I'd like to discuss the subject of urgency with you this morning. If you will take your Bibles and turn to Matthew chapter 11, we'll be looking today at verses 20 to 30. And I want to talk to you about the urgency with which you need to give attention to the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, I have entitled this morning's message You need to respond to the gospel. You need to respond to the gospel. I think most people, by and large, view the gospel message as something of a sales pitch. It's God coming along and saying, I've got a great deal for you. I will forgive you of all of your sins and make you a part of my kingdom and I will give you a place in heaven. All you need to do is believe in me. All you need to do is become one of my disciples and we'll just make this little transaction here. And I'm trying to convince you or one of my representatives, some Christian is trying to convince you to buy into this. Perhaps a better illustration would be an investment opportunity. I've got a great 401k plan for you. All of the dividends are for the future after you die, but you can store up as much treasure as you want into that. Nothing can touch it. You can get in on the ground floor. All you got to do is is just buy into it. All you got to do is Pay some attention and name the name of Christ, identify with him, join the church, maybe put a little money in the offering plate, treat people a little bit better or be a nicer person, etc. And you got great things in store for you, huge dividends that you will reap for yourself when you die and you get to heaven. To others, the gospel message is It's perhaps more of a novelty or just something of general interest. A lot of neat facts, a lot of historical stuff. And I like listening to preaching because it makes me think I like reading the Bible maybe or listening to people talk about the Bible because it educates me about how things were in the past. But there's no real sense of urgency. There's no sense in which my eternal destiny hangs in the balance on the basis of how I respond to this message. And that's the way it was in Jesus' day as well. By the time we get to Matthew chapter 11, now it's not a strictly chronological account, but as we look at verses 20 to 30 this morning, you'll notice that we're told that Jesus has a change at one point in His ministry. After about a year of ministering in Galilee, doing countless miracles and preaching and teaching and offering people forgiveness of their sins in a place in his eternal kingdom. Most of the people responded to him in a positive way. But it was superficial. It was circumstantial. It was on the basis of what benefits that they got for themselves in the miracles that were done. And the entertainment value of listening to Jesus teach. And the interest in hearing somebody teach different than their religious leaders, teaching with authority in and of himself. And the fascination of listening to somebody that had answers for everything, and they all went back to Scripture, wow. And the raw power of God that's on display that is, quite frankly, Awesome to watch. Can you imagine what it would be like? To be in the presence of Jesus and watch him heal person after person after person after person after person. Can you imagine that? Listen, it was impressive and people were impressed. But most people did not repent. And most people did not take seriously the need to consider the message that Jesus Christ was preaching. And the need, urgent need that each of them had to respond to the revelation they were given and to respond to the offer that God had given to them because their eternal destiny is at stake. See, the truth of the matter is this, how you respond to the gospel is eternally significant. The gospel is not a sales pitch. It is not an investment opportunity. It is not an effort to get you to buy into something. It's not ultimately a demand upon you that you have the great thing that you're giving up to God and him giving you some small token in return. The gospel message is a gracious offer from God that despite your sin, you can be forgiven. You can be reconciled to your creator and amazingly even become one of his children and have a part in glory with him forever. But there is a limited window that we all have to respond. And there's where the urgency kicks in. This is why you need to give attention. to God's word. This is why you need to pay attention. This is this is why you need urgently to respond to the message of the gospel, because it is eternally significant to you as an individual. That is not trying to sell anything. God is genuinely, graciously offering you, despite what you deserve, an opportunity to be reconciled to him. And today, what I would like to do is to help you catch that sense of urgency as we look at Matthew 11 verses 20 to 30 and see two eternally significant reasons why you need urgently to respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ today. And I hope as we go through this text, this will motivate each and every one of us. For those among us who have not responded to the gospel of Jesus Christ with repentance and faith, I pray that this will help you to realize how urgent it is that you consider the truth of what Jesus says and the genuineness of God's offer of forgiveness and a place in his kingdom. And for those of us. That are believers, those of us who have come in repentance and faith and given our lives to Jesus Christ, I hope it will Help us to recognize the urgency with which we need to give ourselves to in sharing the gospel with those who are lost around us. You need to respond to Jesus Christ and to his offer of forgiveness, to his offer of salvation, number one, because there are consequences for not. There are consequences for not responding to his offer, or you could even put it this way. There are consequences for rejection. There are consequences for indifference. There are consequences for superficial attachment. There are consequences for a lack of repentance. Perhaps that would be the best way to say it. There are consequences for rejection. Because in the end, superficial attachment, indifference. Or. Thumbing your nose at the message are all forms of rejection. There are consequences for rejection. And as you can see here in Matthew 11, starting in verse 20, Jesus makes it very clear. that each and every one of us are very responsible for the revelation that we are given of God personally. In verse 20, then he, that is Jesus, began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles were done because they did not repent. Notice the little word began, it shows that there is a change at this point in what Jesus is teaching and the way Jesus is conducting himself in ministry. It has been nearly a year now that he has been in and around Capernaum, his base of operations there in southern Galilee. It has been nearly a year that he has done miracle after miracle after miracle. Curing countless people. Likely into the thousands. Healing, casting out demons and preaching and teaching constantly. presenting an offer of salvation to all who will come in repentance and faith. And having gone on and done this now in one general area for nearly a year, he begins to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles were done. That word denounce is a very strong word in the Greek. When it's used in a negative sense, it means to mock or to ridicule. means to revile or heap insults on somebody. In this context, Jesus is not using it negatively. He's using it in a judicial sense. And in that case, it conveys the idea of a reprimand. He is denouncing or reprimanding the cities in which most of his miracles were done. I picture I never really watched Judge Judy in my day it was Judge Wapner. Maybe some of you have heard that. I know I'm dating myself. I never even got much interest in that but I just remember showing the courtroom thing and I know it's a little bit dramatized and whatnot but you just see the judge sitting there. and going now on the basis of all the things that you've done wrong and that that that here's what the here's what the verdict is going to be. And you're going to pay this amount. And because and you didn't even have any remorse and said that that's you know what that is. That's denouncing someone in a judicial sense. Now, Jesus is not Judge Judy or Wapner or anybody like that or even the TV judges. OK, but that's the tone we're talking about here. Jesus began after somewhere between eight months and a year of doing miracles and miracles and miracles and miracles there in southern Galilee He began to reprimand in a judicial sense. He began to denounce those Cities in which he had done the majority of his miracles. Why? well look at the end of the verse because they did not repent and If you want a picture of what this looks like, look at Matthew 4, again with me, and verse 23. In Matthew chapter 4 and verse 23, we're told that Jesus was going throughout all of Galilee, particularly the southern area, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people. In fact, He did it so long and so consistently that news about him spread throughout all Syria, way to the east, and they brought to him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases, pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics, and he healed them. And the implication is he healed them all. And large crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond to Jordan. People were coming from everywhere, but you know where all the work was being done? You know where most of those miracles were taking place? Right there in Galilee. In fact, if you if you move a little further here in Matthew 11 and you see the cities that he rebukes, the cities that he reprimands, it's Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum. Those three cities, you can put a dot in a map in the middle there. And there's a five mile radius in which all of that takes place. A small area. About the size of Lancaster. a small area where the majority of the miraculous power of God was on display in and through Jesus. Now, yes, people came from all over the place. This picture picture like being the fairgrounds, everybody comes to the fairgrounds, but it's Jesus doing the miracle. And think about how many people that are just here locally seeing this going on and on and on. There's always people bringing sick people and going on, people getting carried in on pallets and carrying their pallet home. or selling it at the flea market before they go home because they don't need it anymore. People coming in blind, people coming in demon possessed, people coming in mute and deaf and dumb and people leaving restored. All of these miracles, all of this revelation, all of these evidences that the Messiah, God incarnate in human flesh is among you. All of these miracles done right there in their midst. And Jesus begins to reprimand them, he begins to denounce them. Why? Because having been given all of that privilege, all of that revelation. They didn't respond rightly. They didn't repent. All the time, Jesus was here. You know what he never sought? He never sought fame, he never sought fortune. He was never out for popularity or prestige. He sought one thing from people, and that was repentance. He didn't come to put on a show. He didn't come to give people a good time. He didn't come to impress people with his power. He didn't come to entertain the masses. He came to offer forgiveness of sins and citizenship in God's kingdom to those who would repent. And he did all these miracles to demonstrate his power to save and the fact that God is indeed among you. Yes, I can cure every ill no matter what it is. I can deliver you from sickness. I can deliver you from the effects of sin. I can deliver you from blindness. If you have an injury and you're paralyzed, I can cure that. Yes, I can do all of that stuff. I can cast out demons. The forces of darkness have no power over you if you're one of mine. I can do all of that. And I can do all of that no matter who you are, even if you don't repent. That's the power that was on display all day, every day for almost a year. And you know what most people didn't do? Oh, listen, people were impressed. I'll show you that in a moment. They praised God, they were amazed, they were marveling. You know, most of them didn't do they didn't repent, they didn't take seriously what they were seeing. They didn't consider the eternal gravity of the situation as it related to them, each and every one of them individually. They didn't repent. And just so we're clear, you see that little word repent, you know, repentance literally means metanoeo is the Greek word. There will be a quiz afterwards. The word itself, though. refers to a change. That's basically what the word means. It means to change your mind. To change your mind, not just in what you believe, but in what how you will live, what your purposes are, what your intentions are. Now, as it relates to biblical repentance, we're talking about a changing your mind from living for yourself and and and maybe being enslaved to your sins or enjoying your sins, etc. to know I'm going to live for God. I belong to him. My life is his and I'm going to follow him. That's repentance right there. It is a decision that you make. You stop living for you, stop living for sin, stop living for the world, you stop living for your flesh. And you choose to live for God, you choose to commit yourself to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, become one of his disciples. You say no to you being in charge. And from this point forward, you live for him. And you know something? That's really the key to understanding the first half of this text. That's what God expects. See, the reason that you need to urgently Consider the gravity of what Jesus is teaching and what he is offering in the gospel. And you need to respond to it in repentance and give your life to Christ and live for him. The reason is because while he is offering you forgiveness of sin and a place in his kingdom, he's holding you accountable to the decision He expects you to repent, to respond rightly to this offer. And if you don't, you're accountable for not responding. This isn't all in in your within the realm of your decision making, if you will. How many of you have had people come up and knock on the door and try to sell you something? But we happen to have the corner house. So periodically, roughly about every two or three months, we have somebody saying, hey, we'll give you a free security system. All you have to do is pay for it. And but but you put a sign out in your front yard that says you have this ADT system or this whatever system or this, you know, all the companies have come by. So it's a free system, I just have to sign up for their monthly service or whatever. I don't know how many of those people we've turned away. And you know something? There's no there is no impact in me for saying no to that offer. Except that I don't have another monthly bill. Right? There's there's no impact to me. How many of you get sales calls, even though you're on a do not call list? Not that. OK, and is there is there an impact if you don't answer the phone? Well, yes, because they'll keep calling. Sometimes you can call and say, take us off your list. I'm on the do not call list and they'll still keep calling. But if I decline the offer, there is no detrimental impact to me. You follow me? Well, you need to understand the offer of the gospel is not like that. When Jesus came and offered forgiveness to sinners who deserve eternal wrath forever, He came offering forgiveness and a place in God's kingdom to those who don't deserve it. And he expects us to repent. And if we don't, we're accountable to him for having rejected that gracious offer. That is sin in and of itself, and that's the point. Notice, in verse 21, Jesus says, Woe to you, Corazon, woe to you, Bethsaida, because if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon, which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago and sackcloth and ashes. Now, Tyre and Sidon are two places that were described as as going to be condemned because of their wickedness and because of their pride, you can read about it in Ezekiel 26. 27 and 28 in particular, you can see that there are forces of darkness that are involved in that and and some of those other kinds of things. And both of those cities indeed did suffer destruction, as was prophesied by by God through Ezekiel. And they were destroyed because of their wickedness. And what Jesus is saying here is, woe to you, Corazon, and woe to you, Bethsaida. Incidentally, I forget to mention this. Woe is a lot of writers tie woe to making it express sorrow or sadness and then like blessedness, which is its opposite to happiness. Blessedness is to be in the enviable state of divine approval, like the Beatitudes in Matthew 5. Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, etc. In the enviable state of divine approval are those who are persecuted. See, it's not happiness just in the sense of, oh, goody. It's being in that date of that enviable state where God looks upon you with favor. That's blessed. Woe is the opposite of that, to be in the unenviable position of God looking upon you with disfavor. And that's exactly what Jesus is saying. This is like pronouncing a curse. The one is a blessing. The other is a curse. Blessed are those who are poor in spirit. Accursed are you, Chorazin and Bethsaida. Woe to you. Why? Because Tyre and Sidon are two very wicked cities from the past that God proclaimed judgment was going to come upon both of them because of their evil and because of their wickedness. And indeed, by Jesus's day, those destructions had taken place. And the people of Jesus's day knew that and they knew why those two cities had been leveled. Because they were wicked and God had announced it called the shot in advance. And Jesus says that had occurred if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon, which I've done for the last year here in your midst, they would have repented long ago and sackcloth and ashes. In other words, they wouldn't have been destroyed. They wouldn't have been judged. You know why? Because if they had the same amount of revelation and the same kinds of demonstrations of divine power, that have been on display in front of you for these last 8, 10, 12 months. They would have repented long ago and sackcloth and ashes. Remember when we went through Jonah here a few weeks ago? Sackcloth and ashes is just a very public way to demonstrate contrition, to demonstrate sorrow and sadness for sin and a commitment to repent. They would have not only repented, they would have demonstrated repentance in a very public and graphic way, in a very humble way before God. Korzen and Bethsaida are two small towns right there in southern Galilee. Both are in the neighborhood of Capernaum. which was Capernaum, by the way, is the right along the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. It was Jesus's base of operations. Korzen is about two miles northwest, just inland a little bit. Bethsaida was just on the other side of the Jordan River, also along the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. So these are three little towns, three little cities. They derive most of their business from the fishing industry on the Sea of Galilee. And if you put a dot in the map, there's about a five mile radius between the three of them. And