“In The Age of Technology What Has Happened To Our …



“In The Age of Technology What Has Happened To Our Theology?”

Ecclesiastes 7:20, 29

INTRO. We are surely living in the Age of Technology. We have more gadgets, gizmos, and

conveniences than has ever been know to man. Technology, the invention of objects

and methods to provide and promote the betterment of man has in many instances

added to man’s burden. The majority of the modern day inventions we see have come

about since 1940, we are told. Some of these inventions are good, and good for us.

They are not wrong within themselves. The problem is that they tend to take us away

from the old fashioned Theology that has been handed down from generation to gene-

ration. When we fall into the trap of believing or, more accurately, hoping that

technology will solve all our problems, we are actually abdicating the high touch of

personal responsibility. Our technological fantasies illustrate the point. We are always

awaiting the new magical pill that will enable us to eat all the fattening food we want,

and not gain weight; burn all the gasoline we want, and not pollute the air; live as

immoderately as we choose, and not contract either cancer or heart disease.

In our minds, at least, technology is always on the verge of liberating us from personal

discipline and responsibility. Only it never does and it never will. The more high

technology around us, the more the need for human touch (1). The more we need God.

The more we need to follow the principles for living contained in God’s Holy Word! 2

Timothy 3:7 says, “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the

truth.” Intellectually today man has reached heights that few thought possible, but

spiritually we are bankrupt. Every generation has felt that it was a new age—that it

saw more light and truth and was more enlightened than the former generation. In the

area of science and techonolgy this is true...

• but it is not true in human life and behavior.

How can we say this? Because man has not been changed. Man is still corruptible,

aging, deteriorating, dying, and decaying. And he will continue to be a corruptible

creature until his heart and soul are changed and made anew. This is where God’s Son

comes in, even the Lord Jesus Christ.

• Only Christ can change the human heart and soul; only He can make a person

into a new creature.

The truth of human behavior (sin and death) and of its deliverance from evil and death

through Christ has been revealed. This truth never changes. Advancements in science

and technology, psychology and medicine cannot stop the process of sin and death.

Only Christ—the power of His cross and resurrection—can change man and give him

eternal life.

The question I want us to consider is this, “What has happened to the old time

Theology?” as we think about this subject, “In The Age of Technology What Has

Happened To Our Theology.”

WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO:

(1) THE THEOLOGY OF SIN

Romans 3:10-18, 23—“As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one:

There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable;

there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open

sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asp, is

under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet

are swift to shed innocent blood: Destruction and misery are in their

ways: And they way of peace they have not known: There is no fear of

God before their eyes. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of

God.”

*The Apostle Paul, in these verses, shows us that humanity in general, in its present sinful con-

dition, is unacceptable before God. “No one is good” means “no one is innocent.” Every single

person is valuable in God’s eyes because God created us in His image and He loves us, but no

one is righteous (that is, no one can earn right standing with God) (2). Though valuable, we are

born in sin-sinners by nature and by choice. And only God through Jesus Christ, His Son, can

redeem us and forgive us our sin.

A. Sin is something we don’t hear much about anymore. Very few preachers

condemn it. We live in a society where the wicked and their wickedness is

glorified. We are foretold in God’s Word that at time such as this would come (Isaiah 5:20).

ILLUS. John MacArthur, in his book, “THE VANISHING CONSCIENCE,”

says, “We live in a culture that has elevated pride to the status of a

virtue. Self-esteem, positive feelings, and personal dignity are what

our society encourages people to seek. At the same time, moral re-

sponsibility is being replaced by victimism, which teaches people to

blame someone else for their personal failures and iniquities.

Frankly, the Biblical teachings about human depravity, sin, guilt, re-

pentance, and humility are not compatible with any of those ideas.

The Church has been far too willing to embrace fads of worldly

opinion-particularly in the area of psychology and self-esteem.

Christians often merely echo worldly thinking on the psychology of

guilt and the importance of feeling good about oneself. The adverse

affect on the life of the Church can hardly be underestimated. No-

where has the damage registered more than in the way professing

Christians deal with their own sin….The Church as a whole is grow-

ing less concerned with sin, and more concerned with self-exonerat-

ion and self-esteem. Christians are rapidly losing sight of sin as the

root of all human woes. And many Christians are explicitly denying

that their own sin can be the cause of their personal anguish. More

and more are attempting to explain the human dilemma in wholly

unbiblical terms: temperament, addiction, dysfunctional families,

the child within, codependency, and a host of other irresponsible es-

cape mechanisms promoted by a secular psychology.

