Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by
International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
© Copyright 2010 - 2019 All rights reserved.
Daniel 11 Explained
(condensed ‘one page’ commentary)
‘Matthew 24’ Explained
(must match Revelation)
The ‘Seals’ Explained
(Revelation timeline revealed)
Seven Churches Explained
(Past & Present Church Prophecy)
Note: ‘Sitemap’ shows a complete list of all pages (by category).
‘Homepage’ gives 3 simple steps + timelines + summary.
Current Events from Daniel 11 (matching the Middle East)
The
Abomination
(Daniel 11:31)
done
Recent Events
ISIS - Saudi - Turkey
(Daniel 11: 24-27)
Final Events
to the Abomination
(Daniel 11: 28-30)
Shiites re-take Persia
+ America’s Role Begins
(Daniel 11: 21-23)
soon
done
done
Church #7 – Lukewarm Laodicea
(Materialistic, Homosexual, and Interfaith)
The Church of Laodicea is a group that should be avoided by Christians because they
are in danger of being “spit out,” thus not go to heaven, since they are only “lukewarm.”
The two things that specifically make them “lukewarm” is that they perform ‘good deeds’,
yet they have ‘acquired wealth and think they do not need a thing’. As I will illustrate, there
are multiple groups that could fit into this description of being ‘lukewarm’.
Revelation 3:15-20 [7th Church – Laodicea]
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.
1. Materialistic
The first and most obvious group that this verse could be referring to are the rich, materialistic
people who are described in the Parable of the Great Banquet. (Luke 14:16-24) They were so
concerned with their lives on earth: buying property, conducting business, and getting married,
that they didn’t want to go to the banquet when it was ‘ready’. In other words, they wanted
more time on earth, instead of going to heaven, which means that they valued material things
more than God and Jesus. In other words, they lost focus on the main goal of being a Christian,
which is to be with Jesus in heaven. If you skip to the end of the Parable, those materialistic
people who wanted more time on earth didn’t get to attend the banquet at all. It’s ironic
because we will have far more riches in heaven than we could ever possess on earth.
1 Corinthians 2:9
“However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him."”
2. Homosexuals and Interfaith
I’m grouping homosexuals and interfaith because they both try to use some of the same
arguments to water-down or change Christianity into what they want it to be. Paul warned
about people trying to change the gospel to please men, instead of God.
Galatians 1: 9-10
As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel
other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! 10 Am I now trying
to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still
trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Churches should heed Paul’s warning because changing the values of the Church to please
men, instead of God, is exactly what the Homosexuals and interfaith ministries are trying to do.
They deceptively use Christian principles, but only in part, in an effort to water-down basic
beliefs and make the Church ‘lukewarm’.
a. Homosexuals
One argument that Homosexuals claim is that Christian fundamentalists ‘hate them’ or
‘don’t accept them’ because they are different. On the contrary, Christians are taught not
to hate anyone, but at the same time, Christians are supposed to hate sin and not accept it.
If sin is accepted as being right, when God’s Word says it’s wrong, then that would be changing
the gospel (truth). In the following passage, homosexuality is clearly described as being wrong,
as well as many other sins, but notice the point Paul makes at the end. (bold)
Romans 1:26-32
“Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged
natural relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural
relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed
indecent acts with other men and received in themselves the due penalty for their
perversion. 28 Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the
knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be
done.
29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity.
They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers,
God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey
their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Although they know
God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not
only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice
them.”
The point that Paul makes is that it’s bad enough to continue committing sins, but it’s even
worse to “approve” of such things and the people who do them. That’s exactly what
homosexuals are trying to do: gain acceptance for their sin rather than asking forgiveness.
Of course, Christians don’t ‘hate them’ or even object to them being in church, but they
should definitely object if any homosexual tries to proclaim that there’s nothing wrong with
being a homosexual. It’s clearly wrong in scripture and that cannot be changed, even if society
claims it’s okay and legal to be married. It’s still wrong because God is the authority who
determines who goes to heaven, not society. That’s not to say that a homosexual is
automatically condemned to hell because they could ask forgiveness and refrain from sex,
just like an unmarried heterosexual person should refrain from sex. In other words, they
may not be able to change who they are attracted to, but if they can live only as friends and
refrain from sex, then they have committed no sin. As the following passage illustrates, we
can’t always control our thoughts and desires, but those thoughts and desires don’t generally
become sin until they are “conceived” (converted to words and actions).
