The 3 Most Important Questions Facing Our Culture

The 3 Most Important Questions Facing Our Culture Today Acts 17: 16 -31

“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. ” 2 Corinthians 5: 20

“Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints. ” Jude 1: 3

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, ” 1 Peter 3: 15

1. Is there a God?

1. Is there a God? 2. Has He Spoken?

1. 2. 3. Is there a God? Has He Spoken? And if so, will we trust Him & obey?

1. 2. 3. Is there a God? Has He Spoken? And if so, will we trust Him & obey? Every apologetic question, every theological issue, every cultural debate, and every personal choice we make must ultimately be based on these 3 fundamental questions.

“Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship— and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.

The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.

God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being. ’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring. ’ Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill.

In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead. ” Acts 17: 22 -31

1. Is there a God?

1. Is there a God? God’s General Revelation - His self-revelation through creation.

1. Is there a God? God’s General Revelation - His self-revelation through creation. “since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature— have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. ” Romans 1: 19 -20

“I was practically overwhelmed with the sense of some Great Presence. Not only had someone been there. Someone was there…”

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world…” Psalm 19: 1 -4

The Anthropic Principle • The distance of the earth from the sun • The earth’s force of gravity • The tilt of the earth’s axis • The force of the earth’s magnetic field • The speed of the earth’s rotations • The time for earth to revolve around the sun • The earth’s levels of oxygen, carbon, and nitrogen • On and on… The Earth is Fine Tuned for Life!

“To look out at this kind of creation out here and not believe in God is to me impossible. It just strengthens my faith. I wish there words to describe what it’s like. ”

2. Has He Spoken?

2. Has He Spoken? God’s Special Revelation - God’s direct intervention in human history

John 18: 37 Jesus, “for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. ”

“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. ” Hebrews 1: 1 -2

2 ways God has spoken (Hebrews 1: 1 -2):

2 ways God has spoken (Hebrews 1: 1 -2): • The Bible (2 Peter 1: 4, 19 -21; 2 Timothy 3: 16 -17)

2 ways God has spoken (Hebrews 1: 1 -2): • The Bible (2 Peter 1: 4, 19 -21; 2 Timothy 3: 16 -17) • Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1: 16; Acts 17: 30 -31)

3. Will we trust Him & obey?

3. Will we trust Him & obey? • Whoever fears the Lord walks uprightly, but those who despise him are devious in their ways. Proverbs 14: 2

3. Will we trust Him & obey? • Whoever fears the Lord walks uprightly, but those who despise him are devious in their ways. Proverbs 14: 2 • The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception. Fools mock at making amends for sin, but goodwill is found among the upright. Proverbs 14: 8 -9

• There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 14: 12

• • There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 14: 12 The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps. The wise fear the Lord and shun evil, but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure. Proverbs 14: 15 -16

• • • There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 14: 12 The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps. The wise fear the Lord and shun evil, but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure. Proverbs 14: 15 -16 Whoever fears the Lord has a secure fortress, and for their children it will be a refuge. The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, turning a person from the snares of death. Proverbs 14: 26 -27

The Good News…

The Good News… “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. ” 1 John 1: 9

The Good News… “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. ” 2 Chronicles 7: 14