Zeitgeist

There is a battle for Truth today. Pilate asked, "What is truth", in John 18:38. That question still resonates. The John Thomas Scopes trial ran from July 10-July 21, 1925, and though Scopes was found guilty of teaching Evolution, which was against the law at the time, and ordered to pay a $100 fine, the trial was more of a stage. What was really on trial was the fundamental Christian beliefs of Creation versus Science. Attorneys argued that there should be a separation of Church and State and since schools are funded by the State, then they shouldn't be teaching fundamental Christian beliefs.

The consequence for that trial has been that Evolution has been taught in our school systems and colleges for nearly 100 years. The predominant curriculums today teach that Evolution is a fact, and not just an alternative belief to Creation.

Cultural Norms

We tell our children that Santa, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy are real and then expect our children to decipher the difference between the Gospel and fairy tales. We've created a paradox within our culture that now questions everything and lacks a foundational Truth spectrum through which to accurately view God, Creation and our world. I'm not condemning anyone that plays the Santa game; I did it with my children when they were young, but looking back, I wish I hadn't. Santa has godlike qualities, he's benevolent and magically travels to every child's home across the world in one night. He also judges between "naughty" and "nice" children. Personally, I wish I had taught my children that Santa was a "game" we play, and not try to convince them that he was real. I should have read the Word to them more. That should have been the priority in my home, not the American Tradition of Santa or other "traditions".

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (NIV Emphasis Added)

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

These words I am commanding you today are to be upon your hearts. And you shall teach them diligently to your children and speak of them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.

Our job as men is to hold fast to the Word of God and pass it onto our children. There are plenty of competing voices for "Truth" in the world, today. The world will tell you that there are more than two binary sexes, the world denies that there is a God, or if they admit to His existence, they diminish Him, His Creation and they deny the deity of Jesus. You must decide what you believe. You must decide what Truth you pass onto your children. After taking inventory, I decided that what I knew about God was Truth.

There is one God and He loves me.

God is holy. He cannot lie. He cannot sin.

Every Word of the Bible is True.

The Gospel of Jesus is True.

Jesus is the only way to heaven. There is no other way.

Heaven and Hell are real places.

We are eternal creations, and we will spend eternity in either Heaven or Hell.

We wrestle not against flesh and blood… (Ephesians 6:12)

God and Jesus is more powerful than all the powers of evil. Jesus has all authority on earth and in heaven.

God desires good things for me.

God is love. He loves me right where I am.

Jesus died for all my sin. There is nothing that He left undone when He gave His life for me. ALL my sins are forgiven, both past, present and future.

There is a purpose to my life. My existence isn't by accident.

The paramount purpose of my life is to help build God's eternal Kingdom.

God has equipped me with talent and skills to help me fulfill that purpose.

Everything bad that has ever happened to me wasn't God's design. Anger at God is misdirected anger.

The fulcrum of the Gospel of Christ is forgiveness. I play a part in that in that I must ask for and receive forgiveness from God.

My required response to the forgiveness God has given to me is to forgive others.

What others may have meant for harm God can use for good.

The Holy Spirit is my teacher, my guide, my counselor, and my friend.

There are many truths that you could list out if you took the time. The above list is a short list, but a firm foundation to build a life upon. If we use these truths and use the Word of God as the litmus test for every motive, action, directive, and pursuit, then our lives will be calibrated to the will of God. We will not fall for the deception the world sets forth as truth. We will not pursue worthless things that will pass away. Our hearts will pant for eternity. Our lives will have purpose and meaning.

Here is a set of modern belief systems in which we must be cognizant. We aren't called to argue a person into heaven, but we are called to know the truth and be ready to share the good news that we have found in Christ. (1 Peter 3:15).

Postmodernism--I define truth. Each has his own truth. Your truth may not be my truth. Since I define truth, I therefore define God.

2018 Barna Survey

Only 17% of Adult Christians in the US believe that the Bible is the inherent Word of God.

28% of Christians believe in the "New Spirituality". All people pray to the same god or spirit, no matter what name they use for that spiritual being.

27% of people believe that meaning and purpose come from becoming one with all that is. (Pantheism)

32% believe that if you do good, you will receive good, if you do bad, you will receive bad.

