The Meaning Of Revelation

The Final Period of Church History

Although there are seven churches listed, the church with the most direct significance for us today, is the last church that Jesus talked about:   The Church in the city of Laodicea.

Prophetically, this last church represents the final general state of churches before The Rapture of His Bride, (The Church), up to Heaven.  Jesus  will then proclaim judgment upon those who will be "Left Behind" after The Rapture for most of the balance of The Book of Revelation.

This great judgment by God upon the Earth is called "The Great Tribulation".  It will be a period of time culminating in the great "Battle of Armageddon" and the Return of Christ to set up His Thousand-Year Kingdom on the Earth.

This last Church of Laodicea is very relevant to us today because we are now living in the Laodicean Church Age.  The following is Jesus' entire message which He gave to this Laodicean Church.  By implication, this is what Jesus was saying to those who live in this last of the seven church ages:

"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;  I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot:  I would thou wert cold or hot.  So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.  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:  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.  As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten:  be zealous therefore, and repent.  Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:  if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.  To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." (Revelation 3:14-22)

Please note that Jesus was very critical of the lukewarmness of the Church at Laodicea, and (by implication) of most churches that exist today.  Nevertheless, this criticism by Jesus of today's churches is a justified criticism.

Most Christians today avoid becoming totally cold and apostate.  Generally, such Christians also avoid -- even more adamantly -- becoming "hot" for Christ, (i.e. being sold-out and radical for Jesus).  Jesus therefore said of today's Christians, (which all too often insist on remaining "lukewarm"; and neither "cold" nor "hot"), that He would soon "spue thee out of my mouth".

There are a number of reasons for this lukewarmness in today's Churches.  Here are a few of the reasons:

(1) Most so-called Christians are "goats" and not "sheep"

These so-called "Christian" goats have "prayed a prayer"; "raised their hand"; "gone forward"; "bowed their head"; "knelt at an alter"; or done some other "good work" in order to try earn their own salvation.  Nevertheless, such attempts at "salvation by works" always end up as they had begun - with such a person still a lost "goat" on the road to Hell instead of a "sheep" on the way to Heaven.

Others "believe" in the way the Devil believes, (i.e. intellectually), that Jesus is the Son of God or believe some other Biblical truth, hoping that such "head knowledge" will save them.  Such lost men and women "goats" will one day end up down in Hell with the Devil and with his demons:

"Thou believest ... thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." (James 2:19)

(2) Many Christians have "lost their first love" (Revelation 2:4)

These Christians started out with a desire to be radical and sold-out for Jesus.  They started out fine, but then they started watching "that wicked thing", (television), and were thereby spiritually ruined.

The widespread love for the wickedness of Hollywood's television and movies among so many churchgoers can be seen by the fact that many Sunday evening services have now been completely closed down -- so the people can watch television.  

This love for entertainment is also evidenced by the attempts by some lukewarm Christians to have the Wednesday evening "prayer meeting" scheduled to start and finish earlier,  (or even having it canceled altogether.)  This then allows such sinful Christians to watch even more of those wicked and worldly prime-time programs on television.

Although television is probably the primary reason for such lukewarmness among genuine Christians, two other major reasons include: the unwillingness of many Christians to "come out from" among their lost friends and the "love of money".  Jesus described the state of such "ruined" Christians as follows:

"And these are they which are sown among thorns;  such as hear the word, And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful." (Mark 4:18-19)

(3) Most preachers today refuse to effectively, sharply, and consistently preach against sin

Most preachers have a church mortgage.  (Many of these preachers have a home mortgage to pay as well.)  Such lukewarm preachers do not want to risk losing someone who "puts money in the plate", when there is this "sword" of the mortgage hanging over their heads.  This "fear of the mortgage" is almost a universal problem in today's churches.

All too commonly today, preachers who started out "hot", end up "lukewarm" -- preaching basically for money and not for God, (like Balaam did before them).  Of course, most of today's "Balaam" preachers would strongly deny such a true accusation.  Nevertheless, their own actions, (in refusing to preach against sin), prove that they really do fear man and "the mortgage" more than they fear Almighty God.

Jesus hates the sin of "hireling" preachers who care more for money than they do for His "sheep".   By their refusal to preach strongly against sin, these preachers actually send people to burn forever in the flames of Hell in exchange for "a fist full of dollars".

These preachers do not fear God.  They fear man.  They fear their lost church members to be exact, because such wicked "goat" church members might leave the church if their sins were "blasted" from the pulpit -- leaving others to "have to pay for the mortgage".

Of course, there are other reasons for the current lukewarm state of the church.  I did, however, want to list some of these reasons, since few have been willing to speak out about these very important issues.  Not surprisingly, speaking out on these issues might get one labeled as a "radical", "trouble-maker", "Fighting Fundy", or "Fundamentalist Hate Monger!"

One of the biggest problems today among "lukewarm" preachers is that they do not want to "tarnish their image" among their "preacher friends" and peers.  This really is a big problem, especially with today's prevalence of "fellowships" among preachers.  Often such "fellowships" seek out and encourage the "lowest common denominator" among preachers.

Preachers no longer want to risk taking a controversial stand by preaching against sin.  They are afraid, lest their "fellowship" friends disagree with them, and so all such men not "speak well of" them.  Jesus had some harsh "words of woe" for such wicked preachers who desire all men to speak well of them, (men such as Rick Warren, the late Jerry Falwell, and Billy Graham).  Jesus said:

"Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets" (Luke 6:26)