standing strong in the battle for truth
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Standing Strong in the Battle for Truth. “Truth is relative. There are no absolutes. Truth is what you make it.” . VBS: Day 4. Lesson Focus. Take the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation. They will guard your from the enemy’s attacks. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
STANDING STRONG IN THE BATTLE FOR TRUTH
“Truth is relative. There are no absolutes.
Truth is what you make it.”
VBS: Day 4
Lesson Focus
Take the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation. They will guard your from the
enemy’s attacks.
A little Bit About the Middle Ages
(400-1400)
The Kingdom Chronicles:Influential Thinkers in the Middle Ages
Thomas Aquinas• The great theologian and
apologist of the Middle Ages, Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)
• Aquinas was concerned with defending the truth of Christianity. (Apologetics)
• He used reason and logic in order to “prove” the absolute truth of those assumptions.
Thomas Aquinas• He believes that man has the
capacity for reason as a God-given gift. • An infinite God gave finite man
the capacity to reason and logic as part of the image of God (imago Dei).• You don’t have to sacrifice
your intellect for faith.
Thomas Aquinas• God’s Existence can be known by Reason, through nature.• God’s Being (His essence) can only be known by Special Revelation the Scripture
Thomas AquinasGod is also logically proven by NEGATION1. God is not limited by time- He is the
Creator of time.2. God is not moveable- He is the Creator of
motion.3. God is not designed- He is the Designer.4. God does not degrade- He is Eternal
Perfection.5. God is not contingent- He is Perfect in
Essence.
Thomas AquinasAQUINAS ON FAITH AND REASON• In Summa Theologica, Aquinas defines faith
with exacting language. “Faith is to believe…with assent.” (II, II, 2,1).
[1] Faith believes what can’t be proven or it wouldn’t be faith.[2] However, faith is not irrational. It must be made on credible grounds and evidence.• In Aquinas’ thought, faith and reason are two
layers of Truth that cannot contradict one another.
• Philosophy is not the enemy, but a servant of theology
King Solomon
1 Kings 2:4“If your sons take heed to
their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul... you shall not lack a man on the
throne of Israel.”
1 Kings 4:30-34-Solomon's wisdom excelled
the wisdom of all men-His fame was known in all
the surrounding nations-He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs
were one thousand and five
But... Solomon allowed his affections and attachments to the women in his life to blur the line between right
and wrong.
1 Kings 11:1-3-King Solomon loved many
foreign women -They were from nations about which the LORD had told the
Israelites, "You must not intermarry with them, because
they will surely turn your hearts after their gods."
What Happened?
He let his guard down.
He allowed influences in his life to skew his view of life.
Ultimately what we believe as truth will affect our
behavior.
We will make decisions based on what we regard as
truth.
"It would have been useless to argue with Solomon for the claims of idols. He could at once, by his
wisdom, have annihilated all infidel arguments, and have
established the existence and unity of God. But, step by step, he was led by silken cords, a captive, to the worship of other gods." (FB
Meyer)
1 Kings 11:9“The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had
turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.”
Thinking in terms of Absolutes
Think Truth: The Shield of Faith
Ephesians 6:10-11; 16“10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in
his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take
your stand against the devil's schemes... 16 above all, taking the
shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of
the wicked one.
Medieval knights always carried
shields into battle.They were so big it covered their entire
bodies.
The shield protected them from flaming arrows. Without his shield the knight
would be vulnerable in battle.
The Shield of Faith Faith is represented
as a shield, protecting us from
the fiery darts of the wicked one, those
persistent efforts of demonic foes to
weaken us through fear and unbelief.
The Idea behind the shield is that must we continually be aware of the lies that the devil tries to shoot our
way.
-The people we hang out with-The things we read in a book-What we hear from friends
-What we learn from our teachers
The shield of faith helps us deflect The D-Darts of:
DoubtDiscouragement
DeceptionDivision
Destruction
1 Corinthians 15:33“Do not be deceived: "Evil company
corrupts good habits.“”
Proverbs 22:24-25“24 Make no friendship with an angry man, And with a furious man do not
go, 25 Lest you learn his ways And set a snare for your soul.”
Discern and RecognizeDoes it Agree with the Truth of
Scripture?
Everything has to be evaluated to the standard of the truth of God’s Word.
Ultimately what we believe as truth will affect our
behavior.
We will make decisions based on what we regard as
truth.
Psalm 91:4“He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield
and buckler.”
Think Truth: The Helmet of Salvation
Thinking in terms of Absolutes
Ephesians 6:10-11; 17“10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in
his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take
your stand against the devil's schemes... 17 And take the helmet of
salvation...
The medieval knight always put on their helmet, to protect the
‘operating system’ of the
body.
The helmet of salvation
protects us against thinking
worldly.
Proverbs 23:7 says, “as a man
thinks in his heart, so is he.”
Ultimately what we believe as truth will affect our
behavior.
We will make decisions based on what we regard as
truth.
The Idea behind the helmet is that we can guard what we put into our minds.
-The things we watch on TV-The things we read in a book-What we hear from friends
-What we learn from our teachers
Everything has to be evaluated to the standard of the truth of God’s Word.
Philippians 4:8“Finally, brethren, whatever things are
true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever
things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--
meditate on these things.”
1 Corinthians 2:16“But we have the mind of Christ.”
Proverbs 3:3“Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart”