Has your life made any difference at all?
One of my favorite movies of all time is the 1989 film Lean On Me starring Morgan Freeman.
Freeman portrays the person of Joe Clark.
Clark comes across as a militant authoritarian who demands things be his way or the highway.
He was a disciplinarian.
One of the famous quotes from the movie is Freeman as Clark in the teachers lounge the day upon being named principal at East Side High, a school he formerly taught at during the 60's.
(He was let go because of his unruly way of standing up to other leaders in the educational system.)
During that talk with the teachers and his two assistant principals he says,
To pick them up off the mat of life, give a quick slap in the face and tell them to pull it together.
To help them turn their lives around and become useful human beings on this planet.
Sometimes we need that sort of approach.
It's not always wanted or welcomed, but sometimes....necessary.
It is in the atmosphere of Joe Clark that I read this scripture from Revelation 3.
Revelation 3:14-21
New International Version (NIV)
To the Church in Laodicea
14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.
The truth of the matter is - none of us like to be told when something is not right in our lives.
My wife doesn't like it when I point out something that I think is not right.
In turn, I don't like it when she turns tables and points out something that needs changing on my front.
But, it's needed.
If we are going to become useful human beings in the Body of Christ, then we need to figure out how to change what needs changing in our lives.
We, of course, needs to see what Merriam-Webster has to say about the word useful.
Definition of USEFUL
1: capable of being put to use; especially : serviceable for an end or purpose
2: of a valuable or productive kind
These letters to the churches here at the beginning of Revelation almost read in succinct order of importance when it comes to what Jesus feels we need to take care of in our lives.
Jesus seems to say the same thing to each church, but with a difference in need for each group of believers.
Only to the churches at Smyrna and Pergamum does he seems to lay off, speaking about their afflictions and living so close to 'Satan's throne', although he stills has issues he raises with their lives.
To the other 5 churches he repeats the mantra...
To the Church in Ephesus
(Rev. 2.2) I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance.
To the Church in Thyatira
(Rev. 2.19) I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.
To the Church in Sardis
(Rev. 3.1) I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
OOOO, there's that word "reputation" again.
To the Church in Philadelphia
(Rev. 3.8) I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
To the Church in Laodicea
(Rev. 3.15) I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!
In two of the cases, it seems like they are off to a pretty good start, although Christ will bring up issues that need to be fixed.
In two of the cases he is pretty blunt and to the point right off the bat that something needs to change.
And, in one case he just shows them the open door and says, 'Come on in'.
In every case He makes it clear.
"I know your deeds"
To the church in Laodicea he seems to make it clear that their deeds show they are not being useful at all.
In the video series "That The World May Know", Ray Vander Laan takes his trekkers to place near Laodicea to show them what Christ might have been talking about.
We often try to associate the idea of Bad & Good with the hot & cold reference in Rev. 3.15.
According to Vander Laan, that's a bit off.
At Laodicea there were springs that came down from the mountains.
A hot spring and a cold spring.
Both waters were useful in the healing and serving process.
The hot waters had a purpose - cleaning, cleansing, bathing - many good purposes for hot water.
And, so with the cold water - healing, drinking, washing - many much needed purposes.
There was also a place where some waters ran and sat and became stagnate, unusable.
Crud would form on the water, making it undrinkable.
Christ likens the church at Laodicea to that kind of water, "lukewarm".
"I can't drink you, I can't bathe in you, it's just not possible to do anything with you at all"
"I am about to spit you out of my mouth." (Rev. 3.16)
When you take a bite of food expecting it to be hot, and it's not, what do you do?
Does it have that 'lukewarm' taste of Bleeeeeeeh?
When you taste a drink from your pop can and realize it's not cold anymore; that it's been sitting out too long, what do you do?
Does it have that 'lukewarm' taste of WHOA that is bad?
What do you do with food and drink that has become lukewarm?
Well, thank goodness for microwaves.
That icky burrito you left sitting on the counter has a chance to bounce back and once again become the meal you were planning on eating.
Thank goodness for refrigerators and ice cube trays.
That warm drink has a chance to chill again and become the refreshing drink you wanted.
Christ has the answer for the problem of the churches in each case also.
The answer is Himself.
And, although He spells out the answer in different methods and practice, the idea has some symmetrical theology.
(Rev. 2.5) Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.
(Rev. 2.10) Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
(Rev. 2.16) Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
(Rev. 2.26) To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations
(Rev. 3.3) Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent.
