#57 Lu. 7:31-35 A CRITICAL UNCOOPERATIVE ATTITUDE

    Introduction:  In the peak of his ministry John the Baptist was very
popular with the common people of Israel.  Great crowds of people came to
the wilderness to hear him preach.  Many of the common people were saved
under his preaching and baptized by him.  In spite of the large number of
people who were saved and baptized under his ministry, the great masses of
people in the nation of Israel were still unrepentant and unsaved.
    Jesus, in the peak of His ministry became even more popular than John.
The miracles, no doubt, helped to account for greater popularity, but it is
also true that Jesus was a far greater preacher than John was.  He was a far
greater preacher than any preacher down through all the years.  Many had
been saved and baptized under the ministry of John the Baptist, but even
more were saved and baptized under the ministry of Jesus.  That is, many of
the common people were saved and baptized under His ministry.  The scribes
and Pharisees were very critical of both John and Jesus.  Not many of them
were saved under either John or Jesus.
    But in spite of the goodly number who had been saved under the preaching
of John plus the greater number were saved under the preaching of Jesus, the
great masses of people in Israel were still unsaved.  They had heard John
preach and they had heard Jesus preach, but they were still unsaved.
They had heard the two best preachers of all time, but the majority of them
were still unsaved.
    This is what our text today is about.  It is about their refusal to
repent and be saved in spite of the fact that they had heard John preach and
they had heard Jesus Christ, the Son of God, preach.  They had a critical
uncooperative attitude toward the preaching of the gospel.

I.  Children in the market place playing games

    V. 31-32, "And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of
this generation? and to what are they like?  They are like unto children
sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have
piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have
not wept."  Jesus compared that generation of adult people to children.
This is in all probability a good comparison in any generation.  Someone has
said that a child is a little adult and that an adult is nothing but a big
child.  In other words, there are some childish ways and childish attitudes
in all of us.
    Jesus compared that generation to little children in the market place
playing games.  At least some of them were attempting to play games.  They
first tried to get the others to play wedding party with them.  They
pretended to play music on the pipes such as would be played at a wedding
feast or some other very festive occasion.  In the realm of possibility, the
children making the music may have actually had some kind of wind
instruments on which they actually played music.  However, I am more
inclined to think that they merely pretended to have the musical instruments
and that they made the musical sounds with their mouths.  The point is that
they were making the music and they were expecting the others to pretend
that they were guests at the party and to dance to the music.  But the other
children wouldn't dance.  They wouldn't play the game.  They had an
uncooperative attitude.
    Since their first efforts failed, the children who wanted to play
suggested a different game.  They suggested that they pretend that they are
all participants in a funeral.  They pretended that they were the bereaved
family in  a funeral procession.  The other children were to pretend that
they were the friends and would join them in the procession.  The friends of
the family were expected to weep with the family and try to console them.
So here the first group are mourning away as if their very dearest loved one
had just died, but the other group of children would not join in and weep
with them.  They wouldn't play wedding party and they wouldn't play funeral.
For whatever their childish reasons were, they would just would not play.
Apparently they wanted their way in something or other and when they did not
get their way, they just would not play the game.
I'm sure you have seen children act that way at one time or another.

