Defending Truth

CNG radio for today's culture and timeless truths come together is reason relevant content apologetics worldview and answers to the questions that you need to know need to know from Alex McFarlane ministries. This is true for a new generation radio and now the man who preached in 50 states and 50 days, writer, and advocate for Christian apologetics Dr. Alex McFarlane. I'm sure you've heard the saying that the truth is stranger than fiction, the famous writer Mark twain said that the truth is more of a stranger than fiction about that welcomed the program Alex McFarlane to your glider with us on this edition of truth for a new generation radio on the last TNG radio.

We started an apologetics series and were talking about truth and truth has been defined as that which corresponds to reality those truth is why things really are.

The Bible has a lot to say about truth in John chapter 18 Pilate asked Jesus what is truth and of course Jesus is the personification of truth, truth incarnate, and you know in Proverbs 1 verse seven it says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. We live in a time a lot of people claim to be intelligent or smart or they claim to know things, but wisdom is not the same as mere data and knowledge is not the same thing as truth.

More than ever we need truth in God fortunately has revealed truth to the human race, and he's raised up an organization that is existed for 2000 years and are calling it our duty.

The church's responsibility.

Our assignment is to proclaim truth to this world's most fundamental, most primary truth is the truth of Jesus Christ and how to be saved to think about this. Just as a businessman would want to know the truth about the person he's conducting business with, or the potential employee that is being interviewed. People want to know truth about God's goodness. God has made truth knowable, accessible to all people through Jesus Christ. Truth is just not some amorphous vague idea that's abstract impossible to really know or attain the contemporary society would suggest this truth is a person. Truth is the person of Jesus Christ. John 14 verse six. Jesus said that he is the truth, not merely a truth but Jesus is the absolute and final truth and people need not search any farther or seek any other person, or other concepts or creeds. Truth is Jesus Christ. And God has given the human race. His truth the Lord Jesus now to summarize what we talked about last week and to really look at where we are going to go. Let's lay these things down anyone who claims that there are no absolute truths cannot really reasonably make an argument you know Christianity says God is real. The Bible is true. Jesus is authentic in the world often pushes back and says well here. There is no absolute truth applicable to all people of the war might say nobody really knows truth, but anyone who is denying the reality of truth is really committing themselves to a contradiction because essentially they're saying here's the truth. There is no truth so truth exist and we can know it like we have very often quoted Thomas Aquinas, who said if anything is true, then truth exists, while God's creation reveals truth creation had to have a creator.

The design had to have a designer laws come from a law giver and this is an orderly world full of design operating under certain very well defined laws and we can see the expense of creation even points to God. Our conscience reveals truth we know when we've done wrong and then Jesus Christ is truth and still in a lot of ways God has shown us that truth exists now. Would you believe some 10 times in the Bible the word of God tells the church to present and even defend truth very famously. First Peter 315 says that we are to be ready always to give an answer to everyone who asks. The reason for the hope that we have and you know the early church was very, very committed to defending the faith. In fact, I think, much more so than we are today. Seems like the early church was willing to call out false doctrines. Nothing about this. Within the pages of the New Testament part of the reason I bring this out is because nowadays many Christians are reticent to say that anything is wrong or false, and even ministers even preachers very often. I just don't seem to have the theological or scriptural courage to say things like non-Christian religions are false.

Islam is false, but in the Bible only we see in a lot of places that the New Testament seems very concerned about false teaching in first Timothy one verse three in first Timothy 63 it talks about maintaining the pattern of sound teaching and also in second Timothy chapter 1 verse 13. In first Timothy six again here.

There's a lot of concern to defend that which is true.

Call out and squelch that which is false. We are to be aware and have discernment regarding doctrinal falsehood, deception, Matthew 24, four were to avoid heresy and where to preserve the pure gospel. First Corinthians 11 verse two in Galatians 18 in in Galatians 19 in very strong terms.

Paul says if anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than that which you have received or accepted. Let them be under God's curse. In other words, let them be anathema, which is really the word for Dana and second Peter chapter 116 through 21 and second Peter two verse one says much about the deity of Christ, the eyewitness testimony affirming that he is the son of God, the Bible, that is God's word and then it talks about in second Peter to bringing swift destruction.

