December 10, 2006

Cawson St. Church of Christ

Hopewell, Virginia

Mural Worthey

 

The Gospel’s Talking Points--#2

 

Introduction: The Kingdom of God is greater than Satan’s kingdom

 

“Praying always . . . for me that utterance may be given unto me that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds; that therefore I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”  (Eph. 6:19-20.)

 

“We also believe; therefore, we speak.”  (2 Cor. 4:13.)  The Bible speaks often of what we should teach or speak.  We are presenting today the key “talking points” of the Gospel.  Not only do we have positive points to make known to lost men, but we must answer the objections of those who oppose Christianity.  We must stop the mouths of gainsayers.  Jesus promised the apostles that he would give them His Spirit when they were called before kings and rulers for his sake.  “For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay or resist.”  (Luke 21:15.)

 

Bishops are told to hold fast the faithful word that they may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and convince the gainsayers. For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not.”  (Titus 1:9-10.)  There are others who make known their talking points.  They are called vain talkers.

 

Jesus cast out demons.  This morning we compared the Kingdom of Christ’s message to the message of the Gentile kingdoms.  (Matt. 20:20-28.)  But there is another more dangerous kingdom than the kingdoms of men.  It is the kingdom of Satan.  Jesus was once accused of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub, the prince of demons.  Jesus argued that they were illogical.  If a kingdom is divided against itself, it cannot stand.  “And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand?”  (Matt. 12:24-26.)  Jesus added, “But I cast out demons by the power of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.”  (12:28.)  Jesus contrasted the kingdom of Satan and the Kingdom of God.  So must we contrast them and make known the glory of the Kingdom of God over the kingdom of Satan.

 

If so, what are our talking points?  How shall we go about making the distinction clear and refute the message of Satan’s kingdom? We just made known one example from Matthew 12.  The accusation was not that Jesus was not casting our demons, but only by what power.  The demons knew who Jesus was and they knew that they were being cast out.  Jesus answered them powerfully by saying that a kingdom does not seek to destroy itself.  Would Satan war against himself?  Then Jesus said, If I cast out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God is near to you.  Why did Jesus perform miracles, calm the Sea, heal the sick and cast out demons?  He did so to show his power over nature, over diseases, and over the demonic powers of Satan.  One major talking point is that Jesus defeated the powers of Satan during his ministry, life, death and resurrection.  This is a major part of the Gospel of Christ that we must make known.  The kingdom of Satan has been defeated.

 

Satan: “You shall not surely die!” (Gen. 3:4.)

 

One of the major appearances of Satan in Scripture, confronting God, is found early in the Bible.  God told Adam and Eve, “In the day that you eat thereof, you shall surely die.”  (Gen. 2:17.)  Satan told the couple, “You shall not surely die, but you will be like God.”  (Gen. 3:4-5.)  Satan was wrong on both counts.  Man has been dying ever since the day Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden.  And we did not become as gods; man became more like devils!

 

Jesus told the Pharisees that “they were of their father the Devil.  When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own; for he is a liar and the father of it.  And because I tell you the truth, you believe me not.”  (John 8:44-45.)  We can check out what God said and what Satan said and see which one told the truth.  In the Garden, God told the truth; Satan lied to man.  Man has believed Satan throughout history.  It seems that we enjoy lies.  It is comforting to be told that disobedience is alright; that there are no consequences to one’s behavior; that right is really wrong and wrong is right.  Isaiah said, Woe to those who talk like that.  (Isa. 5:20-21.)

Satan: “Job will curse you!”  (Job 1:11.)

 

Satan appears again in Scripture at the beginning of Job.  In the discussion between Satan and God, Satan said that man serves God only for what he gets out of the relationship.  If God were to remove his blessings from Job, Job would curse God to his face.  Satan was proved wrong again.  Job did not curse God, though his wife encouraged him to curse God and die. She felt that this would quickly get him out of his misery.

 

Satan must have winced when Job said, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust him.”  (Job 13:15.)  This proved that Satan was dead wrong.

 

Job was blessed with a great deal more than most men, yet Satan was wrong about why men serve God.  Man trusts God because he has come to believe in God through the Word that produces faith.  (Rom. 10:17.)  We serve Him through it all.  I have seen people lose an infant, three year-old child, nine year-old child, and a mate.  Yet they keep right on with their faith in God.  If anything, their faith in God increased.  Larry King repeatedly asks people who have suffered adversity, don’t you ask why?  Does it trouble your faith?  Every time the answer comes, “No, not at all.”

