A Walk Down Lukewarm Lane

back in uh Thomas Kempus wrote this book and um he was talking about the people the Christians in his day. And this is what he said. He said, "Jesus is now some lovers of his heavenly kingdom but few that are willing to bear his cross. He has many that are desirous of comfort but few of tribulation.

He finds many companions of his table but few of his abstinence. All desire to rejoice with him. and few are willing to suffer with him. Many follow Jesus to the breaking of the bread, but few to the drinking of the chalice of his passion.

Many reverence his miracles, but few follow the ignominy of his cross. Many love Jesus as long as they meet with no adversity. Are they not proved to be rather lovers of themselves than of Christ who are always thinking of their own profit in gain? That was written in 1470.

Okay. a long long time ago, right? You think he's talking about today? But what was happening in 1470 Italy was the beginning of the Renaissance, the Italian Renaissance, okay?

Which was defined by immense wealth created by maritime trade, intellectual revival. Leonardo da Vinci was just getting going. I mean, it was the the beginning. So, they were successful.

Okay. Success always brings about Can you bring me my water bottle? Can you believe this? The water bottle is a thing.

Okay. Um [laughter] I'm up here and I'm like, are you um success always brings less of a focus on God and more of a focus on self? It's always been that way. Okay.

Um this is not anything new. Um, where persecution is, that's where more dependence on God is, and that's where the Bible usually explodes and Christianity explodes. China and the Middle East are where Christianity is growing the fastest, not here in America. From 2000 to 2023, 30 million Americans left Christianity, and the number of people identifying as Christians dropped a whopping 16%.

So, it's been coined a a post-Christian culture. In 2024, we did see an uptick. Okay, the first one in years. Um, which was great.

In other words, more were added than loss. And I don't have 2025 numbers, but I'm guessing it probably was up again. Okay. And a brilliant strategy has kind of been developed that's whether they planned it or not, it suddenly has taken hold and it may be leading to this increase.

And I call it a walk down lukewarm lane. Okay. By focusing on the customer, the church has made Christianity kind of cool. You know, lattes in the lobby, orchestrated music, light shows that grip the the emotions, fantastic performances by gifted preachers along with success-c centered messages of how Christ can help you in your life to live your best life now has helped fuel this rise.

Okay? You know, you come in and and the music is is is going and it gets you going. Everyone's starting to get excited together and and uh the emotions are rising. People are feeling it.

And then out comes the pastor who weaves this beautiful message, fires everyone up, you know, uh about success and happiness and and he he weaves this message and then he does his altar call, you know, how how many people want Jesus in their life? And everyone, you know, 30, 40, 50 people raise their hand, right? And he goes, "All right, say this prayer. Lord, I love you.

I need you. Come into my life. And everyone, yeah. And how many people?

50, 80, 100 salvation decisions. Yes. Everyone's high-fiving in the backstage. They're like, "Yes, see you in next week's performance."

But what was wrong with that salvation decision? Did you pick it up? There was no repentance. Okay?

There was no repentance. Do we all need Jesus? Yes. But unless you repent, okay, that salvation decision, you're still separated from God.

In Luke 13, Jesus said, "They were present at the season, some who told him about the Galileans whose blood pilot had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no. Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

or those 18 on whom the tower of Saleom fell and killed them. Do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you no, but unless you repent, you will likewise all perish. The cross is the key to salvation.

Okay. Isaiah 59:2 states it plainly. But your iniquities, your sins have separated you from God and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he will not hear you. Unless we repent of our sins, okay?

We're separated from God. God can't be where sin is. If you ask Jesus in your heart, God is holy. He can't the Holy Spirit can't come and and live in you if you're still sitting there mired in your sin.

Okay? You have to come to the foot of the cross and lay it down and repent of those sins. The cross cleaned you up. Without the Jesus's atoning death on the cross, there can be no salvation.

Okay? He went to the cross for our salvation. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death." That means your sins justify you going to hell for all eternity.

Okay. Uh but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Okay. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

The cross cleans you up and paves the way for the Holy Spirit, okay, to dwell in you. A real relationship with God when Holy Spirit comes in you and he's in you now by default, the only way that can happen, okay, is if your sins are forgiven. All right? And the beautiful thing is the cross allows that.

If you don't though, if it's just a watered down thing where there was no repentance, where you're still mired in your sin, okay? We may hear the dreaded words that Jesus spoke in Matthew 7:22 and 23. Because the Holy Spirit can't be in you, because God is separated from you by sin. because you haven't asked the repentance of the cross, the repentance of your sins that the cross provides.

