A.M. Sermon
Spring Hill, TN
1/21/07 a.m.
Series: “Discovering the Spiritual Realm” (Pt. 3)
Text(s): John 3:8; 1 Corinthians 2:6-16; Deuteronomy 29:29
Summary: In PART 3, a foundation is built for explaining the spiritual reality. We learn that we must stand upon what God has revealed and avoid speculation.
“Explaining Spiritual Reality”
Introduction:
A. The Difficulty of Explaining the Spiritual Realm
1. One of the first time travel stories ever written was authored by Mark Twain in 1889.
2. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court tells the story of Hank Morgan, a man who is transported back in time to medieval Europe at the time of the legendary King Arthur in A.D. 528.
3. Having technological knowledge of the 19th century, Hank Morgan is able to modernize many of the superstitions of medieval Europe.
B. Supernatural or Superstitious?
1. In our pursuit to discover the spiritual realm, we are faced with this very issue in our study of the Bible.
2. Are things mentioned in the Bible like the parting of the Red Sea, demon possession, the work of Satan, angels, and miracles, records of actual spiritual reality?
3. Or, are these superstitious explanations of uncivilized people of antiquity who were unaware of scientific explanations with which we today are well acquainted?
4. And, if it can be determined that the Bible is documenting actual spiritual realities, how can we understand or explain these things? Would it not be like trying to explain the Internet to one of the Knights of the Round Table?
5. [Show chart of the spiritual world by Dennis Doughty as review of lesson last week, “Opening Our Eyes to the Spiritual Realm”].
I. The Spiritual Realm is Not Like the Physical
A. The Spiritual Realm is Not Material
1. Most everything that we perceive in this world, we experience through tangible means through physical interaction.
2. For many people, their entire lives spent only focusing upon what seems real on the surface, only what they can personally experience. Many people simply “walk by sight” (cf. 2 Cor. 5:7).
3. Yet, those who walk by faith in God’s word know that there is much to life beyond the physical. The spiritual realm is not like the material world at all.
4. To help us understand him, God is often described in ways as though he possessed human characteristics (anthropomorphism). For example: “feet of God” (Ex. 24:10); hands of God (John 10:29); face of God (Matt. 18:10).
5. However, in reality God does not possess such physical attributes because “God is Spirit” (John 4:24).
6. Jesus makes it clear after the resurrection of his physical body, “See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39).
B. The Spiritual Realm is Not Tangible
1. We most readily perceive the world around us by means of the five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch.
2. The scientific method evaluates reality only by means of analyzing things that are tangible, things that can be examined and tested.
3. The spiritual world, however, is not tangible. One can examine the anatomy and physiology of human biology, but one cannot examine man’s soul under a microscope.
4. Scripture informs us, “Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable” (1 Cor 15:50).
5. The spiritual realm is not tangible, to experience this part of reality we must “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7).
II. The Spiritual Realm is Detected by Its Effects
A. Fingerprints of the Spiritual World
1. Even within the physical reality all around us, there is evidence left by God—the spiritual fingerprints of God’s direct touch upon the physical world have been left behind for us to see.
2. By looking carefully, we can see God’s spiritual touch upon this physical world, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard” (Ps 19:1-5).
3. The moon, stars and heavens are the work of God’s fingers (Ps. 9:3).
4. By looking to the things that God has created all around us we can have knowledge of his “invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made…” (Rom. 1:20).
5. As we look at each other, and look into one another’s eyes we can see God’s handiwork. Being made in God’s image (Gen. 1:26), we can see the living soul within each of us and how God has placed eternity in our hearts (cf. Ecc. 3:11)
B. Perceiving the Spirit’s Effect
1. We cannot see God (1 John 4:12), and we cannot see the soul within us.
2. However, we can perceive that these things are real. How?
3. We can detect the spiritual realm only by its effects.
4. This seems to be Jesus’ point in John 3:8, "The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8).
5. Just as we cannot see the wind, we know the wind is real because we can perceive its effects as it moves the trees and the leaves.
6. The same is true of the spiritual realm; we can perceive its reality by its effects.
7. For instance, one cannot see God’s Spirit residing within a Christian but we can perceive its effects—its fruit—in the life of a true disciple (Galatians 5:22-23).
