Connect With God

We are all intimately aware of the brokenness that exists in this world, and this world is most certainly broken because of sin. But Jesus came to restore us back to Himself, that we would experience an abundance of life. We're talking about this life in connection with God today.

Open with us to John chapter 10 as we consider it together. Good morning. While you're standing, would you take out your Bibles and open them with me to the Gospel of John? If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and one of our ushers will bring you one. The Gospel of John is in the last third of the Bible, right after Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and right before the book of Acts.

In John chapter 10, I'm just going to key in on one verse, some words that Jesus spoke. John chapter 10, verse 10, might be a familiar reference to some. There Jesus says, "The thief does not come except to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly."

Father, as we open Your word today and as we think about the words that You spoke 2,000 years ago—that You have come that we might have life and that we might have it more abundantly—I pray that that would be our experience. I pray that we would be, on a daily basis, more and more experiencing the abundant life that You came to give.

As we consider Your word, which we believe to be given by inspiration from You and useful for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness, I pray that we would be thoroughly equipped for every good work. I ask that You would do that work by Your word and by the power of Your Spirit today, equipping us for good works this week to be worked out in our lives—at work, at school, or in our neighborhood, wherever we are.

God, would You speak to us and teach us? Transform us by the renewing of our minds. We ask this in Jesus' name, and all those that agree said, "Amen." You can be seated.

It's recorded here that Jesus said, "My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life." That's what the New Living Translation says in John chapter 10, verse 10. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. I'm not sure that I know any people who are not seeking a rich and satisfying life. I would venture to guess that you don't know any people who aren't pursuing a rich and satisfying life either.

Even in one of our founding documents as a nation, it speaks about the pursuit of happiness. In many ways, that is the seeking after and pursuing of a rich and satisfying life. There are many different ways that people might define "rich and satisfying." If you were to interview a hundred people and ask them what a rich and satisfying life is, you'd come up with a lot of different answers. There would certainly be some commonality; you'd find some common threads, but there would be different views and different understandings of what a rich and satisfying life entails.

Some people think that richness and satisfaction are found in wealth. Just an outward examination of our own nation shows that there are probably a lot of people who believe that richness and satisfaction are found in wealth. Other people think that richness and satisfaction are found in power. You see people pushing to try and gain more power, whether it be political power, business power, or whatever it may be.

There are obviously a lot of people who think that richness and satisfaction are found in fame. They believe that if they just attain some level of celebrity or status, then they will experience richness and satisfaction. Some people seem to think that it's found in intellectual pursuits, business achievements, or pleasurable experiences. There are all kinds of different things that people are seeking for richness, satisfaction, and happiness.

But whatever it may be, I think that just about everybody I know is seeking richness and satisfaction in some way. However, when it comes to a rich, satisfying, and happy life, one of the frightening things...

A lot of times, the people we look up to in our society, who have achieved a level of wealth, business success, fame, or some other great accomplishment, do not appear to be satisfied. The frightening thing is that many of these individuals, despite their hard work to reach their goals, express in interviews that when they finally attain their medals, promotions, or achievements, they find them unsatisfying. Many slide into deep despair and depression because what they thought would bring them richness, satisfaction, happiness, and joy does not deliver as they had hoped.

In contrast, Jesus says, "I have come that you may have life and that you may have it fully, more abundantly, richly, with satisfaction." This is one of the purpose statements of Jesus in His coming. We just celebrated the advent of Jesus at Christmas, and it is important to understand that His coming into the world is not just about a birth; it is about His arrival. He existed before time began. John chapter one speaks of Him existing in the beginning, and then the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Christmas is the celebration of Jesus stepping from one reality into this world, entering a reality where He already existed.

He came to this world to give life and to give life more abundantly. This is one of the purpose statements of Jesus. The Gospels contain about six or seven different statements regarding why He came. In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter five, verse 17, it states that He came to fulfill the law. In Mark chapter one, verse 38, it says that He came to preach the Gospel. In Luke chapter 19, verse 10, it notes that He came to seek and to save that which is lost. In Mark chapter 10, verse 45, it states that He came to serve and not be served, and to give His life.

Life is a ransom for many. There are a number of places in the Gospel where we are given a purpose statement for Jesus' coming. Here in John chapter 10 is at least one of them: "I have come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly," that they might have it richly and with satisfaction.

