An Introduction to Holy Violence

Holy Violence as a Summary of Sanctification

The title of my sermon today is holy violence in the Christian life. This is the first sermon. We're going to have a series of sermons on this. Some of you may know I may have mentioned the past one of my favorite verses is Matthew 11 12.

I'm going to get to that in a second. But I this will be the first part of an introductory series that hopefully we'll do a few more down the road. Before I start out. I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with John Bunyan his pilgrims progress.

It's a very very popular book. Actually pilgrims progress has been translated in 200 languages. It's second only to the Bible a number of book number of times. It's been published and much has been translated.

I highly recommend it. It's a it's a great allegory of the Christian life and how much and it sort of it shows you the The journey of a man named Christian from the time this conversion awaits the time he goes to heaven.

But this I got an excerpt from that book. I'm gonna read it to you real quickly. In his journey Christian stops the house a man called the interpreter and I'm gonna read this one section from you start my sermon off.

At interpreters house Christian saw a beautiful gate with four strong men in armor standing before it. To the side set a man at a desk with a book in which to write the names of those who entered. Above on the walls stood a host robed in white watching.

No one seemed willing to go in until a brave man stepped forward as he said to the scribe write down my name. Having done this he donned a helmet. He drew his sword and he rushed forward to fight the men blocking the gate.

They fought him a deadly force. But slashing and hacking his way through most fiercely and giving and receiving many wounds. He succeeded in cutting his way into the palace there. He was welcome clothed in white and took his place in the city.

This is John Bunyan's description of if you read the interpreters house. It's where the mini allegory itself because when Christian goes there He goes to various rooms and each room has a different allegory the Christian life.

This is John Bunyan's particular take on Matthew 11 12. And this verse to me is one of my life verses. I've always really been drawn to it. So please turn to Matthew 11. I'm going to read verses 2 through 15.

Sorry verses 1 through 15 with the whole chapter half the chapter Matthew 11 starting at verse 1. When Jesus had finished giving instructions to his 12 disciples, he departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.

Now when John while in prison heard of the works of Christ He sent word by his disciples and said to him are you the expected one or shall we look for someone else? Jesus answered and said to them go and report to John what you hear and see.

The blind receive sight the lame walk the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached them and Blessed is he who does not take offense at me as these men were going away.

Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John. What did you go out to the wilderness to see a reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see a man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in Kings palaces.

But what did you go out to see a prophet? Yes, I tell you one who is more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written. Behold, I send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you.

Truly I say to you among those born of women There has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent men take it by force.

For all the prophets in the law prophesied until John and if you're willing to accept it John himself is the Elijah who was to come he who has ears to hear let him hear. As I mentioned before Matthew 1112 is the key verse for my sermon series.

It's not a particularly well-known verse. Although it probably in my opinion gives the best one sentence summary of sanctification the entire Bible. The key word in this verse really is violence. This violence is not really physical but spiritual in our culture commonly when you hear the word violence.

We think of like killing drunk, you know slaughter people fighting in UFC cages all that stuff. But really the violence here connotes zeal perseverance and extreme dedication in the quest to become a heavenly saint.

The Puritans quoted this verse quite often their writings and I have a few quotes in here in this sermon. But you'll see it again. This is a very popular verse with them. In order to rightfully divide the word of truth We need to examine this text in the greater context of the 11th chapter of John.

Sorry, the 11th chapter of Matthew and the entire gospel Matthew. The main theme of Matthew 11 is there is rejection and doubt of Jesus ministry both by individuals and by entire groups of people. The reasons for this rejection may vary but they all have one commonality.

Jesus did not fill people's preconceived notions of the Messiah and his ministry confused and perplexed some Angered many others and was received with indifference by a large percentage of his contemporaries.

This is the same today when people think of Jesus. They don't really think of the Jesus. The scriptures think of a Jesus of their own imagination. You know apathy and questions predicated on acquiring a mere scholarly knowledge of the gospel.

They have sent as many people to hell as outright hostility and rejection of the gospel. If you think about hostility has slain thousands of souls, but apathy and mere intellectual curiosity have slain tens of thousands of souls.