this is the area where Jesus did most of his miracles. So much divine revelation. So much evidence that God was in their midst, so much proof that Jesus's message was true and it was an offer of a place in God's kingdom to those who would become followers of Jesus. And given even a portion of that revelation from God, those two wicked cities that were destroyed, Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago. They'd still be here. Now, most commentators that I read look at this and go theologically, that means that God chose not to do those kinds of miracles in Tyre and Sidon in order to condemn them. And while it's interesting to start thinking down that line, that doesn't have anything to do with the point that Jesus is making. The point that Jesus is making has nothing to do with God's divine sovereignty in choosing whether to give more revelation to a people or not in order to grant them an opportunity to repent. Jesus's point has nothing to do with the what if God had. Jesus' point is to hold Chorazin and Bethsaida responsible for how much they had been given. They had been given so very much more revelation than anyone else in all of redemptive history, and they haven't repented, and that's the point. You realize that during the year that Jesus was in Galilee, God demonstrated in miraculous signs more miracles in that little one-year period, in that one little five-mile radius. God did more miraculous acts in that little place, in that short time, than He has done throughout all of the rest of redemptive history. You understand that? Moses had 10 plagues that he called down on Egypt. And then there were periodic miracles during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. Elijah and Elisha had a few miracles that God did through them. Noah had that little water issue. Right? Enoch walked with God and then he was not because God took him. There are a handful of miracles that are recorded. Throughout all of redemptive history, even the apostles did a lot of miracles. But Jesus did an absolute nonstop flow of miracles. In fact, most of them were done in one area in one year's time. And you know something? Nobody in all of redemptive history is more accountable for the revelation that they have received from God than the people that lived in those three little towns. And you know what? Most of them didn't repent. And that's Jesus's point. And because of that, the people that lived in that little area are eternally accountable for having not responded rightly to that abundance of evidence God gave them. That's why Jesus says in verse 22, Nevertheless, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. What is the day of judgment? That's Revelation 20, verses 11 to 15, when Christ sits on his great white throne and judges every man according to his deeds. It is the ultimate day of judgment when Christ casts into the lake of fire. Every single person that didn't repent. And when he says here, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in a day of judgment than for you. You know what he's saying? Not only is he conveying the truth that there are degrees of punishment in eternal hell, he is also conveying the fact that one of the things that is offensive to God and one of the things that is a sin that that everyone is accountable to is how they responded based on how much revelation they were given. When he says it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you, what he's saying very directly is. Tyre and Sidon are wicked, they were evil, they were arrogant peoples, they hated God, they thumbed their nose at God and they and they attacked God's people and for that. They were condemned and they will be eternally condemned and they will be cast into the lake of fire for their wickedness. That's true. But you know what? You know what's a worse sin than all that evil, not that that's not a bad sin, but you know what is a worse sin and something that is even more worthy of eternal condemnation to have Christ in your midst for a year, demonstrating the power of God nonstop. preaching the gospel of the kingdom nonstop and you not responding to him. That is that is that a surprise to you to find that it is more offensive to God that when he shows up and offers you forgiveness and you and you treat him with indifference. That that is worse than some really wicked things you can do. I hope it surprises you. I hope it opens your eyes to the truth, because the fact of the matter is that's exactly how God feels. The gospel is not a sales pitch. It's not an offer to get in on the ground floor of some new kingdom venture that God is out to to undertake. The gospel is an offer of forgiveness of your sins, all of them, and an offer to become part of God's own family and have a place in his eternal kingdom in spite of who you are and what you deserve. And for the people in Jesus's day who had seen all these miracles and would not respond in repentance and faith. Jesus says it will be more tolerable. For those who had no special revelation, who are given no offer to repent, it will be more tolerable for them in the day of judgment than it will be for you. God doesn't just eternally punish trespassers. He eternally punishes all sins. The trespass, remember the plurality of terms that are used in the Bible for sin, there is a trespass or a transgression. That's when God says, don't do this. And if you do it, you've transgressed or trespassed. You've broken the law, but sin isn't just doing something you're not supposed to do. Sin is also when you don't do something that you should do. And Jesus's point here is. That these three cities. Had been given so much evidence, so much revelation, these three cities have been given so many opportunities to repent. And they hadn't. and they'll be eternally accountable for it. Look at verse 23. And you, Capernaum, you will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You're not going to escape. You're not going to be considered as better than everybody else or more special than everybody else, are you? You will descend to Hades. Hades is a specific reference to the place of the departed spirits who are awaiting eternal judgment. You can see this in Luke 16 in the rich man and Lazarus. You will descend to Hades when you die, you will go to Hades and you will be waiting eternal condemnation. Why? Because if the miracles that occurred in Sodom, which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. And we're all familiar with Sodom, right? Sodom. is a city