James 1:13-15
13 When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be
tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own
evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived,
it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
b. Interfaith Ministries
In case you haven’t heard, ‘interfaith ministries’ is a growing group of congregations that
combine Christianity with either Islam, Judaism, or both. Their main argument is that they
are promoting peace, love, and unity, which sounds great on the surface, but when you think
about it more deeply, it’s just another version of being ‘lukewarm’. It can be deceiving because
they choose selective scriptures to support their cause and accuse those who disagree as being
filled with ‘hate’, similar to the homosexuals. This is an example of the scripture they both use.
Matthew 22: 37-40
37 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second
is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on
these two commandments."
On the surface, all the commandments being summed up with “love God and love your
neighbor” sounds like a simple and complete philosophy, which Christians, Muslims, and Jews
can all abide by. However, the thing that is being overlooked is that Jesus says the “Law and
Prophets,” which is the Old Testament, or “ten commandments,” can all be summed up as that.
Yet, He was not including the New Testament and how to get to heaven. Sure, everyone should
“love God and love your neighbor,” but getting to heaven requires a confession of faith that
Jesus is the Son of God, who died for our sins, rose again, and will return for those who love
Him. That is the only way for a person to have their sins forgiven, which is the pre-requisite
for living with God in heaven. The fact that Jews and Muslims don’t believe that Jesus was the
Son of God effectively eliminates their chance for heaven, so it’s wrong to lie and tell them
otherwise. Giving someone false hope might make them feel good, for now, but it won’t help
them in the long run because only faith in Jesus can get a person to heaven.
John 14:6
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me.”
The reason Jesus is the ‘only way to the Father’ is that “all have sinned” (Romans 3:21-25),
and only through Jesus can a person have their sins forgiven, thus allowing them to be declared
‘righteous’ again by God. (see pop-up) That ‘righteousness’, through Jesus, is necessary to be
with God in heaven. Trying to achieve righteousness by any other means, either by our own
efforts or another religion is just not possible. Therefore, joining with Muslims and Jews and
not emphasizing that they need Jesus to be saved is useless to them and makes Christians
‘lukewarm’ because they are essentially downplaying the importance of Jesus for the sake of
peace and unity. Jesus never compromised His message for the sake of peace and unity.
On the contrary, He said ‘love for Him’ would bring ‘division’, even among families.
Matthew 10:34-37
34 [Jesus said,] "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not
come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn "'a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, a man's
enemies will be the members of his own household.' 37 Anyone who loves his father
or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or
daughter more than me is not worthy of me.”
As you can see, love for Jesus should be first and foremost, even above family members!
I think it’s safe to say that interfaith ministries who emphasize ‘loving their neighbor’ and
downplay ‘love for Jesus’ to appease other religions are “not worthy of Him.” However, that’s
not to say that a person should resort to hate or violence against someone of a different religion.
Christians should be kind and loving towards everyone. However, that doesn’t mean we should
try to join them, if that means downplaying the importance of Jesus.
When Paul talked about ‘unity and acceptance’, he was talking about Christians being united
with each other, not other religions, and accepting those within Christianity who might have
other gifts and purposes within the body of Christ, since everyone is equally important.
1 Cor 12:12-13; 27
The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are
many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit
into one body-whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free-and we were all given the one Spirit
to drink. … 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
Paul was certainly not talking about accepting other religions who didn’t accept Jesus as
the Messiah (Christ and Savior) because Paul regularly denounced false teachers who tried to
change his message of Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. He called them messengers of Satan.
2 Corinthians 11:13-15
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles
of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness.
Their end will be what their actions deserve.
Thus, just because a message may sound good and contain elements of Christianity, such as
‘peace, love, unity, and acceptance’, it could still be a deceitful message from Satan, if they are
downplaying the importance of Jesus. For example, I’ve heard of interfaith groups promoting
help for the poor and care for the environment, but if it comes at the expense of promoting
Jesus as the Son of God, then they are merely being “lukewarm.”