If you were to receive a summons from an earthly King, you know. Would it be an appropriate response to frame that letter and just put on a wall? Or I think you all agree that that's probably not the appropriate response when a king sends you a summons.

He desires action from you and not an idle curiosity his letter in the same way indifference. The scripture is a passive disobedience or a lazy rebellion in our country. Open hostility. Or indifference to our nation's laws result in the exact same sentence.

If you if you break the law, it doesn't matter what you hate the law or just don't care about it. You get the same sentence. How much greater will the punishment be against those who have disregarded the word of the sovereign God and spurned the free offer of the?

Gospel, you know Jesus is in the head and the King of Kings our nation. Our our nation is really ruled by the rulers of our nation. So I have a quote from John Bunyan here. John Bunyan once said he said no sin against God can be little because it is a great God because it is against the great God.

In a like manner the the writer of Hebrews warms all Christians when he says. See that you do not refuse him who is speaking for if they did not escape who refused him when he warned them on earth. How much less we escape him if we reject him who warns him from heaven?

In context in for Hebrews 1225 this refers to the you have the inauguration of the Covenant works in Mount Sinai versus the Covenant of Grace. That modern believers are now under and this verse is speaking of actually of God the Father.

However. Since we serve a triune God, I believe these same words can be correctly applied to Jesus first coming and his second coming as well. Second Timothy 3 7 describes false teachers in this way. It says they're always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.

False teachers can never truly receive the truth because the only way you can receive it is to the help of the Holy Spirit and false teachers lack the Holy Spirit. Therefore they spend their entire life keeping up knowledge for themselves that profits them nothing and ultimately increases their condemnation on the Day of Judgment.

You also see this if you look at the book of Acts in the same exact manner the Greeks in Athens were asking many questions of Paul. But novel theology was their idol. They had a little or no interest in hearing they were accountable to their creator.

You see there was a few of them that say we'll hear more about this most of them just tell us something new. They weren't really interested in hearing God's laws and I'm gonna read that chapter that section real quickly.

Back 17 starting in verse 19. And they brought him to the air pot. The Arapagus saying may we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? For you bring some strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.

Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who live there would spend their whole time and nothing except telling or hearing something new. You know, I said before the Greeks they weren't interested in discovering the truth.

They rather they prize novelty above accuracy and they prefer scholasticism to true faith. Their example was include in the Bible to be a warning to us. Lest we are tempted to substitute theology for a real relationship with the living God first.

Corinthians 1011 says now these things happen to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction on whom the end of the ages has come. I Believe reformed theology best encapsulates the doctrines of scriptures.

But we always need to remember people are not saved by believing reformed theology. People are saved by faith in Jesus Christ. We must hold fast to these tenets so we do not become factional about secondary or tertiary doctrines and Forsake fellowship with God's children.

God has his children every Orthodox Christian domination. The devil is more than happy to help us slide to hell with the correct doctrine if he can get us a substitute doctrine for a true relationship with Jesus Christ.

John the Baptist’s Doubt and His Ministry of Holy Zeal

Looking at this chapter Matthew. I believe it you can roughly divide it into four sections. So if you look at John Matthew 11 starting in verses 1 through 15 John that you kind of see John the Baptist doubting right?

That's the very that's the kind of main theme there. If you look at John 11 16 through 19, that's rejection by Jesus generation if you look at If you look at 20 through 24, you see you see the rejection of the city's use time.

And then finally you see that Jesus gives the free offer of the gospel from 25 to 29. Those the four sections your Bible probably has it divided up roughly in that order as well because there's kind of natural division.

In my sermon today I'm going to give you an overview the first two points the first two sections there and then we'll pick up on the second two points in a future sermon. John the Baptist was the last the Old Testament prophets.

He had a very unique ministry that combined asceticism or poorness. He was very humble didn't have possessions with powerful oratory and calls to repentance for the people of Israel. Although John willingly passed over the reins to Jesus, you know when Jesus came on the scene he said here he is.

Listen to him. He's the Messiah. God in his perfect providence ensured the focus was shifted over to Jesus by allowing Herod Antipas to imprison John. So this was kind of if you think about John He was a very telegenic very great orator people were drawn to him.

