How Can we Know the Bible is True? Life of Christ Part 63

Now, this week I was traveling and I had my son Justin with me and we were in the airport and I was kind of browsing in the bookstore and I came across the most recent issue of Life magazine. I don't know if you've seen it, but the front has a picture of Jesus Christ and shadowed over top of it are the words, who was he?

Well, that kind of caught my attention, you know, and I thought as cheap as I am, I'm still going to pay $3 for this and I bought it. And inside, there's all kinds of quotes from everybody from Jerry Falwell to Harvey Cox of Harvard Divinity School who says God is dead. But anyway, there was one quote that caught my attention by John Murray, who is the president of the American Atheists.

Here's what he said. He said, there was no such person in the history of the world as Jesus Christ. There was no historical, living, breathing, sentient human being by that name, ever. The Bible is a fictional, nonhistorical narrative. It's a myth that's good for business.

End of quote. And I was talking to my son about that and Justin said, well, you know, dad, he said, when you think about it, every religion says that they're right. Every religion says theirs is the true way. I mean, how can we be sure that the Bible and Christianity really is the true way?

It's kind of like on television where you see AT&T, MCI and Sprint who all say they're the cheapest. I mean, how do you really know? Well, as Christians, we better have an answer to that question, right? And the answer to that question very simply is that the Christian faith is based upon an avenue to God that we find out about from supernatural revelation, from supernatural information directly from God given to us that tells us the right way in which to approach God.

You say, so wait a minute, Lon, let me see if I got this right. You're saying to me that the Christian faith rises and falls with the trustworthiness of the Bible. Absolutely right. Absolutely right. If the Bible is truly the word of God, if the Bible is really been written by a supernatural God, if the Bible is correct in all that it tells us about God and all that it tells us about our relationship to God, if all of that's true, then personal faith in Jesus Christ, personal reliance on the blood of Christ shed on the cross is the one and only path to God and every other religion in the world is a dead end street and a counterfeit. Say, wow, there's a whole lot riding on whether or not the Bible is what it claims to be.

You bet. So you say, well, Lon, that kind of brings us to the bottom line question, doesn't it? And that question is this atheist said the Bible is a fictional non-historical narrative.

It's a myth. So how can we be sure he's wrong, huh? That's what we want to talk about this morning. We want to talk because that's what Jesus talks about here in Luke 18.

At least he brushes the subject and I want to dig into the subject a little bit. So follow along with me, Luke 18, beginning at verse 31. Jesus took the 12 aside and he told them, we are going up to Jerusalem. And then he said, everything that is written by the prophets about the son of man, about the Messiah will be fulfilled. He, meaning himself, will be handed over to the Romans, the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him, that is beat him with a whip, kill him, but not to worry because on the third day he's going to rise from the dead. And the disciples did not understand any of this.

Its meaning was hidden from them and they did not know, they did not comprehend all that he was really talking about. Now Jesus is just outside Jericho. It's a very short walk up to Jerusalem. He's headed to Jerusalem for the very last time. The triumphal entry through the gate of Jerusalem with the palm leaves and the whole nine yards is going to happen in about a week and a week after that Jesus is going to be dead. So he's only got two, three weeks left and he wants to prepare his disciples for what's ahead. And so he says to him, look, I just want you to know that when we get to Jerusalem, the Romans are going to end up with me. The Jews are going to hand me over to the Romans and the Romans are going to do these things. They're going to mock me, insult me, spit on me, whip me and kill me.

But hey, don't let it get you down cause I'm going to rise from the dead. Now you say, Alon, look, how could Jesus, I mean, know all these things were going to happen to him before they really happened? How could he predict them and be so sure that two or three weeks later he knew everything that was going to take place? Very interesting, huh?

And it's really part of a bigger phenomenon. Look at verse 31. Jesus said to them, we're going to Jerusalem and everything that's been written by the prophets. What prophets is he talking about? We're talking about the Old Testament prophets.

