A Daily Walk

John Randall: Today on a daily walk, the chastening of God. God chastens those whom he loves. God chastens those who are his. If you say, well, I'm doing my thing. I don't feel any chastening. I don't feel any discipline. I don't I haven't had any kind of I don't know what you're talking about. I don't feel any correction for what I'm doing. I'm fine. You know, I'm living with this girl or I'm pursuing this guy, and we're having a great time. I'm doing this or I'm doing that, and I I don't see any chastening. Perhaps you're not a child of God. Because he chastens his kids.

And here it says that if you're not being chastened, then you're illegitimate, or you're not a son. I would question. I would ask. I would repent.

When you go out to eat, the temperature of your food and drink matters. If the server hands you cold fries or lukewarm coke, you're probably going to send it back, right? Today on a daily walk, Pastor John Randall continues his look at the Lord's letter to the Laodiceans in Revelation 3, verses 14 through 22. The Lord wanted His churches to be on fire for the gospel. But the Laodiceans were lukewarm. That was a problem.

Here's Pastor John showing us how this church got off track.

John Randall: You know, it's probably one of the most difficult people to win to Christ is a lukewarm, and let me say, I believe they need to be won to Christ. Jesus, when you look at his ministry, some of the most difficult people he had to deal with were the professional religionists. I mean, prostitutes, tax collectors were getting saved while the professional religionists were lost.

Jesus told them, you're gonna die in your sins. And yet, these others were coming to faith in Christ because they realized they needed him. Now, there are those that would debate what it means to be lukewarm. They'll suggest that hot represents the true believer and cold represents the non-believer, and lukewarm represents the carnal believer.

I think it's debatable based upon the force of Jesus's words seemed to indicate otherwise. But here's what I know for sure on this debate. You don't want to be lukewarm where it says Jesus is going to vomit you out of his mouth. That you know for sure. This isn't a good place. So you can debate it all you want, but here's what you know for a fact, you don't want to be lukewarm. Understand in this letter Jesus doesn't condemn the people in Laodicea for being immoral, like he does in some of the other letters. It doesn't appear that they had drifted morally.

They probably were good people. They were they were moral quality, but they were lukewarm spiritually. They're not people who would necessarily be characterized by blatantly being oppressive to Christianity or or they may even respect your beliefs and and they're people of, you know, conviction. That's great, you feel that way. I hey, that's awesome. I'm glad you feel that. I don't feel that way, but I'm glad you do and I respect that.

But in their estimation, apart from biblical truth, they had determined to live in the lukewarm. And it not only affected them, but it also affected the onlooking world. It was Vance Havner that said this, quote, "The cause of Christ maybe has been hurt more by Sunday morning benchwarmers who pretend to love Christ, who call him Lord, but do not do his commands than by all the publicans and sinners."

You see, the church in Laodicea, they were indifferent. They assumed that they're fine, and they really weren't. Notice, as we proceed in this passage, they were not only guilty of indifference, but also willfully ignorant of their spiritual condition, blinded, really. For Jesus says here in verse 17, "Because you say, I am rich, I've become wealthy. Have need of nothing. And you don't know that you're wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked." The Bible says, "Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks." And here, the church was speaking saying, listen, "I'm rich." Jesus said, "You say, we're rich, we're wealthy, we have need of nothing. We're in good shape."

The Great Physician shows up and says something completely different. This is what they thought they were, but this is what Jesus knew them to be. You remember that old fable when you were a child, The Emperor's New Clothing? Remember that story? There was this guy that showed up, this tailor. He decided to give the emperor a new garment. But it wasn't a garment at all. In fact, he was naked. And so he shows his men. Look at what I'm wearing. Look at my new outfit. And everybody said, oh, that is marvelous. It looks so great, Emperor. You look amazing in that. He's like, look at that. And the tailor's like, it's perfect. And he's going through the kingdom. And then finally, a child sees him. And he says, he's naked. Kids are so honest, aren't they?

Suddenly, the emperor realizes he thought he was something, but really, he wasn't all that he thought he was. So this church looks at itself and says, "Rich." They look again, they say, "Wealthy." They look again, they say, "Need of nothing." They were the opposite of being poor in spirit. Their prosperity had blinded their eyes to reality. They were not dependent upon God for his provision. They did not acknowledge God for his blessing. They thought they were one way, but Jesus said it was entirely different. And you know there are modern-day churches like Laodicea even today.

