# Church Assessment - Laodicea ## Question: Is your church wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked? How about the American church? --- ### Background - In my note [[1627598467_Church_Assessment|Biblical Assessment of the Seven Churches]], I discussed a pattern I discovered in Jesus' [[Assessment]] of the [[Seven]] churches in **Revelation 2-3**. - This assessment of the [[Church]] in [[Laodicea]] is derived from the Berean Study Bible (BSB), [[Revelation_03|Revelation 3.14-22]] --- ### Authority Of The Assessor - These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Originator of God’s creation. {3.14} --- ### Acknowledgment of some good things - NONE --- ### Condemnation of some negative things - I know your deeds; you are neither cold nor hot. How I wish you were one or the other! {3.15} - You say, ‘I am rich; I have grown wealthy and need nothing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked. {3.17} --- ### Plan of action - I counsel you to buy from Me Gold refined by fire so that you may become rich - White garments so that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness not exposed Salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. {3.18} - Be earnest and repent. {3.19} - He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches {3.22} --- ### Consequences for failing to complete the plan of action - Because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to vomit you out of My mouth! {3.16} --- ### Promises / rewards - Those I love, I rebuke and discipline. {3.19} - Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him, and he with Me {3.20} - To the one who is victorious, I will grant the right to sit with Me on My throne, just as I overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. {3.21} --- ### My observations - Nothing good was said - Longest list of negative things - No consequences for failing to complete the POA, just a promise of what is to come! --- The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible (https://bereanbible.com), BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub (https://biblehub.com), Discovery Bible (https://discoverybible.com), OpenBible.com (https://openbible.com), and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain (https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0). ---