A Message to Moderns

This is a very long sermon, but in this day of compromise in churches, sound-bite technology, a pleasure-seeking society and "my truth" it is a very important sermon.
 
Message to Moderns

Acts 17:22-32 "Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.  For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.  Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.  God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing  he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; and hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and not find him, though he be not far from every one of us....Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.  Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ).  And when they hard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter."
 
Here we have a sermon that gives us a very good outline of many of the things that must be preached by the church when addressing the unsaved.  It is fitting that we should look generally at this because what is the church's message?  Many think that the church must change to be relevant in this modern world when the church is going to declare the gospel to sound-bite people in a technology driven society.  What is the church's message to this society, this pleasure-seeking society, this society that doesn't really believe in any absolute truth?  What message is the church to bring that is gong to have an impact upon so-called modern people?  Many would say we need to not mention sin or judgment but that is nonsense.  The same old message that was preached by the old testament prophets and the new testament apostles is the same message that needs to be preached today in the exact same way.  It needs to be preached to a modern people who have the exact same needs as those who lived thousands of years ago, people who haven't changed one bit.  Modern life is not modern, modern life is very old, it's just the same as what life has always been.  To be a sound-bite based society means that people communicate less and in fragmented bits and technology makes no difference at all because its the same old problems.  Nothing has changed, people haven't changed.  The problem is called sin. "Hath God said?"  the serpent said to Eve questioning God's word.   Pride even in the unfallen world in the garden of Eden.  There are no different needs than any other human beings in history.