Even though he said that's Jesus listen to him. A lot of people may say well, I'm gonna still stick with you. Well God ensured that couldn't happen because Harry put him in jail. So it's kind of hard to follow someone who's in jail.

John's life was marked by holiness and Passionate sermons to his hearers to repent and be baptized for the remissions of sins. This goes really along well with our Sunday school that we've been going with Burke Parsons the Great Commission, but John he didn't wait for opportunities to share the gospel.

He actively created them through his ministry. He didn't sit back and wait people to came. He told people they just came into idle curiosity. He said repent. Um, this was a man that truly took the kingdom heaven by force.

And I think that's what kind of surprised the Jews and kind of scared the Pharisees about him. Is he wasn't under their authority and he was very forceful very direct and that scared them. They weren't used to that.

They were used to tying people up in legalese and doctrine and all the other stuff. At this point Matthew's gospel according to various commentators. John's been in prison for about one to two years approximately.

So Being in prison in wrongfully is a severe trial for any man. But it's especially tough for someone like John. If you think about him, he was a free spirited man. He had an itinerant mean wandering around outdoor ministry.

We don't know if his imprisonment was due to the direct work of the devil. You think of something like Job where the devil actually said I'm gonna put him, you know I'm gonna pursue Job or it's just you know, we live in a fallen world.

You oppose the powers you go to jail. You know if you tell them the truth, they don't want to hear it. But you know, we don't or whether the world system was responsible for it. But either way God providentially allowed this to test and strengthen the faith of John of John.

John's ministry can roughly in my opinion be divided into two halves. The first half was a very visible public ministry and the second half was a private lesson of suffering and waiting on the Lord. Both phases of his ministry are equal are equally praiseworthy in the eyes of the Lord if you look at the Hall of Faith Hebrews is probably one of my favorite books in the whole Bible.

But if you read the Hall of Faith You'll see a juxtaposition of the people that did great things to the Lord the people that suffer great things the Lord and if you notice Prosperity teachers, they'll never talk about the suffering part.

They'll just talk about the people that did great things. Let's look at Hebrews 11 32 to 38. Bible says. And what more shall I say for a time would fail me to tell of Gideon Barack Samson Jephthah of David and Samuel the prophets who through faith conquered kingdoms.

Enforced justice obtained promises stopped the mouth of lions quenched the power of fire. Escaped the edge of the sword were made strong out of weakness became mighty in war put foreign armies to flight.

Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured refusing to accept release some they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging and even chains and imprisonment.

They were stoned. They were sawn in two. They were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats. Destitute afflicted mistreated of whom the world was not worthy. Wandering about in deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth.

If you think about it the refining fire of suffering its foolishness the world and it's an inconvenient truth for false teachers. Neither of them want to hear about that. However as real Christians, we know that suffering is transforming us from a sinful fallen creature of this world into a citizen of heaven.

Additionally suffering unites us with Jesus so we can share with him in his power of his resurrected life forever. If you think of Philippians 3 10, if we if you're not with him in the fellowship of the sufferings We also be united with him in his resurrection.

It's a key here the 11th chapter of Matthew. Opens up with John's questions. Lord by the way of John's disciples. Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of Christ He sent word by his disciples and said to him.

Are you the one to come or how we should look or shall we look for?

Another.

Commentators are split on why John's sent this disciples to Christ asked this question. Some believe John was saying disciples to So they keep their faith strengthened or officially pass them off to Jesus since John was now in prison.

Others believe that John himself had doubts about Jesus ministry and wanted to hear confirmation from Jesus that things were proceeding according to use his plan. It is very important to note that these verses nest don't necessarily that say that John had unbelief.

Unbelief is a sin. But I think it's very I think I I think you must have to stretch the text to say John didn't doubt. I think there was definitely some doubt on John's part here. I think that's a plain reading of the text kind of brings that out.

John did have it looks like he had doubts or confusion about either the timing and the ultimate purpose of Jesus ministry. If you think about John's fist, you know John was both physically separated and doctrinally separated from the Pharisees physically.

He had a very you know, he lived outdoors. He had a very interesting diet. He wore, you know camel hair cloaks and his doctrinal separation. He was an itinerant preacher. He was outside. He baptized people in the Jordan River.

