2 Corinthians 4:4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
I worry about people these days because they seem so sure that what they individually believe is what God approves. We’re living in an age where everyone has their own separate and personal creeds of faith. The old ways are being rejected because they are based upon absolute truths. New emerging philosophies are being heralded as the greatest thing and biblical values are being cast aside. We are becoming biblically and theologically ignorant, or as Paul so eloquently wrote: ‘the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers.’Some of you reading this are probably thinking that John is on his high horse again and that you don’t need to be soulfully challenged or spiritually harassed. I even find that on Sunday mornings church members don’t want to hear the Gospel being preached because it upsets their world view of “I’m OK, and you’re OK.” They are blinded by their own Christian concerns and nurture a naïve narcissism. They don’t want the spiritual world that they have created around them to be taken apart. Instead of allowing Christ to be at the center of their lives, they want themselves to be at the center of Christ.
The Gospel is the most disturbing divine message ever to affect humankind. If that wasn’t the case, then Jesus would never have been crucified and most of His followers would not have been martyred. We sugar coat the Gospel until it becomes a sugary spirituality which is easy to swallow. We see it as a way to get the best out of our life on Earth, as opposed to being a choice to save us from God’s wrath.
Perhaps you didn’t like that last line and maybe think that preachers should focus more on Christ’s love than God’s wrath. However, if you honestly read the Gospel and take time to study it, you’ll soon find out that it’s not a huggy-feely-cozy commitment that is expected and experienced; the Gospel is a straightforward, in your face, confrontational choice: heaven or hell, salvation or damnation, everlasting life with God or the eternal agony of being separated from Him.
That’s why I worry about people in church and in the world: they just don’t see it or get it.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, today I pray for the people who are reading this message. Open their hearts and minds to the Gospel and alert them to the fact that this isn’t a spiritual game or religious leisure pursuit. Remind us that we all have one life to live and one choice to make. In Your Holy Name, I humbly pray. Amen.
John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.
Today’s image is called “Scarecrow Moon.” You can view a larger version at http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4111/5073081839_98890e7374_z.jpg
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