“When Jesus said these things, the people were again divided in their opinions about him.”
Since the days when Jesus physically walked the earth, people have been divided in their opinions about Him. Even when they could watch Him heal people and perform miracles. Even when they could hear Him teach. Even when they could look into His eyes as He spoke to them, people did not automatically believe.
In fact, as crazy as it sounds, there were times when Jesus would perform some type of incredible healing or miracle. Some who saw would choose to believe, while others who saw would be looking for a way to kill Him because He threatened the religious and political status quo.
People are still divided in their opinions about Jesus. The Church’s job is to present the message of the Gospel as clearly as we can, conveying the love and grace that Jesus has shown us. The Apostle Paul said, “I know very well how foolish the message of the cross sounds to those who are on the road to destruction. But we who are being saved recognize this message as the very power of God.”
Since the time of Jesus, people have stumbled over Him and His message. As Christ’s followers, we should try to keep the world from stumbling over us. Andy Stanley says, “The Gospel is already scandalous enough. The Church should never be what people stumble over.”
This is not easy. It is never acceptable for Christ’s followers to compromise the message of the Gospel but we can look for ways to share the message in love. Most people will listen to us if they believe that we actually care about them.
Do you think that it is possible to share the message of Christ without being offensive?
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