Father, we thank you today for who you are. We thank you that this morning you have given us truth, and that truth is found in your word. I thank you for these graduates who are here this morning. And as they look ahead at their future, Father, I pray that you would guide them along. I pray that you would guide our time along as well this morning as we look into your word. I pray that you would speak to us about your truth, about what that truth is, about what we need to know. Father, I pray that you would speak to us this morning about where we're at. I thank you for that. And we commit this time into your hands now. In your name we pray. Amen. There is an article from Christianity Today that mentioned that there was a pastor who would ask his students in a particular class to guess how many beans were in a jar that he would display in front of them. He would ask them to write down their estimates, then next to those estimates he would ask them to make another list, and this list was of their favorite songs. When the lists were finished, he would reveal the actual number of beans in the jar. And the students would then look over their guesses to see which estimates were the closest to being right. Then the pastor would turn to the list of favorite songs. He would ask his students in which one of these is the closest to being right, to which the students would respond with, there is really no right answer when it comes to our favorite songs. A person's favorite song is purely a matter of taste. This pastor would then ask, when you decide what to believe in terms of your faith, is that more like guessing the number of beans or more like choosing your favorite song? Always the pastor said that from old as well as young, he would get the same answer. Choosing one's faith is more like choosing a favorite song. Now, if you know me, you know that I am not content with this idea that I can go shopping for what I believe in. Because we come to a passage in the New Testament, we're not going to be there in our time this morning, but I just want to touch on it for a minute in 2 Thessalonians 1, verse 8. It tells us about those who have rejected Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. And what that passage says is something very sobering. He says, these are guilty of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. And if that is true, then I ought to pay attention to what the Scripture says. If there is a literal place reserved for those who have rejected Jesus Christ as their Savior, then we ought to pay attention to what the Scriptures say, to what truth is. What I would propose this morning is that the stakes are high when it comes to truth. John 3.36 says, He who believes in the Son has eternal life, but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. One of the spiritual issues that we are faced with today in our culture and in our country is that people are really going shopping for their religion. I'd like to acknowledge that there has been a shift in our thinking as a culture from accepting absolute moral truths to kind of accepting what we just saw in that video this morning. What is true for you might not necessarily be true for me. That is relativism. And relativism says that there is no truth, but within it there is a truth statement. Don't you see that? It falls flat on its face right at the foundation. There was a study done in 2006 which stated that 70% of adult American Christians did not believe that there were ethical or moral absolutes. Now if I were for a moment to bring up the Holocaust, I would hope that we would all say unanimously as a church that the Holocaust was a moral tragedy. I would hope that we would say that. But there are people in our society who would scratch their heads and wonder, was it a tragedy or not? I believe that our graduates need our prayers. This is the kind of culture they are stepping out into. This is a culture that is rejecting Jesus Christ. This is a culture that is rejecting truth and is confused about what truth is. God has a lot to say about truth. This morning we're going to be in John chapter 17. If you have your Bibles, open with me there this morning. John chapter 17. Jesus is looking towards the cross and He knows that His life is about to be taken from Him so that He can fulfill that which His Father had called Him to do. And in John chapter 17, I want us to begin by reading verses 1 through 3. We're not going to spend our time in these three verses. But I want to just read the beginning part of this prayer that Jesus makes. In John chapter 17, beginning with verse 1, Jesus spoke these things, and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, the hour has come, glorify your Son, that the Son may glorify you. Even as you gave him authority over all flesh, that to all whom you have given him, he may give eternal life. This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. What we have just read are the words of our Savior right before He is about to give Himself up willingly on a cross for the sins of the world. Gabe Lean says about this passage that it is impossible to give an exposition of this great chapter. He goes on to say there are depths here which we shall fathom till we are with Christ. J. Vernon McGee says that this is one of the most remarkable chapters in the Bible and this passage has really been called, this chapter in John 17 has been called the High Priestly Prayer. And