He said, which ones were they? Well, they were like Isaiah and Ezekiel and Malachi and Jeremiah and all these other people. Yeah, and the last one of them to live and write was 400 years before the birth of Christ. So everything these people said are at least 400 years old, some of it 800 years old, some of it over a thousand years old. And yet Jesus said, they wrote things about the son of man that we're going to see every one of them fulfilled.

Not just that I could tell you two weeks from now what's going to happen. These people told us centuries and millennia from now what was going to happen and we're going to see it all come true. Now, when we start talking about the Bible and how can we prove that the Bible's trustworthy, we're really asking two questions. The first question we're asking is, is the Bible historically accurate? Is what we read in here about Abraham and the Egyptians and all these other people historically true? And the second question we're asking is, even if it's historically true, is it supernatural?

Is this supernatural truth from a supernatural God that gives us supernatural information about how to be right with God, have our sins forgiven and be sure we're going to heaven? There's two separate questions. We need to answer them both. So first of all, how can we be sure that the Bible is historically accurate? Now, Jesus and what he says here touches on the second one, so we'll come back. But the first one is, how can we be sure it's historically accurate? And the answer is, archaeology has done more to help us prove the historical accuracy of the Bible than any other single discipline in the history of the world. I keep telling you, the more we dig out of the ground, the more we find out that the Bible is true.

Now, I don't have time to give you all this information. As a matter of fact, if you really wanted it all, you'd have to go take a course. Tape number one of Spiritual Boot Camp is called The Reliability of the Bible. And I've got just a lot of information in there about archaeology, how it's proven the Bible.

You can go upstairs and get that tape. Spiritual Boot Camp number one, The Reliability of the Bible. Let me just give you a couple of examples.

This is just two or three out of dozens. Years ago, people said, well, the Bible was wrong. There never was a guy named Pontius Pilate, you know, the guy that tried Jesus. In all the Roman records, everywhere we've looked, there's no such person. The name never appears in any of the Roman official chronicles. So we don't know who Jesus stood in front of, but it was not a guy named Pontius Pilate.

The Bible is wrong again. And people put this in books. Then a few years ago, digging at Caesarea by the sea, in an archaeological dig, they dug up this big old rock that was written on about the size of this podium. And guess whose name was on it?

You'll never guess. Pontius Pilatum in Latin. And talked about how Pontius Pilate had been there in Caesarea. And you can see it in the Israeli Museum and you can actually read it.

It's clear as day. Pontius Pilate. So, so much for that book.

Revise that. And then there was the time where they said, well, you know, the Bible is wrong because the Bible talks about the Hittites. And the Hittites never existed. There never was a people called the Hittites. There never was a Hittite empire.

We didn't know anything about it. People wrote down in books and said that's just another example of how the Bible was wrong. And then about 75 years ago, somebody digging in central Turkey discovered the city of Bogazkoy, which was the capital of the Hittite empire.

They excavated it, the Germans did, and found out that the Hittite empire was an enormously powerful empire that spread all over Turkey, Asia Minor, the Northern Ancient Near East, just the way the Bible said. So we got to revise that book. One more example. Guy named William Ramsey. He was a professor at Oxford University in England.

Thank you. Professor of classical art and archaeology, you know, Greek and Roman archaeology and art. He died in 1939, but he was a very well-known professor in the late 1800s, early 1900s. He was a rank atheist, didn't want anything to do with the Bible. And his students kept bugging him and trying to witness to him and tell him about the Bible and convince him to become a Christian.

He got so sick and tired of his students bugging him and bothering him that he said, look, I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'm a classical archaeologist. I know Greek archaeology. I know Roman archaeology.

I know all this stuff. On my next sabbatical, he said, I'm going to take the book of Acts where it talks about Paul going through Asia Minor and Greece. And I'm going to go over there and I'm going to trace his journeys right along with the book of Acts. And I'm going to prove to all you guys that the book is full of inaccuracies, that it's full of inconsistencies.

It's full of wrong information. So you will leave me alone once and for all about this Christianity stuff. So he did it.