You may hear this, many will say to me in that day, this is Jesus speaking, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders in your name? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness." If we're mired in sin, God cannot be there.

Okay? he cannot know you. So if that's the type of salvation decision you did make, we can clean it up today. Okay?

If it was devoid of repentance, you have a chance to settle that. We can come down here. I'll, you know, and and once and for all because we're not promised tomorrow. Okay?

We got to make sure that our salvation is nailed down, right? Okay. So, an easy salvation decision starts the walk down lukewarm lane. Now, have you ever been in an airport and you seen like those those people movers where the it's it's moving?

so that when you step on it, you walk really fast, you know, and you can beat everyone else who's on the side for us competitive people, you know, you're sitting there walking. We're speeding it up now. Okay. Um, we're going to speed it up with a nifty little doctrine called once saved, always saved.

Okay, that phrase is actually found nowhere in this Bible. Okay, that exact phrase is found nowhere in this Bible. It comes from John 10:28 predominantly John 10:28 and 29 which reads, "And I give them eternal life." This is Jesus speaking.

"And they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My father who has given them to me is greater than all. And no one is able to snatch them out of my father's hand. I and my father are one."

Is that a true statement? It's in the Bible, right? Yes, it is. Amen.

It's true. Okay, it's Jesus speaking. So, it's not truth. We're in trouble.

Okay, because he's the truth. And so, it is a true statement. Other passages like Romans 8:38 and 39 that say no, neither height nor depth nor anything can keep us from the love of Jesus. All right?

The love of God. So, if you truly repented and you asked them into your heart, man, this is a great promise. You cannot lose your salvation. No one can snatch them out of his hand.

It's absolutely true. Okay. The danger is in how this truth is being scripted by gifted preachers, podcasters, and writers expanding to subtly suggest that it doesn't matter what you do. No matter how bad you sin now and going forward, no matter what you sin, once you said that prayer, you're good to go.

Sin becomes okay because God loves you. And it's spun like God knows your heart. Well, he does. God loves you.

He does. God knows it's tough on this planet. He made you. It's okay.

You were just born that way. Okay. And all of these subtle things bring about an acceptance of sin. Okay?

That born that way comment is the great argument, okay, for homosexuality, right? And many Christians now today believe it. Okay. But the Bible calls it a sin.

They're good people. Yes. We're to love them. Yes.

But it's still a sin. There's not going to be any judgment when you come into this church because I'm a sinner. Okay? Or or I have sinned.

Just this week, I raised my voice at someone. Man, she made me lose my Jesus. I I'm telling you. And uh some some people have a way of just uh you know, they push the buttons, you know.

And so I repented afterwards and I said, you know, Lord, I got to do better because the Bible says be angry but do not sin. Right? And Jesus says if you raise your voice at your brother or sister, you're committing murder. Right?

So by yelling back at the person, I had sinned. Right? So what I'm about to share has got nothing to do with me judging you. It's simply the word.

I hold it on myself. I repented and then I turned. How what can I think of next time so the person doesn't get my goat? Okay, I got to get better at that.

All right, but the Bible calls homosexuality a sin. I'm heterosexual. Okay, that doesn't mean I can sleep with people before marriage. It's not okay.

The Bible calls that a sin as well. All right, but I will tell you it's not only socially acceptable, it's the norm. All right, I was uh I didn't date for 30 years. Okay.

And then I waited a couple years after my divorce and then I began to date again. Now I'm older, right? And I'm dating older women, but I'm I focused on Christian women. I wasn't going to ask out anyone who wasn't a Christian because that's, you know, ground rule one, right?

They got to be cute and they got to, you know, be Christian. And then and then and then we'll see if we can compatible right? Every single one would have slept with me on date at the latest, too. I had one girl say to me, "I don't sleep with anyone on the first date."

And I'm thinking, "Well, I wasn't going to sleep with you on the second date, darling. I mean, I mean, come [laughter] on. I'm supposed to save myself until marriage. Even though I'm here and I have six kids, doesn't matter.

That's what I'm supposed to do." And so, it's so normal for that to happen that it's not even considered a sin. Like it's just like these are Christian women. They sit around talking about the sex with different.

It's just normal way. I uh I really wasn't expecting that. And so that sin is no different than the homosexuality sin. Okay?

It's no different. All right? It's just more socially acceptable. But homosexuality has become generally acceptable.

But sin is um it increases with time. Okay? It's progressively worse. So a hundred years ago, the Christians would not be okay with sleeping around with anyone.

