You might have thought we’d be done with the Book of Job at this point, but one thing more needs to be said. Job’s 3 friends had the spirit of the Laodiceans.
Let’s review what the spirit, the attitude, of the Laodiceans means, as I wrote in the Associated Content article “The Significance of the Seven Churches of Revelation”:
Put together, and you have “the people’s judgment”. Judgmentalism! Who is doing the judging? The Laodiceans. Who are they judging? Not themselves!
“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”
~ Rev 3:17
They were self-sufficient! They did not need anything! They were proud! History bears this out as well:
“The place often suffered from earthquakes, especially from the great shock in the reign of Nero (60 AD), in which it was completely destroyed. But the inhabitants declined imperial assistance to rebuild the city and restored it from their own means.”
~ Wikipedia9
Something a friend once told me was that whenever you point at someone, you have 3 fingers pointing back to you. When Job’s 3 friends sat there accusing Job of horrific sins, they were unknowingly condemning themselves.
God was angry at the 3 friends of Job. They accused an innocent man unjustly and spoke simplistically about God’s justice. They could not see beyond this physical world.
Whenever someone tells you that God’s “Place of Safety” is only for those who belong to xyzCOG, are they appealing to your spiritual or your physical condition? Whenever they accuse another organization of being “lukewarm”, is that an attitude of unity or of division? Are they judging another’s servant? More importantly, are they arguing from Scripture or from some arcane gnostic argument invented in the 4th century (traditions of men)?
Will you engage in the attitude of the Laodiceans, setting yourself up as judge over others? Or, will you repent and realize that the only One who has all the answers will judge us all?