Sermon Tone Analysis

*A. Journal Project:*     Respond to the scenario: An atheist says to you that if you can prove to me God exists, I will believe.

Give me the strongest case for God’s existence (you cannot base your evidence on personal testimony~/experience).

 

 

/Madalyn (Murray) O’Hare, the atheist who brought about the Supreme Court decision on school prayer, filed suit in Federal Court against President Nixon, the treasurer of the U. S., the Senate and House chaplains and other Congressional officials for allowing services in the White House and Capitol./

/Mrs.

O’Hair, who acted as her own attorney, accused Mr. Nixon of being the “central figure” in an effort to “make Christianity the official ’civil religion’ of the United States.”

She specifically charged the President with holding religious services in the White House in violation of the first amendment./

/In her suit, she asked the court to enjoin Mr. Nixon from allowing such services and to declare unconstitutional the practice of “devoting the property and premises of the Executive Mansion” to such religious services.*[1]*

/

/ /

Ms O’Hare is probably the best known atheist who lived in the United States.

I must add that she has been missing for twenty or more years under questionable circumstances and is presumed dead.

She single-handedly changed the landscape of worship and prayer in schools, homes and public places around this nation.

Her successes in her endeavors were not viewed positively because her efforts not only removed prayer from public schools (primarily) but many respectable practices in the school rooms were replaced with violent acts.

Atheist might argue that the world was headed this way already and the effects of Ms. O’Hare’s quest had little if any effect on present day violence.

Let us first define “atheist” and agree upon its meaning.

Merriam Webster defines atheist as follows:

 

*athe•ist* \ˈā-thē-ist\ /noun/

(1571)

*: *one who denies the existence of God[2]

 

Certainly we can agree that denying the existence of God is the basis of the atheist belief.

Atheism

has their origin in the theories of Charles Darwin ( a model citizen if there ever was one).

The Moody Handbook of Theology states that : /“There are a variety of views by Christians and non-Christians concerning the origin of man.

Non-Christians commonly hold to atheistic or humanistic evolution; some Christians argue for a mediating view suggesting God began the process but did it through evolution, hence, they hold to theistic evolution.

Other Christians argue for some kind of creation, either divine fiat (act of God) or some form of “developing creation.

The tenets of evolution, as spelled out in Darwin’s The Origin of Species, are: “(1) Variation results in some offspring being superior to their parents.

(2) A struggle for existence eliminates the weaker, less fit varieties.

(3) A process of natural selection is constantly at work by which the fittest survive.

(4) Through heredity, new and better qualities produced by variation are passed on and gradually accumulated.

(5) New species come into existence by this method, after the passage of sufficient time./

/ /

/The implications of atheistic evolution are significant.

If there is no God who has created the world then man is not accountable to God concerning any moral structure; in fact, if atheistic evolution is true then there are no moral absolutes to which man must adhere.”/[3]

These beliefs could further explain the deteriorating environment after the success of Ms. O’Hare’s efforts.

Let me take this opportunity to introduce you to one of the classic arguments for the existence of God that I believe will assist you in realizing the need for a God and finally, that there really is a God.

The argument is called the Teleological Argument (The Argument from Design) proposed by Thomas Aquinas which states that /“there is an observable order or design in the world that cannot be attributed to the object itself (e.g., inanimate objects).

This observable order argues for an intelligent being who established this order.

This being is God”.*[4]*/

This argument places the responsibility on an intelligent being to realize that here is order in our world, day, night, sun rising from the same direction and going down in the same direction, earth orbit, seasons, etc.

An intelligent being has to notice this order and know that the odds are too infinite for it to occur in a random or happenstance manner without an “All Knowing Architect”.

Consider this, if you were born on a deserted island with your mother and father there with you and grew to be a teenager of sixteen.

As you explored this vast island, you saw under a pile of brush and debris, a very large object with four round cylindrical objects at its base, yellow in color, with seats and another elevated circular object with a radius of 2-3 spans on one side of the seated area.

It was made of a very hard substance and was very beautiful to the eyes.

It opened on both ends.

On one end was a cavity that could be used for storage, on the other end there was no storage area because it was filled with objects connected together in some orderly fashion, whose functions you were not certain.

Let me ask you a question here.

Do you think this object evolved on its own or was there somewhere outside of your sphere of knowledge, an intelligence beyond your own intelligence that created this beautiful unusual object that you are now viewing and touching?

So it is with creation, there is something outside of what we see that formed what we now see and experience.

There are many theories about how creation occurred and how it evolved, but there should be little discussion about the fact that it continues to exist and maintains its integrity despite what its creatures do.

I suggest that you take the initial step and accept that there is an All Knowing God that created and maintains His creation.

The hard part comes later depending on your decision, one day God will end life as we know it and those that have accepted His existence will, in the order of things, experience a different quality of life from those that did not accept His existence.

The odds are far greater than the random theory you now embrace will ensure the quality of life enjoyed by the believers.

Are you willing to take that chance?

There have been men and women far more intelligence than you or I who have accepted the existence of the All Mighty God.

What makes your knowledge more thorough?

Unless you change your views, that the quality of life you will experience will last throughout eternity without opportunity for redress.

So, make sure this is what you want to do.

I’m here for you.

\\ ----

[1]Tan, P. L. (1996, c1979).

/Encyclopedia of 7700 illustrations : A treasury of illustrations, anecdotes, facts and quotations for pastors, teachers and Christian workers/.

Garland TX: Bible Communications.

[2]Merriam-Webster, I. (1996, c1993).

/Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary./

Includes index.

(10th ed.).

Springfield, Mass., U.S.A.: Merriam-Webster.

[3]Enns, P. P. (1997, c1989).

/The Moody handbook of theology/ (301).

Chicago, Ill.: Moody Press.

[4] House, H. Wayne (1992).

Charts of Christian Theology and Doctrine (34).

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan.