Spiritual Apathy

“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm — neither hot nor cold — I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:15-16)

Several years ago, I did some research on what are known as the “7 Deadly Sins.” They don’t appear as a list anywhere in Scripture, and I was curious to know how the list developed. It turns out that years ago, when the literacy rate was low and people weren’t reading the Bible for themselves, some early church leaders got together and made a list of the worst sins. At least people would know what not to do, right?
One of the sins on the list always seemed out of place to me. “Sloth” is listed as a deadly sin. It just never seemed that deadly to me.I’ve always thought of sloth as laziness. You know, not changing the channel on the TV because you lost the remote and walking over to the TV would be too taxing. But I discovered that a better way to convey what the early church leaders were getting at would be to translate the original word as “spiritual apathy.” It’s reaching a point where you know that God loves you and that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, but you shrug your shoulders because you just don’t care.
What do you do if you like the idea of pursuing Jesus, but your heart is just not in it? You used to experience zeal for Christ, but now you feel apathetic and indifferent. The good news has become old news, and the miraculous seems ordinary. How do you rekindle the old flame?
When a married couple’s feelings have started to fade, the best thing they can do is to start pursuing each other the way they used to. He buys her flowers; she writes him love letters. She dresses up for him; he takes her out on dates. As they come after each other with extravagant and sacrificial acts of love and devotion, the feelings and passion will start to return.
That’s a great place to start in your relationship with Christ. Confess your spiritual apathy; then start doing the things you did at first. John’s revelation from Jesus issues a loving warning for us. If you’ve forsaken your first love (see Revelation 2:4-5), if you’re feeling ho-hum or even somewhat bored in your pursuit of Jesus, it’s time to stir up the passion.

Pursuing Today
Does this ring true for you? Decide this minute to do something about it. Get on your knees next to your bed and talk to God about your day. Turn on some worship music in your car and sing along. Grab a one-year Bible and start reading. Go back to your local church and surround yourself with passionate followers. Find a place to serve. “Repent and do the things you did at first” (Revelation 2:5).