The Lukewarm Sermon
By Bobby Blakey on August 4, 2024
Revelation 3:14-22
AUDIO
The Lukewarm Sermon
By Bobby Blakey on August 4, 2024
Revelation 3:14-22
Well, I want to welcome everyone to The Lukewarm Sermon, which I realize is a terrible title for a sermon. And I had this realization after we had printed up the graphic and gave it to everybody, people just started coming to me like, so, are you not going to really be preaching it like you're into it? So, the sermon is just going to kind of be lukewarm, you know? And at first, when I heard people say this, I got very offended, like, what do you mean? I'm not going to be preaching into it, right? And then I realized, oh, the title is making them think that the sermon is going to be lukewarm, not like, it's a sermon for lukewarm people. And, at first, I was like, offended, hey, why would you think I'm going to preach lukewarm, you know? Like, I'm going to go for it, you know? But then eventually, I was like, well, no, wait a minute. Wait a minute. They're onto something here. What would it look like if I came up here and I gave you a lukewarm sermon? Like, hey everybody, if you want to, maybe, if it feels right to you, you, could you open your Bible with me, but if you didn't bring your Bible, that's fine, because I don't want you to feel bad. Because if you don't want to turn to Revelation, that's okay, because I can't prove to you it's going to happen in your lifetime anyway. So, everything's fine. We're just all going to die. It's going to be normal. It'll be great. Besides, you've probably heard this passage already, so tell you what? I'll try to keep it short. I'll try to get you out of here in a quick time frame, because I'm sure you guys already know this. All you need to do is ask Jesus into your heart. That's all you’ve got to do. You can do it right here, right now, tonight. You could do it right here, right now. In fact, just shout amen if you want to do it here tonight. No, that's a bit much. Who does that these days, right? How about you? Just nod your head if you want to believe in Jesus. How about this? I'll have everybody else close their eyes, and then you can just raise your hand, because the last thing you need if you want to believe in Jesus is anyone actually expecting you to live for Jesus. And I started to realize that if I came up here and tried to preach a lukewarm sermon, I'd heard that sermon. I'd heard that sermon a few times. A lot of people are preaching lukewarm sermons about the passage where Jesus says he's going to spit out the lukewarm.
So let me tell you how we really need to approach this is that you should open your Bible with me, and you should turn to Revelation chapter 3, and you should make sure that you actually know what Jesus actually said, because Jesus, what he says here has been taken out of context. Jesus, what he says here has been dumbed down on a massive level. Jesus, what he says here, has been twisted to make the lukewarm feel good about themselves, when the whole point is he's calling out a lukewarm church. And Jesus isn't asking anybody to ask him into their heart. Jesus is knocking on the door. You’ve got to make sure that you actually hear what Jesus says, because it doesn't matter what I say or what you think or what any other pastor has said, but it does matter what Jesus says. And so, I invite you to stand for the public reading of Scripture, and I invite you to give your full and undivided attention to the last of the seven letters of Jesus. This is Revelation 3:14-22. This is the Word of God.
“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation. I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
That's the reading of God's Word. Please go ahead and grab your seat. Maybe you know about this church in Laodicea. It's the seventh letter that we have here, the seventh church in the book of Revelation. And we've got a map that we'll throw up here on the screen so you can see the island of Patmos out there in the Mediterranean Sea where John is. You can count them all, seven churches that we've been to. But one thing you may not know, or I want to bring to your mind again about Laodicea is when we get down to the seventh church here, the church of Laodicea, it's very close to Hierapolis, and this city you may have heard of before, Colossi. Who's ever read the book of Colossians before? All right, so there's a connection, a very close proximity between the Colossi and Laodicea. And, in fact, in the book of Colossians, two different times, it says, share this letter with the Laodiceans. And then I also wrote a letter to the Laodiceans. Make sure you get their letter as well. So here was the Apostle Paul writing to two churches that he personally had not seen face to face, but he felt compelled to send them a letter. Now, in Colossians, if you've ever studied the book of Colossians before, you know the Laodiceans must have got and read the book of Colossians, which has a very strong emphasis on the person of Jesus Christ. And that's how he begins his letter. Here Look back at Revelation 3:14. He says “the words of the Amen.” So, “Amen” is often translated “truly,” like when Jesus says “truly, truly, I say unto you.” That means Amen, I say unto you; I really mean it. Okay. And then he says, “the faithful and true witness.” So, Jesus is loading this letter with authenticity. Jesus is loading this with, “I'm faithful and true witness.” I'm here to represent God. I'm here. I'm ready as a witness to die. I'll go all the way to the end. And then Jesus calls himself this: “The beginning of God's creation.” So, I'm the Amen. I'm the one who's Faithful and True, and I am the… here's the Greek word, right here, you could pronounce it, arche, right? I am the beginning. And this word that Jesus uses here is actually used in the book of Colossians.
So, it's almost as if these people had received the book of Colossians, and had heard something about Jesus, but maybe Jesus thought they didn't really get it, and now he's trying to make it clear to them here. So, grab your Bible and turn with me to the book of Colossians, and let's see its famous passage about Jesus here in Colossians 1:15-20, that uses the same Greek word, the archaic talks about the beginning of all creation. What is Jesus wanting this church to think about as he begins his letter to them? Well, look at Colossians, chapter one, verses 15 to 20. This is one of the awesome passages that we have about Jesus, one of the passages that proves the deity of Jesus, that Jesus is the Son of God. You could go to John, chapter 1. You could go to Hebrews, chapter 1, and then you can also go to Colossians, chapter one, starting in verse 15. “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.” Which doesn't necessarily mean that he's the born first of all creation. No, it means that he's the one, the preeminent one of all creation, the one who will inherit all creation. “For by him all things were…” What does it say there, everybody? See, he can't be created because “by him all things were created.” Can I get an amen from anybody on that, right? Sorry to let down many cult groups who want to act like Jesus was born or Jesus was created. But the Bible is very clear that Jesus created all things. And if he created all things, then he can't be created himself, because he would be one of those all things. And so, Jesus is the preeminent one of all creation. “By him all things were created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions…” and this is the word I want you to write down, if you are taking notes. Write down “rulers,” because, guess what? The Greek word there is translated rulers is “arche”. So, it's this interesting word that kind of means the beginning, the first one. But if you're the beginning of it, if you're the one who's first in it, then it's like you have the authority to rule over it, like you, if you're the beginning, then you are the one who reigns. And so, because he is the beginning of all creation, he is therefore the one in the first place, who reigns over all creation. And so, it says here in Colossians 1:17-18, “And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be…” what? Preeminent. First place. Okay? So, yeah, Jesus, he loved us. He did come down as a baby in a manger. He did die as a man on a cross. But Jesus has been exalted to the name that is above all names. And Jesus is the Lord of all creation. He is first place. He is the ruler.
