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Your Move with Andy Stanley

Andy Stanley - Irresistible

August 16, 2025 | S25 E33 | 30:10

Andy Stanley - Irresistible
Your Move with Andy Stanley — to help people make better decisions and live with fewer regrets.
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Your Move with Andy Stanley | Andy Stanley - Irresistible | August 16, 2025
  • ...
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  • Andy stanley: hey everybody, welcome to "your move" where we
  • 00:00:01.775 --> 00:00:03.010
  • Help you make better decisions and live with fewer regrets.
  • 00:00:03.143 --> 00:00:05.646
  • I'm andy stanley and i'll be your guide.
  • 00:00:05.779 --> 00:00:07.648
  • Did you know that 75 million americans identify as either
  • 00:00:07.781 --> 00:00:11.885
  • Atheist, agnostic or not religious at all?
  • 00:00:11.985 --> 00:00:14.988
  • Seventy five million and most of these folks are under 30
  • 00:00:15.089 --> 00:00:18.325
  • Years old.
  • 00:00:18.459 --> 00:00:19.660
  • Your kids or maybe your grandkids's age.
  • 00:00:19.760 --> 00:00:21.161
  • For many people, faith has just become, well, irrelevant,
  • 00:00:21.261 --> 00:00:24.431
  • Christianity in particular, but it wasn't always that way.
  • 00:00:24.531 --> 00:00:28.235
  • Once upon a time, the christian faith was irresistible.
  • 00:00:28.335 --> 00:00:31.305
  • The original version, the version depicted in the new
  • 00:00:31.438 --> 00:00:34.041
  • Testament, well it's still very much irresistible.
  • 00:00:34.174 --> 00:00:37.077
  • And what did the original, the irresistible version look like
  • 00:00:37.211 --> 00:00:39.913
  • And what did it sound like?
  • 00:00:40.047 --> 00:00:41.482
  • Stick around and we'll talk about it today right here on
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  • "your move."
  • 00:00:44.351 --> 00:00:45.552
  • ♪♪♪
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  • Andy: our world changed.
  • 00:00:49.923 --> 00:00:52.926
  • Our world changed because of the internet.
  • 00:00:52.926 --> 00:00:55.162
  • And because of the internet, now all the information and the
  • 00:00:55.162 --> 00:00:59.700
  • Misinformation in the world is at everyone's fingertips,
  • 00:00:59.700 --> 00:01:03.904
  • Including children, middle school students, high school
  • 00:01:03.904 --> 00:01:06.406
  • Students, and college students.
  • 00:01:06.406 --> 00:01:08.709
  • What you may not know is this, that after 9/11, 2001, after
  • 00:01:08.709 --> 00:01:12.946
  • 9/11, after we were, you know, the world trade centers were
  • 00:01:12.946 --> 00:01:16.517
  • Attacked and our country was attacked, following that in
  • 00:01:16.517 --> 00:01:18.986
  • Fact, in the two or three years following that there was a
  • 00:01:18.986 --> 00:01:22.022
  • Firestorm of religious skepticism that swept
  • 00:01:22.022 --> 00:01:25.592
  • Our country.
  • 00:01:25.592 --> 00:01:26.927
  • Initially, it was anti-islam skepticism but now very, very,
  • 00:01:26.927 --> 00:01:31.431
  • Very quickly it turned into skepticism about all religion.
  • 00:01:31.431 --> 00:01:36.069
  • And some very witty, very educated and very convincing
  • 00:01:36.069 --> 00:01:40.040
  • Atheist authors published several books and sold millions
  • 00:01:40.040 --> 00:01:43.443
  • And millions of copies.
  • 00:01:43.443 --> 00:01:45.612
  • They became rock stars on university campuses.
  • 00:01:45.612 --> 00:01:48.215
  • They became rock stars in debates.
  • 00:01:48.215 --> 00:01:50.384
  • And unlike years before where you had to buy a ticket and
  • 00:01:50.384 --> 00:01:52.986
  • Attend a debate, unlike years before where you had to buy a
  • 00:01:52.986 --> 00:01:55.756
  • Ticket and drive to a city and actually show up on a university
  • 00:01:55.756 --> 00:01:58.458
  • Campus to hear someone speak, those days are long gone.
  • 00:01:58.458 --> 00:02:01.495
  • And suddenly everybody in our country, everybody in the world.
  • 00:02:01.495 --> 00:02:04.631
  • But everybody in our country had access to all of this
  • 00:02:04.631 --> 00:02:08.368
  • Misinformation as this group of people began to really war
  • 00:02:08.368 --> 00:02:13.040
  • Against all religion and over time it turned to christianity
  • 00:02:13.040 --> 00:02:16.977
  • In particular.
  • 00:02:16.977 --> 00:02:18.345
  • And it fueled the rise of something that many of you, most
  • 00:02:18.345 --> 00:02:21.048
  • Of you know about but all of you should know about, it fueled the
  • 00:02:21.048 --> 00:02:23.684
  • Rise in our country of what are called the nones, the n-o-n-e-s.
  • 00:02:23.684 --> 00:02:27.487
  • The people who are religiously unaffiliated.
  • 00:02:27.487 --> 00:02:31.091
  • Currently--and all of this happened while we're working
  • 00:02:31.091 --> 00:02:33.160
  • Hard and creating churches and baptizing kids and doing all
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  • This cool stuff, right?
  • 00:02:35.662 --> 00:02:37.164
  • Currently about 25% of everybody in america, 25% of americans
  • 00:02:37.164 --> 00:02:43.537
  • Would consider themselves religiously unaffiliated.
  • 00:02:43.537 --> 00:02:47.007
  • Now, that's a high number but, the staggering statistic and the
  • 00:02:47.007 --> 00:02:50.510
  • Thing that bothers me and i want it to bother you is this, in
  • 00:02:50.510 --> 00:02:54.014
  • 2007 it was just 16%.
  • 00:02:54.014 --> 00:02:58.218
  • Sixteen percent to twenty-five percent,
  • 00:02:58.218 --> 00:02:59.853
  • That is millions and millions of people.
  • 00:02:59.853 --> 00:03:01.655
  • And the thing that bothers me the most and the thing that i
  • 00:03:01.655 --> 00:03:03.824
  • Want to bother you the most is this, that 35% of men and women,
  • 00:03:03.824 --> 00:03:08.662
  • 35% of men and women who were under 35 years old consider
  • 00:03:08.662 --> 00:03:13.166
  • Themselves religiously unaffiliated and most of them
  • 00:03:13.166 --> 00:03:15.902
  • Grew up in church.
  • 00:03:15.902 --> 00:03:18.038
  • Most of them grew up going to camp.
  • 00:03:18.038 --> 00:03:20.440
  • Most of them grew up hearing the same kinds of sermons that many
  • 00:03:20.440 --> 00:03:23.243
  • Of us heard growing up.
  • 00:03:23.243 --> 00:03:25.545
  • And maybe most alarmingly of all is this, that 70% of the
  • 00:03:25.545 --> 00:03:30.117
  • Unaffiliated, the nones, the non-religiously affiliated,
  • 00:03:30.117 --> 00:03:32.886
  • About 70% view the bible as completely irrelevant.
  • 00:03:32.886 --> 00:03:37.858
  • Ancient myth, ancient literature, certainly
  • 00:03:37.858 --> 00:03:41.962
  • Not inspired.
  • 00:03:41.962 --> 00:03:43.330
  • And more and more and more there is a movement to argue that the
  • 00:03:43.330 --> 00:03:48.001
  • Bible is not only a fiction, that the bible is harmful.
  • 00:03:48.001 --> 00:03:53.507
  • And when this group of people are surveyed in the pew research
  • 00:03:53.507 --> 00:03:56.076
  • Center does these surveys every other year and they get more and
  • 00:03:56.076 --> 00:03:58.478
  • More and more statistics.
  • 00:03:58.478 --> 00:03:59.813
  • At the end of the day when this group of people are asked, why
  • 00:03:59.813 --> 00:04:02.549
  • Did you leave your religion, the primary answer is simply this:
  • 00:04:02.549 --> 00:04:06.153
  • They just don't believe anymore.
  • 00:04:06.153 --> 00:04:11.158
  • And i'm gonna pause there and say this, for some of you, this
  • 00:04:11.158 --> 00:04:15.062
  • Is not somebody out there somewhere, this is the story of
  • 00:04:15.062 --> 00:04:19.199
  • Your children, isn't it?
  • 00:04:19.199 --> 00:04:21.435
  • This is the story of your grandchildren.
  • 00:04:21.435 --> 00:04:24.171
  • This is what happened to your sister-in-law, your
  • 00:04:24.171 --> 00:04:25.972
  • Brother-in-law, and you just don't understand it because they
  • 00:04:25.972 --> 00:04:29.076
  • Heard all the things you heard, they believed all the things
  • 00:04:29.076 --> 00:04:30.877
  • You believed.
  • 00:04:30.877 --> 00:04:32.245
  • And now when you have conversations with them, it's
  • 00:04:32.245 --> 00:04:33.914
  • Like they're not even antagonistic.
  • 00:04:33.914 --> 00:04:35.916
  • I mean, they're not even defensive they just basically
  • 00:04:35.916 --> 00:04:38.018
  • Say, "that's good for you, that's your truth.
  • 00:04:38.018 --> 00:04:40.721
  • I don't believe it anymore."
  • 00:04:40.721 --> 00:04:42.222
  • And you can't even figure out what it is they don't believe
  • 00:04:42.222 --> 00:04:45.192
  • Anymore, and you can't figure out why they don't believe it.
  • 00:04:45.192 --> 00:04:47.494
  • For others of you, you are right in the middle of this with your
  • 00:04:47.494 --> 00:04:50.430
  • Children or your grandchildren,
  • 00:04:50.430 --> 00:04:52.399
  • Your college son, your college age daughter, your son or
  • 00:04:52.399 --> 00:04:54.968
  • Daughter or your niece or nephew that's in
  • 00:04:54.968 --> 00:04:57.204
  • Graduate school.
  • 00:04:57.204 --> 00:04:58.705
  • And fueling this mass exodus, fueling this mass exodus is
  • 00:04:58.705 --> 00:05:03.110
  • This, that once upon a time, once upon a time a person had to
  • 00:05:03.110 --> 00:05:07.013
  • Read the bible to know what was in the bible.
  • 00:05:07.013 --> 00:05:10.150
  • Once upon a time when most of us grew up, if you wanted to know
  • 00:05:10.150 --> 00:05:12.419
  • What was in the bible, you actually had to go find one,
  • 00:05:12.419 --> 00:05:15.622
  • Borrow one, steal one out of a hotel, you know, drawer.
  • 00:05:15.622 --> 00:05:19.459
  • Imagine stealing a bible that's kind of weird, you know.
  • 00:05:19.459 --> 00:05:22.062
  • When i was a kid, my dad is a pastor, he was parked in his
  • 00:05:22.062 --> 00:05:25.232
  • Reserved parking spot at first baptist atlanta and somebody
  • 00:05:25.232 --> 00:05:28.135
  • Broke in his car and stole his bible.
  • 00:05:28.135 --> 00:05:29.469
  • It's the only thing they stole.
  • 00:05:29.469 --> 00:05:31.538
  • I thought, what are they gonna do, read it?
  • 00:05:31.538 --> 00:05:34.040
  • "thou shalt not steal."
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  • Huh, look it there, you know, anyway.
  • 00:05:35.409 --> 00:05:38.478
  • The point being the only way to find--in the old days, the only
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  • Way to discover what was in the bible, you had to have one in
  • 00:05:41.348 --> 00:05:44.751
  • Your hands and read it.
  • 00:05:44.751 --> 00:05:47.020
  • And most people in a bygone age respected the bible even though
  • 00:05:47.020 --> 00:05:50.624
  • They hadn't read it, and most people hadn't read it.
  • 00:05:50.624 --> 00:05:52.993
  • In fact, your experience is like mine.
  • 00:05:52.993 --> 00:05:54.795
  • Some adult, when you were a child, they gave you your first
  • 00:05:54.795 --> 00:05:57.264
  • Bible, they said, "this is god's holy word, it's all true."
  • 00:05:57.264 --> 00:06:00.434
  • And you believed it was all true and you had not even read it.
  • 00:06:00.434 --> 00:06:03.370
  • And i'll let you in on a little secret, let's keep this in
  • 00:06:03.370 --> 00:06:05.338
  • The room.
  • 00:06:05.338 --> 00:06:06.673
  • Chances are, the adult that handed you your bible and told
  • 00:06:06.673 --> 00:06:09.843
  • You that it was all true, they hadn't read it all either.
  • 00:06:09.843 --> 00:06:14.247
  • But that's just the way our culture worked because everybody
  • 00:06:14.247 --> 00:06:16.349
  • Had so much respect for the bible.
  • 00:06:16.349 --> 00:06:17.684
  • Very few people read it.
  • 00:06:17.684 --> 00:06:19.052
  • We left it to priests and preachers to tell us what was
  • 00:06:19.052 --> 00:06:22.956
  • In it.
  • 00:06:22.956 --> 00:06:24.291
  • But those days are long gone because now you, your kids, your
  • 00:06:24.291 --> 00:06:29.796
  • Grandkids, and the future generation and this generation
  • 00:06:29.796 --> 00:06:32.599
  • Can discover what else is in the bible without even owning or
  • 00:06:32.599 --> 00:06:37.871
  • Opening or touching a bible.
  • 00:06:37.871 --> 00:06:42.042
  • Andy: hey, i wanted to take just a minute to address a growing
  • 00:06:42.042 --> 00:06:44.945
  • Crisis in america.
  • 00:06:44.945 --> 00:06:46.279
  • Did you know that nearly 75 million americans have no
  • 00:06:46.279 --> 00:06:49.549
  • Religious affiliation, none whatsoever?
  • 00:06:49.549 --> 00:06:51.918
  • Most of us know some of these people.
  • 00:06:51.918 --> 00:06:53.353
  • Many of us are related to some of these people.
  • 00:06:53.353 --> 00:06:55.355
  • So for us, they aren't statistics, they're people we
  • 00:06:55.355 --> 00:06:58.191
  • Love and would love to see returned to faith in jesus.
  • 00:06:58.191 --> 00:07:01.361
  • So at "your move," we are committed to reaching people
  • 00:07:01.361 --> 00:07:04.264
  • With the teaching of jesus right where they are and when they
  • 00:07:04.264 --> 00:07:07.601
  • Least expect it.
  • 00:07:07.601 --> 00:07:09.002
  • We use a research-backed digital strategy that's already
  • 00:07:09.002 --> 00:07:12.239
  • Making a difference.
  • 00:07:12.239 --> 00:07:13.573
  • So, if you'll stick around after today's message, we would love
  • 00:07:13.573 --> 00:07:15.942
  • To tell you more about it, or visit the website or call the
  • 00:07:15.942 --> 00:07:19.246
  • Number on your screen to learn how you can be a part of this
  • 00:07:19.246 --> 00:07:22.115
  • Revolutionary approach to introducing and reintroducing
  • 00:07:22.115 --> 00:07:25.585
  • People to jesus.
  • 00:07:25.585 --> 00:07:27.787
  • Andy: this calls for a different approach to what we're doing.
  • 00:07:27.787 --> 00:07:32.459
  • And post 9/11, this created the perfect storm, the perfect
  • 00:07:32.459 --> 00:07:37.030
  • Opportunity, and skeptics exploited, skeptics exploited a
  • 00:07:37.030 --> 00:07:41.301
  • Flaw in the modern version of christianity.
  • 00:07:41.301 --> 00:07:44.671
  • Because they had something that previous generations of atheists
  • 00:07:44.671 --> 00:07:47.707
  • And skeptics didn't have.
  • 00:07:47.707 --> 00:07:49.543
  • They had the internet.
  • 00:07:49.543 --> 00:07:50.911
  • They had an all-access pass to every single curious person in
  • 00:07:50.911 --> 00:07:57.984
  • The world.
  • 00:07:57.984 --> 00:07:59.352
  • And they have leveraged this extraordinary tool to preach
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  • Their gospel of disbelief to undermine the credibility
  • 00:08:03.390 --> 00:08:08.028
  • Of christianity.
  • 00:08:08.028 --> 00:08:09.362
  • And they have exploited a flaw in our modern post-reformation
  • 00:08:09.362 --> 00:08:13.466
  • Version of christianity.
  • 00:08:13.466 --> 00:08:14.901
  • A flaw that is very difficult, almost impossible to exploit in
  • 00:08:14.901 --> 00:08:18.405
  • A culture that holds the bible in high esteem.
  • 00:08:18.405 --> 00:08:21.575
  • And the flaw is simply this, it's a false assumption.
  • 00:08:21.575 --> 00:08:25.312
  • It is a shared false assumption regarding the foundation
  • 00:08:25.312 --> 00:08:29.182
  • Of christianity.
  • 00:08:29.182 --> 00:08:30.517
  • And when i say a shared assumption, i mean this, that
  • 00:08:30.517 --> 00:08:32.852
  • Christians assume this, non-christians assume this,
  • 00:08:32.852 --> 00:08:36.823
  • Post-christians assume this, and this false assumption that has
  • 00:08:36.823 --> 00:08:40.327
  • Been with us since the reformation has finally begun to
  • 00:08:40.327 --> 00:08:43.630
  • Take root and we're finally paying a price for it, and it's
  • 00:08:43.630 --> 00:08:46.766
  • Why i wanted to talk to you about it, and it's why i wrote
  • 00:08:46.766 --> 00:08:49.336
  • The book, "irresistible."
  • 00:08:49.336 --> 00:08:51.137
  • Since the reformation, and we're not gonna go back and do a lot
  • 00:08:51.137 --> 00:08:53.373
  • Of history, but since the reformation, protestant
  • 00:08:53.373 --> 00:08:55.375
  • Leaders, teachers, and preachers have taught
  • 00:08:55.375 --> 00:08:57.711
  • That the scripture is the final authority for christians.
  • 00:08:57.711 --> 00:09:01.181
  • This was the whole point of the reformation, that the church
  • 00:09:01.181 --> 00:09:03.083
  • Isn't the final authority, that the scripture, the bible is the
  • 00:09:03.083 --> 00:09:06.753
  • Final authority for christians.
  • 00:09:06.753 --> 00:09:08.455
  • In fact, we--most of us grew up hearing that or thinking that--
  • 00:09:08.455 --> 00:09:11.124
  • Even if you didn't grow up in church, you assume, well, the
  • 00:09:11.124 --> 00:09:13.393
  • Bible is marching orders for christians.
  • 00:09:13.393 --> 00:09:16.062
  • So consequently, for generations and generations and generations
  • 00:09:16.062 --> 00:09:19.232
  • Preachers have said, "the bible says, the bible says, the bible
  • 00:09:19.232 --> 00:09:22.369
  • Says, the bible teaches.
  • 00:09:22.369 --> 00:09:23.737
  • The word of god says, the word of god says."
  • 00:09:23.737 --> 00:09:25.438
  • And when you hear, "the word of god says," and, "the bible
  • 00:09:25.438 --> 00:09:27.207
  • Says," basically what they're communicating is, at the end of
  • 00:09:27.207 --> 00:09:29.843
  • The day, the bottom line is if the bible says it, that's all we
  • 00:09:29.843 --> 00:09:33.647
  • Need to know.
  • 00:09:33.647 --> 00:09:35.015
  • If the bible teaches it, we believe it.
  • 00:09:35.015 --> 00:09:36.416
  • If the bible says it, then that settles it.
  • 00:09:36.416 --> 00:09:39.219
  • And that kind of language generation after generation
  • 00:09:39.219 --> 00:09:41.955
  • After generation has left generations of christians
  • 00:09:41.955 --> 00:09:44.457
  • Assuming that the bible is the foundation of our faith.
  • 00:09:44.457 --> 00:09:50.664
  • Don't leave early.
  • 00:09:50.664 --> 00:09:52.899
  • It's not, and it never has been.
  • 00:09:52.899 --> 00:09:57.771
  • But most modern christians think it is.
  • 00:09:57.771 --> 00:10:00.840
  • Most of the christians that left church thought it was.
  • 00:10:00.840 --> 00:10:04.144
  • Most of the generation that walked away from church walked
  • 00:10:04.144 --> 00:10:07.013
  • Away from church assuming it is, and modern skeptics and those
  • 00:10:07.013 --> 00:10:11.317
  • That are undermining the christian faith assume that it
  • 00:10:11.317 --> 00:10:14.120
  • Is the foundation of our faith as well.
  • 00:10:14.120 --> 00:10:17.524
  • And this assumption has left many with the impression and
  • 00:10:17.524 --> 00:10:20.994
  • Understandably so, that as the bible goes, so goes the
  • 00:10:20.994 --> 00:10:25.298
  • Christian faith.
  • 00:10:25.298 --> 00:10:26.633
  • If you can undermine the credibility of the bible, all 66
  • 00:10:26.633 --> 00:10:31.137
  • Books or any one of the 66 books or any part of any one of the 66
  • 00:10:31.137 --> 00:10:36.643
  • Books of the bible, that christianity
  • 00:10:36.643 --> 00:10:38.445
  • Comes tumbling down.
  • 00:10:38.445 --> 00:10:39.779
  • As you've heard me say before, it's like a 66-card house of
  • 00:10:39.779 --> 00:10:43.483
  • Cards, and we're gonna pull out genesis or we're gonna pull out
  • 00:10:43.483 --> 00:10:46.219
  • Leviticus or we're gonna pull out something in revelation or
  • 00:10:46.219 --> 00:10:49.055
  • We're gonna pull out some supposed, you know,
  • 00:10:49.055 --> 00:10:50.890
  • Contradiction in the resurrection stories out of the
  • 00:10:50.890 --> 00:10:53.059
  • Gospels, and if one part of it isn't true, then the bible
  • 00:10:53.059 --> 00:10:56.262
  • Isn't true.
  • 00:10:56.262 --> 00:10:57.597
  • And if the bible isn't true, christianity is false.
  • 00:10:57.597 --> 00:10:59.899
  • In fact, one of the most prominent new atheists in the
  • 00:10:59.899 --> 00:11:02.669
  • Introduction to one of his books--i'm not gonna mention
  • 00:11:02.669 --> 00:11:04.504
  • His name or the book right now.
  • 00:11:04.504 --> 00:11:05.839
  • We're gonna talk about that in the series to come.
  • 00:11:05.839 --> 00:11:07.373
  • In the introduction of the book, he says this.
  • 00:11:07.373 --> 00:11:09.409
  • He says, "come on, christians, this is how it works.
  • 00:11:09.409 --> 00:11:12.011
  • If christianity is true, then i have a frightful surprise
  • 00:11:12.011 --> 00:11:16.549
  • Waiting for me when i die.
  • 00:11:16.549 --> 00:11:18.985
  • But if the bible is false, then christianity is false and you're
  • 00:11:18.985 --> 00:11:22.756
  • All living a fairy tale."
  • 00:11:22.756 --> 00:11:25.759
  • This is the assumption of the modern church, and i understand
  • 00:11:25.759 --> 00:11:29.162
  • How we got there and i'm not being critical of anybody, but
  • 00:11:29.162 --> 00:11:31.731
  • The time has come for us to call out and draw a circle
  • 00:11:31.731 --> 00:11:35.168
  • Around this false assumption.
  • 00:11:35.168 --> 00:11:36.503
  • Not for our sake, i'm fine.
  • 00:11:36.503 --> 00:11:38.204
  • Not for your sake, you're probably fine.
  • 00:11:38.204 --> 00:11:40.106
  • For your children's sake, for your grandchildren's sake, for
  • 00:11:40.106 --> 00:11:42.809
  • This generation's sake, and for the sake of the next generation.
  • 00:11:42.809 --> 00:11:46.913
  • And with the help of the internet, the skeptics have done
  • 00:11:46.913 --> 00:11:49.616
  • A masterful job exploiting this false assumption
  • 00:11:49.616 --> 00:11:54.287
  • About christianity.
  • 00:11:54.287 --> 00:11:55.655
  • And what has the church done?
  • 00:11:55.655 --> 00:11:56.990
  • How has the church responded?
  • 00:11:56.990 --> 00:11:58.358
  • In my opinion, the church has done nothing.
  • 00:11:58.358 --> 00:12:01.561
  • Churches preach and teach as they've always preached and
  • 00:12:01.561 --> 00:12:04.597
  • They've always taught.
  • 00:12:04.597 --> 00:12:06.232
  • They keep preaching the same way, they just tell children,
  • 00:12:06.232 --> 00:12:08.401
  • "here's your bible, it's all true, believe it."
  • 00:12:08.401 --> 00:12:10.403
  • The children believe it 'cause the children will believe
  • 00:12:10.403 --> 00:12:12.205
  • Anything adult tells them to believe, and then they graduate
  • 00:12:12.205 --> 00:12:14.874
  • From high school and we send them into an increasingly
  • 00:12:14.874 --> 00:12:17.977
  • Post-christian culture.
  • 00:12:17.977 --> 00:12:19.546
  • And when they come home with real academic questions,
  • 00:12:19.546 --> 00:12:22.515
  • We give them sunday school answers, and no wonder
  • 00:12:22.515 --> 00:12:25.685
  • They're walking away from faith.
  • 00:12:25.685 --> 00:12:28.521
  • Now, there is a group that has responded to all of this, some
  • 00:12:28.521 --> 00:12:31.224
  • Christian authors and apologists.
  • 00:12:31.224 --> 00:12:33.026
  • And they've written many, many books defending the bible.
  • 00:12:33.026 --> 00:12:37.197
  • And i think--i'm not exaggerating.
  • 00:12:37.197 --> 00:12:39.332
  • I think i have read every single one of their books.
  • 00:12:39.332 --> 00:12:43.303
  • Ask my wife.
  • 00:12:43.303 --> 00:12:44.637
  • It's all i listen to 'cause i love apologetics and i love this
  • 00:12:44.637 --> 00:12:47.307
  • Stuff, but here's what i know.
  • 00:12:47.307 --> 00:12:48.741
  • You are not gonna get a 25-year-old, a 22-year-old or
  • 00:12:48.741 --> 00:12:52.645
  • Your brother-in-law or your sister-in-law to wade through a
  • 00:12:52.645 --> 00:12:55.481
  • 250-page book, and when that didn't answer all their
  • 00:12:55.481 --> 00:12:58.351
  • Questions, give them another 250-page book.
  • 00:12:58.351 --> 00:13:00.453
  • So if you're really interested in knowing how to defend the
  • 00:13:00.453 --> 00:13:03.122
  • Bible, there's lots of information.
  • 00:13:03.122 --> 00:13:05.458
  • But you're not gonna get anyone's undivided attention for
  • 00:13:05.458 --> 00:13:07.894
  • That long.
  • 00:13:07.894 --> 00:13:09.262
  • And somebody has to be really interested, somebody has to be
  • 00:13:09.262 --> 00:13:11.831
  • Looking for something to substantiate their faith, to
  • 00:13:11.831 --> 00:13:14.467
  • Wade through those fabulous books.
  • 00:13:14.467 --> 00:13:17.003
  • Given enough time and interest, you can defend the bible.
  • 00:13:17.003 --> 00:13:21.007
  • So years ago, i decided that's not the best approach, even
  • 00:13:21.007 --> 00:13:25.144
  • Though i love those books and recommend them all the time, and
  • 00:13:25.144 --> 00:13:27.680
  • In our next series i'm gonna recommend two or three of those
  • 00:13:27.680 --> 00:13:29.749
  • Books to you.
  • 00:13:29.749 --> 00:13:31.517
  • Years ago, i was watching one particular atheist do an
  • 00:13:31.517 --> 00:13:35.455
  • Incredible talk at a university.
  • 00:13:35.455 --> 00:13:37.323
  • It wasn't a debate, he was just speaking, and the crowd was
  • 00:13:37.323 --> 00:13:40.860
  • Going wild.
  • 00:13:40.860 --> 00:13:42.962
  • I mean, he was completely dismantling the old testament,
  • 00:13:42.962 --> 00:13:46.699
  • Dismantling parts of the new testament.
  • 00:13:46.699 --> 00:13:48.835
  • You know, christian--the bible is false, the bible has
  • 00:13:48.835 --> 00:13:51.070
  • Contradictions, the bible can't be trusted.
  • 00:13:51.070 --> 00:13:52.872
  • And as the bible goes, so goes christianity,
  • 00:13:52.872 --> 00:13:55.208
  • And the crowd was just cheering.
  • 00:13:55.208 --> 00:13:56.643
  • And i sat watching him on my computer and i thought, i gotta
  • 00:13:56.643 --> 00:13:59.012
  • Do something.
  • 00:13:59.012 --> 00:14:00.380
  • And i don't think i wanna spend the rest of my life teaching
  • 00:14:00.380 --> 00:14:02.248
  • Apologetics and trying to prove to people that the bible is true
  • 00:14:02.248 --> 00:14:05.018
  • Because what we need to do, what i feel like i need to do was
  • 00:14:05.018 --> 00:14:07.587
  • Address the fatal flaw.
  • 00:14:07.587 --> 00:14:09.188
  • The fatal flaw that as the bible goes, so goes christianity.
  • 00:14:09.188 --> 00:14:14.027
  • So about eight or nine years ago i changed my approach to
  • 00:14:14.027 --> 00:14:17.964
  • Preaching and teaching.
  • 00:14:17.964 --> 00:14:19.465
  • Contrary to some people's opinion, i did not change what
  • 00:14:19.465 --> 00:14:23.102
  • I believed.
  • 00:14:23.102 --> 00:14:24.470
  • In fact, just the opposite, just so you know.
  • 00:14:24.470 --> 00:14:27.240
  • I am more convinced than ever that following jesus will make
  • 00:14:27.240 --> 00:14:30.543
  • Your life better and make you better at life and you should
  • 00:14:30.543 --> 00:14:33.012
  • Follow jesus.
  • 00:14:33.012 --> 00:14:34.380
  • Even if you don't believe, you should follow.
  • 00:14:34.380 --> 00:14:36.182
  • I'm so convinced of that.
  • 00:14:36.182 --> 00:14:37.583
  • I'm more convinced than ever.
  • 00:14:37.583 --> 00:14:38.952
  • In fact, i don't know why everybody wouldn't want the
  • 00:14:38.952 --> 00:14:43.356
  • Message of christianity to be true.
  • 00:14:43.356 --> 00:14:45.491
  • I just don't understand why people who are skeptical and
  • 00:14:45.491 --> 00:14:47.860
  • People who don't believe wouldn't be asking, okay, i
  • 00:14:47.860 --> 00:14:50.430
  • Don't believe, but as the, you know, the person that--one of
  • 00:14:50.430 --> 00:14:53.266
  • The people that jesus healed in the gospels, he said, "help
  • 00:14:53.266 --> 00:14:56.002
  • My unbelief."
  • 00:14:56.002 --> 00:14:57.337
  • I wanna believe it's true.
  • 00:14:57.337 --> 00:14:58.705
  • I wanna believe that in the end everybody gets justice.
  • 00:14:58.705 --> 00:15:01.607
  • I wanna believe that in the end there's forgiveness.
  • 00:15:01.607 --> 00:15:03.710
  • I wanna believe that in the end there's a personal god who's
  • 00:15:03.710 --> 00:15:06.279
  • Invited me to call him father.
  • 00:15:06.279 --> 00:15:07.981
  • Why wouldn't everybody want that?
  • 00:15:07.981 --> 00:15:10.316
  • I'm totally sold out to the message of the gospel and the
  • 00:15:10.316 --> 00:15:13.686
  • Message of jesus.
  • 00:15:13.686 --> 00:15:15.388
  • And not only did i not change what i believe, i didn't change
  • 00:15:15.388 --> 00:15:17.924
  • My view or my respect for the bible.
  • 00:15:17.924 --> 00:15:20.593
  • None of that changed.
  • 00:15:20.593 --> 00:15:21.928
  • But what did change was my approach to talking about
  • 00:15:21.928 --> 00:15:25.264
  • The bible.
  • 00:15:25.264 --> 00:15:26.632
  • I stopped saying anything that would support this notion that
  • 00:15:26.632 --> 00:15:30.603
  • As the bible goes, so goes christianity.
  • 00:15:30.603 --> 00:15:34.107
  • And i embraced what i believe is the approach of our first
  • 00:15:34.107 --> 00:15:37.110
  • Century brothers and sisters as it relates to faith.
  • 00:15:37.110 --> 00:15:40.980
  • And their approach was this, it was an approach that argues from
  • 00:15:40.980 --> 00:15:46.185
  • And anchors to the event of the resurrection rather than the
  • 00:15:46.185 --> 00:15:49.422
  • Authority of the bible.
  • 00:15:49.422 --> 00:15:50.790
  • And the reason i feel so confident about this is because
  • 00:15:50.790 --> 00:15:53.459
  • This was the way the first and second century christians
  • 00:15:53.459 --> 00:15:56.562
  • Survived and how the church thrived.
  • 00:15:56.562 --> 00:15:58.898
  • Because, long before, long before there was christian
  • 00:15:58.898 --> 00:16:03.836
  • Scripture, long before there was christian scripture there
  • 00:16:03.836 --> 00:16:08.441
  • Were christians.
  • 00:16:08.441 --> 00:16:09.876
  • So i've done my best in these past few years to step back, to
  • 00:16:09.876 --> 00:16:13.780
  • Step back and to teach and to preach from the standpoint of
  • 00:16:13.780 --> 00:16:17.316
  • Anchoring your faith and the faith of your students and the
  • 00:16:17.316 --> 00:16:21.821
  • Faith of our churches to the event of the resurrection rather
  • 00:16:21.821 --> 00:16:25.058
  • Than the authority of scripture.
  • 00:16:25.058 --> 00:16:27.593
  • How many times have you heard me say this?
  • 00:16:27.593 --> 00:16:29.996
  • "if someone predicts their own death and resurrection and pulls
  • 00:16:29.996 --> 00:16:33.666
  • It off, i go with whatever that person says!"
  • 00:16:33.666 --> 00:16:37.003
  • I have said this every single chance i get, and i'll tell
  • 00:16:37.003 --> 00:16:40.940
  • You why.
  • 00:16:40.940 --> 00:16:42.675
  • Because when you begin to doubt and your son or your daughter
  • 00:16:42.675 --> 00:16:46.312
  • Begins to doubt, i want you to know that you can anchor your
  • 00:16:46.312 --> 00:16:50.416
  • Faith and their faith not to the 66 books of the bible but to
  • 00:16:50.416 --> 00:16:54.487
  • The event that launched this thing to begin with.
  • 00:16:54.487 --> 00:16:58.391
  • Every easter for the past five easters i've begun
  • 00:16:58.391 --> 00:17:00.893
  • Our services the same way.
  • 00:17:00.893 --> 00:17:02.228
  • I've said this, "hey, if you're here today and this is your
  • 00:17:02.228 --> 00:17:04.163
  • First time in one of our churches, here's what we want
  • 00:17:04.163 --> 00:17:06.732
  • You to know.
  • 00:17:06.732 --> 00:17:08.067
  • We believe that jesus died on the cross and rose from
  • 00:17:08.067 --> 00:17:10.570
  • The dead...but not because the bible tells us so.
  • 00:17:10.570 --> 00:17:13.106
  • It is better than that!"
  • 00:17:13.106 --> 00:17:15.408
  • I've said that the last five easters in a row, why?
  • 00:17:15.408 --> 00:17:18.778
  • Because i wanna anchor people's faith and i want you to anchor
  • 00:17:18.778 --> 00:17:21.747
  • Your faith to the event of the resurrection,
  • 00:17:21.747 --> 00:17:23.816
  • Not the 66 books of the bible.
  • 00:17:23.816 --> 00:17:25.585
  • Do i think there's anything wrong with the
  • 00:17:25.585 --> 00:17:26.986
  • 66 books of the bible?
  • 00:17:26.986 --> 00:17:28.321
  • No, this is not about me.
  • 00:17:28.321 --> 00:17:30.056
  • This isn't even about you.
  • 00:17:30.056 --> 00:17:31.891
  • This is about a generation we're losing, that we're losing
  • 00:17:31.891 --> 00:17:34.227
  • Unnecessarily, because i'm convinced 99% of the people
  • 00:17:34.227 --> 00:17:37.330
  • Who've walked away from faith did not walk away from anything
  • 00:17:37.330 --> 00:17:40.600
  • That had anything to do with the essentials of our faith.
  • 00:17:40.600 --> 00:17:44.003
  • And that has to change.
  • 00:17:44.003 --> 00:17:45.738
  • And i want all those people to come back.
  • 00:17:45.738 --> 00:17:48.074
  • Because i believe that following jesus will make your life better
  • 00:17:48.074 --> 00:17:52.278
  • And make you better at life.
  • 00:17:52.278 --> 00:17:54.680
  • The first century christians, the second century christians,
  • 00:17:54.680 --> 00:17:57.817
  • They knew what we either didn't know or have forgotten.
  • 00:17:57.817 --> 00:18:00.419
  • That the foundation of our faith is not "it is written."
  • 00:18:00.419 --> 00:18:05.024
  • The foundation of our faith is "something happened."
  • 00:18:05.024 --> 00:18:08.995
  • Our epic story does not begin in genesis.
  • 00:18:08.995 --> 00:18:13.166
  • Our epic story begins easter morning when disheartened and
  • 00:18:13.166 --> 00:18:17.403
  • Sad and brokenhearted and disillusioned men and women
  • 00:18:17.403 --> 00:18:21.207
  • Stared into an empty tomb and met their resurrected friend and
  • 00:18:21.207 --> 00:18:25.678
  • Rabbi who they would later declare as their savior.
  • 00:18:25.678 --> 00:18:29.182
  • Our story, come on, your story, your children's story, our
  • 00:18:29.182 --> 00:18:33.152
  • Grandchildren's story does not hang in the balance of whether
  • 00:18:33.152 --> 00:18:35.955
  • 66 ancient documents are all accurate at every level and
  • 00:18:35.955 --> 00:18:40.026
  • Could be proven true.
  • 00:18:40.026 --> 00:18:41.394
  • The story of our faith hangs on a single event.
  • 00:18:41.394 --> 00:18:44.597
  • Now, if you think i'm making this up or i'm discounting the
  • 00:18:44.597 --> 00:18:46.465
  • Importance of scripture, please pay attention.
  • 00:18:46.465 --> 00:18:49.035
  • In fact, the apostle paul, who brings us about half the new
  • 00:18:49.035 --> 00:18:52.171
  • Testament, said it best.
  • 00:18:52.171 --> 00:18:53.940
  • The apostle paul--in the book, "irresistible," i spent a lot
  • 00:18:53.940 --> 00:18:56.175
  • Of time on this.
  • 00:18:56.175 --> 00:18:57.543
  • The apostle paul who--and this is unimaginable, in the course
  • 00:18:57.543 --> 00:19:00.513
  • Of a day went from a law-abiding pharisee who was so committed to
  • 00:19:00.513 --> 00:19:05.952
  • The law and the temple that he was rounding up christians and
  • 00:19:05.952 --> 00:19:08.788
  • Having them tortured and executed,
  • 00:19:08.788 --> 00:19:10.690
  • In the course of a day he went from a law-abiding pharisee to a
  • 00:19:10.690 --> 00:19:13.926
  • Jesus follower, in one day.
  • 00:19:13.926 --> 00:19:15.995
  • And when the scales fell from his eyes, he not only could see
  • 00:19:15.995 --> 00:19:19.332
  • Physically, he had extraordinary clarity about the contrast
  • 00:19:19.332 --> 00:19:23.302
  • Between the old covenant and the new.
  • 00:19:23.302 --> 00:19:25.771
  • And the apostle paul himself says there's only one thing,
  • 00:19:25.771 --> 00:19:30.076
  • There's only one thing that serves as the
  • 00:19:30.076 --> 00:19:31.811
  • Foundation of our faith.
  • 00:19:31.811 --> 00:19:33.145
  • And if this goes away, our faith goes away.
  • 00:19:33.145 --> 00:19:35.214
  • And it was not something written.
  • 00:19:35.214 --> 00:19:37.516
  • Here's the words of the apostle paul himself.
  • 00:19:37.516 --> 00:19:39.986
  • This is big, he said, "and if christ has not been raised, our
  • 00:19:39.986 --> 00:19:45.958
  • Preaching is useless and so is your faith and your faith and
  • 00:19:45.958 --> 00:19:51.264
  • Your faith and your faith and your faith and your faith and
  • 00:19:51.264 --> 00:19:53.766
  • Your faith and your faith."
  • 00:19:53.766 --> 00:19:55.835
  • Say, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, paul,
  • 00:19:55.835 --> 00:19:57.470
  • That's kind of risky.
  • 00:19:57.470 --> 00:19:58.804
  • I mean, you're saying the whole thing teeters on a single event?
  • 00:19:58.804 --> 00:20:02.575
  • Paul would say, "yes, do not be mistaken.
  • 00:20:02.575 --> 00:20:05.811
  • This is not the it is written religion.
  • 00:20:05.811 --> 00:20:08.848
  • This is the something happened religion.
  • 00:20:08.848 --> 00:20:11.317
  • And if this happened, game on.
  • 00:20:11.317 --> 00:20:15.054
  • God has done something in the world for the world, and if this
  • 00:20:15.054 --> 00:20:18.357
  • Did not happen, ignore my preaching and ignore your
  • 00:20:18.357 --> 00:20:22.128
  • Fairy-tale faith and go back to the temple or go back to your
  • 00:20:22.128 --> 00:20:25.865
  • Polytheism or your paganism because christianity is
  • 00:20:25.865 --> 00:20:29.001
  • Not true."
  • 00:20:29.001 --> 00:20:30.703
  • Christianity rests on a single event.
  • 00:20:30.703 --> 00:20:35.508
  • And the apostle paul did not say this about anything else.
  • 00:20:35.508 --> 00:20:39.612
  • The bible did not create christianity.
  • 00:20:39.612 --> 00:20:44.750
  • I want the next generation to know that.
  • 00:20:44.750 --> 00:20:47.420
  • I want them to know if they decide to walk away from the
  • 00:20:47.420 --> 00:20:50.456
  • Christian faith, they're not walking away from a book, they
  • 00:20:50.456 --> 00:20:53.192
  • Are walking away from an event that has been documented, and
  • 00:20:53.192 --> 00:20:56.262
  • More importantly, they are walking away from a person.
  • 00:20:56.262 --> 00:21:01.167
  • Just as the constitution did not found our nation,
  • 00:21:01.167 --> 00:21:05.404
  • Just as the company handbook did not start your company, the
  • 00:21:05.404 --> 00:21:09.408
  • Bible did not launch christianity.
  • 00:21:09.408 --> 00:21:12.611
  • Put it a different way.
  • 00:21:12.611 --> 00:21:14.513
  • Your birth certificate didn't birth you.
  • 00:21:14.513 --> 00:21:20.519
  • Your birth certificate documents you.
  • 00:21:20.519 --> 00:21:23.856
  • When people came to the hospital after your mother had you,
  • 00:21:23.856 --> 00:21:27.093
  • Nobody asked to see the birth certificate.
  • 00:21:27.093 --> 00:21:30.129
  • They wanted to see the baby.
  • 00:21:30.129 --> 00:21:32.865
  • And the thing i love about you and i love about our church, for
  • 00:21:32.865 --> 00:21:35.534
  • 23 years we've been showing people the baby, and i say we
  • 00:21:35.534 --> 00:21:40.306
  • Keep doing that.
  • 00:21:40.306 --> 00:21:41.640
  • And if it means we have to do some things that other people
  • 00:21:41.640 --> 00:21:43.976
  • Aren't willing to do to reach some people that other people
  • 00:21:43.976 --> 00:21:46.011
  • Aren't reaching, that's what we do because that's what you have
  • 00:21:46.011 --> 00:21:49.548
  • Always done.
  • 00:21:49.548 --> 00:21:50.883
  • The baby that showed up as an adult man on the banks of the
  • 00:21:50.883 --> 00:21:54.687
  • Jordan river.
  • 00:21:54.687 --> 00:21:56.055
  • And john the baptist looked at him and said, "oh no," or, "oh
  • 00:21:56.055 --> 00:21:58.791
  • Yes," or, "oh good," or, "oh my, it's about to happen.
  • 00:21:58.791 --> 00:22:01.961
  • The promise given to abraham all those years ago is about to come
  • 00:22:01.961 --> 00:22:05.698
  • True right here in our generation."
  • 00:22:05.698 --> 00:22:07.266
  • "behold, the final lamb of god who has come to take away the
  • 00:22:07.266 --> 00:22:11.937
  • Sin, your sin and my sin, the sin of the whole world."
  • 00:22:11.937 --> 00:22:17.510
  • The baby who grew to be a man, and the apostle paul would say
  • 00:22:17.510 --> 00:22:20.713
  • About him later in ephesians 2:20,
  • 00:22:20.713 --> 00:22:22.381
  • And if you doubt what i'm saying, you need to look up
  • 00:22:22.381 --> 00:22:24.450
  • Ephesians 2:20 later.
  • 00:22:24.450 --> 00:22:25.818
  • You know what the apostle paul said about jesus?
  • 00:22:25.818 --> 00:22:27.553
  • He said, "the foundation of our faith is a person, jesus."
  • 00:22:27.553 --> 00:22:32.391
  • The cornerstone, the very first stone laid, the thing that
  • 00:22:32.391 --> 00:22:36.228
  • Determines everything else about the building, the foundation of
  • 00:22:36.228 --> 00:22:38.931
  • Our faith is not it is written, the foundation of our faith is
  • 00:22:38.931 --> 00:22:42.134
  • Something happened.
  • 00:22:42.134 --> 00:22:43.502
  • God sent his son into the world.
  • 00:22:43.502 --> 00:22:46.005
  • The same baby that grew to be a man that after his resurrection
  • 00:22:46.005 --> 00:22:48.808
  • Would gather his closest followers and he would say
  • 00:22:48.808 --> 00:22:51.977
  • Something that--it was just crazy.
  • 00:22:51.977 --> 00:22:53.646
  • Nobody would say this.
  • 00:22:53.646 --> 00:22:55.781
  • Unless there was some evidence to back it up.
  • 00:22:55.781 --> 00:22:59.652
  • And they've seen him die, they knew where he was buried.
  • 00:22:59.652 --> 00:23:03.589
  • Several of them had breakfast later with him on the beach, and
  • 00:23:03.589 --> 00:23:06.225
  • Now there he was, alive in front of all of them.
  • 00:23:06.225 --> 00:23:08.894
  • And he makes a statement that i hope you'll wrestle with.
  • 00:23:08.894 --> 00:23:12.698
  • He says--no, but who would say this?
  • 00:23:12.698 --> 00:23:15.334
  • "all authority in heaven and earth has been given to me."
  • 00:23:15.334 --> 00:23:20.206
  • Do you know what the final authority for your life as a
  • 00:23:20.206 --> 00:23:22.374
  • Christian is?
  • 00:23:22.374 --> 00:23:24.844
  • It's a person. it's jesus.
  • 00:23:24.844 --> 00:23:28.681
  • My final authority is jesus.
  • 00:23:28.681 --> 00:23:30.549
  • The foundation of my faith is jesus.
  • 00:23:30.549 --> 00:23:32.885
  • And nobody loves the bible in this room or
  • 00:23:32.885 --> 00:23:34.620
  • Listening more than i do.
  • 00:23:34.620 --> 00:23:35.955
  • In fact, one of the great things about being an empty nester, not
  • 00:23:35.955 --> 00:23:37.790
  • To make you jealous, but sandra and i can get up early in the
  • 00:23:37.790 --> 00:23:40.793
  • Morning with our coffee and we can read our bibles longer,
  • 00:23:40.793 --> 00:23:43.295
  • And we are such nerds.
  • 00:23:43.295 --> 00:23:44.630
  • We sit around and talk about theology, and that we just love
  • 00:23:44.630 --> 00:23:47.633
  • It, love it, love it.
  • 00:23:47.633 --> 00:23:49.001
  • Nobody loves the bible more than me.
  • 00:23:49.001 --> 00:23:50.469
  • But the foundation of my faith is not a book.
  • 00:23:50.469 --> 00:23:53.305
  • It's a person, that's what paul said.
  • 00:23:53.305 --> 00:23:55.274
  • And the authority is jesus, that's what jesus said.
  • 00:23:55.274 --> 00:23:58.177
  • So as the bible goes, christianity doesn't go.
  • 00:23:58.177 --> 00:24:01.280
  • The skeptics have it wrong.
  • 00:24:01.280 --> 00:24:02.748
  • Unfortunately, most christians have it wrong.
  • 00:24:02.748 --> 00:24:04.717
  • The people who walked away had it wrong, and we together are
  • 00:24:04.717 --> 00:24:08.020
  • Going to get it right.
  • 00:24:08.020 --> 00:24:09.388
  • It's not as the bible goes, so goes christianity.
  • 00:24:09.388 --> 00:24:11.957
  • It's as jesus goes, so goes christianity--or so goes--
  • 00:24:11.957 --> 00:24:15.628
  • Christianity goes.
  • 00:24:15.628 --> 00:24:16.962
  • And if you wanna know how jesus goes,
  • 00:24:16.962 --> 00:24:19.732
  • Don't cross-examine the bible.
  • 00:24:19.732 --> 00:24:22.368
  • That's what skeptics do.
  • 00:24:22.368 --> 00:24:24.069
  • To take down christianity, you'll need to cross-examine a
  • 00:24:24.069 --> 00:24:27.139
  • List of people and a list of unexplainable events.
  • 00:24:27.139 --> 00:24:33.145
  • You don't cross-examine the bible, you have to start with a
  • 00:24:33.145 --> 00:24:35.814
  • Document called matthew and ask matthew, where did all this
  • 00:24:35.814 --> 00:24:39.919
  • Intricate detail come from?
  • 00:24:39.919 --> 00:24:42.454
  • And when you're finished with matthew and you're able to write
  • 00:24:42.454 --> 00:24:44.590
  • Matthew off, the game has just begun because then you gotta
  • 00:24:44.590 --> 00:24:47.059
  • Wrestle with mark, who tradition says got his information
  • 00:24:47.059 --> 00:24:50.396
  • From the apostle peter.
  • 00:24:50.396 --> 00:24:52.031
  • And once you've discounted mark, you're just getting started.
  • 00:24:52.031 --> 00:24:54.466
  • Then you gotta go to luke, who said, "i thoroughly
  • 00:24:54.466 --> 00:24:56.635
  • Investigated all these things."
  • 00:24:56.635 --> 00:24:57.970
  • Then you gotta go to john, who lived to be an old man.
  • 00:24:57.970 --> 00:25:00.372
  • When you're done with john, then you gotta take on peter, then
  • 00:25:00.372 --> 00:25:02.808
  • You gotta take on james.
  • 00:25:02.808 --> 00:25:04.209
  • Did i mention that james is the brother of jesus?
  • 00:25:04.209 --> 00:25:09.915
  • Did i mention he was stoned illegally and he went to his
  • 00:25:09.915 --> 00:25:13.886
  • Grave believing his brother was his lord?
  • 00:25:13.886 --> 00:25:16.655
  • Before you discount christianity, you gotta
  • 00:25:16.655 --> 00:25:19.491
  • Wrestle with james.
  • 00:25:19.491 --> 00:25:21.627
  • And then if you get through all that, which you won't, then
  • 00:25:21.627 --> 00:25:24.096
  • You're confronted with the apostle paul, who's smarter than
  • 00:25:24.096 --> 00:25:26.465
  • You can ever imagine being.
  • 00:25:26.465 --> 00:25:28.601
  • The apostle paul who said, "whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa,
  • 00:25:28.601 --> 00:25:30.536
  • Hang on.
  • 00:25:30.536 --> 00:25:31.971
  • I was a proponent of first century judaism and i became a
  • 00:25:31.971 --> 00:25:36.475
  • Jesus follower.
  • 00:25:36.475 --> 00:25:37.843
  • I have been there and i have done that.
  • 00:25:37.843 --> 00:25:40.079
  • And i have spent time with peter and i've spent time with john
  • 00:25:40.079 --> 00:25:43.282
  • And i've spent time with the other apostles and i've been to
  • 00:25:43.282 --> 00:25:46.118
  • Jerusalem and i'm telling you, god has done something among us
  • 00:25:46.118 --> 00:25:50.022
  • And the entire old covenant was pointing to this period of time.
  • 00:25:50.022 --> 00:25:54.493
  • And this man, jesus, rose from the dead."
  • 00:25:54.493 --> 00:25:58.063
  • And after you've taken on each one of those individually, then
  • 00:25:58.063 --> 00:26:01.033
  • You have some more explaining to do.
  • 00:26:01.033 --> 00:26:02.534
  • You've got to explain the survival of the church
  • 00:26:02.534 --> 00:26:05.104
  • Sandwiched between again, empire and temple.
  • 00:26:05.104 --> 00:26:08.073
  • Then once you get through that, you've got to explain jesus's
  • 00:26:08.073 --> 00:26:10.843
  • Extraordinarily detailed account of the destruction of
  • 00:26:10.843 --> 00:26:13.512
  • The temple.
  • 00:26:13.512 --> 00:26:14.847
  • How in the world did he give that much detail to something
  • 00:26:14.847 --> 00:26:17.616
  • That was actually going to happen that was considered
  • 00:26:17.616 --> 00:26:19.852
  • Impossible when he made the prediction?
  • 00:26:19.852 --> 00:26:23.055
  • Why is there no mention of the four-year jewish war between
  • 00:26:23.055 --> 00:26:26.258
  • Rome and the people of israel in any of the gospels or any of
  • 00:26:26.258 --> 00:26:29.128
  • The literature of the new testament?
  • 00:26:29.128 --> 00:26:30.696
  • Why is there no mention of the destruction of the temple in
  • 00:26:30.696 --> 00:26:32.898
  • Any of the gospels or any of the documents of the new testament?
  • 00:26:32.898 --> 00:26:36.735
  • Because it hadn't happened yet.
  • 00:26:36.735 --> 00:26:38.337
  • These documents weren't written 100 years after the fact, they
  • 00:26:38.337 --> 00:26:41.707
  • Were written while the temple was still standing.
  • 00:26:41.707 --> 00:26:44.009
  • You got to explain all of that.
  • 00:26:44.009 --> 00:26:46.078
  • You can have genesis.
  • 00:26:46.078 --> 00:26:47.413
  • You can have leviticus. you can have exodus.
  • 00:26:47.413 --> 00:26:49.248
  • You can have--you can have revelation and philemon.
  • 00:26:49.248 --> 00:26:50.949
  • You can have 1, 2, 3 john.
  • 00:26:50.949 --> 00:26:52.484
  • Just give me two gospels and 1 corinthians, game on.
  • 00:26:52.484 --> 00:26:56.021
  • Jesus rose from the dead.
  • 00:26:56.021 --> 00:26:58.791
  • That's where we anchor our faith and that's where we must anchor
  • 00:26:58.791 --> 00:27:02.661
  • The faith of the next generation.
  • 00:27:02.661 --> 00:27:06.098
  • Andy: hey, thanks so much for watching.
  • 00:27:06.098 --> 00:27:07.700
  • You may find it hard to believe that 75 million americans claim
  • 00:27:07.700 --> 00:27:11.170
  • No religious affiliation.
  • 00:27:11.170 --> 00:27:13.338
  • On a personal note, perhaps you found it nearly impossible to
  • 00:27:13.338 --> 00:27:16.375
  • Believe that your son or your daughter or perhaps a grandchild
  • 00:27:16.375 --> 00:27:19.278
  • Drifted away from faith as part of that number.
  • 00:27:19.278 --> 00:27:22.114
  • This is a crisis culturally and perhaps for you it's a
  • 00:27:22.114 --> 00:27:25.117
  • Crisis personally.
  • 00:27:25.117 --> 00:27:26.485
  • At "your move," we are committed to addressing that crisis.
  • 00:27:26.485 --> 00:27:30.389
  • We actually have a plan to solve it, but we need your help.
  • 00:27:30.389 --> 00:27:33.292
  • We've developed a digital online tool that invites people to take
  • 00:27:33.292 --> 00:27:36.662
  • A personal assessment that launches them on a journey that
  • 00:27:36.662 --> 00:27:40.099
  • Eventually intersects their questions with the teaching of
  • 00:27:40.099 --> 00:27:43.402
  • Jesus and ultimately with a bible teaching church in
  • 00:27:43.402 --> 00:27:47.172
  • Their community.
  • 00:27:47.172 --> 00:27:48.507
  • Tens of thousands of people are currently engaged in this
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  • Process, but we need your help to continue creating the bread
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  • Crumbs, the content that keeps them moving forward on their
  • 00:27:54.580 --> 00:27:58.083
  • Faith journey.
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  • We're attempting something that no one has ever attempted before
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  • And it is already working.
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  • To find out more, go to the website or call the number at
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  • The bottom of the screen.
  • 00:28:07.292 --> 00:28:08.660
  • And as always, thank you so much for watching,
  • 00:28:08.660 --> 00:28:10.863
  • And now it's your move.
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