The Danger of Apathy

Have you heard the old proverb, "Familiarity breeds contempt?" Is there any truth to that statement? In relationships, this can certainly be true as one's familiarity with another can lead to an accumulation of frustrations, offenses, and unmet expectations. However, in a healthy relationship, familiarity can also lead to a deepening of love and appreciation with shared life experiences along with a commitment to love, cherish, and forgive.

What the proverb is really warning about is the danger of growing complacent or apathetic toward someone or something, thus refusing to see its importance.

Apathy can be defined as, "lacking interest or concern for matters of general importance. To show indifference towards ideas previously understood to be of great significance."

As Jesus sends his disciples ahead of him to share that the Kingdom of God had come, the response was surprising. There were many who had watched and prayed for this day expectantly and were now rejoicing. Yet, there were far too many, especially among the Jewish people who were apathetic. The thought of the Kingdom of God arriving seemed of little importance to them. Their familiarity with the Jewish religion had led them to contempt for the arrival of God's Kingdom.

In Luke 10:13-16, Jesus gives an extremely sobering warning to the people of three Jewish cities. Telling them that it will be more tolerable for one of the most wicked worldly cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, than the judgment that awaits the apathetic Jewish cities that had rejected Jesus and His Kingdom.

Have you ever considered that it would be better to reject Jesus and go to hell from New York City or Los Angeles than from North East Tennessee?

In this message, we consider our responsibility to proclaim the Kingdom and the danger of apathy.