Salvation Assured JESUS, THE GREAT DIVIDER
Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low. Isa. 40:4.
One of the first groups that fell at the coming of Jesus (who was "set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel") were the holders of tradition. Jesus said of those who came to Him accusing His disciples of transgressing the traditions of the elders, "In vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men" (Matt. 15:9). The Christian church has often had problems with tradition. In all ages there have been customs kept alive, as doctrine, that have no Bible base. We often speak of the antichrist in this connection, but let's face it, tradition can be a problem for every church.
A second group of people who fell hard, and fell hard, under Jesus' polarizing presence was a group we might call the externalists. They were preoccupied with how they washed, the borders of their garments, long prayers, tithes on infinitesimal things, and the flies in the soup or the gnats in their water. Jesus faced them squarely in Matthew 23 when He told them that while they were apparently clean on the outside, inside they were filthy.
A third group who fell in the presence of Jesus were the self-righteous. How could they have missed the parable of the Pharisee and the publican as recorded in Luke 18? As we look back on it, it seems that it would have been inevitable that the self-righteous would have seen themselves pictured and admitted their need. But they held out against Him, and they fell.
A fourth group were the wise. The people who tried to trick Jesus. Again and again, the doctors were put to confusion by simple questions that Jesus asked them, questions that even children should have been able to answer. They realized the truth that "he taketh the wise in their own craftiness" (1 Cor. 3:19). Liberals also fell in His presence. Jesus divided the broad church as well as the high church. The high church depended on its ritual, the broad church on its esygoing theology. And from all groups, those who relied on their leaders for their answers fell in the presence of Jesus, the Great Divider. Jesus' being set for the fall of many in Israel was a reality in His lifetime. The hills and mountains were laid low.
Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low. Isa. 40:4.
One of the first groups that fell at the coming of Jesus (who was "set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel") were the holders of tradition. Jesus said of those who came to Him accusing His disciples of transgressing the traditions of the elders, "In vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men" (Matt. 15:9). The Christian church has often had problems with tradition. In all ages there have been customs kept alive, as doctrine, that have no Bible base. We often speak of the antichrist in this connection, but let's face it, tradition can be a problem for every church.
A second group of people who fell hard, and fell hard, under Jesus' polarizing presence was a group we might call the externalists. They were preoccupied with how they washed, the borders of their garments, long prayers, tithes on infinitesimal things, and the flies in the soup or the gnats in their water. Jesus faced them squarely in Matthew 23 when He told them that while they were apparently clean on the outside, inside they were filthy.
A third group who fell in the presence of Jesus were the self-righteous. How could they have missed the parable of the Pharisee and the publican as recorded in Luke 18? As we look back on it, it seems that it would have been inevitable that the self-righteous would have seen themselves pictured and admitted their need. But they held out against Him, and they fell.
A fourth group were the wise. The people who tried to trick Jesus. Again and again, the doctors were put to confusion by simple questions that Jesus asked them, questions that even children should have been able to answer. They realized the truth that "he taketh the wise in their own craftiness" (1 Cor. 3:19). Liberals also fell in His presence. Jesus divided the broad church as well as the high church. The high church depended on its ritual, the broad church on its esygoing theology. And from all groups, those who relied on their leaders for their answers fell in the presence of Jesus, the Great Divider. Jesus' being set for the fall of many in Israel was a reality in His lifetime. The hills and mountains were laid low.
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