Solutions to stumbling blocks – God’s divinely inspired book; John 16:1.

Title: Solutions to stumbling blocks - God’s divinely inspired book; John 16:1.

 

The greatest area for stumbling blocks is in the arena of false gospels, which are often found in so-called churches, Matt 11:6; 2Cor 11:4.

 

 The stumbling block of false doctrine and false Christ’s in the Olivet discourse, Matt 24:3-14.

 

Fear of violence, war, famine, earthquake, disaster all become stumbling blocks.

 

Mark 6:1 And He went out from there, and He came into His home town; and His disciples followed Him.

 

Mark 6:2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, "Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands?

 

Mark 6:3 "Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, and Joses, and Judas, and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?" And they took offense [skandalizo] at Him.

 

The familiarity that friends and family have with positive believers can lead them to stumble, unable to separate the person from the message.

 

The Luke account shows us that they sought to throw Him off a cliff, which one way to stumble, but the persecution of familiar people is plain.

 

Difficult doctrines that go against preconceived notions can cause stumbling because of human viewpoint and lack of patience, John 6:61.

 

John 6:41 The Jews therefore were grumbling about Him, because He said, "I am the bread that came down out of heaven."  

 

The background to this is really eye opening to the problem of false conceptions. Just yesterday He fed the 5000 with 5 loaves and 2 fishes. They watched His disciples take off in a boat without Him, the only boat there and so they showed up the next day for [what’s He gonna do for breakfast?] more but couldn’t find Him. They surmise that He might have gone to the other side and so they go and find Him in Capernaum. Now if He walked it would have taken two days, unless of course He walked across the sea, which He did. He informs them to seek the bread of eternal life rather than bread that perishes. They ask for some of this bread and He responds that He is that bread.

 

 

History repeats itself: The Jews grumbled about the manna in the desert, which came from heaven, desiring meat, Ex 16:2, 12. In order to recognize the trap that is upon you, you must open your eyes!

 

One cannot go through the CWL with blinders on, just going through the motions, and never asking ourselves the why’s and the reasons for what happens in our lives, but we are to be alert, aware, and applying the wisdom that we have been so graciously given.

 

As Pink Floyd sang, “I have become comfortably numb.”

 

1 Peter 5:5

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

 

1 Thess 5:6

so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.

 

John 6:42 And they were saying, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, 'I have come down out of heaven'?" 

 

 “out of heaven” could only mean one thing to them, and that was He was claiming to be God. This is incredible to them, even the disciples.

 

Now the OT prophesied that the Messiah would be man and God incarnate so they had no excuse here, but the fact is that the truth of this is upon them now!

 

There will be many times when the believer is brought to the threshold of finite time and infinite glory through doctrine and his faith is tested.

 

When standing on the border between the finite and the infinite, between time and eternity, between the perfect, irresistible, will of God and the impotent, perverted will of man, between sovereign grace and hell-deserving sin, who among men is too proud to exclaim, There are some things which I do not understand. LS Chafer, Systematic Theology, vol. 1, pg. 233.

 

This test is dokimazo, meaning a test of purity of faith in a faithful God who has directed you in His will to this place of testing with the desire to see you pass it. This is contrary to pierazo which under the permissive will of God is a test by the KOD in which they are hoping to show your failure and weakness. Dokimazo is God’s desire to promote you.

 

James and John had their mother, Mary’s sister, go up to her nephew Jesus and ask if her sons could sit on His right hand and left in heaven and He replied that it wasn’t His to give, but the Father gives such promotion and then He asked them a question, “are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said yes, not even comprehending what He meant and then He concluded:

 

Mark 10:43-45

whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

 

Laying down your life, serving others as a slave, thinking of others as more important than yourselves, humbling yourself under the will of the Father’s plan; all of this takes tremendous faith. This is not for the weak in faith or the double minded.

 

If you let this time of testing become a stumbling block to you by failing to put your faith in something that is truly incredible then you will turn from this threshold and head back into the finite [behind the wall; into the cave], the things that you are more comfortable with and you will miss out on or delay a closer walk with the Lord.

 

According to the Word of God and to human experience, man, apart from divine illumination, is wholly unable to receive or understand the truth about God.

 

 

Ps 14:2-3

The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men,

To see if there are any who understand,

Who seek after God.

They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;

There is no one who does good, not even one.

 

This was important enough to repeat in the NT:

ROM 3:10-12

"There is none righteous, not even one;

There is none who understands,

There is none who seeks for God;

All have turned aside, together they have become useless;

There is none who does good,

There is not even one."

 

Divine revelation is not to the educated or learned of the world. No one, unaided by God the Holy Spirit, has been able to write or say anything that does credit to the scripture. It’s not fancy vocabulary or fantastic stories or deep literary phrases, it is simplicity itself that the youngest child could speak:

 

John 14:20

you in Me, and I in you.

[seven monosyllabic words that transcend eternity]

 

The message of the Bible is complete. It incorporates its every chapter and verse into its perfect unity, and all its parts are interdependent.

 

Lack of faith in the divine origin of Christ caused the Jews to stumble. Lack of faith in the divine origin of the Bible causes Christians to stumble.