WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:09.500 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, 00:00:09.880 --> 00:00:15.280 redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.280 --> 00:00:22.640 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:34.359 Today's scripture reading is taken from the book of Genesis, chapter 1, the Gospel of John, chapter 1, 00:00:34.359 --> 00:00:38.780 and the Epistle to the Romans, chapter 1, all as printed in the liturgy. 00:00:39.620 --> 00:00:42.480 A reading from the book of Genesis. 00:00:43.799 --> 00:00:47.240 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 00:00:47.700 --> 00:00:49.540 Now the earth was formless and empty. 00:00:49.539 --> 00:00:54.539 Today, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 00:00:55.219 --> 00:00:57.820 And God said, Let there be light. 00:00:58.479 --> 00:00:59.859 And there was light. 00:01:01.439 --> 00:01:06.379 Then God said, Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, 00:01:06.659 --> 00:01:09.939 so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, 00:01:10.099 --> 00:01:15.000 over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. 00:01:15.000 --> 00:01:19.939 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, 00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:21.959 male and female he created them. 00:01:22.620 --> 00:01:26.299 God blessed them and said to them, Be fruitful and increase in number, 00:01:26.620 --> 00:01:30.519 fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, 00:01:30.620 --> 00:01:33.219 and over every living creature that moves on the ground. 00:01:34.460 --> 00:01:36.859 A reading from the Gospel according to John. 00:01:37.900 --> 00:01:41.939 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 00:01:41.939 --> 00:01:43.859 He was with God in the beginning. 00:01:44.739 --> 00:01:46.159 Through him all things were made. 00:01:46.539 --> 00:01:48.539 Without him nothing was made that has been made. 00:01:49.000 --> 00:01:51.519 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 00:01:52.099 --> 00:01:55.239 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 00:01:55.879 --> 00:01:58.759 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 00:01:59.299 --> 00:02:01.920 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, 00:02:02.180 --> 00:02:03.539 the world did not recognize him. 00:02:03.959 --> 00:02:07.200 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 00:02:07.700 --> 00:02:09.319 Yet to all who did receive him, 00:02:09.319 --> 00:02:13.719 To those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. 00:02:14.280 --> 00:02:18.239 Children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, 00:02:18.459 --> 00:02:19.239 but born of God. 00:02:19.739 --> 00:02:22.319 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. 00:02:22.659 --> 00:02:25.299 We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, 00:02:25.680 --> 00:02:28.099 who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. 00:02:29.439 --> 00:02:31.519 A reading from the Epistle to the Romans. 00:02:31.520 --> 00:02:37.480 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people 00:02:37.480 --> 00:02:39.580 who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 00:02:39.840 --> 00:02:43.580 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 00:02:44.120 --> 00:02:47.080 For since the creation of the world, God's invisible qualities, 00:02:47.480 --> 00:02:49.100 his eternal power and divine nature, 00:02:49.580 --> 00:02:52.980 have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, 00:02:53.180 --> 00:02:54.540 so that people are without excuse. 00:02:55.340 --> 00:02:56.520 For although they knew God, 00:02:56.660 --> 00:02:59.100 they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, 00:02:59.099 --> 00:03:02.299 but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 00:03:02.739 --> 00:03:04.340 Although they claimed to be wise, 00:03:04.639 --> 00:03:07.659 they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God 00:03:07.659 --> 00:03:12.340 for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. 00:03:13.519 --> 00:03:16.939 Therefore, God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts 00:03:16.939 --> 00:03:19.799 to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 00:03:20.259 --> 00:03:22.400 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie 00:03:22.400 --> 00:03:25.500 and worshipped and served created things rather than the creator, 00:03:25.919 --> 00:03:26.979 who is forever praised. 00:03:27.400 --> 00:03:27.659 Amen. 00:03:27.659 --> 00:03:29.659 This is the word of the Lord. 00:03:30.280 --> 00:03:31.199 Thanks be to God. 00:03:31.620 --> 00:03:33.520 Well, thank you, Michael, for that scripture reading. 00:03:33.599 --> 00:03:34.180 And good morning, everyone. 00:03:34.280 --> 00:03:34.900 My name is Andrew. 00:03:34.979 --> 00:03:35.979 I'm one of the pastors here. 00:03:36.560 --> 00:03:39.680 And will you join me in prayer as we open up God's word together? 00:03:41.819 --> 00:03:45.840 Father, I just ask that you would reveal yourself to us, 00:03:46.079 --> 00:03:51.800 open our eyes to see your truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. 00:03:52.000 --> 00:03:54.159 And would we find that your truth is not only true, 00:03:54.159 --> 00:03:57.400 but that it is beautiful as revealed in Jesus Christ. 00:03:57.400 --> 00:03:58.460 We pray this in his name. 00:03:59.060 --> 00:03:59.360 Amen. 00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:01.840 All right, so let's do this. 00:04:02.640 --> 00:04:03.540 Is there a God? 00:04:03.980 --> 00:04:04.180 Right? 00:04:04.659 --> 00:04:05.060 Yes. 00:04:06.319 --> 00:04:06.860 We're done. 00:04:08.860 --> 00:04:12.620 Now, you probably don't need to guess my answer to this question. 00:04:12.980 --> 00:04:14.080 Look at my outfit, right? 00:04:14.080 --> 00:04:18.180 But the first thing that I want to say is that if you're here, 00:04:18.480 --> 00:04:23.480 and your answer to this question, is there a God, is no, or maybe, or I'm not sure, 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:26.000 we want to especially thank you for being here. 00:04:26.240 --> 00:04:29.480 And we want to acknowledge that just by stepping into this church, 00:04:29.620 --> 00:04:31.879 you've already taken a huge step of faith. 00:04:32.080 --> 00:04:36.960 You've taken a step into this church in faith that this is not going to be a complete waste of your time. 00:04:36.959 --> 00:04:38.699 So we're super honored that you're here, 00:04:38.759 --> 00:04:42.019 and we want you to know that Christ's church exists not just for Christians, 00:04:42.120 --> 00:04:43.819 but for people just like you. 00:04:44.439 --> 00:04:49.279 The second thing I want to say is that if you consider yourself as someone who doesn't believe in God, 00:04:49.339 --> 00:04:51.180 or if you struggle to believe in God, 00:04:51.259 --> 00:04:52.479 I want to say to you that, you know, 00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:56.740 we Christians actually might agree with you more than you think. 