II. The people of Israel like the uncooperative children

    Jesus said that this is what the great masses of unsaved people in
Israel were like.  John the Baptist had come to them as a Nazarite.  That
is, he was under a Nazarite vow to God.  Being under a Nazarite vow, he was
not to drink or eat any product made from grapes.  He was not to drink the
juice of grapes whether it be fresh or fermented.  He was not to eat fresh
grapes.  He was not to eat cakes of dried grapes nor even eat grape jelly if
they had such thing in that day.  He was to eat nothing made of grapes.
    On the other hand, John frequently engaged in fasting.  The purpose of
his fasting was to engage in prayer more fervently.  In spite of John's
great popularity, there were many who were critical of John.  They thought
he was too strict.  They thought he was much too strict.  They said, "He is
demon possessed."  Note that in verse 33, "For John the Baptist came neither
eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil."  John did not
join with the people in their riotous ways of living and they said, "He's
too strict.  He has a devil.  He is demon possessed."
    Now what they were really doing was they were making excuses for
themselves.  A lot of others who had heard John preach repented of their
sins, trusted in the coming Christ, and submitted themselves to John to be
baptized in the Jordan River.  What is more, after they were baptized by
John they changed their way of living.  They stopped doing those things
which they knew to be wrong and started doing those things which they knew
to be right.  But these who were so critical of John did not repent of their
sin.  Neither did they submit to John for baptism.  Nor did they stop doing
wrong and start doing right.  Instead they became very outspoken in their
criticism of John and therefore they felt justified in not repenting under
John's preaching.
    Likewise, when Jesus came along He became even more popular than John.
Also when Jesus preached there were some who repented of their sin,
trusted Him as their Savior, and submitted themselves to Jesus for baptism.
But still the great majority of people did not believe in Him as the Christ.
Neither did they did trust in Him as Savior nor come to Him for baptism.
They accepted Jesus as a prophet of God and as a miracle worker, but they
refused to trust in Him as the Christ and as their Savior.  V. 34, "The Son
of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and
a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!"
    The point that Jesus was making in our text is that there was simply no
way that nay preacher could have pleased these people and won them to
salvation.  They thought John was too strict and so they would not believe
his message.  They thought Jesus was too loose and so they would not believe
in Him.  They criticized John for not drinking the grape product.  They
criticized Jesus for drinking it.  While their accusation was entirely
false, they accused Him of getting drunk.  They said, "He is a wine-bibber."
    Furthermore, they thought John was too straight laced because he would
not attend the feasts.  He confined himself to the wilderness and would not
frequent the cities and to the festivities.  But now they criticize Jesus
because He does attend the feasts.  He attended at least one wedding feast
because that is recorded in Scripture.  He attended a banquet given in His
honor by Matthew, the publican.
    That, too, drew a second criticism from the scoffers.  They not only
criticized Jesus for attending the feasts, but they criticized Him for
having any dealings whatsoever with the Publicans.
    They felt perfectly justified in rejecting John and his message because
they thought he was too strict, and they felt justified in rejecting Jesus
because they thought he was too loose.  There was simply no way to please
this people.  They were too critical in their attitude.  As long as they
could find something to criticize they felt justified in rejecting the
preacher and his message.
    They were not at all justified, of course.  John the Baptist was a man
sent from God preaching the word of God.  Jesus is the very Son of God.  He
is Deity God dwelling in human flesh.  Their sharp critical attitude simply
showed them up for the rebellious stiff-necked people that they were.

