Sermon Title: The Certainty of Christianity
Introduction
Luke
1:1-4 is Luke’s preface and is one long Greek sentence.3 Read
the text (Luke 1:1-4). The
aim of this introductory message on the Gospel according to Luke is to answer
the three following questions:
- Who is the author?
- Who is the author
writing to?
- Why is the author
writing?
Who is the author?
Church
history unanimously ascribes the authorship of Luke and Acts to Luke. Although
the author never names himself, several passages using the pronoun “we” suggest
that the author was a companion of Paul on some of his travels (Acts 16:10-17;
20:5-16; 21:1-18; 27:1-28:16). Nothing certain is known about Luke
other than what we can glean from his two books. According to tradition he was
a Gentile from Antioch, a traveling companion of Paul, and was a physician
(Colossians 4:10-14; Acts 1:19).1
Who is the author
writing to?
Both
Luke and Acts are addressed to Theophilus (Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1). Luke’s letter
to Theophilus is very unique. The Gospel of Luke is the longest book in the New
Testament and, combined with Acts, makes Luke the author of more than one
fourth of the New Testament – more than any other writer.2 More than
40 percent of his Gospel is not found in the other gospels, including seven of
Christ’s miracles, seventeen of His parables, and nine of Jesus’ prayers are
included in the Gospel (seven unique to Luke). The Gospel of Luke is the
longest, and most thorough and complete of the four Gospels, with about
100-more verses than any other Gospel account (Luke covers approximately forty
pages, Matthew thirty-seven, Mark twenty-three, and John twenty-nine).2
Why is the author
writing?
“Christianity
is a religion built on facts. Let us never lose sight of this. The first
preachers did not go up and down the world proclaiming an elaborate, artificial
system of abstruse doctrines and deep principles. They made it their first
business to tell people great plain facts (J.C. Ryle).”5 “It
seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past,
to write an orderly account for you most excellent Theophilus, that you may
have certainty concerning the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:3-4).
Luke
is writing that Theophilus may have certainty concerning the things he was
taught. The preface to Luke shows that the writer was not an eyewitness of the
events recorded in the Gospel. All of Luke and Acts show that Luke was a man of
culture who had searched out the information he needed, but was not one of the
original followers (disciples) of Jesus.1
Contrary
to cultural perception, faith and facts are not opposing terms. With every
substantial decision we make are the presence of facts, faith, reason, and
uncertainty (driving a car; marriage; parenting; buying a house; eating food;
etc.). Everyone chooses a religion. By choosing a religion, I mean that everyone evaluates the mixture of facts (real or
perceived), what you cannot know, reason – and you gamble your life living a
certain way according to what you believe about how we arrived here, what we
are here for, and what happens when we die.
Luke states the
following: “I
must take upon myself the responsibility to follow all things closely, collect
the facts, and write an orderly account – so that you would have certainty
(through careful research of the facts) of things that have been accomplished
among us.” The NASB reads this way, “…it seemed fitting for me as well, having
investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you
in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; so that you may know the
exact truth (underlining is my emphasis) about the things you have been
taught.” The word translated “exact” means reliable, certain, accurate.2
The
purpose of Luke’s writing is two-fold: To
document the facts of what has been accomplished so that Theophilus may
have certainty.
First, Luke
is documenting the facts of “what has been accomplished.
The
verb translated “accomplished” is an intensive compound word that indicates the
complete fulfillment of something. “A gospel is an announcement of something that has happened in
history, something that’s been done for you that changes your status forever.
Right there you can see the difference between Christianity and all other
religions, including no religion.
The
essence of other religions is advice;
Christianity is essentially news. Other
religions say, ‘This is what you have to do in order to connect to God forever;
this is how you have to live in order to earn your way to God.’ But the gospel says, ‘This is what has been done in history.
This is how Jesus lived and died to earn the way to God for you.’ Christianity
is completely different. It’s joyful news.
How do you feel when you’re given good advice on how to live?
Someone says, ‘Here’s the love you ought to have, or the integrity you ought to
have,’ and maybe they illustrate high moral standards by telling a story of
some great hero. But when you hear it, how does it make you feel? Inspired, sure.
But do you feel the way the listeners who heard those heralds felt when the
victory was announced? Do you feel your burdens have fallen off? Do you feel as
if something great has been done for you and you’re not a slave anymore?
Of course you don’t. It weighs you down: This is how I have to
live. It’s not a gospel. The gospel is that God connects you not on the basis
of what you’ve done (or haven’t done) but on the basis of what Jesus has done,
in history, for you.
