RESPONDING TO AND RESISTING THE GOSPEL
When we review Christ's earthly ministry we might again ask ourselves
the question: Did full enlightenment always result from Christ's
preaching? The obvious answer is no. Sometimes understanding was
lacking even among His own disciples whom He taught personally:
THE RECORD OF ISRAEL AND THE JEWS
Jeremiah also had much to say about the unwillingness of the Jews
to listen to, accept and respond to the Word of God:
The situation had not changed at the time of the apostle Paul's
ministry:
RECEPTIVENESS OF THE GENTILES
HEARING GOD
However others hear and do respond:
Others respond to God and do establish a good foundation, do bear
fruit and continue to be fruitful, but then become spiritually
unproductive, perhaps over a long time, when they allow this world
to gradually quench the Spirit of God:
HOW DO WE HEAR?
To hear and to "keep"-that is, to be responsive to-the
words of God is the mark of a true disciple of Jesus Christ:
Christ admonishes those of His Church to hearken back to times
when they had both heard well, received and responded to His Words:
And do we then abound in that in which we stand?
About three months ago I gave a message entitled, "Spiritual
Blindness and the Hardening of the Heart" in which scriptures
were cited showing that Christ expected at least some understanding
when He proclaimed the Gospel, as evidenced in verses such as:
Mt 15:10 When He had called the multitude to Himself,
He said to them, "Hear and understand" (Mk 7:14).
I would like to revisit this theme today by considering the antithesis
of having a hardened heart and suffering from spiritual blindness:
hearing God and being responsive to Him.
Mk 9:32 But they did not understand this saying [Christ's
announcement of His coming betrayal], and were afraid to ask
Him.
This was one of the things they had heard but were not yet to
fully understand, as though it were "hidden" from them:
Lk 9:45 But they [the disciples] did not understand this
saying and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive
it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.
So, as was shown in this previous message, Christ tailored His
teachings according to His perception of the ability of His audience
to hear with understanding:
Mk 4:33 And with many such parables He spoke the word
to them as they were able to hear it.
This was the case even with His disciples who would not be able
to handle the fullness of the truth until the advent of the Holy
Spirit:
Jn 16:12 "I still have many things to say to you,
but you cannot bear them now."
However, that people were expected to firstly receive a truly-commissioned
messenger of the Gospel, and then be prepared to listen to and
finally respond appropriately to the message of the Gospel proclaimed
to them is evident from the teaching of Christ and the apostles.
Mk 6:11 "And whoever will not receive you nor
hear you [the messenger of the Gospel is not even welcomed],
when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet
as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will
be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment
than for that city!"
Accountability for the witness of the Gospel is not necessarily
even solely a case of how one responds to the preaching of the
Word of God. The Gospel is attested to in many ways. The culpability
of the cities of Capernaum, Chorazin and Bethsaida to whom Christ
witnessed was in that they had seen mighty miracles
and works but had failed to respond appropriately with repentance
(Mt 11:20-24). It was similar to Christ's words to the unbelieving
Jews: even if you don't believe what I say, believe the works
(Jn 10:38).
Intransigence and resistance to the Gospel when the mind should
be receptive is a serious matter. This was the condemnation of
ancient Israel and of the Jews: as a whole, they had heard the
words of God and seen His works-and rejected them. Let us briefly
consider their record of unresponsiveness.
Ancient Israel, and the Jews of Christ's day, had a long legacy
of opposition to the Word and to the correction of God. This was
the testimony of Stephen before the Sanhedrin which cost him his
life:
Acts 7:51 "You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in
heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your
fathers did, so do you."
The apostle Paul also attested to this:
1Co 14:21 In the law it is written: "With men of
other tongues and other lips I will speak to this people; and
yet, for all that, they will not hear Me," says the Lord.
This verse was quoted by Paul from the prophet Isaiah. When God's
servant brought the word of God, instead of receiving a godly
response, he found himself mocked by the prophets and the people
of the nation; "Do you really think you can teach us? You're
babbling like a fool, and treating us like children, as if we
didn't even know our ABC":
Isa 28:9-10 "Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom
will he make to understand the message? Those just weaned from
milk? Those just drawn from the breasts? 10 For precept must
be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon
line, here a little, there a little."