I believe that it was a prayer that stirred the hearts of the disciples as they were right there with Jesus Christ as He prayed this prayer. I believe that this was a huge encouragement to them because He begins to pray for those who are His. He begins to pray for those who have trusted in Him as the Messiah. And I want to say to the graduates this morning, as we consider this prayer, this is a powerful prayer for you to consider in these next steps in your life. And my prayer is that as we go through what we're about to go through from this passage, that you would have these points on your mind, that you would have this message on your mind when you step onto that college campus. That would be my prayer for you. This morning we're going to witness together that God has given us three Christ-centered truths for His church in the midst of a Christ-rejecting culture. This morning, we're going to consider that God has given us three Christ-centered truths for his church in the midst of a Christ-rejecting culture. Now, it is true that for these disciples who were with Jesus Christ as Jesus was praying, that this prayer was of great encouragement to them. How much more encouragement can we get out of the scriptures this morning? We have God's completed word. Back then the disciples did not have God's completed Word before them. So looking back now, we can say and we know that God is faithful. And that God always does that which He says He will do. This ought to encourage our hearts. We know that this is truth. So let's look at these three Christ-centered truths together this morning. The first Christ-centered truth that we have is our position to this world. If you have your Bibles open to chapter 17, I want us to look at verses 14 through 16 together. This is where we see our position to this world. One absolute fact that we must never lose sight of is the fact that our home is not on this earth. Graduates, there will be a major transition in your life. Some of you are going into college. It may be that you may end up going into the workforce, possibly at some point. And the transition will lend itself a temptation in your thinking to saying, I'm going to put God's plans and purposes for my life on a shelf. God has a plan and a purpose for each and every one of you. God has a specific plan, a specific purpose. What is that plan? What is that purpose? The temptation will be to set that aside and to chase after the American dream. That's what the temptation will be. I want to see what Jesus says here. We find our first Christ-centered truth right here in verses 14 through 16. And he says this in this prayer. He says, I have given them your word and the world has hated them because they are not of the world. Even as I am not of the world, I do not ask you to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. For they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." The first great reality that Jesus reveals in verse 14 is that as Christians, we have the truth within our possession, which is the living Word of God. We have God's living, breathing Word right before us. Graduates, you've been given a new Bible. You have God's living, breathing Word right there on your lap this morning. And the reality is this, I want us to notice what Jesus says about our position to this world in verse 14, towards the end of the verse. He says, they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. The reality is this, is that if you claim to be a Christian and you step onto that campus, you're going to stand out. Many people in here know that when you claim to be a Christian and you are out in the workforce, you stand out like a sore thumb. And the reality is that as we look at our culture and we see the things that are going on, the truth is that there could be a day when pastors are imprisoned. In our country, it could happen. where pastors are imprisoned for preaching and teaching the very Word of God. But I have good news for all of us this morning. Nobody can imprison the grace of God. Nobody can imprison the grace of God. That's an amazing truth that we have and nobody can imprison His Word. I want us to look at verse 15. He says, I do not ask them to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. This is the next great reality that we have right here, that we are kept safe from Satan. We are living in this world system that Jesus lived in, and look at how they treated him. We can expect the same kind of treatment. We can expect the same kind of treatment. But the desire that our Savior has for us is that we are in this world, We are kept safe from the enemy for the glory of God. Now I believe this passage is going to do us a lot of good this morning. Turn with me to 2 Corinthians for a moment. I love this passage. It's a beautiful passage. It's one that I go to. 2 Corinthians chapter 4. Verses 16-18. This is critical as we think about our position to this world, because the reality is that we can become discouraged as believers. This is what it says, chapter 4, verse 16 of 2 Corinthians. Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary light affliction is producing for us. an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison. While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." Did you catch that? The things of this world are temporal. They are temporal. We cannot take them with us when we pass from this life. The focus of this passage right here in 2 Corinthians is that of not one who is looking around at the circumstances around him, but one who is looking up, who is looking to Christ. His focus is on Christ and he recognizes who he is and he recognizes what he has been given. And there is a promise here in verse 16. Therefore we do not lose heart. When we start to look around at the world, at the culture, at our society, we can be discouraged. We can. But we need to make sure that we have our focus on Christ. We need to make sure that we keep that balance, that we have that proper perspective as we go and as we move in life, that we have our focus on Him. I love what the author of Hebrews says, he says, "...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of God." There's a lot there that we could pull out, but I want us to consider this. It goes on, for consider Him, Jesus Christ, who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. So that you will not grow weary and lose heart. When we have our focus on the Lord, though we are in this world, we are not of this world. we can have a joyful attitude as we have our focus on Him. The second Christ-centered truth that we have is our source for truth. I want us to turn back to John chapter 17, verse 17. We see our source for truth. And from this one verse, there are three realities that I want to point out this morning. The very first reality is found right here when he says, sanctify them in the truth. That first reality is that Christ testifies of the reality that there is truth. What you believe about truth itself is serious business before God. The word for truth is actually found 100 times in the New Testament, 25 times in the Gospel of John, and when you look at this exact Greek word for truth, it is found 8 times in the Gospel of John, all of which Jesus Christ is speaking. And what this tells me is that God's truth is very important in the mind of Jesus Christ. Jesus uses this word for truth when he's speaking in John chapter 8 to the Pharisees. He says, your father is the devil. He's very blunt with them. He says, your father is the devil who has no truth in him. Then we see it in John chapter 16, where he speaks of the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth. And we see it right here where he says, sanctify them in the truth, sanctify them in the truth. That brings us to our second reality. Christ testifies of the reality that believers are sanctified through the truth. He says, sanctify them in this truth. The word sanctify means to be set apart from the world for God. A sanctified Christian is someone who is daily growing in the word, and as a result is separated more and more from the world unto the Father. In 2 Corinthians 5, verse 21, it tells us, He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might have the righteousness of God in Him. This world tells you, this culture tells you that he who dies with the most toys what? Wins. I've heard it said this way, he who dies with the most toys still dies. I think that's a little bit more accurate. The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, and this is what he writes to Timothy in 1 Timothy chapter 6 verse 7. He tells Timothy, a young man in the ministry, he says, we have brought nothing into the world so we cannot take anything out of it either. And in that context, he's telling Timothy, he's saying, I want you to grow in sanctification. I want you to grow in godliness. I want you to grow in God's truth. I want you to grow in your understanding and knowledge of the word. Which brings me to our third reality this morning. What is our source for truth? The third reality that we see is that Christ testifies of the reality that God's word is truth. He says it right there. Your word is truth. Warren Wearsby makes a statement, he makes a great point concerning the truth that God has given us. He says that God has given us three additions of truth. God has given us His Word, which is truth. He has given us His Son, who is the truth. And He has given us His Spirit, who is the truth. And He says this, that with the mind, we learn God's truth through the Word. With the heart, we love God's truth, the Son. And with the will, we yield to the Spirit and live God's truth day by day. And it takes all three to grow in the area of sanctification. And as we look at that phrase right there, where Jesus says, your word is truth, I want us to notice something. And that is the exclusivity of that one statement. Jesus is testifying to the fact that this Word that we have not only has been given to us by God, but actually belongs to God when He says, Your Word. Now notice what Jesus does not say. He does not say that truth is truth when you feel like it or not. He does not say that this is going to be truth now, but down the road into the future, it's going to fizzle out and it won't be truth anymore. And what I do not see in this passage is this idea that truth has no application for our lives. Biblical truth has no application for our lives. We do not see that. He says, your word is truth. It is sad to me when I hear of ministries that have actually gotten away from accepting a literal six-day creation account. Because where do you go from there? I want to encourage us with the fact that God has clearly communicated to us His Word. And when it comes to His Word, we ought to take His Word seriously, and we ought to take His Word literally. Katie and I had the opportunity to attend a