C. Religion Based Upon Limited Information
1. We can perceive certain things about the spiritual realm by its effects sensed in creation, in the spiritual desire within us, and in the lives of others.
2. However, this is only limited information about the spiritual realm and unfortunately many religious practices are based upon only this limited evidence.
3. As a result, many have worshipped the forces of nature and created beings, and heavenly bodies like the moon, sun, and stars (cf. Deut. 4:19).
4. Based upon only limited perceptions many have fallen victim to superstition (Acts 17:22, KJV—“very superstitious”).
5. Even Christians, who have only a limited understanding of Scripture, are given to strange ideas about the spiritual realm.
6. It is dangerous to base your beliefs about the spiritual world upon limited or one-sided information.
III. The Spiritual Realm is Known Only By Revelation
A. Seeking Spiritual Understanding
1. True understanding of the spiritual realm can only be known by God directly revealing that information to us in some way.
2. Only God’s word can shed light into the mysterious spiritual realm that is hidden from our sight (cf. John 1:4).
3. Peter explains, “{So} we have the prophetic word {made} more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts (2 Pet 1:19).
4. God’s word is the only lamp that has the ability to illuminate the spiritual realm and allow us to see what lies beyond our sight.
5. Notice with me that Paul gives clear instruction on this point in 1 Corinthians 2:6-16.
6. Eyes cannot see and ears cannot hear the reality of the spiritual world, it can only be known through the “words taught by the Spirit” (vs. 13).
B. Attempts to Probe the Spiritual Realm
1. Throughout history man has too often ignored the insight God has provided into the spiritual realm through his Word and have sought to probe the spiritual world by other means.
2. Séances (attempts to speak with the dead), divination (attempts to forecast the future), witchcraft, astrology, soothsaying, and the interpretation of omens are all attempts to probe the spiritual realm outside of God’s revealed will.
3. God continually prohibits this type of activity in his Word (Lev. 19:26-31; 20:26-27; Gal. 5:20).
4. One example we will examine is Deuteronomy 18:10-12, "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD; and because of these detestable things the LORD your God will drive them out before you.
5. God is extremely displeased when we engage in attempts to probe the spiritual world outside of what he has revealed to us.
C. Real Insight into the Spiritual World
1. The only real knowledge and insight that we can be certain of about the spiritual realm is by a careful examination of what God has told us about that world.
2. We must not give ourselves over to idle speculation and myths about spiritual being and the spiritual realm (cf. 1 Tim. 1:4).
3. We must be content with the information God has given us about the spiritual world. However, we may be surprised that he has given us more information than we realize when we carefully examine his word.
4. When it comes to a study of the spiritual realm, there is one statement given us by God that must guide our study, "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law” (Deut 29:29).
5. Let us be extremely careful to avoid speculation about the spiritual world or attempts to probe that world outside of God’s revealed will.
6. But let us stand upon the solid evidence that God has provided us about that world—“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” (Heb 11:1, NIV).
Conclusion:
A. In a recent book Seeing the Unseen the author warns us of avoiding extremes in our examination of the spiritual realm:
“But the real battle of evil is not against ghosts or demonic possession. It is in ourselves. The primary tool of Satan is not possession, it is deception. It is time we look past the exciting to the real. The unprovable, often unbiblical, wild, and misleading speculations on this subject don’t help Christians win the spiritual war. They aid and abed Satan. Those believing the wildly sensational get so busy looking for a demon under every bush that they unwittingly expose themselves to the real attacks of satanic forces, which come unseen from seemingly innocent sources and hit them on the blind side. On the other hand, those who reject the sensationalism often reject the reality of the spiritual war that the sensationalism masks. Rejecting the foolish they also reject the wise. The devil becomes a cartoon character not to be feared but to be ignored, having no more power or substance than the goblins of children’s dreams” (Joe Beam, Seeing the Unseen pg 10-11).
B. We must avoid extremes in our examination of the spiritual realm. We must avoid the sensational speculation that many have given themselves to.
C. Yet, we must also avoid dismissing the reality of the spiritual realm that is all around us.
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