Skip to main content

167. Woe to the Cities


Matthew 11:20-24, Luke 10:13-16
Key Verse: "He who listens to you listens to Me; he who rejects you rejects Me; he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."
Luke 10:16

When the world talks about Jesus, it talks of what it thought it saw. The world remembers His kindnesses, His miracles, His compassion and His unconditional acceptance of the poor and down trodden. The world paints a picture of a god that everyone would want to have in their corner. Nice Jesus. He wouldn't hurt a fly! The world likes this Jesus because He doesn't judge. He just loves and lets us continue doing what we want to do until we feel like getting around to changing because this Jesus is also infinitely patient. Yes, the world loves this fictitious Jesus of their own creation.

The world often explains Jesus’ mission as one to teach us how to love one another and not judge. Thus, Ghandi was able to say something to the effect of, "I like your Jesus, but not your Christians." Of course, because we Christians, who walk this earth, are still sinners, it was easy for Ghandi to point a finger and accuse us of falling short of the mark. We Christians are still being sanctified, still becoming like Him. We are not yet His finished work, so we are an easy target for criticism because we often fail. Also, God is not fashioning us to become like the world’s recreated image of Christ. We are being modeled after the real thing, not a fictitious character, so in truth, as they rejected the true Jesus, they can't help but reject us if our true mission is the same as His.

It is true that Jesus did show kindness and perform miracles, but the goal of His ministry was to lead the world to repentance which is something that the world does not want to do. So, it glosses over Jesus’ true mission to see what it wants to see. Didn't Dylan Thomas say, "There are none so blind as those who will not see?"

History may have recreated Jesus in softer hews, but in truth, the people of Jesus’ day, didn't really like His message either. While they benefited from the miracles and blessings, these loving acts did not lead to changed hearts, which was Jesus’ true desire.

So, Jesus in turn criticizes the cities that have benefited from His ministry. He mentions the cities of Israel's enemies, Tyre and Sidon, all the way back to Sodom, the ultimate den of iniquity, to compare their attitudes to those of His present day. "If Sodom had experienced what you have experienced in Me, perhaps I would have found fifty righteous and their city would have been spared. These cities of the present day, Chorazin, Bethsaida, Capernaum, they will be without excuse. They have experienced what the prophets longed to experience and remained unchanged.”

This serves as a warning to us as well. We have experienced God's grace in ways that the Children of Israel, couldn't even imagine. The Holy Spirit actually lives within us and not in a tabernacle in the middle of a camp! God will never leave us personally, as He withdrew from those who were disobedient! How are we responding to what we have? Do the miracles we experience call us to repent and live a life pleasing to the One who has blessed us? If we do not, then, not just "woe to the cities," but "Woe to us!”

"Change My Heart O God" 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

211. The Sons of Thunder's Request

Matthew 20:20-28 , Mark 10:35-45 , Key verse: "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all." Mark 10:43B-44 In our readings for yesterday, in which Jesus outlined what was about to happen to Him, for His disciples, the passage in Luke ends: "The disciples did not understand any of this. It's meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what He was talking about." ( Luke 18:34 ) Now, we see just how truly clueless they were. Jesus had laid out a plan before them of pain and suffering and death and now James and John are focused on a promotion. The disconnect is so obvious. It's really not important to know whether James and john came up with this request on their own or if their mother put them up to it. The request was made and James and John thought that they could handle the responsibility that would come with it. What is that saying, "Fools rush in where angels fe...
Post a Comment
Read more

204. Come Like a Child

Psalm 127 , Matthew 19:13-15 , Luke 18:15-17 , Mark 10:13-16 Key Verse: Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14 The attitude of the disciples isn't much different than the attitude of many people, even Christians, today. Instead of seeing children as a blessing from the Lord, too many regard them as a burden to bear that gets in the way of our own selfish happiness. Family size is determined by what we think we can afford rather than openness to God's blessing, trusting God to provide. Satan hates children. Children represent innocence. The sooner he can corrupt and or damage a child, the happier he is. This is why Jesus warned in Matthew 18:6: "If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drown in the depths of the sea." To corrupt or damage ...
Post a Comment
Read more

174. Pleading for the Fig Tree

Proverbs 27:18 , Luke 13:6-9 Key Verse: He who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who looks after his master will be honored. Proverbs 27:18 We have here three main characters: a master, who acquired the tree in hopes of eventually enjoying its fruit, a servant, who looks to the tree to reflect his care and attention, and lastly, the tree itself. The master has the right to expect his investment to pay off. The servant, who has obviously put much effort into the tree, would also like to see fruit. The servant's interest is not only to show his own talent in gardening, but because he wants to please his master. Both the servant and the master are dependent upon the tree to do what it was designed to do. Their little parable is an interesting way for Jesus to finish off His exhortation to, "repent or perish."  God is the Master. He had a purpose for you before you were even born. ( Jeremiah 1:5 & Psalm 139:16 ) He planted you on this earth to ful...
Post a Comment
Read more