Be Earnest and Repent

Rev 3:14-22

Key verse 19

“Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.”

1. Read verse 14-16. How did Jesus call himself to the church in Laodicea? (14) What was their spiritual condition? (15) What was Jesus’ imminent warning? (16) What can we learn here?

2. Read verses 17 - 18. What did they say about themselves? (17a) What was their true condition according to Jesus? (17b) What did Jesus counsel them to do? (18) What would happen to them if they took Jesus’ advice?

3. Read verses 19 - 20. What does Jesus do to those who he loves? (19a) How should we respond to his rebuke and discipline? (19b) What does Jesus promise to those who hears his voice and opens their hearts? (20)

4. Read verses 21 - 22. What promise is given to the one who is victorious? (21a) How did Jesus first sit down with his Father on his throne? (21b) How is it important for us to hear what the Spirit says to the Churches? (22)

Be Earnest and Repent

Rev 3:14-22

Key verse 19

“Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.”

Introduction

Chapters 2 and 3 show seven churches. Seven is a number of completion and fulfillment, so Jesus must have meant to speak to any church anytime. Speaking to seven churches means speaking to the church in perfection, "The churches of all time are comprehended in seven." This is the seventh and the last letter of Jesus. It was sent to the church in Laodicea. This is the only church about which Jesus had nothing good to say. The believers there were rich and prosperous, but they had a lukewarm attitude toward Christ. They had money and they didn’t think they needed anything or anyone including Jesus. Jesus told them to open the door of their hearts so that he could come in and have fellowship with them. Their problems are relevant to us today. May God help us to have ears to hear Jesus!

1. Read verse 14-16. How did Jesus call himself to the church in Laodicea? (14) What was their spiritual condition? (15) What was Jesus’ imminent warning? (16) What can we learn here?

1-1, Read verse 14-16.

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

1-2, How did Jesus call himself to the church in Laodicea? (14)

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.

• Jesus introduced himself as the Amen. We usually say “Amen” at the end of our prayers. We don’t usually consider it as a name of Jesus.

• But he says he is the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.

• The Hebrew word “amen” means “to be faithful, support, confirm, so be it, or truly.”

• The God of truth is the God of Amen

Isaiah 65:16 reads,

Whoever invokes a blessing in the land will do so by the one true God; whoever takes an oath in the land will swear by the one true God. For the past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from my eyes.

• Jesus is the truth. Jesus is the ultimate ruler of the universe. Jesus is the ultimate faithful and true witness.

• The Word was in the beginning. Jesus is also the Amen, the final word. He is the Alpha and the Omega. We can put our trust in him.

• Apostle John had seen who Jesus truly is.

Revelation 19:13-17 reads:

I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.”He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: king of kings and lord of lords

1-3, What was their spiritual condition? (15)

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!

• As a background for this, the city of Laodicea was located in the valley of Lycus, about 40 miles east of Ephesus and just south of Philadelphia.

• It was named after Laodice, the wife of Antiochus II (261-246 B.C.), a Seleucid king.

• Steeped in Greek culture and scholarship, the city was a major commercial, industrial and financial center of Asia Minor.

• It was famous for its banking and wool products. It had a prominent medical school. The first pharmacy in history was established here.

• Various ointments to treat skin disease and ENT problems were developed in Laodicea. Their eye salve was famous.

• Laodicea was the wealthiest of the seven cities to which the letters of Jesus were sent.

• With their money, they built impressive public buildings including a stadium, theaters, luxury bathhouses, and shopping centers.

• However, the city had one serious problem—it did not have its own water supply.

• They had to bring water in through a system of aqueducts from the hot springs in Hierapolis which was six miles away.

• By the time the water reached the city, it was lukewarm. It was yucky to drink. It was neither hot nor refreshingly cold.

• The lukewarm water tasted like a nauseating, repulsive drink.

• So what does it mean spiritually that the church in Laodicea was lukewarm?

• Jesus said, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!”

• From this, we learn that the problem of the believers in Laodicea was that they were indifferent to Jesus.

• They compromised the truth by mixing together hot and cold. They had no passion for the work of God.

• The original Greek words for zealous and hot stem from the same root word in origin.

• They were complacent. They were half-hearted. They were self-sufficient. They did not take a stand on anything.

• Their habitual, nominal Christian life was as disgusting as the tepid water they had to put up with on a daily basis.

1-4, What was Jesus’ imminent warning? (16)

• Jesus said, “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

1-5, What can we learn here?

• Let us examine our personal life of faith and also our ministry(community).