The potential impact of such a drift is frightening. Remove the real-

ity of sin, and you take away the possibility of repentance. Abolish

the doctrine of human depravity and you void the divine plan of

salvation. Erase the notion of personal guilt and you eliminate the

need for a Savior. Obliterate the human conscience, and you will

raise an amoral and unredeemable generation. The Church cannot

join hands with the word in such a grossly satanic enterprise. To do

so is to overthrow the very gospel we are called to proclaim (3).

*We need preachers in the pulpits that will take a strong stand against sin (2

Timothy 4:2-4)!

ILLUS. The story is told that D.L. Moody was conducting a revival in a cer-

tain place. A little boy attended the services. One of this little boy’s

friends, who did not attend the service, asked him what Moody

preached. The boy said, “He preached on sin.” “What did he say

about it?” the other boy asked. The first boy answered, “Well, I

know this much, he is against it.”

B. Sin is a destroyer of:

1. Body

2. Character

3. Family

4. Lives

5. Soul (James 1:14-15). Samuel Shaw said, “Sin itself is hell, and death, and misery to the soul…” (4).

ILLUS. Could the United States be headed down a path similar to that of

ancient Rome? Let's look at the five reasons for Rome's downfall, as

set forth by Edward Gibbon in his classic work "The Decline and

Fall of the Roman Empire." They are:

1. The undermining of the dignity and sanctity of the home.

2. Increasing taxes and spending of public money for bread and

circuses.

3. The mad craze for pleasure, with sports becoming more exciting

and more brutal.

4. The building of gigantic armaments, when the real enemy is the

decadence of the people.

5. The decay of religion, with faith fading into mere form.

(2) THE THEOLOGY OF SATAN

1 Peter 5:8—“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roar-

ing lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”

A. The New York Times, in reporting on a survey by the Barna Group, noted the

diminishing belief in the devil among Americans. Two-thirds of Americans

do not believe in the devil as a living entity. In a nationwide telephone survey

of 1,007 randomly selected people, pollsters asked whether they agreed that

Satan is “not a living being, but is a symbol of evil.” Sixty-two percent

agreed with the statement, while 30 percent disagreed; the remaining 8 percent

had no opinion. “If less than one in three Americans seems willing to give the

devil his due,” reported the Times, “then that is a result of fundamental, long-

term shifts in the nation’s religious culture” (5).

B. But Satan is real. He is out to destroy God, God’s people and God’s Work,

and take sinners to hell by the millions. Satan worship, a thing unheard of in

our nation two generations ago, is one of the fastest growing cults in the nation-and is especially conspicuous in the youth culture. A recent news report from Orange County, California reported more than 500 cases of ritual

animal sacrifice involving stolen pets have been recorded over the past decade

(6).

C. We need to warn people of Satan. We need to tell people how to detect him

and what his plan is and how to stand against him.

ILLUS. I was in an emergency room late one night last week. Victims of

Satan filled the halls. A child - puffy, swollen eyes. Beaten by her

father. A woman - bruised cheeks, bloody nose. "My boyfriend got

drunk and hit me," she said, weeping. An old man - unconscious and

drunk on a stretcher. He drooled blood in his sleep. Jesus saw the

victims of Satan, too.

He saw a leper one day . . . fingers gnarled . . . skin ulcerated . . face

disfigured. And he got indignant . . . angry. Not a selfish, violent

anger. A holy anger . . .a controlled frustration . . .a compassionate

disgust. And it moved him. It moved him to action. I'm convinced

that the same Satan stalks today, causing the hunger in Somalia . . .

the confusion in the Mideast …the egotism on the movie screen . . .

the apathy in Christ's church. And Satan giggles among the dying.-

Max Lucado

(3) THE THEOLOGY OF THE SAVIOR

John 1:1-5, 11-14—“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with

God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.

All things were made by him, and without him was not anything made

that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. And

the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. He

came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as re-

ceived him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to

then that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the

will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was

was made flesh, and dwelt among us, ( and we beheld his glory, the

glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

A. Never have we seen our Blessed LORD Jesus so degraded, hated, and rejected

as we see it today.

1. His deity is denied.

2. His sinless life is mocked.

ILLUS. Television talk-show host Larry King made a very perceptive

comment when he was asked who he would most like to have inter-

viewed from across history. One of those he named was Jesus

Christ. “What would you have asked Him?” Came the rejoinder to

Mr. King, “I would like to ask if He was indeed Virgin born, because

the answer to that question would define history” (7).

