Sermon Cloud

Acts - Selected Scriptures

We must always be ready to defend and share the gospel, for it says in 1 Peter 3:15 that we should always be ready to "make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is within you..." Scripture tells us that sinful man does not have the desire, nor is he capable of receiving the truths of God in and of himself. Instead, it is the Lord Who opens men's hearts to receive His Word.

So, how does God want us to tell other sinners about Him? Today, we consider two compelling truths from God's Word that will revolutionize the way you tell others about Him.

Truth 1: Man's Depravity
Man is helpless to reconcile himself to his creator or to obtain salvation. Depraved man has no desire to seek God or any of His truths. Moreover, men are born spiritually dead and remain dead in their trespasses apart from God's sovereign grace. In short, man in depravity is helplessly lost in sin and hopelessly doomed to hell without God's saving grace. (Gen. 6:5; Jer. 13:23; Rom. 1:18-19; 8:7-8; 1Cor. 2:14; Eph. 2:1-3)

Truth 2: God' Sovereignty
It is not the desire of men to become saved, nor is it within man's power to save himself from God's wrath. In his depraved state, man desires only to rebel against God and to rely on his own understanding of truth. It is instead God's sovereign will alone to make His truths known and He alone chooses who He will save (John 1:12-13; 6:65; 15:16; Rom 8:29-30; 9:16; Eph. 2:4-9).

As believers, we often have a tendency to bring forth all sorts of evidences to prove the existence of God and justify the basis for our faith, but all we really need to remember about defending the faith is that Jesus loves us, and we know this because the Bible tells us so. Christianity is not an opinion to be proved, but a truth to be believed in and to be proclaimed. A person must believe in God's Word first, and understanding will follow. As such, the two most powerful weapons available to believers to defend God's Word is the Word of God and the spirit of God. Thus, we cannot reach people for the Lord using our own means (i.e., evidences and rational reasoning). We must instead rely on the presupposition that God's Word is true and that faith in Jesus Christ is essential for life.

According to scripture, people already know that the gospel is truth. They need only turn to the one true God. For God tells us "I am God and there are no others."