October 24, 2024

Passage Read: 1 Thessalonians 1-2
Meditation Verses: 2:4-6

Thought

The Gospel is a hard thing to accept. It can provoke a hostile reaction almost as often as it draws some to believe it. It is so offensive to many that those who preach it can be tempted to distort it in order to please men rather than preach the truth of it in order to please God. That is so not my experience that I wonder if I have been preaching the true Gospel? Is it just that I have not preached it to Jews, who tend to have such a hostile response? While Paul seemed to suffer mostly at the hands of Jews, it was not exclusively at the hands of Jews. Many Gentiles also took offense and turned on him.

Application

The Gospel exalts Jesus as Lord and Christ and coming Judge. All men must submit to and honor Him, as the psalmist says. Jesus is love, but He is also righteous and holy, and He comes to make men holy and to walk in holiness. Repentance is required, as well as faith, in order to receive forgiveness. Men must turn from their evil ways and humble themselves before Jesus the Lord. A Gospel like that is probably more likely to garner hostility, as well as genuine repentance. I may not be deliberately trying to water down the Gospel, but I may have simply inherited a less-combative Gospel. Whatever the reason, I need to examine my message and make sure it lines up with the reality revealed in Scripture.