2 November 2022 Anno Domini
the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide
“To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good. 2The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. 3They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Psalms 14:1-3 (KJV)
The story is told in a 18th century book I have of English Church humor concerning a sermon given there:
“Bishop Godson of the north of England had a speaking engagement at a chapel some distance removed from his local diocese. He chose as his text, the 1st verse of the 14th Psalm – ‘The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.’ Upon completion of his sermon, the good bishop stood by church door with the vicar to greet congregants as the left. But none remarked on the bishop’s message. Out of some bewilderment, the bishop asked an elderly congregant what he thought of his sermon. The gentleman responded, ‘Well, sire, I thought the sermon was well and good, but I disagree wi’ ye.’ ‘What do you mean, you disagree with me?’ the bishop asked. ‘Well. Sire, tend to believer there be a God after all.’”
How many sermons are delivered from pulpits every Sunday that are of the same nature of that given above by Bishop Godson? There is too often an inclination on the part of ministers to preach above the congregation by using abstruse terms that the minister believes will lend sophistication to his sermons. Of course, this misses the mark of his office. Our Lord always taught in simple terms, often using word pictures and parables, that were understood by every listener in His audience. Seeking sophistication in preaching is both foolish and unprofitable.
Our Lord Jesus Christ often sat down as He taught. He spoke in common terms and in a balanced voice – never shouting or prancing about. He never spoke in a tongue not understood by His audience. In summary, He spoke in the language and terms used by the common people.
But our text above applies much more than to simple sermon delivery. It is the fool that questions the reality of A God in Heaven. He is unable, or unwilling, to think for himself using reason and logic. He is victim to every fad and sensation being promoted by modern society in academia, entertainment media, or news reporting that has an agenda.
God has placed us among an amazing variety of resources – all intended for our good. He is the First Cause and the Intelligent Designer behind all of Creation. Modern research is not needed to prove the existence of God – it descends from common sense and faith; however, recent scientific advances in biology, archaeology, and geology have left little possibility that any part of our Creation could have occurred by random chance.
Far more faith is required to believe that all the earth, stars, and heavens could have been created from nothing than by the Hand and Word of God. Nor could the intricate workings of cell design and DNA have occurred by some ridiculous combination of mixed elements and compounds. In spite of all their presumed knowledge, scientists can neither create nor explain life or define precisely the nature of Light itself. They proclaim the end of the world in two decades due to Global Warming while they are yet unable to forecast rain or sunshine one week from today. They claim to know precisely when life began, yet they are unable to make a flea.
There is no reasonable or logical explanation for what we see in our world of Creation other than a Creator and an Intelligent Designer. WE have our eyes and ears to observe the wonders of nature, and we have the infallible Word of God to reveal the truth of Genesis 1 and 2.
