Jesus doesnt just look at the actions we perform; he focuses on the heart. He was diligent and committed to the will of God the Father (John 4:34). Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Remains of a water pipe in Laodicea (photo by David Treybig). It is to have a sense of what is right and what is wrong. He was the beginning of all things. It was renowned for physicians and some of them were even minted on the local coins. A cold Christian visits the shut-ins, the hospitalized, and in prison. People commonly but mistakenly believe that wealth means that God is pleased with them. 14bthe faithful and true Witness. Laodicea quickly became a rich city, rich enough to be able to rebuild itself without outside help after the destructive earthquake of 60 A.D. Jesus was in heaven with God, but voluntarily became a man for our sakes. Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance. A third lesson is that we need to vigilantly maintain our spiritual eyesightour ability to see things from a spiritual perspective. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth (Luke 21:34-35). What did they think it meant to be cold? It is up to the hearer to decide whether to take the Word seriously and try to understand it, and obey it. All rights reserved. If this is what Christ had in mind, then being a cold Christian would be like giving someone a cool refreshing drink on a hot summer day. Various thermal installations, which included immense hot basins and pools for swimming, were built to take advantage of the natural resource. Only a few are willing; the rest have ears, but they do not have ears to hear (Matthew 7:1314, 2427). Hierapolis achieved great renown for its hot springs and day spas. The eye salve must be purchased, and it is expensive. 1 Peter 1:7 states that spiritual gold is your faith in Christ, and every true believers faith in Jesus will go through a fiery trial during which all that is dross is to be done away with (burned away) to bring forth a finished product of pure, refined gold. 4. And finally, like all the previous messages, Jesus says, He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches (verse 22). The major idea behind this word is constancy and reliability.8 Isaiah referred to God as the God of amen, due to his truthfulness and trustworthiness (Isaiah 65:16). If it were a common practice to refer to the chief person in the church as a messenger, this would be evident in the other letters contained in the New Testament, especially in Paul's. It was named Laodicea by the Greek ruler Antiochus II Theos around 260 BC in honor of his wife Laodice. But this can only happen when we are in the right relationship with him. To purchase from God gold tried in the fire is not only inclining your ear to the Lord, hearing him, going to him and making an everlasting covenant with him, but also loving, believing, and rejoicing as per 1 Peter 1:5-9, (quoted earlier). "Eyesalve to rub in your eyes" Laodicea was also famous as a healing center. As a result of not being either hot or cold for Jesus, they are like a rancid drink or repugnant drink that leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. Baldwin Park Eye Care | We are located at 4829 New Broad St, Orlando, FL, 32814. Laodicea lies 40 miles southeast from Philadelphia in the Lycus Valley. The salve is responding to the work of God's Spirit as His word . John 1:3 (HSCB) says, All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. John 1:10 (HSCB) says, He was in the world, and the world was created through Him, yet the world did not recognize Him. 1 Corinthians 8:6 (HSCB) says, yet for us, there is one God, the Father. The problem lies in that it seems improbable that Christ would use a human to write a physical letter to an angel, rebuking it for falling short in its duties as a Christ-follower.4 If the angel is an actual angelic representative of the local church, and answerable for its failure, then the seven angels in chapters 1 through 3 failed miserably. It is a process where God makes us holy. (16) So because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. They stood on an important junction of trades routes running more or less north to south and west to west. When we see mega churches today respond to criticisms they . We know from this introduction that what follows is being said by Jesus. If were doing something hoping that it will bring ourselves glory or accolades or pats on the back, then were not doing for God. Never miss a post! Associated with the temple was a medical school. This suffering was not the physical suffering on the cross of Calvary. Gods problem with this church was not that it was an inactive body of believers. Revelation 3:20. According to Romans 12:3, God has given everyone a measure of faith (gold) with which we receive salvation and use our varying gifts. The Lord rebukes the wealthy Christians, not because of their wealth, but rather because their money has substituted God. No, it does not; just dont sit in the center. The mineral water was used to clean the wool and set, or lock, the color of the dyes (this ensures the wool holds its color when washed). Copyright 2004 -, Transliteration of Amen From Hebrew to Greek to English. Greek 2854. kollourion -- eye salve. In the New Testament, a believer dies with Christ to live a new holy life in the power of Christ's resurrection and identification with Christ's suffering (Romans 6:1-11, Galatians 2:20; Philippians 3:8-10). The essential element in real repentance is that we must come to God in humbleness to request his forgiveness. Fertile ground of the valley was good grazing for sheep. Christ told the church (in verse 17) that they were blind, and in verse 18, they are instructed to purchase eye salve. Theater of popular music. Trusted Eye Doctor in Baldwin Park, CA. Although it had earlier been called Diospolis and then Rhoas, Antiochus II of Syria