Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – Revelation 3:14-22

Highlight Verse:

“I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other!”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭3‬:‭15‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’ve always loved the way Laodicea is pronounced (lay-odd-uh-SEE-uh). But that’s not why I chose this scripture.

I’ve written in the past about how it is important to study scriptures in context.

The whole of a chapter or book tells a lot about what the author is referring to.

If you really want to understand scripture, it is also important to understand the cultural context around the verses you wish to study.

I’ve heard this verse preached on by pastors stating that God would rather you be on fire for Him or dead to him rather than lukewarm. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Laodicea’s fresh water supply came through a long Roman aqueduct. By the time it arrived, it was lukewarm and boring.

One town nearby had a fresh spring with very refreshing cold water.

Another nearby town had a hot spring that was said to have healing properties.

The people of Laodicea would have understood that God would prefer us to be refreshing or healing rather than boring.

I got that context from Bible College (thanks Professor Eiben) but there are many resources available to dig deeper into the context of Scriptures.

Some cost. Some are free online. Just search for “commentary on (Bible reference here)”.

It’s worth it for those times when you want to dig a little deeper.

Have you found good resources for commentaries and historical context?
Are there scriptures that you would really like to find out the context so you could fully understand them?