00:04:57.399 --> 00:05:01.039 Because, you know, it's actually quite possible that the God you don't believe in 00:05:01.040 --> 00:05:05.220 truly doesn't exist, and isn't worthy of your faith and trust. 00:05:05.280 --> 00:05:08.900 And it might be that that's also not the God that we believe in either. 00:05:09.860 --> 00:05:13.400 Here at Christ's church, we recognize that a big reason people don't believe in God 00:05:13.400 --> 00:05:16.560 is because they haven't beheld Him for who He really is. 00:05:17.100 --> 00:05:20.040 So we welcome your skepticism, we welcome your questions, 00:05:20.180 --> 00:05:22.400 we hope that you'll join us in our Q&A after this. 00:05:22.400 --> 00:05:26.660 And really, our only hope for you is that you'd be introduced to the God 00:05:26.660 --> 00:05:29.620 that we believe truly is worthy of believing in. 00:05:29.620 --> 00:05:33.500 And we believe that that God is revealed to us in Jesus Christ. 00:05:33.639 --> 00:05:36.579 So that's what we're going to be talking about today as we approach this question, 00:05:36.720 --> 00:05:37.639 is there a God? 00:05:37.980 --> 00:05:41.840 We're specifically asking, does the Christian God exist? 00:05:42.980 --> 00:05:45.199 Now, maybe you're expecting the sermon to go something like this. 00:05:45.500 --> 00:05:49.519 Yes, there is a God because, argument one, two, three, and four, 00:05:49.579 --> 00:05:52.519 or however many I can throw at you in the next 30 minutes, right? 00:05:53.439 --> 00:05:56.399 And honestly, I could preach that sermon in probably less than two minutes, right? 00:05:57.079 --> 00:05:57.899 Like, check this out. 00:05:57.899 --> 00:06:01.539 Yes, there is a God because, point one, where did all this come from, 00:06:01.579 --> 00:06:03.299 if not from a divine first cause? 00:06:03.759 --> 00:06:07.500 Point two, how else could we account for the fine-tuning of this universe 00:06:07.500 --> 00:06:10.779 and how intricately this world is sustained and held together? 00:06:10.939 --> 00:06:14.319 And what is the probability that this world is ordered this way just by chance? 00:06:15.079 --> 00:06:18.919 Point three, how else could we ground the transcendent and universal nature 00:06:18.919 --> 00:06:22.399 of morality and justice apart from a transcendent God? 00:06:22.399 --> 00:06:26.759 And then point four, if there is no God, and if this is all there is, 00:06:26.819 --> 00:06:29.819 and the universe is just an impersonal chunk of matter, 00:06:30.579 --> 00:06:34.519 why do our lives feel like they're stories full of meaning? 00:06:35.099 --> 00:06:39.299 Why do our interactions feel so personal rather than mechanical or robotic? 00:06:39.459 --> 00:06:40.259 And what is beauty? 00:06:41.039 --> 00:06:47.000 And why does human love and consciousness seem like something more than just a biochemical reaction? 00:06:47.000 --> 00:06:49.660 And there we go, my four-point sermon. 00:06:49.959 --> 00:06:50.720 We can go home. 00:06:52.100 --> 00:06:55.199 But, you know, while I do personally find these arguments compelling, 00:06:55.519 --> 00:06:58.480 compelling signals indicating God's existence, 00:06:58.639 --> 00:07:02.879 I know that they don't definitively prove God, like, beyond all doubt. 00:07:03.560 --> 00:07:06.459 In fact, if we're talking about the Christian God, 00:07:06.860 --> 00:07:09.519 I'll be the first to admit that we can't prove this God 00:07:09.519 --> 00:07:12.480 because He is not a God that we can prove or disprove. 00:07:12.480 --> 00:07:15.439 If you tried to prove God at the very start, 00:07:15.540 --> 00:07:19.140 appealing to some more certain, more authoritative, more trustworthy, 00:07:19.400 --> 00:07:20.920 more reliable proof of God, 00:07:20.960 --> 00:07:23.840 you've already begun looking for something greater than God. 00:07:24.620 --> 00:07:28.640 And so from the start, you'd be trying to prove an inherently inferior being 00:07:28.640 --> 00:07:34.140 whose own word and revelation were not authoritative enough to verify His own existence. 00:07:34.400 --> 00:07:36.740 And again, this would not be the Christian God. 00:07:37.460 --> 00:07:39.759 So as circular as this may be, at the end of the day, 00:07:39.759 --> 00:07:45.839 I believe that there is a God because God has revealed Himself to us as self-evident. 00:07:46.539 --> 00:07:49.819 And there is no higher or more reliable authority 00:07:49.819 --> 00:07:54.379 than God's own testimony and communication concerning Himself. 00:07:55.439 --> 00:07:58.240 But now if you're here, I'm sure you don't buy that, right? 00:07:58.779 --> 00:07:59.959 Maybe you think I'm crazy. 00:08:00.360 --> 00:08:04.240 Maybe you think I'm deluded or just incredibly narrow-minded, right? 00:08:04.279 --> 00:08:07.659 And unable to see from any other perspective than my own Christian one 00:08:07.659 --> 00:08:09.099 to say something like this. 00:08:09.100 --> 00:08:12.320 And maybe your fair and logical question to me is, 00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:16.879 well, if God is self-evident, then why do so many people not believe in God? 00:08:17.340 --> 00:08:20.320 And why are we asking this question, is there a God? 00:08:21.360 --> 00:08:23.920 Well, that's the question that I really want to consider this morning. 00:08:24.020 --> 00:08:26.960 Why do we ask this question, is there a God? 00:08:27.720 --> 00:08:29.680 Have you ever given any thought to that? 00:08:29.920 --> 00:08:31.760 Like, why do we ask, is there a God? 00:08:31.759 --> 00:08:37.779 Now, the modern secular person might say it's because God is not self-evident, right? 00:08:38.059 --> 00:08:42.340 Because if He was, then everyone, right, everyone would believe in Him. 00:08:42.659 --> 00:08:45.740 But they don't, so He must not be self-evident. 00:08:46.500 --> 00:08:49.120 And that seems like pretty sound reasoning, right? 00:08:50.100 --> 00:08:57.259 But isn't it possible that something self-evident might still be denied and rejected as false, 00:08:57.259 --> 00:08:58.659 even if it was true? 00:08:59.700 --> 00:09:03.539 Like, is it truly self-evident that all people are created equal? 00:09:04.240 --> 00:09:04.580 Yes? 00:09:05.639 --> 00:09:10.039 Well, if so, then why weren't people treated equal on the southern plantations 00:09:10.039 --> 00:09:12.340 or in the Nazi internment camps? 00:09:13.340 --> 00:09:14.460 It is very possible. 00:09:14.819 --> 00:09:19.419 It is very possible for something to be self-evident and yet not believed. 