The Lukewarm Believer

A lukewarm believer is worst than a non-believer or a heathen. One has to be a true believer because there is no middle-of-the-road believer. There is no room for fair-weather believer. Lukewarmness entails slackness in the worship of God, the Almighty as well as in one duty towards ones fellow-men. A back-slidden christian fits into this mould of lukewarmness. Such person remains a nominal christian, fully sold to the worship of God. His duties and love of god has waned and waxed cold. He would not have strong  conscience against not loving and obeying God or rendering any brotherly love to the needy. When there is work to be done in the House of God he or she does not feel obligated. He would rather leave such for the pastors and Ministers to carry out. God does not reward title in his Church but the faithful commitment to one’s profession of faith and duties.

Lukewarm attitude stands for coldness in work and behavior. To relate it to man’s relationship with God, it stands for coldness or death for man is meant to be on fire for God. Such a Christian is of no use to God. This brings to mind the warning given to the Church in Laodicea. Revelation 3:15-16 (KJV), it states: “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth”. Prophet Jeremiah preached doing God’s work with zeal and passion otherwise one’s labor would not receive returns to money, soul and spirit invested in God’s work. Jeremiah 48: 10 . It says “Cursed be he  that does the work of the Lord deceitfully, ad cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood”. Jeremiah fought for the Lord, not with physical sword with truth that pricked people’s conscience. it hurts like double-edged sword. That was why he suffered much persecution but remained adamantly committed to God’s massages he was constantly delivering to the children of Israel of his days. He was fearlessly undaunted and remained on fire for God is spite of all odds. One who doubts and entertain fear in the course of serving God. would in most cases know how to do good but because of fear of man and the attendant consequences, he will not rightly or decisively do it fo God; it is sin before God. We are enjoined to be our brother’s keepers but if we fail we are either cold lukewarm or insensitive to the need of God’s created person(s).; it is also sinful. Proverb 21: 13 (KJV) says “Who so stoppeth at the cry of the poor, he also shall himself, but shall not be heard”. In other words, if one fails to love others, others will fail to love that person. Failure to love God can be rewarded with rejection from God.

Looking at the effect of lukewarmness, it is obvious that there is danger in it. one in consequence would most likely be passed up as an unstable person. In interpersonal transaction,, no one would vouchsafe for him: James  1: 6-8 declared: “Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering, for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven by the wind and tossed.  For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways”. In contemporary times in political arena, some politicians especially in developing countries, do decamp to join the party in government. Such politicians have unstable mind and invariably in the new party no one would really trust him/them. How much more when one fails to honor God in life. The second or eternal death awaits such lukewarm believers. Such ought not to be our portio as born again Christians. Double-mindedness, fear of people, consulting a medium made King Saul fail before Samuel and God. Eli, a great prophet of God fail to honor God in the life of his two sons and died out of the consequence of his not bringing his two sons up to honor God.King Jeroboam rather than coming to The Temple at Jerusalem, he substituted baal for Yahweh the God of his Patriarchs and bore the consequence.

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