EV 3:14-22{Without question the state of the assembly at Laodicea was worse than that of any other of these seven churches. It is the only one to which the Lord says: " I will spue thee out of my mouth." But the very darkness of the moral state of Laodicea becomes, as it were, a background to set forth, the gentle tenderness of the Lord Jesus; its darkness and weakness give occasion to Him to show the extent of His faithfulness and tender love.
There is` peculiar (one in his titles as He presents Himself to this church. "The Amen"- the verify-and "the faithful and true witness." There is a double bearing in the title under which Christ is here set forth. If it apply to a bad state, each title is a most awful word; for, as surely as the judgment is pronounced by Him-the "verily"-so surely will it be executed. But, on the other hand, He-the " yea and Amen"— will have a true testimony, and very comforting is this His name to those willing to hear.
Among Christians here present I suppose there is not one who has not felt inclined to take this word out of the Lord's mouth, and to say of himself: I am " wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked." Directly the Spirit of God gives us a sense of the failure of all that is around us, and we find ourselves in connection with it, so soon is there a humbling of ourselves, confusion of face, and the casting of ourselves on His mercy.
Did the Lord ever say to any poor soul coming thus to Him: If you can show any service done to me-if you can show me a life well spent?—No! On the contrary, if you were to say: " I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing," it is then the Lord would come and cut you down. Do not speak for yourself; let Christ speak for you. I will not give myself a character. When Job would maintain a character for himself, God showed him He could pull it all down; but when he was in dust and ashes before God, abhorring himself, then. God could stand up for His servant. Can I say: I will put in a good claim for the glory? No; I will let Christ speak for me; none other would speak so well. How does He speak of His disciples?—Ye are they which have continued with me in my temptations." And this of Peter, who had said: " Spare thyself." I would rather have Christ as my special pleader before God, than say anything for myself He will me a Character when I could not give one for myself.
`'What exquisite love comes out in the conduct of Christ! " Behold, I stand at the door and knock." It was a church which had clean for, gotten -him. He knew their hearts were not so familiar with Him as to be at 'ease in His pre-!knee. They were like Lot-with his heart crammed full of the evil of the world. He wants to come in and make a clean riddance of everything; He wants to come in and be there alone; He wants to come in and so dwell there that there shall be no one there but Christ. He looks at you to serif you are carrying about the lumber of the world; He looks to see how much you have of Himself in your heart. He had to counsel them to buy clothing. Hearts are uncommonly naked in God's presence, unless Christ be their covering.
What patient graciousness there is in the ways of the Lord Jesus, whether in the 'conversion of a sinner, or in His dealings with the poor way-worn saint. When a poor Christian gets down into the world, Christ may let him go into captivity until the last-the eleventh-hour; but He says even then: I must be in your heart, and you in mine; we must yet sup together. I stand and knock. You do not hear; your hearing is very bad. I want to come in; it. is just supper-time-the last hour before you go to
The-door has been long fast shut against Him, but still, as if it were His own home, He will sit to sup there.
Men would say: Oh, the joy given at this hour cannot be genuine, after such a life of ups and downs!-But they forget what God is. He says: How simple you have been to be going on all this time without me; here I am at the end of it.
I do not see why I am not to admire Christ here. I admire a friend who watches me, and comes in to help me in difficulty. And here is Christ knocking at my divided heart till the last hour, saying: Open! Open! I must come in!-I must admire Him. There is something beautiful in His conduct. His patience, His pertinacity, is to be admired. His determination to come in to the heart which would shut him out, and sup there. I cannot see him so without loving Him.
Now turn to the promise. " To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne." If you read the addresses to the seven churches you will see that, when the moral state is good, the promise is high up; but, when the moral state is bad, the promise is low. Thus to Ephesus is given " the paradise of God." A man out of communion does not know anything of the paradise of God; but talk to a man of the world of a " throne," and he will understand that at once. Thus the promise hear is palpably addressed to sense. But everything which brings with it conformity to Christ is sweet; we do love anything that makes us a little like Him, because we love Him. Thus he says here: I am not going to give you it promise I have not proved myself. I have been in conflict, and I am now seated on a throne. You shall have the same. I conquered; a throne was prepared for me. You are in conflict; a throne shall be prepared for you. What a heart of love He has! He says: Thou poor Laodicean, listening to my word, see the place I have prepared for thee. True, you are in conflict now, but what will be the end?. A throne prepared for me, and you shall.sit on it.
You who have " an ear to hear," think of His joy to welcome you-to see you on His throne! And He would not tell how all the labor was His—the sitting down ours! looks He looks into 'your heart, and well He knows the sorrows of the wilderness; it is His love which has brought you there; He knows all the perils of it. But His victory is ours. He puts life into you, and He is responsible for bringing it forth in that day. He says: " Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day." He begins, and He ends.
