Q&R: When Jesus ‘Spews’ – Brad Jersak

Question: Some people in my life refer to the Bible verse about not being "lukewarm" in what feels like a really hurtful way. They leave me wondering if I am getting this faith thing right. Am I lukewarm? Will god spit me out? Is there perhaps a misunderstanding here? Can we read this in other ways that don't feel so discouraging, like either you're in or you're out? Response: That's such an important question. I recall the many times when it was used as a heavy-handed "clobber verse" used to contrive conviction and manipulate a response. It was a classic revivalist rhetorical technique. It might help if we start by reading it in ...