Let's get that down. Who are they “The words of?” Well, they're the words of Jesus. “Jesus is the ruler of all creation.” Jesus is the boss, the Lord. He is the one who was there at the beginning, and he spoke all things into existence. He's upholding the universe right now by the Word of his power. And he is before all things. The point of all things is that Jesus would be preeminent. Jesus will be exalted and lifted high. Every knee is going to bow, every tongue is going to confess. You need to have a high view of Jesus. And whatever view you have of Jesus, it may not be high enough to go along with this description right here. So who am I? Well, I'm the true one. I'm the faithful and true witness. I am the beginning, or the ruler of all creation. Okay, then look at what he has to say to this church. If you go back with me to Revelation chapter 3, he says, “I know your works.” And, unlike other letters, where he begins to describe maybe some good things or some bad things. This letter, he just gets right to the fact that this church, and he doesn't break this church into different groups. He speaks to the church as a whole, and that's what he has to say about this church. As the kids would say today, this church is mid-right. This church, they are not hot, they are not cold, they are what? They are mediocre. That's what they are. This church, like so many Christians I have met today, is searching for the middle ground.
I don't want to be too hot. Oh, but I'm definitely not cold. How dare anyone imply that I'm cold? Who would dare here to question my love for the Lord? I'm not cold, but, yeah, I'm not really that hot either, though that's where a lot of people want to be. People want you to assume that they are fine with Jesus. And then if you ask them how they're doing with Jesus, how dare you ask me about that? And Jesus, he's got something to say about mediocre Christianity, almost like he doesn't believe in it, because he says, “I know your works, you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were?” I mean, think about this. He's saying, “Would that you were either hot or cold.” So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, “I will spit you out of my mouth.”
Now, I think, at this point in time, we all know who a barista is. Does everybody know who a barista is? Even if you don't go to the coffee shop, you've seen them at your grocery store. You've seen them at your airport. You've seen these people serving up cups of tea and coffee. And what do they ask you after you say, well, give me that latte or give me that mocha. What do they ask you? What's the question? Would you like it iced or hot? They ain't serving up lukewarm drinks. Would you like it hot, or would you like it cold? And Jesus says to this church, you're either one of those. And I feel like spitting you out of my mouth. It makes me sick. Jesus is saying that he's going to vomit their response out of his mouth. Vomit them out of his mouth.
So, this is definitely coming in hot. Does everybody understand this here? Like Jesus is saying, hey, I wish that you were hot or cold. Now, let's think about that. The word hot here, we'll throw it up here on the screen. Zestos. You can kind of understand that Greek word right there. Zestos. What are we having for dinner tonight? I don't know, but does it have any zestos to it? You know what? I mean, it's hot. Now, there's a verb form here where we get “zeal”. And we saw this word not too long ago, if you've been here at our church. We saw that it was to make hot, to boil. And we saw it from our study of the book of Romans, chapter 12, verse 11, the question of that sermon was, “Does your heart burn?” And it says, “Do not be slothful in zeal. Be fervent in spirit. Serve the Lord.” So, the idea there of fervent is the same idea of hot; somebody who is fervent; somebody who is earnest. They're into it. There's a little bit of passion to what they're doing. There's a little bit of zealousness to what they're doing. They're not lazy in it, and they're not lazy in their zeal. No, they're fervent in their spirit. And here's why, because they are serving the… who everybody? Do you know who he is? “He's the firstborn of all creation. He's the preeminent one. He spoke everything into existence, and now he reigns over it, and God has exalted him to the name above every name.” There's only one legitimate response to Jesus, and it's to be fervent in your spirit. We need to stop acting like fervent, that's just a personality trait. Fervent is the right response to the person of Jesus Christ. It is the only good response, to be hot. But Jesus doesn't just say, I wish you guys were hot. He says something that is mind blowing, if you really consider it. I wish you were hot. Or what better to be cold than to be lukewarm? Wow. Have you thought about that?
Because look what Jesus is going to go on to say in these verses after he gives us two verses of this hotter, cold, lukewarm picture. Look at Revelation 3:17. Now he's going to start quoting them. “You say, I'm rich, I've prospered.” And what do they say? I need what, everybody? I'm good to go. I'm fine. I'm okay. Don't worry about me. I'm doing just fine. Well, no, no. See, the reason they're asking you how you're doing is they don't see you doing. So, they're asking you how you're doing because they don't see the doing. And then your response is, don't ask me how I'm doing. I need nothing. I'm fine. I'm good. Hey, can I pray for you? Well, just pray that I'll pray more, brother. Out of all the things going on right now on planet Earth, you’ve got nothing specific for me to pray for? I'm good. I need nothing. I'm doing okay. See, Jesus says that's what you think about yourself. Let me tell you how I think about you. You don't know this. You need to see this. Here's Jesus telling people how he really is the true one. The Amen. “You are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked.” Now let me just ask you guys a question. Those five words, “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked,” does that sound like we're talking about a Christian person? There is a Christian person, blind under the god of this age, Satan. Is a Christian person poor? Or do they have all the heavenly riches in Christ? Is a Christian person naked? Or have they been granted a white robe? See, “pitiable,” that's actually the word it uses in 1 Corinthians 15, where if Jesus didn't rise from the dead, then we, out of all people, are to be pitied.
