Revelation 3:14-20 - Jesus' Spittoon

This past week, personnel from the hospital served up a past bar for the rest of us. Along with pasta, there was a choice of alfredo or marinara sauce. And you could pick out what veggies and meat you wanted to someone to heat up for you in a frying pan.

When I came through the line, Shawn warned me to first set my plate on the serving table so she could dish up the toppings she just fried for me. She explained, "This is very hot... I don't want anything to spill and burn you!"

It would have been safer to serve room-temperature pasta. Yum, right? That's the metaphor Jesus used in a vision to the Apostle John when He said,

14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write...15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. 16 ‘So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. 17 ‘Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, 18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see." (Revelation 3:14–18, New American Standard Bible)

Being lukewarm is a description of apathy. The satisfied people in Laodicea had "need of nothing," --including Jesus. They were ignorant of how much they needed Him.

Can you imagine having a friend saying, "I really don't need you in my life, I'm fine without you." If someone is angry with you at least they're engaged with you. "So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot or cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."

Jesus doesn't want to reject people, He wants to have a relationship with them. But it goes two ways. He can't have a relationship with someone who is apathetic toward Him. He uses the strong image of "spitting someone out" because He feels that strongly about passionate relationships. So He goes on to say,
19 " ‘Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous {the opposite of apathetic} and repent. 20 ‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me." (Revelation 3:19-20)

Who prepares such a meal? Remember how Jesus served the disciples charcoal-broiled fish and bread! (John 21:9)

Lord, I can be so apathetic that I don't realize my bank account is zero, I'm shivering for lack of clothing, and I'm blind to my own blindness. On top of that, my ears have been deaf to hearing You knocking at the door. I'm opening the door so You can come in and share a meal with me: not anything lukewarm, but some of Your broiled fish and hot, fresh bread sounds pretty good right about now. Amen.