Isaiah retorted that if they would not listen to basic instruction
from God, then they would have to be taught the lesson of godly
response the hard way: through the rod of the Assyrians:
Isa 28:11 For with stammering lips and another [an alien]
tongue He will speak to this people.
They had chosen to remain deaf to the message of hope, comfort
and consolation offered them:
Isa 28:12 To whom He said, "This is the rest with
which You may cause the weary to rest," And, "This is
the refreshing"; yet they would not hear.
And even the harshness of captivity made little difference. Their
resistant hearts continued to look upon the Word of God as nonsense,
so nonsense it would remain to them:
Isa 28:13 But the word of the LORD was to them, "Precept
upon precept, precept upon precept, Line upon line, line upon
line, Here a little, there a little," That they might go
and fall backward, and be broken and snared and caught."
They felt that they could not be taught and so failed to respond
to what they heard. Could we ever become like this: unresponsive
to God even through the rod of His correction?
Jer 6:16-17 Thus says the LORD: "Stand in the ways
and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and
walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls. But they said,
'We will not walk in it.' 17 Also, I set watchmen over
you, saying, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!' But they said,
'We will not listen.'"
This is how God viewed it.
Jer 11:6-8 (NIV) The LORD said to me, "Proclaim all
these words in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem:
'Listen to the terms of this covenant and follow them.7 From
the time I brought your forefathers up from Egypt until today,
I warned them again and again, saying, "Obey me." 8
But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed
the stubbornness of their evil hearts. So I brought on them all
the curses of the covenant I had commanded them to follow but
that they did not keep.'"
From God's perspective, Israel and Judah were totally unresponsive.
Acts 18:6 But when they [the Jews] opposed him and blasphemed,
he shook his garments and said to them, "Your blood be upon
your own heads; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles."
They fulfilled this prophecy from Isaiah by choosing not to respond
with obedience to what they had heard. They did not want to understand!
Acts 28:25-28 So when they did not agree among themselves,
they departed after Paul had said one word: "The Holy Spirit
spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers, 26 saying,
'Go to this people and say: "Hearing you will hear, and shall
not understand; And seeing you will see, and not perceive; 27
For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are
hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should
see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should
understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them."'
Notice Paul's final remark in this context when his efforts to
reach out to his fellow Israelites had again been rebuffed; the
words are a statement of the prophesised responsiveness of the
Gentiles:
Acts 28:28 Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation
of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it
[because it was so foreordained]!"
The unresponsiveness of the Jews, the people of the covenant,
resulted in the Kingdom of God being taken away from them:
Mt 21:42-43 Jesus said to them [the Jewish leaders], "Have
you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders
rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord's
doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes' 43 Therefore I say to
you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a
nation bearing the fruits of it."
So those worthy of the Kingdom of God are the ones who bear the
fruits of the Kingdom of God. As we will see, these fruits are
the indicator of our responsiveness to God.
This is not to say that many Jews did not respond and were added
to the Church. Yet as a people, as a nation which had received
the oracles of God, to whom, as the apostle Paul put it, pertained
"the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the
law, the service of God, and the promises (Ro 9:4), the Jews were
unresponsive and rejected the truths presented to them. The responsiveness
of the Gentiles to the preaching of the Gospel and the honour
accorded to it by them contrasted sharply to the hard-heartedness
of the Jews:
Acts 13:46-48 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them [the
Jews] boldly: "We had to speak the word of God to you first.
Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal
life, we now turn to the Gentiles. 47 For this is what the Lord
has commanded us: 'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that
you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'" 48 When
the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word
of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.
Their hearts responded nobly to the Word of God. Indeed, Paul
often commended the Gentile converts for their responsiveness
to God's Word:
1Th 2:13 For this reason we also thank God without ceasing,
because when you received the word of God which you heard from
us, you welcomed it not as the word of men [as the Jews did],
but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively
works in you who believe.
They had not only heard, but responded, and allowed the Word of
God to work in them.
The Jewish leaders heard and listened to Christ, but failed to
respond to Him. They had hearts which were willfully unreceptive:
Jn 8:42-47 Jesus said to them, "If God were your
Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from
God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. 43 Why do you
not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to
My word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires
of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning,
and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in
him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for
he is a liar and the father of it. 45 But because I tell the
truth, you do not believe Me. 46 Which of you convicts Me of
sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? 47 He
who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear,
[although they were there and did hear Christ's words]
because you are not of God."