So, I've heard people say at this church, oh, don't worry about me. I'm a Christian. I'm just lukewarm. What you need to hear Jesus say is, lukewarm people aren't Christians. They're not doing fine. Not only do they need a little bit of something, not only do they need a little help, they need salvation. That's what he's saying here. He's saying that the lukewarm people, Jesus is not going to spit his people out of his mouth. I mean, we saw last week, if you were here, how much Jesus cared for that church, how he's going to keep them? He's going to keep them from the hour of trial. Hey, Jesus is going to come for them, and he's going to put them in the temple of his God. Jesus is not spitting his people out of his mouth. Jesus is shedding his blood to save his people from their sins. Jesus has great, tender love and care for his people. He's not spitting them out like they make him sick. These are not the people of Jesus, but they think they are. They are self-deceived into thinking that they are fine with Jesus, when actually Jesus is disgusted with their lukewarmness. And Jesus is ready to say, you're still blind, you're still poor, you're still naked, you don't know who you are. And then he goes on to say, I counsel you like, hey, I've got something to say to you. You need to come to me and get gold refined by fire, because I can make you rich. You need to come to me. I've got white garments. I've got white robes so that I can clothe you, so your nakedness won't be seen. And if you want to see, I can give you some salve for your eyes. Apparently, that was a big business here in Laodicea. Like all three of these things might have been things that the city of Laodicea was known for, in that that it was a rich and prosperous city, that it was known for its fancy clothing and garments, that they were known for helping people’s sight and having these procedures and these salves for people's eyes. They were known for these things. And he's like, you guys think you're good at this, but you guys actually need help with all of this. You're blind, you're naked.
So, Jesus is saying that the problem with this church is they haven't even been saved. They're not even in a real relationship with him, and they think they're doing well, when really they're not having a relationship with Jesus at all. And so, he wants them to see that they can't see. He wants them to know that they don't know. That is the purpose of this letter. The purpose of this letter would be to take the moderate Christian, the mediocre Christian, the person who knows they're not really into it, but thinks they're still saved by Jesus, and that Jesus could say to that person, hey, I know you think you're like this, but you're actually like this, and I need you to come to me so that you can actually be saved.
Point number one, let's get it down like this: “The only way to be saved is to not be saved.” The only way to be saved is to not be saved. And this is such an important point because I have met many people at churches like this in Southern California. I can remember one young man I was talking to, and he says, I just don't understand why I keep giving into that sin. I just don't understand why I keep not reading my Bible. I just don't understand why I can't really love other people. And the guy's taking me through all of his struggles, and he's trying so hard, and he wants to do so much good, but he's never, ever getting there. And I remember this young man saying to me, I don't understand it, because every day I'm asking God for help, and it's like the help never comes. And I had to say to him, hey, you don't need help. You need salvation. You think you've already started, you think you're already there, and you just need a little bit of God Power to get you over the hump, a little bit of help today, and that'll be enough, when all this time, it's just you trying to do it and always falling short. You’ve got to stop trying. You’ve got to stop asking for help, and you need to go and listen to what Jesus tells you to do. You don't know what you don't know. And I wonder if there's anybody like that here tonight. Ah, I'm a Christian. I'm in. But yet, I never really feel like I'm all the way in. And I wonder if you need to hear Jesus say these words to you.
Go to Matthew, chapter 9. Look at how Jesus put it here in Matthew, chapter 9. See, there are so many phrases for it, this idea of kind of the halfway in, halfway out. I've heard it said, like the almost Christian, right? The person who's just in the middle, like they know they're not the most zealous person around, but they're definitely not like the unbelievers, right? They're just claiming that that neutral territory in the middle for themself. And you need to hear Jesus saying to you, no, it's either hot or cold. And here's why Jesus would say, I would that you were rather I would rather have you hot. I would even rather have you cold than have you lukewarm. Why? Because the cold person knows that I'm not saved, and knowing you're not saved is an essential requirement to then realizing you need to be saved. You can't go from halfway there to saved. You have to go from cold to hot. You will be stuck in lukewarm for eternity. That's what Jesus knows. The self-deception of the lukewarm is worse than the clarity of those who know they're not saved and need to be. Look at how he says it here in Matthew, chapter 9, as he reclined at table in the house with many tax collectors. This is Matthew 9:10-12, and he's just called Matthew to follow him, a Levi, a tax collector, and now he's at that house where there are so many tax collectors who are traders, who are sellouts for the Romans in the Jewish mindset, and they are people just called sinners. We’ve got tax collectors, and we’ve got sinners, and they're reclining with Jesus and his disciples. “And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “’Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?’ But when he heard it, he said, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.’”
You think you're well and all you need is a little bit of help. Or do you understand that you're sick? And then Jesus says it like this, go and learn what this means. He's saying this to the Pharisees. You guys don't get it. Go and learn what this means. I desire mercy and not sacrifice, for I came not to call the righteous, but… who, everybody? Sinners. So, here's the typical Christian in Southern California these days. Are you righteous? I don't know if I want to say that. Are you a sinner? Oh, no, definitely not. Well. Then what are you? Because Jesus is talking like you're either righteous or you're a sinner. But people are like, I don't want to claim either one of those; those sound kind of extreme, or is there a middle option? Right? And Jesus is saying, no, no, there's not a middle option you have either. There's only one way that you get righteous, and you don't get righteous through self-righteousness. That's what the Pharisees were. The Pharisees are self-righteous. The Pharisees are the people who think, well, if I'll just try to do what is good, and then when I fail, I'll just offer this sacrifice and I'll just say I'm sorry, and everything will be fine. And that's the idea of like, hey, you're not really getting the point of the sacrifices. You're just going through the motions. You're just kind of doing the external religious things. No, you have to see who you are. And everybody starts out as a sinner. We are all born in sin. We have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God. No one was born a Christian. No one's a pretty good person. No one's been going to church their whole life and is like, well, they're kind of just grafted in because they've been here since day one. No, there's a moment where you realize I'm not saved, and that's when you could actually be saved, when you declare yourself a sinner, you are closer to getting saved than the lukewarm person who won't acknowledge that they are a sinner before God and is just trying to be good. The worst place to be is the lukewarm place. Even the cold have the clarity of knowing that they need to be saved, and Jesus could save them, but the lukewarm can't see their need to be saved, and they don't see Jesus, then, as a savior. They’re just, why doesn't he help me more kind of Jesus. And so I wonder, is there anybody here who's been asking for help? And maybe what you need to hear Jesus say is you need more than help. You don't understand your condition. You are “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.”
