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Read Luke 24:13-35
No matter what the ailment is, the doctor usually begins his examination by saying, “Let’s take your temperature!” The same principles applies to the Christian life, for there is more than one “spiritual temperature.”
Some Christians are cold. “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Mt 24:12). A cold Christian has no concern for lost souls. His prayer life is irregular, if he prays at all. He ignores his Bible and the fellowship of other Christians in the church. A cold-hearted Christian is a poor advertisement for Jesus Christ.
Other Christians are lukewarm. “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot. . . . So then because thou art lukewarm. . . . I will spue thee out of my mouth” (Rev 3:15-16). Lukewarm Christians, like lukewarm liquids, are made by mixing the hot and the cold. One day they are zealous for Christ; the next day they are living in the world. Lukewarm water is sickening. Lukewarm Christians make the Lord sick!
But, thank God, there are some Christians whose hearts are burning! “Did not our heart burn within us?” the Emmaus disciples asked each other. What caused their hearts to burn? They were walking with Jesus and listening to Him expound the Word! The fire of the Word (Jer 5:14) can rekindle the flames on the altar of the heart.
Paul warned Timothy, “Stir up the gift of God, which is in thee” (2 Ti 1:6). The image is that of stirring up a fire and adding fresh fuel, getting rid of the old ashes that smother the flame. Is your Christian life cold? Perhaps it is time to do something about the fire!
(Copyright, Warren W. Wiersbe. First appeared in Thoughts for Men on the Move. May not be copied or reproduced without express written permission of the author.)
Dr. Warren Wiersbe (1929-2019) was an internationally known Bible teacher, author, and conference speaker. He graduated in 1953 from Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in Lombard, Illinois. While attending seminary, he was ordained as pastor of Central Baptist Church in 1951 and served until 1957. From September 1957 to 1961, Wiersbe served as Director of The Literature Division for Youth for Christ International. From 1961 to 1971 he pastored Calvary Baptist Church of Covington, Kentucky south of Cincinnati, Ohio. His sermons were broadcast as the “Calvary Hour” on a local Cincinnati radio station. From 1971 to 1978, He served as the pastor of Moody Church in Chicago 1971 to 1978. While at Moody Church he continued in radio ministry. Between August 1979 and March 1982, he wrote bi-weekly for Christianity Today as “Eutychus X”, taught practical theology classes at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, and wrote the course material and taught a Doctor of Ministry course at Trinity and Dallas Seminary. In 1980 he transitioned to Back to the Bible radio broadcasting network where he worked until 1990. Dr. Wiersbe became Writer in Residence at Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids and Distinguished Professor of Preaching at Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. In his lifetime, Dr. Wiersbe wrote over 170 books—including the popular Be series, which has sold over four million copies. Dr. Wiersbe was awarded the Gold Medallion Lifetime Achievement by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA).