Revelation and Reason
A Sermon on 1 Corinthians 3:16
Scripture
16Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
Sermon Description
“Why is it that modern man, who has been so astounding in so many respects, is such a miserable and tragic failure in the whole question of life and of living?” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones asks this question to highlight that though people have achieved enormous accomplishments, they are still suffering with the basic questions of life, questions that are solved only in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Why are people generally interested in seeking answers from anyone except God? Why, instead of coming to Jesus, do they fall at the feet of celebrities who are also struggling? Ultimately, why do they reject the gospel? In this sermon from 1 Corinthians 3:16 titled “Revelation and Reason,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones preaches that humanity’s ultimate sin is intellectual pride. God’s salvation brings it to dust, yet, people reject this because of their confidence in themselves. God’s way of solving the problems of life are far different from the world’s approach. Dr. Lloyd-Jones provides three ways in which the two pathways are different: the world relies on human wisdom; the world says that people are good in and of themselves; and the world holds that the issue needing to be fixed is a matter of intellect, not sin. However, Scripture shows the opposite—humanity’s problem is sin, and the only solution is a Savior.
Sermon Breakdown
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The Gospel of Jesus Christ is entirely different from everything else offered to humanity. It presents a complete contrast to every other type of teaching.
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Modern man's whole approach to the Gospel is entirely wrong. The real difficulty is not with details but with the whole thing. Modern man's approach makes it impossible for him to believe.
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The wisdom of this world starts with man himself. It rules out the supernatural and divine. It says man is essentially good and his main problem is intellectual. Man just needs more knowledge and education.
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The Gospel starts with God, not man. It is a message of revelation, not human discovery. God has revealed the truth to us. We can't attain it through human reason or effort.
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The wisdom of this world relies on human ability and scientific methodology. The Gospel relies on divine revelation and the work of the Holy Spirit.
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The wisdom of this world can't understand spiritual truth because it is spiritually discerned. Those without the Spirit find it foolishness.
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The subject matter of the Gospel - the triune God, creation, fall of man, salvation through Christ - is beyond human comprehension. No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.
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If salvation depended on human reason, it would only be for the intellectual elite. But God's way of salvation is for all.
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The only reason people reject the Gospel is pride. They are too proud to become as fools to gain true wisdom.
Itinerant Preaching
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.