Those who are God's do not just hear, but also respond to what
they have heard:
Jn 10:2-5,7-8 "But he who enters by the door is the
shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the
sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads
them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before
them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 Yet
they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him,
for they do not know the voice of strangers."
The true sheep of God listen only to Him, and also respond to
Him. They follow-they heed- the godly instruction they hear:
7 Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say
to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who ever came before
Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them."
Jn 10:16,27 "And other sheep I have which are not
of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice;
and there will be one flock and one shepherd.
In contrast, the world hears and responds to the spirit of error:
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."
1Jn 4:5-6 They [false teachers, the spirit of error] are
of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world
hears them. 6 We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who
is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of
truth and the spirit of error.
RESPONSE TO THE GOSPEL
Christ's parable of the sower and the seed is an illustration
of different degrees of responsiveness amongst those who are witnesses
to the preaching of the Gospel. Let us examine this in a little
detail.
Isa 55:10-11 "For as the rain comes down, and the
snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth,
and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the
sower and bread to the eater, 11 So shall My word be that goes
forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall
accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for
which I sent it."
Bible commentaries tell us that it was the practice in the Middle
East at this time to sow the seed first and then plough the field
afterwards. In addition, roads and pathways ("waysides")
often passed through these fields, making the surface very hard
for any seeds to take root and germinate. Furthermore, the seed
was sown by hand, so not unexpectedly some of it fell where-at
least from a human perspective-it may not have been intended to
fall. God sows, but He does not sow wastefully or in unsuitable
places; it is up to us to plow any hard, fallow ground that could
resist the progress of the Word and the Spirit of God:
Hos 10:12-13 Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in
mercy; break up your fallow ground [so that it can produce],
for it is time to seek the LORD, till He comes and rains righteousness
on you. 13 You have plowed wickedness; you have reaped iniquity.
You have eaten the fruit of lies (Jer 4:3).
However, notice that Christ tells us that even in the first category,
where the seed fell not on the field, but along this pathway,
or wayside adjacent to it (Mt 13:3), where the ground was unproductive,
the words of the Kingdom were still sown in the individual's heart:
Mt 13:18-19 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower:
19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand
it then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in
his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside."
The problem was that no plowing took place to make the hard ground
of the wayside receptive to the teaching of God. We read that
there was no understanding. The question we need to ask is why
would Satan want to take away something that is not understood
anyway. Why is it that there was no understanding?
The seeds of the words of life were not even received on the soil
of the farmer's field-in the heart of the individual-to be able
to take root. There was no response.
Mt 13:20-21 "But he who received the seed on stony
places [the seeds of truth fall in the field, but the soil
is shallow as it lies on top of solid rock], this is he who
hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he
has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when
tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately
he stumbles."
The word was received with joy, just as it was by the three thousand
on the Day of Pentecost:
Acts 2:41 Then those who gladly received his word were
baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to
them.
The truth of God can be embraced with great joy and enthusiasm,
even for a long, long time, but trials and hardships for the sake
of the Gospel can, if not handled correctly, stifle growth and
on-going responsiveness to such a degree that the believer's faith
is aborted-sometimes almost overnight ("immediately"),
as Matthew adds in his Gospel. The foundation has not been properly
laid. There is no track record of productive fruit. The "stony
places"-the heart that is not totally submissive and responsive
to God-have never really been broken up.
Mt 13:22 "Now he who received seed among the thorns
[there is no indication that the soil is not suitable]
is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the
deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful
[so he was once fruitful]."
Luke's account of this parable comments that in this case the
fruit was not brought "to maturity" (Lk 8:14).
Therefore, the production of godly fruit must be on-going and
must come to complete maturity:
Mt 13:23 "But he who received seed on the good ground
is he who hears the word and understands [Gk: puts it together,
considers it, comprehends it-that is, he understands fully
what the stakes are, what is required of him, has counted the
cost] it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold,
some sixty, some thirty."