that God, together with Gomorrah, is a city that God wiped out miraculously with fire coming down from heaven and consuming both of those cities because of their wickedness. You know something? Their wickedness so offended God and so got his attention that he destroyed both of them with fire coming down from heaven. But you know what? Those who saw all the miracles of Christ, those who heard all the messages of Christ and didn't repent, their eternal condemnation will be worse than those who were in Sodom. That should be a wake up call to every one of us. God does not take it lightly when people do not respond to his word. And it's not just when you do things that are contrary to what he says it's OK to do. It's also when you don't do what he expects you rightly expects you to do. And again, most commentators quickly go to the divine sovereignty side here and focus on God's decision not to give more revelation to Sodom. But Jesus's point has nothing to do with that whatsoever. Jesus's point is exactly the opposite. Jesus focuses on how much revelation God has given to Capernaum and how they did not respond in spite of having so much revelation. They had so much privilege that even Sodom would have repented and been preserved if they've been given the amount of revelation that Capernaum received and result. They are eternally accountable for what they received as far as revelation goes. That's why Jesus says in verse 24, nevertheless, I say to you, and by the way, in both cases here. In verse 24, as well as verse 22, the word nevertheless draws something to a conclusion and focuses on what's most important in the discussion. See, the point here is Capernaum. You're not going to get away with what you've done or failed to do in responding and repentance, will you? No, you're going to descend to Hades because of the miracles that had occurred in Sodom, which occurred in you. It would have remained to this day. But what's most important here is that I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you. See, the big thing isn't that Sodom would have repented if they had been given the same amount of revelation you've been given. The big thing is you are going to suffer the wrath of God far more than they have. And, you know, they are super wicked. You see, the point here is. Those of you that saw the miracles of God, those of you that have seen the person of Jesus Christ in your midst. Those of you that have been listening to his preaching, those of you that have been witnessing the power of God day after day after day and have not responded repentance. You are eternally accountable for having not responded rightly, that's as offensive to God as any kind of sin or wickedness. In fact, in this case, more so it's more wicked. It is more an offense to God. It is more worthy of eternal condemnation to have sat under the teaching of Jesus, to have witnessed all the miracles of Jesus and not repent than it is to have no interest in God and sin it up like in Sodom. And for the record, There is nothing in the Gospels that tell us that Corzine, Bethsaida, or Capernaum ever, as a people, mocked Jesus. There's no occasion of them ridiculing Him. There's no occasion described of them rejecting Him or running Him out of town, which is interesting, because if you take your Bibles and turn with me to Luke 4, let me show you what happened or remind you what happened when Jesus went home to Nazareth. Luke chapter 4. verse fourteen Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit news about him was spreading through all the surrounding district. He began teaching in their synagogues and he was praised by all. Then he went north he went home to Nazareth where he had been brought up and as was his custom he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read and he reads from Isaiah, the prophet, the spirit of the Lord is upon me because he anointed me to preach the gospel of the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release of the captives. He sent me to proclaim recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord. Remember, we talked about this when we were talking about John. Jesus then says. He closes the book, Isaiah, hands it back to the attendant, sits down, everybody's looking at him, and he says, Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. I am the Messiah, and these are the things that I am doing. And while all were speaking well of him and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from his lips, they were also saying, Isn't this Joseph's son, the carpenter? And he said to them, No doubt you will quote this proverb to me, physician, heal yourself. Whatever we heard was done in Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well. But I'll tell you what, I'm not going to do miracles here because I'm not going to cater to your unbelief. And notice the way they responded, verse 28, all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things, they got up and they drove him out of the city. They led him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built in order to throw him down the cliff. Implication then is to pick up stones and stone him. But he passed through their midst and he went his way and he came back down to Capernaum. And there he started teaching in the synagogue and again doing the miracles. You know something? There are records of Jesus being rejected in Jerusalem. There are records of Jesus being rejected, openly rejected in Nazareth. We even saw when he went to the Decapolis, when he gets off the boat and casts the demons out of the one man or the two guys that are there, they go into the herd of pigs and destroy the herd. You remember the Gentiles come up and say, please go away, right? You don't have any of that in Capernaum and Chorazin and Bethsaida. You know what? They were all oppressed. They were praising him. He was finding favor with them. They were amazed at him. Matthew, chapter eight and verse 16. When evening comes, they bring to Jesus many who are demon possessed, he cast the spirits out with a word and healed all those who are sick. And the end result was they were impressed. Chapter nine and verse eight. When the crowd saw this, all the miracles Jesus was doing, they were awestruck. They glorified God who had given such authority to men. They recognized this is God who worked through Jesus. Chapter nine and verse twenty six. The news spreads throughout all the land. He's popular. Everyone is impressed. Oh, the religious leaders in