Focus: Christianity of Convenience

Text: Rev.3:16

"So then because thou art LUKEWARM, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth."

What a sad description of the church by no less a figure than Christ Himself, who is the head of the church!

*Christ's assessment of His church

He describes His own church as "lukewarm." The present day church is seriously lacking in spiritual warmth. The fire of the Spirit is missing - no zeal or zest. We love comfort and convenience. We are lackadaisical about the things that truly matter. Where's our passion for souls? Everywhere one looks there is spiritual atrophy, apathy, or lethargy. I ask, is our brand of Christianity different from the one Peter, Stephen, Paul, and believers of the Early Church practiced? In different parts of the church, the Spirit's fire is either burning low, burning out, or there's no fire at all. It is clear that we are practicing the Christianity of the comfort zone. We are so much at ease in Zion. We have lost the heartbeat of God. We have a comfortable pew and a compromised pulpit. Jeremiah laments that "a wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?" (Jer.5:30,31).

Church services are becoming more entertaining, but lacking the enlivening breath of God. The fire and touch of the Spirit is absent. A church can be spiritually unhealthy while appearing so flashy.

Christ says of the church in Sardis, that it has a reputation that it is alive, when in actual fact, it is a living corpse.

We preach and worship like there's nothing at stake. Our love is not on fire. Our faith is tasteless, and the Lord is feeling nauseous, as one ready to vomit. Our spiritual state of lukewarmness is disheartening and nauseating to Christ.

*Christ's answer

God says, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall HUMBLE themselves, and PRAY, and SEEK my face, and TURN from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (2Chron.7:14).

Jesus Christ says in essence, 'Open the door and let me in. Let's dine together.' That is Christ's answer to our spiritual plight. We need deep hunger for authentic Christianity. We need to drink of the new wine of the Spirit, which alone is capable of bursting the old wine skin of our empty religion and palatable faith.

by Bishop Moses E. Peter