• How can we change this? Is our passion for mission on fire? Are we feeling the broken heart of Jesus to reach out to students with the gospel of Jesus?

• Have we become habitual and complacent? As we prepare for the new semester, let us ask these questions so that we may repent of our lukewarm attitude toward Jesus.

1. Read verses 17 - 18. What did they say about themselves? (17a) What was their true condition according to Jesus? (17b) What did Jesus counsel them to do? (18) What would happen to them if they took Jesus’ advice?

2-1, Read verses 17 - 18.

17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

2-2, What did they say about themselves? (17a)

‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’

• Material blessings can lead a person to be self-reliant, complacent, and self-sufficient.

• The church at Laodicea was blind to their spiritual condition. They looked at their spiritual condition and said "rich."

• They are the opposite of Jesus’ teaching.

Matthew 5:3 reads,

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

• The Laodiceans put their trust in material prosperity, in outward luxury, and in physical health. They felt like they didn't need anything.

2-3, What was their true condition according to Jesus? (17b)

• Jesus calls the wealthy Laodiceans wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.

• The city of Laodicea was famous for its wealth, but the Christians of the city were spiritually wretched, miserable, and poor.

• Laodicea was famous for its healing eye salve, but the Christians of the city were spiritually blind.

• Laodicea was famous for its fine clothing, but the Christians of the city were spiritually naked.

• The disparity between what the Laodicean church thought and what Jesus said was extreme: What they thought they were and what they really were, What they saw and what Jesus saw, and the differencebetween the wealth and affluence of their city and their own spiritual bankruptcy.

• What Jesus sees in them is more important than how they see themselves.

• The church in Smyrna thought they were poor when they were in fact rich.

Revelation 2:8-9 reads:

“To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:

These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. 9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich!

• But the church of the Laodiceans believed they were rich when they were actually poor.

2-4, What did Jesus counsel them to do? (18)

2-5, What would happen to them if they took Jesus’ advice?

I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

• But the gold we can buy from our Lord Jesus is much more precious.

• The sale items we buy from department stores don’t last long. They perish, spoil or fade.

• But the gold we get from Jesus has an enteral value.

Matthew 13:44-45 read,

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

• The eternal life in the kingdom of heaven is the best bargain we will ever find on sale. It has the greatest value and it is free.

• Where can you find a better deal than that?

• Jesus also counsels us to buy the white clothes from him so that we may be clothed in his righteousness.

• The Laodiceans were also proud of their famous eye ointment, but Jesus told them to buy spiritual salve from him so that they could see the truth.

1. Read verses 19 - 20. What does Jesus do to those who he loves? (19a) How should we respond to his rebuke and discipline? (19b) What does Jesus promise to those who hears his voice and opens their hearts? (20)

3-1, Read verses 19 - 20.

19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

3-2, What does Jesus do to those who he loves? (19a)

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.

3-3, How should we respond to his rebuke and discipline? (19b)

So be earnest and repent.

• God’s purpose in discipline is not to punish, but to bring people back to him.

• Jesus rebuked the believers in Laodicea, not because he didn’t love them, but because he love them dearly.

• Life is not a joke. We should not take the word of Christ lightly.

• Then we must repent. We must repent our self-sufficient attitude.

• We must repent our complacency. We must repent our materialistic ways of thinking and living.

• Most of all, we should come to Jesus to have a deep personal relationship with him.

3-4, What does Jesus promise to those who hears his voice and opens their hearts? (20)

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

• They did not have Christ’s presence among them. They didn’t think they needed him. They did not maintain personal relationship with Christ.

• Jesus stood at the door of their hearts and knocked. But they were so busy with the worldly affairs that they did not even notice that Jesus wanted to have fellowship with them.

• Once again material blessings and human achievements can become barriers between Christ and us, mainly because we become preoccupied with them and be indifferent to Christ.

• Jesus wants us to open our hearts and minds to him. He wants us to welcome him into our hearts and our lives so that we can have fellowship with him.

• Through our personal relationship with him, he wants us to have an exciting, totally committed life of faith.

Song of songs 5:2 reads,

I slept but my heart was awake. Listen! My beloved is knocking: “Open to me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one. My head is drenched with dew, my hair with the dampness of the night.”

• The key to opening the door is to first hear His voice.

• When we give attention to what Jesus says, then we can be rescued from our own lukewarmness and enter into a "zealous" relationship with Him.

• I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

• When Jesus says dine with him, He speaks of a specific meal known as the deipnon. This speaks of fellowship. This speaks of a depth to the relationship.

