When God Became a Man, pt. 2
John 1:1-14
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/GodBecameManPt2.html
Babe Ruth played from 1914-1935. He was the first to hit 60 homers in a season, and a total of 714 in his career. The popularity of baseball increased so much that in 1923 they had to build a new stadium, dubbed, The House that Ruth Built.
When we look at the earth, it is far unlike any other planet. It's the one Jesus built.
v. 3 Yet when Jesus returned to the earth He created, He was not well received. He was rejected.
Colossians 1:13
Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
Colossians 1:16
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
v. 11 His creation said, "We don't want you here!"
Last time we saw:
1. Jesus' Revelation
v. 1 Jesus is the Word.
3 words about His revelation:
• Incarnation.
v. 14 'made flesh'
• Identification
v. 14 'and dwelt among us'
• Illumination
v. 14 'and we beheld his glory'
New material:
2. Jesus' Rejection
v. 10-11
Let's talk about creation first of all. I believe God created all that is, and if there's a big bang, it's still to come, and it will happen to those who reject their Creator!
Atheists and evolutionists say: "You creationists believe what you believe by faith. WE believe what WE believe based on reason."
Let me tell you something right now! We all believe what we believe by faith...because none of us were there! I'll admit that I must not have as much faith as those who believe that it all just spontaneously happened. Fact is, people can believe in whatever they WANT to believe in, and evolutionists must really want it badly because they actually cast reason aside. Let's see, what could be their motive? Could it be so that they don't have to admit there's a God? Could it be so they don't have to answer to Him for their sin?
2 Peter 3:5
For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old...
Why don't they believe? Because they don't want to!
Evolutionists claim it is science. But it is not. It is a theory. And creationism isn't science, it is a theory. It is important that we are able to admit that. The laws of science say to prove something you must be able to observe it, and reproduce it. None of us can truly do this.
1 Timothy 6:20
O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: [includes such concepts as evolution, global warming, and high altitude Denver Debate Deficiency Disorder]
The origin of all that is is at best Historical Science. And historical science is made up of two main witnesses: The first is a historical account from someone who was THERE! The second is evidence left behind.
Truly shocking is the war currently going on in the Science community, because the evidence is overwhelmingly proving the earth to be thousands, not millions and billions of years old. And the debate is separating scientists of conscience from those whose goal is not to uncover the truth, but to prove their theory, to keep their jobs, and to not be laughed at by their universities who have long claimed evolution to be proven true, and yet cannot offer proofs.
Let's move for a bit from sermon to science class, and see how things which show design MUST have a Designer.
Our planet was created with great design. It is the perfect size for gravity to be just right for us. Our atmosphere couldn't exist if it were larger or smaller. We are at the perfect distance from the sun. Even a fractional difference and we would be doomed. Our magnetic field shields us from the sun's harmful rays. That will likely be removed in the tribulation and Revelation says men's flesh will be scorched. Our rotation and orbit are perfect, as is our axis tilt of 23.5 degrees. If any of these variables were different, life would cease to exist.
Our moon is 1/6th of our size, perfect for our tides which cleanse the earth.
Your body is amazing [thank you very much!] You are made up of billions of cells, each a universe of its own, and each more complicated than the Space Shuttle. The DNA code in your body is a language so complex that if you wrote it out it would fill 48 library shelves.
ill.--pretend it really is contained in a library and someone asks where it came from. You answer that the local newspaper office exploded and all the contents fell into place, forming those books. That's the likelihood of one human cell falling into place, and that says nothing for its capability of then reproducing itself!
The evolutionist needs billions of years to try to help explain how random chance can come to pass. So, how old is our universe? Only one dating method is absolutely reliable—a witness who doesn’t lie, who has all evidence, and who can reveal to us when the universe began! Even the following evidences are subjective to interpretation:
1. Lack of sediment on seafloor.
Every year, 20 billion tons of dirt and rock debris wash into the ocean and accumulate on the seafloor. There would be 250 times as much sediment if the earth was old.