“Most of us work and work trying to prove ourselves, to convince
God, others, and ourselves that we’re good people. That work is never over
unless we rest in the gospel. At the end of His great act of creation the Lord said, ‘It is
finished,’ and He could rest. On the cross at the end of His great act of
redemption Jesus said, ‘It is finished’– and we can rest. On the cross Jesus was saying of the work underneath your work–
the thing that makes you truly weary, this need to prove yourself because who
you are and what you do are never good enough– that it is finished. He has lived the life you should have lived; He has died the
death you should have died. If you rely on Jesus’s finished work, you know that
God is satisfied with you. You can be satisfied with life.”
Second, Luke is
documenting the facts.
Luke
is careful to refer to the length of study “investigated everything carefully
from the beginning.” Feel the weight of Luke’s statement by taking each word in
– investigated; everything; carefully; from the beginning. Luke
tells us four things about his work before he tells us why he writes.4
- He
has investigated the story. He has followed it closely. He has taken a long and
careful look at what he is about to tell us.
- He
went back to the beginning.
- Luke
was thorough, having studied everything. This is undoubtedly why there is so
much material in his account.
- Luke
worked carefully, taking great care to develop his orderly account in a way
that told the story clearly.
We
must emulate Luke’s careful investigation. “Instead,
you must worship Christ as LORD of your life. And if someone asks about your
Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and
respectful way. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when
they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ” (I Peter
3:15-16 NLT). The
goal of the message today is to aid you in obeying Scripture (1 Peter 3:15-16)
through careful investigation.
The
thesis of the sermon this morning: Every human being on the planet lives a faith-based
life.
“I may
not owe faith to Christianity, but I owe it more than ignorance.”
Faith
is wrongly interpreted as blind belief. It takes as much faith or more to
disbelieve in God than to believe. Every person living or who has ever lived
chooses to live their life based on real or perceived facts, reason, and trust
(faith). In other words, everyone lives a faith-based life.
Why is
Jesus the most polarizing figure in the history of the world?
Luke tells us of
God’s acts in history through Jesus. This main character is not a Savior made
up in the image of a person’s imagination. After all, who on his or her own
would create a Savior who makes us all responsible for our sin and then chooses
to pay the penalty for that sin by offering himself? Who would design a regal
Messiah who is born in a stable and never wears a crown or sits in a palace?
Who would make a hero out of a figure who was rejected by his own? This history
cannot be concocted fiction. It is grounded in real events of an extraordinary
figure with an extraordinary story.4
H. G. Wells, British
writer, 1866-1946
When
asked which person left the most permanent impression on history, he replied
that judging a person’s greatness by historical standards:
“By this test, Jesus stands first.”
“I am a historian, I am not a believer, but
I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is
irrevocably the very center of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most
dominant figure in all history.”
“Christ is the most unique person of
history. No man can write a history of the human race without giving first and
foremost place to the penniless teacher of Nazareth.”
Kenneth Scott LaTourette,
former President of American Historic Society
In A History of
Christianity:
“It is evidence of His importance, of the
effect that He has had upon history and presumably, of the baffling mystery of
His being that no other life ever lived on this planet has evoked so huge a
volume of literature among so many people and languages, and that, far from
ebbing, the flood continues to mount.”
“As the centuries pass by, the evidence is
accumulating that measured by its effect on history; Jesus is the most
influential life ever lived on this planet. The influence appears to be
mounting.”
“No other life lived on this planet has so
widely and deeply affected mankind.”
George Bancroft,
great American historian
“I find the name of Jesus Christ written on
the top of every page of modern history.”
One Solitary Life
Nearly two thousand years ago in an obscure
village, a child was born of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village where
He worked as a carpenter until He was thirty. Then for three years He became an
itinerant preacher.
This man never went to college or seminary.
He never wrote a book. He never held a public office. He never had a family nor
owned a home. He never put His foot inside a big city nor traveled even 200
miles from His birthplace. And though He never did any of the things that
usually accompany greatness, throngs of people followed Him. He had no
credentials but Himself.
While He was still young, the tide of
public opinion turned against Him. His followers ran away. He was turned over
to His enemies and sentenced to death on a cross between two thieves. While He
was dying, His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on
earth – the simple coat He had worn. His body was laid in a borrowed grave
provided by a compassionate friend.
But three days later this Man arose from
the dead – living proof that He was, as He had claimed, the Savior whom God had
sent, the Incarnate Son of God.
Nineteen centuries have come and gone and
today the risen Lord Jesus Christ is the central figure of the human race. On
our calendars His birth divides history into two eras. One day of every week is
set aside in remembrance of Him. And our two most important holidays celebrate
His birth and resurrection. On church steeples around the world, His cross has
become the symbol of victory over sin and death.
This one Man’s life has furnished the theme
for more songs, books, poems and paintings than any other person or event in
history. Thousands of colleges, hospitals, orphanages and other institutions
have been founded in honor of this One who gave His life for us.
All the armies that ever marched, all the
navies that ever sailed, all the governments that ever sat, all the kings that
ever reigned have not changed the course of history as much as this One
Solitary Life.
You cannot
possibly be a moral relativist.
What
is the difference between absolute and relative truth?
- Absolute
Truth: A value or principle that is regarded as universally valid and is not
subject to opinion. For example, “the wall is blue.” Someone could have an
opinion otherwise, but it is not a matter of opinion. That wall is blue or it
is not.
- Relative
Truth: Relative truth is truth that is determined by opinion. It is a relative
truth that blue is the prettiest color. That is a truth to many, but it is not
absolute.
Moral
relativism is the view that when it comes to the questions of morality, there
are no absolutes and no objective right or wrong: moral rules are merely
personal preferences and/or the result of one’s cultural, sexual, or ethnic
orientation. The moral relativist rejects the idea that certain moral rules
exist. Many people see relativism as necessary for promoting tolerance and
inclusiveness, for they think if one believes one’s moral position is correct
and others’ incorrect, one is closed-minded and intolerant.
The
moral relativist unravels his own case against absolute truth by proclaiming an
absolute statement. If the moral relativist says, and he does, that it is wrong
to make an absolute statement they have made this statement: There is
absolutely no definite moral truth. It is highly hypocritical and highly
comical to catch the relativist building the case against absolute statements
by making an absolute statement. Moral relativist say there is no way to know
absolute truth, and to that I would reply, how would you know? That is really
funny when you start to think about it. Relativism is self-refuting. “I cannot
say a word in English” is self-refuting when uttered in English. “I do not
exist” is self-refuting, for one must exist to utter it. The claim “there are
not truths” is self-refuting. If it is true, it is false as well, for in that
case there are not truths, including the statement itself.
I
did not forget what I said earlier: Everyone chooses a religion. A few notes
(listen to the audio for a more thorough explanation:
- Everyone on the planet is
theologically narrow-minded and intolerant.
- To be theologically tolerant of
more than one religion is impossible for anyone to do.
- To say you cannot judge between
religions is to judge between religions.
- To say you cannot determine
absolute truth is to unravel your own theory with an absolute statement.
- To say no particular religious
view is superior is to create a religion in which you believe your view is
superior.
Once
you decide all beliefs are socially constructed (imposed by a particular
culture) or that all beliefs are relative or there is no absolute truth you
just turned the debate back in on yourself. If you say, “The reason you believe
in Christianity is because you grew up in a Christian family and were made to
go to Church. If you were born in China, you wouldn’t believe.” The argument is
always circular. “The reason you are a skeptic is because you were born in a
cynical atheistic family and culture; if you went to a good Church with good
teaching, you would believe.”
Truth
is always “narrow-minded” – the answer to any math, grammar, anatomy question
is very exclusive and narrow, not because it is arrogant, but because it is
true. Truth is always
measured against a standard. If you have an argument over a word’s
definition, you flee to the dictionary. If you have a disagreement over the
term a president held, you flee to the encyclopedia. If you have a dispute over
a measurement, you pull out the ruler. If you have an argument about the
solution to a math problem, you run to a calculator. If you have a dispute over
moral truth, you must consult the moral lawgiver. By absolute truth, then, we
mean something that would be true for all people, at all times, and in all
places. Most atheists affirm the fact
that they believe in morals, but not God. There can be no morals without a
moral maker.
My point? Everyone
lives there lives based on facts (real or perceived), reason, and trust. Therefore,
there are facts to be investigated if we are to be certain in what we believe.
Lord willing, in the coming months we will investigate these facts chapter by
chapter and verse by verse through the Gospel according to Luke.
Sources
- Sproul, R.C. The
Reformation Study Bible. Lake Mary, FL: Ligonier Ministries, 2005.
- MacArthur, John. The
MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Luke 1-5. Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers,
2009.
- Brock, Darrell. Luke
1:1-9:50. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1994.
- Brock, Darrell. The
NIV Application Commentary: Luke. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House,
1996.
- Ryle, J.C. Luke.
Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 1997.