• Although this passage was given to the church, still it is a matter of individual in securing such an intimate fellowship with Jesus.

4. Read verses 21 - 22. What promise is given to the one who is victorious? (21a) How did Jesus first sit down with his Father on his throne? (21b) How is it important for us to hear what the Spirit says to the Churches? (22)

4-1, Read verses 21 - 22.

21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

4-2, What promise is given to the one who is victorious? (21a)

To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne

4-3, How did Jesus first sit down with his Father on his throne? (21b)

just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.

• Jesus is sitting down with the Father in heaven on his throne. He finished his redemptive work on earth by giving his life on the cross.

• Jesus is inviting us to be with him on his throne and reign with him.

Jesus says in Matthew 19:28 reads,

Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

4-4, How is it important for us to hear what the Spirit says to the Churches? (22)

Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Matthew 13:13b-17 read,

“Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.

• It is of paramount importance to hear what the Spirit says to the churches for This passage concludes with Jesus says, “Let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

• We must hear what the Holy Spirit says here, because He speaks to the churches - including us.

• May God deliver us from the self-reliant, compromising lukewarmness that marked the church of the Laodiceans!

• Help each of us to be zealous for the glory of God by overcoming indifference and self complacency.

Conclusion

For a man’s ways are in full view of the Lord, and he examines all his path. (Proverbs 5:21) Nothing is hidden before God’s eyes. May the Lord help us to overcome self complacency. May God help us to hear his voice of invitation, when he says to us, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”

One word: Be earnest, and repent!

Be Earnest/Zealous

Revelation 3:14-22

Key Verse 19, “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.”

What kind of zeal do you have in your hearts? I believe that everyone has some zeal one way or another. Have you seen the movie, “the Passion of the Christ?” It showed the final 12 hours of Jesus' life, beginning with the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, and ending with his crucifixion and a brief scene of his resurrection. The film has been controversial and received mixed reviews, with some critics claiming that the extreme violence in the film "obscures its message." The Passion of the Christ is the highest grossing R-rated film in United States history. But I think that the film did a good job in showing Jesus’ great zeal to fulfill God’s will to the point of his death, reminding me of Isa. 42:13, “The LORD will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.” Apostle Paul encourages us(Rm 12:11), “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” We don’t want to be men of impetuous passion but to be men and women of zeal like our Lord Jesus. Although he is our King and the Sovereign Lord, today in his letter he does not force us, but he gently and truthfully counsels us. Praise Jesus for his abundant grace! May the passage help us to have zeal for Jesus. There are 3 parts. Part 1, To the Church in Laodicea. (14) Part 2, Because you are Lukewarm. (15-17) Part 3, I am here! Open the door. (18-22)

I. TO THE CHURCH IN LAODICEA (14)

First let us think about the sender of this letter & the letter’s recipients. Look at v 14. “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” The city of Laodicea was located about 11 miles west of Colosse. The recipients were Laodicean church believers. The name Laodicea means "Rule of the people," or "The judgment of the people," or, simply, "People's rights." That is also the cry of our times, isn’t it? According to KJV, all previous 6 churches were called as the church of Ephesus or the church in Smyrna. But here Jesus points out that it’s the church of the Laodiceans. This church well represents a church run by majority rule instead of God’s rule. Like its name, it was the democratic Church, in which everything could be decided by popular opinion. It was pioneered by Epaphras who became a disciple when Paul raised up disciples in Ephesus. According to Paul’s letter, he was known as a man of zeal, wrestling in prayer to help Laodicean believers. They might have been praised by Jesus today if they had followed his example of zeal & prayer. But today there is nothing good to say about this church. The city was a major commercial and financial center of Asia Minor. It had a prominent medical school & their eye ointment was famous. Laodicea was the wealthy city. The city suffered from major earthquakes twice, but they didn’t need financial support from Rome to rebuild. With their money, they built impressive public buildings and luxurious houses. So Laodicea was a kind of BOA, Macy's Department Store, and UCLA hospital all rolled into one. However, the city had one serious problem. It did not have its own water supply. They had to bring water from the hot springs 6 miles away. By the time the water reached the city, it was lukewarm. It wasn’t pleasant to drink.

