I. Introduction
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is good news! In fact, the Greek word translated “gospel” is “ĕuaggĕliŏn,” (yoo-ang-ghel´-ee-on) from which we get the English word “evangelism.”

Biblical evangelism is the proclamation of the gospel, the good news of the kingdom of God. But doesn’t good news, by its very nature, imply that there is also bad news? How can you call something good if you have nothing against which to compare or contrast it?

The gospel is only good news for those who hear it, believe it, and receive it. It’s only good news for those who have come face to face with the reality of their own sin and its eternal consequences. It must be clearly understood that there is bad news. Otherwise the good news has no impact at all. The bad news is about us, but the good news is about God. It is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

If we present people with a gospel that ignores the bad news – that is, the truth about their lost condition – and only offer them a better life than one they have now, many will say, “I don’t need your religion. I’m doing fine. Besides, isn’t your God all about love?”

That’s why a gospel that only offers a better life is a deception. Such a so-called gospel misrepresents sin and ignores God’s hatred of it. Beyond that it neglects the truth that everyone has broken God’s perfect Law. Further, it fails to acknowledge God’s wrath, and it says nothing about judgment to come. But worst of all, it disregards God’s written Word, it denigrates His holiness, and it minimizes the life and death of God’s Son.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon was known as the “Prince of Preachers.” He often spoke of a false gospel that ignored sin and man’s willful and continual breaking of God’s Law. Spurgeon forcefully and unashamedly proclaimed the bad news in order to convict the hearts of sinners and prompt them to desire the good news of the gospel. Listen to him:
“There is a war between you and God’s Law. The Ten Commandments are against
you. The first ones comes forward and says, ‘Let him be cursed, for he denies me. He has another god besides me; his god is his belly, he yields homage to his lust.’”

“All the Ten Commandments, like ten great pieces of (artillery), are pointed at you today, for you have broken all God’s statutes, and lived in the daily neglect of His commands. Soul! You will find it a hard thing to go to war with the Law (of God). When the Law came in peace, (Mount) Sinai was altogether (shrouded in) smoke, and even Moses said, ‘I do exceedingly fear and quake.’”

“What will you do when the Law comes in terror, when the trumpet of the archan-gel shall tear you from your grave, when the eyes of God shall burn their way into your guilty soul, when the great books shall be opened, and all your sin and shame shall be published? Can you stand against an angry Law in that day?”
Who preaches like that today? We’re told, “You can’t say things like that. People don’t want to listen to old and outdated biblical doctrines. They won’t stand for hellfire and damnation preaching. They want to feel good about themselves. They want churches that meet their ‘felt needs.’ They want to be entertained. They want to hear positive and uplifting messages about God’s love.”

But those who say that fail to comprehend that Spurgeon’s preaching was about God’s love. Spurgeon loved people enough to tell them the truth about their sin, their lost cond-tion, and the judgment to come. Telling people the truth is loving them. Death and hell are inevitable. What kind of love veils the truth about pending dangers or attempts to dis-guise them so they don’t offend anyone? That isn’t love. No rational person lets little children play in the streets because warning them of the danger might hurt their feelings!

Every one of us has sinned against God. We have broken God’s Law. When speaking on the subject of God’s Law, the Ten Commandments, Spurgeon said this:
“Lower the Law and you dim the light by which man perceives his guilt; this is a very serious loss to the sinner rather than a gain; for it lessens the likelihood of his conviction and conversion. I say you have deprived the gospel of its (most power-ful weapon) when you have set aside the (Ten Commandments). You have taken away from it the schoolmaster that is to bring men to Christ.”

But today much of the professing church presents a gospel that says little or nothing about breaking God’s Law, our sin, or our need to turn from it and repent. It’s a gospel that ever so carefully avoids speaking of God’s holiness, condemnation, judgment, the wrath to come, and the reality of eternal punishment in a hell that Revelation 20:14-15 describes as a lake of fire. A gospel that ignores those things isn’t about God’s love at all, and as Spurgeon said, it has neither the ability to convict nor the power to convert.

