Why You Can Trust Scripture

everything that we do as believers everything we do as a church is based upon a script that we follow and it's the bible it's the word of god this is the foundation of everything for us and this is the truth we live in a world that rejects the truth people are talking a lot about cancer culture that's been true of every generation since the fall because satan is a liar and the father of lies and a deceiver and his agents are disguised as angels of light but in reality they are demons of deception the world has always been filled with deception in fact it's so normal that in john 8 jesus said this because i speak the truth you do not believe me you're so hardwired in your sin and fallen fallenness you're so much a child of satan that because i speak the truth you do not believe me he also said he who is of god hears the words of god for this is the reason you do not hear them because you're not of god that is a diagnosis of why there is so much deception in the world you're not of god you're of your father the devil who is a liar he says in the same passage earlier in john 8 jesus said this if you continue in my word then you are truly disciples of mine and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free free from what from deception and all that deception accomplishes the truth he says is my word if you believe my word you know the truth if you don't believe my word it's because you don't know me and you can't believe the truth what an amazing pathology of the human condition so we live in a world that denies truth absolute truth no fixed standards for life are very offensive formulas when a christian steps in and says wait a minute there is truth there is absolute truth there is fixed there are moral laws there is spiritual reality because the dominant world view runs completely contrary to the truth how do we approach that well it shouldn't be too much of a challenge although in our society it's playing out that way you could start with the physical world everything in the material world everything in the physical world operates on absolute fixed laws violating those laws has consequences sometimes very destructive consequences sometimes deadly consequences that is to say that the physical universe operates on an incomprehensible set of systems astrological geological biological mathematical and all those laws are fixed i was reading this week about saudi arabia where they are erecting what is to be the tallest building in the world it's called the jeddah tower it will have 167 floors it is six tenths of a mile high over half a mile high the design of that has to compensate for the movement of the ground the wind the air and all the massive complexity of weight and density in a building over half a mile high they're on the way to building it it'll be four stories higher than another building that's already finished that's 163 floors up they have to design the structure so that the wind doesn't blow it over strong winds can't blow it over they have to design it with flexibility so it can move they have to design it to bear all the complexity of the weight and all the systems it contains they do that with amazing engineering based on fixed laws if there was any question about the absolute nature of those laws the whole thing would crumble this is consistent with the material world everything in the material world is regulated and controlled by fixed laws and you really can't not get beyond those laws like to use the illustration of gravity you may not believe in gravity jump off a building you won't go up and the complexity and the staggering reality of the universe is beyond stunning and i'll illustrate that to you you're all wonderfully comfortable sitting here this morning sitting in one place but i have news for you right now you are 1.6 million miles from where you were yesterday did you hear that you say well i was in indiana yesterday no you were 1.6 million miles from where you are today why because you are moving through the universe that fast let me tell you how it works the earth spins a 24 degree tilt on its axis perfectly designed so that we get the seasons which causes things to grow which then feeds the people but the earth is spinning at a thousand miles an hour right now we're all spinning at a thousand miles an hour and not just that but our earth has an orbit and that orbit moving us around the sun is going 67 000 miles an hour so you're not only spinning at a thousand you're moving forward at 67 000 miles per hour oh by the way our sun and our solar system is part of a long orbit in fact our solar system is being dragged through space this is the sun and everything going around it at 490 000 miles per hour so you're spinning at a thousand moving at 67 000 within this solar system and in the big scheme you're going almost half a million miles an hour across space and all the galaxies in our neighborhood are moving with us and uh nasa says we're moving toward the great attractor when the world is a great attractor it's a region of space and they say it's 150 million light years away 150 million light years away one light year is 6 trillion miles and they know it's out there and they say the mass of the great attractor is a mass of 100 quintillion times greater than the sun it has a span of 500 million light years it is made of visible material and stretches to the edge of infinite darkness and all of that is moving you can't even calculate how fast you're going by the way if you want to look at it another way we are going 250 miles per second in the direction of a collision with the constellation leo now the solar system going at almost half a million miles an hour is in an orbit that will take 230 billion years to complete because it goes around the milky way i know your question how is it we're sitting still because you're moving at exactly the same speed what kind of genius figured that out moving at exactly the same speed and guess what the atmosphere has to move at the exact same speed people say well we we need to get control of the climate oh really yesterday you were 1.6 million miles away from where you are today i mean have a little confidence but that's ridiculous this massive staggering reality is presented to us in psalm 19 in these words the heavens are telling of the glory of god and their expanse is declaring the work of