They have a name. They have great organization, great programs perhaps. And I'm not here to point figures at anybody. I just know I don't want to be a part of that kind of church. Nor pastor a church like that. But when Jesus looked, he looked at their spiritual condition and he said, "Wretched." He looked again, he said, "Miserable." He looked a third time and said, "Poor." He looked again and said, "Blind." A final time, he looks and says, "Naked." What a difference. What a contrast. Self-deceived, unaware.

But I want you to see something and understand something from this letter. As bad as it was in Laodicea, Jesus loves the lukewarm person. As much as he loves the person who is cold and far from him, as much as he loves the person who is drawing near to him and walking with him. His heart breaks for the indifferent soul, who thinks they are well, but they are dying spiritually. If he did not love this church, he would have never written a letter to them. And it was because of his love that he spoke to them the truth in love.

Jesus gives this church counsel, and there is, as I will point out, a touch of irony in the counsel that he gives. For he says to them, "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." The Laodiceans, first of all, had to recognize their need. Here they were saying, "We're wealthy." Jesus said, "You need to come to me if you want real spiritual riches."

They said, "We're clothed in black garments of expensive wool." Jesus said, "You need to come to me if you want robes of righteousness that are white and clean." Oh, they had money. They had treasure. But it was only material that would not last. It was not eternal. You remember when the rich young ruler came to Jesus with great desire, and he said, "What good work can I do that I might inherit eternal life?" And you remember Jesus responded. He said, "Go and sell all that you have, and then come follow me, and you'll have riches in heaven." It wasn't wrong that this young man had riches. It was wrong that the riches had him. They controlled him. They were his God.

It says that after Jesus said this to him, he went away sorrowful because he had great wealth. And many have called it the great refusal. But Jesus loved that man. But he walked away. In Isaiah 55, the Lord gives an exhortation. And he says, "Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. You who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, buy wine and milk, without money and without price. Why?" he says, "Do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what doesn't satisfy? Listen carefully to me and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance." The invitation given to receive from the Lord what you could never purchase in and of yourself. The only way to receive these things is to come to Christ.

Jesus not only promises them wealth in a spiritual sense, spiritual riches for the exchange of the material things that were dragging them to the bottom, but he also promises to give them garments of white. Again, the irony of this is that Laodicea had this black wool that was sold and bought and exported, making them extremely wealthy. But Jesus said, "I want to give you something in exchange for that garment. I want to give you a white garment." He's not speaking about physical items here, so much as he's referring to their spiritual counterpart. "You give me this this black robe as it were of your own filthy sin. And what I'll give you is a robe of my righteousness. That robe that you made with your own self-righteousness, your own self-dependence, your own church attendance, your own spirituality, whatever it looks like. From heaven's perspective, it's dirty, it's filthy." But Jesus said, "I've got something for you. You come to me, and I'll take all of that mess, all of that garbage, all of that darkness. And I'll exchange it for light. I'll clothe you."

In contrast, we see these redemptive garments being placed upon us. Righteous deeds that accompany the genuine, the righteous work of Christ now imputed to me, so that when the Father looks at me, he sees me as spotless because I'm clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Friend, have you made that exchange? Are you still trying to sew up the righteous rags that you have? I mean, there's really, you can't do anything with it. You remember what happened to Adam and Eve in the garden? It says that after they had sinned, they they fled and they hid themselves. And they recognized, "We are unclothed." And so what did they do? They attempted to sew for themselves garments of fig leaves, very irritating, very painful to wear those, I mean, it's it's not really a proper covering, to say the least.

But then it says after they, the Lord confronted them and and then it says that the Lord gave them tunics of skin. Something died in the garden so that they could be covered. Perhaps lambskin. We don't know for sure, but the Lord made a covering for them. There had to be an exchange. And friend, there has to be an exchange. Our filthy garments of our own righteousness for the pure, spotless righteousness of the Lamb of God, applied to us. It's available. Nothing I could do to purchase it. It'd be like you buying a garment that was expensive and going out and wrecking it, and then bringing it back to the store and saying, I don't I don't I can't wear this. And then them giving you something brand new.

But that's a poor illustration really in comparison. And then Jesus says, ironically, that they can come and anoint their eyes with eye salve that they might see. Again, in this city, they made eye salve. This was an export. And Jesus said, "You need to come to me and I'll provide something. I'm going to open your eyes spiritually." They were blinded to their condition. "Were this way?" Jesus said, "Actually, you don't see what you really are, but I'm going to open your eyes so that you can see."

