Sermon Series: “Questioning the Faith”
Introduction: “Opening the Dreaded Box”
Text: 1 Peter 3:15
OPENING JOKE:
INTRODUCTION: We are going to begin a very special series of sermons this evening called, “Questioning the Faith”
In this series it is my goal that you not question your faith, but be able to ask the questions about your faith that you have always wondered, but never knew the answer
The way I hope to achieve this is to have you all write out your best questions concerning your faith and give them to me. In turn I will take the week, study them and then preach on the subjects I am asked about
Remember, if everyone asks questions it may take a week or two to answer yours, so please remember to attend all evening services so that you don’t miss anything
Let’s begin our introduction to this series…
***Some people don’t ever want their faith to be called into question.
Illustration: “My friend in UNF” I have a friend who is going to UNF to be a Priest in the Episcopal Church. He shares with me all of the questions that come up about his faith. He told me that in his ‘religion and the courts’ class he has to share discussions with people who consider themselves neo-pagans, atheists, agnostics, and one who considers himself a Christian homosexual.
He said that the experience is very hard, but it has taught him to rely more and more on his faith in Christ.
The more he is attacked as one of the small handful of conservative Christians in the class, the more he is forced to trust in Christ for the answers.
He said that one sweet girl actually dropped the class because she had come from a very sheltered home and church life, and she just couldn’t handle the constant barrage of anti-Christian sentiment.
I told you this story to illustrate a point: My friend, who has since finished school, now has a deeper rooted faith, having gone through these classes, than if he had not.
He will be more ready to make a defense for his faith because he has been inside the mind of those who oppose his beliefs, and he understands them.
We need to know that questions that people are asking to be prepared to give our defense.
Illustration: “Wrong Tools” It makes no sense to bring woodworking tools to a metal shop; the same is true about learning how to answer questions that people never ask.
Many of us know a lot about the Bible, doctrine and fundamental Christianity, but these are not topics that non-believer’s ask
Tonight we are going to discuss a few of the questions I have been asked on more than one occasion, along with the answers that make the most sense.
Important note: You will almost never ‘argue’ someone into belief. These answers are not meant to debate the skeptic, but reassure the believer. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, not arguing its contents
One of the most popular questions I hear from people is:
1. Where did God come from? What was He doing before the creation of the universe?
Other ways to ask the same question:
i. If God made everything, who made God?
ii. Did God have a beginning?
iii. I understand eternity forward, but not eternity past. How can God be infinite?
A. A good theological answer:
a. This question assumes that everything, including God,is subject to the same time and space as man.
a. They believe that there is nothing that is not bound by time and space.
b. This theory has been questioned by the scientific community and virtually dismissed since Einstein’s theory of relativity.
c. Einstein showed that time can be altered, slowed down or speeded up when objects begin to travel at extremely high speeds.
d. So this means that the concept that all things operate within the context of fixed time and space, and nothing exists outside of time and space, is not necessarily correct.
b. While we may not totally understand it, these scientific findings do make it easier to understand the God exists outside of time and space; at least outside of our knowledge of time and space.
B. What the Bible says:
Psalm 90:4 “For a thousand years in Your sight Are like yesterday when it is past, And like a watch in the night.”
Colossians 1:17 “And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”
2 Peter 3:8 “But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”
C. How do I explain this to someone?
Illustration: “My Ring” I like to use my wedding ring. It is a complete gold circle. It is without beginning and without ending. My ring is a continuous circle. If something so simple has no beginning and no ending, how mush easier should it be to understand that God, who is so complex, has no beginning or ending.
Another very common question is:
2. How do you know God exists?
Other ways to ask the same question:
i. Why should I believe in God I can’t see?
ii. I don’t believe in God, why do you?
iii. If God really wanted me to have faith, He would show Himself to me wouldn’t He?
A. A good theological answer:
a. If God were totally silent, then this would be a very difficult question.
i. God not only exists, but has revealed Himself to us.
ii. We know all about who He is, what He likes and hates and what His plans are.
iii. We know this from looking at the Bible, which has demonstrated itself time and time again to be more than any mere book; it is the inspired Word of God.
b. It has withstood years of scrutiny, arguments and debate.
i. Quote: “The Protection of the Bible” Martin Luther made this statement: “Mighty potentates have raged against this book, and sought to destroy and uproot it – Alexander the Great and princes of Egypt and Babylon, the monarchs of Persia, of Greece and of Rome, the Emperors Julius and Augustus – But have prevailed nothing. They are gone while the book remains, and it will remain forever and ever, perfect and entire as it was declared at first. Who has thus helped it – who has protected it against such mighty forces? No one, surely, but God Himself, who is master of all things.”
c. Not only has God revealed Himself in His Word, but he also revealed Himself in the human form of His Son Jesus.
i. Jesus is the incarnation of God in the flesh.
ii. We have as much physical evidence that Jesus walked on the earth as we have for George Washington crossing the Delaware.
B. What the Bible says:
Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.”
John 1:1, 14 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Colossians 2:9 “For in Him [Jesus] dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
C. How do I explain this to someone?
Illustration: “Why don’t you believe in God?” I ask them to tell me why they do not believe in God, and that will usually lead into another area of apologetics. If they have problems with science and God, I will go into creating a case for a creator. If they have a problem with people suffering and God’s love for everyone, I will go into the discussion of how evil entered the world.
Many people, when asking this question, don’t really want proof if God exists, they want to know about your faith. Most people, when they are totally honest with themselves, will admit that there has to be some type of Supreme Being, and they want to know why you think that your God is the right One.
The last question we will talk about tonight is:
3. Why should I become a Christian? The worst hypocrites are in the church.
Other ways to ask the same question:
i. If that is what a Christian is like, I don’t want to be one.
ii. How can you say Christianity is about love when it has started so many wars?
iii. You’re no better than I am just because you go to church.
A. A good theological answer:
a. Hypocrisy in the church has been a problem since its birth.
a. People who want to argue against the Bible often site terrible mistakes from the past such as the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition which were done in the name of Christ.
b. There are also high profile stories today about people within the Church who are caught in despicable acts.
b. A hypocrite is a person who puts on a mask when they are in church.
a. They say one thing and then do another.
b. We must never confuse hypocrisy with Sin.
c. Everyone sins, even Christians, but are not all hypocrites.
a. The truth is that a hypocrite will attempt to make others believe that they are without sin, which appears as ‘holier than thou’ attitude.
b. Quote: “Christianity stands or falls on the person of Jesus, and Jesus was not a hypocrite.” (15)
B. What the Bible says:
Matthew 23:15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.”
Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God:”
C. How do I explain this to someone?
Illustration: “The Perfect Car” Let’s say that I am trying to sell a specific type of car. I explain that it is the best in the country and the only car a person should be driving. In fact I could get a lot of automotive magazines and consumer reports to back up what I have said. Then, later, you see me drive off in another type of car. Now I, of course, would be a hypocrite. But this does not take away from the truth of what I have said.
The same is true for Christianity. People tell others that Christianity is true and then live lives that are inconsistent with its teachings. This does not mean that Christianity is untrue, but that there are those who are fake Christians within the local church.
CONCLUSION: These are just the tip of the iceberg when dealing with questions concerning our faith. I hope that my answers have been a blessing to you.
Please don’t forget to fill out your form with your questions and place them under the door of my office