And we wonder why the church at the dawn of the twenty-first century has so little influ-ence on a lost world. Instead of preaching the truth about the condition of men, too much of the modern church preaches “happy talk” in a deliberate effort to avoid offending any-one. It offers heaven to people who think they’re already good enough to get there on their own merits. So the modern church goes out of its way to avoid the bad news that must come before the good news. John MacArthur has said this:
“The church has had this illusion, that we can wipe out everything that offends (them) and somehow influence people to be saved in an inoffensive way. Eventu-ally, you’ve got to get to the offense. (So) you might as well start there because until they’re offended about their own sin and their violation of the holiness of God, they aren’t going to come to the Savior.”

In comments directed at pastors MacArthur said this: (I have it framed in my office.)
“The preacher’s objective is never to minimize conflict over the gospel, because inevitably the gospel is an offense. The mark of a great leader is not how well he avoids conflict, but how courageously he accepts it.”
If you ask most Christians why Jesus had to die on the cross they’ll probably say some-thing like, “…to save us.” If you ask what He saved us from they’ll often say, “…from the devil and hell.” But that reflects a level of ignorance about the gospel. Jesus did not die to save us from going to hell. That is simply one of the blessings, one of the great benefits that accrue to us as a direct result of the real reason He died for us. Jesus died on the cross of Calvary to save us from the wrath of God.
John 3:36
36 “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

The good news of the gospel is that the Father has poured out His righteous and holy wrath on His innocent Son so that it would not have to be poured out on you and me.
2 Corinthians 5:21
21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, (so) that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

We deserve God’s wrath, but Jesus took it. So if all we do is tell people to ask Jesus into their hearts and they’ll be saved, we’re not preaching the gospel. There is nothing in the Bible that tells anyone to invite Jesus into his or her heart. It sounds nice and it may not be offensive, but it is a man-made doctrine that has no power to save anyone. It may make people feel better about themselves, but it will never open the gates of heaven.

Well then, what does God instruct people to do? The gospel is not an invitation asking you to accept it like you would accept an invitation to a wedding or a party. But we talk about it and we treat it as if it were. Listen, the gospel is no heavenly invite. You don’t accept it or decline it. The gospel is a divine command directly from God. You either obey it or you don’t. But it is both foolish and dangerous to disobey God’s commands.
*Acts 17:30-31a
30 “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men (commanding them) that all everywhere should repent,
31a because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world…”

The gospel hasn’t changed. John the Baptist called people to, “Repent, for the kingdom
of heaven is at hand (Matthew 4:17).” And, “Repent and believe in the gospel (Mark1:15).”
Jesus said, “I tell you…unless you repent, you will all likewise perish (Luke 13:3).” When He ascended to heaven, He said, “…repentance for forgiveness of sins should be pro-claimed in (God’s) name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem (Luke 24:47).”

Are you detecting a pattern here? The gospel is about obeying God’s command to turn from your sin, to repent, to believe in Jesus, to ask His forgiveness for your sins and to trust Him and Him alone to save you. You do that and you are saved. You do that and Jesus will come and take up residence in you in the Person of His Holy Spirit. You do that and you won’t need to invite Him into your life. He’ll be there!

That’s the good news, but you won’t receive it until you’ve heard the bad news. The bad news must come first. “…for the wages of sin is death…(Romans 6:23a).” It is only when you believe and become convinced of that that you will be able to receive the good news. “…but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23b).”

Paul put the bad news before the good news in Romans. In the very same way the bad news must precede the good news when the gospel is presented to a lost and dying world.
But people must know they’re lost before they’ll ever see any need to be saved. People don’t look for a cure if they don’t know they’re sick, do they? The gospel is the cure.

The gospel tells people that they are lost and can do nothing to save themselves. Good works and religious traditions, rites, and observances can do nothing for them. That is not because any of those things are inherently bad. Rather, it is because everything God requires has already been done. This good news seems foolish to the lost, but it is the gospel. People need to repent, to believe what God has said, and they will be saved.