Go back to Revelation 3 and look at those words with me. And he just uses the word wretched, which is also used in Romans, 7:24, and then he just uses the word pitiable, which is also used in 1 Corinthians 15:19, where it says, “If there's no resurrection, then we should be pitied.” And then he starts talking about the three other things here that where he calls them, that they are. You can see it there. It's in verse 17, that “they are poor, blind and naked.” And so, he goes first to like, hey, why don't you come to me and get gold refined by fire? What is that about this gold refined by fire? Turn with me to 1 Peter, chapter 1. You might know that verse; it might have come to your mind right away when he thinks about the gold refined by fire. See 1 Peter 1:7, where he uses this analogy of gold being tested by fire, where it's refined, where it's purified, where it's found to be precious. He says in 1 Peter, chapter 1, verse 7, in this life, you're going to go through various trials, “so that the tested genuineness of your…” what does he say there, everybody? The “tested genuineness of your” what? Faith. See, your faith will be “more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire, and your faith will be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
Isn't that what we've been studying all summer, the Revelation of Jesus Christ? People who are really not trying to do it themselves but trusting that Jesus is the only one who's able to do it, that he did it, that he's the only one that can save them now, and that he's the only one who can hold them and keep them and bring them safely home. When your faith is really in Jesus and not yourself, you can go through brutal trials, but they refine you and they test you, and you come forth like gold. And so, Jesus is saying, hey, I can give you the gold, the gold refined by fire, but you’ve got to come to, what does he counsel them? “I counsel you to come to me.” See, Are you the kind of person who prays, Lord, just help me with this. And Lord, just make this happen. And Lord, do this. Are you the kind of person who goes to God and prays God today, without Christ, without you working in me, apart from you, I can do what, everybody? Like, do you really know who you are? Or do you think you're okay? Do you think I need nothing? Because Jesus knows who you really are, and he's saying, you guys need to come to me. You guys, it needs to be about me. I'm the one who can do the work in you. I'm the one, but you have got to come to me. So, the response has to be a response of faith. There has to be a transfer of trust. The opposite of trust is trying hard. For some people, the problem is not that they don't care, it's that they think they can do it if they care enough. And then you end up lukewarm.
And so, he says, come to me now. Go back to Revelation chapter 3, because then he wants to talk next about these white garments. And we've tried to make a big deal about this here at our church, because Jesus is saying that they are naked. And he says, I'm giving out white garments, and you can clothe yourself, and no one will see the shame of your nakedness. Now go over back to Revelation 19:8, because I just want to go to the marriage supper, because Jesus is going to be knocking at the door and he's going to talk about having a supper, having a dinner, having a meal with them. And we need to understand that in the context of Scripture, Jesus is not just offering to take people out to In-N-Out Burger after the service here tonight. Alright? Although that could be a good and godly idea for you and your family to do that with Jesus. When Jesus talks about having a meal, let's think this through together. Okay? Let's think biblically. Let's not think about how it sounds to me today, right now, as I hear it. Let's think about, when did Jesus say he was going to have a supper with his disciples again? When did he say that was going to happen? Not going to drink the fruit of the vine again, until I drink it with you in what everybody the kingdom. Okay, someday there's going to be a marriage supper of the Lamb, where Jesus and his people all gather together. And it's in Revelation, chapter 19. It's a time to rejoice and be glad and give God the glory. That's what it says here in Revelation 19:7-8, “the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her” referring to the church, the people that Jesus died for, that he shed his blood for “to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure—for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the…” who everybody? The “saints,” the set apart ones, the holy ones, the church, the people, not the building, not the service, not the institution, the people that Jesus shed his blood for, that he washed them clean, that their robes got washed by the blood of the lamb. See, so the righteousness that I get from Jesus is getting one of these white garments, so I'm no longer naked and exposed and ready to be judged in my sin, but I'm now clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Notice what it says here in verse 8, two very important things that we learned about the white robes. It “was granted her.” So, the white robe is a gift. It is given to you. You cannot earn the white robe. You cannot merit the white robe. It doesn't matter how hard you try. It doesn't matter how much good you attempt to do. You will never get righteous in your own efforts. And some people, they are trying so hard, they are working so tirelessly to be righteous, and you will never get there. It has to be given to you. But if you receive the white robe and you now are righteous in Christ, should you put on that righteousness and walk in newness of life? What is the answer to that? Yes, that's what it's talking about here! It's by grace. It's as a gift. You didn't do it, but God's done a work in you, and you've been created in Christ Jesus for good works. So yes, if you're a brother or sister in Christ, you should be able to say, if anybody asks you any place, any time, you should be able to say, yes, I'm righteous. One hundred percent, I'm righteous. I'm righteous. The only way that anyone has ever been righteous, I have received an alien righteousness that is not my own. It was a free gift given to me, but it cost Jesus his precious blood. Because I have the righteousness of Jesus Christ, and if you have the righteousness of Jesus Christ, you are as righteous as anyone can ever be, because he was perfect. He's the holy and anointed one, the Son of God. He resisted all of Satan's temptations, he obeyed all of God's law. He perfectly fulfilled all righteousness. If one of these precious brother or sisters here, if they had died before they could get baptized in this water here tonight, would they not be righteous because they didn't obey by baptism? No, who got baptized, who got baptized to fulfill all righteousness? See, where does your righteousness come from? If you think, well, I don't want to claim to be righteous, that'll sound like I'm talking about yourself. That's not real righteousness. That's Pharisaical righteousness, that's hypocritical righteousness. That is the kind of righteousness that Jesus wants to vomit out of his mouth. There is only one kind of real righteousness. It is a free gift from people who say, I can't do it. I trust in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no other kind of righteousness. And so, if you're not ready to claim the righteousness that is yours in Christ, does that mean you're still trying to do it yourself? Here you are like the Emperor parading down the street. Look at my righteousness, not even realizing that you are naked and exposed. Jesus is calling a church full of people naked. He's saying to a church full of people, you are blind. Maybe you guys should come to me. You guys think you're rich in Laodicea. You guys think you’ve got nice clothes in Laodicea. You guys think you've got this salve that helps people see, and really is good for their eyes. How about you come to me?