his hands the vastness of it he's the only explanation day-to-day pours forth speech night to night reveals knowledge just the day and the night and all that is revealed in the motion of all these heavenly beings heavenly material forces and objects communicates the vastness of god and his glory there's no speech they're not talking to us there are no words their voice is not heard but their line has gone out through all the earth and their utterances to the end of the world in them he has placed a tent for the sun which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber it rejoices as a strong man to run his course the sun runs a course the sun has an orbit which i just described as dragging our solar system around the milky way the sun is like a strong man running a course his rising is from one end of the heavens to the other end of them and there's nothing hidden from its heat the sun is on a course to go through the heavens in a massive orbit that's what the bible says that's scientifically accurate the atmosphere has to go with us as i said so if you want to worry about something worry about that nasa says the ultimate biohazard the apocalyptic biohazard is the earth stops spinning so that could be a reality since no one knows why it is spinning but if it stopped spinning says nasa instantaneously the atmosphere would keep moving and it would rip everything off the surface of the earth it would strip it down to absolutely nothing and it would take with it the magnetic field which protects it from the sun and the earth would be instantaneously incinerated so if you want to worry about something don't worry when the temperature goes up one degree worry about whether the earth slows down the bible understands this listen to the words of peter in 2nd peter 3 7. but by his word god's word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire you can't preserve the planet one second past god's determined time to burn it up by his word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men do not let this one fact escape your notice beloved that with the lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day he says that because people would say well god hasn't done anything yet and years have passed yeah well a thousand years is one day and as far as the lord's concerned what's he waiting for verse 9 the lord is not slow about his promise as some count slowness but is patient toward you not wishing for any to perish but all to come to repentance why has he not already burned up the earth why has he not already stopped it spinning have everything fly off this thing and then be incinerated by the sun because not everybody that he has called has come to repentance yet but verse 10 says the day of the lord will come like a thief in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat and the earth and its works will be burned up that is exactly the fear that is articulated in the ultimate apocalyptic biohazard of nasa an incinerated earth verse 11 peter adds since all these things are to be destroyed in this way what sort of people want you to be in holy conduct and godliness looking for and hastening the coming of the day of god because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning and the elements will melt with intense heat but according to his promise we're looking for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells what kind of power is god that he could create this massive universe spinning and whirling and flying through space with trillions of other heavenly bodies all in perfectly ordered orbits what kind of god is the creator and what kind of god would wipe it all out could destroy it faster than he created it that's a god of amazing power and that's a god of amazing righteousness why would god destroy the world because of its unrighteousness what i'm saying to you is everything in the world is based on fixed laws and god will destroy the creation not because something about the inanimate creation displeased him because when he created it he said it's good but what happened was sin came into the world and that has tarnished his creation and it is headed for destruction so if you want to worry about something worry about that you say well what can i do about that absolutely nothing but you can be prepared for that what kind of person should you be knowing this is coming so here's the point all the laws of the material world are absolute they're fixed they're inviolable they have to be that's why you can build a skyscraper that's why you can fly in an airplane you can do all these scientific things because there are fixed laws you know that that's why you have warning systems in your car and seat belts and airbags because we understand the deadliness of violating physical laws in the material world and the same thing should be true of us as we contemplate the spiritual and moral world and by the way colossians 1 17 says that the lord himself holds all things together in him all things are held together all things consist what is the power that keeps everything spinning at exactly the correct speed everything moving through its orbit everything functioning the way it does day and night the seasons and everything else who what is the power that holds it all together it's never been discovered it hasn't been discovered we know who it is it's it's the lord he holds all things together by [Music] the word of his power hebrews 1. so we live in a physical world that is ruled by absolutely fixed laws people fight against that why because the implications are divine and terrifying if the creator has basically told us that this is a flawed universe and he's going to destroy it and everything in it and given us an illustration namely the noahic flood then we know he cares about more than just the physical world because the last time he destroyed it wasn't something wrong with the physical world it was the moral world moral law is equally fixed let me prove it to you here's moral law number one whoever sins against god's law dies moral law number one nobody escapes it's appointed unto men once to die after this the judgment you can't argue with that the bible says the soul that sins will die ezekiel 18. the wages of sin is death romans 6 the book of hebrews it's appointed unto men once to die everybody dies why do we die because we violate the law of god the wages of sin