(Rev. 3.11) I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
(Rev. 3.20) Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
Christ seems to be emphatic that each church has a useful purpose.
They will only find that purpose when they turn from the world and face Christ, Himself.
"Repent, turn away, be faithful, hang on to what you have, be victorious, I am coming soon, I am here, at the doorstep of your life, Let me in and we will prevail!"
For all the charisma Joe Clark exudes in Lean on Me, it is the words of Dr. Frank Napier (played by Robert Guillaume) that stick with me the most.
Napier was a fellow teacher back in the 60's with Clark at East Side.
20 years later, Napier is now Superintendent on the school system in Paterson, New Jersey and Clark is the principal at a elementary school across town.
The city finds itself in a situation where if they can't turn things around at East Side, the State will come in and take over the school system.
Napier wants Clark as his principal.
Upon reaching out to Joe, Napier is rebuffed by the indignant Clark for having left him down in the elementary system for so long.
Napier rebuttals Clark by stating that he is not a miracle worker.
Now is the time and the chance to go in and make some real change for the better.
Clark starts to walk away.
And, the statement I love from Napier....
As Christians, our usefulness is determined by how willing we are to put Christ front and center in our lives and allow Him to lead into those atrocities, whether internal on our part or external in the world, and affect change for His sake.
If you read my messages at all, you know my underlying theme is 'comfort food'.
You might be asking yourself at this point, 'where's the comfort' ?
The comfort is in knowing the God does not deal with us like Joe Clark deals with things.
God is not here to ball us out like Joe did with a freshman on the roof of the school, encouraging the boy to jump.
God is not here to kick us out, like Joe did on the first day of school with 400 students.
Jesus clearly speaks to his people that if change does not happen, if they do not become useful followers, there will be repercussions.
At the same time, He opens the door them and asks them to open the door to Him.
He is the only one who can make things right in our lives.
He alone can bring us into usefulness.
It's late.
My fried chicken is getting cold.
Hello, microwave.
One of my favorite movies of all time is the 1989 film Lean On Me starring Morgan Freeman.
Freeman portrays the person of Joe Clark.
Clark comes across as a militant authoritarian who demands things be his way or the highway.
He was a disciplinarian.
One of the famous quotes from the movie is Freeman as Clark in the teachers lounge the day upon being named principal at East Side High, a school he formerly taught at during the 60's.
(He was let go because of his unruly way of standing up to other leaders in the educational system.)
During that talk with the teachers and his two assistant principals he says,
"Discipline is not the enemy of enthusiasm!"What Clark sought to accomplish with his authoritarian style was to instill some sense of pride in his students and faculty.
To pick them up off the mat of life, give a quick slap in the face and tell them to pull it together.
To help them turn their lives around and become useful human beings on this planet.
Sometimes we need that sort of approach.
It's not always wanted or welcomed, but sometimes....necessary.
It is in the atmosphere of Joe Clark that I read this scripture from Revelation 3.
Revelation 3:14-21
New International Version (NIV)
To the Church in Laodicea
14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.
The truth of the matter is - none of us like to be told when something is not right in our lives.
My wife doesn't like it when I point out something that I think is not right.
In turn, I don't like it when she turns tables and points out something that needs changing on my front.
But, it's needed.
If we are going to become useful human beings in the Body of Christ, then we need to figure out how to change what needs changing in our lives.
We, of course, needs to see what Merriam-Webster has to say about the word useful.
Definition of USEFUL
1: capable of being put to use; especially : serviceable for an end or purpose
2: of a valuable or productive kind
These letters to the churches here at the beginning of Revelation almost read in succinct order of importance when it comes to what Jesus feels we need to take care of in our lives.
Jesus seems to say the same thing to each church, but with a difference in need for each group of believers.
Only to the churches at Smyrna and Pergamum does he seems to lay off, speaking about their afflictions and living so close to 'Satan's throne', although he stills has issues he raises with their lives.
To the other 5 churches he repeats the mantra...
To the Church in Ephesus
(Rev. 2.2) I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance.
To the Church in Thyatira
(Rev. 2.19) I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.
To the Church in Sardis
(Rev. 3.1) I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
OOOO, there's that word "reputation" again.
To the Church in Philadelphia
(Rev. 3.8) I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
To the Church in Laodicea
(Rev. 3.15) I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!
In two of the cases, it seems like they are off to a pretty good start, although Christ will bring up issues that need to be fixed.
