Revelation 3:15-I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other.
Romans 12:11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord!
Ecclesiastes 10:18 Because of laziness the roof caves in, and because of negligent hands the roof leaks.
2 Corinthians 9:13 Through the proof of this service they will glorify God for your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ.
Spiritual laziness runs rampant in religious circles today. We are tepid, languid, keeping up our Christian act, saying the right things, maybe even doing the right things too. From all outward appearances we look pretty good. Ah, but inwardly. Let some trial or situation show up. Watch then. We fall to one extreme or the other…we get white hot and fervent for the Lord with crisis oriented Christianity, doing things as we had not before because, well, now we really need Him to answer our prayers for healing, deliverance or provision. Before that we were doing quite well and didn’t really need Him all up in our business, we had it all under control. OR, we become angry and disappointed and determine religion doesn’t work for us, God doesn’t care about me/my situation enough to do/give me as I told Him to with all my actions, so we shut off and run to worldly pleasures, sin, people, drugs, alcohol, food, sex. Whatever feels good and numbs the pain— we reach for it and place it on the throne of our life, and set God on the shelf. We know He’s there, we might come back, or maybe not, whatever!
Truth is Beloved, being a spiritual gimp/lukewarm is worse than either of those states I just mentioned. God says anything lukewarm is good for one thing...spitting it out! If you’re hot, God knows how to get you to balance. At least you’re turned on and paying rapt attention, He can get to you and will work with you. And, if you’re cold in the world with its temporal pleasures God knows how far to let you go until you come to yourself. Trust me, after you get the “itis” from dining on worldly pleasures, like the prodigal son, you will come to yourself and remember God’s goodness is sweeter than the pig slop you desire to dine on (Luke 15:16).
The enemy of good isn’t evil. The enemy of good is good enough. That tepid, languid place we all get to where we exert very little volitional muscle, no tremendous exercise of the will is needed so we “park and ride” in our faith, so we think. Truth is, lukewarmness is death by paper cut. When we are lukewarm we are dying without seeing the decaying and God wants us to either turn on or turn off, not keep up that spiritual drip, drip. It is always amazing to me when people tell me to “calm down” and “it doesn’t take all that.” I disagree and confront them with their apathy. I am white hot and sometimes with more zeal than knowledge but I TRUST GOD. He will do what He says He will do and He will stand by His word. He always comes through! You will have no great adventures of faith to participate in when you’re a good enough, bench warming Christian who God cannot entrust with any affliction or suffering or trouble requiring ruthlessly trusting in Him. I prefer to ruthlessly trust Him even if no one else does. He keeps calling us deeper. As for me, I will keep going so yes, it takes all that and is too much for most. I am okay with that!
Adventures in faith take ALL OF YOU, not part. You can't hold back a thing. Yes, it is full of pain, loss, dark times and valley’s but oh my goodness what a rush and an amazing, astounding, description defying life when you full on trust God, adhere to and rely on his dependability. Try Him and see. Turn on or off today; quit asking for comfort, perfection, sameness, the temporal and for what you can see and desire only. Ask Him for His best, TRUST HIM there no matter what it looks like, He is ever faithful.
Beloved, I am praying with and for you.
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