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Postmodernism In The Church

by Phil Sanders
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 What makes Christians act as if they never
knew God?
 What turns values upside down as if God
had never spoken about right and wrong?
 ISA 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and
good evil, who put darkness for light and light
for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and
sweet for bitter.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 What makes Christians act as if they never
knew God?
 What turns values upside down as if God
had never spoken about right and wrong?
 What makes it wrong to speak against sin?
 Why do people think they can make up
their own religion?
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Why is it that regardless of what people say,
everybody thinks it is all right?
 How can everybody be right?
 Why is it some people in the church do not
understand basic Bible teachings?
 It is clear that baptism is essential to salvation.
 It is clear that there is only one church.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Why is it some are calling important things
non-issues?
 Why are choirs singing in churches?
 Why are some churches using instruments
of music?
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Why are women now leading in worship?
 Why is it the world we have known in
churches of Christ has turned upside
down?
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 "For my thoughts are not your
ISA 55:8

thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,“

declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are
higher than the earth, so are my ways
higher than your ways and my thoughts
than your thoughts.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?

JN 3:19This is the verdict: Light has come
into the world, but men loved darkness
instead of light because their deeds were
evil. 20 Everyone who does evil

hates the light, and will not come into the

light for fear that his deeds will be
exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth
comes into the light, so that it may be seen
plainly that what he has done has been
done through God."
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 The LORD saw how great man's
GE 6:5

wickedness on the earth had become, and

that every inclination of the thoughts of his
heart was only evil all the time.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?

MT 7:13"Enter through the narrow gate. For
wide is the gate and broad is the road that
leads to destruction, and many enter
through it. 14 But small is the gate and
narrow the road that leads to life, and only
a few find it.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 We know that anyone born of God
1JN 5:18

does not continue to sin; the one who was

born of God keeps him safe, and the evil
one cannot harm him. 19 We know that we
are children of God, and that the whole
world is under the control of the evil one.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?

JAS 4:4 You adulterous people, don't you

know that friendship with the world is

hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses
to be a friend of the world becomes an
enemy of God.

COL 1:13 For he has rescued us from the

dominion of darkness and brought us into

the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in
whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 "Therefore come out from them and
2CO 6:17

be separate, says the Lord.

 Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive
you."
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?

RO 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in
view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies
as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to
God--this is your spiritual act of worship. 2
Do not conform any longer to the pattern
of this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind. Then you will be
able to test and approve what God's will is-
-his good, pleasing and perfect will.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 And no wonder, for Satan himself
2CO 11:14

masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is

not surprising, then, if his servants
masquerade as servants of righteousness.
Their end will be what their actions
deserve.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?

RO 13:11And do this, understanding the
present time. The hour has come for you
to wake up from your slumber, because our
salvation is nearer now than when we first
believed.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Incredibly most Christians do not perceive
the Church to be in the midst of the most
severe struggle it has faced in centuries.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 We have turned to a God who will fulfill our
needs rather than to a God before whom
we must surrender our rights to ourselves.
 And so we transform the God of mercy into
a God who is at our mercy.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 What does the Bible say?
 What does the community want?
 The church does not belong to the
community; it belongs to the Lord.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 If we do not take time to know the facts, if
we act hastily, if we are wrongly informed,
no fear – the grace of God will cover us.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 PS 19:13 Keep your servant also from
willful sins; may they not rule over me.
Then will I be blameless, innocent of great
transgression.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?

LEV 10:1Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu took
their censers, put fire in them and added
incense; and they offered unauthorized fire
before the LORD, contrary to his command.
2 So fire came out from the presence of the

LORD and consumed them, and they died

before the LORD.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Self designed obedience is irreverence
 2SA :7 The LORD's anger burned against
Uzzah because of his irreverent act;
 what we believe and what we do matters
to God.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 many people feel disillusioned,

displaced, apprehensive or confused.

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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 what ought to be and what he is seeing

are worlds apart.

 People are hesitant to make ethical,

moral or theological stances because

they have lost their frame of reference.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 They have renamed sinful lifestyles to

make them sound more respectable.

 They cannot tolerate those who are

intolerant of their FREEDOM to view

anything as they wish.
 truth is not so much what one finds as it

is what one makes it out to be.

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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 his whole world seems out of balance.

 something that looks like religion but is

awfully man-centered.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 today one finds the church to be a place

filled with market ploys designed to

meet the felt needs of the populace and
to make them feel good about
themselves.
 it should not be surprising that some

might want to reconstruct their faith.

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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 Consequently, many people, with no ill
intentions, have subtly come to believe
that the church must become more like
the world in order to survive.
 meeting felt needs and less focused on
theology,
 practical things and less focused on
doctrine.
 positive things and less focused on anything
negative.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 In today’s society the one thing the

church must never do is judge anyone.

 In this multicultural society, it is

politically incorrect to put down anyone’s

lifestyle or ideas especially to say
anything is sinful.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 still talk about sin, still talk about

repentance, and still think there is a hell.

 believe there is only one Savior and only

one church.
 bore their audiences with their

traditional worship formats and topical

sermons.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 can no longer speak meaningfully in a

world that is determined to recognize all

views as valid.
 With the back of a hand, exclusive

Christianity will be dismissed.

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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around

1CH 12:32 men of Issachar, who

understood the times and knew what

Israel should do….
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 We need;

 faith in God’s Word,

 courage to stand for the truth,
 the willingness to take up crosses.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 Immorality remains rampant, and no

one cares.
 People no longer respect God,

 the Bible does not have the power to

influence that it once had,

 and we cannot say that anything is

wrong anymore.
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 Absolute truth,
 Authority,
 The restoration plea,
 An unashamed commitment,
 The nature of the church,
 Worship,
 Obedience,
 Right attitudes,
 Evangelism
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 An unshakable faith in the past,

 An inexhaustible love in the present,

 And an enduring hope for the future.

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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around

JN 17:17 Sanctify them by the truth; your

word is truth.

JN 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way

and the truth and the life.


JN 18:37 ….and for this I came into the

world, to testify to the truth. Everyone

on the side of truth listens to me."
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 Why Is the World Turned Upside Down?
 Dramatic Changes All Around
 Jesus still said it.

 What ever is in the Bible stands written,

 Ignoring the foundations does not

remove them.