"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write…I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spit you out of My mouth….therefore be zealous and repent" (Revelation3: 14-16, 19).

"Ladies and gentlemen, we would like to welcome you to B. L. Airways, where we are en route to Philadelphia. Our final layover before we reach that City of Brotherly Love will be Laodicea, which is due south of Sardis. So, sit back and relax; we’ll be there shortly.

"We’re now coming up on Laodicea. The city is situated on the Lycus River and was named for Laodice, the wife of Antiochus II. It was a very wealthy city during the Roman Period, known for the black wool industry.

"We hope you find your stay in Laodicea…exciting."

I have heard of this church ever since I was a small child, but was a bit confused by Revelation’s description of it. I understood why God would want us to be "hot" in regards to our faith, but why are we told that being "cold" is even preferred to lukewarm? If we were cold, would that be similar to being dead, and thus the worst of all?

What I have discovered is that I had it all wrong. When John penned these words, he was not referring to our faith as being hot or cold. Rather, he was making a comparison which would have been well known to the people to whom he was writing. This area was known for its healing springs, where people would go for certain types of therapy. Some springs were cold, while others were hot. One would go to a particular spring depending on their physical need. A lukewarm spring would have been totally worthless.

I liken this comparison to what has become my own personal vice: Starbucks. I enjoy an iced triple caramel espresso way too much. Though many people cannot yet accept an iced coffee drink, it is quite refreshing on those dog days of summer. Hot coffee, on the other hand is the perfect addition to a blustery January morning. Whether your preference is hot or cold I’m sure we all can agree that a lukewarm cup of coffee is useless, as well as disgusting.

The Lord wants the same for our spiritual lives. He would rather we be hot or cold, because the only thing left is lukewarm complacency. The simplest definition I can think of for complacency is to shrug our shoulders and say, "whatever." We either step out of the fight, or perhaps we do not even realize there is a battle waging around us. We fail to think of souls remaining lost, or of brothers and sisters in need. Above all, God is not the center of everything in our lives.

I have been reading "Baseball’s Great Experiment: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy" by Jules Tygiel. The book follows the story of Branch Rickey, a GM in the Major Leagues, and his decision to break the color barrier in baseball with a player named Jackie Robinson.

I have read much on the Jim Crowe practices of the South, where blacks were not given the same rights as whites. What I was unfamiliar with, though, was the frustrating complacency of the North. These whites would turn their noses up at the South, yet fail to do anything. Others would ignore. Mostly, northerners would deny that there was a problem with Jim Crowe at all. This is complacency…this is dwelling in Laodicea.

The question I had to ask myself upon reading about some of the horrific things in Robinson’s biography is this: Was the North at less of a fault than the South just because they may not have personally engaged in such practices? To this I respond emphatically: No! Their complacency made them at least as culpable as the South, and maybe more to blame.

What does the Bible say happens when complacency becomes the very definition of our spirituality? Revelation 3:16 says "I will spit you out." It is the response you might have if you are expecting coffee that is iced or hot, but is lukewarm. Likewise, our complacency disturbs God’s palate, and He spews us out. It reminds me of the looks on my children’s faces when they are eating something they don’t like. Our complacency is bitter in God’s mouth, and as a result, He cannot use us.

Scripture expands on this in verse 20, when it shows Jesus being on the outside looking in. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me." One verse has the Lord separating Himself from us, while the other shows us keeping Him out.

The fact of the matter is when we are complacent we feel we are at our safest. This cannot be further from the truth. The separation that occurs between us and the Lord puts us in great danger, not of losing our salvation, but of losing any effectiveness we can have for Him. If Jesus is on the outside looking in, any ministry we attempt will fail, joy will be absent from our church experience, and we will never know what it means to be close to the Lord.

If we do find ourselves trapped in a pit of complacency, we are given some advice on what to do for help. Verse 19 tells us first to "be zealous" we are to be earnest in what we are doing—find the passion that drove us to Christ in the first place. We are next told to "repent." When we ask for forgiveness with a broken heart, and a willingness to change, God is eager to accept out plea.

Verse 20 above gives the last two steps when Jesus is on the outside knocking to get in. We are to simply listen to Him, making our hearts receptive to His Spirit once again. When we hear Him and re-open ourselves, we will be able to commune with Him once again and be guided by His Spirit. God loves us and wants us to passionately love and serve Him.

"We hope you enjoy this final layover…and now we are off to our final destination, Philadelphia."