00:09:19.419 --> 00:09:24.879 Whether people are blinded from seeing the truth as victims of some kind of evil Nazi propaganda 00:09:24.879 --> 00:09:30.319 or people can just deny self-evident truths out of their own wicked and deceitful motivations, 00:09:30.639 --> 00:09:30.819 right? 00:09:31.259 --> 00:09:35.719 Like so many of our early founding fathers who did believe that all people were created equal 00:09:35.719 --> 00:09:40.899 and yet they found ways to justify slavery because they loved money and power and comfort 00:09:40.899 --> 00:09:41.899 more than truth. 00:09:42.779 --> 00:09:48.039 So I want to question and I want to problematize this assumption that God's existence must not 00:09:48.039 --> 00:09:48.919 be self-evident. 00:09:49.819 --> 00:09:53.980 And I want to suggest that there are other explanations for why we ask this question, 00:09:54.579 --> 00:09:56.079 is there a God? 00:09:57.000 --> 00:10:01.599 Because, you know, for the majority of humanity throughout history, divine existence has been 00:10:01.599 --> 00:10:03.379 considered as self-evident. 00:10:03.839 --> 00:10:05.500 And the Christian scriptures would agree. 00:10:05.599 --> 00:10:08.419 Look at verses 19 and 20 of our Romans passage. 00:10:08.899 --> 00:10:13.299 Apostle Paul says what can be known about God is plain, like it's self-evident because God 00:10:13.299 --> 00:10:18.019 has made it plain to us and his divine qualities have been clearly seen and therefore we are 00:10:18.019 --> 00:10:19.639 without excuse. 00:10:20.539 --> 00:10:25.759 So Christians, along with a sizable majority of people throughout history, have considered 00:10:25.759 --> 00:10:28.620 God's existence to be self-evident. 00:10:29.519 --> 00:10:33.579 And of course, this doesn't make us right about the matter, but I do wonder if this should 00:10:33.579 --> 00:10:38.759 factor into how we talk about who should bear the burden of proof in this matter. 00:10:39.860 --> 00:10:43.460 You know, there's this one time, a long time ago, I'm not even sure if I was married yet, 00:10:43.460 --> 00:10:47.300 but I was interacting with my wife, Chelsea, and I wanted to test her. 00:10:48.259 --> 00:10:52.160 And I said, hey Chelsea, why do you believe in God? 00:10:53.780 --> 00:10:57.720 And I expected that she was going to give me a bunch of different reasons, and I planned 00:10:57.720 --> 00:10:59.139 to play devil's advocate, right? 00:10:59.220 --> 00:11:04.060 And to critique her and to use that moment to teach her all the stuff I learned in seminary. 00:11:04.059 --> 00:11:10.459 But to my surprise, she hit me with something that I didn't at all expect. 00:11:10.919 --> 00:11:12.559 And she totally stopped me in my tracks. 00:11:13.179 --> 00:11:15.679 So I'm like, hey Chelsea, why do you believe in God? 00:11:16.619 --> 00:11:20.139 And then she looked at me, annoyed, as you've often seen her look at me. 00:11:21.519 --> 00:11:26.179 She rolled her eyes, and she said, why not? 00:11:26.179 --> 00:11:32.239 And then she just went on carrying on with her own business, leaving me dazed and hemming 00:11:32.239 --> 00:11:33.959 and hawing all to myself. 00:11:35.259 --> 00:11:39.519 Now I share this story not just to give you a pretty representative window into my marriage, 00:11:40.059 --> 00:11:45.139 but to help us see that a big part of how we come at this question, is there a God, 00:11:45.179 --> 00:11:48.819 has to do with where we think the burden of proof lies. 00:11:49.479 --> 00:11:53.199 Like I tried to place the burden of proof on Chelsea to support why she believed in God, 00:11:53.259 --> 00:11:56.059 but then she flipped it back on me to make a case for why she shouldn't. 00:11:57.059 --> 00:12:01.639 And in the same way, I want us to consider, why are we even asking the question, is there 00:12:01.639 --> 00:12:02.000 a God? 00:12:02.059 --> 00:12:05.120 Why aren't we asking instead, is there not a God? 00:12:06.620 --> 00:12:11.500 Now this is not to say that is there a God is a bad question or a wrong question, but it 00:12:11.500 --> 00:12:16.879 is to note that it's a question that comes from a particular historical context and background. 00:12:17.579 --> 00:12:17.679 Right? 00:12:18.339 --> 00:12:23.179 Like did you know that in the Western world, atheism didn't really come onto the scene as a compelling 00:12:23.179 --> 00:12:26.739 like option until the late 1800s. 00:12:27.739 --> 00:12:32.699 So it's worth asking, as the philosopher Charles Taylor does in his massive book, A Secular 00:12:32.699 --> 00:12:38.500 Age, why was it virtually impossible not to believe in God and say 1500 in our Western 00:12:38.500 --> 00:12:39.039 society? 00:12:39.039 --> 00:12:39.559 Why? 00:12:39.819 --> 00:12:44.740 While in 2000, many of us find this not only easy, but even inescapable. 00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:48.240 Now that question is way above my pay grade. 00:12:48.439 --> 00:12:50.639 And even if I could answer it, we don't have time. 00:12:50.699 --> 00:12:54.779 But my point is, when we ask, is there a God rather than, is there not a God? 00:12:54.779 --> 00:13:01.539 It might actually reveal far more about us than it does about whether or not God exists. 00:13:02.539 --> 00:13:07.360 When we ask, is there a God, we display our own cultural and historical conditioning and 00:13:07.360 --> 00:13:12.379 situatedness and the background beliefs that come with being modern, secular people. 00:13:13.500 --> 00:13:17.819 Because see, according to the Christian account of world history, the first humans, Adam and 00:13:17.819 --> 00:13:22.199 Eve, especially before they began to doubt God's word, they would never have even thought 00:13:22.200 --> 00:13:24.560 to ask such a question as, is there a God? 00:13:25.420 --> 00:13:28.660 Even when Adam and Eve experienced God's divine absence, right? 00:13:28.759 --> 00:13:31.240 God came into the garden, then he went out of the garden. 00:13:31.379 --> 00:13:34.660 They experienced his divine absence, but they never doubted his existence. 00:13:35.580 --> 00:13:40.560 And then even after the fall of humanity, when we began to doubt God and his words, 00:13:41.440 --> 00:13:44.080 no one, no one doubted his existence. 00:13:45.080 --> 00:13:49.379 Even when they stopped going for walks with God in the garden, virtually all of the ancient 00:13:49.379 --> 00:13:52.140 world, even those who didn't worship the same God as Abraham. 00:13:52.200 --> 00:13:53.560 Moses and Adam. 00:13:54.200 --> 00:13:58.340 For them, doubting the divine just wasn't plausible in the ancient world. 00:13:59.220 --> 00:14:03.960 And even when they experienced long bouts of divine absence, right? 00:14:04.680 --> 00:14:09.840 They didn't doubt the divine, but they actually pined for the divine presence all the more. 00:14:10.900 --> 00:14:12.320 All the more, right? 