is death in the day you eat of the fruit you die you are headed toward death and that's enough proof of moral law being absolute in the universe you can't escape the creator wrote the physical and moral laws into the fabric of his creation and no one escapes in fact the two are brought together in the illustration of galatians 6 7 whatever you sow you what you reap and that's true agriculturally but but that agricultural statement is merely a metaphor for the reality that when you break god's moral laws or spiritual laws you're going to reap death so to avoid the deadly destruction of breaking the creator's laws you should ask this question where do i go to find out what his laws are i need to keep them where do i find out his laws and the answer is in the bible because the creator who established all the fixed laws that run the cosmos has given us his laws in the bible say oh really how do we know the bible is true how do we know the bible is where the laws are and that's the big question really is and so i want to give you five ways this morning that you can know the bible is true because this is the most important thing there is you have to know the laws of god and you have to find out if the one who made the laws and who passed the death sentence spiritual death and even eternal death provides any escape but first you have to know his laws so how do we know the bible is the word of god a lot of things claim to be from god from god's deities let me give you five evidences that the bible is the word of god number one experience experience you're here why are you here why do you do this why did you sing with all joy this morning the psalms and songs of praise to christ why does your heart elevate and your mind be filled with joy a sense of peace when you hear the magnificent music gives honor to christ because that's your language your love language is is the gospel and all its truths why is that because second corinthians 5 17 says this if anyone is in christ he's a new what creature okay you've been transformed you've been born again you've been regenerated that's what the bible says the bible says believe and you'll pass out of ignorance into truth you'll pass out of death into life you'll pass out of sorrow into joy you'll pass out of lies into truth and that's exactly what happens every single one of you that can give a testimony of your conversion can say this is what i was and i'm not that anymore you can say in romans 6 i used to be a slave of unrighteousness now i'm a slave of righteousness you could say the things i used to love i don't love the things i used to hate i don't hate anymore in fact i love what i used to hate and i hate what i used to love some things dramatically change salvation comes through faith in jesus christ and you become a new creation in fact titus 2 14 says you're such a new creation that all of a sudden you're zealous for good works the law of god is not abusive to you the the law of god like paul said is holy just and good and with all your heart you want to keep god's law because you love him something dramatic has changed ezekiel 36 says you have a new heart you have a new spirit within you and you walk in obedience to god's laws you cannot argue that because the history of god's redemptive work in the world is the history of totally transforming people just look at the apostle paul a blasphemer a murderer who becomes a lover of the very one he sought to persecute you have because you've come to christ new loves new affections new attitudes new goals new objectives you have new attitudes you have new power against sin you you have wisdom you never had before you have a new reason to live a new message to proclaim you have joy you have peace that's the power of the transforming gospel and it does exactly what the bible says it will do transforms you from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of god's dear son and when you start stacking up the millions of people through redemptive history whom god has saved you they have their influence not only in their own little sphere of family and friends their collective influence in the church begins to change society and all the great advancements philanthropically all the great advancements in terms of caring for people and loving neighbors really reflect the advancement of christianity with its transformed population who i want to reach out to the world around them that is trapped in sin and show them compassion and the love of god christianity has made a difference in the world not just in your life this is a very acceptable evidence of the authenticity of the bible you are to let your light so shine jesus said in the sermon on the mount and paul said you shine as lights in the world this corrupt and dark world philippians 2. yes you can say the bible is true because i believed its truth and my life was completely changed but that can be a bit subjective and it's correct to say that the bible should be true if you didn't experience it fair enough it has to be objectively true not just subjectively true even the subjectivity even though the subjectivity of it is massive throughout all of human history still scripture truth should be true whether you experienced it or not and after all there are muslims who believe their life was changed by islam they're so convinced that they'll actually give themselves up as martyrs there are hindus and buddhists and taoists and every other religion people who have experienced something demonic deception for sure people in cults who have experiences people in false forms of christianity who have experiences and they're not valid and they're deceptive so there has to be something more objective so let's turn to a second thing experience is a way you can see the trustworthiness of scripture but number two let's just talk about i hate to use the word science but that's what we'll say better to say reality but let's say science let's if we define science as correspondence to reality science is just a word that means knowledge so if we go to the bible we only need to ask this question at this point does the bible reflect an understanding of reality did you get that does the bible reflect an understanding of the way things actually are well let me help you with that the first reality is this the universe exists that's the reality the universe exists that's a reality we