GOD IS TRUE If every man is found to be a liar, God will still be true – Romans 3:4 Jesus referred to as “the truth” – John 14:6 Holy Spirit called “Spirit of truth” – John 16:13 God’s word is truth – John 17:17

SATAN FATHER OF LIARS John 8:44 Lying & falsehood contrary to the very nature of things Distort man’s relationship with God & fellow human beings “Suppress the truth in unrighteousness” – Romans 1:18

ECCLESIASTES 12:13 “fear God and keep His commandments” For ALL mankind He is the creator, we the creature He is the potter, we are the clay He alone has authority to expect us to obey His commands Without this understanding, there are no real ethical norms – Romans 1:18-32

TRUE RELIGION – MAN MADE IN THE IMAGE OF GOD – GENESIS 1:26,27 FALSE RELIGION – GOD CREATED IN THE IMAGE OF MAN – ROMANS 1:22,23 Colossians 2:8 “beware lest anyone cheat you” Antagonism between “tradition of men” & “basic principles of this world” & the teaching of Christ Only two sources for religion – Matthew 21:23-27 2 Corinthians 10:4,5

“IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH” Genesis 1:1 – says atheist is definitely wrong Elohim – suggests God in three persons One true God – Godhead, state of divine being, shared by Father, Son & Holy Spirit Spoken into existence by Almighty God

MUST NOT IGNORE WARNINGS ABOUT DOCTRINES OF MEN OR VAIN PHILOSPHY Vain philosophy a thief of our spiritual possessions Deception the major device of all man- made philosophy Promising everything, it delivers nothing; claiming to be one thing, it turns out to be something else entirely!

CHRISTIANS HAVE EITHER FORGOTTON OR NO LONGER BELIEVE PAUL’S WARNING Christians seduced into thinking man-made philosophies are religiously neutral Drawn into secular thought that perverts the truth & totally wrecks one’s spiritual life Need to be reminded – John 14:6 Colossians 3:17 “in the name of the Lord”

MAN-MADE PHILOSPHIES DESTINED FOR TOTAL DEFEAT Christians “called out of darkness into His marvelous light” 1 Peter 2:9 Return to “weak & beggarly elements of this world” Galatians 4:9 Ephesians 4:17-20 “you have not so learned Christ” Colossians 1:9-14 “delivered from the power of darkness”

DIVINE REVELATION DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES: NATURAL & SPECIAL Natural – directly associated with God as the Creator Romans 1:20 “invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made” Flawed by man when Naturalism, Darwinism, Humanism, remove Creator from nature He created

DIVINE REVELATION DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES: NATURAL & SPECIAL Special – the Bible – cannot be separated from God Who gave it 2 Timothy 3:16 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God.” “Theopneustos” – “God-breathed” Modern-day theologians try to remove the supernatural aspect

INSPIRED MESSAGE & MESSENGER 2 Peter 1:20,21 John 14:26; 16:12-15 1 Peter 1:12 1 Corinthians 7:40; 1 Timothy 4:1 Galatians 1:11,12 “The special supernatural supervision exercised by God over His messengers to make sure they communicate His message accurately”

NOT JUST IDEAS, BUT THE VERY WORDS THEMSELVES 1 Corinthians 2:11-13 Matthew 4:4 “every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” 1 Corinthians 2:4 “in demonstration of the Spirit” Genesis 22:18 “seed” not “seeds” Matthew 5:18 Plenary inspiration of the Bible