Revelation 3:14, 15-16 To the Church in Laodicea...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.
[New International Translation]
Summary
According to the Revelation 1:1, the prologue to the book of Revelation, JESUS CHRIST is the source of the revelations in the book of Revelations. The "Amen" in verse 3:14 is a reference to JESUS. These revelations, which GOD gave to JESUS, were revealed to HIS servant John in a vision: and then an angel was sent from heaven to explain the vision's meaning to John. John then wrote in all down, everything he heard and saw.
The Revelation to John was written to the seven churches in the province of Asia: the church at Ephesus, the church in Smyrna, the church in Pergamum, the church in Thyatria, the church in Sardis, the church in Philadelphia, and the church in Laodicea. Revelation 3:14-16 is a message to the church in Laodicea.
Laodicea was a rich church---its members affluent. Some commentaries suggest that this church, with its riches might have been too self-reliant, which may have explained their indifference and lack of zeal. As a result they received one of the sharpest criticisms of all the churches. They were neither burning with passion, fervent in spirit or "hot;" nor were they openly antagonistic and "cold." They were just indifferent and "lukewarm." This "hot, cold, lukewarm" analogy must have struck a chord with the Laodicea church, since they had had a problem with distasteful lukewarm water for years. Although the Laodiceans built aqueducts to bring the delicious cold water down from the mountains; unfortunately, by the time the water traveled through the mountains, it was lukewarm and sickening. Although they had wonderful hot steaming springs, by the time the water traveled to the city, it was again, just lukewarm. Laodicea had the kind of lukewarm water that made you want to throw up.
In contrast to Laodicean people, there are a number of passionate disciples mentioned in the Bible. Some might include Peter, who was passionate in words, but later denies CHRIST three times. However, with all of Peter's shortcomings, GOD was still able to use Peter and his passion. Some would consider Saul passionate as well. Saul had an intense hatred of Christians and zealously persecuted them, even going so far as to obtain a letter from the Jewish church so that he could travel to other regions and kill them. Yet with all his faults, GOD was able to use Saul and his passion. After Saul's conversion on the Damascus road, Saul became a "new man" (Paul) and became a passionate follower of JESUS CHRIST.
The most striking example of passion is the PASSION of CHRIST. The word passion comes from the Latin stem "pati" which means "to suffer or endure." Later the word "passion "came to mean "strength of feeling." Our LORD was so passionate in HIS love for humanity that HE, GOD who had all power in HIS hands, willingly allowed those hands to be nailed to a cross where they openly bled. Although HE committed no crimes, HIS passionate love for all of us was so great, HE allowed HIMSELF to be numbered among the criminals being crucified that day. HE, the SON of GOD, suffered and endured the indignity of being stripped of HIS clothing and was placed on display, even before HIS own mother. In the end, HE willingly gave up HIS SPIRIT, to defeat death, to save me and you. HIS PASSION, HIS LOVE was that great!
In contrast, the Laodiceans had no passion. They were people who just stood on the sidelines. Their lack of passion, in the face of all HE had done for them, was an affront to our LORD and made HIM want to "spew" them out of HIS mouth.
Cold Water During Exercise
In an article, "Is Drinking Cold Water During or After Exercise Good or Bad?" Wendy Bumgardener's response is:
Believe it or not, cold water is absorbed faster by your body than water at room temperature or at body temperature. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that water and other drinks be chilled when used for exercise.
She states:
Research has shown that cold water passes through the stomach faster and is therefore sent to the intestines for quicker absorption. During and after exercise, you want to rapidly replace fluids lost due to sweat, so cold water and cold sports drinks are preferred.
She notes that most people find that cold drinks taste better and therefore people drink longer. Following some of the guidelines recommended in the January, 1996 position paper on "Exercise and Hydration," Bumgardener also has the following recommendation:
Cold: Drinks should be cooler than room temperature.
Flavored: Drinks should be flavored to make them taste more appealing, helping people to drink more. A squeeze of lemon juice or a pinch of a flavoring can help without adding calories.
Sports Drinks: Use a sports drink to replace carbohydrates and electrolytes when exercising longer than 1 hour. You lose electrolytes (body salt) by sweating. Without replacing it, you risk hyponatremia if you continue to replenish with plain water and no salt.
Plain Water: If exercising less than an hour, plain water is just fine, maybe with a squeeze of lemon juice or other flavoring if preferred for taste.
See, "Is Drinking Cold Water During or After Exercise Good or Bad?" by Wendy Baumgarden-er, http//:walk.about.com. Baumgardener also recommends drink water until sated. Don't use some forced fluid amount to determine how much you drink. Just quench your thirsty.
Find The Passion!
According to Elie Wiesel, "The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference."
It is easy to become indifferent and complacent--even about one's own physical and spiritual health and the health of our community. All you need to do is nothing. So, we have to fight it! We have to find the passion to actually exercise and to stop accepting "junk food." We have to become so passionate about our own physical and spiritual health, that it starts a chain reaction in our families, among our friends, in our churches and even in the "utmost parts of the world."
We also have to become passionate about social and economic injustices----the high murder rates of young men and women, the shooting of children, teen sex trafficking, school violence, poverty, low high school graduate rates, high drop-out rates, poor student scholarship funding. We must become so passionate that we move---give--speak out---and do something.
We (not someone else or our government, which we know can also become indifferent and non-functional) have to become the agents for the change we want to see.
So, today, reject Laodicean citizenship! Find your passion. Pray for a passionate spirit. Pray for passionate communities and church memberships! Let's drink from HIS cup and toss out all the other lukewarm cups of indifference and stagnation.
Take a stand for your own health and the health of our communities!
Be proactive! Be Passionate! And, Be Blessed!