 

Satan was also the source of the false notion that innocent people should not suffer adversity in life.  It was commonly believed even to Jesus’ day.  This is what caused Job and his friends the most difficulty.  When I do right, why do I suffer?  Christians now know that Jesus was an innocent-sufferer.  In fact, he was the most innocent person who ever suffered.

 

Satan: “Jesus will sin!”  (Matthew 4.)

 

The temptation of Jesus in the wilderness is another rare speaking appearance of Satan in Scripture.  It is another presentation of the talking points of Satan in the promotion of his kingdom.  Though said in so many words, these four temptations against Jesus really said, Jesus will sin after I finish with him.  Jesus was weak physically because he had fasted for forty days. But even in the most vulnerable condition, Jesus did not sin.  This is an important record in the Bible because if Jesus had sinned even once, he could not have been our Savior.  Sinners cannot save sinners.  This episode showed the superiority of Jesus over Satan.  Satan was wrong again.

Men usually sin when tempted often enough and under difficult circumstances.  But Jesus did not sin even when facing the difficult trial of the cross.  He did not seek revenge upon those who crucified him.  He rather said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”  If he did not curse under his breath then, when would Jesus have sinned?

 

This is one of our important “talking points” of truth concerning the Gospel.  Jesus did no sin.  It is stated in Romans 5:18, 2 Cor. 5:21, Heb. 4:15, 1 Peter 2:22, 1 John 3:5.  We must believe and speak what the eye-witnesses said about the sinless life of Jesus Christ.  Those who lived around Jesus knew him personally.  What audacity for a mere man to claim sinlessness in the company of those who knew him well.  (John 8:46.)  The whole Gospel is built upon this truth.  If Jesus sinned, he cannot be our Savior.  If he lived above sin, he was not just a man, but he is the Son of God.

 

Satan: “The Universe Just Happened”

 

“The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows his handiwork.  Day unto day utters speech; night unto night shows knowledge. There is no speech nor language where there voice is not heard.  Their line goes out to all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.”  (Psalm 19:1-4.)

 

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things are made, even his eternal power and godhead; so that they are without excuse.”  (Rom. 1:20.)

 

No where do you find in the Scriptures an effort by Satan to explain the universe by some natural means.  The theory of evolution did not begin with Charles Darwin and The Origin of Species, Nov. 1859.  Some forms of it have existed for centuries dating back to the Greeks (700 BC) and to ancient Hindus and Chinese.  Evolution in all its forms has a long and checkered history; many old theories have been discarded along the way.

 

We should remember that all of the doctrines of evolution have to begin with some matter already in existence.  Before one gets lost in all the technicalities of the scientific method, it is good to remember that evolution seeks only to explain that things often change from one form to another.  It does not try to explain the origin of the first molecule.  In putting all the theories of evolution together into a General Theory of Evolution, we could describe it “as molecule to man,” or inorganic to organic evolution.

 

I found it interesting that the scientists discussing life on Mars were not satisfied to find inorganic particles there, but they were looking for organic, biological forms of life.  It seems that they now want to begin with organic matter to have any real hope of evolution occurring.

 

Recently in the news, a scientist said that he thought it is possible to start a new universe with an original germ similar to that which produced this universe in which we now live.  They have not yet figured out the origin of this universe and they are talking about starting a brand new one!  Don’t you think it is a bit dangerous to have another universe growing inside this one??  Won’t the second one destroy the first one?

 

Evolutionists have gone from the theory of smooth, gradual changes over millions of years to abrupt changes in forms.  They have decided that natural selection cannot explain the process, neither do genetic mutations.  What causes a species to jump from a lower form to a much improved life form?  Dr. Goldschmidt proposed the notion of “hopeful monsters!”  Even Dr. Stephen J. Gould of Harvard supported his postulate.  Gould’s article was titled “The Return of the Hopeful Monsters.”  (See Thompson’s History of Evolutionary Thought, 181-82.)  We have a much better message.

 

No one has ever improved upon the words: “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.”  (Gen. 1:1.)  “The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows his handiwork.”  (Psalm 19:1.)  The conflict comes down to this: “In the beginning was matter,” or, “In the beginning, God.”