III.  Unsaved People today with that same critical attitude

    But now listen.  I would not have you to believe that those Israelites
were the only ones who have ever had such a sharp, bitter, critical spirit.
God's word is still taught and preached today and there are some who believe
God's message and who surrender to some local church for baptism.  Then they
try to live their lives to please the Lord.  If you could add up the total
number of those who believe and who surrender to God's will it would make a
considerable number of people even in these last days.  But the fact of the
matter is that the great majority of people today simply refuse to repent of
their sins.  They refuse to believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior.  They
refuse to follow Jesus in Scriptural baptism and they refuse to change their
ways to please God.
    If you were to ask them why they do not believe and follow Jesus, the
great majority of them would place the blame on us as God's people.  They
would blame some preacher of God's holy word.  If they do not blame us
preachers, they, at least, find somebody in the Lord's cause they can blame
it on.  If the preacher preaches loud, he makes them nervous.  If he does
not preach loud, they cannot hear a word he is saying.  If he preaches
against sin he is meddling. If he does not condemn sin with every breath
they accuse him of being soft on sin.  If he holds to the old ways, he is an
old foggie.  If he seeks new ways he is a modernist.
    If the church is large, they are looking for a small church.  If the
church is small, they are looking for one that has lots people their own
age.  If the people dress up, they are snobs.  If they do not dress fit to
kill, they are slobs.
    Excuses, excuses, excuses!  This kind of person has plenty of excuses
for not trusting in the Lord and getting in His church and getting to work.
He has already made up his mind that he is not going to play the game and
that is that.
    Let me point out something to you right here.  Not everybody who finds
something to criticize in one of the Lord's churches is rejecting the word
of God.  Not every critic is trying to be uncooperative.  There is plenty
wrong in even the best of churches and there is plenty wrong with the very
best of today's preachers.  Some criticism is very well justified.  It is
one of the means by which we correct what is wrong in our own lives.
    But it is also true that not all criticism that comes to the Lord's
churches and the Lord's preachers is legitimate.  You just remember that
when John the Baptist was here he did not please everybody.  He did not even
please the majority.  Neither did Jesus Christ.  They both drew a lot of
criticism back then and neither would they be able to please a lot of people
if they were to come back today.
    When one's criticism is legitimate, he does not forsake the cause of
Christ.  He may seek to get things changed for the better or he may, under
certain circumstances, change his membership and go to another church.  But
he does not quit serving the Lord just because he sees something wrong.
    When an unsaved person refuses to place his faith in Jesus and to be
baptized because of his critical attitude toward Christians, that does not
point up a genuine fault in Christianity.  It points out a fault in that
individual.  He is trying to justify his unrepentant attitude and his
refusal to trust Jesus Christ as Savior.  He is trying to justify himself by
pointing an accusing finger at the Christians and it won't work.  God will
not accept that as an excuse.  That is just exactly what the majority of
people in Israel were doing and that is what Jesus was talking about in our
text.  God is not going let a sinner into heaven just because that sinner
something in some Christian to be critical about.  God is going to require
every human being to repent of his sins and trust in Jesus Christ as his
Savior or he will not get into heaven.

IV.  Saved people today who are just as critical

    Most saved people are aware that preachers, deacons, Sunday School
teachers, and churches have faults, but they do not let that stop them from
coming to church and serving the Lord.
    It is especially true with Christians, that some of their criticism is
justified and can be helpful.  But it is only helpful if it is presented in
a constructive attitude and a constructive manner.  Even justified criticism
should not be made in a destructive manner.
    Yet it must be conceded that saved people can have that same vindictive,
uncooperative, critical attitude that the people of Israel had and which
unsaved people today have.  The saved can be just as unkind in their
remarks, and just as wrong in their attitude.
    Like the unsaved, a Christian can use criticism to try to justify his
own faults and failures, but it won't work.  If some Christian gets an
overly critical attitude toward the church or toward the preacher or toward
the deacons or toward anybody else in the church and thinks that is
justification for him to quit going to church, he is wrong.  Ninety-nine
times out of a hundred the one who quits going to church is only looking for
an excuse.  If he really loves the Lord he would go anyway.  Or at the
least, he would find somewhere that he could go to church.  He cannot
justify his lack of church attendance, his lack of support to the cause of
Christ, and his failure to let his own Christian light shine for Jesus by
pointing a finger at somebody else.
    I would offer the following suggestions:  Be slow to speak critically,
but be swift to encourage.  Be slow to speak to anyone about a brother's
faults, but be swift to pray for the brother.  Your brother in spite of his
faults.  Above all, do not let anyone keep you from serving the Lord.
Surely there is a church somewhere where you can serve the Lord.

Conclusion:
    If you are saved, do not let the faults of others keep you out of
church.  If you are unsaved, do not let the faults of others keep you out of
heaven.
    You will not answer to God for the faults of others.  You are going to
answer to God for your own faults.
    Just thank God that He loves you in spite of your faults and is willing
to forgive you of your sin.