Now Jesus, the sender of this letter, introduces himself to the believers in Laodicea as “these are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” Again the people in the city might be proud of their many achievements and progressive and fair political system. They might think that they lacked nothing. So they might say, “Why bother listening to anyone? We are just fine.” They had plenty of things to thrive. Jesus first introduces himself as the Amen. Usually we don’t name someone as Amen. Rather we are saying “amen” in prayers. The Hebrew word “amen” means “to be faithful, confirm, so be it, it is done truly.” 2 Cor 1:20 says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” Jesus is "the personification and the affirmation of the truth of God." So he himself is the Amen. Jesus also is the Faithful and True Witness, and this is a great contrast to the Laodiceans, who will be shown to be neither faithful nor true no matter how much they had achieved in this world. Jesus is the ruler of God’s creation. He is the head, the ultimate source, the origin & the end. Jesus is the ultimate ruler of the universe. “These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” No matter what happens we put our trust in Jesus and his truthful words rather than in ourselves or in the people and their colorfully changing opinions. Col. 1:16 reads, “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.” May the Lord help us fix our eyes on Jesus and seek him until we see His full richness. Amen!

II. BECAUSE YOU ARE LUKEWARM (15-17)

In this part, Jesus helped Laodicean believers to know clearly what is lacking in them. Look at v 15-16. “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” Here what does it mean that Laodicean church was lukewarm? You might ask, “What’s wrong with being lukewarm? I like my tea to be warm, not too hot or not too cold.” But here being lukewarm is like drinking flat Coke-a-Cola at room temp. Jesus rebuked the believers for being lukewarm. From this, we learn that the problem of the believers in Laodicea was lukewarm attitude toward Jesus. Jesus wanted them to be hot or enthusiastic for Him. At least they were cold, meaning that they recognized their poor condition and repented before God with broken hearts. But they were indifferent to Jesus. According to dictionary, “Laodiceans” means indifferent or lukewarm. Complacency comes when you see yourself as having arrived and you think you have achieved quite a bit. You begin to tell yourself, “I’m rich. I’m wealthy. I don’t need anything. I’ve arrived. I’ve attained.” About 30 yrs ago, Paul wrote a letter(Col. 2:1–3), “I want you to know how hard I am contending for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. 2 My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” So in the beginning the Laodiceans must have been good with their struggle to attain the riches of God. However as time passed, complacency and lack of commitment might’ve developed when they started listening to what the world said. In humanistic Greek culture and money oriented society it seemed reasonable. Likewise the world keeps on telling us we have to have what everybody has. When we buy into that, then complacency and apathy set in. All of those “things” we’ve acquired start having their effect on us. We easily become lukewarm and complacent. We might say, “Well, maybe I haven’t arrived, but I’ve got enough. I am pretty good now.” In the same way the Laodicean believers must have gradually compromised the truth with the world. They had no passion for the work of God. They were complacent, half-hearted, and self-sufficient. They did not take a stand of anything. Their habitual, nominal, and mediocre Christian life was disgusting like the tepid water they had to endure. Jesus says, “So, because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” Let’s heed this warning of Jesus. Have we become lukewarm toward Christ nowadays? Is our personal Bible study lukewarm? Our daily bread time becomes lukewarm? Our group study sometimes feels like tepid rather than refreshing. Even our conference is like lukewarm water? How can we change all of these? Is our passion for mission on fire? Are we feeling the broken heart of Jesus to reach out to students? Have we become habitual and complacent? Let us ask these questions so that we may repent our lukewarm attitude toward Jesus.

Look at V17. It gives us a clue about why they became lukewarm. “You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” Here we see that material blessings led Laodicean believers to be complacent and forgetful of the fact that God provided. It is easier to depend on a 20 dollar bill in our pocket than God the Almighty who is invisible. Jesus calls the wealthy Laodiceans who were complacent wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked. Jesus’ perception was different. Jesus helped them to see their truly needy condition. What a sad condition! There is a big difference between "you say," and "you are." Our Lord points out this stark difference. This is the words of "the Faithful and True witness" telling the whole truth, even though it hurts. Laodicean church had grown complacent for they may have had plenty of money, beautiful buildings, gifted and scholarly preachers, a great choir, a great band, and the respect of the community. Perhaps they thought they were doing well. But when Jesus looked at them, saying, "You are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked."