chapter nine of verse thirty four are saying he's casting out demons by the ruler of the demons. But you know what the people are doing, they're amazed, they're marveled, they're impressed, they're praising God, they're acknowledging that this is God at work in our midst. But you know what they're not doing? They're not repenting. Their attachment to Jesus is superficial. Their discipleship is artificial. And the more they see, the more it becomes commonplace. Unless and less and less significant impact the message and the miracles have on them. Jesus says, I say to you will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you. Why? Why? Because it is a sin to receive divine revelation and reject it. It is a sin as offensive, if not more so than any other sin you can commit. In John, chapter 20 and verse twenty nine. You recall the the account of doubting Thomas, right? We all have fun at Thomas's expense. We laugh and we joke. It's interesting, all Thomas asked for. Thomas wasn't there in the upper room the first time Jesus appeared to the disciples. And they were all afraid. They thought it was just a spirit or whatnot. They couldn't figure it out. And Jesus says, look, see, it's me. Give me some fish to eat. He ate some fish in their presence so they can see he's not a ghost. He's really there. He says, look at the nail prints in my hand and the wound in my side. You can see it's really me here in the flesh. So they do. And they're convinced, OK, it's really him, but they still are wondering. And then they tell Thomas after Jesus, Thomas shows up after Jesus has left. And they tell Thomas and Thomas goes, well, unless unless I put my finger in the nail prints and my hand in his side, I'm not going to believe it. In other words, I want the same evidences you guys had. Well, John 20 and 29, Jesus does show up eight days later. Thomas is with him this time. Jesus came with the doors having been shut, stood in their midst, said, Peace be with you. And then he looks directly at Thomas and says, Reach here with your finger and see my hands. Reach here with your hand and put it in my side. Don't be unbelieving, but rather be believing. And notice it doesn't say anything about Thomas going up and touching Jesus. Thomas answers and says, My Lord and my God, one of the greatest professions of faith in Jesus recorded in Scripture. a way better response than all the other disciples had had. And he did it without touching in just a moment and seeing Jesus. But listen to Jesus's response. Jesus said to him, because you have seen me, have you believed? Blessed are they who do not see and yet believe. You know something? That's us. That right there, that's us. Have you ever seen Jesus? Do you believe in him? You believe he really did live and die. You believe it really did rise again from the dead. You believe he ascended to the right hand of the father and that he's coming back in glory to judge the living and the dead. And you believe all that without having to see. Yeah. Yeah, that is that puts you in the enviable place of divine approval because you believe without having to see. We have an abundance of evidence. In fact, throughout all of redemptive history, we have more evidence than anybody else, because today every single one of us can have our own copy of the Bible in multiple versions, multiple translations. There is more access to divine revelation today than ever before. But you know what? To whom much is given, what? Much is required. Some of you have been sitting in this room listening to preaching of the gospel message and hearing the text unfolded week after week after week after week for five years, 10 years or more. And you have not responded to repentance and faith. And you need to understand that sin. God does not take that lightly. You have a privilege. Most of you know it is it is illegal to preach the gospel in countries, some countries today. I went through seminary. with a couple of guys from Russia. I grew up learning that Russia is evil, wicked, mean, bad, nasty. I was American through the 60s and 70s and 80s, and they're the bad guys. Then I met some Russians at seminary, and you know what I realized? We are privileged beyond imagination. I sat next to a guy whose grandfather and father were both imprisoned and died in prison because they preached the gospel of Jesus Christ in church. And the KGB came and hauled him off, threw him in prison, and they died. And now he was there studying at the Master's Seminary. You know something? I have students from Russia and China. I have one student who. His testimony couldn't even be shared on the Internet because it would make it impossible for him to go home and not be arrested. The guys with the privilege that we have here in the United States to meet and gather freely and preach the truth of the word of God. Is not open to everybody. And as you sit here and listen to the preaching of God's word week after week after week, there is a privilege, but there is also an obligation for those of us who are believers. We need to take advantage of the time that we're given here and the opportunity and the privileges that we have here. And we need to learn and seek to obey what we're learning and live it out because everybody doesn't have this privilege. And for those of us who sit here and listen to the preaching of the gospel week after week after week and have so much of so much of the evidence of God's revelation of his person and the genuineness of his offer of salvation to be right here in front of us and not respond, that is an offense to God. And the longer you listen and don't respond, the more you hear and you don't genuinely consider it and consider urgently, not just for the sake of your eternal soul, whether you make the decision or not, but because the accountability to have to make a decision what you're going to do with the message. There are no guarantees you will see evidences of judgment in this life, but I guarantee you there will be a reckoning in the end and there will be degrees of punishment in that reckoning in hell. And there are eternal consequences for unbelief tied directly to the amount of revelation that you receive. You need to give urgent consideration to the gospel of Jesus Christ because there are consequences for rejection and rejection isn't just when you say no. Rejection is when you don't say yes. Number two reason why you need urgently to respond to Jesus Christ and to his offer of salvation in verses 25 to 30 is simply this. Because there's still time to repent. There is still time to repent. The door is not closed. The window is not shut. The offer has not yet been rescinded. If you still live and breathe and have your existence in this life. There is still time. I want you to notice in verse 25. It says at that time, that is after Jesus has begun to denounce those cities that have had the most revelation and have not responded repentance. At that time, Jesus said, I praise you, Father. Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and intelligence and have revealed them to infants. You know what that means? I mean, Jesus says, I'm glad, Father, that that it works this way. He's not saying I'm frustrated that nobody will repent. He's not saying I'm bothered by this or I'm ready to give up. He's not throwing a temper tantrum. He's saying, Father, I praise you, Lord of heaven and earth, sovereign over all of creation, I praise you that you have hidden these things from wise and intelligent. And revealed them to infants, not some metaphors, a figure of speech. It's a hyperbole, actually. It's not saying that the only people that repent are those who are infants. Infants can't understand the gospel. It's a way to describe in extremes here the wise and intelligent as opposed to the infants, those totally dependent. And that is a perfect illustration of what it takes. To enter into the kingdom of heaven. Listen, if you're wise, if you're intelligent, if you think you've got it all figured out, know how it works. By the way, intelligent has to do with the amount of knowledge you have. Wise has to do with with figuring out how it all works. Wisdom typically is how to do stuff. Intelligence typically is just knowledge. So those that that know a lot and think they got it all figured out, they don't get it. You know what Jesus says? I praise you, Father, that this is the way it works. that you won't let them get it. You know why? You know why? Because if God made it a matter of us being able to figure it out, us being able to connect the dots and go, oh, I know how to get right with God. This is it. And all I have to do is do it. I do it and I got right with God. Who gets the glory? Who gets the credit? Who gets the praise? Well, you do. You know what? The only people that get into God's kingdom are the people that admit they don't have the ability in themselves to get themselves right with God. They don't understand the majesty of God, and they're totally dependent upon God to rescue them. And they come to God like children, little infants, to their parents, dependent upon them for everything, and say, God, save me. Verse 26, Yes, Father, for this way was well pleasing in your sight." This is the way you decided to do it because this is the way that you want to do it. And you know what? The only way to get to God is His way. And his way is that you don't come on your terms. You come in total dependence upon God on his terms and his terms include you coming to Jesus Christ and no one else. Notice verse 27, all things have been handed over to me by my father. And no one knows the son except the father, nor does anyone know the father except the son and anyone to whom the son what wills to reveal him. Jesus said it this way in the upper room. If you've seen me, you've seen the Father. He says, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except what? By me. You know what Jesus is saying here? Same thing. All things have been handed over to me by my Father. And you know what's included in all things? All authority, period. In John chapter 5, Jesus says this includes the authority to give life and the authority to take it away. Jesus says this includes the authority to judge the living and the dead and decide who does and who does not come into heaven. Jesus, in Matthew 28, after the resurrection, says all authority in heaven and on earth has been given unto me, go and make disciples. And that means he also has the authority to tell us how to live our lives. You want to know who Jesus is? He is God incarnate in human flesh, and He is the only means by which anybody comes to God. No one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son. And by the way, the word know here, or knows, in verse 27, it's not gnosko, referring to intimate knowledge, it's epiknosko, which refers to full knowledge. No one has a full understanding and comprehension of who the son is except the father. And no one has an understandable understanding and comprehension of who the father is except the son. And whoever the son. Wishes to reveal him to, you know, the only way you're ever going to get to God is through Jesus. See, that's what the offer of the kingdom is. That's why it's so urgent that you respond to it and repentance and faith now. This isn't This isn't a sales pitch. I'll tell you what, you give me your life, I'll give you eternal life. Sounds like a pretty good transaction, doesn't it? I know I know you think you're paying a lot now, but in the end, the return will be worth it. OK, that's true, and a lot of people present the gospel that way. Some people get saved on that on along those lines, thinking that to begin with. Listen, it in a sales pitch. It's not. It is an incredibly gracious offer from God that says, I know you're a sinner and I know that you bring nothing to the table. I know your very existence is depending upon dependent upon me sustaining you in your life. But I'll tell you what I offer you in spite of who you are and in spite of what you deserve. I will offer you a reconciled relationship to me and a part in my house as one of my children and not just full forgiveness of your sins, but a place in the eternal kingdom. But I'll tell you what it costs. You're going to have to turn from your sin, deny yourself and submit yourself to my authority now in order to be reconciled to me. And then I'll bring you into my kingdom. I will introduce you to my father. You know something? When you turn your back on that offer, it's an offense to God. When you are indifferent toward that offer or superficial in your response or partial in your response to that offer, there's a reason why you accumulate more wrath for yourself in that than even doing some wicked things. Because you're looking at your eternal judge and he's saying, I'll forgive you, and you're saying. I'm OK. Rejection of the gospel. Isn't just when you say no. Rejection of the gospel is when you don't say yes. And you need to say yes and you need to do it now, you know why? Because Jesus