Do your reputation and character match? The accusation against the the church of Sardis was that theirs did not. "I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive - but you are dead." (verse 1). While they had a reputation for living for God, they were in facts acting without the Spirit and not with a heart for the Lord.
Can you think of a time or circumstance where someone could make the same accusation against you. I certainly can. There have definitely been times in my life when I did things for the benefit of how others would see it and to preserve an image. The problem with this is that it eats you up inside and if you do it too much, you are left feeling like people don't really know you and you have to wonder if they would like the you on the inside. More importantly though, God does know you and God knows the inside of you. Does the Lord like it? Not if you are hearing an accusation like the one given to the church of Sardis.
You can fix this though by reinviting God in and let the Lord do a little heart cleaning. God reminds the church of Laodicea in verse 20 that the Lord wants to come in, "Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends."
Is God waiting at the door of your heart, desiring to do some heart cleaning so that your character and reputation are both pointing to the Lord. Is God waiting to share a meal with you? Listen...is God knocking? et the Lord in and let today be the beginning of a new season for you, where God transforms you into the person that God has created you to be, living a life of sincere righteousness and sharing and showing the gospel to those who enter your life.
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