00:14:13.420 --> 00:14:19.940 But here we are as modern Western people, and we hold the background belief that God isn't 00:14:19.940 --> 00:14:20.740 self-evident. 00:14:20.740 --> 00:14:26.080 That God's existence is up for debate, and that it's acceptable to doubt him. 00:14:26.700 --> 00:14:30.800 And probably our biggest obstacle to belief in God is the problem of evil and suffering, right? 00:14:31.160 --> 00:14:32.640 Like, how could God allow it? 00:14:32.640 --> 00:14:36.380 And why hasn't he given us an explanation for evil and suffering? 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:38.520 Because we moderns, right? 00:14:38.840 --> 00:14:44.240 Because we moderns are so confident that we can understand so much of the universe and how it works, 00:14:44.240 --> 00:14:48.419 it's hard for us to believe in a God that we can't fully grasp and explain. 00:14:48.860 --> 00:14:53.120 And so, like, if I can't think of a reason why God would allow pain and suffering, then 00:14:53.120 --> 00:14:56.039 there must not be a reason, and God must not exist. 00:14:57.240 --> 00:15:03.580 But for pre-modern people, who probably suffered, like, far worse than any of us, it was like, 00:15:03.580 --> 00:15:07.360 of course we can't understand everything that God allows to happen. 00:15:08.139 --> 00:15:11.560 And suffering actually drew them nearer to God than further. 00:15:12.740 --> 00:15:17.300 Because after all, if we have a God big enough to be mad at, because he's all, you know, he's all 00:15:17.300 --> 00:15:22.180 powerful and he's all wise, if we have a God that's big enough to be mad at, that he doesn't fix things, 00:15:23.100 --> 00:15:28.060 then we probably also have a God big enough to have some reasons why he doesn't fix things, 00:15:28.560 --> 00:15:32.560 reasons that we just might not yet know as finite creatures. 00:15:33.580 --> 00:15:37.300 So what I'm saying is, sure, we can ask, is there a God, but why do we ask? 00:15:37.960 --> 00:15:42.620 And might it be that we ask not so much because God's existence is clearly implausible, 00:15:42.720 --> 00:15:49.340 but because we live in an age that has suppressed the truth and made God's existence implausible? 00:15:50.960 --> 00:15:55.980 Now, I'm not saying that modern Western people are any worse than the people of any other time. 00:15:56.460 --> 00:16:01.160 But I do want to point out that we aren't as neutral as we like to think we are. 00:16:01.640 --> 00:16:03.480 And we do have blind spots. 00:16:04.180 --> 00:16:08.259 And our particular blind spot is that since Descartes, right, since the Enlightenment, 00:16:08.400 --> 00:16:14.340 we've been conditioned to pursue truth and certainty, not by faith in God who reveals things to us, 00:16:14.400 --> 00:16:15.080 but by doubt. 00:16:15.740 --> 00:16:16.220 Think about that. 00:16:16.259 --> 00:16:19.700 We've been conditioned to pursue certainty through the method of skepticism. 00:16:20.680 --> 00:16:23.900 We've been taught to doubt everything and doubt as much as you can. 00:16:23.900 --> 00:16:30.879 And at the point in which you cannot doubt anymore, then you finally arrived at certainty and truth. 00:16:30.879 --> 00:16:32.700 And that's what Descartes did, right? 00:16:32.779 --> 00:16:35.240 He doubted and doubted and doubted until he realized, 00:16:35.600 --> 00:16:37.700 I think, therefore, I am. 00:16:38.340 --> 00:16:41.399 Or in other words, I can know that I exist because I'm thinking. 00:16:42.039 --> 00:16:44.439 And I could not think unless I existed. 00:16:45.159 --> 00:16:47.759 So I am certain that I exist because I am thinking. 00:16:48.559 --> 00:16:51.379 Descartes believed his doubting led to certain knowledge. 00:16:51.379 --> 00:16:56.139 And we've been influenced by this method ever since, using skepticism and doubt to discern 00:16:56.139 --> 00:16:57.159 and discover the truth. 00:16:57.259 --> 00:17:00.500 But the thing is, you know, Descartes, honestly, he could have doubted some more. 00:17:01.439 --> 00:17:02.240 He could have. 00:17:03.000 --> 00:17:04.660 We can always keep doubting if we want to. 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:07.119 There are no limits to skepticism. 00:17:07.980 --> 00:17:09.440 Sure, I believe my wife loves me. 00:17:09.440 --> 00:17:13.299 I believe she's a mortgage loan processor and a real estate agent. 00:17:14.100 --> 00:17:16.980 But how do I really know that she's not a Chinese spy? 00:17:18.600 --> 00:17:20.019 Plotting my demise. 00:17:21.840 --> 00:17:24.360 I could always doubt if I wanted to. 00:17:26.519 --> 00:17:28.140 But none of us lives that way, right? 00:17:29.019 --> 00:17:33.940 None of us lives that way as absolute skeptics because it's impossible to live that way. 00:17:34.019 --> 00:17:38.680 When you sat down in these pews today, you didn't research the tree that this wood came from. 00:17:38.680 --> 00:17:41.019 You didn't try to discern how old the wood was. 00:17:41.060 --> 00:17:45.500 Or you didn't measure the thickness of the pew and calculate the physics relative to your body weight. 00:17:45.560 --> 00:17:47.200 No, you just sat in it, all right? 00:17:47.400 --> 00:17:49.820 You trusted the pew would support you. 00:17:51.100 --> 00:17:54.100 None of us can live a life of radical doubt and skepticism. 00:17:55.140 --> 00:17:59.440 For as C.S. Lewis would caution us, the one who sees through everything sees nothing. 00:18:00.200 --> 00:18:02.779 We all live with implicit faith. 00:18:03.299 --> 00:18:06.080 And even when we doubt, it takes faith to doubt. 00:18:06.079 --> 00:18:11.839 You know, we tend to often think of faith as a blind leap and of doubt as honest. 00:18:11.960 --> 00:18:14.379 But there is such a thing as a reasonable faith. 00:18:14.819 --> 00:18:19.199 And there is also such a thing as blind, irrational, and dishonest doubt. 00:18:20.480 --> 00:18:24.319 Whatever we believe to be true or whoever we believe to be telling the truth, 00:18:24.539 --> 00:18:27.119 we always believe with a measure of faith. 00:18:27.159 --> 00:18:30.899 Or to put it differently, we believe things to be true by some measure of trust. 00:18:30.900 --> 00:18:30.940 Trust. 00:18:31.600 --> 00:18:35.540 All knowledge of anything requires trust. 00:18:36.320 --> 00:18:39.180 Every time we push on the brakes in our cars, right? 00:18:39.200 --> 00:18:41.120 We don't just know that the car is going to stop. 00:18:41.380 --> 00:18:44.120 We trust that the car is going to stop. 00:18:44.960 --> 00:18:48.660 Or as the Scottish philosopher David Hume would famously remind us, 00:18:48.720 --> 00:18:51.080 when we anticipate the sun rising once again tomorrow, 00:18:51.460 --> 00:18:55.759 as it has ever since we've ever known a bazillion times, 00:18:55.759 --> 00:19:01.920 because we still can only trust and believe by faith that it's going to rise again tomorrow. 