Lukewarm Church

Genesis 13:13 But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.

Genesis 19:4-7 4) But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: 5) And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. 6) And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, 7) And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.

Genesis 19:24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;

Revelation 3:13-19 13) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. 14) And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; 15) I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. 16) So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. 17) Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: 18) I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 19) As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

I would encourage everyone to read through the whole 19th of chapter of Genesis. The words written here speak of the city of Sodom, but as you read through, really look at this city in comparison with the world that we live in today.

The world that we inhabit here on Earth, is full of the sins of man. A land that embraces homosexuality, abortion, and religions that do not teach Jesus Christ as the only true Savior. Can you see the similarities?

The United States of America was founded as a Christian nation. A place that not only believed in God, but was founded to be a place of freedom to worship the one true God. It was not free of sin, but for a long time, God’s principles were taught as the foundation for people’s lives. So, what happened? How did we get from a nation founded for the freedom to worship God, to a nation that flaunts sin in the face of God daily? Who is to blame?

People nowadays are very good at playing the blame game. There are countless excuses for our actions. There is always someone else at fault. People have lost teaching the next generation that their actions have consequences.

Many people will not agree with me, but I say much of the blame for how our world is today, is the fault of the church. If you have a nation with out laws and rules, and someone to speak out what those rules are, and enforce those rules, the end result is anarchy. Who is responsible for speaking out the laws of God? Who is responsible to call sin sin? Who is responsible for the souls around them? The Church!

The above passages of revelation speak of the church of the Laodicians. The Word says that this church has become lukewarm – they are neither hot nor cold, sort of riding the middle ground. To me, this describes so many churches today. Pastors do not speak out against sin, they do not talk about repentance of sin, some do not even teach that Jesus Christ is the one and only way to repentance. They have watered down the Word of God so as not to offend anyone. They won’t teach that sin has eternal punishment in a place called Hell, because that would turn people away. The people that support the church, that provide the income to the Pastor. The people that support the building projects, and programs that make the church look good to the world around them.

But Pastors are not the only ones that need to bear the guilt of a decaying world around them. Every single person that sits in a pew, that listens to a Pastor speak a message, and does not seek the Lord themselves through His Word to make sure that what their ears are being filled with matches the Word they read, are responsible.

There was a time when Pastors would preach about the wages of sin. There was a time when the members of a church would speak up to correct someone getting off track. There was a time that the church was the guardian of its brethren, and the watchdog of society to cry out against sin. Too many have let that go by the wayside. Too many have allowed Satan to wash down their beliefs and convictions to the point that they no longer stand for God and His ways.

I beseech every person that claims to be a Christian, to truly examine themselves and ask God to reveal in each of us that which is not righteous, and once revealed, to repent. Whether you hold a title ( Pastor, Minister, Elder, Deacon ) or are just a “Christian”, we need to be more Christ-like and less world-like. We need to be crying out to the lost around us the love of God and the sinfulness of the world. We need to be pointing the pathway to repentance for others to find. We need to be the hands, feet, and mouths of our God here on Earth.