The City of God: Finding Hope in a Secular World

• Secularism and the removal of God from society 00:53:16 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor defines secularism as a society ordering itself apart from God and critiques the US culture's rush toward a totally secularized society over the last 60-80 years.
• American Heritage and National Identity 00:53:52 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor contrasts the Pilgrims' seeking of God with modern efforts to remove God from public life, arguing that the nation was built on the belief in God and cannot be blessed if He is ignored.
• Public Education and Moral Decline 00:55:49 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor links the banning of prayer and the Ten Commandments in public schools to a nation whose moral compass has become 'all out of whack,' arguing that removing God from education leads to a loss of morality.
• Cain's Rebellion and Man-Made Culture 00:51:22 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor analyzes Cain's attempt to build a city as a man-made entity to exist without God, focusing on material things and human strength rather than divine relationship.
• The Nature of the City and Human Loneliness 01:00:00 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor explains that a city is a place of refuge for mutual protection, but Cain's plan to build one was driven by fear and a desire for immortality, ultimately failing because crowds cannot satisfy the soul's loneliness.
• The Nature of Human Loneliness and the Image of God 01:03:40 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor explains that human loneliness stems from a 'triangle-shaped heart' designed only for the Triune God, and that trying to fill this void with worldly things fails.
• Cain's City-Building and Cultural Decay 01:04:15 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor links modern urban violence and problems to Cain's plan of building a city without God, citing specific examples of crime and decay in cities like Seattle, Minneapolis, New York, and Chicago.
• The Church's Mission in Urban Centers 01:11:25 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor argues against the trend of churches leaving cities, asserting that believers are called to move into the heart of the city to proclaim the gospel, following the example of the Apostle Paul.
• The Future City of God vs. Earthly Cities 01:09:56 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor contrasts the violence and pollution of earthly cities with the perfection of the New Jerusalem, noting that believers will spend eternity in a city without bad neighbors, pollution, or crime.
• Spiritual Awakening and National Correction 01:19:20 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor concludes that a genuine spiritual awakening is necessary for the nation to turn the tide, urging the congregation to seek this awakening and understand their role in it.

• Sermon Illustration 00:49:49 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor uses the example of Adam and Eve to explain the origin of Cain's wife, noting that Adam and Eve had sons and daughters, and citing a commentator's estimate that Adam could have seen over one million descendants.
• Sermon Illustration 01:03:40 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor uses the analogy of a 'triangle-shaped heart' to explain that only God (the Triune God) can fit into the human soul, and trying to fit other things (like crowds) into it results in loneliness.
• Sermon Illustration 01:04:53 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor lists recent news events in Seattle, Minneapolis, New York City, and London to illustrate the 'major problems' and tragedies occurring in modern cities, suggesting these are consequences of secularism.
• Sermon Illustration 01:03:40 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor uses the analogy of a 'triangle-shaped heart' to explain that only the Triune God can fit into the human soul, and any other attempt to fill that void results in loneliness.
• Sermon Illustration 01:05:13 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor lists recent news stories about violence and problems in Seattle, Minneapolis, New York City, London, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Charlotte to illustrate the pervasive nature of urban decay and crime.
• Sermon Illustration 01:08:28 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor shares his personal experience of pastoring downtown churches in Augusta and Charlotte for over 37 years, noting that despite thousands of people visiting, the surrounding culture remained unaware of God because it was a 'culture without God.'
• Sermon Illustration 01:12:21 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor references the Apostle Paul's missionary journeys, noting that Paul always went to population centers and the heart of downtown cities, wading through 'moral cesspools' to win souls, proving that one can live a separated life and proclaim the gospel in major cities.

• Pastoral Charge 00:53:24 ▶️ 📄
  > Write down the term 'secularism' as defined by the pastor.
• Pastoral Charge 01:17:42 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor invites the congregation to bow their heads and pray for spiritual understanding and awakening.
• Pastoral Charge 01:16:53 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor instructs the congregation to pray for God to use their gifts for the success of the school and the salvation of the next generation.

