Cold, Hot, or Lukewarm

Written by: Johnny Israel

In the Book of Revelation 3:14-16 (New King James Version)
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.

Have you ever met Christians who were either to cold or to hot in their personal relationship with Christ? Or how about the believer that is neither hot nor cold? The above-scripture refers to this person a being lukewarm. Unfortunately for the body of Christ is overflowing with the cold, hot and the lukewarm.
The cold Christian has very little sympathy or love for anyone but himself. He governs his faith by Biblical laws and regulations; his faith is one of being legalistic. There is no room for the Spirit mixing with the Word in his heart. He is more apt to quickly judge other believers for their failure to be as he is: legalistic, arrogant, and indifferent.
The hot Believer is just the opposite, only he is usually pushy, overzealous, and most assuredly, annoying. You heard the adage, “He is so Heavenly minded that he is no earthly good.” He speaks perennial Elizabethan phrases: Praise God, Glory Hallelujah, Amen brother, and so forth. In his zeal to have nonbelievers submit their lives to Christ, he most assuredly is doing all the talking, and very little listening. While there is nothing wrong with having zeal for Christ, it must be coupled with wisdom. When to speak, when to listen, what to share, and how to share. These are important issues for the Believer to when over the nonbeliever.
On the other hand, we have the lukewarm Believer. He is neither legalistic nor zealous for the Kingdom of God. He confesses Christ as Savior, but aside from that, he lacks commitment. He is easily persuaded to sin. He spends his free time watching television, relaxing around the house, or gets involved into some other form of entertainment. The last thing on his mind is church, the Bible, or sharing his faith. He is referred to as the social Christian. Christ refers to this kind of Believer as lukewarm. He warns in the above-passage of scripture, He will spit the lukewarm Believer out his mouth. In other words, they are in serious jeopardy of judgment and damnation by Christ on the judgment day.The Bible tells us that Christ came into the world to forgive sinners. God so loved each and every one of us that He sent His Son into this world to cleanse us from sin, and to give us eternal life with Him. God is not legalistic or arrogant, but love. It is through His love we come to Him. He also is not desiring His people to be so hot that fail to use wisdom in their zeal to win the lost to Christ. And, He definitely will spit you out of His mouth if your relationship with Him is lukewarm. So what is it He is looking for in the Believer? A person who will open up their heart in compassion and understanding for a lost and dying world, just as He did when He sent Christ in the flesh. For the world to see Christ, they must first see a compassionate and loving Christ in you. Again, an old adage says, “Our actions speak louder than our words.” How true this is. You want to win your neighbor to Christ, spend time in prayer for him. Lift him up into the Chamber Room of your Heavenly Father. By praying for your neighbor, you will begin to respond to him in compassion and caring, that he will see Christ in you.