Those were very separated from the Pharisees, but We need to remember he wasn't immune to imbibing or taking in the prevailing view of the Messiah. That was held by many in ancient Israel. You know His dad was a priest Zechariah and obviously he probably heard a lot of things about what the Messiah was like.

So even though he was very separate from the Pharisees It's not unlikely that he did have some vision and I think the scriptures do bear this out of Jesus a conquering. He had a second coming vision of Jesus not a first coming.

That's what he was thinking about. We also see some confusion from the disciples after Jesus resurrection on this in Acts 1. I Thought I'd throw this quote in here Alfred Edersheim the life and times of Jesus the Messiah.

It's a very excellent work gives you a whole sketch. I believe I've talked with Zach about this a few times of. You know the basically the history in the background the details around that day he wrote this he put the ideas of the disciples of John concerning the Messianic Kingdom as one of rest of Resistless outward victory and assertion of power were altogether wrong.

The bridegroom would be violently taken from them and then it would be the time for mourning and fasting. That's a direct quote from that's from his book, you know, obviously the life and times Jesus the Messiah.

But there was violence, but it wasn't Jesus made it meaning out the violence. It was you just receiving the violence on our behalf. In Acts 1 in verse 7 the disciples said Jesus they said. So when they had come together they said Lord will you at this time restore the Kingdom of Israel.

You can see again here. They kind of had this misconception of you know, oh now you're gonna kick the Romans out. We're gonna have a utopia. It's gonna go back to the salt the date times at the Davidic and Solomonic kingdoms, but that was just not the case John you know.

He had a he had a great stature in his ministry. There was no one like John in the New Testament. Jesus even said in the whole Bible Jesus kind of put him up there. But even though he was a great man John fought the same passions.

We all battle in our spiritual walk disillusionment depression. Misunderstanding and impatience. They were all assaulting him while he sat confined in Herod's jail cell. If you think about John's imprisonment This was a real test of his faith because it pitted his love of the outdoors and a free lifestyle.

Against his love for God because he was a man who's used to going places when he wanted to. You know doing what he wanted to eat what he wants. We had no restrictions no family nothing to tie him down now.

He was sitting in a prison could do nothing without people's permission only got fed on their schedule. It was a real test for him. Nothing is more irksome to a man of action than periods of force and activity.

That's a fact if you're a man of action being forced to be inactive is a real trial. That can be due to external factors like imprisonment or internal like sickness. You can see you know God. We've been.

Paul talks about the thorn in the flesh the New Testament a lot of commentators think that was blindness. It could have been a sickness an ailment. But when you're a man of action having something restrain you that's a real trial for you, and it was especially a trial for John.

Now that Jesus had started his ministry I believe God was teaching John how to have patience and trust the Lord during his confinement. That was his lesson for John. Holy violence necessary not only for public ministry, but for privately enduring suffering for our faith.

You know it's not just you know people think well. This is a public thing. I need the violence that well.

No.

You need the violence when you're suffering you know from whether it can be from cancer or that you're suffering because the loss of a Daughter or son or because you have unbelieving spouse or unbelieving children.

That's just as necessary you need the perseverance in either way. It reminds me. You know in this John and us were united with Jesus. And I put if you look at Hebrews 5 8 it says although Jesus was a son he learned obedience through what he suffered.

Jesus suffered we're gonna suffer as well. Since John was in since he was in jail John received secondhand news of Jesus ministry. This isn't a revelation. He's not getting it. He's not able to see stuff for himself.

The information that he did receive probably came late, so it's probably a couple weeks late, and it was in fragments. We don't know how often Herod allowed people to visit John. It could have been every month.

It could have been more frequently, but clearly he wasn't. He wasn't there to see everything. The full so it's very unlikely that John knew the full scope of Jesus activities, so that's one thing. There's like an information deficit here.

John doesn't know anything that's going on. In his previous role as a Messianic Herald John was the one imparting knowledge about the Messiah to the people who flocked around him. Now he was sort of relegated to the bench.

He was no longer just giving direct revelation people. He was waiting and he's like well. What am I gonna hear about Jesus ministry? Is this what's gonna happen? I I paved the way for him. What you know when is the kingdom gonna come?

