Matters of Faith
By Bascom Ratliff
Pastor, Parker / Beagle / Fontana United Methodist Churches
Scripture: Revelation 3: 15-16 (Christ’s message to the church in Laodicea). “I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered and I need nothing. You do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.”
As I was reflecting on Thanksgiving and the many things that we have to be thankful for, I thought of this passage from Revelation. I think too often we give God halfhearted thanks for the blessings in our life. And in doing so, we neglect the wonderful gifts that God has provided. Worse, we have somehow taken God’s gifts for granted, without recognizing the true gift of Jesus Christ and his church.
The passage in Revelation is a pretty graphic depiction of Christ’s response to our mediocre commitment. He will spit us out. God demands our commitment and loyalty. I suspect that he is not at all pleased with our watered-down praise or lukewarm service. Either we are “all in” in our devotion to God or not. God does not want our leftovers, whether they be time, resources, or service. I believe Christ’s message to the church is simply a call to be fully committed to him in all things.
As we prepare for the celebration of our Lord’s birth, we are again challenged to recognize and appreciate the wonderful gift of Jesus Christ. We also are asked to fully understand the importance of God’s gift (Christ) which is given out of love and bound by the promise of God’s forgiveness and mercy.
I am often surprised when people complain about God wanting so great a commitment from us. I remind them that God simply wants and often demands, what we ourselves want. All of us want respect. We want commitment. We want loyalty. We want fairness. We want recognition. And, we want to be appreciated for who we are and what we accomplished.
God also wants recognition and appreciation. When we consider the accomplishments and power of God, it makes sense to be thankful and appreciative of an almighty God who has done so much for us. God has given us life. He has given us Jesus. His given us boundless grace and a ticket to heaven. So when Jesus tells us to be hot or cold, he is asking us to recognize all that God has done and to be thankful and committed to living a Godly life.
My challenge is to evaluate and reflect this holiday season on the great gift that God has given us in Jesus Christ. God has clearly shown wonderful love and devotion for us. He asks that we remain loyal and committed to him. He asks that we follow his commandments to love him and others. His love comes with great promises. However, as we are reminded in Revelation, serving God with lukewarm and stale promises is unacceptable. God demands that we are fully committed to serving and worshiping him. In doing so we reap great rewards. In failing to do so we forfeit our relationship with a loving and merciful God.
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Do you find yourself longing for genuine love and companionship? If you’re ready to seek God’s love, I invite you to come and worship with us. We are fueled by God’s wonderful promise of unfailing love. Please accept our invitation to a morning of wonderful music and great fellowship. And, of course, hot drinks and cookies.
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We will worship at the Beagle UMC during November and December 2024.
All Sunday services are at 10 a.m.
We serve communion on the first Sunday of the month.
All are welcome in God’s House.
Dr. Bascom Ratliff (913-710-5748)
Pastor, Parker/Beagle/Fontana
United Methodist Churches
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