Friday, June 20, 2025

Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't

Matthew 11:16-19, “But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows, And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented. For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil. The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.”

Jesus said that people are like children (and they sure are). It doesn't matter what you do, people will still find fault to criticize you!
No matter what you do, they will criticize you for something. This is the way of the wicked world (1st John 5:19). Jesus warned believers that if we belong to Christ the world will hate us. John 15:19, “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” The world hates Christians because they really hate Jesus. John 7:7, “The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.”

In our text passage of inspired Scripture, Jesus points out that John the Baptist lived a reclusive life in the Wilderness and refused to attend banquets, weddings and social gatherings. So, wicked people wrongly accused John of having a devil. Yet, Jesus did attend wedding feasts and banquets, and the same wicked people called him a glutton and a drunk. This is so typical of people. What Jesus said about the people of His town 2,000 years ago could likewise be said about many Americans today. People can be so rotten!

Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) was right that there's a difference between someone merely having a bad day who says something critical, versus someone who is in a state of being critical all the time. I don't know about you, but I avoid critical people. I am a happy person (despite my constant neck pain and miseries) in Christ, and I try to avoid negative people in my personal life. There's enough negativity already present in society without adding to it. To some people, the glass is always half empty instead of half full. To be honest, I don't hang around friends. I am a loner and I like it that way. I am a private person and reclusive by nature.

I admit that there were painful years of my life that were worse than death, and I just wanted to die (2nd Corinthians 1:8). I was discouraged and when I went to visit local churches on Guam, I was driven away and horribly mistreated by wicked uncaring pastors. I speak of the self-righteous Agana Heights Baptist Church, and the wicked Harvest Baptist Church on Guam. When I moved to Pensacola in 2021, I was shunned and banned from attending Campus Church at Pensacola Christian College (PCC). Their wicked pastors threw me under the bus for trying to help them, when I showed them that their preaching of Lordship Salvation at PCC is unbiblical. God will be their Judge!

I know the pain of seeing people walk away from me, afraid to even talk to me because of malicious slander they heard about me from an ungodly person. David in the Old Testament knew that horrible lonely feeling. Psalms 31:11, “I was a reproach among all mine enemies, but especially among my neighbours, and a fear to mine acquaintance: they that did see me without fled from me.” I know that awful feeling of rejection, seeing acquaintances avoid me because of disparaging gossip they had heard about me. Remember, the Devil is “the accuser of the brethren” (Revelation 12:10b). When you accuse, condemn and criticize someone else, you are filling the role of Satan!

I learned a very long time ago, that God's opinion is the only one I need to be concerned about. I do care what other people think, but only how it reflects on my relationship with God. For example: I want to be honest in all my dealings with others because I want God to be glorified by my life as a Christian. I care what God thinks. I don't care what other people think about me, nor do I regard what they have to say that is critical. I only care about making sure that I glorify God in my spirit, soul and body, which belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God. 1st Corinthians 3:23, “And ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's.” That is a beautiful truth! 1st Corinthians 6:20, “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. That price is the precious blood of Jesus (1st Peter 1:18-19).

In this world, we are damned if we do and damned if we don't, as far as the heathen world is concerned. When you are a Christian, the whole world is waiting for you to fall. Remember that! Thankfully, God's opinion of us is all that matters. This is why David could pray in Psalms 51:4, “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.” Dear reader, if you have been born again through faith alone in the Lamb of God, Jesus, then your sins have been separated from you as far as the east is from the west the Bible says. Psalms 103:12, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” You see friend, you can only travel so far north until you'll be headed south (and vice versa). But you can travel east forever and never be going west again (and vice versa). East and west never meet! Likewise, once saved always saved!!!

Jesus Himself acknowledged the childishness of many adults, who will find fault in us as His sheep no matter what we do or don't do, and no matter what we say or don't say, et cetera. So, let us focus on only pleasing our heavenly Father. It's not what others say about you that matters; but rather, what God knows about you. Revelation 4:11, “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. Jesus created all things. That is, Jesus made the universe and all therein and beyond. We were all created to please God, not man.

Yet, how often do we see people living to try to make others happy, to no avail. Dear reader, you cannot make people happy! The same people who praise you today may crucify you tomorrow! When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, the people cried out: “Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord.” But just one week later we hear the people crying out: “Crucify Him! Crucify Him! His blood be upon us and our children!” Matthew 11:16a, “But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets...”

You'll never win by trying to impress, please and satisfy people. That is why our goal in life ought to be to please God alone. When people unjustly slander and criticize me as a Bible preacher, and tear down the fundamentalist preachers that I love, I leave it in the Lord's hands for judgment.

For example: I recently in April of 2025 had an unpleasant interaction with a younger foolish new-evangelical Baptist pastor in Pensacola, who wrongly accused Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) of having a sexually filthy mind. No, that young pastor is an idiot! You see, the truth is that the young pastor's wife wears sexy tight pants in public, so he is a low-standards henpecked husband who wickedly defends women wearing pants in public. Dr. Hyles was a godly HIGH STANDARDS preacher, which is why so many worldly pastors despise him! That young pastor is a darn fool and not worthy to shine Brother Hyles' shoes! It is a sin for any Christian woman to wear sexy tight pants (or any type of immodest clothing) in public.

Thank you for reading my ministry blog. To God alone be all the praise, credit and glory (John 15:1-5).

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