See, they weren't coming to Jesus. They were trying to do it themselves. And where you always end up when you try to do it yourself? Lukewarm. It's where you always end up, because you can't get all the way to hot by your own strength, but you're too good of a person to declare yourself cold. And Jesus is trying to speak to you right now. He's trying to help you know what you don't know. Go back in what he says. He says this very clear statement that I think is very helpful in Revelation 3:19. If everybody could look at chapter 3, verse 19. And if you don't have a Bible, we do have a handout, and I would love for you to open it up, because you could see the Scripture right there on the handout. And if you do have the handout, I would love for everybody to underline, to circle, to bold and to highlight one little verse here in Revelation, chapter 3, verse 19. Jesus says what here, everybody? “Those whom I…” what? Oh, boy. People don't think that this kind of a sermon that we're giving right now is loving. Jesus is saying that. He's saying this to this church in love. Where are you getting your definition of love from? Do you know what love is better than Jesus? Because Jesus thinks that when somebody is in danger and somebody is deceived and somebody is going the wrong way, the loving thing to do is rebuke that person. That's what Jesus thinks. It's what he said right here. Now, people don't think that, and I'm not talking about people out there. I'm talking about people at church these days. You just go up to somebody, you just ask a friendly biblical question, like, hey friend, how are you? What's your testimony? When did Jesus save you? I would love to hear about it. When did you repent? Just try it. Try it. After the service, go up to somebody you don't know. Hey, I'd love to get to know you. When did you repent? Try it. People will send dagger eyes at your face. People will be like, how dare you, sir, bringing that repentance on in here with me. These are church folks. You don't ask questions like that with people you don't know. Oh, I'm sorry. What questions would you like me to ask people I don't know? Because I'd like to start with the most important questions, like, are you one of the Jesus people? Or could I perhaps tell you the good news so that you could become one of the Jesus people? See, people, don't think it's loving to talk about salvation.
Let's get this down for number two: “It is loving to talk about salvation.” “Those whom I love, I” what? “I reprove and I discipline.” I call them out, I rebuke them to their face, and I correct them. And it might be painful that discipline, that correction, but hey, it's so much better than the alternative of finding out the hard way of judgment. So, I'm going to lovingly correct them. I'm going to because I care. I'm going to say the truth, because Jesus, after all, he's the what? The Amen, the faithful and true witness, the one who's going to tell it like it really is. Why? Because he loves you and he doesn't want you living in la la land. He doesn't want you thinking I'm fine when you are not fine. And he wants you to really hear what he has to say. Therefore, this is what Jesus says. Okay? Revelation 3:19, “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline. So be zealous and...” What does Jesus say, everybody? The sentence begins with “Love” and it ends with what? “Repent.” And it's like we were so close, because look at the very next verse. This is the verse that is used in so many Southern California altar calls and invitations to respond. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock,” and what do people say? The door he's knocking on is “the door of your” what everybody? “Heart”. And all you’ve got to do is open the door of your heart and just ask Jesus to come in. No, that's actually a picture that he's going to get to in a minute. What he actually said he wanted the people to do could not have been more clear. And it was right here. I'm saying this because I love you, even though it's coming across like a rebuke, and even though it's corrective, and there's pain in the discipline of what I'm saying. I'm telling you this, that you need to “be zealous and repent.” That's what he says. That's how Jesus said it. He was very clear in what he said, and we are more concerned with how other people are going to feel than bearing the true witness of Jesus Christ, and so we are giving a lot of lukewarm sermons rather than just saying what Jesus said.
I want to encourage you, if you care about somebody, if you're concerned about their soul, if you're not sure where they're going when they die, you'd be out of love for them. You should look them in the eyes. You should get dangerously close to them. And you should say, when did you repent, my friend? I mean, you could just read them this first, this is what Jesus said to a church when they were in the middle, when they were trying to operate in this neutral territory, when they were trying to not be hot, but, oh, don't worry, we're not cold. Well, here's what Jesus said to them, I love you, so I'm going to rebuke you. I'm going to discipline you, and you need to be zealous and repent.
Now, let's get this down for repentance here. Let's talk about what repentance is. I think we've got a slide right here. Repentance is not something you did on a specific day, okay? “Repentance is a God granted turnaround, bearing fruit of real change in your life.” So, when did you repent? I'm not like, well, it was on this day, at this time, in this place, and I walked forward, or I prayed this prayer. That might be when it happened, that could be awesome. But no, no, no, we're talking about a change of mind. We're talking about a turn from living one way to living another way. And yes, I do understand, brothers and sisters in Christ, that repentance for the believer is an ongoing, continual response, but I'm talking about an initial repentance. These people are “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” These people have not yet repented, that's the problem. They think they're fine without repentance. There hasn't been a powerful granting of God in their life to radically turn them around from the way they used to live to a new way in the name of Jesus Christ. And so many people, if you ask them, when did you repent? This is the kind of answer, if the people aren't offended, and don't just stop the conversation right there. You'll hear like, well, I started going to church in 2012. Well, I walked an aisle at this crusade over here. Well, here's something you'll sometimes hear, when did you repent? Well, I got baptized in 2015. Okay, well, I'm not asking, what did you do? That's the whole problem. The whole problem is people doing stuff and thinking they're getting there. No, I'm asking, when did your mindset completely change and you saw that you were in the dark and you needed the light, you saw that you were blind, and there Jesus was the way to see. Oh, when did your mindset get turned around, and you start going in a new direction? You may not even know the specific day or the specific time, but it was that summer. I'll tell you what, I've never been the same person since it was around that time when God really got a hold of me, and he put a new heart within me, and he gave me his spirit because I could say no to things I could never say no to before, and I was saying yes to Jesus in a whole new way, a way that was beyond me, a way that had power. See, when did that happen? See, don't have a story of a day and a time. Have a story of a changed life. Can I get name men from anybody on that? A lot of people can start doubting themselves because they don't know the day and time. I don't see any verse that says you need to know a day and a time. I see a lot of verses that define what repentance is, and they talk about what you turn from, and what you turn to, and how John the Baptist is out there, a voice crying in the wilderness, talking about Jesus and telling people to bear fruit in keeping with what repentance. Paul's out there preaching to anybody who will listen to him that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their what? Deeds. When did God change your life? When did you become a new creation in Christ. Where the old you. He was gone, and behold, the new has come. See, that's what Jesus is saying. And Jesus is not even just saying, like, if you say repent at an evangelistic crusade these days. I mean, and I'm not saying that, somewhere in your speech, you mentioned the word repent. Like, if you really explain it. If you really call people to do it, that will just come across as unloving to our modern American ears, like I don't know about that. But Jesus doesn't even just call him to repent. He says, be what, everybody? Be zealous and repent. Jesus does not think that zealousness is somebody's personality trait. Jesus thinks that zealousness is the only right response to his person. That's what Jesus thinks.