biblical counseling training conference in Lafayette, Indiana through Faith Ministries. And while we were there, we were there just for a week, but while we were there we were learning about how to counsel individuals biblically. We would sit through sessions from 8 o'clock in the morning until about 5 or 8 o'clock at night. And this, something happened that week that I'll never forget. They provided lunch for us, and Katie and I sat down at a table, and we had the opportunity to meet individuals in different ministries across our country, but there was a lady who sat down next to us one day, that we were there, and she was with her group of people, and we just overheard, Katie and I just overheard this conversation. They were sitting right down next to us, and this lady said that she had studied secular psychology her whole life. But she was convinced that week that all the truths that we need for this life are found right in the scriptures. That was amazing to hear that from her. I was so encouraged by that. She was convinced that the answer for life was found in secular sources. But in that week, she came to realize that all the answers for life are found in the Word of God. She was testifying of the fact that the world tries to give answers, and it does. But God has already given us answers through His Word. Why? Because it is truth. It is truth for practical, daily living. God has given us His truth in His Word. This lady's testimony resonates with the statement that Jesus Christ makes right here when he says, your word is truth. And I believe it resonates with what the psalmist says in Psalm 119, 105. Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Your word. Graduates, I want to encourage you to stick close to the Lord and to stick close to His word. I have found that the Lord has never let me down." Stick close to him. Stick close to his word. The third Christ-centered truth that we have is our witness of Christ. Verse 18. He says, as you sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. The saying, we are in the world, but not of it, naturally puts the emphasis on the fact that we are set apart from this world for the glory of God, which is true. But this passage is teaching we are not of the world, but sent into it. Instead of in the world and not of it, this passage is teaching right here in verse 18 that we are in the world and we have been sent into the world. One preacher nailed it when he said this, Christ has actually sent us into the world to take his place. So the question then is, why has Christ sent us into this world? And I believe the answer to that is to bring glory to God. What a calling. What a mandate that we have. And that is to represent Jesus Christ. Whether we are here on Sunday morning, whether we go into the workforce throughout the week, we are to represent Him. We are to witness Him. Because of the truth of God's Word in our lives. And we can testify to the fact that His truth, that His Word has changed our lives. And so we are to be a witness of Him wherever we go. So we conclude this morning. One major goal that we should have in our lives should be to want to reflect Jesus Christ to this lost world. This goal can never be completely finished on this side of heaven. Christ was perfect, and we are not. However, as we grow through the Word, our lives will look more like that of Christ's life. And that should be the goal as we recognize that we are dead to this world because of what Christ has done for us. He's given us a firm foundation to plant our feet on. And that firm foundation is his word. It is his word. Graduates, I want you to step out of here in full confidence knowing that there is truth. And for the rest of us here this morning, there is truth. Let us live in light of that truth in the week to come. I'd like to ask Mr. Povich to come on up and to close our time in a word of prayer this morning. Would you join me in a prayer for our graduates, please? Our gracious Heavenly Father, we do come before you this day acknowledging you, your glory, your greatness, thanking you for these young people that you've brought up, and to know your word for the parents that have raised them, to teach them the way they should go. Thank you for the character that they've demonstrated through these years. As they move on and move out, Father, would you cause them to remember that you see everything they do. There's no hidden spot from you. Their thoughts, their actions, their words are not hidden. Would you bless them? with a daily time with you and your word, helping them to realize, as every person in this room who has enough miles under their feet recognize that each day without input from your word results in a step towards the world's thinking. Would you bless them, Father, with a desire and a power to do your will joyfully, Would you hedge them from the work of Satan and the world's ways and their flesh? Help them to resist the devil. Your word says, resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Prosper the work of their hands. Help them to sense your calling for their lives so that they will fulfill the purpose for which you've created them. That they would bring you glory and do good to their fellow man. So we thank you for this time. Thank you for these young people and just have your hand upon them that they will give you honor and glory through each day of their lives. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.