It is no more complicated than that. Why would anyone reject such a plain and simple message? Yet for two thousand years multiplied millions have heard it and rejected it. In this morning’s text in Luke, Jesus graphically describes the outcome of such rejection.
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II. Review
In Luke 10:1-9 Jesus has chosen seventy men to go before Him into the cities and vil-lages He is about to visit on His way to Jerusalem. He has empowered them to preach the gospel and to perform healings, work miracles, and cast out demons. He has told them to bless all who will receive them and their message. That brings us to today’s text.
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III. Text
But then, as now, only a relatively few people will receive these men and the message of salvation that the seventy bring. Most people will reject it. So Jesus tells the seventy what they are to do and say to those who reject them and the truth they bring.
*Luke 10:10-16 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
10 “But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say,
11 ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’
12 “I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day, for Sodom, than for that city.
13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
14 “But it will be more tolerant for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment, than for you.
15 “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be brought down to Hades!
16 “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

In Luke 1:1-9 Jesus has already laid down principles for evangelism that are, for the most part, still applicable for all of us who wish to share the good news with a lost world. He has emphasized its urgency. “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few…(v. 2)” He has spoken of the need for commitment and endurance. “I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves…(v. 3)” He has made it clear that He will sustain them and provide for their needs. “Carry no purse, no bag, no shoes…(v. 4).” And He has given them the message. “Say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you (v. 9).’”

Now Jesus gives the seventy the rest of their instruction. It is a message specifically for those who reject the gospel. Rejection of the gospel will bring consequences that are both tragic and inescapable.
*Luke 10:10-11
10 “But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say,
11 ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’”

Shaking the dust off your feet was a visible symbol of condemnation and judgment. It represented the severing of any relationship between God and those who would reject His gospel. The idea was conveyed that if you rejected the King, he would reject you.

But look at the end of v. 11. Jesus tells the seventy to say the same thing to those who reject the message as He told them to say to those who receive it. “The kingdom of God has come near to you (v. 9).” It’s a final call to the lost. It’s almost as if Jesus is saying, “Child, when you stand in judgment before the Great White Throne, remember that you were offered the gift of salvation and you refused it.”
*Luke 10:12
12 “I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day, for Sodom, than for that city.”

This statement introduces something that we have not yet seen in Luke’s gospel. Frankly, it is a sobering thing when it begins to seep into our thinking. It says that some will suf-fer a more severe judgment, and consequently a more severe punishment than others. So the principle is called “comparative judgment” or “degrees of punishment.” Either way, they mean the same thing.

Although it is true that everyone who dies without Christ will be cast into hell, God’s perfect justice demands that it will be worse for some than for others. I do not claim to understand how that can be, but it is what the Scripture teaches.
Can we somehow quantify what Jesus means when He says some people in hell will suf-fer more than others? No, we can’t. Can we get our arms around the idea that the mental and physical agony endured by some will be greater than that endured by others? No, we can’t. Can our finite minds even begin to comprehend the perfect justice that will be dis-pensed by an absolutely holy and infinitely wise God? No again!

Comparative judgment is one of those hard teachings that has caused some who claim to follow Jesus to walk away from Him. Even among professing Christians it is a most unpopular principle. Theological liberals deny it, but most theological liberals also deny the reality of hell so we can’t rely on their so-called expertise. But the fact remains that the Bible teaches it. Jesus teaches it. It’s there, and we deny it at our peril.

What can we, with biblical surety, say about it? We can say this. The degree of punish-ment suffered by the lost will be directly proportional the degree of knowledge they had.
In other words, those who have heard the gospel and rejected it will face a more severe judgment than those who have never heard it. So this principle applies. The lost will be held accountable for what they know.

By the way, the same principle applies to Christians as well. We will be held accountable for what we know too. The degree of our eternal reward will be based on the degree of our faithfulness and our obedience to the truth God has revealed to each one of us.

Don’t you hold your children responsible for what they know? In the same way, God holds all of us, believer or unbeliever, responsible for what we know. Ask yourself, “Is that not perfect justice?” Regardless of whether you are a believer or an unbeliever, you have a certain amount of light, a certain amount of knowledge, and you are accountable to God to act on the light and the knowledge that He has given you. This is the basic truth that opens the Book of Romans.
*Romans 1:18-22
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,
19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. (All people have some light, some knowledge of God.)
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power, and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made (the creation itself), so that they are without excuse.
21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22 Professing to be wise, they became fools… (back to Luke 10)

Even fools have some knowledge of God. He’s placed it in them. The more knowledge of God they have, the more light they have received, the greater their accountability.
When they reject the truth they have, they will receive the greater punishment. That is what Scripture teaches and it is what Jesus is saying in Luke 10:12 where He also men-tions, “…in that day.” In what day?

