“and ‘A stone of stumbling
And a rock of offense.’
They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.”
They stumble
“Stumble” means to trip on a trap set in one’s path. Unbelief blinds the eyes and carries a disastrous nemesis within itself. The unbeliever pretty-well bangs himself up before he completes his journey of life. He sets his mind so that he will not be vulnerable to persuasion from God. He willfully rejects Jesus as the answer.
being disobedient to the word
“Disobedient” means not persuaded, refuse belief, unwillingness, or refusal to comply with the demands of some authority. They refuse compliance with God’s Word to them.
Ephesians 2:2, “In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience.”
Jn 3:36, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
Rom. 2:8-9, “But to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, 9tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek.”
Heb. 3:18, “And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey?.”
Heb. 11:31, “By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.”
1 Peter 4:17, “For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?”
PRINCIPLE:
Negative volition is the refusal to accept the authority of God’s Word.
APPLICATION:
God’s Word is the way God communicates his will to us. If we reject the Bible as the ultimate authority, we reject God’s voice to us.
God describes non-Christians as the “children of disobedience.” Those who believe are the children of obedience. They come to accept the Bible as the Word of God. Once a person accepts the authority of the Bible and the message of the Bible, they enter into God’s family.
Is the real reason to reject Jesus as your Savior rebellion against the authority of God’s Word?
