Hello chaver (friend),

 

I wished to contribute to your mention on the church of Laodicea with the following statements:

 

Did you know that the word Laodicea is loosely translated as 'the people decree.' 

The people were 'rich' and thought that their material prosperity was evidence that they lacked nothing spiritually.  This sounds suspiciously like the popular prosperity gospel today.  Many tend to believe that as long as someone is 'well off' it is evidence of God's favor upon them, an indication that they are lacking nothing spiritually.  But we know from the Word of God that being within the perfect will of God does not always look like what we consider 'favor.'  Consider that Joseph was thrown into a pit by his brothers, sold into slavery, and falsely accused and imprisoned...all in accord with the perfect will of God so that he could be in a position to bring life to his brethren.  Jesus too was in the perfect will of God and yet it was difficult enough that He asked that the cup He was to drink pass from Him if it was possible.  But drinking of this difficult cup was, however, the perfect will of the Father.  So for Laodicea to look with its eyes upon their material gain and interpret that as evidence of being within the will of God is error.

 

Did you know that the word Laodicea is loosely translated as 'the people decree.'  The very name of this assembly indicates that the people were doing as they saw fit in their own eyes, as THEY decreed, and not according to the decrees of God.  Additionally, it could be said that democracy is the very real and present age that we live in and that democracy is a state in which the people decree what they collectively choose to live by. 

 

I suggest that the letter to the Laodiceans is very much fitting for the West and other materially minded democratic regions of the earth where the sin of self governance rather than being governed by God's decrees abounds.  We would do well to take to heart, within our assemblies, this message.  Do not find confidence in what we have in order to conclude that we are within the will of God. We need to repent and obey the decrees of God, over our own decrees and that of men.  Or else.....

 

Shalom

A.A.