Revelation 3:15-22

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. ²² Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

According to Merriam-Webster, full-bodied means, “The general impression of substantial weight and rich texture; having importance, significance, or meaningfulness.” There is great significance in this definition when it applies to Christianity…in fact, the Bible says so!

My friends Sarah F. and Catherine P. have reignited my love for hot tea. There is nothing like sipping hot tea to reinvigorate your senses especially during the 3:00 p.m. slump. When brewed properly, one receives the full-bodied flavors in tasting notes such as sweet, nutty, citrusy, fruity, and malty just to name a few. Now granted…this is not a blog on tips for preparing tea; yet, there are amazing parallels between brewing tea and your Christian walk.

As believers, we have such potential. In fact, the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the grave lives in you and me. Romans 8:11 says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” To that I say, we have more than “just potential”…we have an unimaginable destiny in Christ!

When you buy a box of tea, the teabag has such great potential. It has the ability to transform water into full-bodied flavor that changes the palate of the receiver. However, if the tea remains in the box (i.e., dark) then it will slowly waste away until expiration – unused, untouched – failing to reach its full potential as originally designed by the maker.

Some of us actually want to use the tea. We get it out of the box; we see the potential but we fail to heat up the water to the right temperature, and the tea sits in a lukewarm bath failing to extract all its rich benefits into the vessel. The tea is described as flat, tasteless, and thus spit-out. The receiver’s desire fades and thus remains untouched.

Then, there are those connoisseurs that have studied and prepared. They are masters at extracting the bull-bodied flavor of every type of tea. They know exactly what to expect because they are trained. They are bold in their approach because they know what works. They take every opportunity to talk about it even with people who have never even tried it before because they cannot contain their excitement. They describe how rich and satisfying it can be when completed properly, at just the right temperature, to extract all the right flavors.

Are we still talking about tea? I would say NO. In fact, we never were. This mimics our Christian walk perfectly. I encourage you this day to be a connoisseur of Christ. Study the Word and be bold in the faith. Take up your cross and crucify the flesh. Mark 12:30-31 says, “³⁰ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ ³¹ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

Friends, you cannot be lukewarm and follow these commands. If you present as lukewarm, then you are not giving your “all” as described in this passage. You are missing your unimaginable potential as designed by the Maker. I pray that God tastes and smells the sweet notes from our full-bodied flavor as we present our lives as a living sacrifice for Him!

[This blog was inspired by my friend Catherine Pabon who shared this word with me. Thank you Catherine.]

Thankful,

Christian Armetta