Examples in Today’s Society
1. The Methodists and Homosexuals
First of all, some denominations have already accepted gay marriage in the church and
homosexuals as clergy, but I am emphasizing the United Methodist Church, which is the largest
mainline denomination in America, because they are currently battling homosexuals to maintain
the standard definition of marriage, as being between ‘one man and one woman’, and trying to
exclude openly gay members as clergy. It has been an issue for decades, but the battle is
getting more heated. If the decision was left to the United States alone, the Homosexuals would
probably win, but the United Methodists are a worldwide organization and voting is weighted by
membership. Therefore, the African countries are helping to keep things Biblical, but there is a
new vote each year and many in America want to split from the main body, if they can’t get
policies changed to their liking. They are the ones crying ‘hate’ and accusing those who follow
the Bible of being ‘too rigid and unaccepting’. Yet, as I stated above, it’s wrong to approve of
sin (Romans 1:32), just to appease certain members of the congregation or try to increase
membership. In other words, if spreading the gospel comes at the cost of compromising the
basic principles of the gospel, then it’s not worth it. Sure, churches should accept anyone who
wants to attend, but they should not approve of their sin to get them to stay. That is just
wrong. Methodists (especially in Africa) are right to hold fast to the Bible, and not give in to
homosexuals as other denominations have done.
2. Pope Francis and Interfaith Denominations
Pope Francis has been turning sharply towards ‘interfaith dialogue’, even to the point of
allowing a pagan idol to be worshipped at the Vatican, and not apologizing for it. Notice I
specified ‘Pope Francis’ and not the whole Catholic Church, since many Catholic clergy have
expressed concern over the pope’s recent behavior, even demanding that he repent. Yet,
Pope Francis continues to be the leader of the church, whom millions follow, so it’s a big deal.
Briefly, the history of the interfaith movement goes all the way back to Nigeria, in the 1970’s,
but it didn’t gain traction there until the 80’s and 90’s. The origin of Chrislam, as it is called,
was ultimately rooted in a dream, which is interesting because Islam itself was rooted in a
dream, as was the Ottoman Empire, both of whom appear in Daniel 11, starting with verse 5.
My point is this: A dream could support the fact that it is part of Biblical prophecy (7th Church),
but that doesn’t mean it’s right (lukewarm), just like Islam wasn’t right. The good news is that
the vast majority in Nigeria still consider both branches of the Chrislam movement to be cults.
Many credit Rick Warren for bringing Chrislam to America, but it actually goes back even
farther. Interfaith dialogue in America actually started with Jon Stallsmith, the outreach
minister at Grace Fellowship in Atlanta, in 2001, with the simple message: ‘love your neighbor’.
In 2008, a document called ‘The Yale Covenant’ made interfaith dialogue somewhat official
by gaining 100’s of signatories from around the world, including Rick Warren. The message
remained about the same as Stallsmith’s, but added: ‘love God and love your neighbor’.
The following year, in 2009, Rick Warren spoke at the annual meeting of the Islamic Society
of North America, essentially excluding Jesus from the speech. No doubt that appearance
drastically helped the interfaith movement in America, but it wasn’t necessarily the start.
The interfaith movement took a giant leap internationally, in Feb-2019, when Pope Francis
traveled to UAE and endorsed the ‘Abu Dhabi document’, which drew criticism for stating that
a “pluralism and diversity” of religions is “willed by God.” I’m sure that most Christians can
see the problem with that concept: By putting other religions equal with Christianity, the
document (and pope) are diminishing the importance of Jesus. As I said above, the motto
of ‘love God and love your neighbor’ is leaving out the most important condition for getting
to heaven: ‘love Jesus’ (and acknowledge Him as the Son of God).
Pope Francis took another turn for the worse, in Oct-2019, when as part of the Amazonian
Synod, he allowed the worship of a pagan idol on Vatican grounds. The pagan idol was a
“Pachamama statue,” which is a wooden statue of a naked woman giving birth, representing
‘mother earth’, which is worshipped with pray and sacrifices in parts of South America.
There is even a video of Pope Francis blessing a Pachamama statue, then receiving it, which
was later placed in the Vatican. A concerned Catholic through the statue in the river, but it was
fished out, and Pope Francis apologized for the drowning of the statue, but not for the worship.
On the contrary, the pope defended the activity as part of his push for interfaith dialogue,
even though it clearly violates God’s 1st commandment.
Now, the interfaith movement is virtually everywhere in America and around of the world,
supporting my belief that it’s a major part of the 7th Church (Laodicea). The fact that they are
using the Biblical notion of ‘love God and love your neighbor’, and doing good deeds for the
poor, yet diminishing the importance of Jesus to accommodate other religions, exactly fits the
description of being “lukewarm.” They are in danger of being “spit out” because only through
Jesus can a person be forgiven of their sins and thus become worthy to be in God’s presence.
Praise Jesus!
Related page:
Seven Churches
of Revelation
(Churches 1-6, including
charts, diagrams,
and summary)
Related page:
Gay Marriage and
Homosexuality
in the Bible
(Discussion of Old
and New Testament,
and current events)
UA-32512179-1