00:19:03.019 --> 00:19:06.500 Everything we say we know, we actually trust that we know it. 00:19:06.539 --> 00:19:09.400 We know by at least a small measure of faith. 00:19:09.700 --> 00:19:11.879 So when it comes to the question of is there a God, 00:19:12.559 --> 00:19:14.579 whether we answer yes or no or maybe, 00:19:14.920 --> 00:19:17.500 every answer, every answer requires faith. 00:19:17.819 --> 00:19:22.819 Prior assumptions and commitments that we do not doubt but also cannot prove. 00:19:22.819 --> 00:19:27.939 Now you may be wondering, if all knowledge then requires a measure of faith, 00:19:28.359 --> 00:19:32.159 and if none of us are as neutral or unbiased as we like to think, 00:19:32.679 --> 00:19:37.679 am I saying that we're all just stuck in this chaotic and subjective world of competing, 00:19:37.839 --> 00:19:39.500 he said, she said, they said, we said? 00:19:40.279 --> 00:19:41.399 Well, no, let me be very clear. 00:19:41.500 --> 00:19:45.299 It is because I believe, our text this morning, Genesis chapter 1, 00:19:45.299 --> 00:19:48.539 that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 00:19:48.539 --> 00:19:55.339 It is because of my faith in this God that I also believe in objective and absolute truth, 00:19:55.420 --> 00:19:57.119 that all truth is God's truth, 00:19:57.639 --> 00:20:01.220 and that therefore all truth is also public truth, universal truth, 00:20:01.299 --> 00:20:05.019 because this world belongs to a God who's holding it all together. 00:20:06.159 --> 00:20:08.539 And even though we are fallible and finite, 00:20:08.659 --> 00:20:12.319 I also believe we can know objective, public, and universal truths 00:20:12.319 --> 00:20:15.279 because God made us in His image and in His likeness. 00:20:15.359 --> 00:20:18.720 And He wants us to know Him, and He wants us to know ourselves, 00:20:18.859 --> 00:20:21.379 and He wants us to know the rest of His creation. 00:20:22.539 --> 00:20:24.899 But you see, it is precisely because of my faith 00:20:24.899 --> 00:20:28.079 that I can account for an objective world. 00:20:28.819 --> 00:20:33.200 In fact, you know, even when Francis Bacon was articulating the scientific method, 00:20:33.259 --> 00:20:34.779 he wasn't doing that in a vacuum. 00:20:35.179 --> 00:20:36.799 He was a committed Christian. 00:20:36.799 --> 00:20:41.220 He developed a scientific method based on his faith in a God 00:20:41.220 --> 00:20:43.759 who ordered and sustains the universe. 00:20:45.359 --> 00:20:49.119 So you see, Christians, we very much affirm truth as objective, 00:20:49.279 --> 00:20:53.940 even as we also recognize that there's always a subjective measure of faith and trust involved, 00:20:54.159 --> 00:20:57.180 as with everything we claim to know and live by. 00:20:58.059 --> 00:21:00.700 When God spoke to Adam and Eve in person, 00:21:01.639 --> 00:21:04.779 telling them how to live and what to do and what not to do, 00:21:04.779 --> 00:21:10.539 they were to live and they were to obey by faith and trust in God's Word to them. 00:21:10.639 --> 00:21:14.379 Just because they saw God face to face didn't mean that they didn't have to have faith in Him. 00:21:14.460 --> 00:21:17.759 But see, their faith, it wasn't a huge blind leap of faith. 00:21:18.019 --> 00:21:21.920 It was simply the natural way of relating to their Maker. 00:21:22.740 --> 00:21:27.059 Just like a newborn implicitly trusts and has faith in her mother 00:21:27.059 --> 00:21:29.700 and trusts her mother with her whole life. 00:21:30.619 --> 00:21:32.960 We were always meant to have faith, 00:21:32.960 --> 00:21:35.740 even from the beginning when we walked with God. 00:21:36.259 --> 00:21:37.380 A reasonable faith. 00:21:37.500 --> 00:21:40.700 A faith that comports with logic and our sensory experiences 00:21:40.700 --> 00:21:45.140 and our most basic intuitions about God and ourselves and this world. 00:21:45.500 --> 00:21:49.100 And not just a faith, but a hope and a love and an affection too. 00:21:49.980 --> 00:21:52.860 See, contrary to the theory that modern secular people 00:21:52.860 --> 00:21:57.160 can just subtract faith and religion and emotion and dogma 00:21:57.160 --> 00:22:02.039 in order to finally see the world clearly and rationally and truly as it really is, 00:22:02.039 --> 00:22:05.980 again, Charles Taylor, he's formerly a philosopher at Oxford, 00:22:06.139 --> 00:22:07.059 now he's at Northwestern. 00:22:07.099 --> 00:22:10.659 He points out that secularism is not the absence of belief, 00:22:11.420 --> 00:22:15.519 but just another set of beliefs with motives of its own. 00:22:16.180 --> 00:22:18.779 Oftentimes that are unexamined and at the end of the day, 00:22:18.859 --> 00:22:23.319 just as unprovable as the beliefs and motives of religious people. 00:22:24.899 --> 00:22:27.180 So you see, a big reason why we are asking, 00:22:27.180 --> 00:22:28.440 is there a God today, 00:22:29.180 --> 00:22:33.140 is because we are modern people who've been conditioned to pursue truth 00:22:33.140 --> 00:22:35.019 through doubt and skepticism. 00:22:35.620 --> 00:22:37.360 But if we're honest with ourselves, 00:22:37.779 --> 00:22:40.560 even when we doubt, it takes faith to do so. 00:22:41.259 --> 00:22:45.279 We only doubt because of something else that we do believe by faith. 00:22:46.140 --> 00:22:48.480 So I'm not saying that doubt is necessarily wrong. 00:22:48.620 --> 00:22:51.000 Doubt is even warranted by the Christian scriptures. 00:22:51.180 --> 00:22:53.620 Adam and Eve should have doubted the serpent 00:22:53.619 --> 00:22:55.819 instead of doubting God in the garden. 00:22:56.859 --> 00:22:58.779 And as finite and fallible human beings 00:22:58.779 --> 00:23:01.119 living in a broken world amongst broken people, 00:23:01.199 --> 00:23:05.019 we have great reason to doubt a whole lot of stuff in this world. 00:23:05.239 --> 00:23:08.159 And maybe that's why you doubt God's existence as well. 00:23:08.419 --> 00:23:11.179 Because you rightfully doubt religious people 00:23:11.179 --> 00:23:13.559 and religious institutions who have hurt you or others 00:23:13.559 --> 00:23:15.319 or who've manipulated you or others 00:23:15.319 --> 00:23:17.359 or who've taken advantage of your trust. 00:23:17.759 --> 00:23:20.219 Your doubt, I want you to hear from me, is warranted. 00:23:20.220 --> 00:23:23.339 But as important as your doubt is, 00:23:24.259 --> 00:23:27.839 we also need to consider where our faith lies as well. 00:23:28.880 --> 00:23:33.779 Because we were always meant to doubt out of and by faith. 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:36.360 Like contrary to Descartes who said, 00:23:36.460 --> 00:23:38.220 we must doubt in order to know truly, 00:23:38.600 --> 00:23:43.079 Augustine said, we need to believe in order to know truly. 