Confronting Hostility: The Stumbling Block of Christ

 

Summary

In today's reflection, we explored the profound reasons behind the unique hostility towards Jesus Christ throughout history and across cultures. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would be both a sanctuary and a stumbling block, a duality that continues to manifest today. This dual effect is rooted in three core doctrines of the Gospel that often cause people to stumble: Christ's unique glory, our desperate need for salvation, and God's sovereign freedom.

Firstly, Christ's unique glory is central to the Gospel. Jesus is proclaimed as the only Son of God and the sole sacrifice for sin. This exclusivity challenges human pride, as people naturally desire the message to be about themselves rather than about Christ. Our culture has reversed the angelic Christmas message, prioritizing human glory over divine glory. This reversal reflects humanity's attempt to usurp God's throne, demanding that God conform to our desires and affirm our choices.

Secondly, the Gospel highlights our desperate need for salvation. Jesus came not to affirm us but to save us from our sins. This message offends human arrogance, as it suggests that we need saving and that we cannot achieve it on our own. The Gospel cuts at the root of our pride, revealing our spiritual poverty and helplessness.

Lastly, the doctrine of God's sovereign freedom is a stumbling block. Grace means that God is not obligated to save anyone, yet He is free to save anyone. This challenges the human desire for control, as we often want a God who evolves with our culture and desires, rather than a sovereign God who acts according to His will.

These truths provoke hostility because they confront the sinful nature that is inherently hostile to God. The desire for a controllable deity reflects humanity's ongoing rebellion against God's rightful place as sovereign. This spirit of rebellion is evident in our culture today, as it has been throughout history.

Key Takeaways:

- Christ's unique glory challenges human pride, as the Gospel centers on Jesus rather than us. This exclusivity is offensive to those who desire self-glorification. [01:57]

- Our desperate need for salvation is a humbling truth. The Gospel reveals our spiritual poverty and helplessness, which offends human arrogance. [05:19]

- God's sovereign freedom is a stumbling block because it challenges our desire for control. Grace means God is free to act according to His will, not ours. [06:34]

- Humanity's reversal of the Christmas message reflects a deep-seated rebellion against God's rightful place. We often prioritize human glory over divine glory. [02:31]

- The desire for a controllable deity is an expression of humanity's ongoing rebellion against God's sovereignty. This spirit is evident in our culture today. [08:56]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:09] - The Unique Hostility Towards Christ
- [00:26] - Isaiah's Prophecy: Sanctuary and Stumbling Block
- [00:42] - Christ's Dual Effect
- [01:26] - The Three Doctrines of the Gospel
- [01:42] - Christ's Unique Glory
- [02:14] - Cultural Reversal of the Christmas Message
- [03:01] - Humanity's Attempt to Usurp God's Throne
- [04:03] - The Offense of Christ's Exclusivity
- [04:41] - Our Desperate Need for Salvation
- [05:19] - The Double Offense to Human Arrogance
- [06:06] - God's Sovereign Freedom
- [07:04] - The Reaction of Wrath and Fury
- [08:04] - The Desire for a Controllable Deity
- [08:56] - The Spirit of Rebellion in Today's Culture

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
- Isaiah 8:14
- Luke 4:18-19

Observation Questions:
1. According to Isaiah 8:14, how is Jesus described in terms of His impact on people? What does it mean for Him to be both a sanctuary and a stumbling block?
2. In Luke 4:18-19, what specific roles and missions does Jesus claim for Himself? How do these roles challenge the expectations of His audience? [01:42]
3. How does the sermon describe the cultural reversal of the Christmas message, and what does this reveal about human nature? [02:14]
4. What are the three core doctrines of the Gospel mentioned in the sermon that cause people to stumble? [01:26]

Interpretation Questions:
1. Why might the exclusivity of Christ's glory be offensive to people, according to the sermon? How does this challenge human pride? [04:03]
2. How does the sermon explain our desperate need for salvation, and why is this message often met with resistance? [05:19]
3. What does the doctrine of God's sovereign freedom imply about God's relationship with humanity, and why might this be a stumbling block for some? [06:34]
4. How does the desire for a controllable deity reflect humanity's rebellion against God's sovereignty, as discussed in the sermon? [08:56]

Application Questions:
1. Reflect on the idea of Christ as a stumbling block. Have there been moments in your life where you found aspects of Jesus' teachings challenging or offensive? How did you respond? [00:42]
2. The sermon discusses the reversal of the Christmas message. In what ways do you see this reversal in your own life or in the culture around you? How can you prioritize divine glory over human glory? [02:31]
3. Consider your own need for salvation. How does acknowledging your spiritual poverty and helplessness impact your relationship with God and others? [05:19]
4. How do you react to the idea of God's sovereign freedom? Are there areas in your life where you struggle with wanting control over God's will? [06:34]
5. The sermon mentions the human desire for a God who evolves with culture. How can you remain faithful to the true nature of God amidst cultural pressures? [08:22]
6. In what ways can you actively resist the spirit of rebellion against God's sovereignty in your daily life? What practical steps can you take to submit to God's authority? [08:56]
7. How can you share the message of Christ's unique glory and the need for salvation with others in a way that is both truthful and compassionate? [04:03]

Devotional

Day 1: Christ's Glory and Human Pride
Christ's unique glory is central to the Gospel, as Jesus is proclaimed as the only Son of God and the sole sacrifice for sin. This exclusivity challenges human pride, as people naturally desire the message to be about themselves rather than about Christ. Our culture has reversed the angelic Christmas message, prioritizing human glory over divine glory. This reversal reflects humanity's attempt to usurp God's throne, demanding that God conform to our desires and affirm our choices. [01:57]

Isaiah 42:8 (ESV): "I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols."

