Spiritual Lethargy

Early Sabbath-keeping Adventists identified themselves with the faithful Philadelphia church (Revelation 3:7–13).

They regarded Sunday-keeping Adventists as the lukewarm Laodicea church (Revelation 3:14–22) and non-Adventists as the dead Sardis church (Revelation 3:1–6). By the mid-1850s, Sabbath keepers concluded that they were Laodiceans, not Philadelphians. On November 20, 1855, Ellen White received a vision portraying the prevailing spiritual lethargy of the church at that time.

The content of the vision was published in Testimonies for the Church, where she sadly stated, “I saw that the Spirit of the Lord has been dying away from the church.”41 Among the reasons for such a deplorable condition, she listed (1) trust in human reasoning instead of a firm reliance upon God; (2) a spirit of self-exaltation and independence rather than humility and unity; (3) greed in accumulating personal property, instead of financially supporting God’s cause; (4) needless indulgence merely to gratify the feelings, the taste, the appetite, and the eyes; and (5) loss of the spirit of self-denial and sacrifice. Time and context have changed significantly.

The church is far more stable and prosperous today than in the early days of the Advent movement. But how are we in spiritual terms? Are we more committed today than the Adventist pioneers were? Is it possible that some of the same causes for their spiritual lethargy are prevalent in our midst as well? When we blame others for the prevailing spiritual lukewarmness in our midst, we are attempting to justify ourselves. If we really want to overcome our Laodicean, lukewarm condition, each of us must stop blaming the “church” for the condition and humbly ask ourselves, “What part of the message to Laodicea applies to me directly?” Remember, true revival and reformation is a deeply personal matter. It radically changes the focus of our spiritual lives from self-centered pride to Christ-centered humility.