Remember friends? Remember friends? The TV show Friends was so so funny, right? But if you remember back, they slept with each other to determine if they were gonna date each other.

Okay? Like Monik and Chandler, who ended up getting married, they they they hooked up at Ross' wedding. And that's that's the start of the relationship. Like like it's so normal we don't even think about it.

It just goes right over our heads. Okay. But it's not normal. 100 years ago that would have been a blasphemy back wherever.

50 years ago if you'd have told the people in the 50s that there would be a entire month for pride. Okay. Um they would have flipped out. Okay.

No way. No way. Mark my words, man. If Jesus doesn't come back soon, pedophilia is the next thing.

Okay. 50 years from now that'll be like homosexuality is now. Homosexuality will be like sleeping around is now. And I, you know, sleeping around won't even be something they talk about because that's just the way it is.

Um, and so sin is progressively worse. Okay. Galatians 5:13 says, "For you, brethren, have been called to liberty." We are free.

When you ask Jesus into your heart, you're free. Okay? You're free. all your past sins.

He's not going to punish you for it. All your past sins, you don't get judged on everything. You're free. But then Paul says only do not use your liberty as an opportunity for the flesh.

It's not okay to live for yourself and do whatever you want just because you said a prayer back in high school. Okay? If you sin, the Holy Spirit should convict you. You should feel bad about it.

That sin should separate. That sin separates you from God. Okay? Get down on your knees and repent.

It's easy. When I got angry this week, I got I got down on my knees. I repented of it. I thought through it.

Maybe something I can do a little different. So, you repent and then you turn and you try not to do that thing again. Okay. What happens if I mess up again?

Do I lose my salvation? No. No. I got to repent though.

Okay. turn and try not to do it again and I may mess up a few more times. Okay, I but but that is how God slowly cleans you up. Okay, but if you don't repent, if you don't ask for forgiveness and you don't try to change, if the sin is still not dealt with, it separates you from God.

Okay? And the chilling warning of Matthew 17, I mean Matthew 7 can come. Get away from me. I didn't know you.

Lukeworm Lane starts with a salvation decision devoid of repentance. It continues with a doctrine of acceptance of sin because your salvation is secured. But that statement just once saved always saved cannot be true. Okay, let me explain with some actual examples.

Okay. Hebrews Hebrews Hebrews the son. Hebrews 4-6 I mean Hebrews 6:es 4-6. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened and have tasted the heavenly gift and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit and have tasted the good word of God.

They've become, listen to that, partakers of the Holy Spirit. That means they asked Jesus in their heart. They repented of their sins and the Holy Spirit came and took up residence. That's a saved person right there.

Okay. Tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come if they fall away to renew them again to repentance since they crucify again for themselves the son of God and put him to open shame. For once saved, always saved to be absolutely true. The only way that could be is if we do not have free will.

God will never take away free will. I can't I can't walk away from Jesus. Well, then you God's put a bondage on you where you can't move. Do you see that?

Do you see why it can't be true? Do you see how it it's spun? You do have the freedom to reject God. You do.

I we we were at a downtown Snowville witnessing last night and and and people anyone we talked to, they had the freedom to tell us to scoop. Okay. tell us they don't want it. You can reject God and you can get saved and then choose to walk away.

If you don't have that ability, then God must have taken away your free will, which obviously can't happen. Okay? So, by that thing alone, the fact that we still have free will, okay, the fact that you can still reject Jesus and Jesus, we know it's the unforgivable sin to reject Jesus, right? Because Jesus said he's the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the father except through him. Okay? So if you reject him and no one comes up there unless he accepts him, then he can't let you in. Okay?

He can't let you in. So you can walk away from him. It's not a good idea, but you can. All right?

You have that freedom. God doesn't want you forced to love him. He wants you to love him because he's so good and he's so awesome. We we're on Tuesdays.

We're uh learning and witnessing. We're reading through a witnessing book and we're learning how to witness. And and one of the examples in the book, the guy was talking to a guy who had a vision of hell. Okay?

He had a dream of hell and he woke up and he felt he felt like he had accurate descriptions of stuff and and everything. And when the guy was talking to him, he's like, "Oh man, do you know where you're going if you die?" He goes, "I would I would go to hell." He goes, "Okay, let's take care of that then.

Let's He's thinking this is a great opportunity." The guy goes, "No, I'm good." He loved the things of the world so so much he'd rather stay there than ask Jesus in his heart. I mean, I almost cried when I read that.