even know the elements of the universe time force action space and matter everything can fit into those five herbert spencer laid that out back in the early 20th century everything in the created universe is time force action space and matter those are the categories of the material universe the universe exists and oh by the way genesis 1 1 tells you all five of those in the beginning that's time god that's force created that's action the heavens that space and the earth that's matter first verse in the bible that corresponds to reality the second reality is this it was created by a power greater than itself you can't you you can't possibly believe it's insanity that the greatness and vastness of this universe from the macro to the micro and you have 30 trillion cells little machines in your body alone you can't believe everything from the micro to the macro rose from something less than it is it had to come from a source that's more than it is so the first reality is the universe exists the second reality is it had to be created by a power greater than it is the third reality is that power had to be a person because we are persons it had to be a power greater than the sum of the creation and it had to be a person or not you're saying well you have another option material is eternal that would that would gag you for a long time material is eternal inanimate material without any information is eternal and out of inanimate material the entire universe came to be that's the ultimate absurdity that a universe can be created by something less than it is so there is the universe there had to be a creator who is greater than it he had to be a person because we are persons then he knows everything about his creation he does he knows the earth is spherical he knows the earth is turning on it axis at 24 degrees he knows it is suspended in space he knows that it is sweeping through space in an orbit as well as rotation he knows that is attached to the sun which is running from one end of heaven to the other and dragging the solar system with it he knows the stars he knows the galaxies he knows the staggering reaches of space he knows the cycles of air and water he knows chemistry biology mathematics energy atomic structure he has to know all that because he made it all so if he wrote a book if the creator wrote a book it would reflect this knowledge whoever is intelligent and powerful enough to design create and sustain the incalculable complexity of the universe and everything in it is certainly intelligent enough to write a book and that book could be relatively simple enough for us to understand and it would be logical comprehensible consistent and true to fact if the creator wrote a book it would be true to what we can observe it would be true if it said god made them male and female is that true oh that's the truth that's being denied but that's that's absurd that's true the creator of this universe would never say this the moon is 50 000 leagues higher than the sun and has its own light the earth is flat and triangular composed of seven stages one of honey one of sugar one of butter one of wine and the earth sits on the heads of countless elephants who produce earthquakes when they shake that's what the hindu holy writing says well that eliminates that religion we just wiped that out with one quote whoever's revealing the hindu religion isn't the creator the hindu upanishad says this quote the sun is the source of all energy in the universe absurd we can check with the taoists in their holy book it says this quote there are only 13 members of the body through which death can come end quote whatever that means it's certainly not true we can set the taoists aside how about the buddhists earthquakes are caused by wind moving water and water moving the land wrong we just eliminated hinduism taoism and buddhism in three minutes the creator didn't write their books the book of mormon quote from second nephi two adam fell that men might have joy really adam fell that men might have joy i don't think so and by the way the book of mormon alma chapter 7 verse 10 says jesus would be born in jerusalem nice try he was born in bethlehem christian science science and health and key to the scriptures chapter 14 page 1 page 475 says man is not made of brain blood bones and other material elements and man is incapable of sin sickness and death end quote well that's that's enough of that i mean what i'm trying to say to you is false religion discloses itself because what it says doesn't correspond to reality divine and holy revelation that is historically accurate morally historically inaccurate suppose a divine revelation that is historically inaccurate morally inferior spiritually muddled scientifically wrong doesn't come from the creator the true god the true creator knows his creation and he is by the way not only a genius beyond imagination but he is a communication genius because he spoke it all into existence everything does what it does because it has been given information and it operates by information what causes the earth to spin what causes it to go into orbit why does it stay in orbit the whole of the universe depends on information information controls absolutely everything that has to come from some place it has to come from the creator so if he wrote a book he would get the information right you know recently the the grand omission of a past science has been discovered and that is information we we now understand that everything operates by information the old idea that more complex organisms came from simple organisms more complex machines came from simpler machines has been proven to be impossible despite massive efforts science can never demonstrate that you can have something simple become complex or something spontaneously occur that re-engineers an operating entity without any external information information doesn't arise spontaneously when something changes it mutates and that's always a degrading reality because everything runs on this amazing set of laws we know god is an infinite communicator and has embedded his laws in everything he made materials cannot be aggregated they cannot aggregate themselves to hold design [Music] silicone and copper don't create a tv they can hold the concept of a tv tv but they don't create the tv has to be exogenous or external information applied to the materials