And guess what? When he went over there, he became so convinced that instead of being wrong, the book of Acts was absolutely historically accurate that in the middle of Asia Minor, he dropped to his knees and gave his life to Jesus Christ and became one of the greatest defenders of the Christian faith in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Books by him are all over the world today, William Ramsey. And all he did is put the Bible to the test to see if historically it could stand it. You say, well, now, Lon, I hear what you're saying. And that makes me feel a little better. But that still doesn't mean that the Bible's supernatural.

You know what I'm saying? I mean, all right, maybe the Quran has got some true information about Mohammed. Maybe the Eastern books have got some true information about Confucius. That doesn't make them supernatural.

That doesn't mean that they're absolutely right about their approach to God. Hey, you're right. I said there were two questions. We answered the first one.

Now let's answer the second one. How are we going to prove that the Bible is a supernatural book written by a supernatural God with true supernatural information about how to approach God? Well, fulfilled prophecy is the greatest proof there is, my dear friends. I want you to turn back in the Old Testament to the book of Psalms.

And let me show you some of the prophecies that Jesus was referring to when he said everything written by the prophets is going to be fulfilled. Psalm 22 is where I want us to start. Psalm 22. And it's page 392 if you're using our copy of the Bible.

If you're using your copy of the Bible, it's right after Psalm 21, right before Psalm 23. Okay. Got it? Easy.

All right. Now look at verse 16. It says here, dogs have surrounded me. A band of evil men have encircled me. They have pierced my hands and my feet.

Oh, that sounds interesting. I can count all my bones. People stare and gloat over me. Now, if you go back in Matthew 27 and look, for example, you'll find that not only did they pierce Jesus' hands and feet by putting him on a cross, but that all the Jewish people stood around and gloated over him and all of them mocked him and made fun of him. Look at verse seven. All who see me mock me.

They hurl insult, shaking their heads. He trusts in the Lord. Let the Lord rescue him. Let the Lord deliver him since he delights in him.

Those were almost exactly the words that they said. If you check out Matthew 27. Now look at verse 18.

And they divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing. Matthew 27 said that when Jesus was hanging on the cross, the Roman soldier sat down at the foot of the cross, split up his clothing and cast lots to see who got which piece of clothing. Verse one says, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

And on the cross, Jesus cried out, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani, which is Aramaic for my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Say, wow, who wrote this? David? And when did David write it? 1000 BC. Say, wow, he was a lucky guesser, wasn't he?

Yeah, he was. I'll show you how lucky he gets. Let's keep going. Psalm 69. Psalm 69. Verse 21.

It says they put gall in my food and gave me vinegar from my thirst. Matthew 27 says that when Jesus was hanging on his cross, he said, I'm thirsty. And somebody ran and got him a sponge and dipped it in vinegar and handed it up to him on the cross. And even though he refused to drink, the Bible says that was so the scripture would be fulfilled.

David's still guessing pretty lucky here, wouldn't he? And then you could go to Genesis 39. We're not going to go there, which tells us that the Messiah was going to be a descendant from the tribe of Judah. That was written 1800 years before the birth of Christ.

We could go to Isaiah chapter 11 that tells us not only was he going to come from the big family of Judah, but he was going to come from the smaller family of David. That was written 850 years before the birth of Christ. Let's go to Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53, verse 7 says he was oppressed and afflicted, yet he didn't open his mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before her shearers is silent.

So he did not open his mouth. Matthew 27. Listen, and Pilate asked him, don't you hear the testimony that these Jewish leaders are bringing against you?

But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge to the great amazement of the governor. Look at verse nine. Verse nine says he was assigned a grave with the wicked, with criminals. Wasn't he crucified between two convicted thieves? And then it goes on to say and his burial, verse nine, his death was with the rich. Joseph of Arimathea, a very rich man. The reason we know he was rich is because he had dug a tomb inside of a wall inside of a cave and only a rich person could afford to do that.

Came and begged the body of Jesus from Pilate and took it and buried it in his own tomb. Now how could Isaiah 850 years before Christ know that this was going to happen? You say, Lon, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. We're not stupid.

