Have you ever wondered what it means to be a lukewarm Christian? We read in Revelation 3:15-16, “I know all the thing you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!”
Many Christians believe these verses to mean being hot is to be on fire for the Lord and cold is to be far from God or ungodly. We can all agree in this context we all desire to be hot; however, I believe there is a more accurate interpretation of these verses.
When taken in context, Jesus says, “I wish you were hot or cold.” Do you believe that Jesus is saying that he wishes that we were either spiritually hot or spiritually cold and not of God? If this is the case, why then would God not spit out the spiritually cold?
Jesus taught in parables that were easily understood by the people of the time. They would have understood that water is essential to life. Hot water is good for healing, cooking, cleaning while cold water is refreshing and sustaining. Lukewarm water on the other hand has no useful purpose.
So with this understanding, what is Jesus trying to teach us in Revelations? He wishes that we would be useful to God. Either hot or cold, like water both are useful, but lukewarm water has no purpose. If you are not useful to God, he will spit you out.
Ask yourself, “am I being useful to the Lord?”
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