Seeking Secular Souls

Extracted Verses and Quotes from the Sermon

Biblical Verses

Isaiah 55:1

> Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Isaiah 55:2-3

> Why do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live.

Isaiah 55:4-5

> Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people. Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

Isaiah 55:6-7

> Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Psalm 145:17-19

> The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

Genesis 1

> [God’s word represents His will and is endowed with God’s power to create.]

Matthew 9

> [God’s word has power to heal and restore.]

John 11

> [God’s word has power to raise from the dead.]

Hebrews 4

> [God’s word has power to judge and condemn.]

Deuteronomy 8

> [God’s word imparts spiritual life, spiritual meaning, purpose, and blessings.]

Memorable Quotes

> “Many people in the secular world don’t appear to have that god-shaped hole; in fact, they’re entirely busy with their own projects, their own material longings, their own quest for meaning, truth, and significance within an entirely imminent and secular and material framework.”

> “They live in a material world with no consideration for the possibility of an afterlife and little sense of the transcendent in their lives. They are, to quote Madonna, ‘Material Girl living in a material world.'”

> “In the S3 era, or the postmodern era, religious belief or any belief in God is merely one option among many other beliefs. Your religion can be whatever you want in the confines of your four walls of the church, but woe be to anybody whose faith is actually to be practiced in the marketplace or expressed in daily life.”

> “We now have buffered selves. It means that we’re immune to outside influence. We are no longer able or willing to receive grace, forgiveness, or love. Every man or woman truly is an island unto themselves.”

> “We live in a world that is infused with the grace of a loving Creator. The natural world exists for man’s blessing, to ensure our daily bread and to ensure our human flourishing.”

> “We live in a universe that is meaningless, a universe that has no value, a universe that really doesn’t care whether you live a good life or a poor life, whether you have a happy marriage or your husband is an alcoholic and beats you. The universe doesn’t care.”

> “The secular world is haunted at moments of tragedy by echoes of our past when there was a God, when there was a cosmos, when there was a purpose, when there was such a thing as grace, forgiveness, and hope.”

> “If you’ve already given your life to Jesus Christ, recognize that in moments of personal crisis, your secular neighbor, friend, or loved one is most open to forgiveness, fellowship, hope, and grace.”

> “Weep with those who weep as Christians, mourn with those who mourn, demonstrate God’s love, manifest forgiveness, and bring hope in the hour of crisis or the season of pain.”

> “Why would you eat, drink, and be merry expecting that tomorrow you will truly die and that will be the end of it when God is offering you the gift of eternal life?”

> “God’s thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

> “Life can be like a black and white movie. When you fall in love, the movie suddenly becomes glorious Technicolor. When we experience God’s love in our lives, that black and white movie that is on this endless loop suddenly has glorious Technicolor.”

> “In the modern era, there is a lowering of the bar in what it means to live a life well lived. The demands of the mundane dominate, but the demands of the transcendent fade away.”

> “We are free to sample and try different philosophies but rarely commit to anything. Very few are willing to die on a hill anymore. Keeping an open mind means you don’t know anything.”

> “The secular mind is profoundly lost. Our repentance and turn to God must touch the inner man as well as the outer lifestyle.”

> “God offers meaning, purpose, and above all else, grace. The offer is made to everybody. No one is excluded; no one is predestined to be lost or saved.”

Other Quotations

Madonna

> “Material Girl living in a material world.”

MCJ (referenced)

> “You can’t get no satisfaction.”