Revelation 3:15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold or hot.

From my studies, I know that Jesus was describing the Church at Laodicea by comparing them to a hot-water spring that flowed into their city.  It arrived cooled off and just a bad temperature for drinking.  The statement that we should be either hot or cold can be a puzzling one since everyone thinks we should always be “hot” in our relationship with God.

In science the terms hot and cold are relative terms and derive much from the context that we are using them in, sunspots are still hot enough to melt iron but appear dark because they are next to stuff that maybe two times their temperature. (see post-Hot and Cold and Why Hot and Cold)

Hot and cold in our physical world are important because they cause convection currents.  These are responsible for our weather, ocean currents, and the driving force of plate tectonics.  The “hot” material, either air, water, or magma, rises while the “cold” material sinks to be heated thus creating a circular pattern.  When the temperature evens out nothing moves; this can/does happen on the Mississippi Gulf Coast around three in the afternoon.  The air and the water can have the same temperature and there is no lateral air movement, everything goes straight up.  Before and after this point there will be either a sea breeze or a land breeze because of uneven temperatures.

I think in natural cycles as well as spiritual cycles we will have our “cooler” times but they are necessary so we can be “heated” up again and rise to the work we have been called to do. (The water cycle in itself may not be a true convection current but energy is still gained and lost in the evaporation/rain process.)

∞Jesus, wither we are in a hot stage or a cold stage always let us always be found in you. Amen.

Water cycle pic is from: http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycle.html                     The Convection pic is from:  http://www2.vims.edu/bridge/DATA.cfm?Bridge_Location=archive0906.html                            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunspot                                                            Eerdmans’ Handbook to the Bible © 1973 page 650 (spring of water)