2. Bent rock layers.
All over the earth we find layers of rock, supposed laid down over millions of years, and yet each is bent in tandem, without fracturing. The layers must have been laid down rapidly after the global flood.
3. Soft tissues in fossils.
In 2005, a team of scientists found a femur of a Tyrannosaurus Rex that contained intact blood vessels and red blood cells. Once freed from the bones, the blood vessels could be stretched—and even snapped back into place! Are those really 70 million years old?
4. Very little salt in the sea.
It is increasing in salinity, and if it were old, you could walk across it today.
Carbon 14 dating and radiometric methods have been completely debunked as unreliable. Rocks created from the eruption of Mt. St. Helens date as millions of years old, and are about 30!
These things demonstrate that our faith is a reasonable faith.
What a wonder that the creation rejects the Creator.
v. 11
Why did Israel reject Him?
OT prophecies pointed to Him. Jesus fulfilled 330 direct prophecies. They beheld His glory and His miraculous works. They saw the light, but they put that Light out. They were astonished at His wisdom. He never sinned, and they knew it deep down, and none could convict Him of sin.
Israel was not just ignorant. They were willfully ignorant. Why did they not believe? They didn't want to! And when you don't want to believe, no amount of evidence will convince you.
Jesus gave them every opportunity to come to the truth.
Jesus is the way, but they WOULD NOT walk with Him.
Jesus is the truth, but they WOULD NOT believe Him.
Jesus is the life, and they crucified Him!
Why did Israel reject Jesus? They wanted to.
Why do sinners reject Him today?
vv. 4-5 You would think that if a blind man saw the light he would be thankful. But they weren't.
ill.--if you are in a pitch black room trying to accomplish something, you aren't going to accomplish much of any value. You need the assistance of light. Imagine someone comes along and turns on the light. There's only one reason why you would be angry and not want that light on--if you are in there doing something wrong!
John 3:19
And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
What is the opposite of truth? Not error. In the Bible, the opposite of truth is sin. Error is the baggage that comes with your sin. In other words, people reject the truth, not because they believe a lie, but because there's a lifestyle they want to validate, making it ok. Error is just the baggage that comes with that sin.
Our universities today tell young people, "You are not a creation of God, you are the result of a random accident." That sounds stupid...at first glance it looks like a liberal lie. And yet that really resonates with a person who has lots of temptation in their life...it strikes a chord and they like what they hear, because it let's them live how they want. "There's no God, and no accountability. I came from an animal, and I should satisfy my animal instincts!"
That young person doesn't reject the truth for the lie, they reject the truth for the sin they want to do.
Romans 1:18-19
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
Aldous Huxley [grandson of Thomas Huxley, known as Darwin's bulldog] said, ‘I had motive for not wanting the world to have a meaning; consequently assumed that it had none, and was able without any difficulty to find satisfying reasons for this assumption. The philosopher who finds no meaning in the world is not concerned exclusively with a problem in pure metaphysics, he is also concerned to prove that there is no valid reason why he personally should not do as he wants to do… For myself, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation, sexual and political.’
It's science falsely so called. It's willful ignorance in order to justify a lifestyle.
John 1 shows us Jesus' revelation, and His rejection.
3. Jesus' Reception.
v. 12 Many have received Him, and they see the light, and are born again!
Receiving Christ -- it's not the same as:
Joining a church, being baptized/confirmed, living a good life.
Receiving Christ is admitting you are a sinner in need of a Savior, and that Jesus is that Savior who lived a sinless life for you, died a sacrificial death in your place, and rose again, conquering death in your stead so you can too if you receive Him and His gift of eternal life. It's all about Him, and not about you.
You will be saved from your sins and will begin a personal relationship with God that will NEVER end!
Do you want Jesus? I can assure you that He wants you. He said that 'Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.'
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/GodBecameManPt2.html