The Lord is speaking of the day when the lost will be judged at the Great White Throne. This judgment is described in Revelation 20:11-15. It will take place at the end of the Millennial Kingdom and will be the final judgment of the lost. In that day Luke 10:12 is saying that even Sodom will not suffer as greatly as will those who have heard the gospel and rejected it. The latter have the greater guilt and will incur the greater punishment.

That idea that Sodom would face a lesser judgment than any city in Israel was inconceiv-able to a Jew. The sins of Sodom and Gomorrah were considered to be among the vilest of any cities anywhere. Yet Jesus says they would be judged less harshly than a city that heard the gospel and rejected it.

Let me say it again. You and I cannot grasp the full weight of comparative judgment or degrees of punishment. Thankfully and mercifully, God has seen to it that the details are beyond the scope of our finite minds. But our inability to understand them in no way alters the truth that Jesus gives us here.

In the next three verses Jesus gets specific. He will speak of three of the cities He has visited in His ministry in Galilee; cities in which He has already been rejected.
*Luke 10:13-15
13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
14 “But it will be more tolerant for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment, than for you.
15 “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be brought down to Hades!”

Now the Lord “names names.” He calls out the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida. Both were near Capernaum where Jesus had spent much of His time while He ministered in Galilee. They knew about Jesus. They knew (and probably witnessed) the miracles He had performed and the gospel He had preached. Therefore, they were accountable for what they knew, but they had rejected Him.

As a result of their rejection Jesus pronounced woe upon them. The word “woe” is “ŏuai.” It’s an expression of grief and sadness and speaks of judgment. In this statement of comparative punishment Jesus again shocks His Jewish audience by telling them that two local cities – both having known but rejected Him – will suffer more severe judg-ment than Tyre and Sidon, two OT cities that epitomized evil, but never knew of Jesus.

He says that if they knew what Chorazin and Bethsaida knew, they would have repented.
But Jesus isn’t through. Next He turns to Capernaum. He lived there. He performed many miracles there. The people of Capernaum knew Him well. While there’s no that they were ever hostile to Jesus or ever attempted to do Him any harm, neither is there any indication they did anything other than tolerate His presence.

They were indifferent. They didn’t care. But Jesus has taught that indifference is the same as rejection. He said, “He who is not with Me is against Me… (Matthew 12:30a).” So the Lord’s statement shocks His hearers again. He condemns Capernaum to Hades!

Hades is a broad word that speaks of the place of the dead. It is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “Sheol.” Depending on the context in which it is used, Sheol or Hades can mean the grave, the “place of the dead,” or it can mean the final eternal hell itself. Here in Luke 10:15 Jesus uses it in direct contrast to heaven. It can only refer to hell.

We know that Jesus often uses strong words and imagery in the gospels, but this has to be among the strongest we’ve yet to see in Luke. Rejecting Jesus and His message results in bad news! And Jesus says that indifference is virtually the same as rejection. It is bad news! But it is precisely why the gospel is such good news. How we need to listen to it!
*Luke 10:16
16 “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

Finally, v. 16 takes it down to the personal level. Now it isn’t whole cities that reject or ignore Jesus, it’s individuals. He makes the point that when God’s messengers present the gospel people will either receive it or reject it. Those who receive it are receiving Jesus. Those who reject it are rejecting Jesus.

And one last thing. There are many out there who say, “I believe in God, I just don’t believe all this ‘Jesus stuff.’” That is not an option. I once said that, but I was a fool and I was lost. If you reject Jesus you are rejecting God.
John 5:23; John 15:23 (Jesus speaking)
23 “He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.”
23 “He who hates Me hates My Father also.”
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IV. Conclusion
You’ve heard the bad news. You know what it is. Please don’t reject Jesus. Please don’t ignore Him. Believe the good news. Repent and trust Him. If you do you’ll get the best news anyone could ever hope to receive.
John 3:36
36 “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

~ Pray ~