Dusk

Yesterday evening, I had the privilege of both hanging out with my wife and going to a Dallas Mavericks game.  I also got to eat a hotdog, which made the evening really swell.

As we were driving to Dallas, just around 6:00, the sun began to set and the surrounding clouds began to turn orange, pink, and purple.  If this was not beautiful enough, the backdrop was this gorgeous turquoise  blue.  Amanda explained it best when she said, "It looks like sherbert!"

In Texas, I am convinced that we have the very best sunsets (and football team).  If I am not careful, I can get lost in the clouds.  Lately, it seems that every sunset has been more beautiful than the last.  Each scene is simply breathtaking.

After a few moments of staring at the clouds, I realized that I was driving, and that I should probably start paying attention to the road again.  When I did, I noticed that it wasn't daytime anymore, nor was it nighttime.  It was just "in between."  We like to call this "dusk," and for me, it is the most dangerous time of the day to drive.  For some reason, the deep dark blue is harder to see through than the blackness of the night.

Driving in dusk prompted me to think about John's letter to the church of Laodicea.  In Revelation 3, he wrote, "I know your deeds, 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 will spit you out of My mouth" (Revelation 3:15-16).  Last night, I couldn't help but think to myself, "I wish that it was either day or night, but it is neither day or night, but in between, and this makes it hard to see."

I learned in college that the context of John's letter to Laodicea was in lieu of a stream that flowed from Hierapolis to Laodicea.  The water was hot in Hierapolis, but turned lukewarm when it entered Laodicea.  Apparently, it was also chalky tasting.  If they drank it, the Laodiceans would want to spew the water out of their mouths.  This is probably why Jesus found it so appropriate to use this illustration.

Why the Laodiceans would drink chalky lukewarm water is beyond me.  I would beckon to consider, however, that on a hot day, a long flowing stream of water looked enticing.  Any Laodicean would probably hope that the water was a little colder today than usual.  Generally, this was never the case.

The clouds I saw last night in the sky were enticing.  They were marvelous beyond imagination.  Sadly, however, they only appear when the day is transitioning into the night.  The clouds cannot be viewed in this splendor except when dusk arrives.  It is the danger of the dusk that brings about the majesty of the clouds, and that is a wicked combination.

I think that this is the idea that John is expressing in Revelation 3, and since the letter was given directly from Jesus, it is really what Jesus is expressing.  All too often, the world looks very enticing to us.  The pleasures it offers are limitless.  Like the clouds, they even look majestic at times.  What happens, however, is that we allow our minds to get caught up in the "clouds," and before we know it, we are treading on dangerous territory.  The lukewarm water is a good medium temperature for us, but for Jesus it is disgusting.  Like the colorful clouds, those sin pleasures can only be fulfilled in an "in between" environment.  We are not living "hot" for Jesus, and we are not living "cold," we are living "lukewarm."  This is the epitome of what it means for a Christian to live his life in habitual sin.

The Bible tells us that if we are in Jesus, that we should "walk as children of Light" (Ephesians 5:8).  It doesn't say, "walk as children of the dusk" or, "walk as children of the dawn," (or even as "children of the corn" for that matter).  These are the "in betweens"--a mix of light and dark...of hot and cold.  God wants all of our hearts, not a mixture.

I want to close with one last story.  A few months ago, our church was playing softball.  Our game was around 7:00 at night (this was before the time change), and in the first inning, two harmful events occurred.  First, one of our men got smacked in they eye by the softball and second, a small child fell off the high bleachers onto the hard concrete ground beneath.  Both individuals were taken to the hospital.  Why am I sharing this?  Because both events occurred right at dusk, in the "in between."  The only reason that our player was hit in the eye was because the dusk had veiled his vision.  It was nearly impossible to see.  I am not positive, but perhaps that is the same reason the small child fell off the bleachers as well.

Today, I encourage you to be hot, and also to walk in the "Light."  When Paul used that word "Light" in Ephesians, he was talking about Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the only light that can penetrate the darkness of our hearts.  In our sin, we often try to travel back to the darkness with just enough light to consider ourselves "okay."  In reality, we are living in the dusk, which is often a lot worse than living in complete darkness, because we are compromising the beauty of Jesus Christ.  Why should we continue drinking the chalky lukewarm water, or continue driving in dusk when we can drink from the living water and walk in the Light.