When you look at these statements found in the Gospels about why Jesus came, it tells us point number one on your outline: Jesus came to the world for a purpose. Now, that's not a revolutionary point, but it's an important one. It's essential for us to understand that there is a reason for which Jesus came to the world. One of those reasons, when we think about why He came, is the idea of abundance, richness, and satisfaction, which must be factored into the reason for His coming.

Three thousand years ago, there was a man who set out to find abundance, satisfaction, and richness in this world. He conducted something of a scientific experiment on finding satisfaction and recorded his findings in a book called Ecclesiastes. It's not a big book, but it's a very fascinating one. If you've never read through the 12 chapters of Ecclesiastes, I highly recommend that you take some time today or this week to read through it. It will probably only take you about 20 minutes to half an hour to read through the 12 chapters.

Ecclesiastes was written 3,000 years ago by a man named Solomon, who was the king of Israel at the time. He set out to determine where satisfaction is found. You can turn to the book if you'd like to. We will look at a little bit of it as we go through our message. Ecclesiastes is right after the books of Psalms and Proverbs. So, turn to about the middle of your Bible. You'll probably be in the Psalms. Turn to the right, pass the Proverbs, and then you'll come to Ecclesiastes.

Ecclesiastes is the research report of one Dr. Solomon, if you will, as he set out to scientifically examine satisfaction in this life. In the opening words of chapter 1, you find that Solomon begins...

By thinking, maybe I will find satisfaction and joy in the pursuit of wisdom. If I attain some level of great wisdom, then I will experience satisfaction. At the very end of the chapter, he gives us his first finding: it is all meaningless, like chasing the wind. Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. I sought pleasure and satisfaction in intellectual pursuit and wisdom. At the end of the day, when I came down to it, I found that it was empty. It was all like chasing the wind. It was meaningless.

I have a dog that I think sometimes is chasing the wind. The other dog looks at him like, "What are you doing?" It's a foolish pursuit to chase the wind. Here, Solomon says he was looking for satisfaction, so he tried it in intellectual pursuit and wisdom, but it was all meaningless. It was like chasing the wind.

In his second experiment, he begins in Chapter 2. You can look at Chapter 2, verse 1. I'm going to read from a different translation, the New Living Translation. Solomon said, "Come on, let's try pleasure. Let's look for the good things in life." But I found this too was meaningless. I decided to set myself with all my wealth, privilege, and power to try and find satisfaction in pleasure. I was not going to deny myself anything. I was going to look for it in all the good things of life, but I found that this too was empty.

Then he says in verse 3, "I decided to cheer myself with wine." Apparently, as he was pursuing pleasure and finding it dissatisfying, he came to a place of despair and thought, "Well, let's just try alcohol. Maybe that'll fix the problem." So, he thought to cheer himself with wine. Well, that didn't work. He decided to try something else. In verse 4, he said, "I also tried to find meaning in building huge homes for myself. I owned large herds and flocks and collected great sums of silver and gold," as verse 8 says. "I had many beautiful concubines. I had everything a man could desire. Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure." Solomon says, "I'm going to set out to find satisfaction in this life."

I’m going to try it in intellectual pursuit and wisdom. I’m going to try it in pleasure-seeking. I’m going to try it in chemical substances. I’m going to try to find it in building great homes, in collecting great wealth, in getting silver and gold. Everything that I could possibly get, I’m going to get it and see if I can find it.

Here’s his conclusion. It’s written in Ecclesiastes chapter 2, verse 11. The New Living Translation says this: "But as I looked at everything that I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless, like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere." Sound familiar? This was 3,000 years ago.

Now, it’s interesting because this same guy wrote in this same book that there is nothing new under the sun. Nothing has changed in 3,000 years. There are still people seeking, still people trying to find satisfaction in intellectual pursuits, business achievements, or in amassing great wealth. They are still seeking these things and always coming up dry. But 3,000 years ago, Solomon did the research. It’s a published report that has been available for 3,000 years on what he found.

Look at what he says in verse 17 of Ecclesiastes chapter 2. Again, the New Living Translation states: "So I came to hate life because everything done here under the sun in this world is so troubling. Everything is meaningless, like chasing the wind. I came to hate all of my hard work on the earth, for I must leave it to others. Everything that I have earned, I’m going to give away. And who can tell whether my successors will be as wise or foolish? Yet they will control everything I have gained by my skill and hard work under the sun. How meaningless."

