If we were to take a poll of “average” pew sitters to see who could define the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ I think the results would be very discouraging. If we were to go by what is usually preached in the vast majority of “evangelical” churches Sunday after Sunday then we will see why most of those people will believe that Christianity is all about having felt needs met, being healthy, and wealthy.

13 Behold, My servant will prosper,
He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted.
14 Just as many were astonished at you, My people,
So His appearance was marred more than any man
And His form more than the sons of men.
15 Thus He will sprinkle many nations,
Kings will shut their mouths on account of Him;
For what had not been told them they will see,
And what they had not heard they will understand.
Isaiah 52:13-15 (NASB) 

In his fine book Escape from Reason, Francis Schaeffer analyzed 20th Century philosophy, science, art, and popular culture to get to the “cause,” if you will, of the decline of reason, which was and is still shaping our society. Modern thought in our time, it seems, has been diverted from an eternal, heavenly focus to one that is entirely geared to the temporal. Part of his thesis is that the advent of humanistic philosophy and reason began with Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). He contends that prior to Aquinas, the heavenly things were all-important, but since his teaching and discussion of “nature and grace,” the focus of human thought has made the temporal all-important with the heavenly becoming only an abstract “unreality.”

A troubling product of this line of reasoning has been growing and developing for well over the last 150 years in the humanizing of Christianity. Spurgeon called it the “Great Downgrade.” All through their ministries in the 20th Century, A.W. Pink and A.W. Tozer sounded the alarms of the this move away from the genuine Gospel which produced godly Christians living in an eternal focus to a man-centered gospel which produced mostly religious Christians who had no idea why Jesus really went to the cross. If we were to take a poll of “average” pew sitters to see who could define the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ I think the results would be very discouraging. If we were to go by what is usually preached in the vast majority of “evangelical” churches Sunday after Sunday then we will see why most of those people will believe that Christianity is all about having felt needs met, being healthy, and wealthy. Or, in other churches they may hear only about cultural relevancy and everyone just getting along or Social Justice. In any case, they never hear of Jesus being wounded for our transgressions.

1 Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
3 He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
Isaiah 53:1-5 (NASB) 

The question in v1 implies that in spite of all of prophecies speaking of the coming of Jesus Christ as the Messiah, only a few would recognize Him as such. He came as the suffering Servant instead of the conquering King, whom they were looking for. The rulers of the Jews and most of the people did not welcome him.

9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.
John 1:9-11 (NASB) 

The second part of v1 speaking of the arm of the Lord is telling us that even though Jesus performed miracles that only could be done by God, most people did not recognize His power in that very thing, which was a sign that their Deliverer was in their presence, and they rejected Him. In v2 the “He” is Jesus Christ while the “Him” is the Father. Though Jesus grew up unrecognized by the world, the Father sovereignly ordered all circumstances of His life. Jesus did not wear the soft rich clothing of rulers or the wealthy. He came from humble beginnings and lived simply. I remember several years ago hearing a “preacher” on TBN say something like this, “Jesus was wealthy, and he wore designer clothes, and drove the finest cars.” Of course he was trying to say that Jesus preached the same message he preached which was, “come to Jesus so He can make you healthy and wealthy.” Utter nonsense! Jesus came humbly and those who did recognize Him did so by faith instead of by seeing outward manifestations of whom He really was.

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