THE "CHURCH" OF THE LAODICEANS: REVELATION 3:14-22!
[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. [20] 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. [21] 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. [22] He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
WERE THE MEMBERS OF THIS "CHURCH" SAVED?
The first clue as to the authenticity of this assembly is found in how it is addressed. All six of the previously mentioned churches were addressed by their locale; their cities: Ephesus (2:1); Smyrna (2:8); Pergamos (2:12); Thyatira (2:18); Sardis (3:1); Philadelphia (3:7): the seventh "church" is described as belonging to the people of Laodicea. "Laodicea" is defined as "justice/government of the people." In other words, the people ruled the local assembly, not the Lord!
The city was renamed Laodicea by Antiochus II after his wife, Laodice; the same name as the mother of Antiochus IV as well as his wife. Antiochus IV (a type or forerunner of the Antichrist of Rev. 13) was the Greek governor over the area which included Israel. Antiochus IV (175-164 BC), was the 8th ruler of the Seleucid empire. He gave himself the surname "Epiphanes" which means "the visible god" (claiming that he and Jupiter were identical). He acted as though he really were Jupiter and the people called him "Epimanes" meaning "the madman." He was violently bitter against the Jews, and was determined to exterminate them and their religion. He destroyed much of Jerusalem in 168 BC, defiled the Temple, offered a pig on its altar, erected an altar to Jupiter, stopped Temple worship, forbade circumcision on pain of death, sold many Jews into slavery, destroyed all copies of Scripture that could be found, slaughtered everyone discovered in possession of such copies, and resorted to every conceivable torture to force Jews to renounce their religion. This led to the Maccabaean revolt, one of the most heroic feats in Jewish history.
Another clue is found in the fact that they were "naked," not having white robes of righteousness given by Christ to believers (Ps. 132:9; Isa. 61:10; Mt. 22:11-12; Rev. 16:1-16; 19:18; etc.).
Then there is the fact that Jesus promises not to reject those who trust in Him; He will never leave them or forsake them (Rom. 8:35-39; Eph. 1:13; 4:30; Heb.13:5; etc.). How then would He vomit them out of His mouth? He would not!
And finally, the fact that Jesus is excluded from their group indicates they have not accepted Him as either Savior or Lord! They appear to be uninterested in His fellowship with them at a meal!
TODAY, THERE ARE MANY FALSE DENOMINATIONS CLAIMING TO BE THE LORD'S CHURCH; RELIGIONS AND CULTS THAT REQUIRE MEMBERS TO EARN THEIR SALVATION, THUS DENYING GOD'S OFFER OF THE GIFT OF SALVATION BASED UPON THE FINISHED WORK OF CHRIST. THEY ADD TO THE GOSPEL A REQUIREMENT OF RELIGIOUS WORKS. THEY ARE NOT THE LORD'S CHURCH!
THERE ARE POSSESSORS OF ETERNAL LIFE BY FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST, AND PROFESSORS WHO CLAIM TO BE CHRISTIANS, BUT DO NOT KNOW HIM AS THEIR LORD AND SAVIOR! TRUST IN HIM AND HIM ALONE!
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