The Dangers of Being Lukewarm

​As time continues, culture has evolved into less of God’s standard of living and more of the desires of the flesh.  This same culture has found its way into the modern ideology of what a church should look like (James 4:4).  When the flesh is obeyed, it creates a lukewarm Christianity if allowed to remain.  Everyone contends with sin or their flesh, but when flesh wins a battle, repentance should quickly follow, bringing forgiveness and putting a person back into right standing with God.  To truly understand what lukewarm means, here is the definition.  Lukewarm is defined as tepid; lacking in passion, force, or zeal; and marked by an absence of enthusiasm or conviction.  Revelation 3:14 says, “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth” (KJV).  Jesus Christ is speaking to those who declare they are Christians, but they have lost their passion and zeal for Him and their conviction of what is right according to God’s Word.  The word spue, now known as spew, is defined as to vomit; to eject violently; and to disgorge the stomach contents.  Those who have this type of Christianity make Jesus want to vomit them out of His body.  This implies He is rejecting them from being part of His body.  Jesus Christ and God the Father do not accept lukewarm believers.  If they refuse such behavior or level of Christianity, why do some people today think this is acceptable?  The answer is a compromised standard of Christianity.  Whether it starts with a pastor who has taught this standard to a congregation, parents teaching it to their kids, or just a person who is cooling off in their relationship with God, the compromise to please the flesh and not God has taken place.  Sadly, many will not know the damage of a lukewarm Christianity until they stand before Jesus Christ and He declares their departure from His presence for all eternity.  Not only does this create an eternal separation for eternity from God, but it also makes life presently harder due to not pleasing God.  Lukewarm is also displayed by the Apostle Paul as he warns Timothy of those who have a form of godliness but deny His power in their life (2 Timothy 3:5).  Having a form of godliness means having an appearance, outward semblance, formula, fashion, but not genuine.  Their attempts to look like a person of God are not genuine, so the motive is to gain others or be part of a group that is more religious than concerned about having a relationship with God (James 1:22).  Denying God’s power means they contradict, reject, refuse, forsake, and renounce God’s ability to act in their life.  When a Christian denies the God they declare they love and serve the ability to act in their life, they are not a true Christian (1 John 2:6).  To be Christian is to be Christ-like.  Jesus Christ only did what He saw His Father do (John 5:19; John 14:10).  Jesus only said what He heard His Father say (John 12:49).  The answer to being lukewarm is to examine oneself and see if they are really in the faith and aligning with the Word of God (2 Corinthians 13:5), to not love the world or the things of the world (1 John 2:15-16), and to be a living sacrifice unto God and be transformed by renewing one’s mind with the Word of God (Romans 12:1-2).  May fewer people be lukewarm and more be hot for God.  For more information about Abundant Grace Church, visit agcsparta.org.