God, the Lord himself, bringing swift destruction on those who would pervert the gospel and so let's talk about truth and let's talk about the churches call our mandate to proclaim that which is truth and hopefully recover some ground that was lost when TNG truth for new generation radio continues from. I am a watchman ministries. Here's today's I am a watchman minute when we say we can't. God says I can when we say were weary and tired. God says come to me and I will give you rest. When we say were frightened. God says fear not for I am with you when we say we have no money or strength to accomplish the task. God says I am able to supply all your needs. We have an enemy who wants us to fill out. He wants us to slow down or give up when those feelings come don't look down, look up don't listen to Satan's taunts focus on God's promises.

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Too often, we manage these disagreements by ignoring them, yet were called to engage the world for the sake of Christ. How can we be effective if we avoid society's most pressing questions in 10 issues that divide Christians Alex McFarlane challenges us to drill down to the biblical core of 10 current issues such as social justice evil and suffering, photography, and environmentalism as he echoes the biblical invitation, but this reason together only by engaging the Scriptures deeply thinking clearly and speaking truthfully can we, in God's family address our differences and discover the peace that comes with unity of purpose. 10 issues that divide Christians buying this book and many others@alexmcfarlane.com in the midst of a culture obsessed with relativism.

Alex McFarlane is a voice you can trust to speak the timeless truths of Christianity in a timely way. You're listening to the truth for a new generation radio. It's been said that every now and then people bump into the truth, and many people dust themselves off, and keep right on going.

Hope you're not like that. I hope when God reveals truth to you. You will receive it with an open heart and an open mind. Welcome back the program Alex McFarlane to hear.

And while we continue our look at truth and apologetics defending the truth, I do want to remind everybody this is a big year for us because in July we got our apologetics camp for youth. It really breaks my heart when I read about young people falling away from the faith and I've got an article this week from the Barna research group that says that every year a 15 to 23-year-old will spend 153 hours under some kind of spiritual teaching church youth group Bible study sounds impressive.

Maybe hundred and 53 hours of spiritual content in a year is so much screen time, those same €15-€23 will have any year nearly 2800 hours I think about it in terms of spiritual content versus screen content. It's 20 times the amount in the course of the next 12 months and more than ever. We have got to impart truth to young people. That's why we do the TNG summer apologetics camp we do it every year. Last year we had kids from seven states Scooby phenomena were going to be in western North Carolina July 20-24 and your youth group needs to be there. Go to my website Alex McFarlane.com were going to be talk about creation evolution morals were going to be talking about America.

What is the Constitution versus the idea of socialism. So yes we talk about God and Christianity, but we talk about America and you know, think about this January is the birthday of FDR. FDR was the 32nd president of the United States and he was in office longer than any other president generally said one time in 1937 FDR said this, he said, quote I hope that you reread the Constitution of the United States like the Bible, the Constitution must be read and reread again and again and so we gotta tell young people about the Constitution and our apologetics camp were going to go over subjects like creation and evolution, relativism, postmodernism, what is the evidence for Jesus.

The historical proof of the resurrection and the Bible we were going to also be talking to kids about why socialism is wrong and your young people need to be at this folks, it's getting dire, it's getting late in the hour and our window of opportunity to spread the gospel defend the faith and save this nation's growing shorter and shorter.

So go to my website Alex McFarland.com and we would love for your teens. The young adults in your life to experience this summer they'll never forget a lot of fun stuff, ropes course, all that good Stuff but 15 sessions on apologetics and worldview also make you aware that at the end of July July 27-31. Oh my goodness what a privilege. I'm going to be back at the Cove, the Billy Graham training center at the Cove and their website is the Cove Seo VE THD CO VE.org I'll be doing Daniel and Revelation at the end of July.

Bible prophecy how God rights history in advance. You don't want to miss it.

I was just talking to some of my dear friends at the Cove today and the sign-ups are growing. People are coming from across the country and we want you to be there, to the best lodging the best food, good fellowship. You'll make friends. You'll meet people and together will go through what the Bible says about prophecy, so would love to see you with the Cove in July and the website is the Cove.org to talk about FDR and truth. America was birthed as a Christian nation, and FDR said this on November 1940.

Listen to this, Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, quote those two forces hate democracy and Christianity as two phases of the same civilization, and he was talking about the forces during World War II. The forces of communism and Nazi-ism, and just the battle for our freedom that we enjoy today but they hate democracy and Christianity because there two phases of the same civilization. FDR said later democracy is the birthright of every citizen the white and the colored that was the word he used the Protestant the Catholic and the jute and so he understood that we were based on Christianity. The Judeo Christian moral code. That's the 10 Commandments and yet this moral truth, this conscience is also called natural law and it's what Jefferson was referring to in the declaration when he said we hold these truths to be self-evident. They understood that this was not a secular nation.

This was not an atheistic nation certainly was not an Islamic sharia nation was nation that was predicated on the truth of the Judeo-Christian worldview.

Understand this, folks, religion and morality are not the same thing the government is not going to start a church or denomination. But that doesn't mean that we abolish morality and part of the reason that we are a culture that is just in danger of digressing into lawlessness and anarchy is because a lot of people don't understand that the the freedom of conscience, freedom of religious expression, freedom of religion. The idea that the government will not give preference to one religion.

We understand that but that doesn't mean that in America we abolish morality and so at this relativistic time, more than ever, we must understand truth be willing to explain it, and that includes the truth about our Constitution and our representative republic and and preachers.

Let me say this, it is up to you from the pulpit to talk about civics, citizenship, and to help and equip your congregation and help preserve our freedoms now in in the New Testament's swift condemnation of false teaching. The Bible is very clear that there is one God, there's one savior, all people apart from Christ really are lost and in the early church misunderstandings and willful distortions did arise. There was seems like no sooner than Pentecost did, and then by acts nine. The conversion of Saul and the spread of the gospel and Peter was preaching and Paul was preaching and planting churches in the gospel spread by 40 years after the class really like about 37 years after the cross. Titus 211 the gospel had been taken to much of the civilized world. However, there were false teachings and when we come back I'm going to go over about 1/2 dozen of the most pernicious in deciduous distortions of the gospel message we come back on TMG radio. If you're a Christian parent. You of course want to instill a biblical view of life in the hearts of your children, your pastor, you want to offer ministry that draws young families to your church. This is Alex McFarland encouraging you to check out my new book and video curriculum. The 21 toughest questions your kids will ask about Christianity. I interviewed hundreds of children ages 5 to 12 and we address actual questions from actual children.

The spiritual issues that are on the minds of your kids Jesus everything the book and video lessons are great for groups of any size and was produced with the goal of equipping kids to stand strong for Christ in any situation. The 21 toughest questions your kids will ask the book study guide and video series. You'll find it@afastore.net that AFA store.net you know Alex is writing for many years, and one of his classic books is still great. Today is a basic introduction to the Christian faith. It's called Stan course truths must note for the unshakable faith. This book will help you help your teens get off the roller coaster of doubt. In thought is solid ground. You'll read about the six pillars of biblical Christianity. They are one inspiration of the Bible to the virgin birth.

Three.

The deity of Christ for atonement. Five.

Christ's resurrection and six. Christ's return know Alex mixes it up with humor and stories gleaned from decades of working with youth and encourages things to build a foundation of faith that will stabilize their lives and help them take a stand for Christ. Simple and straightforward stand for truth. You must go forward unshakable faith available wherever Christian books are so timeless cruise in a soundbite culture for a new generation radio CS Lewis once wrote an essay called the case for reading old books and he was talking about how you know truth is it is always something that has to be defended in every age there are battles for truth. One thing about the 20th century that kind of concern Lewis and keep in mind he died in 1963 but II just wonder what he would think. Today this great Christian scholar and apologist. He understood that by the mid-20th century, people are beginning to deny that truth exists, they were denying that Jesus was the son of God, and they were denying even that there was a God and that unbelief and that denial of God truths Jesus, the Bible. It's more pronounced than ever, such that even many churches and denominations today don't even accept the authority of the word of God. Lewis said this.

Nothing strikes me more when I read the controversies of past ages than the fact that both sides were usually assuming without question a good deal which we would now absolutely did not. They had misunderstandings about Jesus that I meet people that claim to be a churchgoers who nowadays not only do they not have an accurate understanding of what it it's meant by the son of God or the atonement on the cross. I mean I meet church people that don't even believe Jesus was the son of God. I dialogue with college professors that don't even believe that Jesus existed despite the fact that the life of Christ and the ministry of Jesus and what he did dying on the cross is is one of the most well authenticated lives in all of antiquity is in fact even Jewish, Greek and Roman sources contemporary with the times.

