Can You Be Lukewarm and a Christian?

This was probably one of the most important questions I have ever been asked. I have been to several churches in which the preaching was spot on, but the people who listened had blank stares with not an open Bible in sight. It is necessary that we view this in light of the Bible and what Jesus says about being lukewarm.

What is a lukewarm “Christian?”

A lukewarm Christian is someone who claims to be a believer in Jesus Christ but does not appear to be committed to Him. He or she may occasionally attend church, rarely read the Word, and have one foot in the world. They may believe that loving their neighbor means they should agree with them, and affirm their sin, without sharing the truth; because in all honesty, they don’t know it themselves.

Jesus spoke very strongly against lukewarm faith and used it as a warning to those who were either at that point, or going towards that point. First, we need to go to Revelation 3:14–21.

“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: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I would wish you were cold or hot. “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.

Revelation 3:14-16 NKJV

Jesus is speaking here (The Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God.) He is describing the temperature of their heart and the attitude measured by their deeds or works as “lukewarm”. Lukewarm water is good for nothing. It is neither hot, which can cleanse, purify, cook with, or bathe in; nor cold, which can be refreshing for drinking. They understood this because their water came from a hot spring in Hieropolis by an aqueduct six miles away. By the time it reached Laodicea, it was gross. Just like the water, they were nauseating to the Lord and He said because they were not useful, or refreshing that He would vomit them out of His mouth like their water.

Vomiting is bad, right? I mean, no one likes to do it. When you vomit, your body is producing a gag reflex to get rid of whatever is in you because it’s bad for you. Thier apathy and indifferce to the things of God made Jesus sick.

For Jesus to vomit them out, they need to be in His mouth

Did you ever wonder why this church is in the mouth of Jesus to begin with? The churches are in the mouth of Jesus (1) to spread His gospel, the good news, to share hope to the world; (2) because Jesus prays for them constantly; (3) and they are to pray and give hope to those around them. Just like the church in America, many professing Christians don’t do either.

A study by Barna Research in 2019 said that 73% of American Millennials were equipped and know how to share their faith, but 47% were unwilling because they believed it was wrong to do so. Why did they think evangelism is wrong? Because they equated disagreement with judgment. For some reason Millennial Christians don’t want the lost to think they are judging them. They care more about hurting the feelings of people than offending a holy God – the One who created them. This is not true for all Millennials, but it shows the slippery slope we are in as a country.

Rich, wealthy, and have need of nothing

Jesus goes on to say:

“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– “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.

Revelation 3:17-18 NKJV

They said that they were rich, wealthy, and in need of nothing; but they were really wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. Jesus was telling them what was really in their heart. They thought they had it all and were materially prosperous. They were known for a special glossy black wool to make beautiful garments that you can only get in Laodicea, that only the rich could wear because it was so costly. Yet, they were spiritually wretched, poor, and naked.

Jesus contrasted between:

• What they think and what they really are.
• What they say and what Jesus says.
• What they see and what Jesus sees.
• The wealth and affluence of their city and their own spiritual bankruptcy.

They were also known for an eye salve that was only produced there as well; with properties that some said cured bad eyesight – yet, they were spiritually blind. Being blind, wretched, miserable, poor, and naked was the lowest of the low. This pretty much accurately describes the United States today, doesn’t it? We are delusional to think we have everything we need, and yet, unwilling to share it. We are spiritually dead and bankrupt of any connection to God, but believing we are God’s gift to mankind.

What about us?

Just like the Laodiceans, Jesus declares that not everyone who SAYS to Him, ‘Lord, Lord” shall enter heaven, but he who DOES the will of God will enter (Matthew 7:21–23). It doesn’t matter if you read the Bible and can recite it from memory if you don’t follow what it says and changes you from the inside out.

