The Church in Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-22)

Laodicea was located six miles from the city of Hierapolis, ten miles from the small town of Colosse, and about one hundred miles east of Ephesus. Christian churches existed in Hierapolis, Colosse and Laodicea by the date of Paul’s first imprisonment in Rome (Col. 4:13). He mentions in Colossians 4:15-16 that he had written a letter to the Laodicean church. 

Laodicea was noted for its activities, three  of which Jesus alludes to in his letter to the church. The three were a thriving wool industry, a famous school of medicine particularly for eye problems, and a financial system. The city was so wealthy that when it suffered great damage because of an earthquake in AD 60, it did not need outside help from the Empire for rebuilding. It was self-sufficient, which was a good thing for the city, but it illustrates the problem with the church – it was also self-sufficient.

Jesus describes himself

Jesus introduces himself as the ‘Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God’ (v. 14). We are used to saying amen in church services, mainly at the close of a prayer. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 1:20 that one reason why believers should use amen is because of God’s promises centred in Jesus. The word is connected to truth and was used of God in the Old Testament (in Isaiah 65:16, where it is translated as God of truth). So Jesus reminds the church that he will speak the true words of God because he is God.

Jesus repeats this when he says that he is the faithful and true witness. A witness is someone who reports what he has seen. Because he is faithful and true, it  means that what Jesus will say about them will be accurate. There will be nothing in his criticism of their church life that will be untrue. At the same time, he will tell them what they have to do in order to receive his approval.

Perhaps some might have responded to his criticisms by saying that they were powerless to change. If that did happen, they could be reminded that Jesus possesses divine power, and they could see that power in the creation that he brought into existence.

Depending on one’s personal state, this description would have been either a threat or a comfort. It was a threat because it indicated that Jesus could remove their lampstand and they would cease to be a church. Yet it was a comfort to know that he had the power to resolve the situation, should they repent. The same options always apply.

The criticism by Jesus (vv. 15-17)

Jesus’ assessment of the church is that it is neither cold nor hot. In order to appreciate this point we need to know that a major lack in the city of Laodicea was a suitable water supply for is inhabitants. Nearby Hierapolis had hot springs famous for healing qualities and Colosse was known for its cool drinking water, but Laodicea did not have either. Instead water was carried from another location, via a six-mile long aqueduct that could not keep the water either hot or cold. This is the allusion in Christ’s statement that he would have them either cold or hot. 

These words do not refer to one’s spiritual temperature, in the sense of ‘hot’ being an ardent spiritual state and ‘cold’ indicating a backsliding state. Instead they describe the inability of the church to provide spiritual healing or spiritual refreshment for the city. Their contribution to the city was equivalent to the tepid water that flowed along the aqueduct. They should have been conveying the gospel of Christ to their community, but because of their lukewarm spiritual state they were incapable of being used by Christ and faced the real possibility of losing their candlestick, graphically illustrated in the Saviour’s threat to spew them out of his mouth. 

A second criticism that Jesus makes is that the church seems to have read their providences as a sign of God’s blessing rather than symptoms of  spiritual problems. They were doing very well in material things. Of course, possessions in themselves are neutral; the possession of them can be a sign of blessing or they can be a means of backsliding. But it is easy to assume that getting on well is a sign of God’s approval. 

There is no hint in the church in Laodicea of the problems encountered by the other six churches, such as persecution or false teaching. Rather the church was marked by self-sufficiency and complacency. So those to whom Christ was speaking were in a sad and potentially dangerous state – their spiritual ignorance had resulted in spiritual wretchedness, poverty, blindness and nakedness, with the looming prospect of their cessation as a church. But in his mercy the Lord Jesus draws near to the church.

The counsel of Christ (Rev. 3:17-20)

The Saviour uses various aspects of the city’s activities to illustrate the sad state of the church. First, Jesus alludes to the banking system when he urges the church members to buy gold from him in order to be truly rich. This is in contrast to the opinion of the Laodiceans of themselves, for they thought they were rich already. We are not told what Jesus’ promised wealth involved; perhaps it is a reference to spiritual blessings in general. Of course, when Jesus urges them to ‘buy gold’ from him, he is not suggesting that his blessings can be purchased by money; rather he is using the picture of trade that was common in the city.