all information is exogenous to the matter that holds it it exists as a separate entity that can be applied to matter so where does all this massive universe full of information come from no cellulose lying around by itself organized into a newspaper cut itself into shape produced purified ink self applied the ink into meaningful symbols that give you the latest sports scores and stock prices every living thing is a complicated machine operated on information you have 30 trillion cells in your body 200 different kinds von neumann the scientists talking about cells as a machine said supremely complex capable of reproduction growth survival self-diagnosis self-repairing with a complex cellular communication and information storage and retrieval system and you got 30 trillion of those little machines in you evolutionists are quick to say enough time and things happen foolishness information does not self-originate or self-assemble there has to be a source of information and we would think that if we're going to say god is the source that he would get things right we have to go back to an intelligent person who can communicate and that's why in genesis it says he created by speaking god said let there be light and that's why in john 1 1 when it introduces us to the son of god he is the word and he made everything that is made and without him was nothing made that was made everything has to be spoken into existence from an intelligent mind and when god speaks he gets it right let me show you some quick illustrations the bible says in isaiah 40 26 that it is god who creates the universe and it says he holds the stars together by his power and not one of them is missing that verse suggests to us the first law of thermodynamic that nothing is ever destroyed did you get that nothing is ever destroyed ecclesiastes 110 is there anything of which one might say see this it is new and the answer follows already it has existed for ages which were before us there's nothing new everything god created still exists ancient writers of the bible thousands of years before the laws of thermodynamics have been categorically stated were affirming the conservation of mass and energy nothing is ever lost second law of thermodynamics says that things are breaking down they go from order to disorder the order they go from cosmos to chaos from system to non-system they are cursed they're going the opposite way the evolutionists want you to believe the day is going to come when god stops that disorder creates a new heaven and a new earth think about water there are 332.5 million cubic miles of water on the earth it's a lot of water one cubic mile equals 1.12 trillion gallons 96.5 percent of the water on the earth is in the ocean 71 percent of the earth's surface is covered by water fresh water is just 3 percent and of the three percent of fresh water on the earth only one percent is flowing in rivers and streams the other two percent of the fresh water is in polar ice caps and glaciers so we're drinking the one percent and how is it that the water is always available because the water that the lord created when he created water is exactly the same amount today as it was then what's it doing it's going through the hydrological cycle it goes from evaporation to condensation to precipitation that's the cycle clouds move over the land drop water through precipitation the rain runs into the creeks the creeks run into the streams the streams run into the sea evaporation process takes place all the way along the path including from the sea listen to what ecclesiastes 1 and isaiah 55 say all the rivers flow into the sea yet the sea is not full to the place where the rivers flow there they flow again listen to isaiah 55 10 for the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there without watering the earth it comes down it returns after it's watered the earth job 36 speaks of evaporation and condensation god draws up the drops of water they distill rain from the mist which the clouds pour down they drip upon men abundantly the creator knows the cycle of water it was the 1500s when copernicus first presented the idea that the earth was in motion around that time when galileo and kepler gave birth to modern astronomy at the time they thought there were a thousand stars well if they read genesis they'd know better than that the creator who wrote genesis says this i will multiply your seed as the stars of heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore god wanted to tell you how many stars there are he said try counting sand on all the seashore jeremiah 33 22 god is speaking as the host of heaven cannot be counted and the sand of the sea cannot be measured the sand and the stars are compared to each other scientists are telling us these days there are trillions upon trillions of galaxies the creator knew that his book told us he knew that job one of the oldest books in the bible job 26 7 says he hangs the earth on nothing he hangs the earth on nothing he hangs the earth on nothing the creator of course the creator knows that oh by the way in the same book chapter 38 verse 14 it says he turns the earth like the clay to the seal if you uh go back into ancient times they they had clay and they would make a contract in clay and then they would put their signature down and they did that by having like a rolling pin with a raised signature and they would roll it across the soft clay and it would embed the signature and job is saying like you turn a rolling pin so the earth moves on its axis it is turned like clay to the seal isaiah 40 verse 22 speaks of the circle of the earth the clue of the earth it's round it's not flat the science of isostasy if you try to roll a ball that's not round you know what it does you wouldn't want to be on an earth like that you wouldn't be we'd all have some kind of permanent twitch so isaiah 40 verse 12 says god has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand marked off the heavens by the span calculated the dust of the earth by the measure weighed the mountains in a balance and the hills in a pair of scales so he knows how to make this thing spin perfectly balancing everything no this this this this creator he knows reality so how do we know the bible is true experience science just quickly third is miracles if you want a book by god it should be filled with things that god