That's such a bad decision. But we always have free will to reject Jesus. Okay, that passage in Hebrews, that guy was saved and he chose to walk away. Now, that's an intellectual choice.

But here's where it gets scary. Okay? Oh, but here's the good news. Ready?

You can choose to walk away from Jesus, but Hebrews 13, right? 13:5 says this, "I will never leave nor forsake you. We may walk away from him, but he's never going to walk away from us." And that's a beautiful, beautiful promise.

Okay? God's got your back. Just don't reject him. But we can also hinder our entrance into Jesus with our actions.

Okay? And this is just not being taught today. Okay? No one ever touches this because it doesn't keep butts in the seats.

Okay? But if it's in the Bible, it's true. Matthew 24 and 25, the Oliv discourse. Okay?

It is the longest recorded answer to a question that Jesus ever had. Okay? The question, what's going to happen when you come? What's it going to look like at the end?

And he spends two chapters, all red letters, all Jesus, answering that question. It starts with him talking about the things that we see in Revelation, wars, rumors of wars, all this other stuff. Okay? Um the antichrist, the abomination, desolation, and then finally him coming.

Okay? And then he switches over to some parables about how we should be living while we are on this planet waiting for him. And the three parables all have the same premise.

There is the master which is Jesus who goes away okay which he has he's gone back up to be to at the right hand of God the father okay interceding for us and he will come back okay at some point so all of these are masters there he he leaves and how do the servants how are they supposed to act okay first one Matthew 24:45-51 says this who then is a faithful and wise servant whom his master made ruler over his household to give them food in due season.

Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing. Assuredly I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. But if that evil servant says in his heart, "My master is delaying his coming and begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with the drunkards."

The master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he's not aware of and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites where there shall be weeping and nashing of teeth. That phrase weeping and nashing of teeth almost always goes to hell. Okay? It's a it's a statement about hell.

So what did the guy do? He the master was away. So he he lived a grossly sinful life. He beat people up.

He hurt people. He was grossly sinful. We can assume because he kept doing it that he wasn't sorry for it. Okay?

He didn't repent. And what does Jesus say he's going to do? Cut him in two and throw him out where there's weeping and nashing of teeth. Okay.

The next one he shares is the parable of the 10 virgins. Okay. And although she put it on there, I'm probably just gonna overview it until towards the end of it, Kianne. Okay, I'm gonna throw you a loop curveball.

But so the 10 virgins, there's five virgins. Well, you know what? I'm going to read it since you did the work. I'm sorry.

Then the kingdom of God shall be likened to 10 virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now, five of them were wise and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. Remember Jesus left. Here's these these virgins. And at midnight a cry was heard, "Behold, the bridegroom is coming.

Go to meet him." Then all those virgins arose, trim their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out." But the wise answered, saying, "No, lest there should not be enough for us and you, but go rather to those who sell and buy them for yourselves."

And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding, and the door was shut. Afterward, the other virgins came also, saying, Lord, Lord, open up to us. But he answered and said to them, Assuredly I say to you, I do not know you. So the door was shut on these virgins.

Why? Because they weren't ready. They weren't ready. Okay?

And the thing that Jesus said to him was the same same thing he says in Matthew 7. I don't know you. Okay, this is the like they're getting ready for the wedding supper of the lamb. This the master's left and he's coming back.

They're getting ready for supper. The fact that the five went in and the door and that means if the other five were ready, they would have went in. So these we can assume these are basically saved people. The five only five went in because five weren't ready.

Okay, they were living for themselves, doing what they wanted to do, sleeping around, sleeping and to do instead of getting ready and they were caught by surprise. Jesus always says over and over, I'm going to come at a day you don't expect and an hour you don't expect. He says it all the time. Okay, they weren't ready.

And what does Jesus tell him? I do not know you.

I know a lot of people who think when I'm out at my networking functions and and I I say something like I they start talking about what's happening in the world and I'll say something like you know Jesus is coming soon almost everyone says yeah yeah they do Adam when we're at those things and I mean most people believe it but there's not a single change in their life okay they're not changing anything to get ready that's dangerous place to Hey, I don't want anyone in my church to miss out when Jesus comes. Okay? I want everyone to be ready.

I feel like God has called me to prepare whatever people are here to be ready. Okay? Um the final parable how we should be living according to Jesus when he returns is the parable of the talents. And I am going to summarize this one because you all know this one.

Master leaves, he gives five talents to one, two to another, one to another. The five guy doubles it. The two guy doubles it. The one guy buries it.