Reflection: In what ways have you prioritized your own desires over God's glory in your life? How can you begin to realign your focus on Christ's glory today?


Day 2: The Humbling Truth of Salvation
The Gospel highlights our desperate need for salvation. Jesus came not to affirm us but to save us from our sins. This message offends human arrogance, as it suggests that we need saving and that we cannot achieve it on our own. The Gospel cuts at the root of our pride, revealing our spiritual poverty and helplessness. [05:19]

Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV): "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."

Reflection: Reflect on a time when you tried to earn God's favor through your own efforts. How can you embrace the truth of salvation by grace alone today?


Day 3: God's Sovereign Freedom
The doctrine of God's sovereign freedom is a stumbling block because it challenges our desire for control. Grace means that God is not obligated to save anyone, yet He is free to save anyone. This challenges the human desire for control, as we often want a God who evolves with our culture and desires, rather than a sovereign God who acts according to His will. [06:34]

Romans 9:15-16 (ESV): "For he says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.' So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy."

Reflection: Consider an area of your life where you struggle to relinquish control. How can you trust in God's sovereign freedom and His perfect will today?


Day 4: Reversing the Christmas Message
Humanity's reversal of the Christmas message reflects a deep-seated rebellion against God's rightful place. We often prioritize human glory over divine glory. This spirit of rebellion is evident in our culture today, as it has been throughout history. [02:31]

Jeremiah 2:11-13 (ESV): "Has a nation changed its gods, even though they are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit. Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the Lord, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water."

Reflection: How have you seen the reversal of the Christmas message in your own life or community? What steps can you take to restore the focus on divine glory?


Day 5: The Desire for a Controllable Deity
The desire for a controllable deity is an expression of humanity's ongoing rebellion against God's sovereignty. This spirit is evident in our culture today. We often want a God who evolves with our culture and desires, rather than a sovereign God who acts according to His will. [08:56]

Psalm 115:3 (ESV): "Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases."

Reflection: Identify a specific area where you have tried to fit God into your own expectations. How can you surrender this area to His sovereign will today?

Quotes

"Isaiah the prophet says something very distinctive uh prophesying Jesus he says this this is Isaiah 8 and ver14 he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel to some Jesus Christ will be a sanctuary the prophet says and to others he will be a like a big rock over which people will fall." [00:32:31]

"WG Blakey writing in an earlier Century but it speaks very powerfully today I think he points out that what has happened is that our culture has actually turned the Christmas message of the angels on its head and reversed it completely what is the Christmas message of the Angels they say this glory to God in the highest and on Earth peace Good Will towards men." [02:09:59]

"Lei says what our culture has done is we turned it completely the other way around and we've said glory to man in the highest and on Earth peace Good Will towards God in other words he's thinking man is prepared to offer Good Will towards God so long as of course he recognizes our sovereignty glory to man in the highest and on Earth peace and Good Will towards God." [02:36:16]

"Man snatches at the Throne of God as Satan first did he wants it for himself and we see this great reversal in which man assumes increasingly to himself and this is running right through our culture man assuming to himself the right to give Commandments to God Thou shalt keep thyself out of thy our Public Square and thou shalt keep thyself out of our private lives." [03:01:19]

"Thou shalt give us what our hearts desire and thou shalt bless and affirm whatever we choose to do and what stands at the center of the Gospel is not the unique Glory of man but it is the unique Glory of Jesus Christ and whenever that is proclaimed it causes offense Christ comes as the only son of God he offers himself as the only sacrifice for sin." [03:36:40]

"At the heart of the Gospel at the heart of the message that Jesus is bringing in Nazareth and and and the message that's right throughout the scriptures and here before us today it's about the unique Glory of Jesus it's about our own desperate need remember when Jesus came in in Luke 4 we've seen this over the last couple of weeks he says the good news is for who it's for the poor it's for the blind it's for the captives and it's for the crushed." [04:39:39]

"The Hopeless plight of guilty Sinners is at the very center of the Gospel Christ did not come into the world to affirm us he came into the world to save us you shall call his name Jesus why because he will save his people from their sins and in that there's a double offense to human arrogance the first of course is the suggestion that we need saving and the second is that we cannot do it ourselves it's beyond us it cuts at the root of our pride." [04:56:44]

"Grace means that God God has no obligations and Grace means that God has no limitations Grace means that none of us is a in a position to tell God what he must do and none of us is in a position to tell God what he cannot do Grace means that God is obliged to save no one and it means that he is free to save anyone." [06:28:52]

"When they heard these things all in the synagogue were filled with anger wrath Fury ain't no place for that in this town a god with no obligations no limitations sovereignly free do whatever he pleases what would that make him make him God can't have that that belongs to us that belongs to us what we want is a god small G who evolves with our culture and grows with our desires." [07:18:39]

"A God who adapts and changes with us and conforms to us because his role is stantly to affirm us we want ultimately a God we can control which is nothing other to than to say we want the throne and we want him as the servant and therefore of course we cannot have a God who creates or a God who judges we have to evolve something else and this Jesus bringing this message we got to get him out of here." [07:47:44]

"It should not surprise a single Christian if that spirit is rampant in America today because it's simply the expression of the human heart that is always hostile towards God." [09:01:24]

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Transcript
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