In verse 20, he continues: "I gave up in despair, questioning the value of all my hard work in this world." There is nothing new under the sun. Time has changed, the scenery has changed, and advancements in technology have changed, but the problems remain the same. I sought for it in intellectual pursuit. I sought for it in pleasure-seeking, but I couldn’t find it.

Point number two on your outline: The world and all that is in it does not ultimately satisfy.

That doesn't mean that there aren't joyful experiences. It doesn't mean that there aren't great highs that can be experienced in this life. However, every single one of those is temporary. They do not ultimately satisfy.

Fast forward 3,000 years from Solomon, and you come to one of the hit songs that, after decades, is still a hit: "I can't get no satisfaction." The singer expresses, "I try and I try and I try." Then, just a couple of decades later, you get another hit song: "I still haven't found what I'm looking for." I guarantee that if you go through the other hit songs of the day, you'll find common themes that reflect this reality. This world and all that is in it do not ultimately satisfy.

But Jesus came to this world for a purpose. He came to give life, and He came to give it more abundantly. He came to bring richness and satisfaction. Now, maybe you're thinking, if Christianity teaches that God created the world—and that is one of the core teachings of Christianity—why then did He create a world that does not ultimately satisfy? Why did He create such an environment in which there is so much brokenness, so much failure, and no way to experience this great richness in its fullness? That's a great question.

I suggest to you that this world is not as God originally intended it. I suggest that this is not the way that God designed it to be. Some of you, just this last Sunday, as it was the beginning of a new year, set out to do something that a lot of followers of Jesus, Christians, do at the beginning of the year: you say, "I'm going to read through the Bible in a year." I had several people come up and tell me this last week, and I cheer you on. I champion that. I hope that you stick with it.

I guarantee you, you're going to hit some rough patches. You're going to encounter difficulties in just about a month and a half when you start getting into Exodus and then Leviticus. If you can get through Leviticus, then you've got—listen, if you get to Chronicles, God bless you. I'll be praying with you and for you. You can pray with me. I set out on this endeavor to read through the Scriptures every year as well.

And by God's grace, He carries me through. If you fail a day, just pick it up and go to the next spot and keep going. Plod through the Scriptures.

Here's the thing: if you started reading through the Scriptures last week, as you start at the very beginning in the book of Genesis, chapter one, you know that at the very beginning, God did not create this world this way. It was different. In fact, turn in your Bibles to the book of Genesis, the very first book of the Bible. It's wonderful when the pastor says, "Turn to Genesis." You can turn there like you're an authority on Scripture. You just praise God.

I didn't say like Zephaniah; I said Genesis, chapter one, verse one. "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." The earth was without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, "Let there be light." And there was light.

God created one of the core beliefs of the Christian faith: God spoke all things into existence. For if He did so, nothing existed. He created out of nothing. As you read through Genesis chapter one, you find that at the end of each day of creation—there are six days of creation spoken of in Genesis chapter one—He looks at what He had made and says, "It is good." Seven times in the opening chapter of the Bible, He says, "It is good." The seventh time is found in the very last verse, Genesis 1:31. Look at what it says: "And then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good." It's not just good; it is very good.

And so the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Everything that God made at the beginning was very good. At the center of God's good creation, the final act of creation on the sixth day, God made man in His image. In the image of God, He made them male and female. God made us in His image. That means that in some way, we are like God, not in every way.

But in some way, He created us after His form, after His likeness. As He looked at man, whom He had made in His image, He said, "It is very good." When God created us, the triune God revealed Himself in Genesis 1:1-3. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth; the Spirit of God was there. The Lord spoke; God spoke. The Word of God was there. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the living Word, were there together.

When He created us in His image, He made us to be like Him and to be connected to Him in relationship. At the very beginning, when everything was good, we were united to God in an unbroken connection and relationship. God, who is good, desiring this goodness to continue and to move forward, looked at His creation. In Genesis 2:18, we read, "And the Lord God said, 'It is not good.'" This is the first negative statement. In chapter one, there are seven goods: "It is good." But in chapter two, verse 18, it states, "It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him."

There is something missing, and He says it is not good. This does not mean it is evil; it is just incomplete. It is not exactly the way that He wants it to be. So, He says, "I am going to make a helper comparable to him." God brings all of the animals that He had created before Adam, and Adam is given the task of naming them, as Genesis chapter two says. However, as Adam looks at all that has been made, he realizes that something is missing. He recognizes that there is no helper comparable to him.

