Luke 7:28-30 (ESV)
[28] I tell you, among those born
of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of
God is greater than he.” [29] (When all the people heard this, and the tax
collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism
of John, [30] but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for
themselves, not having been baptized by him.)
What a fascinating insight Luke
shares in these verses. The previous decisions made about John led to the
current decision about Jesus. When the people heard Jesus’ words about John “they
declared God just.” Why? Because they had previously been baptized with John’s
baptism. The Pharisees and the lawyers, on the other hand, “rejected the
purpose of God” because of not having been baptized by John.
Previous decisions affect one’s
ability to respond to God’s truth. If you have already decided that there is no
God, then the gospel has no meaning. If you have already decided that you are
too bad to be forgiven, then the gospel certainly can’t apply to you. In the
first case the individual must get beyond the idea of the nonexistence of God before
the gospel becomes meaningful. In the second case, the individual must see what
great sinners God has already forgiven in order to see any possibility of
forgiveness in their own part. How we explain the Good News of Jesus often depends
on what previous decisions those we’re speaking to have made.
Additionally, human pride keeps
one from responding to that which is true. We become entrenched in our position
and cannot move. Many church conflicts are the cause of the inability to
rethink our previous ideas. An individual spends their whole Christian life
listening to and learning from one particular Bible translation. He/She came to
faith under the conviction of that translation of the Bible. They can’t accept
that another translation may be more accurate in some passages, so they make a
fuss, maybe even leave the church, or worse, divide the church. An individual
has been taught that music with a robust beat is evil. When faced with the fact
that a third to a half of all the musical instruments in the Bible are percussion,
they choose to ignore it rather than question their previous convictions. They divide
the church over music. They ignore the Bible’s call to unity rather than
consider that there might be more flexibility in music than they previously
thought. A pastor decides that speaking in tongues is no longer valid for
today. As a result he preaches that speaking in tongues is demonic rather that showing
grace to brothers and sisters in Christ. The result is divided churches, attacks
on other pastors and churches, and sometimes even a rejection what God is doing
in the community.
The combination of pride and
previous decisions is deadly. It keeps people from faith in Christ, divides
churches, and quenches the Spirit. If only the Pharisees and Scribes, having
seen and heard Jesus, had re-evaluated their previous conclusions about John
rather than digging in and deciding to reject their own Messiah. May we have the
humility to continually evaluate our own past decisions in light of the truth
of God’s Word and the leading of his Spirit.
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