The other Gospel accounts of the parable of the sower and the
seed add a little more detail in their description of the believer
who is able to continue to respond and to bear fruit to the end:
Mk 4:20 "But these are the ones sown on good ground,
those who hear the word, accept it [we might consider
what is meant by this], and bear fruit: some thirtyfold,
some sixty, and some a hundred."
We need to ensure that we are of those who do continue to respond
with good fruit.
Lk 8:15 "But the ones that fell on the good ground
are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good
heart [like the noble response of the Gentiles], keep
it and bear fruit with patience [NIV: "and by persevering
produce a crop"].
The apostle Paul spoke of the nature of the godliness of the last
days, where men would love pleasure more than God (2Ti 3:4) and
would have a form of godliness, but deny the power of true godliness
(v 5). Similarly, our faith can have only an outward form, without
power, if we allow our responsiveness to God to be stifled by
the riches of Babylon, by the cares and concerns of this world,
or by the deceitfulness of sin that hardens the heart and renders
it unreceptive to what is heard (Heb 3:12-15).
Christ many times throughout His ministry enjoined upon those
to whom He witnessed the need to listen and respond if they indeed
had "ears to hear":
Mt 11:15 "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"
(Mt 13:9; Mk 4:9,23; 7:16; Lk 8:8; 14:35)
So it is not just a matter of hearing, but of having the spiritual,
circumcised ears that enable us to truly hear. Israel of old
also heard the Gospel but was rejected. They heard but failed
to keep the Word of God which was heard:
Heb 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well
as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them,
not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.
Even our desire to obtain the Kingdom of God is not necessarily
a guarantee that we will respond to God as He would have us. Again,
Paul tells us that Israel always aspired to the promises of God,
sought the promises of God zealously (Ro 10:2) but these were
taken away from them nonetheless:
Ro 11:7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks;
but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded.
They were "blinded" because they refused to hear, refused
to respond.
Lk 11:28 But He said, "More than that, blessed are
those who hear the word of God and keep it!"
Those who do this are indeed brethren of Jesus Christ, who has
always done the same:
Lk 8:21 But He answered and said to them, "My mother
and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it
[keep it, respond to it]."
So what is paramount is how we hear and how we then
respond to God. For it is how we hear that will determine how
we respond to the truth we hear. If we respond appropriately,
in godliness, we will receive even more:
Lk 8:18 "Therefore take heed how you hear [NIV: "consider
carefully how you listen"]. For whoever has, to him more
will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to
have will be taken from him."
The Bereans did this. They listened with thoughtfulness, with
soberness, with readiness to take on board what they had heard
if it withstood the scrutiny of the Word of God:
Acts 17:11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica,
in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched
the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
It is only be hearing correctly-and then responding appropriately-that
more will be given to enable us to continue to learn and to grow.
To hear in a godly manner is to be truly taught by the
truth heard:
Eph 4:21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught
by Him, as the truth is in Jesus.
The hearing is only part of the process. Are we taught
by what we hear?
Rev 3:3 "Remember therefore how you have received
and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not
watch [or wake up], I will come upon you as a thief, and you will
not know what hour I will come upon you."
This admonition still applies to us today, for we too can so easily
drift away through the cares of this world or the deceitfulness
of riches:
Heb 2:1 Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to
the things we have heard, lest we drift away.
This was also Paul's admonition to Timothy:
1Ti 4:16 (NIV) Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere
in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and
your hearers [those who listen and respond to your teaching
from God].
STANDING FIRM
Instead of drifting through unresponsiveness, do we, responsively,
stand in what we have heard and believed?
1Co 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel
which I preached to you, which also you received and in which
you stand.
They had heard, received, and now stood in the truth of the Gospel.
1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast,
immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that
your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
It is this fruitfulness which is the measure of our responsiveness
to God:
1Th 4:1 Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in
the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more [bringing
forth fruit thirty-, sixty-, and a hundred-fold], just as
you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God;
2Pe 1:5-9 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence,
add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge
self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness
love. 8 For if these things [these good fruits] are yours
and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in
the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these
things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that
he was cleansed from his old sins.
So let us ensure that the precious promises of life and immortality
made available through Jesus Christ (2Ti 1:10) are not lost to
us because of our failure to hear and to respond to God as we
should.
Col 1:9-10 For this reason we also, since the day we heard
it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled
with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him,
being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the
knowledge of God.