00:23:44.360 --> 00:23:46.480 See, Adam and Eve should have doubted the serpent 00:23:46.480 --> 00:23:50.579 because of their faith in God's word to them. 00:23:51.279 --> 00:23:54.339 God's word that spoke creation into being 00:23:54.339 --> 00:23:58.660 and brought order into chaos and light into darkness. 00:23:58.779 --> 00:24:00.220 Look at Genesis chapter 1 verse 3. 00:24:00.360 --> 00:24:02.480 God's word here is constituting reality. 00:24:03.360 --> 00:24:07.500 And God said, let there be light and there was light. 00:24:09.180 --> 00:24:11.099 So you see, it was by faith. 00:24:11.579 --> 00:24:14.819 It was by faith in that powerful, authoritative word of God 00:24:14.819 --> 00:24:18.460 speaking into creation that we were always meant to live. 00:24:18.519 --> 00:24:21.299 It was by that light that God spoke into the world 00:24:21.299 --> 00:24:26.899 that we were meant to see and behold all of reality as it truly is. 00:24:27.839 --> 00:24:29.299 Again, as C.S. Lewis would put it, 00:24:29.639 --> 00:24:33.240 I believe in Christianity as I believe the sun has risen. 00:24:33.399 --> 00:24:34.779 Not only because I see it, 00:24:35.259 --> 00:24:38.359 but because by it, I see everything else. 00:24:38.359 --> 00:24:42.939 And therefore, the reason we ask questions like, 00:24:43.059 --> 00:24:43.779 is there a God, 00:24:44.539 --> 00:24:47.240 is because we stop seeing by God's light. 00:24:47.740 --> 00:24:51.579 We stop trusting in God's reality constituting word 00:24:51.579 --> 00:24:53.919 and we've chosen darkness instead. 00:24:54.039 --> 00:24:56.579 To use Paul's language here in Romans chapter 1 verse 19, 00:24:56.839 --> 00:24:58.859 even though God made himself known to us plainly, 00:24:58.939 --> 00:25:01.879 we wickedly suppress the truth in our unrighteousness. 00:25:02.279 --> 00:25:02.759 Verse 21, 00:25:02.759 --> 00:25:03.779 And although we knew God, 00:25:03.859 --> 00:25:06.559 we refused to give him glory and thanks. 00:25:06.640 --> 00:25:08.680 And thus our very thinking and reasoning 00:25:08.680 --> 00:25:11.240 and understanding of the world became futile. 00:25:11.559 --> 00:25:13.759 And our hearts were darkened to the point 00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:15.779 of adoring things other than God, 00:25:15.879 --> 00:25:17.379 things less than God, 00:25:17.480 --> 00:25:18.220 less glorious, 00:25:18.539 --> 00:25:19.240 less wonderful, 00:25:19.539 --> 00:25:20.180 less good. 00:25:21.460 --> 00:25:22.160 Verse 22, 00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:24.079 Although we claim to be wise, 00:25:24.160 --> 00:25:25.140 we became fools 00:25:25.140 --> 00:25:27.779 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God 00:25:27.779 --> 00:25:30.660 for images of created things. 00:25:30.660 --> 00:25:31.840 In verse 25, 00:25:31.920 --> 00:25:33.920 we exchanged the truth about God for a lie 00:25:33.920 --> 00:25:36.680 and worshiped and served created things 00:25:36.680 --> 00:25:38.740 rather than through creator. 00:25:38.840 --> 00:25:40.279 We totally got it backwards. 00:25:40.420 --> 00:25:41.500 We totally mixed it up. 00:25:42.600 --> 00:25:42.840 And you see, 00:25:42.960 --> 00:25:44.220 this is the Christian account 00:25:44.220 --> 00:25:46.080 for why we ask the question, 00:25:46.759 --> 00:25:47.740 is there a God? 00:25:47.779 --> 00:25:50.019 It's because of this thing called sin. 00:25:51.160 --> 00:25:53.120 It's not just a problem of the head, 00:25:53.200 --> 00:25:53.940 but of the heart 00:25:53.940 --> 00:25:55.840 and of the hands as well. 00:25:56.820 --> 00:25:58.640 And I'm not condemning you as a sinner 00:25:58.640 --> 00:26:00.540 for being genuinely curious 00:26:00.539 --> 00:26:02.059 and asking the question, 00:26:02.220 --> 00:26:02.799 is there a God? 00:26:02.819 --> 00:26:03.879 I'm quite glad that people 00:26:03.879 --> 00:26:04.920 are asking this question, 00:26:05.200 --> 00:26:06.339 but what I do want to make clear 00:26:06.339 --> 00:26:09.019 is that sin is the reason 00:26:09.019 --> 00:26:11.039 why this question has come about 00:26:11.039 --> 00:26:13.299 as plausible in the first place. 00:26:14.339 --> 00:26:16.139 A sinful suppression of the truth 00:26:16.139 --> 00:26:17.819 and an exchanging of the truth 00:26:17.819 --> 00:26:18.899 about God for a lie, 00:26:19.279 --> 00:26:20.319 elevating the creature 00:26:20.319 --> 00:26:21.599 above the creator. 00:26:23.039 --> 00:26:24.099 And while it is possible 00:26:24.099 --> 00:26:25.039 to ask this question 00:26:25.039 --> 00:26:26.379 with an honest heart, 00:26:26.380 --> 00:26:28.140 and with a true desire 00:26:28.140 --> 00:26:29.000 to seek God, 00:26:29.640 --> 00:26:30.620 it's also possible 00:26:30.620 --> 00:26:31.580 to ask this question, 00:26:31.700 --> 00:26:32.440 is there a God 00:26:32.440 --> 00:26:34.200 with a darkened heart? 00:26:34.700 --> 00:26:35.320 A darkened heart 00:26:35.320 --> 00:26:36.160 that's already determined 00:26:36.160 --> 00:26:38.000 what it is willing to believe 00:26:38.000 --> 00:26:39.260 apart from God. 00:26:39.320 --> 00:26:40.000 A darkened heart 00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:41.380 that's faithfully committed 00:26:41.380 --> 00:26:42.860 to a radical skepticism 00:26:42.860 --> 00:26:43.840 and doubt 00:26:43.840 --> 00:26:44.780 that excludes 00:26:44.780 --> 00:26:45.560 and suppresses 00:26:45.560 --> 00:26:46.720 the truth about God 00:26:46.720 --> 00:26:48.260 from the very start. 00:26:49.260 --> 00:26:50.380 And if that's you this morning, 00:26:50.420 --> 00:26:51.060 I don't have words 00:26:51.060 --> 00:26:52.320 of condemnation for you, 00:26:52.380 --> 00:26:53.220 but I do have words 00:26:53.220 --> 00:26:55.120 of warning and invitation. 00:26:56.579 --> 00:26:57.559 Like, might it be 00:26:57.559 --> 00:26:59.880 that it's not for intellectual 00:26:59.880 --> 00:27:01.559 and rational reasons 00:27:01.559 --> 00:27:02.200 that you struggle 00:27:02.200 --> 00:27:03.140 to believe in God? 00:27:04.579 --> 00:27:05.319 Might it be 00:27:05.319 --> 00:27:06.019 that you are bound 00:27:06.019 --> 00:27:06.660 to desires 00:27:06.660 --> 00:27:08.259 that you already know 00:27:08.259 --> 00:27:10.440 are not of God? 00:27:11.920 --> 00:27:12.900 And it's interesting to me 00:27:12.900 --> 00:27:13.640 how Paul mentions 00:27:13.640 --> 00:27:14.839 one kind of powerful desire 00:27:14.839 --> 00:27:15.880 here in verse 24. 00:27:16.740 --> 00:27:18.380 Therefore, God gave them up, 00:27:18.900 --> 00:27:19.940 God gave them over 00:27:19.940 --> 00:27:21.059 in the sinful desires 00:27:21.059 --> 00:27:21.819 of their hearts 00:27:21.819 --> 00:27:23.480 to sexual impurity 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:24.819 for the degrading 00:27:24.819 --> 00:27:25.460 of their bodies 00:27:25.460 --> 00:27:26.740 with one another. 