When he comes back, the master comes back. He rewards the guy who turned his five into 10. He gives the same reward for the guy who gave his two into four. Okay?

And to the one who buried his talent. He says this in verse 25, Matthew 25 28 to 30. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has 10 talents. For to everyone who has more will be given and he will have abundance.

But from him who does not have, even that he has will be taken away and cast the unprofitable servant into the darkness where there will be weeping and nashing of teeth. Okay, these are end times parables. What was his sin? No works.

No works. He got saved and he did nothing. And Jesus cast him out. James 2:26 says this, "For as the body without the spirit is dead."

Think about that. If we don't have the Holy Spirit, if when we ask for forgiveness and we repent and we ask Jesus in our heart, the Holy Spirit should take up residence. If we have that in, okay, we're alive. It says here, "For as the body without the spirit, we're dead."

So faith without works is dead. The Holy Spirit comes inside of us, we're alive. Then when we're saved, it's going to cause you to want to open doors for people, help people, etc. Okay?

You're just going to want to. It's just how it's going to go. And if not, James is saying he's questioning whether you really got saved at all. Okay.

Lukewarm Lane, the way it's pitched, allows the focus to be on us, our desires, our dreams, and even Jesus is there to help us. We're taking the life of Jesus, but we're not giving him ours. Okay? And if that's the case, you may get tossed out.

Now, it's like this, you know, we're in Jesus's hands and we're safe. We can't be snatched out. Okay? No one can come and take you out of his hands.

It's absolutely true. Devil can't even trick you to get you out of there. Okay? God will protect you somehow.

Okay? But you can choose to walk away. The Bible shows it. You can.

You're always allowed free will. And Jesus can come and say, "I didn't know you. Jesus can choose." That's not someone else snatching you out of Jesus's hand.

That's Jesus saying, "Dude, you didn't do it right." Okay. Okay. Now, you may say these are just parables.

I will say parables are lessons just in stories. Okay? They're truths in stories. But let's go to Revelation, my favorite book of the Bible.

So in Revelation 2 and three, Jesus writes, he dictates to John and it's the last recorded information or it's the last recorded uh instructions from Jesus before he comes back. Okay? I wrote a book about it. It's on the back table and you people who are here can get one for free.

You just go and take it. Wow. Right. So read it.

It's a $16 value. It's free. Giving it to you. Okay?

or you can go on Amazon if you want to buy it and like when it's all said and done I make two bucks. Okay, so um just take the free thing. However, um it talks about clear instructions to the seven types of churches, but they're the seven types of people we see. We see faithful Christians, compromising Christians, lukewarm Christians, and in here are faithful churches, compromising churches, lukewarm churches.

Okay. So, these are these are discussions from Jesus, okay? On how we should be living. They're clear directions from Jesus.

They're the words of Jesus. This is not what I'm about to share. Brian Pier, this is all red letter. It's all here.

So, the first church is the church of Ephesus. It you could call it the loveless church. If you have a new King James, it probably says the loveless church. Okay?

They have works. They do all the right stuff. Okay, they would be equivalent to the Pharisees back in the day. All right, who did everything perfect, but they had no love in their heart.

Okay, these are Christians who are always judging everyone else for the little specks that everyone else has while these giant planks of judgment are in their their own eyes. Okay. Um they're like Pharisees. Okay.

To this group, Jesus says, "You got to come back to your first love. Repent and come back to your first love. Come back to love with me. Okay?

And here's what he says. If they don't, Revelation 2:5, remember therefore from where you have fallen, repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent. Again, the word repent. What is the lampstand?

In Revelation 1, John sees this vision and he sees seven stars and then he sees seven lampstands. And Jesus explains to him in uh Revelation 1 verse 20. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven lampstands you saw are the churches. So Jesus is saying, if you're a Pharisee, if you're all legalistic, if you have no love for me, I may remove your lampstand.

Okay? remove your church. Right? That's wild, man.

That's not being taught anywhere. Okay? But it's Jesus saying it. You can't get mad at me.

Okay? These are letters to saved people. These people are churches. They're saved.

So, it's a letter to us. Okay? It does matter how we live after we've been saved. We've been taught a lie that it doesn't matter.

Okay? It does matter. Okay? Don't get mad at me.

These words are Jesus. We're not going to do every church. I'm going to skip to the fifth church, the church at Sardis. This church is a dead church.

Okay? They ghosted Jesus. He calls them dead. These could be people that got sprinkled um as a Catholic at birth, but then never had any relationship with Jesus.

