How Not To Respond To The Gospel | Darren Rouanzoin

Paul preaches the same message in two cities forty five miles apart. Thessalonica riots. Berea starts a Bible study. Same message, same messenger. The only thing that changes is how the word gets received.We look at why people can miss the truth when it's sitting right in front of them, and why the obstacle is usually not the evidence but the story we've already built our lives around. In Thessalonica the offense was a king who took his throne through a cross instead of a sword, and the claim that if Jesus reigns, Caesar doesn't. Jesus isn't asking for our vote. He's asking for our allegiance. In Berea, people received the word eagerly and put the scriptures on the witness stand every day, and the examining produced faith instead of doubt.We also talk about what hunger and discipline look like now: asking God for an appetite, starving the ones that crowd it out, and making time in the word a custom rather than an intention.