The road to repentance and right standing with God begins with the recognition of need, and the second thing is the receiving of this rebuke. Perhaps those on the receiving end of this letter would be discouraged or they felt like this is a little harsh, the word vomit, really, Jesus? You're going to throw up because of us? And here the Lord reveals his mercy and his heart for the readers in Laodicea and he says in verse 19, "As many as I love, I chasten." Did you know that the Lord loves us enough that he will correct us if we go astray? If you're really a child of God, he'll chasten you. That's what the word means, correction.

It was David who was a shepherd, and he said concerning the Lord, that the rod and the staff of the Lord were actually a comfort to him. The rod and the staff were instruments that were used by the shepherd to be used on the sheep when they would go astray. If they went astray, they'd use the rod and kind of hit him on the hind legs, whoop, ring him right back in line. The staff, if they got away, it's that hook that would grab him by the neck and yank him back on before they would wander off and be devoured by some predator. The Lord said, I'm David said, this is it's a comfort to me that you would actually correct me and you would keep me in line. That's what the good shepherd does. The good shepherd, when a sheep goes astray, he doesn't say, well, you know what, it's cool. I still got 99, they'll reproduce, we'll get it back up to 100 at some point.

No, no, no. He leaves the 99, he goes, and he goes after the one. It's valuable to him, and he brings it back. Listen to what the Bible says in the book of Hebrews concerning the chastening of the Lord. His correction. It says, "My son, don't despise the chastening of the Lord. Don't be discouraged when you're rebuked by him. For whom the Lord loves, he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives. Now if you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons, for what son is there whom a father doesn't chasten? But if you're without chastening or discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you're illegitimate and not sons. Furthermore, we've had human fathers correct us and we paid them respect, shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but he for our prophet that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful. Nevertheless, afterward it yields a peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."

God chastens those whom he loves. God chastens those who are his. If you say, well, I'm, I'm doing my thing. I don't I don't feel any chastening. I don't feel any discipline. I don't I haven't had any kind of I don't know what you're talking about. I don't feel any correction for what I'm doing. I'm fine. You know, I'm living with this girl or I'm pursuing this guy, and we're having a great time. I'm doing this or I'm doing that, and I I don't see any chastening. Perhaps you're not a child of God. Because he chastens his kids. And here it says that if you're not being chastened, then you're illegitimate, or you're not a son. I would question. I would ask. I would repent. But he chastens.

And some of you, maybe today, you're being chastened. And you think, why is this happening? Why is this going on in my life? Oh, I don't know, maybe because you're running in the opposite direction of God, Jonah, and he wants to bring you back. So here comes the whale. Here comes a large fish going to vomit you up on the shore. I mean, he loves you that much, that he wants to bring you back. I'm so glad that the Lord is relentless in his pursuit of us. I remember hearing a testimony of a one man, he was sharing about all the Lord had done in his life and how the Lord saved him and this is what God did and this is what God did. This is how God found me. And this he's just basically giving all the glory to the Lord for his testimony. And one man came up to him afterwards and he said, hey, listen, you keep talking about the Lord and what he's done in testimony, what what about you? Why don't you talk a little bit about what you did? He said, oh, I'm sorry. Here's what I was doing. I ran as fast and as far away from God as I could, and he came and ran me down and brought me back. What can you say? It's all the Lord.

He then tells them to be zealous to repent. The word zealous, it means to be on fire. And there is a change actually here in the tense of the language that's used, meaning stop this action, turn, and go in the opposite direction. "Repent of your condition, and watch as the Lord begins to work." This is an exhortation. Up to this point, they were indifferent, they were ignorant, and and thus they needed to have some radical changes. And if you are living today in the lukewarm, there has to be radical change.

And the great news is, folks, the Holy Spirit can bring about that change. You can't just sit here today and determine, oh, I'm not going to be lukewarm anymore. I'm changing. I'm I'm that's it. We're no more. You Good luck. It won't happen. You have to depend upon the Holy Spirit and say, "God, I need you to help me out of this. I don't want to live lukewarm anymore. I don't want to be self-deceived. I don't want to say one thing on Sunday and live Monday through Saturday like I don't even know you and nobody knows I'm a Christian, and I just I'm just like the rest of the world." That's lukewarm, friend. God doesn't want you to live there. And if you don't want to live there, allow the Holy Spirit to step in and make the change that only he can make.

