Help me finish these sayings…. (PICS 1-6)
It was a Dark and _______ _________.
Once upon a __________.
A long time ago, in a ____________ _______ _______ away
It was the best of times, it was the ________________ …
And they lived _________ ___________ ___________
Today is all about the power of STORIES
The stories we tell MATTER
- Much more than “entertainment”
Good stories teach
- Moral Lessons (The Boy Who Cried Wolf – Don’t Lie)
- Give Hope
- Teach of dangers
Help us make sense of our lives and world
The world as we experience it is CHAOTIC, HARD, and CRUEL
In order to make sense of our circumstances, we use stories
The story you choose to live by is called your WORLDVIEW
- How you view the world and yourself in the world
7 COMMON WORLDVIEWS (Stories):
1: Materialism (or Atheistic Naturalism)
The universe is composed solely of matter, and the only means of comprehending it are through sensory experience and logical reasoning, or scientific inquiry.
- You don’t “Have a body,” you just “Are a body.”
2: Pantheism
“The universe is one ultimate reality, and to realize this is to awaken to reality.”
- (Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism)
- Everything is Divine
- Everything is God
3: Deism
Reality is divided into two distinct aspects: matter and spirit, or the physical and the non-physical. These two categories are separate entities with little overlap.
- If there is a God, he is detached, far away, and not concerned about us
- A wound clock
4: Theism
God is the infinite and absolute creator and foundation of everything and everyone. God is the source and destination of all life, existence, knowledge, and action.
- (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam)
5: Existentialism
Life, despite its apparent lack of inherent coherence, meaning, or propensity for happiness, can still be structured, significant, and cultivated for contentment.
- Life can still be meaningful even though we will never know if there is any true meaning in the universe
- Personal choices matter
6: Postmodernism
There are no grand metanarratives, only narratives; no facts, only interpretations; no independently existing reality, only perspectives we construct; no truth, only truths.
- The only truth is the truth a person gives themselves
7: Nihilism
Nothing means anything, nobody knows anything, there is no Truth, and there is no answer to ‘why.’
- Literally, nothing matters
So not only do…
The stories we tell MATTER
The Stories we choose to live in MATTER
Key question:
Are you living in the RIGHT STORY?
To an extent, you can choose the story you live by
This is a really big deal
The story you live in determines both your purpose and how you process your pain
- The stories we choose to live in, will help us define our purpose/part in the story as well as the pain in the story
- Base on your WORLDVIEW
What story are you living in?
How you THINK, ACT, and RESPOND to the events in your life will be determined by the story you are living in
1: Jesus is the Author of our story
How do we KNOW that Jesus is the Author of our story?
ἀρχηγός = Archégos
- 4x in NT
- Each time about Jesus
This can be translated as:
- Pioneer
- Source
- Author
- Leader
- Ruler
Hebrews 12:2a (CSB) + (NKJV
Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.
Hebrews 12:2a (NKJV)
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,
Acts 3:15 (CSB) + (ESV)
15 You killed the source of life, whom God raised from the dead; we are witnesses of this.
Acts 3:15 (ESV)
15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead.
The one writing the story MATTERS
- The one who writes the story determines the purpose of the story
When we try to write our own Story
- We take ownership of things we do not understand
- We have a small perspective
When you are the author of your own story, you always end up writing yourself as the main character
- Anyone who comes up against the main character eventually becomes a villain
When Jesus is the Author of our Story…
- We have the promises of the Author
Romans 8:28
We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.
Philippians 4:13
I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me
John 10:10b
I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.
2: The Bible is how God has revealed His story
<Illustration>
Dorothy Sayers – Author, early 20th Century
- A series of detective novels featuring Lord Peter Wimsey
- Lord Wimsey was a broken man
- Halfway through the series, a new female character shows up – Harriet Vane
- Her love starts to heal his unhappy, broken soul
- Harriet Vane – a female mystery writer and the very first woman who graduated from Harvard
- Dorothy was also a mystery writer and one of the first few female graduates from Harvard
- She wrote herself into her own stories to heal her charater
The author cannot be known by the characters he writes unless the Author writes himself into the story
The Bible is FOR US, but it’s not ABOUT US
- It is God revealing himself to us
The Bible is the ultimate authority when it comes to:
- Understanding who God is
- What he wants
- Who We Are
- What we should be about
The Bible is trustworthy and reveals God’s plan and agenda for humanity
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
Center for Biblical Engagement…
Christians who are engaged in scripture most days of the week have lower odds of participating in these behaviors:
- Getting drunk = 57% lower odds
- Sex outside marriage = 68% lower odds
- Pornography = 61% lower odds
- Gambling = 74% lower odds
- Any of these habits = 57% lower odds
Those who read or listen to the Bible at least four days a week have higher odds of participating in these behaviors:
- Sharing faith with others = 228% higher odds
- Discipling others = 231% higher odds
- Memorizing scripture = 407% higher odds
Why?
Because our lives change when we choose to live in God’s story instead of our own
3: The Story of both the Bible and History all points to Jesus
The Road to Emmaus
Luke 24
25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Wasn’t it necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 Then beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted for them the things concerning himself in all the Scriptures.
Picture of how the Bible Links and references itself
- 66 books
- about 40 different authors
- 1 Spirit of God in all of them
What story are you living in?
- The one where you are “writing the story”
- Tragedy?
- In God’s Story