You're not stupid. Don't you understand what happened? Don't you understand that Jesus set all this up? Don't you understand he went to Joseph and said, now Joseph, when I die, you come get my body because that's the way it's got to happen. And don't you realize he talked Pilate into crucifying him between two thieves and he told somebody in the crowd, now when I say I'm thirsty, you run and get me some vinegar and you know, don't you realize he set this whole thing up?

Can't you see it's a hoax and he planned the whole thing? Friends, listen, I don't think you talked Roman soldiers into doing anything that they didn't want to do. And what did he do? Say, please whip me, please beat me. Go ahead and spit. Go ahead. Right here. Put it right here, man. Right in my face. Spit.

I dare you. Well, you say maybe. Okay, well what about Micah chapter five where it says that Jesus was going to be born in Bethlehem, which isn't even where his parents live? Are you suggesting to me that Jesus Christ talked the Emperor Caesar Augustus into calling for a census and that he talked his mother Mary, who was pregnant with him at the time into going to Bethlehem where she wasn't from and where she didn't know anybody? You suggesting that he set all that up while he was still a baby inside the womb? How did he talk Caesar Augustus into doing that from inside the womb? Oh, that's a little more difficult. Friends, come on.

Let's get real about this. There were over 30 prophecies just about the life of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. Some of them are 400 years old. Some of them are 800 years old.

Some of them are 1800 years old. And every single one of them, Jesus Christ fulfilled absolutely and perfectly. You say, wait a minute, how do you know they didn't go back and change the Old Testament once Jesus had died? So the Old Testament said it.

You know what I'm saying? How do we know that? Because the Dead Sea Scrolls that we've discovered give us copies of the Old Testament from 100 BC and 150 BC and the prophecies are already in it.

150 years before Jesus was ever born. I had a mathematician friend, he said, look, he said, you take only eight prophecies, not 30, take eight. And the chance that eight prophecies could all come true in the life of one human being when they had been predicted prior to his birth is one to the 10th to the 16th power. One times 10 to the 16th power, that's one in 10 secs trillion. Those are the odds. That's just for eight, not 30. See, we didn't even cover the virgin birth.

John the Baptist as the forerunner, the triumphal entry, Judas' betrayal, the potter's field, the 30 pieces of silver, the resurrection. We didn't cover any of them. We just took eight. Now you know what one out of 10 to the secs trillion is?

Let me translate that into kind of stuff we can understand. Take the state of Texas. I don't want the state of Texas.

Well, neither do I. But take the state of Texas. I don't like the cowboys either. Take the state of Texas, all right? Fill the entire state of Texas with silver dollars knee deep. The entire state, I'm talking from the river to Oklahoma. All right, the whole thing.

Have a guy parachute in to the state of Texas and have him land and reach down and pick up one silver dollar and have it be the one silver dollar that you put a red mark in and dump somewhere in the state of Texas. And that's one times 10 to the 16th power. Those are the odds. Say, whoa, those are pretty tough odds, you bet.

And that was just for eight, not 30, eight. He said, well, Lon, where does all this leave us? I'll tell you where it leaves us, friends. It leaves us wondering how in the world the Bible could have predicted all these details with such uncanny accuracy. And the answer I'll show you is right here in Isaiah. Turn back to chapter 46. You want the answer?

It's easy. Isaiah 46, verse nine. Isaiah 46, and here's what it says. I am God and there is none other.

I am God and there is none like me. I, look at verse 10, I make known the end from the beginning. I make known from ancient times, things that are still yet to happen.

My purpose will stand and I will do what I please. You see, the answer to the question, how did the Bible predict all of this is that there is a living transcendent God who runs the universe to see to it that his will is accomplished exactly the way he wants it. He is a God who knows future events the way we know past events. And he was a God who recorded some of these future events centuries before they happened in the Bible to prove to us that he is real and to prove to us that the Bible is authentic information from God about eternity, about our relationship with him to authenticate the word of God.

