Beware Laodicean Churches!

By Jackie Morfesis

The wound of Orthodox Christianity is that we do not always hold fast to scripture. Not only do we not always hold fast to scripture, but we do also not always rest our lives and our actions on the foundation of God’s Holy Word. And rest assured, this has dire and severe consequences.

If we do not know God’s Word, then we do not know the past, the present, nor the future. Why? Because God’s Word is instructive, edifying, fortifying, and prophetic. We do not have to be soothsayers, fortune-tellers, nor involved in the dark arts to see how the future will unfold, we only need to be awake and aware of God’s warnings, admonitions, and rest in His promises.

Beware Laodicean Churches! In the letter to the church of the Laodiceans, the lukewarm church, it is written: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’ – and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked – I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with salve, that you may see” (Revelation 3:14-18).

The book of Revelation gives a sobering and foreboding warning to the lukewarm churches, most notably the church of Laodicea. Prosperous, wealthy, and successful, the Laodicean church seemed to have everything imaginable, everything that is coveted, if you will. But it did not rest on God’s Word. Instead, it hungered for insatiable wealth with a spirit of greed. Instead of lifting God’s law, and celebrating the goodness of God, it celebrated wealth and worshipped their own culture.

How many times do we see Laodicean churches in our midst? Churches that celebrate not the goodness of God nor our saving grace, but how much profit we can make at festivals? How much income we can receive from other avenues, like events and rentals?

I grew up in a parish in New Jersey. I loved my home church so to speak, though I was born in the south. It was not only the religious center of our life, but indeed the social nexus of not only my, but most of the Greek community in the tri-state area. As were many of the churches back in the day.

I was heartbroken to see that my church, the church of my youth, found it necessary to invest hundreds of thousands, if not more, perhaps over a million or millions in refacing its façade. Not only refacing its façade but in essence, completely renovating the outside of the church, which was duly functional, including adding a bell tower. Is it attractive? Of course. Was it necessary? Absolutely not.

The funds and donations used for renovation could have easily built an outreach center, clothed, and fed the homeless and the hungry. Started countless programs, lifted up their community and the larger community. But no, they had gold and glitter in their eyes. They did not see that the brightest light already shone from that church, the Light of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Instead, they needed to shine and sparkle for the world to see, because they saw through worldly not spiritual eyes.

I know the argument: “We have beauty in our churches because we are giving to God what belongs to God. We honor God by making His holy house beautiful.” I do not disagree. But God’s House has purpose beyond the physical. God’s house has meaning and that meaning should be permeating and penetrating our hearts so that we are the fire of His Light. When we are the fire of His Light, we are not attracted by the worldly but by the spiritual. “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).

I volunteered at my Greek festivals (agoras). I remember wiping tables and serving Greek sweets to the visitors as a child. I continued volunteering into my adulthood. It was a time of fellowship. A gift to the community. However, we have come to rely on the revenue from the festivals to supplement membership dues. We have all been lectured on this wound by stewardship representatives from our Archdiocese.

Why is this even an issue? Because we are approaching everything upside down and backwards. God is first. First. Always First. “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash” (Matthew 7:24-27).

I can personally testify that had I not built my house on solid rock; I would no longer have a home. I would no longer be standing. Every storm imaginable, earthly, and divine, has attacked my life. But I give my life to God, and He has held me and protected me against my enemies. He will strengthen us and bring beauty from ashes every single time. This is the fire of remolding that is spoken of in Revelation. This is the true gold, the gold that is refined in the fire of God’s love.

To be clear, the church is not a business. The church conducts business but it is not a business. The identity of the church is God’s House, the Bride of Christ, a hospital for the sick, a place of refuge and healing. And for the record, the body of believers are the church, we are the bride of Christ. Until we know our true identify as parishioners, as followers of Christ and the true identity of our churches, we will always fall short, and miss the mark. Not only will we fall short and miss the mark, but there will also be dire and tragic consequences.

One need only to be reminded of the Orthodox churches who have lost their buildings – including their churches due to financial mismanagement, lack of transparency, honesty, and not having their priorities in order. Most notably Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois. Sold for 2.5 million dollars as a result of foreclosure. Did the church suffer? Of course it did. The icon of the Holy Theotokos inside its walls wept as a result. We are hurting our God, our Lord, our Holy Theotokos, and saints and martyrs when we are not good stewards of our churches. In fact, we all suffer when we diminish, devalue, and disrespect God’s house.

God help us. We must be known for more than gyro sandwiches and folk dancing. Our children need to be taught the Bible so that they at least have a rudimentary knowledge of scripture and the story of our faith. There is no glory in teaching the stories of the saints and their feast days if we do not even know that we are all called to be saints in scripture. That their stories, their passion, their resting on God’s Word, their fierce loyalty and defense of God and His plan and purpose for our lives, for our churches, should be ours’ as well.

Beware Laodicean Churches! The spirit of greed and cultural worship is contaminating your ability to shine as the Light of Christ in a world so very desperate for God’s love, mercy, and protection. If we do not stand for the Lord, then the Lord will not stand and testify for us before the Father. “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32).

It is time. It is long past time. We should not be acting from a place of desperation in our financial dealings. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). We do not stand in a place of fear, but we stand firmly on the ground knowing who holds us. We are rooted, anchored, and fortified by our relationship with the Lord. He is our protector, healer, beloved, and lighthouse. We must stop minimizing His plan over not only our own lives, but upon His holy churches.

Beware Laodicean churches! “Be not deceived. God is not mocked; for whatever a man shall sow, that also shall he reap” (Galatians 6:7). The writing is on the wall. It was always on the wall. Yet, we, through our own hubris and egos want to paint the wall with our own will, not God’s will. This can never end well. But we are always given the opportunity to repent, to draw near to God, and to ask for forgiveness. In doing so, He will make the impossible possible and bless us despite our sinfulness and disobedience.

God bless our Holy Orthodox Churches. May our hearts be opened, may our eyes be cleansed, may our ears hear, and may our faith be renewed, so that we are worthy to be called a child of God. So, our churches are lifted up, renewed, and restored. So that all will know that we serve the God Most High and not the trappings of the world.