ILLUS. In the March 29, 1999, issue of the NEWSWEEK magazine, the

following questions were asked, and answers were given:

"Do you think Jesus Christ ever actually lived?"

Christians 93% YES

Non-Christians 68% YES

I was shocked to read that 7% of those who claim to be Christians,

DO NOT believe that He ever actually lived. Does that make

sense? How can one profess to be a "Christian", and yet deny the

Christ who bought them? And isn't it interesting that more than half

of the non-Christians polled, believe that He lived. There may

indeed be more souls out there willing to hear and obey the gospel

than many brethren are willing to admit!

"Do you believe Jesus Christ rose from the dead after dying on the

cross?"

Christians 88% YES

Non-Christians 32% YES

Again one can be amazed to learn that 12% of professed

"Christians" deny that Jesus was resurrected from the dead. Paul

wrote, "And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and

your faith is also vain" (1 Co 15:14). But note again that a

considerable number of non-Christians believe in His resurrection.

"Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already

to harvest" (Jn. 4:35).--Swartz Creek, MI, church bulletin

B. Jesus Christ was and is God. It may be hard for our finite minds to

grasp but that is where our faith comes in (1 Timothy 3:16). He was

all together man and all together man. He was and is the God-man.

W.A. Criswell in the Great Doctrines of the Bible writes:

Our Blessed LORD combined in one, two natures, both complete;

A perfect manhood all sublime, in Godhead all replete.

As man He entered Cana’s feast, a humble guest to dine;

As God He moved the water there, and changed it into wine.

As man He climbed the mountain’s height, a suppliant to be;

As God He left the place of prayer and walked upon the sea.

As man He wept in heartfelt grief, beside a loved one’s grave;

As God He burst the bands of death, Almighty still to save.

As man He lay within a boat o’erpowered by needful sleep;

As God He rose, rebuked the wind and still the angry deep.

Such was our LORD in life one earth, in dual nature one;

The woman’s seed in very truth and God’s eternal Son.

O Child, O Son, O Word made flesh, may thy high praise increase:

Called Wonderful, the Mighty God, Eternal Prince of Peace (8).

C. In this age of Technology, the Gospel is “taboo”. But the Gospel is

Jesus Christ-His death, burial, and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-

4). Without Christ, Man is without hope. There is no way to God!

ILLUS. Jesus the Way: there is a difference between pointing the

way to a particular place and taking someone by the hand and

leading him there. The person who guides a person to their

destination literally becomes the way himself. Jesus Christ

not only points out and tells a person how to walk through

life and how to reach God, He personally shows the person

the way. Therefore, He Himself is the Way. Note the

repetition of the word “way” (John 14:4-6).

(4) THE THEOLOGY OF SALVATION

2 Corinthians 5:14-15, 17—“For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we

thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: and that He died

for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves,

but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Therefore if any man

be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold,

all things are become new.”

A. There is very little depth to so many salvation experiences today. When a

person is truly born again by the Grace of God, he is never again the same—

“old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

ILLUS. What does it mean for a man to become a “new creature”? Very

simply, it means just what the Scripture says: the man actually

becomes a new creature—his whole being, nature, life, and behavior

changes:

⇒ Whereas a man was dead to God, as a new creature he becomes

alive to God.

⇒ Whereas a man had no relationship with God, as a new creature he

is given a relationship with God.

⇒ Whereas a man was not sure about God, as a new creature he is

absolutely certain about God.

⇒ Whereas a man never fellowshipped and communed with God, as a

new creature he fellowships and communes with God all the time.

⇒ Whereas a man was living in sin and immorality, as a new creature

he lives in righteousness and holiness.

⇒ Whereas a man had to face death, as a new creature he never has to

die.

⇒ Whereas a man was doomed to judgment and eternal separation

from God, as a new creature he is destined to live eternally in the

presence of God.

B. Ask people these days when they were born again, when they repented, when

they came to know Jesus and He completely transformed them, and they don’t

know what you are talking about. To be in Christ means that a believer walks

and lives in Christ day by day. It means that he does not “walk after the flesh,

but after the Spirit” (Romans 8:1, 4). It means that “denying ungodliness and

worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present

world” (Titus 2:12). It means that he bears the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians

5:22-23). It means that he abides in Christ, that he becomes as connected and

attached to Christ...

