Faith Versus Practical Athiesm Series

The Letter to the Romans Chapter 1:16-32

October 25, 2009

Faith versus Practical Atheism

PRAY

Disclaimer: If anyone in the room finds themselves thinking, the pastor wrote this sermon because he know my sin, realize this sermon was written 3 years ago and only applies to your sin if the Holy Spirit is convicting you of sin. Not because of pastoral foreknowledge.

INTRODUCTION

As I sat in a Sunday School class in Houston years ago my Teacher Charles Girling was anointed by the Lord. It always rained in Houston, so the fact that that Sunday morning it was raining was no big thing. As we sat there listening to the teaching the rain pounded on the room of the temporary building as it had many Sundays. We didn’t pay much attention though because Charles’s lesson was always good.

Then something unusual happened. Just above his head for only a second an anointing of water came down on Charles’s head. Then it stopped. Never had it before and never again! I took it that he was truly anointed of God.

One of the greatest truths Charles ever taught was that our lives was a compilation of all the decisions we make, both good and bad. But sometimes we make decisions that have cataclysmic impacts to our lives. So it is with the decisions the guys made:

5 January 2005, Nebraska) Derek "was a bright young boy, a 4.0" majoring in five subjects and planning to attend law school. In September of his senior year at the University of Nebraska, 21-year-old Derek wrote an impassioned declaration of independence from seatbelts for his college newspaper.

“Although "intrusive and ridiculous" seatbelt laws saved 6100 lives a year, according to statistics from the U.S. Congress. "If I want to be the jerk that flirts with death, I should be able to do that."

Returning from a holiday in San Antonio, Texas Derek was not buckled when the SUV hit a patch of ice, slid off US 80 and rolled several times, Derek, was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene. The other occupants of the SUV, slaves to the seatbelt, survived with minor injuries.

6 January 2005, Johannesburg, South Africa) Massive thunderstorms had turned the Braamfontein Spruit into a raging river. It was a little past midnight when police warned Barbara, age 33, that a flash flood was inundating the bridge ahead. They urged her not to cross. But Barbara was driving her BMW X3, an off-road vehicle with x-Drive all-wheel-drive which her

brochures assured her the luxury SUV with Sensatec upholstery and an 8-speaker stereo system had "virtually unlimited agility." So Barbara laughed off the police advice, and continued towards the bridge. She had just entered the water when her xDrive all-wheel drive lost its grip and the floodwaters swept her BMW X3 off the bridge. Her body was found later inside the vehicle over a mile down the river.

(16 January 2005, Florida) Two North Fort Myers residents, 23-year-old Molly and her husband, checked into their motel room. As Molly entered the second-floor room, she went straight for the lanai, which overlooked a concrete patio. Most guests would have seen the railing on the edge of the lanai as a safety feature, but for Molly it brought to mind fond memories of her youthful gymnastic abilities.

Molly called out to Todd, "Watch." These would be her last words. She did a flip onto the railing for a handstand, just the way she used to do, then toppled over the other side, slamming into the patio 15 feet below. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.

31 May 2005, Seattle, Washington) Strength and endurance are two of the most important characteristics that can be passed on to improve the species, so physical challenges between males are frequent. In this case, two drinking buddies found themselves on an overpass 40 feet above a busy freeway in downtown Seattle at 2:45 a.m. It turned out to be the perfect place to determine who had more strength and endurance. Whoever could dangle from the overpass the longest would win!

Unfortunately, the winner was too tired from his victory to climb back up, despite help from his 31-year-old friend. The unidentified champion fell and bounced onto the pavement, where he was hit by a car. The car did not stop. Authorities did not identify the winner of the competition.

Everyday, we make decisions, not really stopping to consider the outcome of those decisions.

• Many decisions are made resting on the confident belief structure we have built up over the years; Never being challenged for there validity.

• Others are made based on pride or vanity. No one dare challenge us for the verbal whipping we may get. Proverbs 23:9 states “Speak not in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.”