Why is there such a difference in these two views? It is because they were being measured by two different standards. Laodicea was using the standard of the world. It was pleasant, comfortable, approved by the community around, and they thought they were doing well. But Jesus is using the standard of what he intended his church to be like. It is definitely not to be a Country Club, run for the benefit of the members. It is not a Performing Arts Center either, with the sole intent of entertaining its visitors. It is not to be a Political Action Group, with a focus on taking sides on hot issues of the day. Sometimes, all these may be legitimate even in the church, but none are to be its raison d'etre, the purpose for which it exists. Jesus tells us what his church is to be like. It is to be salt and light of the world and a city on a hill, praying for all nations. One day in the temple courts Jesus found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, driving all from the temple courts, scattering the coins of the money changers, and overturning their tables. And he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered what is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” The church is to be a place for us to worship God. It is also to be charged with the task of making people understand the purpose of God throughout history, and of interpreting the current times. Then we see what God is now doing, not what man intends to do. That is the authentic work of the church to declare the truth about men’s lost condition and the good news that Jesus is the Way and the Truth. Judged by that standard, Laodicea had nothing. They were naked, poor, pitiful, wretched, and blind.

III. HERE I AM! OPEN THE DOOR (18-22)

In this part, our Lord Jesus Christ graciously came up with solutions. Look at v 18. “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.” Jesus counseled them to buy 3 things. Living in our consumer culture, we understand Jesus’ words “buy from me” very well. We love to buy things, even things that we really don’t need just because they are on sale. So first what does Jesus mean we should buy from him gold refined in the fire so that we can become truly rich? 1 Pet 1:7 reads, “These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” Faith in God. Faith in his Word. As we look to him our faith is awakened and stirred. Then we see how true his words are and how rich we’re truly in Jesus for He is the source of power to overcome the world & the source of eternal life, wisdom, strength and all we need to live a fruitful life. That is what this church needed first. If we lacked genuine faith, we will end up putting stock in something else. Surely the gold we can buy from Jesus is much more precious than anything else for the gold we get from Jesus has an eternal value. Jesus says(Mt 13:44), “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” The eternal life in the kingdom of heaven is the best bargain we will ever find on sale for it has the greatest value. The Laodiceans were proud of their famous black wool. But humorously Jesus counsels them to buy the white clothes from him so that they may be clothed in his righteousness. The Laodiceans were also proud of their famous eye ointment, but Jesus told them to buy spiritual salve from him to see the truth and know what is really going on in their pitiful condition. Then their eyes will be healthy again & their whole body is full of light. Then they’re able to see all richness of Jesus with 20/20 vision and they could shine in the dark world as Jesus’ light.

Look at v 19. “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.” Simply Jesus could say, “Repent or Perish.” Rather those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. Last week, when P. John asked what would you do when you love someone, s. James hit the nail on the head, “I rebuke and discipline.” That is right! Our Lord is simply telling this church, despite its terrible weakness, "I love you, and it is because I love you that I rebuke you and discipline you." God’s purpose is not to punish or torture us, but to bring us back to him. So what can we do to overcome our lukewarm Christian life? How can we have a whole-hearted commitment to loving and serving our Lord Jesus? According to Jesus’ word, first we must be earnest. The word here “earnest” means “zealous.” KJV and many others reads, “Be zealous.” Interestingly, both “hot” and “zealous” stemmed from the same root (kham, kanous) in the original word. Zeal is the opposite of complacency. We want to be Christians who are zealous for Jesus. As a matter of fact none of us is without zeal—we, young or old, are almost all zealous about something. We are zealous for sports teams, we are zealous for new devices to be released, we are zealous for politics. As parents, we are also zealous for our children to excel in our society. I noticed M. Andrew has great zeal for dance. Her daughter may not like it though. You name it! “Zeal runs in our veins according to what we love.”

What we want as Christians is zeal that is properly motivated and properly directed—godly zeal. Christian’s zeal may be defined (John Reynolds) as “an earnest desire and concern for all things pertaining to the glory of God and the kingdom of the Lord Jesus among men.” When I think about zeal, I can’t miss a name, Nicolaus Zinzeldorf who was the key member of Moravian movement across the Europe. When he was a 4 years old, he says, "I love the Saviour, and have abundant communion with Him. I am seeking God earnestly, and determines to become a true servant of Jesus Christ." Like him the Moravians were so concerned with one thing, that is to take the name of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth. Majority of them were born into a rich family in Europe, but in order to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the slaves on the plantations, they even decided to sell themselves into slavery. What a great passion for Jesus’ name!

