I would like to think that if I had lived in the day of Jesus and His disciples that I would have been a believer from the first moment that I met Jesus. But, I am not sure that would have been the case.

    It has been over thirty years since I first accepted Christ. That is a long time. And it seems that the older I grow in Christ, the harder it is for me to understand how someone could turn their back upon Him. I understand that Satan, the god of this world, has blinded the minds of unbelievers to the light of the gospel. We read in (2Co. 4:4)  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
    But it seems so clear to me that Jesus is the only hope for our lives. And yet people still turn their backs on Him. Sometimes, even people who claim to have been saved, turn their backs upon Him. That is an even harder thing for me to understand. But we see it all the time. People who make a profession of faith, begin to walk with the Lord, some even involved in serving the Lord and then one day, they turn around and walk away from the Lord and His church. How can this happen? What causes it? These are serious questions which are not easily answered. But I will try to do just that in this sermon. 

  I. Jesus' Teaching. (verses 47-58)

    1. His teaching is often misunderstood.

        A. Jesus said, I am the bread of life.

            1. He claimed to be the only way to eternal life

            2. This is a hard thing to accept then and now.

                 a. They had been trusting in their observance of the

                     Law, and many people do today.

                 b. They were trusting in their traditional ways of

                     worship, as many people do today.

    2. His teaching was often a divider of men. (verses 66-67)

        A. He said, 'The flesh profiteth nothing'.

           1. This was an offence to those Jews who were full of

               of themselves, as many people are today.

           2. This was an offence to those who thought their works

               were sufficient then and today.

           3. And because of this some, but not all turned away.

    3. His techings are often too direct and too much to the point.

        A. (Ro. 3:23)

          1. This is hard for many to accept then and now.

          2. We want to think we are pretty good.

          3. We take pride in our accomplishments.

     B. (Jn. 3:3)

        1. Many floks then and now want to think that this isn't

            really necessary.

       2. Many then and now  would like to believe that they can

           live their lives the way they want

       3. Many then and now believe God has a large scale to see if

          there good deeds out weigh there bad. And that is the

          determining factor as to weither or not they go to heaven.

     C. (Re. 20:11-15)

          1. Many then and now simply refuse to accept this.

          2. They want to view only the gracious and, merciful side

               of God.

          3. They couldn't then and many don't now believe that a

               loving God would send anyone to Hell

II. Mankind's Love For The World.      (Mark 10:17-25)

    1. The World's Rihes

             A. Paul preached the gospel to them.

               1. He declared to them their need to repent.

              2. They put him off saying, "We will hear thee again of

                  this matter."        

    2. Paul spoke before King Agrippa.

       A. Paul gave his testimony.

          1. Festus called Paul a madman.

         2. King Agrippa told Paul, "Almost thou persuadest me to

             be a Christian."

        3. Agrippa put it off till later, perhaps never.

    3. People today turn their backs on Jesus because they want to

        put it off until later.

       A. They say one of these days, but not today, not yet.

           1. But notice (2 Cor. 6:2) and (Heb. 2:3),