00:27:28.539 --> 00:27:29.759 He talks about sex 00:27:29.759 --> 00:27:30.720 right in the middle 00:27:30.720 --> 00:27:31.279 of all that. 00:27:33.099 --> 00:27:33.519 And you know, 00:27:33.679 --> 00:27:34.419 the atheist, 00:27:34.619 --> 00:27:35.480 the famous atheist 00:27:35.480 --> 00:27:36.039 and author 00:27:36.039 --> 00:27:36.879 and philosopher 00:27:36.879 --> 00:27:37.919 Aldous Huxley, 00:27:38.579 --> 00:27:39.740 he was honest enough 00:27:39.740 --> 00:27:40.179 to admit 00:27:40.179 --> 00:27:41.559 that this was the reason 00:27:41.559 --> 00:27:42.339 why he didn't want 00:27:42.339 --> 00:27:43.639 to believe in God. 00:27:44.240 --> 00:27:45.279 Because it would interfere 00:27:45.279 --> 00:27:46.740 with his sexual freedom 00:27:46.740 --> 00:27:47.339 and condemn 00:27:47.339 --> 00:27:47.939 what he called 00:27:47.939 --> 00:27:49.519 his erotic revolt. 00:27:49.519 --> 00:27:51.859 You have another 00:27:51.859 --> 00:27:52.839 famous atheist, 00:27:52.960 --> 00:27:53.579 Thomas Nagel. 00:27:53.740 --> 00:27:54.819 He's professor of law 00:27:54.819 --> 00:27:56.220 and philosophy at NYU. 00:27:56.680 --> 00:27:57.859 And he too is honest 00:27:57.859 --> 00:27:58.639 enough to admit 00:27:58.639 --> 00:27:59.339 that he doesn't just 00:27:59.339 --> 00:28:00.639 not believe in God, 00:28:01.059 --> 00:28:03.359 but he doesn't want there 00:28:03.359 --> 00:28:04.319 to be a God. 00:28:04.940 --> 00:28:06.000 And he describes himself 00:28:06.000 --> 00:28:07.160 as having, quote, 00:28:07.319 --> 00:28:09.720 a cosmic authority problem. 00:28:10.900 --> 00:28:12.019 See, Huxley and Nagel, 00:28:12.139 --> 00:28:12.839 they recognize 00:28:12.839 --> 00:28:13.960 and they admit 00:28:13.960 --> 00:28:14.700 that their hearts 00:28:14.700 --> 00:28:15.359 and their hands 00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:16.480 are very much at play 00:28:16.480 --> 00:28:17.859 along with their heads 00:28:17.859 --> 00:28:20.219 in their denial of God. 00:28:21.699 --> 00:28:22.419 And this morning, 00:28:22.459 --> 00:28:23.099 I just want to ask, 00:28:23.359 --> 00:28:24.519 might that describe you 00:28:24.519 --> 00:28:25.319 as well? 00:28:26.379 --> 00:28:27.399 And this is not just 00:28:27.399 --> 00:28:28.299 a question aimed 00:28:28.299 --> 00:28:29.139 at the atheists 00:28:29.139 --> 00:28:30.039 and the agnostics 00:28:30.039 --> 00:28:30.459 in the room, 00:28:30.500 --> 00:28:31.299 but even those of us 00:28:31.299 --> 00:28:32.879 who identify as Christians, 00:28:32.979 --> 00:28:33.859 for all of us 00:28:33.859 --> 00:28:36.099 who struggle with unbelief 00:28:36.099 --> 00:28:37.079 and a lack of faith 00:28:37.079 --> 00:28:38.099 and trust in God 00:28:38.099 --> 00:28:38.979 and in his words 00:28:38.979 --> 00:28:39.919 and in his ways, 00:28:40.000 --> 00:28:40.740 don't we all have 00:28:40.740 --> 00:28:42.519 a cosmic authority problem 00:28:42.519 --> 00:28:44.259 that's more than just 00:28:44.259 --> 00:28:45.339 a matter of our intellect 00:28:45.339 --> 00:28:46.279 and what's going on 00:28:46.279 --> 00:28:47.119 in our heads? 00:28:48.299 --> 00:28:49.279 Like, I know 00:28:49.279 --> 00:28:50.220 it's way more comfortable 00:28:50.220 --> 00:28:51.460 to argue these points 00:28:51.460 --> 00:28:54.039 and just have it all 00:28:54.039 --> 00:28:54.740 up here in our minds 00:28:54.740 --> 00:28:55.339 in some kind of 00:28:55.339 --> 00:28:56.399 abstract way, 00:28:56.720 --> 00:28:57.519 like it's just some kind 00:28:57.519 --> 00:28:59.339 of intellectual exercise. 00:29:00.480 --> 00:29:01.779 But God didn't make us 00:29:01.779 --> 00:29:03.200 as brains on sticks. 00:29:04.119 --> 00:29:05.000 We are people 00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:06.200 made in his image 00:29:06.200 --> 00:29:07.240 meant to engage 00:29:07.240 --> 00:29:07.799 the world 00:29:07.799 --> 00:29:08.440 with our head, 00:29:08.700 --> 00:29:09.119 our hearts, 00:29:09.240 --> 00:29:10.180 and our hands. 00:29:11.539 --> 00:29:12.379 And the implications 00:29:12.379 --> 00:29:13.059 of this, I get, 00:29:13.139 --> 00:29:13.980 can be terrifying 00:29:13.980 --> 00:29:15.160 to reckon with, right? 00:29:15.160 --> 00:29:16.180 That this, 00:29:16.600 --> 00:29:17.560 is there a God question 00:29:17.560 --> 00:29:18.259 is something more 00:29:18.259 --> 00:29:19.980 than a philosophical debate 00:29:19.980 --> 00:29:20.759 over what our heads 00:29:20.759 --> 00:29:21.340 ought to think, 00:29:22.040 --> 00:29:23.320 but it has major implications 00:29:23.320 --> 00:29:24.180 for what our hearts 00:29:24.180 --> 00:29:25.500 are supposed to love, 00:29:26.300 --> 00:29:27.080 what our hands 00:29:27.080 --> 00:29:28.200 are supposed to do. 00:29:28.460 --> 00:29:29.220 Like, this could change 00:29:29.220 --> 00:29:30.560 everything for us, 00:29:30.680 --> 00:29:31.940 and that's why many of us 00:29:31.940 --> 00:29:32.860 don't want to be confronted 00:29:32.860 --> 00:29:34.080 with God's truth. 00:29:35.380 --> 00:29:36.160 But at the same time, 00:29:36.200 --> 00:29:36.840 don't we all want 00:29:36.840 --> 00:29:37.660 the kind of rich 00:29:37.660 --> 00:29:38.759 and whole 00:29:38.759 --> 00:29:40.160 and coherent life 00:29:40.160 --> 00:29:41.180 that we might have 00:29:41.180 --> 00:29:42.500 if we accept 00:29:42.500 --> 00:29:43.759 the truth about the world, 00:29:43.759 --> 00:29:45.099 regardless of what it 00:29:45.099 --> 00:29:46.379 might cost us. 00:29:47.160 --> 00:29:48.299 A head, heart, 00:29:48.559 --> 00:29:50.379 and hands life 00:29:50.379 --> 00:29:51.700 aligned, right, 00:29:51.799 --> 00:29:52.420 with the truest 00:29:52.420 --> 00:29:53.879 possible story 00:29:53.879 --> 00:29:54.480 of the world. 00:29:55.220 --> 00:29:56.140 And not just the truest 00:29:56.140 --> 00:29:56.700 story of the world, 00:29:56.759 --> 00:29:57.599 but the most beautiful 00:29:57.599 --> 00:29:58.839 story of the world 00:29:58.839 --> 00:30:00.160 about this loving God 00:30:00.160 --> 00:30:00.900 who came 00:30:00.900 --> 00:30:01.960 to save the world. 00:30:03.039 --> 00:30:04.160 According to our final text 00:30:04.160 --> 00:30:04.720 that we haven't yet 00:30:04.720 --> 00:30:05.299 touched today 00:30:05.299 --> 00:30:06.740 from John's Gospel, 00:30:07.579 --> 00:30:08.119 the good news 00:30:08.119 --> 00:30:08.720 of Christianity 00:30:08.720 --> 00:30:09.920 is that yes, 00:30:10.000 --> 00:30:10.740 there is a God 00:30:10.740 --> 00:30:11.920 who made us 00:30:11.920 --> 00:30:12.900 and who is light. 