This sermon emphasizes the need for repentance, acknowledging rebellion against God, and the desire for restoration through a relationship with Him. It discusses the human struggle with sin, guilt, and the brokenness of the relationship with God, highlighting the unconditional love and redemption offered through Jesus Christ. The speaker shares personal experiences of transformation and renewal, pointing to the importance of choosing to trust in God rather than man, ultimately leading to a life of rebellion or reconciliation with God.

I actually have a confession to make tonight that I didn't come here to really win an argument or try to espouse some view. I don't have an impressive pedigree, I barely graduated high school, I didn't last here more than a month. My writing and speech were embarrassing as a young adult, I was raised by an angry father, became an alcoholic, destroyed a lot of things in my life including a marriage, I've aborted a child, I know the pain that people experience. But I came here really, the reason we put this on is to tell you about a God that redeems and sets free and wants to have a relationship with you. Because the whole debate is pointless if we don't talk about this. Now interesting though, how can we look at the same evidence? We look at the same evidence, correct, and come to different conclusions. That's what I'm going to end with. Here's what happens. Number one, and not to come across as trying to bash or put down anyone, I will actually put this on myself. The reason often that there is differences in evidence is because we are in rebellion to God. It's what we don't want to hear, but the natural man, the carnal man, I'm in rebellion with God. That's how I was, there's enmity, there's war with God. That's why this is not an issue of facts. This has nothing to do with facts. We are prejudiced to conclude, I don't want there to be a God. I want to do what I want, to who I want, when I want, how I want. I'm the master of my own destiny, I'm the captive of my own ship. I don't want there to be a God. Here's the seduction. Here's the seduction. Don't worry, this just confirms what I'm talking about. When the heat's turned up, people do not want to hear the truth of God's Word. So here's the seduction. The seduction of removing God is that then I can be God. So that's the seduction. Romans 2.16 says, God will judge the secret things in man's heart. So we have this, we feel there's this judgment coming, I have to remove the judge. So number one, man is in rebellion to God. That's why the gospel, the good news condemns before it releases. It hurts before it heals, and it shows me my sin. That's why I need a Savior. It shows me those things. So once we look at the scriptural course that we are in rebellion, and to me it ties right in with science because it confirms everything from a biological standpoint, which I'll get to in a minute. We can know God, relationship. We are made in His image. Did you catch the first part of Genesis? You are made in the image of God. No wonder we feel shame. No wonder we feel guilt. No wonder there's cutting and suicide and ODing and addiction because that relationship has been broken. No wonder. But God desires that relationship. This is not a cold mechanical religion adopted by those who are weak minded. We have experienced God. You know the song many use, we sing amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I was lost, but now I'm found. I was blind, but now I see. But Shane, that's wonderful, but your experience doesn't prove anything. Hogwash. We experience gravity. We experience the laws of thermodynamics. Why can't we experience God? If I have an experience that lines up with Scripture, that is validity. Experience. Experience. You can experience God. And then the third point, we need to be restored. That's the whole point. That's why DNA is leading to death. That's why there's sin, there's misery, there's evil, there's suffering. We need to be restored. Romans 3.23 says, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That's why I feel broken. Now it makes sense. Romans 6, for the wages of sin is death. That's why I feel condemned. Psalm 51, my sin is always before me. That's why I feel convicted. See to me it makes sense. I experience this conviction. I experience this shame. I experience this guilt. So when God changed me and renewed my heart, and now there's a love for God. I have a love for these men. I have a love for people. Where does that come from? Because the old Shane Idleman wants to put on some boxing gloves and drink a 12-pack of beer and close down schooners before it ends. But something has changed in my heart. Whatever that is, I don't know. But it's confirmed with Scripture. Born again, being transformed by the renewing of your mind. Why can't we experience God? That's the question. We experience everything else. You can experience God. But it doesn't end there. The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. But God demonstrated His own love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Wait a minute, when I was in my sin and debauchery and mocking God and spitting in His face, He still died for me? That's unconditional love. That's the good news of the Gospel. It reminds me of a mother who heard her son come in late at night and he was high, he was drunk. And the father heard the mom get up and he said, finally, she's going to tell him off. Kick him out of this house. And a couple of minutes went by and he went downstairs and saw the mom holding her son and caressing him and loving him while he's passed out. And he said, what are you doing? And the mom said, he would not let me love him while he's awake, so I will love him while he's asleep. That's the image of God. That's a God who loves unconditionally. That's why this is so hard. There's truth, there's power in the name of Christ. Why are people from the satanic temple going to get up and walk out? I'll tell you why, because this isn't pixie dust and fairy tales. This is truth and they can't stand the truth. That's what this is. There is a broken relationship. So, my last point, what must I do then, Shane? They've been asking that question for 2,000 years. The Bible says, repent and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out and times of refreshing will come from the presence of the Lord. I repent. I see my need for a Savior. I humble myself and God comes. He saves me and in times of refreshing, revival comes from the presence of the Lord. I experience what the Bible says. It's experiential as well as scientific proof of the nature and character of God. Here's a headline that I read recently. Deathbed conversion? Never. Christopher Hitchens was defiant until his last breath. His son wrote these words, I spent my father's final weeks and days at his bedside and watched him draw his final breath and die and I can assure you that there was no hint of any sort of conversion. In fact, we barely spoke about religion at all except for the joint expressions of frustration at the God-botherers who made rounds in the ICU where dying people could be preyed upon by vulturous Christians. I know I've got two and a half minutes, so no need to give me the two minute mark. Let me leave you with this thought. To live your entire life fighting God, mocking God, rejecting God, and to trust your soul to the ever-changing theories of science and the winds of speculation, to me, is the greatest tragedy that man has ever known. A life of rebellion leads to an eternity of separation from God. In the end, the rebel gets his way. That's what this is about. The rebel gets his way. And I'm not going to go on here, but I want to encourage you. Who are you trusting in? Are you trusting in God? Or are you trusting in man? You have to ask yourself, why is this topic so irritating? Why do I hate what that guy's saying? What is going on inside of me? It's that battle. It's that battle. And God desires a relationship with you, but He's not going to force it because then it wouldn't be love. We are created to choose Him or reject Him. And that, quite honestly, is the only reason I am here tonight is to share what He's done in my own life and to share He can do that to anybody in this room. He can restore and rebuild your life.