In two of the cases he is pretty blunt and to the point right off the bat that something needs to change.
And, in one case he just shows them the open door and says, 'Come on in'.
In every case He makes it clear.
"I know your deeds"
To the church in Laodicea he seems to make it clear that their deeds show they are not being useful at all.
In the video series "That The World May Know", Ray Vander Laan takes his trekkers to place near Laodicea to show them what Christ might have been talking about.
We often try to associate the idea of Bad & Good with the hot & cold reference in Rev. 3.15.
According to Vander Laan, that's a bit off.
At Laodicea there were springs that came down from the mountains.
A hot spring and a cold spring.
Both waters were useful in the healing and serving process.
The hot waters had a purpose - cleaning, cleansing, bathing - many good purposes for hot water.
And, so with the cold water - healing, drinking, washing - many much needed purposes.
There was also a place where some waters ran and sat and became stagnate, unusable.
Crud would form on the water, making it undrinkable.
Christ likens the church at Laodicea to that kind of water, "lukewarm".
"I can't drink you, I can't bathe in you, it's just not possible to do anything with you at all"
"I am about to spit you out of my mouth." (Rev. 3.16)
When you take a bite of food expecting it to be hot, and it's not, what do you do?
Does it have that 'lukewarm' taste of Bleeeeeeeh?
When you taste a drink from your pop can and realize it's not cold anymore; that it's been sitting out too long, what do you do?
Does it have that 'lukewarm' taste of WHOA that is bad?
What do you do with food and drink that has become lukewarm?
Well, thank goodness for microwaves.
That icky burrito you left sitting on the counter has a chance to bounce back and once again become the meal you were planning on eating.
Thank goodness for refrigerators and ice cube trays.
That warm drink has a chance to chill again and become the refreshing drink you wanted.
Christ has the answer for the problem of the churches in each case also.
The answer is Himself.
And, although He spells out the answer in different methods and practice, the idea has some symmetrical theology.
(Rev. 2.5) Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.
(Rev. 2.10) Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
(Rev. 2.16) Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
(Rev. 2.26) To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations
(Rev. 3.3) Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent.
(Rev. 3.11) I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
(Rev. 3.20) Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
Christ seems to be emphatic that each church has a useful purpose.
They will only find that purpose when they turn from the world and face Christ, Himself.
"Repent, turn away, be faithful, hang on to what you have, be victorious, I am coming soon, I am here, at the doorstep of your life, Let me in and we will prevail!"
For all the charisma Joe Clark exudes in Lean on Me, it is the words of Dr. Frank Napier (played by Robert Guillaume) that stick with me the most.
Napier was a fellow teacher back in the 60's with Clark at East Side.
20 years later, Napier is now Superintendent on the school system in Paterson, New Jersey and Clark is the principal at a elementary school across town.
The city finds itself in a situation where if they can't turn things around at East Side, the State will come in and take over the school system.
Napier wants Clark as his principal.
Upon reaching out to Joe, Napier is rebuffed by the indignant Clark for having left him down in the elementary system for so long.
Napier rebuttals Clark by stating that he is not a miracle worker.
Now is the time and the chance to go in and make some real change for the better.
Clark starts to walk away.
And, the statement I love from Napier....
"You know what? For all your rants, and all your 'Crazy Joe' routine, what have you ever accomplished? Nothing! You're an insignificant man. It as if you were never born! Your life hasn't made one bit of difference, and neither has mine. Wanna take that to the grave?"Our usefulness is determined on how willing we are to stand up against the atrocities of life and affect change.
As Christians, our usefulness is determined by how willing we are to put Christ front and center in our lives and allow Him to lead into those atrocities, whether internal on our part or external in the world, and affect change for His sake.
If you read my messages at all, you know my underlying theme is 'comfort food'.
You might be asking yourself at this point, 'where's the comfort' ?
The comfort is in knowing the God does not deal with us like Joe Clark deals with things.
God is not here to ball us out like Joe did with a freshman on the roof of the school, encouraging the boy to jump.
God is not here to kick us out, like Joe did on the first day of school with 400 students.
Jesus clearly speaks to his people that if change does not happen, if they do not become useful followers, there will be repercussions.
At the same time, He opens the door them and asks them to open the door to Him.
He is the only one who can make things right in our lives.
He alone can bring us into usefulness.
It's late.
My fried chicken is getting cold.
Hello, microwave.