Second, the wool industry is alluded to in Christ’s advice that they should buy from him fine raiment with which to clothe themselves. While this could be a reference to nakedness that requires the robe of righteousness given in justification, with the accompanying assumption that they needed to be converted, it more likely means righteousness in the sense of holiness of life. 

Third, the medical school is alluded to when Jesus tells them to buy from him eye salve in order for them to see clearly. They were spiritually blind to their poverty of Christian experience. In a sense, they were like the believers described in 2 Peter 1:9, who because of a lack of spiritual growth had become short-sighted, unable to see into the future. What the Saviour is promising to them is true spiritual vision, vision to see how to serve him and vision to look beyond the visible to heaven.

What about the posture of Jesus knocking at the door? Often this image of the Saviour knocking at the door is depicted as the Lord Jesus knocking in a gospel sense on the heart of a sinner. I do not think that fits with the context. Rather what we have here is the Master coming to deal with a church whose behaviour had brought it to the place where it was about to lose its place as a lampstand. 

The knocking indicates that Jesus is outside and not involved in the activities of the church. He has come demanding access to what they are doing. His demand is strong because he desires fellowship with his people. He was in no doubt that chastisement was needed, and therefore he calls on them to repent, a demand that Jesus also made of the churches in Ephesus (2:5), Pergumum (2:16), Thyatira (2:21-23), and Sardis (3:3).

Jesus takes the initiative in arranging their spiritual recovery. The reality is that unless God took the initiative and drew us back to himself we would not return. How thankful the penitent Laodiceans would have been later for the grace of the sovereign Saviour, for the restoring ministry of the Holy Spirit, and for the tender mercy of the Father.

The comfort of Jesus (Rev. 3:21)

In his promises to the overcomer in Laodicea, Jesus refers to both present and future blessings. To penitent believers who would welcome him into their midst Jesus gives a wonderful promise. Their spiritual restoration means that once again he is the provider of their spiritual food. Jesus uses the imagery of a meal to illustrate the spiritual warmth and intimacy that exists between him and his restored disciples. What ideas come to mind through this imagery of a shared meal?

It is possible that he is referring to the shared congregational meal (love feast) of which the Lord’s Supper was part. In those days, most Christian gatherings on the Lord’s Day would have included the Lord’s Supper, and that spiritual meal was designed as enabling communion between Jesus and his people in a special way. It was a visible reminder that he had given his life for them in order that they would have spiritual life.

Even if Jesus was not referring to the love feast, it is not difficult to work out what is depicted by the imagery of a meal. Usually, a host would invite his friends out of love, and his love would ensure he would provide the best for them. That is what Jesus does – he shares with his people what his activity on the cross has procured for them. He has numerous spiritual blessings to give.

This means that it was possible for those rebuked members to be restored to a life of spiritual fruitfulness. The outcome would be dedication to Jesus and ongoing growth in grace. Instead of being unreliable and worldly, they would become faithful. They could still live the kind of spiritual life that would get an eternal reward from Jesus. Truly amazing grace! Those who had been indifferent to his claims, but who repented of their sins, would share the throne of Jesus when the new world comes. 

Application

Although the letter was sent to a specific church, it was also sent to other congregations. So it is legitimate to use this passage of scripture to assess our individual spiritual state and the condition of our local congregation.

First, there is reality of the Saviour’s searching of the churches. This means that he searches every congregation. We should join with the Psalmist and ask the Lord to search us to see if there are wicked ways in us (Psalm 139:23-24). Our prayer should be for spiritual reality.

Second, the letter to Laodicea reminds us of the danger of a congregation being blinded spiritually by materialism. These things can take first place in believers’ lives, and when that happens it will be evidenced by their lukewarmness in devotion to Jesus.

Third, the letter to Laodicea tells us that comprehensive restoration is given to believers when they repent of their sins. Forgiveness from God is a precious reality that opens the way to rich experiences of divine grace.

Fourth, Jesus assures the overcomers that they will be kings in the next world. This is an incredible future to look ahead to.