I don’t believe it’s possible to be lukewarm. Christ is either the One who gave you life when you were dead and therefore must be shared with anyone you come in contact with, anyone you care about. Or He is someone you have tried and found not to be sufficient, in which case He is a deceiver and your loved ones must be warned of His lies.
Thoughts?
Todd
I would say that is the way it is supposed to be. But I don’t believe that is how it really is. Jesus called one of the seven churches in Revelation lukewarm, so obviously it is a possible state. I would think it would be possible to be lukewarm because of our constant desires for things other than God. Even as Christians we have them. We do a lot of things that have no impact on eternity or on the Kingdom here on earth. We sin. We falter and stumble along. Sometimes we become lukewarm and complacent.
Seems to me a lot of folks have a bad case of spiritual ADD. “I love you Lord, I worship you Lord, fill me Lord… ooh… look… a chicken!” Sincere but with a fleeting attention span. Don’t understand that mindset but I see it a lot.
Selling a relationship with Him waaaay short, though.
It must be, and I believe is, possible to be “lukewarm” or else Jesus wouldn’t have addressed it in Revelation that he would spew you out of His mouth. That’s quite a revelation in and of itself. The two positions you describe above are “hot” and “cold” of which He also makes reference too…saying that He’d rather have us either/or.
To categorize lukewarmness may be too broad a spectrum. To label someone as such, dangerous. Perhaps only He knows which of us would fall into that category. I do believe there are many lukewarm “Christians” or “Believers”. These terms take me back to a piece I began to write in response to another blog you had posted, to try and describe just what it means to be “saved,” however, I was unable to finish it.
I feel I have sometimes fallen into that category myself, and it is a place I scramble hard to remove myself from. Life and it’s issues have at times pulled me away from the fervent love I have for my Savior and it’s very humbling to say the least, when I realize this….this desperate need I have for my Savior…to keep me and to pull me back into deep intimacy with Him…to know that I can’t even be fervent for Him, if He doesn’t help me. I’m so dependant upon Him…there are times we are so close that I don’t know where He starts and I, end…and then there are times I feel so far from Him. Those times are not of His doing of course but of my own. Letting life’s cares and man drag me from that place of union with Him…and although during those times I do not consider myself “cold”, I would certainly not consider myself “hot” and I fear what if those times could be labeled as “lukewarm”? It’s scary to think of. I don’t want to be spewed from His mouth. I love Him so much…
“So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth.” ~Rev 3:16 “American King James Version”
in an ideal world, yes. You used the word deciever – Satan, in my mind – wh will do anything and everything to draw us away. I’ve been drawn away, and keep coming back to God. Am I fulfilled, satisfied, joyful? no. Do I know that life is empty without God, no matter how lukewarm or apatheitc I feel? yes. Not saying that being lukewarm is OK, or even right… but it happens.
That being said, if we had the passion, and an absolute NEED for God then yes its black and white. However in the day and society that we live in, North Americans don’t NEEED God. We are too prosperous and self centered to rely on some unseen Being. Plant us in the middle of China or some poverty-stricken, hostile to christians nation…. and we eould suddenly see how great our need is for God
“The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” There are many who truly love the Lord with everything within them. But as the parable goes, the cares of the world have weighed down the heart. Deep in our heart of hearts He knows that we would do anything for Him, but at the same time He knows that without the Spirit empowering and leading us we are powerless. God help us!
If Christ’s life is inside you, then you are alive, not dead. That’s one contrast that is definable. But in the physical realm one can be alive, but comatose. Could it be the same in the spiritual realm? I see this same dynamic in many marriages where couples have allowed their passion to grow cold. Perhaps the reason in both the spiritual and physical realm is that we stop pursuing and nurturing love, unlike God who is always active in His pursuit of us. When you really love someone, it is almost impossible not to talk about them to everyone in just about every conversation. That is also true of our relationship with God–we talk about what He has done for us and how much we love Him. But as with human relationships, when we stop thinking about and pursuing the one we love we begin thinking about and talking about ourselves–what we have accomplished and what we need–and our focus becomes self-centered, not God-centered or other-centered. I don’t think that means one doesn’t love at all, but that one doesn’t love well . . . and from the perspective of the one receiving lukewarm love, it doesn’t feel like love at all; it feels more like contempt.
It has been revealed to me in the last few weeks that “complacent behavior” is the key factor in the lukewarm society of Christianity that we see today. We often as Christians sell a bill of goods that we can’t deliver. (King Jesus will fix all our problems).It is way more than just being saved. It is about a relationship that goes two ways. We need to sell the fact that God Loves us more than we could ever imagine. The Bridegroom has a fiery passion for his people, zealous love for the people of God. He wants more and more for us to communicate with Him, fellowship with Him send our adoration to Him through worship,praise, and devotion. Then comes the spirit of complacency and lazyness losing focus on the Glorious One to i-pads, smartphones,video games,tv,facebook and every other thing that fills our time to distract us from sitting at the foot of the King and being captivated by His beauty. This is exactly where the enemy wants us as then we won’t fulfill the calling on our lives. We are sons and daughters of a King people!!!! Arise and put on your pure garments and walk in the calling of your life!