named it for his wife Laodike and populated it with Syrians and with Jews who were transplanted from Babylonia to the cities of Phrygia and Lydia (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1939, Laodicea). It is to have a sense of what is right and what is wrong. The Laodiceans needed to turn away from putting their trust in their earthly gold and instead put their trust in Jesus Christ, and that would involve repentance. Youre going to have to spend time reading the Bible to learn the truth, and by meditating on the Word, reinforce the truth. Giving time to Christ is what Christians must do to develop spiritual discernment. It is possible the word meant the messenger or the actual person who delivered the letter, but that would require seven different messengers, one from each of the churches to have traveled to Patmos to get the letter to deliver it. The Greek word arche, which is translated Beginning, has a range of meanings from beginning, origin to the person or thing that commences to that by which anything begins to be to the first place, principality, rule, magistracy (Thayers Greek Lexicon). Jesus knows what it is like to be human. The city was also known as a health resort, one of the best in the Graeco-Roman world owing mostly to its lukewarm . Phileo is the Greek word for friend or friendship. The promise in this verse is that the church will reign with Christ if they overcome. This promise is amazing because, whenever we do overcome in the battles of life, it is always through Him. First of all, it begins with recognizing with a heart-rending awareness that we have defied God when we sin. In other words, the name indicated that people made their own decisions. The verse is not talking about salvation; it is talking about usefulness or purpose. The second thing we need to look at is what it means to be hot. White clothes. Go to God. With so much wealth pouring into Laodicea, one of the most noted banks in the Greek and Roman world was located there. To be a hot Christian could have several different meanings (or a combination of them) to the Laodiceans. It covers a myriad of areas, including pride, impatience, selfishness, unrighteousness, irritation, laziness, vanity, complaining, sexual impurity, unbelief, discouragement, envy, greed, ingratitude, etc. The Bible is the weapon God has given us; words to use against Satan's deceit like Jesus did, words that show us what to do, words of comfort. They probably think they are just like any other church. So what does it cost to purchase eye salve from Christ? All things are from Him, and we exist for Him. That the Christians will co-reign with Christ (sitting with Him on His throne) is stated in the New Testament on numerous occasions (Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:30; 1 Corinthians 6:1-3, 2 Timothy 2:12). It takes a true friend to point out negative things in your life, and then be willing to be part of the solution. And it works better than modern antibiotics in both lab and mouse models. Website design, HTML and CSS coding by Steven P. Wickstrom The name is derived from two words: laos, meaning people and dike, meaning decision (Strongs Concordance). The hot mineral water was brought down from Hierapolis and used by the textile industry. The church is being called on to pay close attention and seek Gods wisdom concerning the written Word. But in this verse, Jesus is telling the church that they are naked and in need of white garments that only he can provide. After all, He's knocking at the door. If you are living a self-reliant, self-sufficient life; relying on your strength rather than Christs, then you are lukewarm. One of these is what the Bible calls the deceitfulness of riches (Matthew 13:22; Mark 4:19). It is the motive behind the action, or works, that is important. He was very careful about whom he called friend. Jesus never referred to anyone who was not his disciple as a friend. What exactly is forgiveness? We cant relax and mistakenly assume we have it made. They produced a world-famous salve, reputed to cure certain kinds of eye diseases. The Greek word for "witness" ( - martus) means "one who can or does aver what he has seen or heard or knows. The church at Laodicea stands accused of being shamefully naked. What did we read in Isaiah 55:1-3? Incline your ear to his voice. Near the temple of the special god associated with healing there was a market for trading all sorts of goods. Youre going to have to give him your time. Physical money cannot purchase the merchandise Christ has for sale; it takes something else. We now come back to the question of how do you buy from Jesus' refined gold? Colossae had been a major trade center on the trade route from Sardis to Konya and was famous for the dark red wool cloth that carried that its name, colossinum (also derived from the madder root). Behold, I stand at the door and knock. He has given us Gods Word as a guide, help, and a weapon. If you think back to the Garden of Eden, clothing was the first thing which Adam felt the need of, after he had sinned. Laodicea Located in the Lycus Valley in SW Phygia Two important trade routes met here Hierapolis was 6 miles to the north across the Lycus River (mentioned in Col. 4:13) Colossae was ten miles away Laodicea was the wealthiest city in Phrygia. Its as if he was served something to drink that was inadequate, subpar, or even bad tasting. He's locked out of his own house. Jesus is telling the church to have a purpose, to have a focus, and to make sure that Jesus is the reason for their deeds and works. ; relying on your strength rather than Christs, then you are lukewarm what the Bible calls deceitfulness. Money can not purchase the merchandise Christ has for sale laodicea eye salve it takes a true to. Was not the physical suffering on the face of the Valley was good grazing for.... 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