Jesus gives an invitation to this church. Here it is in verse 20. Look at it carefully. "Behold," he says, "I stand at the door and I knock. And if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I'll come into him and dine with him, and he with me." This is an amazing picture here. Jesus is outside of the church, knocking. Locked out. "Hey, head of the church out here. Died for it, purchased it. You guys want to let me in or am I going to stay out here?" This is crazy, this picture. He's knocking and he has to ask to come into his church. But I think sometimes he knocks at people's hearts.

Listen, someone said that the the the door of your heart only has a handle on the inside. You you've got to open it. Jesus isn't going to say, all right, listen, I'm going to huff and puff and blow your house down. No, that's a nursery rhyme. He said, "I'm knocking." Like a gentleman, saying, "Open the door. And if you will open it," not saying you have to, but "if you will, I I'll I'll come in." Some people, they lock the door from the inside. Lock it with bitterness, unforgiveness, sin, all kinds of things. There's no way you're coming in here, Jesus. But the moment that you begin, and some of you got a lot of locks, and you begin to open the door, Jesus comes in.

You allow him to make your heart his home. And he comes in, and he begins to completely renovate, makes all things new. Oh, some of you know what I'm talking about. When Jesus came into your life, and took out all the garbage, all the junk, just threw it out. Cleanse the house, man, from the inside out. Made his home there, his throne in my heart, in my life, changing me. Have you opened the door? Have you let him in? Do you hear him knocking? You know the Lord The Lord knocks. And how does he knock? How does he speak? He speaks through his word. He he speaks through other people. Sends people to knock. Hey. God's people trying to get your attention, representing him. Speaks through sermons, perhaps like today. Speaks through the Holy Spirit, seeking to draw you. Can you hear it? Will you open the door?

He then gives a promise of reward to this church. Of all of the churches. He still says to them, "To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with me on my throne. And I as I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne." Jesus promises to the overcomer at Laodicea a beautiful promise. "I will let you sit down with me on my throne." To me that is, I mean, I can understand if you gave that promise to Philadelphia because they were a faithful church. He had nothing bad to say about them. But this this fellowship, this is what you're going to say to them? You're going to give them that privilege? How gracious is God?

The worst of the seven churches, yet the most imminent of all the promises are made to it, showing even that the worst can repent and finally conquer and attain the highest state of glory, sharing it with Christ for eternity. Listen, friends, seven weeks and seven churches. And the Lord says, if you can hear what the Spirit of God says, listen, respond to it. Think of all of the promises that Jesus made to the seven churches that we looked at. To the overcomer, he promised the privilege of eating from the tree of life in chapter 2 verse 7. The crown of life in chapter 2 verse 10. Protection from the second death. Chapter 2 verse 11. The hidden manna 2 verse 17. A white stone with a new name written on it. Authority to rule the nations, the bright and morning star, white garments symbolizing purity and holiness. The honor of having Christ confess our names before God the Father in heaven and the holy angels. To be made a pillar in the temple of God, to have the name of God and the name of the city of God and the name of Christ written upon us. And then also to sit with him near his throne and have fellowship with him.

How much better It doesn't get any better than that, friend. There is nothing in this world that could ever compare to the blessings that have been revealed that are made available to the child of God. What are you living for? May God help us to live for these things. These things are eternal. These things are real. These things are lasting. Everlasting.

John Randall: Well, we thank you for taking part in today's study in Revelation from Pastor John Randall here on a daily walk. As we close, we want to remind you that you can hear our programs online at adailywalk.org or oneplace.com. It's also available on most podcast platforms. We sure love to connect with you, and we appreciate your prayers. Here's our email address where you can send your comments and your prayer requests: adailywalk@gmail.com. That's adailywalk@gmail.com. Maybe you're looking for a devotional to go through here in 2026. We've picked out a good one from Oswald Chambers called My Utmost for His Highest. This is the updated language gift edition, offering you a wonderful daily devotional for each day of the year. It's available through our e-store for the cost of $18. Head over to adailywalk.org or call us at 877-242-0828. Again, that's 877-242-0828. Thank you for remembering us in your giving to the Lord. Each gift that comes in is responsibly used to help people all over the world have access to God's Word. Donations can be made at adailywalk.org. And speaking of devotionals, have you checked out the daily walk devotional? These short videos are released each day at adailywalk.org and are both edifying and encouraging. We're already looking forward to our next time together in Revelation. It's going to be a great time in the Word. This has been a daily walk with John Randall, where you never have to walk alone. This program is made possible through your generosity and brought to you by Calvary South OC.