C. In this age of Technology, Repentance is seldom if ever mentioned in many

Churches. But Repentance is a must. Jesus said, “..except ye repent, ye shall

all likewise perish.” Jesus said, “No! But except you repent, you shall all likewise perish!” Such an argument has its basis in self-righteousness. The point is unmistakable: all men must repent of sin, for all men are sinners,

ILLUS. The word “repentance” or “repent” is used in the writings of Paul

to the Romans, the Corinthians, and to Timothy, and by the writer

to the Hebrews as well as by Peter. It occurs ten times in the Book

of the Revelation of John. In all of the New Testament it appears

more than fifty times. Hebrews lists it as an elementary doctrine of

Christ, a foundation. How serious then is the condition of a profes-

sing church where repentance is missing from its elementary

evangelism or church growth?-J. Edwin Orr (9)

(5) THE THEOLOGY OF SEPARATION

2 Corinthians 5:14-18—“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers:

for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and

what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord

hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an

infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols?

for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will

dwell in them, and walk in them, and I will be their God, and they

shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and

be ye separate, saith the LORD, and touch not the unclean thing;

and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall

be my sons and daughters, saith the LORD Almighty.”

A. Even though the Word of God teaches Separation, we see less separation

between the Church and the world than ever before. But to the Bible-believing Christian Separation is a valid doctrine and must be practiced in two areas:

1. Separation from Evil. It has become almost impossible to tell the difference between a Christian and a non-Christian. Very simply stated, believers are in the world, but they are not to be of the world. They live in the world, but they are not to take part in the sins of the world. Separation from this world involves more than keeping our

distance from sinners; it means staying close to God. It involves more

than avoiding entertainment that leads to sin; it extends as well into how we spend our time and money. In this fallen world, there is no way to separate ourselves totally from all effects of sin…..We are to resist the sin around us, not give up and give in (10).

2. Separation from Ecumenicalism. There is a trend today toward Christian unity. Ecumenicalism, the movement for world-wide unity and cooperation among all Christian Churches only leads to two things:

a) Confusion.

b) Compromise.

God’s Word in Amos 3:3 asks, “Can two walk together, except they be

agreed.” The obvious answer is NO! We cannot, must not, will not

compromise simply for the sake of unity!

(6) THE THEOLOGY OF THE SECOND COMING

Revelation 22:12, 20—“And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is

with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. He

which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly, Amen.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”

A. We don’t know the day nor the hour, but Jesus is coming soon and at a

time when no one will expect Him. This is good news to those who

trust Him, but a terrible message for those who have rejected him and

stand under judgment. Soon means at any moment, and we must be

ready for Him, always prepared for his return. Would Jesus’ sudden

appearance catch you off guard (11)?

ILLUS. Perhaps at cool of morning when

The day is breaking light;

Perhaps at noontide’s hour, or

‘Midst gathering shades of night:

I’ll see a burst of glory, and

The angel’s voice I’ll hear;

The trumpet’s golden throat will sound

The summons loud and clear!

Then suddenly-I’ll see the Lord!

I’ll meet Him face to face…

The Lord of all the universe,

The Lord of truth and grace!

My cup of bliss will overflow;

I’ll see Him as He is!

What joy to place my hand within

That nail-scarred hand of His!

Perhaps today will be the day

I’ll hear His welcomed voice!

Perhaps today I’ll see the Lord

And evermore rejoice!

-Georgia B. Adams (12)

B. We must preach it! We must believe it! We must be expecting it!

(1 Thessalonians 4:16-18). comfort one another with these words.

God does not reveal the events of the end time to satisfy curiosity. He

tells us about the glorious events so that we can prepare and comfort

one another. There is no need for discouragement on this earth; no

need for extreme sorrow and grief; no need for hopelessness; and no

need for ignorance. The Lord Himself has given us the most wonderful

hope—the hope of living forever face to face with Him—of

worshipping and serving Him forever in a new heavens and earth.

CLOSING: In this age of technology what has happened to the theology of sin, Satan, the

Savior, Salvation, Separation, and the Second Coming? Let us till He comes

“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort

with all longsuffering and doctrine.”

NOTES: 1. Charles R. Swindoll. Dropping Your Grip.

2. Living Letters From The Life Application Bible. Pg. 18.

3. John F. MacArthur. The Vanishing Conscience. Pg. 11.

4. Albert J. Wells, Jr. Inspiring Quotations-Contemporary & Classical. Pg. 188.

5. Robert J. Morgan. Nelson’s Complete Book Of Stories, Illustrations & Quotes.

Pg. 682.

6. MacArthur. Pg. 65.

7. 7. Morgan. Pg. 485.

8. Morgan. Pg. 482.

9. Morgan. Pg. 664.

10. Living Letters. Pg. 90.

11. Living Letters. Pg. 318.

12. Wells. Pg. 176.

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