God then causes a deep sleep to come upon Adam, and from Adam, He creates and makes woman. The two of them are there together, united as one. God, wanting this goodness to continue, this communion with Him and this united, unbroken relationship between man and woman to remain, gives this command. The very first one that He gave to humanity is recorded in Genesis 1:28: "Then God blessed them, the man and the woman, Adam and Eve, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply.'"

That's a good command: "Fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over all the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves on the earth." What is God doing here? He's saying, "Listen, I have created you to be in unbroken relationship with Me and in unbroken relationship with one another. I want that to continue. So be fruitful and multiply and make more, so that there would be this community."

Point number three on your outline: We were made to live in communion with God and community with one another. We were made for connection—to be connected to each other and to be connected to God. But clearly, as we look at the world today, something's amiss thousands of years later because that community is not there. That communion is lost. It's gone.

For those of you who have been reading through Genesis, you know that after Genesis chapter two, when you come into Genesis chapter three, there is a reason for why that community was gone. It starts in Genesis chapter three and says that the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field. He came to the woman, Eve, and asked her a question: "Has God indeed said that you shall not eat of all the trees in the garden?" There was one tree in the garden that God had said you shall not eat of.

She responded, "God has given us all to eat from the garden except the one tree in the midst of the garden. We shall not eat it, nor shall we touch it, for the day in which we do, we shall surely die." The cunning serpent replied, "You shall not surely die."

There we have the temptation of Eve and Adam and the fall. The thief has come to steal, to kill, and to destroy. That's exactly what he did. The thief, in the form of the serpent, more cunning than any beast of the field, came in with his cunning and beguiled. Thus, we have the brokenness that now comes in as man turns away from the command of God, rebels against the command of God, and partakes of this tree.

And that rebellion is called sin. From that sin, there is a brokenness. God, who was in total unbroken connection with man, steps into the garden. Genesis chapter three, verse nine says He walks in the garden in the cool of the day, and His words that come out of His mouth are, "Adam, where are you?" There is a brokenness in that communion God had originally intended.

Not only is there a brokenness in the communion between man and God, but also a brokenness in the communion between man and man, specifically between husband and wife. There is a division in their oneness. We know this because at the end of Genesis chapter two, it says that both of them were together without any shame, naked and unashamed. However, immediately after they partook of this sin, it says that they beheld their nakedness. They knew that they were naked and made coverings for themselves. Now, shame enters in, and there is a division.

For thousands of years, there has been this brokenness. Why? Point number four on your outline: sin destroyed everything. Sin destroyed everything. The goodness of God's creation was gone. The connection between God and man was broken. The oneness that God intended between human beings was devastated.

In the New Testament, in the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul states in Romans chapter five, "Therefore, as through one man sin entered the world and death through sin, thus death spread to all humanity." All 7.4 billion people on the face of this planet are born into the brokenness, and we see it every single day.

Now, we live in a society here in the United States of America, and especially in Southern California, where we try to kind of barrier ourselves off from the brokenness. For a time, sometimes you can do that. In fact, we live in a place where you can live a fairly long period of time without being confronted by or impacted by the brokenness that exists in this world. But eventually, you experience it. The brokenness is everywhere. There's no getting away from it. We can try to separate ourselves from it, but it's there.

At some point, it always gets through. It finds its way in. Sometimes it affects us at a very tertiary level, far out sort of level. When we see it in the news and the brokenness that's going on in the world, we are impacted. We witness the things that have happened in Syria over the last five years, the terrorist attack in Istanbul just last week, or the incident at the Fort Lauderdale Airport just the other day on Friday. When we see these things, there is an impact.

Sometimes it comes a little bit closer to home. When two young children die in a fire here in Escondido, as they did last week, it hits us a little bit more. Or maybe it happens in your own family, when a child dies or a family member is diagnosed with cancer. Whatever it may be, we are impacted by the brokenness, and we realize it. Sin destroyed everything. It has brought division, destruction, and death. Yet, there is within every single one of us almost like a residual desire for the way it was. There is a longing for life before the fall.