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. “For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. “But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

John 3:18-21 NKJV

We do what we do, because of what we believe; what we know to be true in our hearts. If we live for ourselves, and not for the Lord, our actions will dictate that. The same is true if we really believe what God declares throughout His Word.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

James 1:22-25 NKJV

Jesus spoke of true and living faith in opposition to a dead one throughout His ministry. Some of the following parables exemplify this:

• Believers are salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16).
• Good trees, good fruit; bad trees, bad fruit (Matthew 7:15-20, 12:33-37).
• House built on the rock and a house built on sand (Matthew 5:24-27).
• The Parable of the Wheat and Tares (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43).
• The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13).

There is hope for the lukewarm

Jesus counsels them to buy from Him, and to receive the best there is to offer. They had to realize that they were in need of Him, what Jesus sees, and put away their pride and accept what He offers. We don’t earn salvation through good works, that’s not what Jesus means to “buy from Him.” What He is getting at is that they had to put down their pride and self-sufficiency and look to Him. He doesn’t give up on the lukewarm, and gives them instruction on how to get out of it.

“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent. 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. 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. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Revelation 3:19-22 NKJV

Did you see that? Because Jesus loves them, He rebukes and chastens them. This answer may be hard to read, but God is speaking to your heart right now. His Holy Spirit is speaking to you and showing you where you are lacking. He doesn’t want you to be comfortable and conform to the things of this world, but to be transformed into the image of His Son. He rebukes and chastens because He loves the lukewarm. He loves you. He wants to see you thrive, just like the Laodiceans, but not in the way they thought they were thriving.

Jesus also directed them what to do. First, He tells them to be zealous and repent. To realize what they are doing, turn in the opposite direction, and run to Him. The same Greek word for zealous is “hot” in Revelation 3:16. He wants you to be hot for Him. Jesus is not an add-on, a hobby, an occasional activity; He is everything. He invades every aspect of our lives – personal, private, and public. Our works and the things we do (Revelation 3:15) will reflect the change that takes place on the inside; whether good or bad. You will know a good tree or bad tree by its fruit (Matthew 7:15–20).

Second, Jesus tells them to hear His voice, to open the door, and He will come in to dine with them, and them with Him. Jesus is knocking at the door because He is on the outside of the lukewarm church and seeking entrance into it.

On the right is the painting by William Holman Hunt called, “Jesus Knocking at the Door.” What do you notice about this painting? For one, there’s no doorknob on the outside; therefore, the door must be opened from within. There is also something else interesting: that even though Jesus is seperated from those on the inside, He can still clearly see what is going on inside, and the people inside can clearly see who is knocking! The painter is saying that the people inside know it is Jesus and hear His plea to come inside but are ignoring Him.

There is no fellowship, no communion, no relationship, and no discipleship with the Lord. Since they are seperated by a door, I believe that the lukewarm are not Christians. Jesus offers no commendation for the Church of Laodicea therefore there is nothing they are doing right for the Lord. All the other churches there is at least one thing they are doing correctly. Here, there is none.

Last year I visited a United Methodist Church with family members and I noticed there were no Bibles in the pews. I asked the Assistant Pastor where they all went, to which she replied straight-faced, “We took them out because we don’t need them anymore.” It is a horrible thing to take God’s Word out of schools, government institutions, and even the workplace; but to take it out of the church? God help us.

But to the lukewarm who overcomes, they will have fellowship with Jesus. They will share a meal together and the actual throne with Christ Himself!!! In the ancient world this was regarded as an intimate bond between the host and guests. Just as Jesus overcame by humble obedience, so will they if they humble themselves and overcome with humble obedience and sit on His throne with Him.

What about you?

I know we still reside in our fleshly bodies and are easily swayed by the temptations of the world. But true believers cannot stay comfortable in that for long. Do you yearn to hear from Him and spend time with Him? He wants you to open the door. Do you care about your relationship with the Lord? Do you care enough to do something about it?

In the next article, I will share one reason the Lord reveals in His Word how the American Church got to this point of apathy and indifference towards Him.

---

If you like the content on this website and find it benneficial to you, consider subscribing today to have it sent directly to your inbox. Thank you for your encouragement.