Anyone who has never heard of a place called Laodicea can find out everything we know about it in Revelation chapter 3, the last book of the Bible. Verse 17, in particular, presents a contrast between what Jesus said about the church in Laodicea and what the Laodiceans believed about themselves. The Laodiceans believed “we are rich, we have prospered and grown wealthy and we lack nothing”, but Jesus calls them “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked”. This contrast begs the question, how could they not have known their true condition? I can only guess the answer to that question, but I think my guess is reasonable. I believe the voice of warning was silenced in Laodicea. By the voice of warning, I mean the parental voice which says things like, “you could put your eye out with that” or “don’t play with matches”.
I was reminded of Revelation 3:17 two Sundays ago in church, though it was never mentioned. The pastor asked everyone to open their Bibles to the book of Jude, which is quite unusual, both because it’s a small book and because it is very stern in its tone. To my astonishment, however, the pastor only spoke for half an hour about four of the 25 verses, verses 20, 21, 24 and 25. Those four verses are the only four encouraging verses of the book. The rest of the book, particularly verses 1-19, are a very stern warning about the consequences of sin. Those 19 verses are the primary reason the book was written, but they were excluded from the Sunday, August 26 sermon.
My wife listened to the sermon at face value and told me after church how good she thought it was. I said, “It was a very pleasant sermon, and I didn’t disagree with a single word of it. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I were a pastor and I gave sermons like that. Some time this week I dare you to read the entire book and afterwords to ask yourself if what you heard this morning was the primary intent of the author.” My wife’s basic reaction was that I’m an idiot, which is usually her first reaction to anything I say. But then she read the book and she got my point. The fact that she listens to me eventually is probably why we’re still married.
The voice of warning is on nearly every page of scripture from Genesis to Revelation. Contrary to common belief, it may be even more prevalent in the New Testament than in the Old Testament, yet it has virtually disappeared from our churches. My purpose here is not to criticize my pastor or the church we attend. I’m almost sure he agrees with me about what the book of Jude means, but he is apparently not interested in telling the congregation. I won’t speculate here about why he omitted the primary message of the book, because I haven’t asked. Ignoring
the voice of warning will take place in virtually every American church service throughout the country again this Sunday. As I told my wife, “For the most part, churches have stopped serving cake, they only serve frosting.” I like frosting as much as anyone else, but it’s not meant to be eaten by itself.
My point goes well beyond theology. I knew there would someday be a hurricane Katrina forty years before it happened. I didn’t know when it would happen or what the storm would be named, but I knew it was coming. We all knew it was coming, yet no one in New Orleans was prepared for it. I know it’s humanly impossible to be prepared for everything, but there are many things headed right at us, things far worse than Katrina, things we are not preparing for.
But none of society’s ills worries me as much as the unprepared church. For example, several weeks ago, during another church service, our pastor asked if anyone had anything to share. My wife’s elbow was in my ribs immediately, because she knows I always have something to say. I had been studying the epistles of John, and I became interested in how much they echoed what Jesus said during the last supper. So I went to the microphone and I asked, “Does anyone remember the first thing Jesus said after Judas left to betray him? It’s significant because he was alone with all of the real apostles, and no one else, for the first time we know of. In John 13:34-35, the first commandment he gave us was to love one another, and he added that men would recognize his disciples by their love for each other. Priority number one for this church should be to develop a Christ-centered community of people who are willing even to die for each other, if necessary.” Everyone applauded, but nothing has changed. American Christians always applaud when they hear pleasant things, and then they wait to hear something even more pleasant. I’m not encouraged by applause. I’m grieved almost to tears by not having anyone really listen. Nothing scares me as much as the unprepared church. It is so pleasant living here in Laodicea, and it’s so dangerous.
