The Disgusting Taste of a Complacent Church

You will recognize them by their fruits. – ( Matthew 7:16a)

Complacency plagues the professing church, especially in America. The vast majority of professing Christians are living comfortably, lavishly, and without any sense of urgency in their mission. The church, molested by the likes of Joel Osteen’s prosperity propaganda, or Andy Stanley’s moralizing “follow Jesus, even if you don’t know him as the Son of God, and have a better life” hogwash, has taken a blind eye to the absolute depravity that’s all around us. Homosexuality and perversion is taking over our cities and towns while thousands of innocent children are being slaughtered at murder mills daily. Where is the church?

Hollow words ring from the pulpits across the country when images of brutally murdered children scroll across the news channel in our living rooms after their body parts have been sold. “We are vehemently opposed to abortion….now where were we?” A few get up and hold up signs for a day or two in front of the abortuaries, or march once a year in front of the capitol. Laws are passed allowing perverted men to use women’s restrooms in public with little outcry. Then everyone goes home, back to their comfortable lives, and it’s over. Where is the church?

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. – (1 John 2:15-17)

The vast majority of the professing church loves the world. The vast majority of the church would rather spend their days watching sports or indulging in self-gratification than carry out the Great Commission and proclaim the Gospel. “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot,” states Romans 8:7. Revelation 3 refers to these professing believers as “lukewarm,” and God finds them disgusting and useless.

To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. – (Revelation 3:14-18)

Lukewarm Christians do not see their own depravity, nor do they see their need for a savior. Lukewarm Christians may attend church on Sundays, and participate in worship services, not because they want to, but because they feel like they are supposed to. Lukewarm Christians tend to choose what’s popular over what’s right and biblical. Lukewarm Christians find it difficult, uncomfortable, or inappropriate to share their faith with others, and generally don’t see new life in Christ as being any better than their old life. They only want to be saved from hell, rather than saved from their sins. While some lukewarm professing Christians may wear a mask of righteousness, their lives really aren’t any different than the average lost person. They equate their moderately decontaminated lives with holiness–but God hates this.

God hates lukewarm Christianity so much that he tells them that he will spit them out of his mouth. The word translated as “spit” literally means “to vomit.” Much like cold and hot water is refreshing, God clearly would rather one be either completely rebellious or totally on fire for him. You cannot be in the middle. Just like lukewarm water tastes disgusting, lukewarm Christianity makes God want to vomit.

Jesus Christ is not a yoke between God and the world, but rather an escape from the world. You are either with God or with the world. When you enter his presence and he tests your lukewarm deeds by fire (1 Corinthians 3:13), he will “spue you out of his mouth. (KJV)”