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And all they in the synagogue when
they heard these things
were filled with wrath. And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto a brow of a hill wherein the city was built, that they might cast him down headlong. Lk4:28-29
There were many people, that when Jesus
spoke, were full of anger. Imagine telling your religious
leaders that their father was the devil. Imagine telling
people that unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you
have no life in you. Imagine telling people that unless you
hate your mother and father and wife and children, and brethren and
sisters, yea and his own life also, he cannot be my
disciple(Lk14:26) Imagine telling people the time will come
that whosoever killeth you will think that he does God's service
(Jn16:2) As much as we like to think that the gospel is easy
to digest, there are many statements in it that will cause people to
turn against you. At Jesus first sermon they tried to kill
him. I would venture to say that unless a word of scripture
made you wince and feel uncomfortable, you probably have not heard the
gospel. Telling people that sin will put you in hell, that
only Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, that unless you are a
doer of the word and not a hearer only, you are deceiving your self,
that homosexuality is a sin and so forth is not the popular gospel
preached on television. Jesus was hated by many. He
told the truth and people don't like to hear the truth.
They don't want to hear you must be born again.
They don't want to hear that being a “good” person will get you in
heaven is a lie of the devil. They don't want to hear that
they can be full of evil spirits like lust, hatred, anger, jealousy,
lying and stealing. What they want to hear is that they are
okay the way they are and they just need the right perspective, the
right attitude to get them on track. The full gospel is not
popular nor contemporary. It tells us we are sinners and that
unless we receive Jesus into our lives we are going to pay for it
eternally. It tells us we must be students of the
word. It tells us that if we are ashamed of Jesus, he will be
ashamed of us. It tells us that we are a peculiar people,
holy and separated unto the gospel. It tells us
that we can receive the Holy Spirit evidenced by speaking in
tongues. It tells us that we are made righteous by faith and
not by works. It tells us that if you want to be perfect, to sell what
you have, give to the poor, take up your cross and follow
Jesus. There are so many uncomfortable verses of scripture
that if everyone likes what you preach, you are not preaching the
gospel. It is easier for the camel to go through the eye of a
needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. Sad news for the
mega churches of the world. To whom much is given, much is
required. The teacher is subject to a stricter standard than
his congregation. By your words you will be justified and by
your words you will be condemned.
Let me ask you this, “Have you heard the gospel?” It is sharper than a two edged sword. amen |