more selfish, self-absorbed and self-entitled than ever and will be judged harshly if they do not heed the call to repentance. We should continually be in revival... always pressing on into Jesus... into new and deeper places in Him, continuously being renewed... falling ever deeper in love with Him. Jesus told the church at Ephesus to repent and “do the first works” in Revelation 2:5. This was a church that was still doing His work and not tolerating evil but they “left their first love.” v.4. Jesus even warns that He would “remove your lampstand from it’s place” and that He would “come quickly” v.5, which I take to mean; unexpectedly and with no time to prepare for Him. It doesn’t surprise me that in what is clearly the end of the age and the time of Christ’s coming, many Christians have been so deceived by apostate doctrine and worldly living that they scoff at those Christians who are passionately waiting for His return.

I’ve often been treated like some kind of naive boyscout that has lost his way, simply because I have the biblical passion and intensity that comes from knowing that Jesus could come at any hour for us and that most of the bride is not ready! They don’t want to believe in the imminent return of Jesus (as the bible clearly teaches) because that belief interferes with their “joie de vivre” or love affair with this life. For others it brings up the supressed fear that they are not prepared for His coming. All the more reason to proclaim His imminent return.

Many others have been brainwashed into believing that Jesus is their ticket to “health and wealth” and everything that they can ever imagine. Some of these self-deceived adepts are drowning in a self deserving, spiritualized narcisism that just oozes and exudes from them.....screaming: “I’m more special than you.” This type has assimilated a perverse theology that Satan loves to bless because it smacks of the very first lie spoken in Eden “eat this and you shall be like a god.” In fact, some of the teachers of that phony gospel proclaimed that “they were gods,” before millions of people! I have described the epitome of this kind of superior-minded, self -deceived “Christian,” but there are many, more stepped down versions and different types of “Christians” who have also lost their first love and fallen into massive deception. The multi-headed hydra of apostacy has hundreds–– if not thousands of heads in these last days and although many of them may have similar roots, the range of deception follows the gamut!

There are many, more subtle versions of churches that have been led astray because they have lost their first, passionate love for Jesus, yet remain in a “form of godliness” that resembles the real thing but upon close examination is only an empty shell– powerless. Some of these churches may give lip service to “being in the deep end” of the Spirit but in actuality, have long ago strayed from the power of God’s word and no longer preach the Full Gospel, let alone understand or apply the deeper revelations of God’s word. This type of church is the saddest of all because on the surface, it still resembles a biblical church and “goes through the motions” but has become a couterfeit, that propegates a phony, superficial kind of love. This kind of church anguishes God because it is so close to the truth and yet so far away. They fell, simply because they incrementally took their eyes off of Jesus and lost their first love. They may even know and preach an accurate (though dry and shallow) gospel, but fail to live it. Many of this kind of deceived, are living in a self-made religion that is grounded on “works” not faith in Christ. They actually begin to believe that because they do so many “good works” that God must be pleased with them, though they are really self-serving rather than serving God. Many churches today have subtly replaced the Spirit filled and led life with a type of social activism that makes people feel good about themselves but does nothing to glorify Jesus and propegate His kingdom. Many in this deception do everything to project a “respectable” persona in the community and clamor (secretly) for public recognition and acceptance, rather than pleasing God. Most ministers and congregations today are foremostly men-pleasers–– not God pleasers! The true gospel is rarely preached in such an atmosphere. True motives are not always easy to discern but are usually found in the types of “ministries” that these fallen ministers espouse. Please realize that a fallen minister can seem like the nicest, most positive guy you’d ever want to meet. Remember, deception often comes as an “angel of light.”

I have also heard young Christians cry that they “want to be able to get married before Jesus comes.” Some are so sex-crazed that they openly admit that it is their primary reason for rushing into marriage. This is open idolatry and lust! If you are not living for Jesus you could care less if He ever comes back but if you know that heaven is your true home, your “treasure” has been stored in the right place. If your first desire is not Jesus, you are living in idolatry! You are putting something or someone else first. If your belief in Jesus is simply a litany of theology and religion and not a heart gripping relationship with Him, you may not truly know Jesus. If this has convicted you, you need to repent and give Jesus your whole heart... all that you are. Your heart is your will, your thoughts and your emotions! If you decide that you want a loving and deep relationship with Jesus, He will give Himself to you as you give yourself to Him, if you repent and really want to change and pursue Him in faith! He can change your will but only if you truly want Him to! If changing seems impossible, I encourage you to thoroughly repent and ask Him to help you, by absorbing His word, waiting on Him in faith, trusting Him for everything and asking Jesus to baptize you in His Holy Spirit. Jesus is in the business of changing and restoring even the worst of sinners. Loving Jesus with all your heart isn’t an option in the Christian lifestyle. Jesus has shown us, what is the utmost priority; “to love the Lord our God, with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength!”

