All Things New
Grace Community Church of Smithville, MO
(January 1, 2012)
Introduction: 2012 Predictions (Rhett and Link)
- Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lowhan will break some law - to which people will say, "Duh!"
- Facebook will make a change to its user interface and disgruntled users around the world will say, "The old facebook was way better. Why you always got to be changin' it?"
- Jayda Pinket Smith and Will Smith will announce that they are pregnant with their third child. They will produce a hit music video featuring the baby in utero entitled "I Whilp My Umbilical Cord Back and Forth"
- Justin Beeber's voice will drop and he'll be forced to sing all of his hits an octive lover ("Baby, baby, baby, oh...")
- Apple will release the iPad3 and users will enjoy a 4G network, 15 hours of battery life and a general sense of being better than all their friends.
- In a feat of genetic engineering, scientists will successfully combine the DNA of a cow, a pig and a chicken with animal fat, paprika and perservatives. The overwhelming public response will be: "Isn't that just a hot dog?"
- The Tea Party's influence will continue and Ronald Reagan's mummified corpse will win the Republican nomination for President.
- In medical miracle, a man will become pregnant. Disappointment will ensue when it is discovered that the man is, in fact, not pregnant but just a NASCAR fan.
Q: Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the future?
I don’t know what the future holds, but I know Who holds the future.
Q: Do you believe this?
Q: Where do you get your information on which you come to your optimistic or pessimistic views (i.e., friends, TV news, internet, newspapers, … Bible)?
I am very optimistic about the future!!!
· Global rise of Christianity through history just as God said would be the case in His Word.
· I would like to expand your view of the future and, perhaps, encourage you to join me in my optimism.
Joy to the World… No more let sins and sorrows grow nor thorns infest the ground. He comes to make His blessings flow far as the curse is found.
Overview of my optimism, based on studying the Scriptures (more of that history next week / and more in depth at MWBS).
Matthew 16:18 ...the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
Isaiah 11:9 …the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
God wins!!!
Core issue: What difference did Jesus really make in the course of human history? Did He really “make all things new”? Is our world any different, really, because He came?
All Things New (p. 2)
I. New Covenant
A. The Original Covenant
God made a covenant with Abraham and his descendants.
This set them apart from the other nations of the earth and, in so doing, revealed God’s wisdom, love, goodness, faithfulness to the world and was to extend His blessing to all people.
As we think about this covenant, I’d like us to focus our thoughts on three aspects of this covenant:
1. Expansion of the Nation of Israel
2. Extension to the Nations beyond Israel
3. End of the Nation of Israel
All Things New (p. 3)
With these in mind, let’s look at a few passages…
a1. God Promised to make Israel a Great Nation
God promised Abraham…
Genesis 12:1-3 1The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. 2“I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Later, God promised Moses…
.
Deuteronomy 4:6-8 6Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” 7What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today?
a2. Did God keep His promise?
1 Chronicles 17:21 And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth whose God went out to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for yourself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt?
All Things New (p. 4)
b1. God Promised to Give Abraham Many Descendants
Genesis 13:16 16I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted.
Genesis 15:5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Genesis 22:17-18 17I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
b2. God Gave Abraham Many Descendants
Deuteronomy 1:10 (Moses’ Burden) The LORD your God has increased your numbers so that today you are as many as the stars in the sky.
2 Chronicles 1:9 (Solomon’s Wisdom) Now, LORD God, let your promise to my father David be confirmed, for you have made me king over a people who are as numerous as the dust of the earth.
1 Kings 4:20 20The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore; they ate, they drank and they were happy.
Hebrews 11:12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
All Things New (p. 5)
2. Extends to the Nations
c1. God Promised Abraham a Seed
Genesis 22:15-18 15The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16and said, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
Genesis 26:2-5 2The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. 3Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. 4I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, 5because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my commands, my decrees and my laws.”
Genesis 28:13-15 13There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
All Things New (p. 6)
c2. God Gave Abraham the Promised Seed
Galatians 3:8, 16 8The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” … 16The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ.
Isaiah 19:23-25 23In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. 24In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. 25The LORD Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.”
All Things New (p. 7)
d1. God Promised Abraham would Inherit the Land
a volatile question still today!
Genesis 12:7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
Genesis 13:14-15, 17 14The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. 15All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. … 17Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.”
Genesis 15:7, 18 7He also said to him, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” … 18On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates —
Genesis 17:5-8 5No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”
All Things New (p. 8)
d2. God Gave Abraham the Land He Promised
1 Kings 4:21, 24 21And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These countries brought tribute and were Solomon’s subjects all his life. … 24For he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, and had peace on all sides.
