Grace World Outreach Church
Pastor Daniel K Norris
Greetings from Grace World
Thank you for joining us today at Grace World. Whether you are joining us in person or watching online, we are so glad you are here! It's our prayer that you discover life in all its fullness.
If you have a prayer request, you can send that to us here at https://www.graceworldag.org/prayer-requests
Every week we place these request on the altar of the church and our entire team lifts up each request by name.
We'd love to hear from you and be a friend. Connect with us online at
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Isaiah 5:20 ESV
Genesis 1:1-5 ESV
Our culture is rapidly redefining what is good. Good is now Evil and Evil is now Good. Truth is the new hate speech and Biblical values are deemed offensive. It’s a whirlwind of confusion and delusion and many feel lost… or at a loss on how to respond.
Few Points Upfront:
- We believe the Bible as the inspired infallible Word of God
- We believe that God is the Creator of all things, and one day all will stand before Him to be judged
- We believe that God is Good and He wants what is Good for you
We are UNCONDITIONAL in our LOVE… and UNWAVERABLE in His TRUTH
WHAT’S SO GOOD ABOUT THE TRUTH
1:1-5 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
If it was created it came from God
Ephesians 3:9 (ESV) and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things,
Jeremiah 51:19 (ESV) & Jeremiah 10:16 (ESV) “for he is the one who formed all things”
Isaiah 44:24 (ESV) Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: “I am the Lord, who made all things”
1 Corinthians 8:6 (ESV) yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
If it was created it came from the Creator
Gen 1:2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. (Ge 1:2)
Three Key Words:
Without Form - תֹּהוּ Absolute Confusion, Chaos, wilderness, wasteland, utter emptiness
Void - בֹּהוּ emptiness, the void, i.e., an emptiness that shows lack of order
Darkness - חֹשֶׁךְ utter darkness, gloom, the lack of any light
The earth before God speaks is in a state of Absolute DARKNESS and DISORDER
Jeremiah 4:23 (ESV) I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.
Into the Darkness and Disorder
vs 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
God does three things
- Speaks Light Into Darkness
- Declares the Light Good
- Separates Light from Darkness
POINT ONE: ANYONE LOST IN THE DARK KNOWS THE VALUE OF LIGHT
John 1:1–14 (ESV)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it…
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Important Words
The Word, God, Life, The Light, The True Light, His Glory, Grace, Truth
Truth - אֱמֶת faithful, reliable, enduring
Truth is presented in Scripture as ABSOLUTE
Absolute Truth - The Same for All People, At All Times and in All Situations
Truth, as presented in modern culture is anything but absolute…
80% of Americans express concern about the nation’s moral condition
57% believe truth is relative and that right and wrong are subjectively determined by the individual
74% of those born after 1984 believe morality is “whatever seems right in their own eyes.”
Barna Research, “The End of Absolutes: America’s New Moral Code.” Research released in Culture & Media article, May 25, 2016
RELATIVISM - the belief that concepts such as right and wrong, good and bad, or truth and falsehood are not absolute but change from culture to culture and situation to situation Truth is presented in Scripture as
What’s So Good about the Truth? Truth is a TRUE, ABSOLUTE, LIGHT in Dark Times!
POINT TWO: OUR GOD IS GOOD AND ANYTHING HE CREATES IS GOOD
a) God is Absolutely Good
17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” (Mt 19:17).
b) Because God is Absolutely Good… He is the One who defines Good
Good - good, pleasant, useful, morally good, IN ORDER
c) Because God is Absolutely Good, that which originates from God is Good.
1 Timothy 4:4 (ESV) “For everything created by God is good”
Question: Who Created The Dark?
We think in terms of Good vs Evil, Right vs Wrong, Light vs Dark as if they are equally and opposing sides. However Evil, Wrong, Dark are not defined by what they are, but what they are not. They are the absence of something GOOD
What's So Good About The Truth? Truth is Good, because it is like God.
POINT THREE: THAT WHICH CHOOSES TO LIVE OUTSIDE OF GOD’S GOODNESS ONLY FINDS DARKNESS AND DISORDER
- Anything created originates with God
- Anything God created is Good
- Before God created what was good… the earth was in darkness and disorder
- To remove God or Good from creation is to return it to darkness and disorder
Who holds the right to judge, determine, define what is Good and what is not Good (Evil)?
The original sin
Genesis 2:15–17 (ESV)
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Evil is the absence of Good
Dark is the absence of Light
Death is the absence of Life
The original choice remains … will you trust God as the one who defines and judges Good and Evil, or will you take that into your own hands?
Remember, when I remove it from God's hands, I remove it from what is good... and the result is DARKNESS, DISORDER, DEATH
What is so Good about the truth? Truth is LIGHT rather than Darkness, Order rather than Disorder, LIFE rather than Death.
So How Must We Respond? Paul answered this exact question...
Ephesians 5:1–14 (ESV)
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light.
God spoke LIGHT (ORDER) in to DARKNESS (DISORDER)... As children of the Light, we must speak TRUTH into the DARKNESS
Jesus walked full of GRACE (unconditional in love) and walked full of TRUTH (unwavering in truth)
We must be UNCONDITIONAL in our LOVE and UNWAVERING in His Truth!
Sunday Post Service Q&A
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