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50 degrees – what a bland and boring temperature. In Fahrenheit, 50 degrees (10 C) is neither hot nor cold. It’s neither a warm summer day nor a cold winter one. A glass of 50-degree water neither is a refreshing cool drink nor hot enough to use to wash the glass. In Celsius, 50 degrees (122 F) is halfway between freezing and boiling. It neither is cold nor is hot enough for a cup of tea. In Fahrenheit or Celsius, 50 degrees is lukewarm – the same word found in Revelation 3:15-16. The New Living Bible renders it as, “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, I will spit you out of my mouth!" The Message paraphrases it as, “I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking. You’re not cold, you’re not hot – far better to be either cold or hot! You’re stale. You’re stagnant. You make me want to vomit." It’s no surprise that John 3:16 is more popular in the church than Revelation 3:16. These words of Jesus to the First Century church in Laodicea are also applicable to all 50-degree believers, Christian organizations, and churches of the 21st century.
Be warned – this is an unusual Web site requiring your attention and honest self-evaluation. Momentum in your own Christian life, or in your church life, is not an adequate justification to continue the status quo. Read the content of Fifty Degrees with an open mind and a prayerful heart – you will need both. You may need to read each article twice – one time on an emotional level and a second time to hear what God's message to you might be.
The three-fold purpose of Fifty Degrees is:
I. To sound a trumpet warning from a watchman on the wall, Ezekiel 32:3-6. The lukewarm need to be warned and warmed – need to turn up the fire.
II. To edify and exhort. “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend." Proverbs 27:17. “Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning." Proverbs 9:8-9. “But exhort one another daily, while it is called 'Today,' lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." Hebrews 3:13
III. To speak to the hypocrisy and irrelevance that turns non-believers away from the Gospel – and sends serious believers into isolation or hibernation. Too often, our works drive others away from the Light rather than drawing them to it. Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:16.
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