Sermon Tone Analysis

*Text:* Gen. 1:1; et.

al.

 

*Thesis:* To examine the existence and nature of God.

 

*Introduction*:

 

(1)   Everything about Christianity is dependent upon the fact that God exists.

(2)   Let us note some evidences for His existence and seek to understand His nature.

*Discussion*:

 

I.

His Existence –

 

A.

First, His existence is proven from the teleological argument.

A.    This argument was popularized by men such as William Paley who demonstrated it by noting that if a watch is found to have clear-cut evidence of design, then it must have a watchmaker.

B.     The Hebrew writer states it as follows: “For every house is built by some man; but he that built all things is God” (Heb.

3.4).

C.     It is best seen demonstrated by examining two realms: 1) Inorganic; and  2) Organic.

a.       First, the inorganic realm will be examined by noting the earth’s location in the universe.

(1)    The location of the earth is in just the right spot to receive the correct amount of heat and radiation.

(a)    The sun’s interior temperature is estimated at over twenty million degrees Celsius with the earth located ninety-three million miles away from it.

1)      If the earth were ten percent closer to the sun, then there would be too much heat upon the earth.

2)      If it were ten percent further away from the sun, then there would not be enough heat upon the earth.

(b)   Did this design occur by chance or by a designer?

(2) The rotation of the earth provides clear examples of design.

(a)    The earth is moving around the sun at 70,000 miles per hour while rotating on its axis at 1,000 miles per hour at the equator.

(b)    It departs from a straight line by just one-ninth of an inch every eighteen miles.

(c)     Mankind would either burn to death if the earth were to depart from that line by one-eighth of an inch or would freeze to death if it were to depart by one-tenth of an inch.

(d)    Did this design occur by chance or by a designer?

b.

Second, the organic realm will be examined by noting the design of the human eye.

(1)   Charles Darwin himself said, “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down.”

(2)   As one evolutionist wrote, “It is hard to accept the evolution of the eye as a product of chance […] The eye appears to have been designed; no designer of telescopes could have done better” (Jastrow).

(3)   How does the human eye exemplify design?

(a)    It can handle 1.5 million simultaneous messages.

(b)    It gathers eighty percent of all knowledge that is absorbed by the brain.

(c)     A person would have to walk fifty miles each day to get the muscles in the leg to get the same amount of exercise as does the human eye.

(d)    The probability of this evolving “has never been observed and will never be observed by any human in the entire universe” (Borel).

(e)     Charles Darwin even admitted, “To suppose that they eye with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest sense.”

B.     Second, His existence is proven from the cosmological argument.

A.    I.e., everything effect must have a cause.

B.     Therefore, the existence of this world must have had an adequate cause and the only adequate cause is God.

C.     Third, His existence is proven from the morality argument.

1.

The argument goes as follows:

a.

If the moral code of someone can be criticized as to real moral wrong, then there must be some objective standard other than the moral code.

b.      P

c.       Therefore, Q

B.     The argument explained:

a.

Why were the Nazis found guilty of the events of the Holocaust?

(1)   R.

H. Jackson, in his closing address in the Nuremberg Trial, appealed to a higher law, which rises above the provincial and transient.

(2)   What law was this?

(a)    They were not guilty of the law of Germany.

(b)   They were not amenable to the law of England, USA, etc.

(c)    This is the higher law over all others.

1)      This law transcends place and time.

2)      It is the words of Jesus (cf.

John 12.48).

b.

This is the concept of “doing by nature the things contained in the law” (Rom.

2.14).

(Warren)

 

II.

His Nature –

 

A.

Eternality (Deut.

33:27; Isa.

40:28; 57:15; Psa.

90:2; 102:12, 25-27; Jer.

10:10)

B.     Immutability (Mal.

3:6; James 1:17)

C.     Absolute Truth (Num.

23:19; 1 Sam.

15:29; Heb.

6:17-18)

D.    Absolute Love (John 3:16; Rom.

5:6-8)

E.     Holiness (Exod.

15:11; Lev.

11:44; Psa.

99:9; Luke 1:49; John 17:11)

F.      Perfect Justice (Deut.

32:4; Isa.

30:18, 45:21; 1 Pet.

1:17; Rev. 19:2)

G.    All-Powerful~/Omnipotent (Job 42:2; Jer.

32:17; Matt.

19:26)

H.    All-Present~/Omnipresent (Psa.

139:7-10; Jer.

23:23-24)

I.       All-Knowing~/Omniscient (Psa.

139:1-6; 147:4; Exek.

11:5; Isa.

46:10)

 

*Conclusion*:

 

(1)   Since there is a God, then everything changes.

(2)   Life now has purpose for those who follow God.