Revelation 3:148-22 -- The LUKEWARM Church (Part 2)

"I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore 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 dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’”
Revelation 3:18-22

Pastor Danny Forshee.  Great Hills Baptist Church.  July 27, 2014:

The Lukewarm Church, Part 2 - Dr. Danny Forshee - July 27, 2014 from Great Hills Baptist Church on Vimeo.

Outline:

1. Exhortation (vv. 18-19)
   
   A. Jesus' actions
        i. He Counsels
             - Purchase genuine Gold (comes through refinement/difficulty)
        ii. He Loves
        iii. He Rebukes
        iv. He Chastens
   
   B. The Church's Actions
        i. Be Zealous
        ii. Repent
2. Invitation (v. 20)
3. Exhaltation (v. 21)

Highlights:

• The Lord is knocking on the door of His own Church, asking to be let in.

• Sometimes, we just have to go through the fire.

• Life is too short for Jesus not to be in His Church.

• There's nothing wrong with wealth; the problem comes when we allow wealth to usurp the place of God in our lives.

• "The Church at Laodecia...had removed themselves from difficulty."
• When you're serving the Lord, you WILL have difficulty.

• There was a missionary couple in Chad during a SEVERE drought.  After all the islamic and pagan prayers had failed, the couple went around to the farmers and asked if they could pray in Jesus' name.  Only three said yes, and "only [those] three received water and they produced a miraculous crop."

• The Insanity of Obedience: Everything God did in the Bible, He's still doing today.
• The Church in America got from where it was in the 1950's and 60's to where it is today though a series of incremental compromises.

• The Devil is patient....

• If there is a void, eventually it's going to be filled by either God or the Devil.