You know now his news Messiah came a little dribbles, you know a little dribble here a little dribble there. It wasn't just like he had that you know before he was kind of dispute tip the spear now. He's kind of like the tail end of the train.

You know once he taught his disciples in the open air of Galilee now He was totally dependent on his disciples for any news of communication with Jesus or his family or his friends any of them Jesus replied to John I believe conveyed truth in a very gracious manner.

Although we don't know John's direct intention in saying this message Jesus reply was meant to strengthen the faith of both John and John's disciples. Let's pick up in Matthew 11 starting in verse 4 Jesus answered and said Go and tell John what you hear and see the blind received their sight.

The lame walk. The lepers are cleansed and the deaf here. The dead are raised up and the poor have the good news preached them and blessed is the one who is not offended by me. If we break down this reply, we see that verses 4 and 5 are just more informational.

They list basically the miracles that Jesus performed to validate his messianic claims. The language you think about the language is used this year it's very similar to the Beatitudes he says blessed, right?

That was given of course in the Sermon of the Mount. I know pastor says a lot the greatest sermon ever preached and I concur with that. The Beatitudes are merely just descriptive the lives of all true Christians.

When people read through the Beatitudes and say oh. This is something to aspire to know every true Christian will have it might be a sliver of daylight. But that is your life. You will be meek you will love the Lord.

You will take you know, you will hunger and thirst for righteousness all that. Although you know Christians we may have times in our life where we're ashamed to confess Christ. These patterns won't last if you're a true Christian.

You ultimately will return and making the way and in your arena not everyone's arena making Christ known as the same. But you will return to making the Lord known if you're a true Christian.

I think.

Verse 6 to me is an admonition to John and by extension all believers that we should not be ashamed of our Savior of God.

Or a gospel.

Romans 1 16 says for I'm not ashamed of the gospel for it's the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes the Jew first. And also the Greek and right there we see the gospel. It's laser-focused.

We don't preach a different gospel to the Jew. We don't preach a different different gospel to the Greek. We don't tailor our gospel to different groups. The gospel is the same every everyone's a sinner and everyone must repent.

When I see the fact that Jesus delivers a gentle admonition here. It leads leads me to believe that John's purpose was to sort of assuage or kind of rest his own doubts. I don't think Jesus would have given him admonition if he had fully trusted him.

I think God's trying to tell him like gently like don't don't be ashamed of me. You know, you weren't ashamed of me before don't be ashamed of me now. You know, we don't know what John thought. He could have thought that Jesus ministry was not as zealous as his own.

Maybe he thought I was more zealous what Jesus kind of seems more low-key. He could have thought the pace of change was too slow. Like it seems like things are moving along very slowly here. Like when are things gonna accelerate and kind of got moving?

You know if you think about it, but Jesus reply is perfect. You know, what's more earth-shattering than healing the blind and crippled raising the dead and preaching the gospel to the penniless poor.

You know, that's things John can never do any of those things and those are great signs. You know nature itself was no match for the one by whom and for whom all things are made if you think about nature.

There's an inevitable process of decay whenever all of us are born. We start aging from the minute we're born and we continue aging until we die. If you think about how particles are how particles are formed in atomic structure.

There's something called entropy. Particles never go to a more complete state. They always go to a looser and more relaxed state because it takes energy to build something up. But it's just natural for things to decay.

That's just normal. You know the miracles of Jesus those were primarily given to authenticate his ministry. But the power of unbelief can only be broken by the Holy Spirit. I think the Gospels. If you read the Gospels many times you see the unbelief can only be broken when the Holy Spirit convicts.

The Woe to Unrepentant Cities

Jesus moves on from John the Baptist doubts and then he starts detailing the rejection that he received from some of the small communities in Which he performed miracles. I'm gonna pick up in verse end of verse 20 Jesus says then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works have been done because they did not repent.

Woe to you Corazon. Woe to you Bethsaida. For if the mighty works done and you had been done in Tyre and Sidon. They would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashless ashes. But I tell you it will be more bearable on the Day of Judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.

And you Capernaum? Would you be exalted to heaven you will be brought down to Hades? For if the mighty works done in you have been done in Sodom it would have remained until this day. But I tell you be more tolerable on the Day of Judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.