Okay? Just never spent any time with Jesus. Okay? or someone at a at a a youth thing that in the spur of the moment asked Jesus to come in but then never has a conversation with Jesus again.

They just never have a relationship with Jesus. Okay? They've ghosted Jesus if you know what that means. So he says here in Revelation 3 3 through5 remember therefore this is to the church in Sardis.

Remember therefore how you have received and heard. Hold fast and repent. Therefore, hold fast and repent. Therefore, if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.

You have a few names, even in Sardis, who have not defiled their garments. So, he's saying here, there's a few of you that are good. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the book of life, but I will confess his names before my father and his angels. Christians don't read Revelation because it's like it's like they can't get it.

But it's but it's actually really simple and clear. Okay. He says here the few that are worthy he won't blot out by by default that means he may blot out others. Okay.

So the thing about once saved always saved people will say well um you know the Jesus in Matthew where he says get away from I never knew you. Well those people weren't actually saved. You can't say that here. Once you ask Jesus in your heart and the Holy Spirit comes in, your name is written in the book of life.

Okay? So if Jesus then goes into that book of life, if you're in that book of life, you're saved. Now, if Jesus goes in and blotss your name out, okay, you're out, right? Just because you didn't know him.

It's all about the relationship with Jesus. You have to have a relationship with Jesus. No one can snatch you out of his hand, but he can say, "Dude, I didn't know you again." Okay, Jesus can remove you because there's no works.

We just read it. He can we can remove him because there's no relationship. He can remove you because he won't you're not ready. And then the Laosian church, the last church, the lukewarm church.

We're on lukewarm lane. Going to cruise down to the lukewarm church. Revelation 3:15-16, Jesus says this, "I know your works that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot."

Remember, these are saved people. Some are cold, some are hot. So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. Because you say, "I'm rich.

I've become wealthy, and I have need of nothing." Uh, I'm going too far. I will vomit you out of my mouth. See, lukewarm feels good, man.

It's not hot like a Georgia summertime. It's not cold like a North Dakota winter. It's just It's just right, man. It's like Goldilocks, you know?

And the the this one is just right. Okay. There's It starts with a salvation decision with no repentance. It continues with a life focused on us instead of Jesus.

Okay? because we can't lose our salvation no matter how we live. Okay? And we live our lives for us.

And the church creates this orchestra that's focused on you. Okay? And the world wants you focused on you. Uh man, this thing has you focused on you.

Okay? It's a heinous thing. I love it. I hate it.

Um it conspires to keep us focused on us. I call it cultural Christianity and the cudigra of lukewarm laying kind of the end of it all. All right, the preerttrib rapture. And here we're going to have some fun.

Not only do you do you have a lukewarm thing, not only do you get to live for yourself, but you don't even have to experience the tough stuff at the end. You get to skip it all, man. That's just beautiful. Okay, we get to skip it all.

And so, who doesn't want to buy that deal, right? I can just do whatever I want. Jesus is going to help me get whatever I want and then I I just guess skip up to heaven. Okay, that's that's just great when he comes.

But it's it's it's just silly. You cannot read this scripture. You can't read Matthew 24 and 25, okay, and come up with this preacher rapture. Okay?

I've been in debates with with them. Now, now listen, it's true. The smartest people in the smartest preachers believe in preach. Okay?

Back in the 1900s, the early 1900s, Scoffield published his reference Bible. It became the background for all seminary. So every preacher since 1900 was taught pre-trip. Okay?

And if you look for something and you can document it, you can cut and paste to support almost anything. Okay? But the preerttrib rapture cannot be true according to Paul and and Jesus. And I'm going to show you very clearly in [clears throat] oh by the way the word rapture just like once saved always saved.

That actual word is not in this Bible. Okay. What they're talking about is what Paul describes in first Thessalonians and in first Corinthians. Okay, the preacher people always t cling to the first Thessalonians because it says at the trumpet we're going to be raised and meet him in the sky.

Okay, first Corinthians though go says a little bit more detail the final trumpet. Okay, so when does the rapture happen? According to Paul, the final trumpet. Nowhere in Daniel does it say when it's going to happen.

Nowhere anywhere else. So Paul is the definitive on when it's going to happen as the final trumpet. 1 Corinthians 15 51 and 52. You got it on the screen?

Let me read it. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all be sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised incorruptible and we shall all be changed.

Okay. So when is the final trumpet? That's the answer, right? If Paul says it happens at the final trumpet, then when is that final trumpet?