is still offering salvation. And that's a window that will close for you and will close for all one day. That is a door that will be shut and no one will open one day. Look at verse 28. Jesus says, Come unto me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Most people are rejecting Jesus in Capernaum and Chorazin and Bethsaida. It is not a rejection that says, get out of here. It is a rejection that has superficial interest or indifference that characterizes it. But it is still a rejection. And yet Jesus still says, come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden. He's still offering it. And you need to respond urgently because that door will not forever be open. That offer will not forever stand. Weary and heavy laden. Are two words that speak of a fatigue. And a burden. Weary speaks of tired, exhausted, spent from hard labor. Heavy laden speaks of burdens that you're carrying that are just more than you can carry. And you know what he offers rest. Relief. A lot of people take the burdens, the weary and heavy laden, and they relate it to the law, either an effort to try to keep the law, the law of Moses or the Pharisaic legalistic version, etc. I think Jesus is deliberately using an image here that includes any kind of weariness and any kind of burden. Those who are weary and heavy laden from trying to keep the law and recognizing they can't measure up or trying to measure up to the to the Pharisee legalistic standards and realizing they can't measure up or even. The weariness and the burdens associated with being a tax collector or a sinner. You know what, if you're tired of living for you. If you're tired of carrying the burdens of the weight of the guilt of your sin and the shame associated with it. And the realization that there is eternal wrath coming for you. If you want that taken away, if you want to truly be forgiven. And understand what a right and restore relationship with God is like that offer is for you. But I want you to notice there is a cost. There is a price. There is a condition that God has. You must take my yoke upon you and learn from me. You know what a yoke is? A yoke in this context is that is the is the wooden bar of sorts that was that was put across the neck of an ox. So that you can hook it up to a plow. And then you could steer the ox so that you're plowing straight furrows. Straight rows. Take my yoke upon you means. You're going to have to submit to me and to my authority. Yes, there's an absolute requirement that you're no longer in charge of your life. There's an absolute requirement that you're going to have from this point on, God be in charge of your life. Submission is a requirement. It is a condition. And learn from me, the root word here in the Greek is the same word that's used for disciple, so you're going to have to learn from me, you're going to have to become my disciple and let me teach you. And what do you think that Christ will teach you if you give your life to him? He'll teach you to be like him. Learn from me, why? Because this is what you need to learn. You need to learn how to be gentle and humble in heart. I'll give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Submit to my authority and learn from me because I am gentle and humble in heart, gentle as prowess. It's the same word in Matthew five translated there, meek or gentle. It's a word that refers to strength under control. And humble is the idea of subservient, a submissive heart willing to put others above you. That's what you're going to have to be. You want a place in God's kingdom? You want to be a part of His family? You want forgiveness of your sins? You want rest for your soul? You can have it. The offer's there. But you're going to have to submit to Christ and to His authority. You're going to have to become one of His disciples and learn to be like Him. And you will find rest for your souls. Why? Because my yoke is easy and my burden is light. My yoke is easy. It's comfortable. You can wear it. It's not tight. It's not needlessly restrictive. It's not demeaning. It's not tyrannical. So many people look at the law of God and the things that it says you got to do and that you that you can't do. And they look at that as oppressive. You know what? I find it very liberating to obey God's word. It is not hard to wear this yoke. In fact. It's rather a light burden in comparison to the weight of sin and guilt and shame and condemnation and selfishness. You spend your life living for you, you're going to find that you're always unsatisfied. Too much will never be enough. Happiness will always be fleeting at best. When you take upon yourself the yoke of Jesus Christ, you submit to his authority, you learn to be like him. You'll find that it's it's a burden that's very bearable. It's light. It's easy to carry. All there's still work to do. But it's not a weight that is beyond my ability to carry. You know, you need to respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ if you haven't. Because you're accountable to the revelation you're given. Nobody today is accountable to the level that the people at Khorasan and Bethsaida and Capernaum were because nobody today is seeing Jesus constantly do miracles. But I'll tell you what. You are accountable for all the revelation that you're given. And so am I. We need to respond. Rightly to the instructions that were given. And for those of us who have never bowed the knee to Jesus Christ and submitted to his authority, you need to understand that it is a sin against God is offensive to God that when he offers you forgiveness and a place in his kingdom, it is an offense to him when you are indifferent to him and to the genuineness of his offer. And that is a sin as worthy of condemnation as any other sin. And for those of us that know Christ, these realities need to inform us and the way we share the gospel with people. Would you not agree? And if you notice how Jesus always takes the gospel message and turns it back to the fundamental principles of repentance, you must turn from your sin. You must submit to the authority of Jesus Christ. You must learn from him and live for him. That's what it takes to be a Christian and nothing short of that. Let's pray. Father, thanks so much. for the genuineness of Your offer of salvation. Please help us, we who have been given so much, to appreciate the privileges and to recognize our responsibility to live in light of Your Word and to indeed honor You with what we've been given. In Jesus' name, Amen.