In 1851 British artist
William Holman Hunt created a painting entitled “The Light of the World.” It
has become one of the most recognizable religious paintings in modern history,
as it has been copied and reproduced by several artists. Hunt has Jesus
standing at the tightly-closed door of a seemingly neglected cottage. Christ
holds a lantern in one hand; His other hand is raised to knock on the door as
if to gain entrance. However, if you look diligently you’ll notice that the
most unique feature of the painting is that there is no knob or handle on the
outside of the door. For Christ to gain entrance to the cottage, the door would
have to be opened from within.
The motivation for Hunt’s
painting was Revelation 3:20—a verse capturing Christ’s words to the church in
Laodicea. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and
opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” The Laodicean
church had become tepid and apathetic, yet Christ, the consummate gentleman, refused
to force Himself into its midst. He was standing patiently in the chill of the
night, waiting to be invited in.
What a sad picture—and the
implication is stunning, if Christ can’t get in, then neither can anyone else.
If you are careful to study the seven churches in Revelation, then you know
each one is not only historic, but also prophetic. Meaning, that the assessments
made by Christ not only described real first-century congregations that we
should learn from, but they also foretell the different epochs of church
history from then till present day.
The Laodicean church,
being the last of the seven, represents the lukewarm spirit of the Church on
earth just prior to the rapture, tribulation and the return of Jesus. It’s a
Church that is materially wealthy, but spiritual impoverished. A church too
busy with plans and programs and pride that it is oblivious to the fact that Christ
has been shut-out. Instead of being refreshing, the Laodicean church is revolting,
“So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of
my mouth” (Rev. 3:16).
It doesn’t take long to
see that the contemporary church fits this description. Instead of preaching
the biblical Gospel which requires us to take up a cross, we have a comfortable
health-and-wealth Gospel which tells us that we can have our “Best Life Now.”
Instead of a church that stands on biblical convictions we have a church of
easy compromise where the Bible is up for debate, where Jesus is not the way,
but one way to heaven, where topics like sin and judgment have been erased from
the vocabulary. Instead of worship where Christ is the focus, we have services
that are suited to our preferences and tastes—the seats can’t be too hard, the temperature
must be just right and music should make us feel good about ourselves.
Listen to the powerful commentary
on the Church offered by Steven J. Lawson:
“As the Church advances into the twenty-first century,
the stress to produce booming ministries has never been greater. Influenced by
corporate mergers, towering skyscrapers, and expanding economies, bigger is
perceived as better, and nowhere is this “Wall Street” mentality more evident
than in the church. Sad to say, pressure to produce bottomline results has led
many ministries to sacrifice the centrality of biblical preaching on the altar
of man-centered pragmatism.
A
new way of “doing” church is emerging. In this radical paradigm shift,
exposition is being replaced with entertainment, preaching with performances,
doctrine with drama, and theology with theatrics. The pulpit, once the focal
point of the church, is now being overshadowed by a variety of church-growth
techniques, everything from trendy worship styles to glitzy presentations to
vaudeville-like pageantries. In seeking to capture the upperhand in church
growth, a new wave of pastors is reinventing church and repackaging the gospel
into a product to be sold to “consumers.”
Whatever
reportedly works in one church is being franchised out to various “markets”
abroad. As when gold was discovered in the foothills of California, so
ministers are beating a path to the doorsteps of exploding churches and
super-hyped conferences where the latest “strike” has been reported.
Unfortunately, the newly panned gold often turns out to be “fool’s gold.” Not
all that glitters is actually gold.
Admittedly
pastors can learn from growing churches and successful ministries. Yet God’s
work must be done God’s way if it is to know God’s blessing. He provides the
power and He alone receives the glory only as His divinely prescribed plan for
ministry is followed. When man-centered schemes are followed, often imitating
the world’s schemes, the flesh provides the energy and man receives the glory…In
a strange twist, the preaching of the cross is now foolishness, not only to the
world, but also to the church.”[1]
Friends, the church of
this era won’t be killed by persecution, but by prosperity. The only hope is to declare spiritual bankruptcy, open
the door and let the Master back in. -DM
[1]
Steven J. Lawson, “The Priority of Biblical Preaching: An Expository Study of
Acts 2:42-47,” Bibliotheca Sacra 158
(April-June 2001), 198-199.
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