Let's go back to Jesus's discourse in Matthew uh Matthew 24 and 25 because Jesus himself tells us when the final trumpet is. No other authority but him. um Matthew 29 through31 immediately after the tribulation of those days. So Jesus has described all these things, wars, rumors of wars, all these other things, the antichrist, don't you know the abomination of desolation.

And then he says immediately after the tribulation of those days, so this is near the end of the seven-year tribulation period. And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened. The moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from heaven.

The powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the son of man will appear in heaven. And then all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the son of man coming on the clouds of heaven and with great power. And he will send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet.

And they will gather together his elect from the four winds, which sure sounds like he's gathering us up to meet in the sky from one end of heaven to the other. As Jesus is coming at the end after tribulation, he says there's a trumpet sound. Now, I've looked all over the place. I can't find another trumpet after that.

So, that's the last trumpet. So, listen, I'm not an educated guy. All right? Not all smart.

I think my gift that God's given me is I can read and I believe it's true and it just I just believe what it says. Okay. If Paul says it happens at the last trumpet and Jesus says the last trumpet is when he comes and how can we get raptured up seven years earlier? It's impossible.

Now I've been in discussions with these guys preerttrib rapture and they can never answer that question. Someone will say it's a different trumpet. No it's the same root word I looked for trumpet. Okay, they don't have an answer for it.

Okay, but they can weave all this stuff that I don't, you know, I'm like, all right, so here's the thing. I don't care who the pastor is out there. I don't care how big he is. I don't care if it was the now deceased John MacArthur, the now deceased Charles Stanley.

I don't care how big they are. I don't care who they are. If they believe in that preacher rapture, they're wrong. Okay.

Philip Anthony Michael, that guy, have you seen him preach? He's so good. It's I mean I don't I can't even watch him. Okay.

He's just he's just too good. It's kind of like you know the basketball players probably when Michael Jordan came into the league and was flying by them. They're like when did he learn how to fly? You know, um it's kind of the same thing.

I'll listen to that guy and I'm like, "Okay." So I don't know where he sits on the preacher of the post because I don't listen to him enough. But I've heard enough of his messages to know that he believes Jesus is coming soon and he's trying to get people ready for his coming. Well, that's my message, too.

Okay. So, it doesn't really matter. We can still We're all on the same team. I can still partner with people.

We were at a witnessing thing last night and I c I was went up to the one lady and she's like, "If you're not Methodist, I don't want to talk to you." And I'm thinking, "Do you believe in Jesus as Lord?" That we're on the same team, man. You know, come on.

Let's not be so Who made up denominations? Was it Jesus or was it us? you know, and so I don't worry if someone's preerttrib or post-trib. That's not something to fight over for me.

Here's my only concern, okay? Because I'm not going to listen to them because I'm running. I don't care how impressive they are. I'm running with what Jesus says and what Paul says.

That's just I'm a simple guy, man. Jesus is king. If he says it, I'm good. I don't need to I don't need to debate it.

I don't want to debate it. It's not a debatable subject for me. But we're all on the same team. We're not enemies.

Okay? And despite that clear scriptural proof that I'm showing, people will still believe what they want to believe. That's what I found. So, I'm not going to change anybody's mind.

Okay? Here's my fear. That the things of tribulation begin. Okay?

And the person that is uh preaching doesn't see it because, oh, I haven't been raptured up yet. Okay? But my bigger fear is this. The mark of the beast comes.

Okay? And in the Bible in Revelation, remember, no one can snatch you out of Jesus's hand. Okay? So, you won't get tricked into the mark of the beast.

I had some people call me during COVID and say, "Is this the mark of the beast?" Oh, man. Okay. They they they got tricked into taking they feel they got tricked into taking the vaccine and they're like, "Am I going to hell?"

No, you're not going to hell. You will know when it is. There's going to be an angel according to Revelation, according to the Bible, there's going to be an angel flying around saying this mark. This is the mark.

Don't take it or you will end up in hell. Once again, even though you're saved, you take that mark, you can end up in hell according to the Bible. Did someone snatch you out of hand? No.

you made a choice to go after the world instead of trusting God to meet those needs. Okay? And that's my fear is the preacher who's making a million dollars a year, who has the huge thing, who's been preaching preacher the whole time, when that mark comes, he tells all of his congregants, "That's not the mark. You know, we get raptured up first.

That's my only fear." Okay? And there's a special place in hell to preachers that lead people to hell. It's a It's a hey heady thing to to to discern the word of God.

