REVELATION: Lukewarm Laodicea

** It should be noted that almost all of my material on Revelation has been influenced directly by the teaching of Ray VanderLaan and the main sources that were mentioned toward the beginning of this series. It is not my intent to claim credit for their incredible work. The original lesson that influenced my teaching here can be seen in VanderLaan's series through Focus on the Family titled "That the World May Know" **

And now we come to our final “letter” in Revelation — the letter to Laodicea. We’ll start with a little bit about the cultural backdrop of Laodicea.

Laodicea sat in between two other cities, Hierapolis and Colossae. Hierapolis was a major attraction because of the natural mineral hot springs that flowed from the cliff face there. The water was renowned for its incredible healing properties (even to this day) and was a great place for people to come for vacation or rest. Colossae, as we’ve seen before, was off the beaten path and not on the main road. It was known for its colossenus, which seems to have been a special red wool people made robes and coats out of, and the city also had a freshwater spring providing a constant source of cool and refreshing water.

The white mineral cliffs of Heirapolis

When the major earthquake of AD 60 hit the area, Rome sent money to rebuild Hierapolis and Laodicea, for obvious reasons. Colossae was not integral to the stability of Rome, so they received no money. Not long after, the city vanished from history. Hierapolis accepted the money and rebuilt their city. Laodicea, however, chose to reject the money and rebuild on their own. There’s no evidence their rejection of assistance was viewed as an insult, but Laodicea also served as one of the major mints/banks for Rome, and in the late first century they printed local coins that bore the phrase: “We did it ourselves.”

If you visit the ruins of Laodicea today, you find the remnants of an ancient arena (from the first century). Seating roughly 60,000 people, the arena served as a regional center for gladiatorial combat. The best of the best gladiators in the world were centered in Laodicea, and people would come from all around to watch them engage in combat. The Roman military even used the location as a training station. As the gladiators created new weapons and became experts in them, the Roman military stationed itself in Laodicea to learn from the experts how to use the new weaponry.

The arena at Laodicea

Because of the large and constant military presence, one of the things the region was known for was the soldier’s demand for a meal. According to Roman law, a soldier could knock on your door at any time and demand a full-course meal. Some of the other cities in the region (like Hierapolis, which had to entertain the soldiers who were on leave) actually wrote to Rome and asked them to loosen the demand on local citizens. Soldiers were always stationed there, and getting a knock on your door was a routine draw on the residents in a way that wasn’t common in other places. While some cities complained, Laodicea never did. Just as their coins said, they were proud to be able to take care of themselves with no assistance from others.

In a similar way to the colossenus wool from Colossae, Laodicea was known for its black wool that was used to make what they called traumata. They also exported a famous eye salve, using mineral mud from Hierapolis and making a medical treatment known to heal blindness. It was also the home of a famous orator name Zeno. He had three children (one son and two daughters) who all ended up marrying royalty from different areas, becoming king/queens.

Finally, the one negative thing Laodicea was known for was its water. There was not a good water source at Laodicea. The hot mineral water of Hierapolis combined with the cold spring water of Colossae to make a lukewarm, somewhat destructive water. Attempting to pipe water in from 35 miles away (which they still do to this day, I’m told), their ancient systems did not work, and they struggled to find good drinking water. There are now remnants of a fountain in Laodicea, which has been replumbed multiple times as the pipes clogged with crusted mineral deposits.

The ruins of the fountain at Laodicea (notice the white mineral deposits)

Now, to read the letter from John:

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

“… you are neither cold nor hot. … because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” I can’t tell you how many youth group lessons I sat through where this passage was used to spur us out of apathy. “Quit living on the fence!” they would say. “Get in or get out! God would rather have you against Him, than have you on the fence.” This well-intentioned lesson could not have missed the point more. The teaching here is clearly pulling on two things that are beneficial and useful. The hot mineral water of Hierapolis brings healing, and the cold spring water of Colossae is refreshing and life-giving. Be something! Be useful! But don’t be useless — some poisonous combination of both that makes you good for nothing.

“You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ ” This is a great depiction of the attitude of the ‘we-did-it-ourselves’ Laodiceans.

“I counsel you to by from me gold refined in the fire …” — as opposed to the mint and banking institutions of Laodicea,

“… white clothes to wear …” — a contrast to the black traumata of Laodicea,

“… salve to put on your eyes …” — and a reference to the famous mineral salve they exported.

“I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” John references the practice of local soldiers who would come knocking at the door, demanding a meal. Jesus will come knocking, but he makes no demands; should you choose to open the door, he will dine with you and invite you to sit and dine with him (something you would never do with the soldiers).

“… I will give the right to sit with me on my throne …” Some have suggested this could be a reference to Zeno and his children, who went on to sit on thrones.

And where does the material come from? We could look to Isaiah 55:

“Come, all you who are thirsty,    come to the waters;and you who have no money,    come, buy and eat!Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without cost.Why spend money on what is not bread,    and your labor on what does not satisfy?”

We could also turn to Isaiah 65:

“Whoever invokes a blessing in the land    will do so by the one true God;whoever takes an oath in the land    will swear by the one true God.For the past troubles will be forgotten    and hidden from my eyes.”

In Hebrew, the phrase “one true God” could also be translated “the God who is amen.” There’s a shared usage in the Septuagint, and the context of Isaiah 65 (even the reference “hidden from my eyes”) will play into the teaching here to the church at Laodicea.

We might even suggest a looser connection with Proverbs 3:

My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline,    and do not resent his rebuke,because the LORD disciplines those he loves,    as a father the son he delights in.

Blessed are those who find wisdom,
    those who gain understanding,
for she is more profitable than silver
    and yields better returns than gold.
She is more precious than rubies;
    nothing you desire can compare with her.
Long life is in her right hand;
    in her left hand are riches and honor.
Her ways are pleasant ways,
    and all her paths are peace.
She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her;
    those who hold her fast will be blessed.

There would be numerous prophets to give us the following idea, but Hosea 12 might be the clearest in this context:

The merchant uses dishonest scales    and loves to defraud.Ephraim boasts,    “I am very rich; I have become wealthy.With all my wealth they will not find in me    any iniquity or sin.”

And the famous reference of “spitting/vomiting you out of my mouth” is certainly not unique to Revelation and could be pulled straight from Leviticus 18:

“ ‘The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you.’ ”

Or Leviticus 20:

“ ‘Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. You must not live according to the customs of the nations I am going to drive out before you.’ ”

What I love about the history lesson of Laodicea is that they received a sharp rebuke from God through John in Revelation. I think we often assume (at least I do) that these churches didn’t learn their lesson and were punished. However, the church in Laodicea would end up becoming quite a presence in the world of Asia Minor. Archeologists have recently uncovered a church with a brilliant mosaic referencing Polycarp, John’s first disciple.

May we learn the lessons we need to learn and let the Lord discipline us as a child He loves. May we wake from our slumber and sloth to seize the calling to be useful in God’s Kingdom.