Our love and obedience to Jesus is by far the greatest measure of our success. We may be rejected and unsuccessful in the world but Jesus measures “success” by if we are abiding in Him. We are promised that “in this life we will have tribulation” but we are instructed to “rejoice, for He has overcome the world,” for us! If we truly love Him, we will follow Him and be obedient to Him. You can’t possibly know Jesus or walk with Jesus if you don’t truly love and obey Him. Our love relationship with Jesus will eventually result in a spiritual marriage with Him, “when we see Him as He is”! (Marriage Supper of the Lamb, Rev. 19:7)

He first loved us, which made it possible for us to love Him. Pray every day to receive more and more love for Him and for others. We are to cleave to Him through the power of His Holy Spirit, His “Parakletos.” The Greek word means; “helper, comforter, consoler, intercessor and advocate.” His Holy Spirit is simply the powerful presence of Jesus right within us. Loving Jesus and having His powerful Presence within us, gives Christians the motivation for living and serving Him. His warning to the Ephesians is a confirmation of 1Cor. 13; “without love we are nothing.” Through personal experience I have found that when we draw near to Him in true brokenness, He does draw near to us. If your desire is to be filled with Jesus’ Presence and to be in love with Him, He will deepen that desire and by His grace (free gift) He will make you more like Himself. The very meaning of “Christian;” is to be Christlike or a little Christ! His major personal goal for each one of us is to “be conformed into His image,” to be like Jesus!

Christ says of the church of Smyrna; “I know your works, and the affliction, and the poverty; but you are rich.” The church of Smyrna was tested, tried and persecuted but were found to be righteous overcomers. The Lord does not withhold the trials that cause us to be purified and press further into Jesus. We are made perfect through trials and tribulations because they force us to depend on Jesus and His grace. The Lord does not withhold all pain and suffering or poverty. “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (BUT YOU ARE RICH).” NKJV Wow, you mean that a righteous church may suffer tribulation and poverty? But so many “health and wealth” preachers proclaim that it is not God’s will for His children to suffer, nor to be in poverty. How do these “preachers” explain what Jesus says here? How is it possible that Jesus views this poor and persecuted church as being rich? It is obvious that Jesus has a completely different way of measuring richness than do the bulk of the “prosperity gospel” crowd. I am not condemning them at all but I am judging their erroneous doctrines that have been exposed by the very words of our Savior! It is a richness of His glorious Spirit IN US, that He counts as true riches, not what possessions we store away in this temporal life! Is it a sin to have wealth? Am I to take a vow of poverty? Absolutely not but God gives Christians wealth for ONE reason: to fund His work and bless other Christians. To some are given the gift of giving and they are called to give even more than a 10% tithe!

“Those who live godly in Christ Jesus WILL suffer persecution” church. It is a great privilege to be counted worthy to suffer for Jesus. He warns the church of Smyrna not to fear the coming persecution, that it would be only for a set time and that then, they would inherit “the Crown of Life.” I believe that the western church is about to go through an intense time of persecution in the coming months. Some will fall away, others will become pure and full of His presence. The church in the eastern and third world countries, is already being intensely persecuted. It is in the furnace of this persecution that the true gospel is being received by millions, sometimes in the face of imminent death. This is the time of harvest, which may increase a hundredfold after the Rapture takes place, when many who thought they were “believers,” suddenly come to full repentance and power.

