The age of Laodicea has arrived next comes the rapture and the tribulation
by Don Koenig
Most Bible prophecy teachers would say the Laodicean church age started around AD 1900. This is correct but when Laodicea appeared among Thyatira (Catholics), Sardis (the near dead denominational churches) and Philadelphia (the Church of true believers), she was not the predominant church of that era. That is no longer true. By what we see taking place in Christianity today there should be no question that Laodicea is now the predominant church type of our age (for those of us who believe that there are seven church ages).
Laodicea is the final church age before Jesus comes for His Church. When Christ comes for His spiritual body He vomits this Laodicean church out of His body into the tribulation. I am not saying that Laodicea was ever part of His body to start with but only that this church type was identified with His body. After Jesus stomachs the lukewarm condition of this church, He spews them out implying that those identified with Laodicea have no place in His spiritual Body unless they repent and see.
Listen to what Jesus said to those in Laodicea:Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
The instruction here is to repent. That means He wants those whom are identified with Laodicea to see they are still blind and that they need to come to Him for true spiritual riches.
Why has the Laodicean church age arrived?
We have had lukewarm denominational country club type churches for quite some time now but they did not cross denominational lines and movements and become the predominant Christian identity until very recently. The seeker friendly and the postmodern emergent churches had much to do with this, they are the fastest growing identities in Christianity today. They and other lukewarm churches have taken on the identity of Christianity to most people in the world. For example, when Moslems speak of decadent Christianity they are really associating Christianity to those that call themselves Christians but actually live the lifestyle found in Laodicea. Their perception of true Christianity is certainly wrong but nevertheless the traits in Laodicea is now Christianity to most in the world.
The key to identification of the age of Laodicea is that this church is lukewarm and spiritually blind yet she thinks she sees. Only when the gospel became so watered down that it no longer contained a message of salvation could Laodicea arrive in full force in the institutional churches. We see this happening today across denominational lines. Most members of churches today do not even know the plan of salvation. Many members even in evangelical churches do not know the Bible. They have never read it. Church Sunday schools just use the Bible as some tool for living the abundant life on earth. They quite often do not discern and apply the passages in proper context. More often they just make passages fit their pre-canned topical lesson. Christian leaders today are twisting the word of God to conform to their own pet theories and few of their followers are any the wiser because of the biblical ignorance that prevails in Churchianity.
Laodicea can be identified with many modern Christian movements:
There is the seeker friendly purpose driven growth movement that has so watered down Christianity that the Jesus that shed His blood on the cross for man's sin can hardly be found. They have largely replaced this Jesus with another Jesus who will give them self-esteem, a purpose driven life and will take take care of all their felt needs. They do not even have to acknowledge that they are wicked sinners in need of His saving grace. All they have to do is understand that God created them for a purpose and find out their purpose in life. (Pharaoh found out his purpose in life but it did not save him.)
They teach people that are still dead in their sins that God has a purpose for them in the kingdom on earth that they are now trying to establish by their own efforts. This is not the gospel - it is a lie. It leads people to follow a counterfeit Jesus not found in the Bible or in Heaven. The kingdom they wish to establish will set the foundation for the one who will come in the place of Christ. He may even be called the vicar of Christ (Antichrist). These churches bring in more and more unsaved people into their assemblies who bring with them their worldly views and demonic pagan practices. This leaven is now inflating the whole loaf.
One of the fast growing Laodicean movements that has emerged for the young is the "Emergent Church" movement that redefines Christianity and replaces sound doctrine with doctrines of whatever works and pagan mysticism.
In the so-called "Spirit filled movements", you now have dominionists running just about every important program. Those with "Kingdom Now" or similar theologies have ascended to dominate Christian TV and much of Christian radio. They open prophetic schools, have healing rallies, and hold large revivals. They are the backbone of ecumenical groups like "Promise Keepers" and their books dominate Christian bookstores. They, along with the purpose driven crowd and the emergent crowd, think that the Church is going to bring kingdom living on the earth before the physical coming of the King. Never mind, that no such concept is taught in the Bible.
In these kingdom teaching groups the Bible is often either taken out of context or the meaning is just distorted to comply with their own pet theories. Many dumb down or do away with sound Bible teaching for the experiential. When they get tingly feeling or goose bumps, then God is leading them and then God has to be in it. If this "God" tells these leaders to ask their followers to laugh like hyenas or bark like dogs they will. After all, they believe their self appointed anointed leaders will not be led astray.
Most of these are dominionists and they tell their sheeple that premillennial theology is error because the Church is already in the promised kingdom on earth. They teach the Church just has to go in to possess the land. Since gullible sheeple in this movement believe they are in the kingdom on earth they think they can take possession of the land and put the whole world under Christianity and under biblical law. They are taught that Christians have become gods and as gods Christians can now speak new realities into existence. I have news for them, Satan has other plans for this presumptuous crowd. He will be allowed to shake this whole house to its foundations because it is was all built on the presumptions of men. Only that which is built on the solid foundation of the living and written Word of God will stand in the end times.
The Evangelical and Pentecostals do not have the numbers to make Laodicea even more identifiable than Thyatira (Catholics) or Sardis (the liberal denominational churches) in this generation. Therefore, it is obvious that many in Thyatira and Sardis would have to identify with Laodicean attributes for this to become the Laodicean Church age. We can see this is happening today with the ecumenical movements of our time that attempt to unite Christianity on issues that have nothing to do with sound biblical doctrine. Meanwhile the sheeple are told that biblical doctrine that could actually unite believers is subjective, divisive and narrow-minded.
Many now accept Moslems, Buddhists, Hindus and other pagan religions as people who also worship the Creator, but nothing could be further from the truth. The God of the Bible and Heaven has no part of any of these religions. All those who identify with Christianity but who unite with those denying the doctrines of Christianity have, like Laodicea, become lukewarm about their own belief.
The facts are clear that Laodicea is now the church type that is identified with this generation, Jesus is coming soon. This is the final church age. During the Laodicean age Jesus will come and rapture His faithful Church to be with Him in Heaven while all the rest of the world will be tried in the fires of the tribulation on earth. There is only one Church that Jesus promises to keep out of the great trial that is coming on all the earth and that church is Philadelphia. You can become part of this church by acknowledging your sin and your need for salvation through the sacrifice Jesus made for you on the cross and by trusting in the promise in His Word that He will come again to receive His own and by living as if you really believe it.
Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.