Why Is Christianity Rejected?
A Sermon on John 5:40
Originally preached May 18, 1958
Scripture
40And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
Sermon Description
In this sermon on John 5:40 titled “Why Is Christianity Rejected?” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones focuses on Jesus now offering the practical application. He provides the invitation for the Jews and for all sinners to come to Him. Ultimately, the invitation to come is an invitation to believe in Him for salvation. Having defined what it means to truly believe in Jesus, now Dr. Lloyd-Jones considers why sinners do not come to Jesus and believe. In the context, Jesus invites the Jews to come, but they refuse to come. Many who reject Christ argue that their intellect moves them to reject Christianity. They are educated and imply that those who accept Christianity lack a mind, intelligence, and rationality. But intellect does not cause one to reject Christ. Looking again at the text, Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that their will does not let them come. The Jews, and all sinners who reject Christianity, are unable to come because of their will. The wills and the minds of people are corrupt and in bondage to the disease of sin. What does this mean that the will is bondage and corrupt? What will the result of this bondage be? How can the will be set free? The answers to these questions unlock the key to why Christianity is rejected.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon text is John 5:40 which says "And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life."
- Jesus said this to Jews after performing miracles and giving them evidence that he is the Son of God. Yet they still did not believe in him.
- Jesus is showing them the real reasons why they will not come to him. The reasons they give are wrong. The true reasons are different.
- The most terrible thing is to die without coming to Jesus. We must understand this terrible condition.
- Jesus wants them to see the enormity of their position. He analyzes it for them.
- The first reason given is that it is not intellectual. If it was intellectual, Christians would be unintelligent. But history shows great Christian minds.
- If it was intellectual, it would be unfair since people have different intellectual abilities.
- The gospel does not contradict the intellect or reason. It has inspired great minds.
- No new knowledge makes Christianity impossible. All knowledge is irrelevant to the Christian faith.
- The real reason is the will. "Ye will not come unto me." It is deeper than the intellect.
- The will is influenced by other forces like the devil and sin. Man is not just intellect.
- The Bible says man lost his freedom of will and mind after the Fall. He is a slave to the devil and sin.
- The devil blinds minds to the truth and creates antagonism to the truth.
- People are blind to their sinful state, their need for salvation, and Jesus himself.
- Sin and the devil create hatred of the truth, morality, holiness, and Jesus.
- The natural mind is enmity against God. Men love darkness rather than light.
- The gospel condemns what people love and commends what they hate. People hate giving up sin.
- People will believe anything to justify their sin. The reasons for unbelief are moral, not intellectual.
- We must cry to God to deliver us from this appalling state and open our eyes.
- Jesus died to save us. We must go to him as we are, and he will receive us.
Sermon Q&A
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones Sermon Questions and Answers
Why Do People Not Come to Christ?
Q: According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, what is the primary reason people do not come to Christ? A: Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that the primary reason is not intellectual but rather a matter of the will. He quotes Jesus' words: "Ye will not come to me that ye might have life." The problem is deeper than the intellect—it's that people are enslaved by sin and Satan, which affects their willingness to come to Christ.
Q: How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones refute the idea that intellectual barriers prevent people from becoming Christians? A: He refutes this idea through several arguments: (1) If Christianity were intellectually deficient, then all Christians would be unintelligent, which history disproves; (2) It would make salvation unfairly distributed based on intellectual capacity; (3) The Gospel has stimulated the greatest minds throughout history; and (4) When people become Christians, they don't lose their intellectual abilities.
Spiritual Blindness and Its Effects
Q: What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the two main ways Satan affects non-believers? A: According to Lloyd-Jones, Satan both blinds people and creates antagonism within them. He references 2 Corinthians 4, where it says "the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not," and explains that Satan creates a positive hatred toward Christ and His Gospel.
Q: What are people spiritually blind to, according to the sermon? A: Lloyd-Jones explains that people are blind to: (1) their own sinful state and condition; (2) the reality that they will face judgment after death; (3) the beauty and glory of Jesus Christ; and (4) the life and riches Christ offers them.
Pride and the Gospel
Q: How does pride specifically prevent people from coming to Christ? A: Lloyd-Jones identifies two forms of pride that prevent people from coming to Christ: (1) intellectual pride—people resent being told they must become as little children and that their minds cannot comprehend God; and (2) moral pride—people resent being told that their good works and achievements are insufficient and that they stand in the same position as those they consider morally inferior.
Q: Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say the real reason for rejecting the Gospel is moral rather than intellectual? A: He explains that the Gospel condemns what people naturally love and commands what they naturally hate. People reject Christ because they don't want to give up their sinful ways and adopt a life of holiness. Their intellectual objections are often just justifications for continuing in sin.
The Remedy for Spiritual Blindness
Q: What advice does Dr. Lloyd-Jones give to those who recognize their spiritual blindness? A: He urges them to cry out to God for deliverance, asking Christ to deliver them from the clutches of sin and Satan. He encourages them to ask God to open their eyes and enable them to believe, reminding them that Christ died to set them free.
Q: What assurance does Dr. Lloyd-Jones give to sinners at the end of his sermon? A: He assures them that Christ receives sinners, not the righteous. He says, "Your sin is the greatest claim upon his love," and encourages people to go to Christ just as they are, promising that "he will receive you this evening and set you free."
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.