There's no other reasonable explanation how these people could ever have known all that information. And you know what, friends, I've staked my whole eternal destiny on the Bible being right. I mean, if the Jehovah's Witnesses are right, I'm in trouble. If the Mormons are right, I'm in trouble. If the Muslims are right, I'm in big time trouble.

You understand what I'm saying? I mean, if Confucius is right or the Hindus are right, I'm in deep weeds. I mean, I've staked my whole eternal destiny on the fact that this book is the one that gives me the right information about eternity and about God and about eternal life. And I don't think I'm an idiot.

I never have considered myself an idiot. I did it on the basis of the fact that this Bible not only will withstand the test of historical examination, but that there's no way to explain its ability to predict the future centuries in advance, except by saying there was a supernatural God who wrote it. And I don't know any other book that can stand that test. So I'll stick with the Bible. I'll take my chances in eternity with the truth of the word of God.

And I hope you will too, because I think the Bible has proved it can be trusted. Now, so what? Huh? So what? If there really is a living God and if the Bible really is the word of God, so what? What difference does that make to me?

Well, I've already told you one difference and that is that what the Bible teaches about eternity would be a wise idea for you to listen to if you're here and you've never trusted Christ in a real and personal way. If you're still depending on your own effort to get you in or you're trying to be a sincere American, I'm telling you friends, the Bible says that's not gonna work. Only personal faith in Jesus Christ is gonna work. And if you're here and you've never made that decision, I would say first and foremost, the so what for you is you need to grab ahold of the Bible's approach to eternal life and hang on for everything you're worth by trusting Christ. But if you've already done that, if you're Christian, then so what? Well, I've got two to give you.

They're probably 50. But let me give you two real quick when we close. Number one, if there really is a living God and if the Bible really is the word of God, then number one, it means that the Bible has authority over my personal life, your personal life and all of this society that we live in. Now friends, we live here in Washington, we hear about executive orders all the time and executive order. Well, you know what makes an executive order have authority? It's not that it's written on special paper and it's not that it's written with special ink. What gives it authority is that it comes from who?

The executive, right? And so in the same way, the Bible has authority, not because it's written on special paper with special ink, but because it comes from the executive of the universe. And human society may not be listening to the Bible. The Bible is trying to talk to society out there and society out there is not listening. But for those of us who are Christians, we need to be listening because we need to understand when we became Christians, we joined God's army. And when we joined God's army, we got a new commanding officer, not us anymore, but Jesus Christ.

And folks, these are orders from headquarters, orders from headquarters. I love that commercial on television for Hebrew national hot dogs. You seen that commercial? I love Hebrew national hot dogs.

Maybe it's my heritage. I don't know, but I love Hebrew national hot dogs. And they got the big uncle Sam standing there getting ready to eat this hot dog.

You remember that commercial? And he's ready to bite in. He's like, and all of a sudden you hear this voice that says, the government says we can put non-meat fillers in our hot dogs. We can't. And he looks up. The government says we can do this and that and the other thing to our hot dog.

We can't. We're kosher and we're subject to a higher authority. Hey, I love that commercial. And then he eats that hot dog. What a great hot dog.

All right. And don't tell me what's in it. Cause you know, probably I don't know, but they're great hot dogs. But the point of the story is that in many respects, you and I are just like that. You see, when it comes to our business ethics, our sexual behavior, our 10 forties, our personal integrity, our language, our attitudes, our work habits, our driving, hey, whatever we are subject to what? A higher authority. I mean, you're just like a Hebrew national hot dog friend. If you're a Christian, just remember that I am a Hebrew national hot dog and I am subject to a higher authority. I can't do whatever I feel like doing and I can't do what the world tells me to do.

I am subject to what? Uh huh. Hebrew national hot dog time. Not too long ago, I went to the store. I do all the grocery shopping at our house cause my wife hates it and I like it. And the reason I like it is cause if I go do the shopping, then I can buy the kind of cookies I like.