Lately I also learned that zeal has a powerful contagious quality. For the last couple of months we have been praying to be zealous by making the most of this conference through earnest repentance and spiritual revival. So we can clear up all misunderstandings and pray earnestly with one spirit and one mind. As you knew, P. John first wanted to be zealous for God through his personal revival. For instance whenever I came to church, he already came to the church earlier to make God’s lamp shine every morning. In turn he encouraged a few people, overseers to pray together. In this way they were able to catch holy fire. Soon growing disciples caught the flame of fire and willingly participated. Sooner or later whole church members joined and now we have a larger prayer meeting in this sanctuary. It is a kind of miracle for it’s not limited to few people any longer. When we light a fire in a person, P. John, gradually a seed of holy fire began to spread. My point here is, “Do not underestimate the value of a few zealous Christians. It is hotter than any physical fire. To be honest I was the person who underestimated it when I was struck with problems. I was tempted to give up without thinking about other option, prayer. But I was encouraged to keep praying despite my problems. Then I learned how important it’s to pray without giving up and how important it’s to live a life of faith. That is why Jesus’ name is the Amen, the faithful and true witness and the very ruler of God’s creation. Thanks to Jesus’ passionate love for sinners and his death and resurrection, we now became God’s holy temples. May the Lord help us resume Jesus’ great zeal in this lukewarm generation despite many things happening. Jesus says, “Be earnest and repent.” According to his word “earnest”, life is never a joke. We should not take the word of Christ lightly. We must repent. We must repent our self-reliant attitudes. We must repent of our complacency. We must repent of our materialistic ways of thinking and living. Now let us listen his personal invitation in V 20.

Let us read all together v 20. “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” Because the Laodicean believers were wealthy and complacent, most likely they were busy to maintain their daily lives. They were so busy and successful with the worldly affairs that they might not have noticed that Jesus wanted to have fellowship with them. They did not have Christ’s presence among them. They didn’t think they needed him. They did not maintain personal relationship with Christ. But thank God for he did not give up on them, rather Jesus stood at the door of their hearts and kept knocking. Likewise Jesus wants us to open our hearts to him. He wants us to welcome him into our hearts so that we can have fellowship with him. He will not open the door though. He is not going to force anyone into fellowship. He offers it to us and we must open the door and invite him in. Then he will enter in and spend quality time of fellowship with us.

Look at verse 21. “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.” To those who are victorious in fighting against complacency, Jesus will give the right to sit with him on his throne, just as he sat down with the Heavenly Father after he finished his redemptive work on earth by giving his life on the cross. Jesus is inviting us to be with him on his throne and reign with him. Finally, in verse 22, Jesus encourages us, saying, “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (22) “Whoever” indicates that it must be done by individuals: the church will only get right by each man getting right in Him.

Through preparing this message, I learned that I have to overcome my lukewarm attitude. When I came here as a missionary in 1995, I was very poor financially but I had a zeal for Jesus and his world mission command. I went out campus for fishing and spend the whole day to meet students and have one to one Bible study. One day I was reported to campus police due to my passionate approach to students. Still my heart was filled with joy and happiness. However as time passed by, by God’s grace I acquired and achieved many things. All my sons are now in college. I thought that I’ve tried to raise disciples. But when my Bible students lost their desire and disappeared one by one, I thought to myself, “Enough!”

But when I was preparing this message, I read a heart moving story about msn. Ruby Kendrick. About 100 years ago, she had a great zeal to be a missionary to Korea when she was a teenager. But she was rejected for she was too young. At the age of 24, she was finally allowed to go out as a missionary to a poor country Korea. But she had an acute appendicitis in a remote town. Although she underwent a surgery later, it was too late. She left her last remark, “If I had a thousand lives to give Korea should have them all.” Her love for Korean souls prompted many Americans to become missionaries in Korea. Each of them were like a seed fallen into the ground like our Lord Jesus Christ. Although their spouse or children passed away in the middle, they didn’t shrink back but finished their life of mission with absolute faith. * When Jesus called me as a missionary here, it was also a solemn calling of God for me to fall into the ground as a seed and die like my Lord Jesus Christ. God’s love never fails. Especially when my son was experiencing trouble, I was tempted to leave this land for my heart was filled with agony and shame. But I came to know that it’s high time and the most blessed time to renew my commitment for now I realized how our young Americans suffer. Newly I’ve heard Jesus’ voice through this passage, “So be earnest and repent.” I repent of my lukewarm attitude, calculation, and despair whatever reasons might be. I pray earnestly that I may pick up zeal and passion for Jesus. Through this conf., I may bring my sins of unbelief and complaints before Jesus and renew love relationship with Him and become hot, zealous for Jesus.

In conclusion, today we learned that Jesus wants us to overcome our lukewarm attitude toward him and to be zealous for God through this conference. We pray earnestly that we may maintain holy fire in our hearts, overcoming daily temptations, and increasing one to one holy battle for God’s glory. One word: Be earnest!