Deeper Reflection
Depending on the receiver, good news can appear quite bad. In May 2022, my family (all Tottenham Hotspur fans) was joyfully celebrating the good news that they had beaten arch-rivals Arsenal by a convincing score of 3-0. Only thing is, I support the other team.The Christian Gospel wasn’t good news to most Jews in Paul’s day. When Paul wrote the letter to the Romans, most of traditional Judaism was hostile to the movement which sprang from the Messiah Jesus.¹⁰ In particular, the Jews rejected Jesus’ claim to be God (e.g. Matt 26:65). Hence, Paul characterised them as enemies of the Gospel (v.28).In the epistle to the Philippians, Paul mentions a different kind of enemy of Christ: those who oppose the cross of Christ in their pursuit of selfindulgence (Phil 3:18-19). Paul describes these people as having their stomach as their god, which is a metaphor for embracing “unbridled sensuality, whether gluttony or sexual licentiousness”¹¹. The ultimate reason for their rejection of the Gospel, Paul says, is that their mind is set on earthly things. They fail to see the glory and goodness of the Kingdom of Heaven.The Bible tells us that there will be enemies of the Gospel, so we shouldn’t be surprised when we meet them. God’s grace can be resisted. He respects our freedom so much that He allows any one of us to reject His blessing of salvation, should we so choose. Today, if we know those who oppose God and His ways, let’s view them not with condescension, but compassion. Let’s weep together with Paul (Phil 3:18) and intercede for the lost.

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¹⁰ Dunn, J. D. G. (1988). Romans 9-16 Dallas: Word, Incorporated. ¹¹ Hansen, G. W. (2009). The Letter to the Philippians. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans