What Does the Bible Mean By "Lukewarm"?

What does the Bible mean by "lukewarm"?  In Revelation 2-3 Christ wrote letters to the seven churches of Asia.  The seventh letter is to the church in Laodicea, and that's where we find the term "lukewarm."  Revelation 3:15-16 says, "I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of my mouth."

First, is a lukewarm person a Christian or a non-Christian?  While some argue that the lukewarm are unbelievers (John MacArthur compares them to the theological liberals of today who exist under the guise of Christianity but deny core tenets of the faith), most preachers and commentators agree that the lukewarm are indeed believers.  Charles Spurgeon said, "This text belongs to the church of God, not to the unconverted."  A lukewarm person is a certain type of Christian.  What type of Christian?

The historical setting of Laodicea is helpful.  The city of Laodicea was very wealthy, but it had one major weakness.  It had no natural water source.  It had to pipe in (aqueduct) its water from other cities.  The city of Colossae, ten miles away, had icy cold water that flowed down from the mountains.  The city of Hierapolis, six miles away, had hot springs.  This water was sent to Laodicea, but by the time the water made its way there it was lukewarm.  Cold water is refreshing.  Hot water is comforting.  Lukewarm water is gross.  Using that as an analogy, Jesus is telling the church in Laodicea that they are neither hot nor cold, but lukewarm.

With that in mind, there are two views of the meaning of a lukewarm Christian.  First, a lukewarm Christian may refer to a Christian who is useless to God.  Both cold and hot water are useful, while lukewarm water is useless.  A lukewarm Christian is one who is not making an impact on the world for Christ.  David Chilton contends for this view.  “The basic accusation against Laodicea is that it is ineffectual, good for nothing.  The Laodicean brings neither a cure for illness nor a drink to soothe dry lips and parched throats… The church provided neither refreshment for the spiritually weary, nor healing for the spiritually sick.  It was totally ineffective, and thus distasteful to its Lord.”  Going further Chilton said, "He is wishing that the Laodicean Christians would have an influence upon their society.  The Christian’s calling is not to blend in with a pagan environment but to convert it, reform it, reconstruct it in terms of the whole counsel of God as mandated in His Word.”  Robert Mounce agrees saying, "The church is not being called to task for its spiritual indifference but for the barrenness of its works."

The second view of a lukewarm Christian is the most popular.  It says that lukewarmness represents spiritual indifference.  A "cold" person would be a non-Christian who knows he is a non-Christian and who is not pretending to be otherwise.  A "hot" person is a Christian on fire for God.  A lukewarm person is a Christian who is lazy in his relationship with God.  Half-hearted rather than wholehearted.  Minimal effort rather than maximum effort.  Mediocrity rather than excellence.  Casual rather than intense.  Laid-back rather than serious.  Divided – one foot in the church, the other in the world.

In my research on this text I came across two very helpful sources.  The first is a sermon by the nineteenth century London preacher Charles Spurgeon called, "Earnest Warnings About Lukewarmness."  Describing the lukewarm church of Laodicea he wrote, "They were not infidels, yet they were not earnest believers; they did not oppose the gospel, neither did they defend it; they were not working mischief, neither were they doing any great good; they were not disreputable in moral character, but they were not distinguished for holiness; they were not irreligious, but they were not enthusiastic in piety nor imminent for zeal: they were what the world called moderates."  He further describes lukewarmness by letting them speak for themselves.  “Not too worldly – no!  We have our limits!  There are certain amusements which of course a Christian must give up, but we will go quite up to the line, for why are we to be miserable?  We are not to be so greedy as to be called miserly, but we give as little as we can to the cause.  We will not be altogether absent from the house of God, but we will go as seldom as we can."  

When it comes to a lukewarm church, Spurgeon wrote, "In such communities, everything is done in a half-hearted, listless, dead and alive way, as if it did not matter much whether it was done or not… The right things are done, but as to doing them with all your might, and soul, and strength, a Laodicean church has no notion of what that means.  They are not so cold as to abandon their work, or to give up their meetings for prayer, or to reject the gospel; if they did so, then they could be convinced of their error and brought to repentance; but on the other hand they are neither hot for truth, nor hot for conversions, nor hot for holiness, they are not fiery enough to burn the stubble of sin, nor zealous enough to make Satan angry, nor fervent enough to make a living sacrifice of themselves upon the altar of their God.”

The second helpful source on the topic of lukewarmness is a sermon by the eighteenth century preacher Samuel Davies called, "The Danger of Lukewarmness in Religion."  He describes the lukewarm Christian like this:  “There are a few unfashionable creatures who act as if they looked upon religion to be their most important concern who seem determined, let others do as they will, to make sure of their salvation, whatever becomes of them in other respects. As to the generality of men, they are very indifferent about it.  They will not indeed renounce religion entirely; they will make some little profession of the religion that happens to be most stylish and reputable in their country, and they will conform to some of its institutions; but it is a matter of indifference with them, and they are but little concerned about it.”  He goes on to address the lukewarm directly, saying, "You do not entirely renounce and openly disregard the Christian religion, and you do not make it a serious business, and mind it as your grand concern. You have a form of godliness—but deny the power. All your religion is a dull languid thing, a mere indifference; your heart is not in it; it is not animated with the fervor of your spirit. You have neither the coldness of the profligate sinner—nor the sacred fire and life of the true Christian; but you keep a sort of medium between them. In some things you resemble the one, in other things the other; as lukewarmness partakes of the nature both of heat and cold."

In summary, the two views lukewarmness are (1) Christians who are useless, making no impact on the world around them, and (2) spiritual indifference.  Which view is correct?  I prefer the popular view, but there's no way to know for sure.  Both views are helpful because they describe common problems in the church in every generation.