This conflict is an uncommonly happy thing. Talk not to the saint, who knows anything of what Christ's conflict here was, of the dread of conflict. Set your sorrows, against Christ's set your conflict against Christ's. He had none to solace; He was forsaken of God at the last hour.-It is a conflict for us, and no mistake; but, if I know conflict, if I know weakness, if I know powerlessness, I fight under Him. If I have nothing to say for myself, He is more than conqueror for me.
The thought of being rejected by the world is a relief. Are you saying: Foolish one that I have been! I have tried to be happy in the world, but I cannot; the world will not know me?-Happier ground to take that of saying: I love Him. He was murdered here, so I cannot sit down here. He could not find a rest here, so ' I cannot -I believe you might thus write upon k every sorrow and trial you go through: Christ is here.-Christ overcame all that was against Him. What joy and alacrity knowing this gives us! Thou, Lord, leadest us on in triumph! We have need of watchfulness. We must watch against-must keep apart from-the world; but He is there in grace for every time of need, and I wish to be in this world where my blessed Lord was. And, meanwhile, what can give bounding of heart, and brightness of face? Getting to Christ in heaven and finding He has, there a heart overflowing with affections for me.
-I-do not doubt there is a certain connection between the name of the church and its state when- addressed. Laodicea means "judgments of the people." Now the scriptural view of the church is an absolute monarchy-no mind or authority save one. Any liberty of the flesh is not of God but often the doctrine of the guidance of the Spirit is taken much as though it were " the voice of the people, the voice of God."
When the Spirit of God takes up any truth, it always does so in connection with the Lord Jesus Christ, so that living affections are brought into exercise. The way the enemy, often catches us is by getting us to look at truth as a mine in which we may go and dig for ourselves apart from the person of Christ.
The titles of the Lord in this Scripture are very solemn. He is " the faithful and true witness "-the witness not only in heaven, but more especially in the world. He has made clear the whole mind of God. If he see the oil oozing, out of the bowl, and the wick going out, has he nothing to say? If He find in Laodicea what is contrary, to Himself He must come in in censure. Perhaps many can hardly understand in the present day such words as: " Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." I do not think the force of it can be felt unless the difference be seen between God's dealing with a soul to bring it to Christ, and His dealing with it afterward in moral judgment to break up the flesh, and to perfect the inner man so that the believer may be able to stand without anything to cover over at the judgment seat of Christ.
There is such a thing as the importance of being a witness for Christ. You are left down here for that purpose-to give a certain witness. At a trial a witness must not be a bad subject of course, but he is not called because he is a good one, but that he may do a certain work. There is no thought more solemn in connection with our standing as saved souls waiting for the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ than this: that He can say of any one of us: " I will spue thee out my mouth." Not as eternal rejection, but as saying: I will not allow you to stand any longer in the rank of those who are giving present testimony for me. He does it often. I could mention name after name in connection with the reformations, whether of Luther's or Whitfield's day. Look too at what has passed Within the last forty years; persons having certain truths given them for the day, running well up to a certain point, and having then stumbled and fallen. The extinguisher is put upon their testimony, and it is never allowed to take its place again.
The world; the flesh, or Satan, has been yielded -to, and where are they now? Many of them to be found in the church of. Rome; and Christ saying: Cover up that testimony; take away that light; it is a false one.
What is in your heart? Let God leave you to yourself for half an hour, and the most dreadful evil, the most awful sins recorded in Scripture will come out. All that Christ said to Philadelphia was: "Hold that fast which thou hast," and they had but " a little strength." And, if I were ten thousand times weaker than Philadelphia, is it in the heart of Him who was crucified through weakness to say to me: Go-you are too weak?-If we be but as water spilled on the ground yet He will never despise us. He says: If you want strength, there is strength in the word; if you want consolation, there is consolation in me.
At Laodicea they were lifting up the head, well pleased with themselves. It is thus that flesh acts. Has not God before now gone very nigh to set aside the testimony of many of us, because He saw that feeling, " I am rich and increased with goods?" Christ cannot be any party to self-complacency. If these Laodiceans had counted, over their riches, He had counted over His too. Could they think of themselves as a vessel carrying about the character of the Lord Jesus? He wanted them to have that pilgrim weanedness from the world which He had shown down here. The soul that has that could not be occupied with the world. You ought to be a vessel freshly filled from the Lord Jesus Christ-filled with
ointment—His own character—the character of the one Man who has passed over the earth perfectly full of divine treasures. The soul should exercise itself as to being occupied with Christ and Him: alone.
" I stand at the door and knock," can only be addressed to this church. They were not witnesses for Him He tries to rouse them-tries to wake them up. He says: Seek me for gold, for white raiment, for singleness of eye. I am the one who is seeking to get into association with you. Though in such a sad state it may yet end, not in my spueing you out of my mouth, but in your opening to me. I will give you everything to make you witnesses, and I will come and sup with you.
If any of us were to ask ourselves before the Lord whether we have been holding the position of witnesses as we ought, how could we say that we have? and that they in heaven ought to point down to us and say we are the reflection of the Christ up there? What is our only answer? The longing, yearning heart, which says He must have a brighter testimony at the end than at the beginning, if possible.
(G. V. W.)