You understand what I'm saying? And I went to the store. I went Safeway and Brenda said, now I want to fix a real nice dinner. So when you're there, get something really good, you know, for us to eat, you know, get a pork loin or something really good and we'll have a nice meal. And as usual, I've said, sure, sure, sure, sure, sure. And I forgot to write it on the list, you know, so I get to store, I think I got everything.

I get in line and all of a sudden I'm in line and the checker starts checking me out and I go, ah, I forgot the pork loin. So I said to her, I got people behind me. I said, I'll be right back.

Okay. Just go slow and I'll be right back. And the lady behind me was not in a good mood and I said, don't worry, I'll be back before she gets done. Don't worry.

So I run as fast as I can down. I, you know, turn the corner around the meat thing and I'm like, you know, going down there, hamburger and I want a hamburger and looking for the pork and I found it and they had these big old pork loins, you know, like that and it was a lady standing there and I thought, gee, I wonder how many of these I can afford. I mean, these are pretty pricey and so I picked that one and looked at it. It was like a dollar a pound and I went, whoa. And I said to her, I said, does this seem right to you? And she said, no, I think they mismarked it. And I said, really, you do?

And she said, yeah, this stuff's usually like eight or nine dollars a pound. And I said, oh, really? I said, give me three. And I took three and I ran back and turned the curb, ran up and gave them to the cashier, you know, and I said, hey, this is awesome, you know? And so I got home and we were sitting around the dinner table, my guys and me, and I tell them this story and I said, guys, I really hit it big today. You wouldn't believe what happened, you know? And I tell them this story and I'm just, you know, chowing down on this pork loin. And one of my teenagers said, hey, dad?

Yeah? He said, is that really what you think God would have wanted you to do? He said, excuse me? He said, well, if you knew it was mismarked, didn't you have a responsibility to tell them that it was mismarked?

I said, what? I was in line. I was a lady mad behind me. I mean, a cashier's going slow. I didn't have time to ring that stupid meat buzzer and wait for that guy to come and say, I think you mismarked your meat. I didn't have time to do that. You know, I mean, if I'd have had time, yeah, it would have been the right thing to do, you know? So he said, well, you could have told the cashier. I said, no, cashiers don't mark meat. I don't tell. And they said, dad, you know, that was not right, what you did. I did not enjoy the rest of my meal. Now, what would the world say to do?

The world would say, hey, Lon, don't worry about it. I mean, you already processed that food. It's gone, Jack. Don't forget that stuff. Next time you're around, you know, just do better next.

But I'm subject to what? Uh-huh. So, you know, in the last service, we had a meat manager from Safeway here. Yeah, we did. And he came up afterwards and he said, it was not. I said, I talked to him. You mean you guys weren't just trying to be nice and give away food away cheap?

It was mismarked. Okay, so I'm going back to Safeway this week and they're going to think I'm an idiot. They're going to think I'm totally out of my mind. But I'm subject to what?

Uh-huh. And so are you if you're a Christian. And if you haven't let the Bible come into your life and let the Bible dominate your value system to that degree, then I would like to suggest to you that as a Christian, you have not given the Bible its proper role that it demands in your life if it is supernatural from God, right? Second and last, and that is that if the Bible is really what it claims to be, then friends, everything the Bible says about eternity is true, huh? When Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. Nobody comes to the father, but by me, if the Bible's from God, he was right. When Jesus said, John chapter three, then unless a person is born again, they'll never see the kingdom of heaven. If the Bible is right, then Jesus was correct. In John chapter three, when Jesus said, the person who believes in me as eternal life and the person who does not believe in me will not see eternal life, but the wrath of God sits on them. Now, if the Bible's true, then that's correct, huh? And you know what? I look around at us as Christians here in Washington, here in this church family, everywhere I go and I say, why is it that we as Christians do not have the same kind of passion, that we don't have the same kind of drive and determination to go out into our world and tell people about their need for Christ, the way I read about in the Bible, the people in the early church having that kind of drive and passion.

Why is that? And the only answer I can come up with is that secretly, we really don't believe what the Bible tells us about how to get into heaven. We really don't believe it.

