23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.
For many years, the church has made a big deal over sin. At least in the churches that I grew up in, there was a strong emphasis on the dangers of sin, specifically, what was thought of as the notable sins. The message was clear: "don't dance, drink, smoke, or chew or run with those who do." I heard countless messages on the dangers of sin, the disease of sin, and the death that sin brings.
Now don't get me wrong, sin is dangerous. The wages of sin is death. But we should have made a bigger deal of the One who paid those wages on the Cross----Jesus! Why should we make a big deal of sin and minimize the work of Christ? It should be the other way around---we emphasize that Jesus paid the price for sin on the Cross and watch sin fade into the background. It's not making light of sin, it's simply making a big deal of Jesus!
Sin is not too big for Jesus to handle. Romans 5:20 tells us that where sin abounds, grace does much more abound. The Greek wording indicates that grace "super-abounds.....and then even more grace on top of that"! No, sin will never be a worthy opponent to grace. But there is something that is more dangerous than sin and a greater threat to the grace of God. It's called self-righteousness.
In Matthew 11:23-24, Jesus makes a remarkable statement. He says that if the miracles that he did in Capernaum had been done in Sodom and Gommarah, Sodom and Gommorah would have repented and remained. Remember, they were the cites that were "nuked" by the wrath of God. Modern-day archeologists have a difficult time even finding remnants that such cities existed. They were literally burnt to the ground because of their gross immorality, and most notably, their homosexuality. And yet, Jesus said that if he had been there and done his miracles in those cities that he did in Capernaum, those cities of gross immorality would have had a revival and received Jesus with open arms.
Capernaum, on the other hand, experienced the earthly ministry of Jesus but did not repent. Jesus lived in the region of Capernaum, spent most of his time there, taught there, and did most of his miracles in their midst. But as a whole, Capernaum refused the ministry of Christ. Unlike Sodom, they were a much more polished and civilized people. Set along the sea, Capernaum was a region of religion and a safe city. It was the kind of place you would want to raise your children. But it was a region mired in self-righteousness. They didn't need Christ, they had their religion. But Jesus could not stand their religious arrogance.
Matthew 11:23-24 (The Message Paraphrase)
23 And Capernaum! With all your peacock strutting, you are going to end up in the abyss. If the people of Sodom had had your chances, the city would still be around.
24 At Judgment Day they'll get off easy compared to you."
This makes us ask the question: what is more dangerous, sin or self-righteousness?
In light of Jesus' jarring statement, I say self-righteousness if more dangerous. Please understand, I'm not making light of sin. But when people recognize their need and humble themselves before the grace of the Lord, no sin can stop the salvation of Christ. In contrast, self-righteousness hinders Christ's ability to save. Religion renders grace powerless to move.
Our current world may resemble Sodom and Gomorrah with our unbridled passions, greed and love of money, social injustice, and our twisted, confused natures. But we are in a better position than ancient Sodom because Jesus is here. Jesus has come. And Jesus forgives. We, too, can repent, be revived, and remain. As long as we don't resemble self-righteous Capernaum, His grace cannot be stopped.
Thought for the day
Self-righteousness if dangerous because it impedes the grace of God
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