The church of Pergamos is a compromised church. Their works had been good and they had been somewhat faithful but they decided that they could also practice idolatry and commit fornication. They had succumbed to the societal norm which was to “eat idol sacrifices, and to fornicate.” They were also into false teaching. They were told to repent or be caught unaware by Christ’s return. The modern day form of idolatry in the church today that compares to the sin of Pergamos, is a rampant, image driven worldliness, that pervades the church. “Popularity and numbers” and appealing to the lowest common denominator has created the “seeker” church. They tend to attract great numbers of people but what kind of Christians are they reproducing? A shallow convert at best, that may be enthralled with their new church but how many of them get to know the real Jesus? How many of them are just caught up in a popular emotional movement? Many come to be entertained under the guise that they are attending church and “broadening their spiritual horizons” (and perhaps their business contacts-”networking”). Jesus never couched the gospel in weakened, palatible terms nor did He entertain the many that pressed in to hear the truth. What people need is the real Jesus, they need the life changing power of the Gospel in Spirit and in truth. Many of the “converts” that I have known from “seeker” churches, have never truly repented, nor turned away from their selfish, sinful ways. Many of them swimming in compromise and constantly fail because they’ve never really understood the gospel nor truly received the Master who is the only One who can make real changes in their lives! Many of these “seekers,” never experience the true joy of salvation because they’ve never truly been saved. Many of these end up rejecting Jesus out of ignorance or because of a hollow adherence to the gospel. There were many in the gospels that rejected what Jesus had to offer. Jesus NEVER made it easy to follow Him... many could not. Jesus was hated by those that rejected Him and had Him killed in the most grizzly form of execution ever invented. We are not to strive to be unpopular, that’s not what He did but we are also not to so water down the gospel that it is no longer the gospel! Jesus didn’t come to start a popular movement, He came that we all could be redeemed, know Him, abide in Him and have abundant spiritual life. Unfortunately, there are some very convincing, “popular” people that believe that “abundant life” means having their every selfish whim and desire, from corvettes to luxury homes.

The “name it and claim it,” “health and wealth” “prosperity gospel” crowd, constantly straddle a dangerous fence of idolatry. Many in this popular “faith movement” believe that it is a sin to be poor. Some believe that it is a sin to be sick and they brag about how they never get sick although they do. (I guess it’s better in their eyes to lie than to “negatively confess”) There are some in this movement that have ministered to me at times but alot of them hammer their audiences about “seed faith” and “sowing big to reap big” (ie: give me your money!) Of course the ministry that they want you to sow into is theirs! Many of them twist certain scriptures that they use to validate their own personal gain. They tend to get into spiritual pride, self indulgence and the licentiousness that so pervades this “style” of ministry. Much of this “movement” is nothing more than false revival, preying upon the spiritually weak, the greedy, the rebellious and the corrupt. The worst of this type of apostate preacher/adept is actually preying upon the most characterless of the selfish–– those that want God’s goodies but not God Himself. (seek His face––not His hand!)

Thyatira was a truly schizophrenic church. The Lord knew of their love, patience, faith and works and that their current works were greater than at first but, they were allowing the woman Jezebel to teach them. She was a self proclaimed prophetess who was causing Christians to go astray and commit fornication and eat idol sacrifices. The spirit of Jezebel is a type of dangerous, rebellious deception that entices Christians and lures them into perversions. The Lord’s anger is roused by Jezebel and He states that He will even kill her children “except they repent of their deeds.” This Jezebel spirit has been very prevalent in churches in recent years. There have been all sorts of heinous sex scandals for which the devil has provided plenty of high visibility press coverage. The Lord particularly loathes these kinds of sins because they are so infectious and do so much damage to the cause of the gospel. We are under grace but not a grace that is to be abused. The worst deception of the Jezebel spirit and it’s major goal, is to cause Christians to commit spiritual fornication. The plethora of failed and adulterous first and second marriages being accepted into the church, are a major sign that we are in the prophesied apostacy of the end times. The prevalence of ‘new age’ techniques in some churches and charismatic witchcraft in others is the result of spiritual fornication. One of the primary examples of spiritual fornication is the “doctrine” of “positive confession” which has evolved out of the “faith movement.” Those that teach this “doctrine”, believe that we have the power in our own words, to create reality. In fact, Kenneth Copeland teaches that we have the same power to bring things into existence that the Lord has. (blasphemy) The Lord will “try the reins of our hearts” and will “give accordingly to our works.” It is also true that, “whatever a man sows, that also shall he reap.” We do need to watch our tongues because they can inflict damage on our souls and on others. They most certainly can be used of God to speak encouraging and healing words as well and need to be motivated and controlled only by His anointing and love. We are encouraged to proclaim in faith, when prompted by the Holy Spirit, “believing that we have received” BUT we are not to use our vain immaginations to create an altered, selfish reality. Praying for selfish gain is not faith. And praise God that not every negative thing I have ever spoken, cursed me nor came true, for truly I would have been dead by now, at least not enjoying the blessings that I now have in Christ!

The spirit of Jezebel in a God fearing church, is intended by the enemy to cause strife, division and eventually a “falling away.” When God’s people refuse to discern such spirits and don’t command the jezebels to repent or leave the church, people begin to fall. Jezebels are usually very savvy, cunning deceivers. Their main tactic is to infiltrate the body and brazenly, yet covertly proclaim a different gospel and introduce heresies with extremely convincing methods. The Jezebel’s major motive is to get Christians to commit spiritual fornication and to rebel against the Bridegroom. “Rebellion is as witchcraft” and is rampant in the world and the church. The others at Thyatira that were not in debauchery and fornication or idol worship, were not judged with the others but told to “hold fast till He come.”