We believe that, yeah, Christianity's got a good deal going, but it's not the only show in town. And if you're a sincere Buddhist or if you're a sincere Muslim or if you're a sincere Jewish person or just a sincere American, that somehow God will let you in, in spite of what the Bible says. And folks, I'm trying to tell you, the Bible never, ever, ever opens that loophole, ever. Jesus never opened that loophole. In fact, as one commentator said, the reason that Jesus preached so hard about hell and damnation is because he knew that if he didn't, we never would.

And he did and we still don't. Now I'm saying to you that if you secretly question what the Bible says about eternity, you and I being wired the way we're wired, we will go out there and we will back off and we will never tell people about Christ. The only reason to go out there and subject yourself to the embarrassment and to the ridicule and even to the price you may have to pay to do that is because you believe that God is telling us the absolute truth about who goes to heaven and who doesn't.

And remember our presupposition, if the Bible is really the word of God and if the Bible is supernatural information and if it's true, then I'd like to suggest to you God's telling us the truth about eternity. That means every person you know that doesn't know Christ is going to hell if they don't change. That means every neighbor you have that doesn't know Christ is on their way to hell.

It means every relative you've got that doesn't know Christ is on their way to hell. That's what God says. And look, if it was up to me, I'd create a better religion. I mean, I'd create something that we all like. I mean, I'd create something where everybody's happy.

We all just party. We never offend anybody. We call it Solomonism and we'd all have fun.

I mean, if it was up to me, I wouldn't create something like this, but this is not up to me. This is supernatural truth from God and God knows more about eternity than I do. So have you invited your friend or your neighbor yet to our Christmas concert where they'll hear the gospel? Did you buy a ticket and have you got somebody marked and are you going out to bring them, going to come with them?

Say, well, no, not yet. When are you going to do it today, Sunday? Well, I got to Friday. Okay, when we get to Friday, will you have done it?

I don't know. I still have to Monday. When we get to Monday, will you have done it? Say, well, Lon, why don't you leave me alone? Okay, this is Christmas.

Leave me alone. I mean, I'm not going to go out there. I don't want to embarrass myself and I'm going to, I might strain some relationship if I do that. I don't want to strain a relationship to do something like this.

Well, could I ask you a question? What happens if that friend that you never invite dies and ends up in hell for all eternity and then says to you, you mean you knew what the truth was? You knew how I could get to heaven and you never tried to tell me? Well, I think that would strain a relationship, don't you? Would you rather strain one on earth or would you rather strain it in eternity?

I think I'd rather strain it on earth. Every person you know that doesn't know Christ is not on their way to heaven, period. That's what the Bible teaches.

So what are you and I doing about it? If the Bible's true, that's the question we have to deal with. And I hope God will take this and God will burn it into your life and into your heart to the point that you'll see every contact with another human being as strategic because there's a soul hanging in the balance. Because if we in this one church, if we in this one church family got serious about these truths and went out into this community with the passion that the early church went out with, we'd turn this community upside down. Do we really believe the Word of God or don't we?

And if we do, what are we going to do about it? That's the question. May God help you give the right answer. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, in a world such as ours that moves every witch away, we need a steady source of truth. We need an anchor for the soul.

We need some black and white truth we can hold onto. And I thank you for giving us that in the Bible. I thank you for authenticating the Bible through fulfilled prophecy so that there's no doubt in our mind that a supernatural God wrote it. And Father, I pray that you would convince people who came in here this morning not so sure of that.

Convince them that that's so. And even those of us who believe that with all of our heart, Lord, help us to really come to grips with the implications of this for our everyday living and the implications of this for our evangelism and reaching out to others. Help us, Lord Jesus, to live every day in a way that's consistent with what we say we believe as Christians. And we pray for people that we will be inviting this weekend, that as they come, hundreds and even thousands that don't know Christ, and as they hear the simple message of the Gospel presented, that you would open their hearts and remove their blindness and that we would see the Kingdom of God enlarged by hundreds of people this weekend. Thank you for giving us the privilege of being a part of this. Help us do our job, Lord, so you can do yours. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen.