Exposition of Revelation 3:14-22:
      From Lukewarmness to Prevailing Faith

    14 "And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write,

    'These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 "I know
    your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are
    lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, 'I am rich, have
    become wealthy, and have need of nothing'--and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind,
    and naked-- 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white
    garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your
    eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous
    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 dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me
    on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 He who has an ear, let
    him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." ' " (Rev 3:14-22 NKJV)        

OUTLINE of Revelation 3:14-22

Greetings to the church of Laodicea from the True witness of God - v.14

Jesus’ true evaluation about the church of Laodicea -  v.15-16

Faulty self-view of the church of Laodicea - v. 17

Jesus’ true counsel to the church of Laodicea - v. 18-19

Jesus’ invitation to the church of Laodicea to overcome and dine with Him - vs. 20-22

I.        SEEING THE UTTER PERILS OF LUKEWARMNESS

A.        Stern WARNING against lukewarmness

    1.        Jesus warned the Laodicean church concerning their status of lukewarmness.        
    2.        Jesus’ warning is motivated by love not wrath.        

B.        LUKEWARMNESS IS SUBTLE

    1.        The church of Laodicea did not recognize her true spiritual state. She thought she was wealthy and full, while
    in reality, she was poor, wretched, naked, miserable and blind.

    2.        Lukewarmness does not happen over-night, it develops over a period of time when our intimacy with the Lord
    diminishes, along with the negligence in the cultivation of one’s fiery heart.

    3.        Lukewarmness is very subtle and hard to be identified because of the residue of heat and fervor that exists
    in a lukewarm individual or community. Often there is still a residue of religious activity that projects spiritual
    fervency, while backsliding has progressively taken place over a substantial period of time.

C.        LUKEWARMNESS LEADS TO a DESTITUTE STATE  in one’s SPIRITual life

    1.        Lukewarmness will eventually lead to destitution and spiritual misery.  It  is often complicated by a lack of true
    revelation of one’s own spiritual state.

    2.        Persistent digression in the path from hot to cold will cause the Lord to spew the spiritual individual or
    community out from His presence.  He does this in order to provoke a realization of the true state of the person or
    community. This “apparent rejection” is actually an act of mercy from the Lord, in order to provoke true repentance
    and restoration of communion.

II.        SEEING THE COUNSEL OF GOD IN OVERCOMING LUKEWARMNESS

A.        ACCEPT THE COUNSEL OF JESUS TO TURN, REPENT AND BE ZEALOUS

    1.        Jesus counsels the church of Laodicea to turn, repent and be zealous.
    2.        Accepting the counsel of Jesus Christ is the beginning point in overcoming lukewarmness.
    3.        Working and walking out the counsel of Jesus Christ facilitates progress towards spiritual fervency.

B.        THE REFINED GOLD, the  white GARMENT and the ANOINTING ON THE EYES

1.        Refined gold is the building material that has been tested through the fire of purification. It is clear gold. It is not
just regular gold that is mixed with other metals. It has gone through deep heat and fire.

2.        The white garment represents the righteous covering for the saints, imputed by the propitiation of the righteousness
of Christ Jesus through His redemptive act on the cross. Our self-righteousness and self-sufficiency is like filthy rags
before the Lord. It cannot fulfill the righteous requirement of the law, nor appease the justice of God

For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled
in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Rom 8:3-4 NKJV)

3.        The anointing on the eyes is the Spirit of wisdom and revelation that will open the eyes of our understanding. The
apostle Paul understood this and prayed constantly that the church of Ephesus would walk in this reality.

C.        COMMUNION WITH CHRIST FOREVER

1.        Jesus stood at the door and knocked. He is knocking at the door of the church (ekklesia), desiring spiritual
communion with her. Apparently the self-sufficient church of Laodicea has locked Him out. Can you imagine? Christ,
the Bridegroom has been locked out from the chamber of His bride! Likewise, how many churches have continued
in their operations without the pursuit of His presence?

III.        REWARDS OF SHEDDING LUKEWARMNESS

A.        DINING WITH JESUS CHRIST    
           
1.        In John 14:23-24, Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love
him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the
word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.

      Jesus does not just wish to dine with His saints. He desires to dwell with and in His saints. He desires for us to be His
habitation of glory.

B.        LESSONS OF PREVAILING FAITH From THREE WOMEN IN JESUS’ LIFE

1.        The Syro-Phonecian woman

28 Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire." (Matt 15:28NKJV)
2.        The woman with the issue of Blood

30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said,
"Who touched My clothes?" (Mark 5:30NKJV)

3.        The woman whose worship became a memorial before the Lord

13 Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be
told as a memorial to her." (Matt 26:13NKJV)

C.        SUSTAINING PREVAILING FAITH THROUGH PRAYER AND FASTING

1.        The Scripture proclaims that we can grow from faith to faith.

17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." (Rom 1:17NKJV)

2.        Paul talks about continually pressing unto the upward call of God in Christ.

13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and
reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in
Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God
will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule,
let us be of the same mind. (Phil 3:13-16NKJV)

3.        Prayer and fasting create hunger and enlarges our capacity for continual breakthrough in the realm of faith.

Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will
say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 21 However, this
kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." (Matt 17:20-21 NKJV)