We seek for that satisfaction, that joy, that happiness, and that connection. We look for it in the things of this world. Maybe we will find it in intellectual pursuits, in wealth, in pleasure, or in something else. Every single person on the face of this planet is seeking for that in some way, shape, or form. If you follow the worldviews and philosophies of man for thousands of years, you can see this seeking and how it longs for these things to bring connection and restoration of satisfaction.

It is very interesting to watch the progression of worldviews all the way down to the 20th century, especially in the nihilism of the 21st century, where there seems to be no meaning. This has become one of the predominant mindsets and worldviews of the postmodern world here in the 21st century, particularly in the Western part of the world, including the United States and Western Europe. This view suggests that there is no inherent meaning, so individuals must try to create meaning for themselves. And those who set out to create meaning, what do they find?

There's no satisfaction in it, under the sun, here in this realm. But Jesus said, "I have come. I've stepped into this world from another world." He's not of this world, but He steps into this world. "I have come that you may have life and that you may have it more abundantly." That is good news. That's what we call the gospel.

Point number five on your outline: Jesus came to restore the broken connection. He came to bring life. Jesus came to restore the broken connection, and that is what we as a church are all about. This good news of Jesus coming to restore that broken connection, to bring life and that more abundantly, to seek and to save that which is lost, to give His life a ransom for many, so that we might be restored back to God and back to one another.

And that's why our mission, our vision, as it says at the bottom of your bulletin on the front, is life in connection with God, one another, and the world through Jesus. We begin each year coming back to this. We talk about it throughout the year, but we start each year talking about life in connection with God, as we do today. Next week, we'll talk about life in connection with one another, and the week following, life in connection with the world.

But notice, this life comes through Jesus—life through Jesus. He brings us back into connection with God, one another, and ultimately, we bring that message to the world.

Let me read to you again from the book of Romans. I already read from Romans chapter five, verse 12, where Paul said, "Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men." He goes on to say this, Paul does, in verse 17 of the same chapter: "For if by one man's offense, Adam's offense, death reigned through Adam, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ."

Adam brought sin and death through his rebellion and through the fall. Jesus, through His life, brings righteousness. Therefore, verse 18 states, "As through one man's offense, judgment came to all men resulting..."

In condemnation, even so through one man's righteous act, the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one man's obedience many will be made righteous. What is this? Well, Paul is telling us exactly what God did. God created a good world, a world in which we were in communion with Him and community with one another. But through sin, that communion and community were destroyed and ruined. We have experienced the brokenness of that ever since.

We are all fully acquainted with the brokenness of this world. We see it around us all the time, and there is a desire within every single one of us, a longing for a restoration of communion and that community. Where does it come from? It comes from Jesus Christ. That's why He could say, "I have come that you may have life and that you may have it more abundantly." The thief came to steal, to kill, and to destroy. We have seen the ramifications of what the thief has done; it's all around us all the time. But Jesus came to give life and that more abundantly.

Again, let me read to you from the book of Ephesians, speaking about this same concept. In the New Testament, Paul writes this in Ephesians chapter two, verse 13: "But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were afar off have been brought near, how? By the blood of Christ." He died on the cross, ransoming us from sin and death to bring us back. For He, Jesus Himself, is our peace who has made both one. He has taken those that were divided and made them one. He has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace.

He did this that He might reconcile them both back to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enemy. He reconciles us back to God. He brings us back to God through what He did on the cross. Let me tell you, there is not a person alive who doesn't desire, at the deepest level, even though they may not be able to articulate exactly what that desire is. At the deepest level, they are desiring this satisfaction that comes only from communion with God and the community with one another that comes in Jesus Christ.

Every one of the people that you know at work, at school, in your family, or in your neighborhood, even if they don't know God, has this desire within them that this is not all there is. It is really interesting to watch, and it plays out in this world constantly. We see it in a very clear and visible way right now in pop culture, and we always will.

Even though we are living in a time in our own nation where there is a growing population of people who don't really believe that there is a God, there is still a desire for something more than just this life. According to Pew Research, their findings on religion in America show that 23% of Americans today, almost a quarter of our population, are not affiliated with any religious group. We are living in what is called a post-Christian society, where 23% say they have no religious leanings. Yet, among most of these individuals, there remains a desire for something beyond the material world.

We see this desire reflected in our culture in really interesting ways. Some of the top shows of our day are tapping into this theme. For example, the leading shows currently running on Netflix include "Stranger Things." What is that all about? It suggests that this world is not all there is; there is something behind the reality we live in right now. Another show, "The OA," also explores this idea. It posits that this is not the only reality and that the only way to access it is through death. The characters experience near-death experiences because they want to glimpse the other side without fully dying.

