Church of Christ Sermons and Lessons for 2012
Speaker	Sermon/Lesson Title   (Right Click to Download)	Audio   Video  Text    Ipod MS Word	Category	Date Added	Lesson
Bobby Stafford	Are Not In Kansas Anymore 4     (Download Audio)		Evangelism	August 19, 2012	Sunday AM Sermon

We’re Not in Kansas Anymore – Part 4 

Introduction: 

Summarize:  We’re Not in Kansas Anymore 

Text:  Acts 17: 28-34 

• Verses 28-29 – God is the Father of Mankind                                 How close is God?  Paul answers.                                               (Job 12:10)  “Offspring” – genealogy   (Luke 3:38)                            We are dependent upon God.  We are made in His image.  People need to hear this.  We are not just DNA, electrical impulses, and chemical processes.  We are far more complex and wonderful than lifeless statues.  (Psalms 139: 14)    God, therefore, is much more wonderful than these gold, silver, and stone idols.  How could an inferior man create a superior God?  (Isaiah 40:18-26)                Note:  Paul knows how vitally important it is for these people to come to know the one true God.  So he does not hold back.  It’s too important.  He is risking his life.

 IV.   A Willingness to Confront   (Verses 30-34) 

• Verse 30 – Paul tells the Athenians their worship of many deities was wrong.  They had to make a radical turn from idols to the one true living God.  (I Thessalonians 1:9)   This call for change was repentance, the changing of one’s mind and attitude about sin.    (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19-20)
• Verse 31 – Consequences of not repenting are tragic.  Paul began his speech by asserting the unknown God was their Creator.  He closed by affirming He will also be their Judge.  All people, including, the Athenians, would be held accountable for their actions.  (II Corinthians 5:10, Revelation 20:11-12)  Judgment Day is fixed by God.   (Matthew 24-36)  God has given mankind assurance of this Judgment Day by raising the Judge from the dead!  The fact of Jesus’ resurrection proves there will be a Judgment Day.           (I Corinthians 15:3-8)  This fact should motivate all to repent.       (Acts 2:31-38)  Note:  We must be prepared to give evidence.
• Verses 32-34 – “The Response”
  1. Mockery   They scoffed and ridiculed the idea of a bodily resurrection.  They considered it foolishness.  (Acts 26:8)
  2. Put off to a later time.  (Acts 24:24-25):  Felix,                         (Acts 26:27-29):  Agrippa
  3. Acceptance   Dionysius was a member of the Areopagus court.  It wasn’t a large harvest, but it was a harvest.

 Conclusion: 

We must be willing to confront the world with the truth of God’s Word.  We can’t control people’s responses, but we must keep on teaching regardless of the results.

 Bobby Stafford

August 19, 2012

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