Joshua 21:43-45 43So the LORD gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers, and they took possession of it and settled there. 44The LORD gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their forefathers. Not one of their enemies withstood them; the LORD handed all their enemies over to them. 45Not one of all the LORD'S good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.
Joshua 23:14-16 14“Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the LORD your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. 15But just as every good promise of the LORD your God has come true, so the LORD will bring on you all the evil he has threatened, until he has destroyed you from this good land he has given you. 16If you violate the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the LORD'S anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.”
All Things New (p. 9)
3. End of the Nation of Israel?
Isaiah 19:23-25 23In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. 24In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. 25The LORD Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.”
Romans 11:25-32 25I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. 27And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” 28As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, 29for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. 30Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, 31so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. 32For God has bound all men over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.
Reaches and returns vs. replaces
All Things New (p. 10)
B. The Obsolete Covenant
This Original (Old) Covenant, however, was not the end of God’s plan for the world.
The book of Hebrews (as we studied on Wednesday nights this year) clearly declares that Jesus is better than the Old Covenant and the various aspects that made it what it was…
Hebrews 8:10-13 6But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises. 7For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. 8But God found fault with the people and said : “The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 9It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord. 10This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. 12For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” 13By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.
The book of Hebrews (and this verse in particular) are why I do not believe that God’s plan is to restore the Temple with its sacrificial system (but this doesn’t mean it may not happen by man’s plans). It would be an offense to the work of Christ!
But that’s all THEY knew… The End of the World as THEY Knew It
All Things New (p. 11)
Hebrews 9:10-15 10They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order. 11When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. 12He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. 13The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean.
14How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! 15For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.
Hebrews 12:24 22But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, 24to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
All Things New (p. 12)
C. The On-going Covenant
So what are we to do if the original Covenant is not longer in effect?
Again, the author of Hebrews (after 13 chapters of Jesus is better) concludes his book with these words…
Hebrews 13:20-21 May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
And this is why Paul writes…
2 Corinthians 1:20a For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ.
Since men and women could not keep the Law as they were, God had to do something. He had a couple options:
1. Throw out the Law – but He can’t do that for He is holy
2. Throw us out – but He doesn’t want to do that
He chose a third option (which brings Him more glory)
3. Fulfill the Law Himself
4. Create a new kind of person – people who would be willing and able to please Him
All Things New (p. 13)
II. New Creatures
A. New Hearts
Jeremiah 31:31-34 21“Set up road signs; put up guideposts. Take note of the highway, the road that you take. Return, O Virgin Israel, return to your towns. 22How long will you wander, O unfaithful daughter? The LORD will create a new thing on earth—a woman will surround a man.”
23This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “When I bring them back from captivity, the people in the land of Judah and in its towns will once again use these words: ‘The LORD bless you, O righteous dwelling, O sacred mountain.’ 24People will live together in Judah and all its towns—farmers and those who move about with their flocks. 25I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.”
…
.
31“The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 32It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,’” declares the LORD.
33“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
All Things New (p. 14)
B. New Help
Along with our new hearts, we also have the help of God Himself in the presence of the Holy Spirit.
John 14:16 15“If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—
John 16:7 But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
C. New Hands
And Jesus tells his followers that they will be able to do even greater things than they saw Him do!
John 14:12-14 12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
We, as God creation and God’s children have tremendous potential (see J. Vernon McGee notes – below)
As a part of our purpose, we are to make a difference in this world for Him.
O.T. Allis (1878-1973): My studies have convinced me that the most serious error in much of the ‘prophetic’ teaching of today is the claim that the future of Christendom is to be read not in terms of Revival and Victory but of growing impotence and apostasy and that the only hope of the world is that the Lord will, by His visible coming and reign, complete the task which He has so plainly entrusted to the church. The language of the Great Commission is world embracing; and it is backed by the authority and the power of the One who said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and earth. God, therefore, and make disciples of all nations.” The duty of the church is to address herself to accomplishing this task in anticipation of her Lord’s coming, and not to expect Him to call her away to glory before her task is accomplished.
All Things New (p. 15)
J. Vernon McGee, in his commentary of Rev. 21:5, writes:
He is going to make all things new! This is more meaningful to me than anything else. I do not know about you, but I have never really been satisfied with this life. I have found myself frustrated, I have found myself hemmed in, and I have never been able to accomplish all that I have wanted to accomplish. I’ve never been the man I’ve wanted to be. I’ve never been the husband I’ve wanted to be. I’ve never been the father I’ve wanted to be. And I’ve never preached the sermon I’ve wanted to preach. I just do not seem to have arrived. All accomplishments seem to have a blot on them.
