They-John 5:44
They already knew far too much to be taught anything more, and consequently while Publicans and prostitutes heard Christ and rejoiced to listen to him, out of all those who were continually criticizing and finding fault, how few ever won the blessing. How can you believe, who receive honor from each other?-John 5:44
This is extremely common! The man thinks that he is not as other men are, and though he does not say so, he is rather proud of himself. Though he is so humble as not to say it, yet at the bottom of his heart he is convinced that no one is worthy of greater respect than he is. He has been scrupulously honest, and has brought up his family to the best of his knowledge in the ways of integrity. He is a good fellow, generous to the poor, and if he should have a fault or two, yet who does not have his faults? As for himself, if the world were picked, he would at least take his place somewhere near the top. Now, you cannot expect that man to believe the gospel, for that gospel tells him that he is fallen; that his sins have been so many that God has condemned him for ever; that he must escape from that condemnation or, if not, he must sink for ever into misery; that for him there is no salvation, except on the basis of pure grace apart from merit. The gospel denies that he has any merit. It pulls off from him all those finely-woven clothes of his, in which he boasted himself, and makes him stand naked before the mirror....
You ask them what their religion is, and, if they spoke very plainly, they would say that they like good music, excellent music, and they like the best of architecture, and they like floral decorations, and they like millinery, and some of them like images on altars, and I do not know what other devout and admirable things besides. They take religion to be simply the indulgence of their tastes, the pleasing of the eye, the gratification of the senses, and, if they can sit while the pealing organ pours out floods of music and they are charmed by it, they call that adoration. True, since excellent music might be heard at the theatre or the opera, but that would be an abomination. The ears are tickled with the same sounds, precisely the same, and yet in the one case it is sin, and in the other case it is holiness. I confess I cannot quite see the difference; I can perceive none whatever. The gratification of the senses, of the ear and the eye cannot be devotion. It is for the heart to draw near to God; it is to learn that God is a Spirit, and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. It is to learn that the broken heart is the best sacrifice; that the tear stealing down the cheek is what is received by the great Father who is in heaven; that to come humbly and confess our sins.
They cannot believe in Jesus because they have a besetting sin that they cannot give up. That is the root of most men’s doubt. They would not doubt if they did not sin. If they could have their sins and be believers, they would be believers fast enough, but there is that company which must be given up, that company which, instead of sanctifying the soul, depraves it. There are those amusements which are not merely recreations which might so much good feelings. Oh! how many things there are in this great city, that we know nothing about, and which it would be better not to know, which are the secret source of the doubts and skepticism that come up on the surface of society. It would be a very curious thing to follow these men home, to follow those home, I say, who say they doubt this and doubt that. Yes, when you see them drunk you do not wonder that they doubt a sober gospel; it would be a pity if they should. When you see them cheat, you do not wonder that they doubt an honest gospel; it would be a great pity if they should believe it. When you hear them swear, you do not wonder that they doubt a sacred gospel; why, to keep up any appearance of consistency, not to say sanity, they must doubt it. There is a kind of honesty about this proofed doubt which I like, for it is better for a man to doubt those things which contradict his life than that he should be such a damnable hypocrite as to pretend to believe in them; better than that he should hold them in theory, and yet deny them in his life....
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Science tells us that our five senses activate our memories. There will be things that we see, hear, taste, and smell that will bring to mind a story that may have happened to us years ago. It happens to me all the time in New York City. I walked into a store and heard music playing and immediately my memory went back to my childhood and the first album I bought with my own money. I saw a young person bouncing a pink rubber ball on the streets and thought of the days of playing a NY game called stickball as a child. But the scenario that flooded my mind with the past was when I was standing in line at a grocery store and the perfume the older woman in front of me brought back vivid memories of my mother. It was the same perfume she would wear when I was growing up. Our senses activate the memory and smell is the one that gives us the most vivid pictures of our past.
For some, the smell of charcoal fire revives thoughts of holiday cookouts and the joys it brings with it. But charcoal made a disciple in the Bible remember the worst day of his life. His name was Peter. Peter made a bold promise to Jesus at the last supper. He said, “Though all deny You, Jesus, I will never deny you.” What happened after his hubris, had to be the darkest day of Peter’s life.