The main charge that Jesus brings against these cities is even though they saw his mighty works and listened to his teaching. They still refused to repent. They just they would not do it. Corazon Bethsaida and Capernaum.

These are all relatively small cities. They're not very big. I believe we only know where two of them are today. I think they don't know exactly where Corazon is that shows you how small it was. There you know when you consider the cities of Tyre and Sidon those were on the Mediterranean seacoast.

That's where Jezebel came from. She was a Phoenician. Those were bustling massively big trade ports. There's a lot of wealth a lot of richness. So there you definitely see a big difference here between a small little village where Jesus lived and these massive seaports were you know.

That were with that were wicked, but they had a lot more importance in these small towns. These cities also didn't have the fertile plains or prestige of ancient Sodom either. Sodom was a lot bigger. It had a lot of well water plains and it was a well-known city.

So these were very tiny hamlets these cities had the great privilege to witness both the unparalleled miracles and the Authoritative teaching of Messiah and what they how they respond from familiarity and apathy.

They didn't really care. They just say well, that's not our Messiah. We see his miracle, but that's not important to me. Sodom was the site of you know Deviant homosexual perversion and Tyre and Sidon were well known for their horrifying rituals of infant sacrifice a lot of the stuff about sacrificing Infants.

Tyre and Sidon were known for that. They were very very wicked people. Yet Jesus pronounced a more severe judgment on all three of the cities a witness in for their Indifference to him and that shows the worst wickedness is religious wickedness to God.

He the sin of those three cities is much worse than the sin of the pagan nations that they were destroyed. If the indifference of unbelievers draw such a harsh condemnation. How much worse is it when Christians lap and laps into indifference in their spiritual walk as the Bible says judgment begins with the household of God.

Peter writes in his first epistle. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God if it begins with us. What will the outcome be for those who did not obey the gospel of God as first Peter 417 if you note?

Jesus does not say that Tyre site sidon and Sodom will escape on the day of judgment. There's no escaping for them rather. He mentions that I'll be more bearable for them a little bit. Not not as bad.

Matthew Henry brings this out on in his commentary on Matthew do I believe the word bearable has three main facets or sides in this verse.

First.

The Gentile cities that Jesus mentioned will have less regret because they just rejected God's laws everyone across the nature across the world. Rejects God's laws if they don't trust in Jesus, but these three cities rejected the incarnate God.

I mean how many cities have Jesus walking down before miracles and they just rejected him that that's a pretty. There's a pretty big difference between rejecting a herald and rejecting the king himself.

You know imagine how uncomfortable be for those people that town. You know when they when they step up to be judged by the Lord. They're gonna see the Lord that walk down their streets and perform miracles.

That's me a very uncomfortable day for them less so for people that don't maybe know Jesus personally. But a lot of these citizens they sound probably knew Jesus. Oh, yeah. He's the miracle worker. The very person they ignored and didn't pay attention to is gonna be made very person that judges them.

The second reason I think that it'll be worse for them as many of these Jewish people these towns. They probably cherish the false hope of heaven heaven because they say look we're Abraham's descendants.

You see that from the Pharisees a lot. We're the descendants of Abraham. We don't need Jesus. The citizens of the pagan towns they had their own deities and religious practices. So they were under no, you know when they died and they see Jesus.

I mean they know the gig is up but for these people to say, you know. Oh, we were sons of Abraham. It didn't see the man that they rejected judging them. That's gonna be quite a shock. Finally think about the Jewish the Jewish descendants of these towns.

They'd spend the attorney in hell knowing the door to heaven was in their hometown and they were too busy to listen to him like how if you think about all the Chances a person is given to hear the gospel.

These Jewish towns had the opportunity to hear the gospel from the person who died for their sins. They just spurned it and they're gonna look back. Well, they are looking back on that now and saying what a foolish foolish mistake to not even listen to the Messiah when he was Walking in the streets.

They were too busy worldly things. You know family affairs are more important their eternal soul. You know the citizens of these pagan towns their regrets are not going to the same they didn't they never saw Jesus in his earthly Ministry, so how could they be if we were to use like the parable the talents here?