But He says to me, as He says to you, “I am going to make all things new. You are going to be able to start over again.” I am waiting for that day when all things are going to be new and I can start over. Have you ever stopped to think about the potential of starting out all new again, of learning all over again, and never ceasing but going on into eternity? Oh, the potential and capability of man! Yonder at the Tower of Babel, God said,
Genesis 11:5-7 5But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. 6The LORD said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”
It was very foolish for some scientists and preachers to say that man could not go to the moon; I think he is going farther than that. Man is a clever being which God has made. Death ends his potential down here, but with eternity ahead of him, oh, the prospects a saved man has!
We see here the glorious prospect of all things made new. We can start over, and there will never be an end to our growth. Remember that of Christ it is said, “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end” (see Isa. 9:7). There is constant growth and development. Just think of the prospect of that for the future.[1]
All Things New (p. 16)
Medical, technological and scientific advances help support my point here (and many of you have undergone procedures that would have taken longer – or were impossible just a few years ago: hearing implants, laser eye surgery, transplants…)
Illus: Lyndon Baty (ESPN story)
Vgo stands about 4 ft. tall and is equipped with a webcam, speakers and a small screen. Rather than getting on the bus in the morning Lyndon just turns on his PC and controls Vgo remotely from his home. Vgo can scoot around from class-to-class just like the rest of the students, granting Lyndon a freedom he has never had. Using video-conferencing software Lyndon can talk to and hear everyone around his robot counterpart letting him get inside the classroom and interact.
Apparently Vgo contacted the Knox City high school to try selling one of the robots and they just happened to have a perfect use for one. While Lyndon may not have the same experience as the rest of the student body, there’s no doubt he’s enjoying his cruises down the hallways and the time spent getting the same education everyone his age can.
Vgo isn’t cheap coming in at about $6,000, but when it comes to someone's life then there shouldn’t be any hesitation to figure out how to make it happen. Vgo isn’t the only telepresence robot out there and, you can bet we’ll be seeing more robotic applications like this very soon as the telepresence industry continues to push itself into the mainstream market.
This is why everything we do matters!
All Things New (p. 17)
D. New Heralds
We are to be changed…
Ephesians 4:22-23 22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
We are to be loving…
John 13:34-35 34“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
In doing so, like the nation of Israel was to reveal the character of God to the world…
Philippians 2:12-16 12Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. 14Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe 16as you hold out the word of life …
Echoing the words of God to Moses…
Deuteronomy 4:6-8 6Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” 7What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today?
All Things New (p. 18)
III. New Creation
A. An New Congregation (a new people of God)
Galatians 6:15-16 15Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. 16Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.
Colossians 3:10 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Ephesians 2:15 11Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)—12remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. 14For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. 19Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, 20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
All Things New (p. 19)
B. A New Cosmos
Eventually and progressively with ups and downs and with wheat and tares, God’s kingdom grows (as Isaiah 65-66; Revelation 21 attest):
Isaiah 65:17-25 (New Heavens and a New Earth) 17“Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. 18But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. 19I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more. 20“Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth; he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed. 21They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands. 23They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the LORD, they and their descendants with them. 24Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. 25The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,” says the LORD.
Isaiah 66:22-24 22“As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me,” declares the LORD, “so will your name and descendants endure. 23From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,” says the LORD. 24“And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”
All Things New (p. 20)
Conclusion: What if Jesus Had Never Been Born? (see notes)
Good books to read to gain perspective on this:
· What if Jesus Had Never Been Born? by D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe
· What's So Great About Christianity, by Dinesh D'Souza
· Why You Think the Way You Do by Dr. Glenn S. Sunshine.
· It’s Getting Better All the Time by Stephen Moore and Julian Simon
· The Good Old Days – They Were Terrible! by Otto L. Bettman
· What Has Christianity Ever Done for Us? How it shaped the modern world by Jonathan Hill
· Who Really Cares? by Arthur Brooks
· It’s a Wonderful World documentary by John Stossel
This is why we were created and what we’re called to!
This is why we do missions, and medicine, and mechanical work!
New Year’s Resolution? Won’t you join me in my optimism that God is doing exactly what He said He would do and that He has invited us to join Him in it?
"Christianity is responsible for the way our society is organized and for the way we currently live. So extensive is the Christian contribution to our laws, our economics, our politics, our arts, our calendar, our holidays, and our moral and cultural priorities that historian J. M. Robers writes in The Triumph of the West, 'We could none of us today be what we are if a handful of Jews nearly two thousand years ago had not believed that they had known a great teacher, seen him crucified, dead, and buried, and then rise again.'" (From the book What's So Great about Christianity) .
[1] McGee, J. V. (1997). Thru the Bible commentary (electronic ed.) (Re 21:5). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