Let's get that down here. Let's put that up on the screen. “Zealousness does not come from your own personality, but the person you are serving.” See, I'm compelled not to preach a lukewarm sermon. Why am I compelled? Because I'm compelled by the love of Christ. Because Christ died on the cross, he really shed his blood to pay for my sin, and Christ rose from the dead; he really has the power to give me a new life. And because of Jesus, I have been shaken up. I have been compelled. I'm not up here trying to be zealous with you, because this is my personality type. Man, stop writing off the zealous Christians like they're the weirdos, and stop realizing that every Christian is expected to be zealous by the Lord Jesus Christ. Are you zealous? The problem is not with the zealous people. Problems with the people in the middle. That's what Jesus is saying. And a lot of people in this room have been finding comfort being in the middle. I'm not one of those zealous types. Let me tell you where the comfort is to be found being one of the zealous people. And if you meet a real zealous person, if you meet somebody and you think that person's on fire, that person's really living for Jesus. That person seems like an example to me. I think they might be legit. I'm not sure. I don't know anybody's heart, but they sure seem like they're living in the truth of Jesus Christ. If you meet that person, they're not going to be like, hey, let me tell you how zealous I am. They're going to be like, oh man, let me just tell you how good Jesus is. Let me tell you what he did for me. Let me tell you how every day, when I wake up and I feel tired and I feel weak, his grace is made perfect in my weakness, because his power can even work in a jar of clay like me. See, real zeal comes from I'm serving the Lord Jesus Christ, and he's the ruler of heaven and earth. It has nothing to do with who you are. It has everything to do with who he is. And Jesus is going to vomit this church out of his mouth because their response is completely unworthy of his person.
It is a shame that you and I have grown up in a day and time where people think Christians are wishy washy people. It is a shame because they will think of Jesus that way. And Jesus, he's the Amen. He's the faithful and true witness. He loved his people all the way to the bloody end; there is nothing wishy washy about Jesus, and there should be nothing lukewarm about his people. Does anybody want to say, amen, okay. I don't know when it happened. I don't know when it became normal to be lukewarm, but I know when it needs to stop. And if it hasn't stopped for you yet, behold, Jesus is standing at the door and knocking. What does that actually mean? Look at it with me here in Revelation 3:20. I want to give you a picture right now. “I'm standing at the door and knocking. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and eat with him, and he with me.” Okay, so I don't know where we got the idea that this was the door of our heart, because Jesus is speaking not just to an individual person. What is Jesus speaking to here? Everybody. The church. Okay, So picture this. The church is in there, and they're singing songs, and they're baptizing people, and they're listening to lukewarm sermons, and Jesus is acting like he's not even there. He's talking to a church of people. And what is this door? Is he really just talking about the door of the church? See, they wouldn't have even thought like that, like a door of a building. They wouldn't have thought of the church as like a building. So, when he says he's at the door, what would have come to the mind of these believers in Laodicea? It doesn't matter what door you and I think it is. What door did Jesus mean? What door did the Laodiceans think when he said, I look at this, I'm knocking at the door. What did they think when he said that?
Go over to James, chapter 5, everybody. Turn to James chapter 5. I don't know if you've ever seen this cross reference in James5:7-9, but we've been going through these letters, and Jesus, what is he coming like? He's coming with a sword out of his mouth. He's coming to search hearts and minds. He's coming like a thief in the night. Last week, we found out he's going to keep us from an hour of trial that's coming on the whole world. He's coming soon. He says all these other letters are like talking about how Jesus is actually coming back. Like, that's the point of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, that he could come at any moment, that he could come right now. Are you ready for him to come? Right now? Are you not ready for him to come right now? Look at what it says in James, chapter 5, verse 7. “Be patient, therefore brothers until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it until it receives the early and the late rains. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged. Behold,” underline it. Circle it. Write it down. The judge is standing at the door. Who's standing at the door, everybody? It's not, hey, I'd like to go to In-N-Out with you after the service. It's hey, I'm coming to judge you. I'm coming in any moment, and when I come I'm knocking on the door, and you don't want to be surprised to find me at your door. You don't want to find out that I have a completely different opinion about you than the one you have about yourself. Do you realize that we've been filling people's ears, like Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart. When the door that Jesus is knocking at is a picture of him being the judge outside the door. And those who are not ready, they will be shocked. They will be horrified to find the judge at their door.
So, you got to get ready for the coming of the Lord. Do you see how the farmer, he's waiting. He's waiting through all the rains. He's waiting for the harvest. He's patient. He's long suffering. He's enduring. He's waiting actively, trusting that Jesus is coming, believing it could happen soon, staying ready all the time. Do you see that with the hard-working farmer, how he's patient for the crops? Establish your hearts. Make sure you're ready. Make sure you're ready because the judge is coming. You don't want to get caught up in a grumbling. You don't want to get caught up and not be ready, because the judge is the one knocking at the door. Jesus used to tell stories that a master would go away, and he would leave his servants behind, and some of the servants would be ready. And some of the servants, what would they start doing? Fighting with each other. Some of the servants, they would think, we've got time, let's get drunk. We've got time. Let's be married. Let's eat and drink. We've got plenty of time. We’ve got all the time in the world. And then, suddenly, what happens? The master comes. And what does he find? Well, he finds some servants who are standing at the door, and what are they doing at the door? They're ready. And then he finds other servants. What? They're drunk, they're fighting.
Go over to Luke, chapter 12. Look at how Jesus himself says it here in Luke 12:36. See, when Jesus is at the door, that means he's coming. That means he's coming to judge. He's bringing his recompense with him, and it could happen at any moment. Any moment, you could find yourself before the Lord, being judged by him. And he will judge you. If you've trusted in his righteousness, he will reward you for your good works that you have done in your white robes. If you have tried to do it yourself, you will find out that all of your well-intentioned efforts will come up utterly short, and you will find that Jesus was not pleased with all the things that you tried to do. That could happen at any moment. And it could be an awesome moment. It could be a horrific moment. That's what it means when he's standing at the door. Luke 12:36, look at how it says it here. Be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes. And what everybody knocks. Doesn't it make sense, based on all we've learned from all these letters, the fact that Revelation 3 is in the book of Revelation. Doesn't it make sense that Jesus knocking on the door would have to do with Jesus coming back? And not Jesus just hanging out in your heart right here, right now, like this is the whole theme. It's near, it's at hand. It could happen at any moment
Yet it has now become normal in a lukewarm church culture, it is normal for people to live like Jesus won't be here today. Some of you have heard all these sermons on Revelation, and still, you have accepted that you've got time, when the whole book is trying to tell you, I'm knocking at the door. Are you ready for me? Because this church in Laodicea was not ready because they were lukewarm, and he's giving them a warning. Look what it says in verse 35 before that verse, it says, “Stay dressed for action.” The only way to be ready is you got to stay ready. Keep your lamps burning. You don't want to be like one of those virgins in the parable that run out of oil for their lamp, and they're not ready when the groom comes. And then it says this in verse 37, “Blessed,” happy “are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, the master, will dress himself for service, and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. What kind of a master says, oh, I'm so glad you're ready for me. Have a seat. I want to come in and dine with you. I want you to eat with me. Let me now come and serve you. There's only one master who serves his servants, and his name is the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the ruler of all creation, and he's the lover of your soul. That's who Jesus is. He's going to invite you to his victory supper when he comes back. That's what this is about.
If you start looking up other scriptures, if you start, what could this door be? Why does Jesus want them to be ready? What kind of supper is Jesus saying he's going to have with these people? Go over with me to Luke 22, where he institutes the Lord's Supper. And as they're having this Passover meal, if you know the rich history of the Passover, and then he institutes to them what we call Communion, and he's referring to his body in the bread, and he's referring to his blood in the wine. But look at the kinds of things that Jesus is saying here in Luke 22:29-30, right? I mean, this is right after he talks about those elements, and maybe you know those from Communion, the bread and the cup, and he's explaining that to them. Look what he goes on to say to them here. Look at verse 28 he says, ‘You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, and I assign to you, as my father assigned to me, a kingdom.” Hey, you guys are my guys. You guys are my disciples. You guys are the ones who have followed me. It's not because you were trying to do it. You followed me. You trusted in me. You came to me. So, look at what he says. “Just as I've received the kingdom, I'm going to give it to you that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” This is the feast Jesus wants you to be at. He wants you to be at his feast in his kingdom, when he gets to be revealed in all of his glory. He is not just the Creator. He is the Lord of all creation, and all things were made by him, and all things are for him. And when we see the father just pleased with his son, giving him all things, you know what Jesus is going to be, he's going to be like, come, my people, you guys. You're my people, the ones I bought with my own blood, the ones who are my own possession, the ones who are zealous for good works. I know who you are, and here's what I want you to do. I want you guys to reign with me. I've been assigned it all, and I want to assign it to you, and you and you, and I want you to do this, and I want you to do that, and I'm going to have a kingdom, and we're going to all reign together.
Now, that's what he's offering. That's what he means when he says, I'll come and dine with you, and you'll come and dine with me. He's inviting you into his feast in his kingdom. And look, go back to Revelation 3. Look how you can see that must be what he's talking about in verse 20 because look where it goes in verse 21 it's back to “the one who conquers, the one who overcomes.” I mean, Jesus said in John 16:3, I have overcome the world. And then in 1 John 5:4-5, it says that everyone who believes in Jesus overcomes the world.
And now for seven different weeks, we've been looking at what it mean to overcome. What does it mean to conquer? And in Revelation 21:7, the one who conquers God will be your father, and you will be his son or daughter. You will have a personal relationship with the Most High God, because your faith has overcome. And if you have that kind of faith that doesn't just try hard, but actually trust in the righteousness of Jesus, if you don't just think good thoughts about Jesus, or if you are zealous and repent, see, this is what really gets under my skin. This is what really bothers me, asking Jesus into your heart. We've made it a passive response. Sit back, relax and let Jesus do something to you. When Jesus is calling for action, Jesus is calling for a response. He's saying, the whole problem is you're sitting back. The whole problem is you think you're fine. The whole problem is you say, I need nothing. No, you need rebuke. You need discipline. And because I love you, I'm going to tell you, be zealous and repent. Jesus is calling for a kingdom, not a bunch of passive people saying, Jesus, come and do something for me. Jesus is saying, I have done it for you, and I want you to come and share in it with me. Look what it says in verse 21 “To the one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my father on his throne.” Do you believe that the Father has given all authority to the son? Well, Jesus is saying, I'm going to give some of that authority to you, and you're going to reign with me. That's what Jesus is saying to some of the people here in this room.
