Letter to the Church in Laodicea
5/29/202635 min
Every single thing Jesus has to say to the church of Laodicea is scathingly negative.
The city of Laodicea was a medical center—there was a famous medical school there, and they produced a lot of medicines. Jesus essentially says the church in Laodicea is spiritually sick, and that he has the medicine for them. And whenever we see Scripture diagnosing a spiritual condition, we must always ask, “Is this true of me?”
Let’s look at this spiritual condition under three headings: 1) the symptom, 2) the underlying disease, and 3) the medicines and remedies.
This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 17, 2008. Series: Revelation: Jesus’ Letters to the Church. Scripture: Revelation 3:14-22.
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First 90 secondsSpeaker 10:00
[gentle music] Welcome to Gospel and Life. What would it be like to hear Jesus speak directly to the church today? In the Book of Revelation, we're given a rare glimpse of exactly that, Jesus addressing his followers with words of comfort, hope, and calling. Today, Tim Keller explores how these letters to ancient churches invite us to examine our own hearts and receive the healing and renewal Christ offers. [gentle music] Tonight's scripture comes from the Book of Revelation 3:14-22. "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,