Why Do People Resist God?

“Why do the wicked renounce God?
He has said in his heart,
‘You will not require an account.'”
Psalm 10:13

When you think about it, it doesn't make a lot of sense. Everyone has been to a funeral. Everyone is reminded that his day will come also. So it follows, wouldn't one start thinking about his own destiny when he sees death? How can it be that confronted with death, a person comes away with nary a thought of his own fate? Why does he not seek answers in the Word of God, the very one who brought him into the world?

Well, there are several reasons. Jesus spoke of the condition of the heart, and presented four scenarios played out when people hear the Word of God.

The first scenario:

"When anyone hears the Word of the kingdom,
and does not understand it,
then the wicked one comes and snatches away
what was sown in his heart."
Matthew 13:19

Some think the Bible is too hard to understand, so they ignore it. They have a wall built up and whenever they hear the Word they pay no attention, so Satan easily snatches that Word, leading them to think on something else. So having heard it, it was of no avail to them.

The second scenario:

vs 20-21:
"...he who hears the Word and immediately receives it with joy,
yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.
For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the Word,
immediately he stumbles."

Some have enough reverence for God that they gladly hear his Word - UNTIL - they are overtaken by some kind of trouble; then they can't stand because they only heard it superficially, and that's not enough to support them when troubles come.

The third scenario:

vs 22:
"he who hears the Word and the cares of this world
and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word,
and he becomes unfruitful."

People are too busy. Their minds and hearts are busy looking after the cares in their world, consumed with how to increase in wealth and acquire yet more. When they hear the Word they only give it a nod, because their hearts are focused on their daily concerns and that's where all their interest lies.

But the fourth scenario:

vs 23:
"he who hears the word and understands it,
who indeed bears fruit and produces;
some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
Matthew 13:19

This is the person who sets his heart FIRST on the Word of God. His heart is filled with the desire to know God, and to follow his Word no matter what trials or difficulties may come. He knows they surely WILL come, but he has a depth of faith in him that points his heart to the Word of God in all and every situation he encounters in life.

The wicked are not so. The evil man cares only about one thing: himself. His heart is totally given over to how he can promote himself, achieve his desires, and gain honor in the eyes of man. He knows deep inside that there is a cost to following the Lord and he has absolutely no interest in paying any such cost. He pays attention to the troubles of this world and is determined to avoid them and overcome them himself. He feels that as long as he is in control, he can succeed in whatsoever is in his heart to accomplish. He doesn't need God. And he wants to hear nothing about him.

Oh that a man would realize that our time on this earth is so short. On a yardstick, 1/16th of an inch is lived here, and the rest of it is in eternity. Seeing death should drive that understanding into him, but he simply refuses to let it do so. He insists on his way, period. Many of them do achieve their goals - and enjoy them - for the 1/16th inch of their lives.

Oh that all men would realize that you can't live for yourself and for the devil, and then expect to go with Jesus when you die.