So, Jesus knows you're living in a land of lukewarm Christianity. Jesus knows that mediocre is normal. Jesus sees it all, and it sickens Jesus. But some of you, the way that you are zealous, the way that you repented, the way that you don't conform to the norm, but you are compelled by Christ. Jesus wants you to know, to the one who overcomes, you're going to sit on my throne, and it's not going to seem awkward for you to be there, because you're one of my people. You're one of my righteous ones, you're one of the saints in whom is all my delight. And you actually walk in a way that is worthy of me and I love that about you. Yes, some of you, you're going to sit on my throne, just as I sit on my father's throne, and just as my Father is pleased with me, I will be pleased with you. “Well done, good and faithful…” what? “Servant”. Because when I opened the door. Guess what? You were ready, waiting. Do you realize how much zeal it takes to be ready all the time? Do you realize you can't have something else going on, some sin that you keep going back to? You have to have really repented if you're going to be all in to follow Jesus. I don't say any of this just to rebuke you, I say this to love you that there are people here tonight, you are lukewarm, and you came in here thinking you need nothing, and Jesus has now said to you something different. What are you going to do about it?
I want you to pay careful attention to what he says in Revelation 3:20. Go back. One more detail I want you to see. It says here in verse 20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone…” what does he say right there? If anyone, what? “Hears my voice.” It is so important that you are getting your information straight from Jesus. You need to get your truth from the source of truth. You need to get your witness from the faithful and true witness.
Okay, let me just share with you a deep concern that I have as a guy who's been a pastor at this church for ten years, I am very concerned for the amount of times at this church, in our fellowship groups, after our services, where I hear someone misquote Jesus Christ. I hear someone say something that sounds like Jesus, something Jesus says, but it was actually not what Jesus said. And people are doing that on a massive level. You need to make sure that you are hearing what Jesus actually says. Moses prophesied that a prophet would come and that everyone who listened to him would be saved, but those who didn't listen to the Prophet, to the one who would speak for God, the one who would be the Word of God. If you didn't listen to the Prophet, God would require it of you. When Jesus went up on the mountain of transfiguration, and he was glorified in the presence of Peter, James, and John, and they were overwhelmed, and they were blown away. And a voice on a mountain in Israel, a voice from heaven said, “This is my son with whom I am well pleased.” Then, what did God tell us to do about Jesus? What? Listen to him? Do you hang on the words of Jesus like they're the words of eternal life? Do you make sure that you're getting it straight from the source? Because Jesus didn't tell you to ask him into your heart. Jesus didn't tell you to walk an aisle or pray a prayer or repeat after me. Jesus said, the reason I'm rebuking you is that because I love you. The reason I discipline you is because I care about you, and you need to be zealous and repent, and you need to do it now, because I'm standing at the door and I'm about to knock, that's what Jesus actually said.
And he said that there will be two responses to this sermon, and you can break it down very clearly. There will be those who listen to Jesus and there will be those who don't. There will be those who leave here and they pay closer attention, and they hang on every word, and they go back and be like, have I thought about this wrong? I want to see what Jesus says. And then there will be those who maybe will feel something during the sermon, but they will go and continue to live the same way. Jesus says, Behold, I stand at the door and knock if anyone hears my voice, that's where faith is going to come from, hearing the Word of Christ. The people who are going to be ready when he comes knocking are those who listen to what Jesus says in passages like this. “He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” So, to the one who conquers, we leave you with this encouraging thought: You will share in the kingdom of Jesus. And some of the things Jesus says here, like some of the things Jesus has promised, Jesus has promised you authority. Jesus has promised you to reign with him. Jesus has promised you a place in the New Jerusalem. Jesus has said that even some of you are worthy, and that when he gets revealed, there will be praise and honor and glory, not just at the person of Jesus, but there will be praise and honor and glory at the revealed faith of the people of Jesus. And some people, they might think, oh no, I'm too humble for all of that. Well, Jesus doesn't say that about you. Jesus says that you're going to dwell with him in his Kingdom, and you're going to eat with Jesus, and he's going to eat with you, and he's going to take of all the authority and rule that he has, and he's going to share it with you. This is what he wants his people to know. Let me pray for you right now.
Father in heaven, I come before you, and I just pray that the words of Jesus could be heard for what he really said here to this church. And Father, you know, we've been praying about this. We've been praying about this for weeks. We've been praying for this moment right now. And Father, you know who's hot, you know who's cold, and you know who's lukewarm? And you know that, really, lukewarm is just they are cold, but they think they're hot. It's not a real place. It's just something we've made up in our minds. It's just self-deception, Father, I pray that the lukewarm would no longer be blind, but that you would open their eyes. I pray that the lukewarm would no longer be naked, but that you would clothe them in white robes. I pray that the lukewarm would no longer be poor in the poverty of their spirit and the bankruptcy of their soul, but that they would be rich in Jesus Christ. And I pray that the lukewarm would stop saying, I need nothing, but they would say, I'm lukewarm and I need to be saved. Father, I pray for those who are realizing that about themselves right now, that they would not leave here and just go think about it, that they would not leave here and wait for something to happen, that they would not leave here and argue with the sermon in their head. I pray for those who are feeling disciplined, and I pray for those who are feeling rebuked, that they would know they are loved and that they would be zealous and repent, that they would respond to Jesus right now in a way that is actually worthy of his name. Father, we are so thankful for Jesus. We're so thankful that Jesus, when he felt the weight of our sin, when he knew he was going to have to drink that cup of wrath, when he was crying out to you in the garden of Gethsemane, and he said, “Father, if it's possible, let this cup pass from me,” because he knew the cost, the pain, what it was going to be to bear the weight of our sin, to take our judgment, to die in our place, to be judged for us. Father, I thank you that Jesus was not lukewarm. I thank you that Jesus was not cold. I thank you that Jesus, he drank it and he drank it all, that he paid for our sin in full, that he took all of your wrath. An atoning sacrifice. I thank you that Jesus went all the way for us, and I pray that we would have a response that is worthy of what Jesus has done, that is worthy of his name as Savior. We don't just need a little bit of help to be good people. We need Jesus to save us from our sins. So, Father, please make us a zealous people. Let that be normal around here. Let us be hot, ready to boil. Let us be the people who have repented. And we're not turning back because we know what Jesus did for us, and we're all in for him. We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen. Amen.
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