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Why Do People Reject Jesus... A Look at the Roman Soldiers (cont.)

After looking at how the Roman soldiers treated Jesus, I believe the second reason is rather plain to see… they treated Him the way they did because they were conditioned to act this way. I mean, they were men of battle. These men were used to bloodshed; you can say they were desensitized to suffering and agony. Just think of the Roman “Gladiators.” They found delight in violence and killing; the shedding of blood was entertainment. They were calloused to the pain of other human beings.

Now I know reading about this doesn’t give you the warm fuzzies. You must know that it’s a very hard thing for me to write about as well, but I know it must be said. Our culture has been conditioned as well; the media pictures us (Christians) as narrow-minded, bigoted, and intolerable people. I know at some point you have had to have seen this… I’m referring to reality shows plastered all over our TVs. The Christians portrayed in the media are usually very weird people. The fact is that crazy sells. Don’t you see, it’s a conditioning taking place and we can become captive of how the world views Christ. I’ll say it again, think for yourself.


“Do not be transformed to this world.” Romans 12: 2


Don’t allow your families, teachers, friends, coworkers, and employers condition you. Think for yourselves.



I see the third reason Jesus was treated so badly by the soldiers is prejudice. They hated the Jews. Their human nature took over, and as far as Jesus was concerned… they concluded that “they’re all like that.” Something to also think about is that they had a certain sense of loyalty to Caesar, so for someone to come along and call Himself a king………….Hmmm


Now here is the modern day parallel: There’s a hatred and prejudice of Christianity that keeps people away from seeing a clear picture of who Jesus Christ really is. Let me explain. People are turned off from Christianity because of the way they’ve been mistreated by someone professing to be a Christian; Maybe it was from a Christian business man/woman who cheated them or acted unethical. So just like the Roman soldiers who were anti-Jewish, they see “all of us” just like that. Maybe it was a Christian customer in a store or restaurant who was rude or impatient. Maybe it’s a Christian relative or friend who’s insensitive.


Friends, we aren’t perfect. But we have to remember that we represent Jesus Christ. I guess you can say we live in fish bowl. We may be the only Jesus someone will ever see. Let me end today’s post with this…

“Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal? You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples? You are so proud of knowing the law, but you dishonor God by breaking it. No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.” Romans 2: 21-24





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Why Do People Reject Jesus?... A Look at the Roman Soldiers

To be crucified is the ultimate inhumane death sentence. How can humans be so cruel to a fellow human being? By looking at how the Roman soldiers treated Jesus, I can see three reasons. And again these are the same reasons some people still reject Him…


John 19:1-3 says, “Then Pilate had Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip. The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they put a purple robe on him. “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked, as they slapped him across the face.”

Jesus’ fulfilled the words of the prophet Isaiah…

“His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man. He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.” Isaiah 52: 14, 53: 7


The first reason of this kind of rejection and mockery is the result of blind ignorance: To these soldiers, Jesus was just a prisoner. They never heard Jesus’ teaching or seen His miracles. They made a sport out of Him. To them, He was just a great joke… just entertainment. When a Roman flogging took place, they wouldn’t stop until the person was near death. In fact, many have died from being flogged. They pushed a crown of thorns on His head. Can you imagine the excruciating pain of having something pierce your scalp? “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked Him and spit in His face... the ultimate insult. Because of their blind ignorance, they had nothing to gain or lose. People today laugh at Christianity; they see it as a joke. Let’s look at 2 Corinthians 4: 3-4…


“If the Good News we preach is hidden behind a veil, it is only hidden from people who are perishing. Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.”

This is the plight of humanity…

"There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” John 3: 18-21



By looking at the Roman soldiers, we can see two more reasons people reject Jesus. Those two reasons next week…




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Why Do People Reject Jesus?...the Crowd

So why did the crowd reject Jesus? There are two reasons why they rejected Him, and these are the exact same reasons why people today continue rejecting Him. I believe that by going over this it will help us understand why people reject the gospel message we proclaim. It will also encourage us to persevere in times of rejection…


The first reason is that they are disappointed in Jesus. They expect Him to do something or be someone He isn’t. Let me explain… The Jewish people back in Jesus' day were being oppressed under the Roman Government; the Jews hated being ruled by pagan Romans. They loathed paying taxes to support the despised government and their gods. Most of the Roman authorities who had to settle Jewish disputes hated the Jews in return. The time was ripe for a rebellion. So their idea of the Messiah was someone who would uprise against and defeat Rome. They wanted to be liberated. Do you know why they called Jesus the Son of David? It was because David was a great warrior, and their view of Messiah fit their picture of “the son of King David, the great warrior” perfectly.