[00:12:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:12:04] Amen. Is it good to be in the house of the Lord? It is good to be back with you. We've spent a week in Guatemala and God is good. And all the time we popped in on the video around a picnic table in a fellowship hall in a village called Quetzaltenango. And we were watching the service Sunday morning and it wasn't going according to plan. But know that we have prayed for Trinity Baptist Church in Bethlehem.
[00:12:36] we have prayed for you and for Pastor Mark and it is so good to be home and then to sing this song here I am Lord just coming off a mission trip where we have felt the call to go as he has
[00:12:50] led us to be sent to serve his people in another country so let's stand and sing to this beautiful

[00:12:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:12:57] hymn I am here I am Lord for this is the day that the Lord has made and we have gathered together

[00:17:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:17:15] to rejoice and be gladdened. And indeed, we have many reasons to rejoice today. Let me just encourage your hearts, reassure your hearts at the onset of the service today. Not only do we have Pastor Grant back from the mission trip, but you will also have our beloved Pastor Mark back. He
[00:17:29] will be up here preaching here shortly. Yesterday in the deacons meeting, we were working through plans of getting them up here. And as biblical as my plan was to tear a hole in the roof and lower
[00:17:38] them down, I think we might've had a couple of members of the building and grounds committee in our deacons meeting and that was shot down so we decided to work on some alternative arrangements but he will be here and we are so thankful for it we are so thankful for his presence here today
[00:17:55] your presence here today but most importantly where two or more gathered God's presence in this place today he's in the midst and we've come to worship him so if you are visiting with us this morning let me give you a warm welcome on behalf of Trinity Baptist Church my name is Robert
[00:18:10] I serve as the associate pastor here.
[00:18:12] We are thrilled to have you with us as we have collectively gathered to not neglect the gathering and the assembling of the saints as we honor the Sabbath and keep it holy.
[00:18:21] We're so thankful for your presence here today.
[00:18:23] If you are visiting, our deacons have a little gift bag for you and they'd love to get it in your hands.
[00:18:28] At this church, we do not embarrass you too much.
[00:18:31] All we ask you to do is just slip up your hand just high enough for them to see it and they'll place that gift bag in your hands as they're walking down the aisles.
[00:18:38] And inside of there, there's a lot of gifts, but you'll also will see a little contact card.
[00:18:42] If you'd be so kind as to fill that out and drop it in the offering plate, it'll just be a great opportunity for us to get to know you a little bit better and we'd love to do so.
[00:18:51] If you're joining us online, welcome into the sanctuary.
[00:18:53] We are located here at 221 Irvin Road in Mooresville, North Carolina.
[00:18:56] We'd love to have you in person, but we understand sometimes that's not a possibility.
[00:19:01] So welcome in and when we sing, please join with us in singing.
[00:19:05] When we read God's word, open up your Bible And when we give, you can even give by going online to do so.
[00:19:10] So just at the onset of our time together today, how about we just go to the Lord in prayer and we seek his face corporately.
[00:19:16] Let's go.
[00:19:20] Holy Heavenly Father, God, we praise your mighty name.
[00:19:26] You truly are King of kings and Lord of lords and the everlasting Father, God.
[00:19:30] You are a prince of peace, a wonderful counselor, God, the great physician.
[00:19:35] Lord, we're so thankful in a dry and weary land where Amos tells us there's a famine in the land.
[00:19:40] Not for necessarily water or for bread, but a famine of the word.
[00:19:45] God, we're just so thankful for Christ.
[00:19:47] We're thankful for Christ.
[00:19:48] He said that he is the bread of life.
[00:19:50] If we taste of him, we'll never hunger again.
[00:19:55] If we drink of his living water, we'll never thirst again.
[00:19:59] And Father, he is the word that became flesh and dwelt among us.
[00:20:03] The word that is the author, the founder, the finisher of our faith.
[00:20:07] The word that is the very author of life.
[00:20:11] And so, Father, we just pray today at the onset of our service today, Lord, we ask for your help this morning.
[00:20:16] God, we are sinners in need of grace.
[00:20:20] Every individual in this room, Lord, has one thing in common, and that's the fact that we have sinned and we have fallen short of your glory.
[00:20:29] And, Father, we're thankful that you made a way back to you.
[00:20:33] Where sin would cut us off from you, Father, you sent your Son, Father, to bridge the gap.
[00:20:39] and with the cross, Lord, connected that bridge from earth all the way to heaven.
[00:20:43] And we're so thankful for it, Lord.
[00:20:44] We're thankful for his righteousness that covers us, his blood that washes us clean.
[00:20:49] We're thankful for the Holy Spirit, Lord, that empowers us to seek your face, to walk with you, Lord, to tell others about you.
[00:20:57] So Father, truly help us this morning to worship you in spirit and in truth.
[00:21:04] Help us this morning to confess our sins, but not just confess them, but to remember the fact that you, God, are faithful and you're just to forgive us of these sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
[00:21:18] Father, help us to reassure our hearts this morning with your glorious gospel, God.
[00:21:24] Thank you for giving us your son.
[00:21:26] Thank you for giving us your word.
[00:21:28] Thank you for giving us your spirit to understand your word.
[00:21:31] We need them all today, Lord.
[00:21:33] So Father, today, we just entrust this time to you.
[00:21:36] We look to you as the great shepherd and overseer of our souls, to lead us, to guide us, to direct us, and to protect us, Lord. No matter what we've brought into this sanctuary this morning, help us to leave it at the door, to fix
[00:21:50] our minds, to set our minds on things above. Father, help us to remember the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. So help us this morning, Father, to fixate
[00:22:02] on the things that are eternal, chief of which is your word. The grass will wither, the flower will fade but your word will stand the test of time thank you for giving us giving it to us this
[00:22:12] morning to turn to it lord we love you and we praise you and we thank you for this opportunity and privilege to gather together today in your name and all god's people said amen well if you
[00:22:23] do have children with you uh nursery all the way up to third or fourth grade miss terry lines is over here she will greet them and as we're doing that let's stand and greet one another as we

[00:22:32] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:22:32] welcome each other into the house of the lord well this is a time in our service when we bring

[00:31:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:31:10] our tithes and offerings to the storehouse as Jesus has told us to do in our pledges and we do it with grateful hearts and those that prefer to give online can do it at trinitybaptist.com
[00:31:21] or you can mail it in to the post office box or there's a box in the hallway out there so let's pray Father in heaven we do give thanks for the many blessings that you
[00:31:32] continue to pour out upon us we just think this day that you've given us together with fellow believers to praise and to worship you and we continue with our worship by bringing our tithes our offerings as you've told us to do
[00:31:45] and you've also commanded us that we give our talents and gifts and time and lord i just pray that we'll be found faithful in doing just that and being doers of the word and not just hearers
[00:31:56] lord you bless us in so much both individually and as a church family i pray we'll be found faithful in spreading the gospel message to others and be good stewards of what you've entrusted to us we're mindful that to those of us to whom much has been given much is required
[00:32:13] and we do pray for those on the mission field that we're supporting with our offerings we pray for their safety and boldness in proclaiming the gospel and lord i give thanks for those that have gone out on this short-term mission trip that you watched over from our own congregation and
[00:32:30] thank you for their safe return and and those that will be going out this week to camp to be trained to go out and be your ambassadors. Lord, we ask that you give them traveling mercies and just
[00:32:42] be with them wherever they go. I also pray that we'll be found faithful and obedient in serving in our own individual mission field that you placed us in. We just ask that you bless and multiply our
[00:32:55] tithes and offerings today and just bless them for the expanding of your kingdom, bringing others to the saving grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
[00:33:05] And, Lord, we pray for opportunities to share our faith with others as we go about our daily routine.
[00:33:11] And I just pray we'll be found faithful and obedient as those opportunities arrive.
[00:33:17] Speak to us today.
[00:33:18] Let us feel your presence in the remainder of the service.
[00:33:21] And as the pastor brings the message with boldness and clarity, I just pray that you'll give him a speedy recovery and a pain-free recovery.
[00:33:27] And, Lord, just let us draw closer to you.
[00:33:30] be better prepared to be your witnesses and to share that good news with those that we come in contact with and it's in the name of our lord and savior jesus christ that we offer these prayers