Okay? I have to be very careful to make sure it's exactly what Jesus said that I'm preaching. That's why I use half a Bible every time I I I wear my my girl out who has to put all the the things up there. Takes her forever to type it all up because I'm used so much scripture.

And I texted it to her. It's like this long in the thing. It's this verses. Poor girl.

Um, and so even if you are preacher, Revelation 19:7, okay, the marriage supper of the lamb says this, the wife has made herself ready. It's our responsibility. We're the wife. Jesus is the groom.

It's our job to get ready for the coming of the king. Okay? [sighs] We're to get ready. Period.

Lukewarm Lane is a broad road that leads to hell for those that are on it. They're going to be saying singing AC/DC's Highway to Hell. As they're driving down that road, Jesus says, um, that broad is the road that goes to destruction. Okay.

Um, if you don't repent, hell is the destination of lukewarm lane. Jesus says in Luke 9:23, "If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, pick up his cross daily, and follow me daily. We're supposed to live for Jesus, okay? Every single day.

Unless you think I'm a killjoy, okay?" I'm not. All right? My life is pretty joyful.

I mean, Kerianne lives with me. I I'm I'm not I'm not anxious for anything. I don't fear anything. I'm not worried about anything.

I You know, I did slip up when the person you know, poked me. But as soon as that was over, I repented and I was back in love, joy, peace. It blipped me for 30 minutes, which is growth. Something like that would have had me knocked out the rest of the day and I would have gone to the bar to drink.

Not no not anymore. Okay, I handled it well. So, I was very, very, very So, it was good even though I could have done better. But, but it is fun to chase after the Lord.

It is fun to to die to ourselves and live for Jesus. It really is. It's a better way of living. Okay?

You're in the center of his will and you're growing. If you listen to the conviction of the Holy Spirit, you're growing. Growth is fun. Stagnation is not fun.

Being stuck in middle is not fun. Growth is fun. So I ask you, how are you living? Are you living for you or are you living for Christ?

What I shared today was almost exclusively Jesus's words with a couple passages of John and Paul. Okay. Lukewarm Lane leads to being spit out, vomited out, blotted out of the book of life. The door closed on you, cast in the darkness, dreadfully told, "Get away from me.

I never knew you." And I just don't want you to to end up there. Okay? Lukewarm loans lukewarm lane is a place where people think they're saved, but they never repented.

They live for themselves. And unfortunately, Jesus in Matthew 7:13 says, "Broad is the road that leads to destruction." And that's lukewarm Lane. So I say, "Get off lukewarm lane."

Don't have a house on lukewarm lane. Okay? Don't have a vacation home on lukewarm lane. Don't spend some of your time on lukewarm lane and some of your time in the world.

Don't straddle the fence. Okay? Uh don't sit on um fence straddling street. Okay?

Get off of that one. All right. Um, get off of it for good. How?

It's easy. Repent. Repent. It's all it is is repentance.

As the band comes up, I really believe, as do most people that study the end times, that Jesus is coming soon. >> I really do believe it. I am changing the way I live my life with the assumption that Jesus is coming soon because I know that if I'm ready, how do you get ready for Jesus coming? You work on that relationship with Jesus Christ.

It's all about relationship. And if I work on my relationship with Jesus Christ, I'm going to grow. I'm going to get better. Okay?

And there is no downside [music] to getting my relationship with Jesus better. There's just no downside. Okay? This is probably not a popular message what I shared today, but it is a truthful message.

It's [music] right out of God's word. There's a lot of people that think they're Christian, but they're living on lukewarm lane. And I don't want [music] anyone under the sound of my voice, anyone that's online, I don't want anyone to get thrown out. Not a single person in this flock, if I can help it.

Okay? So, repent. [music] Just repent. You can do it right now.

You can do it right today. You can do it right at this altar right here. And then get that spirit [music] and rise up and worship him and live a new life, a a a revival life. Okay, [music] we can start right now.

Let me pray. Heavenly Father, Lord, Lord, the most important question for all of us today is how's our relationship with you? And Lord, if [music] we didn't repent when we asked you in, I pray that right now we take care of it. I'll be to the side over there and and and you can come and meet me, Lord.

Lord, I just pray that you will move in the hearts and the minds of the people that you will anyone who's [music] convicted today come forward and repent and throw it down to the altar and rise up and live free. Lord, I don't want anyone to perish. You are coming soon and I just pray that you will work. And anybody who needs your message today, Lord, please work in their heart.

Please do what whatever my words couldn't do. Please fill the gap, Lord, and and reach them today in [music] Jesus name. Amen.