What are these shows in pop culture saying? They are suggesting that there is something more, that this life is illusory, and that it is not all there is.

This past June, at the annual Code Conference, a gathering of thinkers, Elon Musk was present. You may have heard his name; he is the founder and CEO of SpaceX, the company aiming to establish a community on Mars. He is also the founder and CEO of Tesla Motors and was a co-founder of PayPal, which many of you have likely used to make online purchases. At the Code Conference, Musk was asked a question about virtual reality.

He's asked a question about whether or not we, right now in this world, are really living in reality and if this is just a simulation. What we all see right now could be just one big computer game. What does Elon Musk say? He says, "I've thought a lot about that, and I think it might be true." The guy doesn't believe in God; he's an avowed atheist. He explains why he thinks this might be true.

Forty years ago, we had Pong. Does anyone remember playing Pong? It was just two rectangles and a square. Bink! Some of you might have even gotten high scores on that, right? That was 40 years ago. Now we have photorealistic games that are nearing a point where they are indistinguishable from reality. You're hearing a lot of stuff in the news today about Oculus and virtual reality, and you're going to hear a lot more about it.

What is happening? People have come to the conclusion that this world is lacking, so they are creating a new reality in virtual reality. It is becoming so real that your mind has a hard time distinguishing between this reality and virtual reality. Because we've come that far in just 40 years, this is Elon Musk's point. He says it's not unthinkable to consider that, since we now have these virtual realities that are almost indistinguishable from reality, this world might actually not be real. Perhaps some higher race or greater intelligence created this simulation, and we are all involved in it. When asked if he believes this, he said, "I think the probability is one in billions."

Let me tell you something. For those who are millennials, that is, 35 and younger, and those in Generation Y, which is the generation before them, one of the predominant worldviews is that this is not all there is. This is not reality; there is something beyond this. Do you remember the Matrix?

Now, a whole bunch of Christians might wonder what to do about that. We say, actually, you know what? You guys are closer to reality than you think because this is not all there is. There is a world that is more real than this one, more tangible than this one. Once upon a time, we had a connection to that world, but it was broken. We all know it's broken, and we all desire that connection to be made again.

And let me tell you something. The creator of this simulation stepped into this world to reconnect us back to Him. Two thousand years ago, the man Jesus Christ came to give life and that more abundantly.

Now, when you hear Elon Musk say something like, "Yeah, it's one in billions. We're living in a simulation built by some higher intellect," that may sound far out, but that's kind of what the Bible says. There is a higher intellect who created us and placed us here in something He created. He desires that we be connected with Him, and Jesus came to make that connection. Life in connection with God, one another, and the world comes through Him. Amen?

Would you stand with me as we close in prayer?

Father, I thank you so much that you loved us to the point that you sent your Son to step down into this world to deal with the problem of sin that was keeping us from coming to you and to make the way open for us to return to you again. Thank you, God, that you loved us to that point and that Jesus, you demonstrated that love. While we were still sinners, you died for us to make it possible for us to be brought back into connection with you.

I pray, God, that we who have been joined to you, united together with you again, would be able to bring that good news to those in our world who are experiencing brokenness and desiring so much more than what this world has to offer. I pray, God, that you would give us the boldness to share the good news of what you've done for us as we interact with people this week. Help us to be bold. Help us to share your love and your grace.

It may be as we're standing here in prayer that you have been seeking for satisfaction.

And richness in the things of this world—through intellectual pursuit, wealth, pleasure, or some other thing—will ultimately leave you feeling empty. I want you to know that you will never find true fulfillment in this world. It only comes from a relationship with God and all the benefits that arise from that relationship.

If you'd like to receive God's forgiveness of sin and His grace, and be reconciled back to God today, I want to give you a chance to do that. All you simply have to do is receive the free gift that God offers. If that's you, if you want to receive that gift today, would you just lift up your hand? Is there anyone here this morning?

Father, I pray for your church, and I ask that you would empower us by your Spirit to be bold witnesses of You. There is a growing movement of people in our nation who have a deep, residing sense that this is not all there is, and there is a desire for so much more. God, give us the passion to share the good news with them. We pray this in Jesus' name, and all those who agreed to that, we sing this.