I always thought how interesting it was that just five days before the Crucifixion, the same crowd of people hailed Him as King, yelling “Hosanna” (which by the way means “save us”; a cry for help). But when they discovered Jesus was more concerned with their salvation – that He wasn’t an earthly conqueror - they turned on him, became a mob mentality and yelled “Crucify Him!” Simply put, Jesus didn’t meet their expectations. They didn’t want a king that says, “You need to address the sin in your life,” or ”You need to be obedient to me.” And to a lot of people today… same thing. Jesus is just not what they’re looking for. They want Christ to give them what they want; maybe they prayed some sort of prayer or made a profession of faith because they wanted Him to take away their depression or feelings of anxiety, heal a broken marriage, heal their bodies, etc… they want Him to fix some kind of problem. When He doesn’t do it, they walk away. They had a need for immediate satisfaction – not salvation, and when they didn’t get it – “Who needs this Christianity stuff?” They want a god to make them feel good, but it has to be on their terms.


Oh yes, there are many false teachers out there who will tell people what they want to hear… they will spout all kinds of rotten doctrine… they will water down the gospel to make it more attractive and palatable. Beware. If you don’t know the Truth, you will fall for anything.



The second reason is simply fear of the disappointment of authorities or peers. The Religious leaders back in Jesus’ day put fear into the hearts of the people. Same thing happens today…Think about families that disown members when they take a stand for Jesus. I can also remember times when people have said to me, “Well so and so has been doing this for years, so they can’t be wrong.” The fact is that some just go along with the crowd and don’t think for themselves (what other people think is not necessarily a good measure of truth). The words of Jesus teach us to think for ourselves and not to be intimidated by anyone. Think for yourself or you will fall into mob mentality.


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These Bundles You Carry are Not from Me...

We’re definitely going to continue with the last two types of people who reject Jesus, but for today I want to share something regarding depression and worrying. I feel it is something many people deal with, myself included, from time to time or even on a regular basis.


There are times when things appear so bad… times we can’t see clearly… our perspective is murky… We can only manage to muster the word “help.” But God always responds to that word. Today I happen to be referring to me, but I know the same applies to all of us at some time. Most importantly, I want to boast about the faithfulness of our God. Today I read a story about a lady describing a dream, and here’s how it goes…


In her dream, she was walking along a highway with a large crowd of people, all of whom seemed very tired and burdened. The people were all carrying little black bundles, and she noticed that more bundles were being dropped along the way by numerous repulsive-looking creatures that seemed quite demonic in nature. As the bundles were dropped, the people stooped down to pick them up and carry them.

Like everyone else in her dream, she also carried her needless load, being weighted down with the Devil’s bundles. After a while, she looked up and saw a Man whose face was loving and bright, as He moved through the crowd, comforting the people. Finally He came to her, and she realized it was her Savior. She looked at Him, telling Him how tired she was, and He smiled sadly and said, “My dear child, these bundles you carry are not from me, and you have no need of them. They are the Devil’s burdens, and they are wearing out your life. You need to drop them and simply refuse to touch them with even one of your fingers. Then you will find your path easy, and you will feel as if ‘I carried you on eagles’ wings’ (Ex. 19: 4)

The Savior touched her hand, and peace and joy quickly filled her soul. As she saw herself in her dream casting her burdens to the ground and ready to throw herself at His feet in joyful thanksgiving, she suddenly awoke, finding that all her worries were gone.

From that day forward to the end of her life, she was the most cheerful and happy member of her family.


And the night will be filled with music,
And the cares that besiege the day,
Will fold their tents like the Arabs,
And will silently steal away ~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


*Another great devotion from “Streams in the Desert”


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How Great Is Our God!!!

I hope you are all doing well. Here's another thing that I'm thankful for... Meet Cypress Times Contributing Author Lori Laws. Leave a comment and tell me what you are thankful for:)


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