The church of Sardis was “D.O.A.” (dead on arrival). It was told to repent and that if it would not “watch” for Jesus, He would come as a thief in an hour that they would not know. Does this infer that the watching church will know at least the general time of His return, that we might not be; “caught unaware”? Many believers are no longer vigilant in their anticipation and joy of Christ’ imminent return. Many of us watchers are trumpeting His imminent return because we know by His word and discern by His Spirit that nothing remains to be fulfilled for the rapture to occur. There is a discernible last hour or perhaps last minute quickening upon the earth right now. The love of many Christians has waxed cold as predicted and even some of the “elect” have been deceived (Matt 24:24). Much of the church is as fallen as Sardis was, so God is reaching out to the strangers and the desperate that really need Him. There is revival all over the world and a flurry of last minute evangelism will fulfill the word that the gospel would be preached to the ends of the earth before He returns. Perhaps that really pertains to His second coming with His Saints (us) back to earth, not the rapture, which will precede His “coming in glory,” at least 7 years prior. I believe that the greatest repentance and revival will occur right after the rapture, when many “churchmen” find that they were “left behind.” Many who heard the gospel but didn’t receive Jesus will become desperate for Him when they suddenly realize that they were “left behind.” The price will be high at that time as the Antichrist will be hunting and killing Christians during the Tribulation. There will be millions of Christian martyrs during the Tribulation! (Rev. 17:6)

There is a distinct observation that can be made about human behavior: the redeemed are being quickened at an amazing rate and the world is waxing worse and worse. There is a distinct polarization or “quickening” occurring in the world that is spiritual in nature. The devil is pulling all the stops to deceive and destroy humanity and Jesus is quickening and filling His church in great anticipation of His coming. We are in the “neck” of the hourglass! “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment.” Other, more tangible signs of apocalypse are already on the earth and waiting in the wings to explode upon the scene. Diseases and plagues the likes of which will make the bubonic plague in the middle ages look like a picnic, are already rearing their ugly heads. Not to mention the plans of the antichrist “New World Order,” which I will expose later as the global government that will usher in the rule of the Antichrist. Is a global coup is taking place right under our noses?

In a recent book, a former GRU member (high ranking Russian intelligence officer), who defected to America several years ago, reports that the Russian mob is now in control of Russia and that they have infiltrated America. He reports that they have stockpiled various biological and even “back-pack” nuclear weapons (over 100) into the U.S. for a future war of terror. Stanislav Lunev, was in the FBI’s witness protection program for six years but has surfaced to publish a book entitled, “Through the Eyes of the Enemy,” that thoroughly warns of an impending military blitz against the U.S. Our reaction to this and all apocolyptical warnings, must be to cling to Jesus and pray that He will hold it all in check. Please stand with me in agreement, praying that this kind of evil will be exposed. DON’T FEAR! I believe very strongly that nothing can or will happen without God’s permission. In God we trust!!!

The church in Philadelphia, was a stronghold for the Lord. His glowing love and approval of it’s faithfulness, opens the portals of His abundance; “behold I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast not denied my name” 3:8. The Lord promises them great protection and reward; “I will also keep you from the hour of temptation which shall come upon all the world....Behold I come quickly: hold fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown....Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of My God.....and I will write upon him, My new name” 3:10,11,12. Jesus proclaims that He is coming quickly, He will be the great reward for those who are waiting for Him. Fearful judgment awaits the disobedient.

Laodicea, is the “lukewarm” church that the Lord spits out of His mouth. He doesn’t approve of half baked Christians. He prefers that we are either “hot or cold”. Laodiceans have every THING that they need. With their lips they pay homage but in their hearts, they don’t really need Jesus. They proclaim in their hearts; “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that they are wretched, and miserable and poor and blind and naked,” v.17. They are self sufficient, not God sufficient or even needy of Him. (Some of the “prosperity gospel” followers are in many ways reminiscent of the Laodiceans and so is a major portion of the evangelical church.) They are told that; “as many as I love I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore and repent.” It was to these lukewarm Christians that He promised that He stood at the door of their hearts and knocked, waiting for them to open the door that He might come in and sup with them. Jesus pursues us with a never ending love, a jealous love, a love so great that He promises to share His very throne with us, v. 21. We are not destined to be slaves or pets. We are destined to sit and rule with Him as a royal bride who will sit beside her Husband the King. Copyright © 2000-2007 Spirittruth.com