The world is full of false religions, systems, ideologies, and beliefs. It is the plan of the enemy of our souls to confuse, to dilute and to turn people away from God. Why? Because Lucifer has denied God, rejecting Him and His goodness and mercy. The enemy cannot love because he has no part of God in him, for God is Love. When we think about the attributes of God, we can easily see that a creation that opposed God and has lost everything good that God originally gave to him is a depraved, hateful, scorned, and jealous creation. Lucifer is the opposite of God because God left him to his own depravity. When the gates finally close and Hell is sealed for eternity, all hope, all love, all joy, all peace, and every good and perfect gift that God has given will be removed from those in Hell and they'll be there for eternity without a trace of God. Not because God wants it that way, for it is His will that none should perish. (2 Peter 3:9). People will spend eternity in Hell because they've rejected God's grace, rejected the Gospel and Jesus and have decided to pay for their own sin.

We tend to resemble our parents, physically, but our personality and our traits tend to resemble those around us. If we adopt an infant from India and bring her to America, she won't speak Hindy unless you speak it. She won't dress the way they do in India; she will dress the way you do. She will acclimate to her surroundings and become a part of her culture. As the world denies God and moves away from Him, it will come to resemble Him less and less. As that occurs, people will be drawn to our salt and light. God's goodness should shine through His people. Our job is to be the hands and feet of Jesus and to be His reflection in a world that needs Him.

Zeitgeist Fear

There is a pervasive undercurrent of fear in the world today. Fear seems to be a driver of a great deal of human behavior, today. According to the National Institute of Health, 31.1% of Americans will have an anxiety episode sometime in their lives. Yet, Americans have a better per capita living standard than most people in the world, and there hasn't been a war fought on our soil since the Civil War. What is the driving force behind the fear and anxiety that seems so pervasive in our society, today? It's the lack of trust in God. Even Christians suffer from fear, but this shouldn't be the case. The words, "Do not fear" appear 365 times in the Bible. That's one for every day of the year! 2 Timothy 1:7 says, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." The Bible addresses fear and tells us not to be afraid. As Christians, we know how the world ends. We should take comfort in knowing the endgame, while we're still living it out.

Current Pervasive Fears

Famine

Asteroids Hitting the Earth

Nuclear Threat

Global Overpopulation

Global Warming

Natural Resource Depletion

Crime

Terrorism

Ozone Depletion

Wars

Natural Disasters

Economic Crash

End of America

End of the World

You may read this list and think, "Gee, thanks. I forgot what I was supposed to be worried about until you mentioned them!" We have a good Father that loves us, cares for us and provides for us. When we're in His will, nothing on this list should bother you. In fact, for God's children, there are promises we can run to! Psalm 37:18-19 (NKJV) says:

"The Lord knows the days of the upright, And their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

Furthermore, in Psalm 138:8, the Bible says, "The LORD will work out his plans for my life-- for your faithful love, O LORD, endures forever." God has a plan. Does that mean we won't suffer? Absolutely not. But it does mean that our suffering will not be in vain. Our suffering will be used to fulfill His purposes. Recall what we learned last week in Proverbs 12:21, which says that "No harm befalls the righteous…" (Berean Study Bible). The original Hebrew word for "harm" is Aven, which means, "no meaningless, purposeless affliction." God's purposes are going to be fulfilled and when we decide that we trust Him enough to allow His purpose to be fulfilled in our lives, we step into an eternal perspective. We understand that bad things will happen because we live in a fallen world, but these momentary and light troubles, as Paul describes them, aren't as painful, because our hope and our focus is on eternal things.

However, we shouldn't condemn or judge others for being afraid. It would be incredibly scary to live in a world where we had no hope. I can't imagine what they go through, not knowing or believing in God.

Question: Do I trust God with my future?

We have a foundation of Truth that we can build a life upon. Psalm 1:1-3 (BSB Emphasis Added) says:

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.

We shouldn't be afraid of the future. We shouldn't be afraid of the times in which we live for we were made for "such a time as this". Each and every one of us was specifically made for these days. God has a purpose for you and one of them is to share the hope that you have. So many people are afraid, today and you have the opportunity to share with them why you're at peace. I alluded to this verse earlier, but here we should take the time to memorize it:

1 Peter 3:15

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

The only way that someone would ask you why we have hope is if we demonstrate hope.

The Prophesy

I know when Jesus is coming back. He told us in His Word. Many people say they know, but I know for certain. We all actually play a part in WHEN Jesus will return. Here it is:

Matthew 24:14 (NIV, Emphasis Added)

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Sorry to disappoint you if you thought I was going to toss a date out there. I don't know the date or the time. No one does. I only know that my job and your job, if you'll take it on, is to spread the good news. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16 NKJV) God placed the desire to spread good news within you. We don't have to get coaxed to tell people about a great restaurant or movie; we shouldn't be ashamed to tell others about the hope that we have in Jesus.