00:30:13.740 --> 00:30:14.680 And even when we chose 00:30:14.680 --> 00:30:15.620 darkness again 00:30:15.620 --> 00:30:16.480 and again and again 00:30:16.480 --> 00:30:17.220 throughout our lives 00:30:17.220 --> 00:30:18.640 and throughout human history, 00:30:18.799 --> 00:30:19.620 God sent His Word 00:30:19.620 --> 00:30:20.259 and light back 00:30:20.259 --> 00:30:20.779 into the world 00:30:20.779 --> 00:30:21.460 once again, 00:30:21.519 --> 00:30:22.140 even knowing 00:30:22.140 --> 00:30:23.579 that His light 00:30:23.579 --> 00:30:24.180 and His Word 00:30:24.180 --> 00:30:25.299 would be rejected again. 00:30:26.180 --> 00:30:27.099 But He still sent Him 00:30:27.099 --> 00:30:27.740 with the intention 00:30:27.740 --> 00:30:29.200 of drawing His wayward children 00:30:29.200 --> 00:30:30.859 back into His family. 00:30:31.700 --> 00:30:32.400 And this light, 00:30:32.519 --> 00:30:33.339 this Word that He sent 00:30:33.339 --> 00:30:33.980 was none other 00:30:33.980 --> 00:30:34.819 than His Son, 00:30:35.140 --> 00:30:35.720 Jesus Christ, 00:30:35.799 --> 00:30:37.140 the fullest revelation, 00:30:37.140 --> 00:30:38.180 the fullest proof 00:30:38.180 --> 00:30:38.759 of God 00:30:38.759 --> 00:30:39.680 and His glory 00:30:39.680 --> 00:30:41.400 right here in the flesh, 00:30:41.539 --> 00:30:42.460 dwelling amongst us, 00:30:42.680 --> 00:30:43.500 not just full of truth 00:30:43.500 --> 00:30:45.160 but also full of grace. 00:30:46.140 --> 00:30:47.319 For although we had 00:30:47.319 --> 00:30:48.220 the audacity 00:30:48.220 --> 00:30:49.920 to exchange the truth 00:30:49.920 --> 00:30:50.539 about God 00:30:50.539 --> 00:30:51.379 for a lie 00:30:51.379 --> 00:30:52.660 and to substitute 00:30:52.660 --> 00:30:54.160 our creaturely selves 00:30:54.160 --> 00:30:55.059 as gods 00:30:55.059 --> 00:30:55.700 into that high 00:30:55.700 --> 00:30:56.500 and holy place 00:30:56.500 --> 00:30:57.160 of glory 00:30:57.160 --> 00:30:59.019 only reserved for God, 00:31:00.000 --> 00:31:00.359 Jesus, 00:31:01.140 --> 00:31:01.920 the Son of God, 00:31:02.000 --> 00:31:03.440 He had the compassion 00:31:03.440 --> 00:31:05.420 to exchange His blood 00:31:05.420 --> 00:31:06.099 for our sin 00:31:06.099 --> 00:31:07.699 and to substitute 00:31:07.699 --> 00:31:08.980 His creator self 00:31:08.980 --> 00:31:10.319 as a man 00:31:10.319 --> 00:31:11.619 on a cursed cross 00:31:11.619 --> 00:31:12.599 of judgment 00:31:12.599 --> 00:31:14.159 reserved for sinners 00:31:14.159 --> 00:31:15.099 like us. 00:31:16.299 --> 00:31:16.719 Now I know 00:31:16.719 --> 00:31:18.039 that I haven't proved 00:31:18.039 --> 00:31:19.199 God to you this morning 00:31:19.199 --> 00:31:20.879 but to summarize 00:31:20.879 --> 00:31:21.799 what I've tried 00:31:21.799 --> 00:31:22.699 to present to you 00:31:22.699 --> 00:31:23.779 more than just reasons 00:31:23.779 --> 00:31:24.899 and arguments 00:31:24.899 --> 00:31:26.219 for God's existence 00:31:26.219 --> 00:31:27.579 is a narrative. 00:31:28.279 --> 00:31:28.899 A narrative 00:31:28.899 --> 00:31:29.879 that assumes 00:31:29.879 --> 00:31:31.240 that the God revealed 00:31:31.240 --> 00:31:32.059 to us in Christ 00:31:32.059 --> 00:31:32.879 is real 00:31:32.880 --> 00:31:34.200 and that we all 00:31:34.200 --> 00:31:35.540 implicitly know 00:31:35.540 --> 00:31:36.400 of this God. 00:31:37.160 --> 00:31:38.260 And not only that 00:31:38.260 --> 00:31:39.100 but I've tried to present you 00:31:39.100 --> 00:31:39.540 with a narrative 00:31:39.540 --> 00:31:40.700 that accounts for why 00:31:40.700 --> 00:31:42.260 we find it so hard 00:31:42.260 --> 00:31:43.360 to believe in God 00:31:43.360 --> 00:31:44.160 in the first place. 00:31:44.280 --> 00:31:45.400 We've wandered 00:31:45.400 --> 00:31:46.700 as the scriptures say. 00:31:46.780 --> 00:31:47.400 We've wandered away 00:31:47.400 --> 00:31:47.980 from His light 00:31:47.980 --> 00:31:48.860 and we don't see 00:31:48.860 --> 00:31:49.860 as we ought. 00:31:51.040 --> 00:31:52.360 Now you may or may not 00:31:52.360 --> 00:31:53.080 agree with me 00:31:53.080 --> 00:31:54.300 that this narrative 00:31:54.300 --> 00:31:56.540 is a plausible explanation 00:31:56.540 --> 00:31:57.640 of God's existence 00:31:57.640 --> 00:32:00.440 or of human unbelief 00:32:00.440 --> 00:32:02.700 but I hope 00:32:02.700 --> 00:32:03.120 that you could 00:32:03.120 --> 00:32:04.440 at least take some steps 00:32:04.440 --> 00:32:05.360 toward agreeing with me 00:32:05.360 --> 00:32:06.559 that this story 00:32:06.559 --> 00:32:08.340 of the Son of God 00:32:08.340 --> 00:32:10.779 pursuing wayward brothers 00:32:10.779 --> 00:32:11.620 and sisters 00:32:11.620 --> 00:32:13.039 and bringing them back home 00:32:13.039 --> 00:32:13.900 to His Father 00:32:13.900 --> 00:32:14.920 all at His own 00:32:14.920 --> 00:32:16.000 costly expense 00:32:16.000 --> 00:32:16.680 I hope you could agree 00:32:16.680 --> 00:32:16.900 with me 00:32:16.900 --> 00:32:18.920 that that is a beautiful story. 00:32:19.640 --> 00:32:21.420 A story unlike any other. 00:32:22.860 --> 00:32:23.519 And don't you want 00:32:23.519 --> 00:32:24.000 to believe 00:32:24.000 --> 00:32:25.660 that this is the God 00:32:25.660 --> 00:32:26.680 who made 00:32:26.680 --> 00:32:27.420 and sustains 00:32:27.420 --> 00:32:28.140 the world 00:32:28.140 --> 00:32:28.920 and who will one day 00:32:28.920 --> 00:32:29.980 save the world 00:32:29.980 --> 00:32:31.120 from itself. 00:32:32.440 --> 00:32:33.319 Jesus Christ 00:32:33.319 --> 00:32:35.160 come to dwell with us 00:32:35.160 --> 00:32:36.500 full of grace 00:32:36.500 --> 00:32:37.559 and truth. 00:32:38.700 --> 00:32:39.360 Will you pray with me? 00:32:44.240 --> 00:32:45.140 God I just pray 00:32:45.140 --> 00:32:45.860 that you would give us 00:32:45.860 --> 00:32:46.680 eyes to see 00:32:46.680 --> 00:32:48.380 what you have made 00:32:48.380 --> 00:32:49.299 self-evident 00:32:49.299 --> 00:32:52.019 and that we would not only 00:32:52.019 --> 00:32:53.019 encounter the truth 00:32:53.019 --> 00:32:54.200 but the way 00:32:54.200 --> 00:32:54.900 and the life 00:32:54.900 --> 00:32:55.880 of Jesus. 00:32:58.059 --> 00:32:59.039 Show us the beauty 00:32:59.039 --> 00:32:59.759 of the story 00:32:59.759 --> 00:33:00.420 that you've written 00:33:00.420 --> 00:33:02.259 and give us a longing 00:33:02.259 --> 00:33:04.039 to align ourselves 00:33:04.039 --> 00:33:04.899 with your ways 00:33:04.899 --> 00:33:05.700 and your story 00:33:05.700 --> 00:33:06.899 to know you 00:33:06.899 --> 00:33:07.839 as the God of love 00:33:07.839 --> 00:33:09.579 who sent your Son 00:33:09.579 --> 00:33:11.220 to save us 00:33:11.220 --> 00:33:13.279 even through his death. 00:33:15.180 --> 00:33:16.559 God help our unbelief. 00:33:17.379 --> 00:33:18.299 Help our unbelief 00:33:18.299 --> 00:33:19.619 I pray in Jesus' name. 00:33:20.379 --> 00:33:20.680 Amen. 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:20.799 Amen. 00:33:21.559 --> 00:33:22.119 Amen. 00:33:23.399 --> 00:33:35.659 Amen. 00:33:39.700 --> 00:33:40.619 Amen. 00:33:44.379 --> 00:33:45.500 Amen. 00:33:45.500 --> 00:33:46.200 Amen.