does supernaturally that's how he reveals himself and you have miracles all through the bible flourishing in the ministry of our lord jesus christ miracles are god stepping into the natural world and stopping the natural process and overriding it with his divine power the miracles need to be visible with many eyewitnesses and you have that concerning the miracles of the bible you have it during the life of our lord it is miracles before the whole population of israel so you you want a book that demonstrates that god is acting miraculously and there are many eyewitnesses who can validate it that's why we have the four gospel account and all the rest of the new testament john says we've seen with our own eyes the miracles the fourth line of evidence for the bible's trustworthiness is prophecy prophecy isaiah 41 god says you're trying to tell me you're god you you want to tell me you have a different god than me here's here's my question listen to isaiah 41 and verse 21. present your case present your case for your god bring forward your strong arguments the king of jacob says let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place oh yeah predict the future do that predict the future declare the things that are going to come afterward that we may know you are gods if you can't tell the future you're not god the bible is loaded with prophecies historic prophecies given in the old testament fulfilled in the old testament given in the new testament fulfilled in the new testament fulfilled in the first coming of christ peter stoner wrote a book called science speaks years ago he took just eight old testament prophecies that related to christ put them all together he was a mathematical probability guy and this is what he said he took eight miracles with their component elements and said these were prophecies that basically are given and we can see the fulfillment historically in the old testament and some in the case of christ he said this happening by chance just eight of these prophecies with their components he said this would be the probability of that happening by chance here's a paragraph from his book take 10 to the 17th power silver dollars and lay them on the face of texas they will cover all the state of texas two feet deep okay now you got it visualize that the state of texas two feet deep in silver dollars mark one of those silver dollars and then stir the whole mass give a blind man one pick you'll have the same chance as these things coming to pass by coincidence you look at the bible and look at the prophecies god promised to destroy tyre he destroyed it in detail and many other prophecies but let's come to the ultimate proof jesus christ this is the top we go from experience to science to miracles to prophecy fulfilled prophecy god can because he's god do miracles interrupt this natural order god can and god alone can predict the future but the greatest proof of scripture is christ there's never been anyone like him he is not a human invention the old testament declares that the messiah would come the mediator the reconciler the redeemer the savior the servant the branch the great prophet and the old testament says he would be a man without a human father seed of the woman he would come in the line of seth and abraham and isaac and jacob and david he would be virgin born he'd be born in bethlehem he would arrive 483 years after the decree of artaxerxes he would be preceded by a prophet and a herald he would speak god's word he would be a worker of miracles he would enter jerusalem on the cult of a donkey he would be a slave of jehovah doing his will he would be anointed by the holy spirit he would be rejected he would be despised he would suffer crucifixion he would be nailed he would be pierced he would rise from the dead he would become a light to the jews and the nations for salvation he would be exalted as king all that prophesied who was jesus who was the direct descendant of king david it was him whose public ministry began approximately 483 years after the babylonian captivity he was born in bethlehem born of a virgin claimed to be the son of god preceded by the powerful preaching of john the baptist the forerunner renowned for wisdom teaching power righteousness he performed miracles he entered jerusalem on the back of a donkey he was scourged beaten spit on pierced abhorred despised tortured killed executed by crucifixion his feet were pierced he was numbered with criminals he died for the sins of the world buried in a rich man's tomb his clothing was distributed by the casting of lots he was later raised from the dead he ascended into glory and jesus fulfilled all of that and jesus himself in luke's gospel looks back at the old testament in chapter 24 and he says it really is all about me verse 25 he said o foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken was it not necessary for the christ to suffer these things and who enter into his glory then beginning with moses and with all the prophets he explained to them the things concerning himself in all the scriptures and later in that chapter it says he opened their minds to understand the scriptures and to understand the scriptures were about him that he would suffer and rise again and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in his name to all the the nation the great capstone of evidence for the scriptures truthfulness is none other than jesus christ the most important thing about him is this you want to know this about god the god who made all these laws and made all these rules and built in all these terrible consequences has he provided a way for us to escape we're all going to die can we escape the answer is yes jesus said this because i live what you shall live also he conquered death that we might rise to eternal life here's the good news the law giver is a forgiver is a life giver father we thank you for our time and your truth this morning so much more to be said but thank you for enriching us with it and now we come to your table with eager hearts be honored as we worship you in taking these simple elements that remind us of our savior's death on our behalf

Channel: Grace to You

Views: 555,054

Keywords: John MacArthur, Bible, Preaching, Christianity, Expository, Exposition, Sermon, Jesus, Christ, Grace to You

Id: VILPlRcmfXc

Length: 63min 25sec (3805 seconds)

Published: Fri Sep 09 2022