Recognize that Jesus was real and when it comes to truth applicable to all people.

Absolute truth like truth on morality and the the truth that life is sacred and no one has the right to murder another person and that would include self murder suicide and that would include abortion, infanticide, but nowadays people recoil at the idea that there's truth applicable to all people, and then the idea that truth is connected to the eternal nature of God will how can you defend that point without first helping some people be persuaded that there even is a God.

So were in a culture that before we can share the gospel of salvation. Very often we have to do remedial work.

What Francis Schaeffer called pre-evangelism and help people understand that there is truth to be known of God before whom we humble ourselves and sin to be saved from an salvation to be experienced now in the early church, talking about how committed they were to defending truth there were heresies.

One was the heresy, Marcy and his him and that was the belief that the God of the Old Testament and the Jesus of the New Testament were to different gods. There was a heresy called despotism and it denied the humanity of Jesus. Jesus only appeared to be human. Now, in true orthodox Christology true biblically informed view of Jesus. We understand that he's fully God, yet fully man, but not fallen man, but despotism denies the humanity of Jesus areas said the son of God was a created being lower than the father. This is much like a Jehovah's Witnesses today. They don't believe that Jesus is the second member of the Trinity, the eternal son of God, but God the son fact areas and cults like that today would deny the Trinity itself. Other was belief set forth by one, Apollinaire is and they basically said that Jesus is the divine nature, or the law gospel replace the human rational soul in the incarnation and the in other words, it was like this, Jesus is divine nature, replaced or supplanted the fallen filthy nature of the human now the filthy mind the filthy nature. There was the belief by Apollinaire areas that humanity was inherently evil or dirty now, are we sinners that need to be saved. Yes, but life is sacred humanity in the physical world itself is not necessarily evil or vile in our soul needs to be redeemed and were dead in our trespasses and sins, apart from Christ but Christianity says the bad news is were sinners. But the good news is were valuable to God and he loves us other was a person named Sibelius to very much influence what would later become Islam and said that and they deny the Trinity but that Jesus and the father are not distinct.

There there the same, but that there different modes of being and really another philosophy that would later influence Mohammed and contribute to the creation of Islam would be Nestorianism.

Nestorius said that Jesus was composed of two different persons one divine and one human. And I'll grant you. It's complicated the hypostatic union that there is one in seamless harmony unblemished. No defect that absolute union, the divine and the human and one person in history alone could lay claim to that the Lord Jesus Christ.

That's why Jesus could say in John eight if you've seen me, you seen the father. He didn't say I am the father, but he said I and the father are one.

Read John eight in John 10 and you know I quoted CS Lewis earlier systems was a brilliant thinker and he talked about the fact that the church has this obligation we have this biblical mandate like first Peter 315 and Jude verse three, and many of the Scriptures to defend the faith. CS Lewis said if we throw down our weapons and throw up our hands and if were silent in the face of the intellectual attacks of the heathen. We betray our less educated brethren who have before God, no defense but us against the intellectual attacks of the atheists in the heathen in the Lewis of the learned life is then for some a duty and it is something we must do because the souls of people hang in the balance the future the country hangs in the balance due. Note also hangs in the balance, the account that you will give to Jesus. One day, did you respond to truth follow truth believe truth embraced truth model truth proclaim truth and did you defend truth because the word of God and the need of the hour calls us to do these things were going to continue talking about apologetics and how we can take this eternal perfect infallible message of the son of God, to a needy world. Keep listening to TG radio and will talk more about getting equipped to stand for the defense of the gospel by Paul did in Philippians 116 TMG radio is made possible by the friends of Alex McFarland ministry, PO Box 10231 is Burrell, NC 27404. That's PO Box 10231, Greensboro, NC 27404 call us at 877 yes God one that's 877 yes, God, and the number one or give online@alexmcfarland.com while you're there, listen the program archives. Read Alex's blog invite Alex to speak at your event or contact Alex with a question or comment, Alex McFarland.com. Thanks for listening today and join us again next time.

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