Street Meeting Forty Second

The bitter hatred of this fallen world for God is forever inseparable from its hatred for His blessed message and His messengers. It is one of the certain promises given to those who walk in the path of the Gospel truth. Such a cross is not often found among mere, lukewarm church-goers who blend quietly with the crowd, but it rests heavily upon the shoulders of those who speak and live as Christ spoke. ‘Never a man spake like this man!’ (John 7:46) confessed the very officers sent to arrest our Lord. And what did Jesus say to His own earthly family? ‘The world cannot hate you; but Me it hates, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.’ (John 7:7) He did not flatter men as the smooth teachers of the world do, pretending there are many naturally good people scattered about; rather, He declared that those who love this present evil world are workers of the same evil.


This affectionate, solemn word was given for all believers, for all time. Our blessed Lord hath drawn a clear, unmistakable line of delineation: the true mark of those whom God hath owned and sealed in Christ is ever manifest in the world’s bitter hatred toward them. How true it is in our day? Mention a generic 'God' in the ear of the world, and every religious tongue approves your message; but speak the name of Christ and lift up the exclusivity of His cross, His condemnation of sin, and instantly you will see the very devils stirred within men's hearts.


Our Lord tells us: ‘Remember! Keep telling thyself day by day! Bind it as a sign upon thine hands, and let it be as frontlets between thine eyes!’ What must we remember? That the servant is not greater than his master. (John 15:20) If thine neighbor hates your father will they not hate you as well simply for being his son? If the wicked world hated the Father, they will also hate His Son. And if they hated our glorious Master, shall they hate the poor servant also. Yet when the hopeless, helpless, meek sinner hears of Christ, he will bow and acknowledge the boundless goodness of God. For His tender favor and everlasting grace ever rest upon the lowly who are lost and undone in themselves.

Your allegiance is shown not only by whom you declare Christ to be, but also by what you announce He opposes.

Herein is life's tragedy: those who possess no hope, no peace, no divine purpose, and no spiritual life—naturally hate those who have been blessed with them all. They look upon the quiet joy of the believer and like Cain, are pierced with envy by it. Yet mark how the Good Shepherd knows His own: they are known not only by the fruit they bear upon their branches, but even more by the holy affections toward their dear Redeemer. The true Christian is not simply distinguished by the fruits that grow in him, but by the reproach that his allegiance to the Lamb brings upon him.


The bitter hatred of this world is never truly aimed at the poor messenger himself; it is found deep in their enmity against the One who sent the message.
When the professing Christian ceases to confront the world, he begins to live at ease within it. The world can also say to its patrons, "leave the professing Christian be, if he speaks not against us, then he is for us."

The true believer who quietly bears the cross of the Gospel is hated simply by virtue of his association with the Savior who gave him that cross. While so many professing believers today seek the shameful ease of a toothless, friendly, and smiling Christianity, the loyal follower of the living Lord proclaims with his mouth and life the message of his blood-soaked cross patiently for all to see.

The Christian is not merely someone who can withstand opposition. He is someone whose affection for Christ makes him unwilling to abandon Him.

Just as not all who were born of outward Israel were truly of Israel, even so, not everyone who professes the name of Christ belongs to Christ. Therefore, do not shrink from the reproach—the hatred of this dark world is the very seal and certificate of the authenticity of your faith, proving to men and angels that you are truly owned by Christ.

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