[00:33:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:33:39] amen well i gotta tell you one of the most fascinating experiences of this whole experience was i have never watched anybody as up close and personal as i got to watch chase and he and denise
[00:38:41] on that organ this morning and uh my stars i don't know how much you've ever noticed but there's so many things going on. I mean, he was pulling things in the right, pulling things on the left,
[00:38:53] looking at things in front of him, doing things down below, and he's doing all of that, and his music is on this computer, and it's just flipping, and nobody's there making it flip. And I'm going,
[00:39:04] I could not, I would be a nervous wreck. I mean, absolutely. My job is simple compared to what these musicians do, but wow. Thank you all so, so much for that incredible job, Jason, Denise,
[00:39:19] and for blessing us this morning. Thank you all for your prayers. We're here, believe it or not.
[00:39:25] Praise the Lord. Thank you. We're here and probably not listening to the advice of some of you that said, please, Pastor Mark, don't try to do that. But I really believe that this was something that
[00:39:44] as the Lord continued to give us progress, that it was something I felt like I wanted to do and could do. And His answered prayer in so many ways. And I know you all have just been covering us in
[00:39:58] prayer. I mean, you know, and I'm not telling you anything you don't know about how life changes just that quick. And on a Thursday morning at 6.15 in the morning, when I lit out to go on a
[00:40:09] little jog, little did I know how quickly my life would change over the last 10 days that it has changed. And we continue to just make progress through, but step by step, just the faithfulness
[00:40:23] of the Lord. He has put in our path doctors that we needed to know, and He's put in our path leaders around me that I needed to know. And I got to tell you, it has been a fascinating time
[00:40:38] just to see how the Lord has worked and opened doors that only he could open and take care of things that only he could take care of.
[00:40:47] So I'm very grateful.
[00:40:48] We're a week into this following surgery.
[00:40:51] It'll be a week tomorrow since they did the surgery to repair.
[00:40:54] They had to go in and repair the broken bone in the ankle with a plate and some screws.
[00:41:00] And then they had to fix the ligaments that were torn up on both sides.
[00:41:04] It was, I mean, I did it upright.
[00:41:06] If you're going to do it, do it upright.
[00:41:07] and so they got all of that together. So Lord willing this cast I'm in was about a two-week journey and they're hoping that I will progress to a boot around June 16th. It'll be a non-weight
[00:41:22] bearing boot so I'll try different instruments like a scooter or some other things at that point that we'll try to get around on right now for these two weeks. I'm pretty much confined to this wheelchair and a walker. I tried crutches, and 16-year-olds can do backflips on crutches.
[00:41:40] Sixty-year-old men have no business doing crutches, I quickly realized. So thanks to the walker and this. And I have to say, you know this because you know her, but there is nobody in this world that God created for me more than Beth Harris, who has stood with me. You just know.
[00:42:21] And I'm very thankful, very thankful for her. And believe it or not, I'm not the easiest guy to live with. And particularly when I've got a broken ankle, I'm even less easy to live with
[00:42:33] and um and its adjustments but she is uh she has just gone uh beyond uh just everything that i could have ever hoped for and i'm very very thankful for her love and her support and her
[00:42:46] encouragement and uh being with me every step of the way turn in your bibles this morning to genesis chapter four and i want to take us um really to a fascinating account in god's word that when you
[00:43:03] really look in the course of human events, there's a question that immediately is raised in verse 17.
[00:43:10] And go ahead and stand if you will, and if you're able, I'll add that now, in honor of the reading of the Word of God. But I want to pick up in verse 17 of Genesis chapter 4, and I'm going to go ahead
[00:43:24] and give you a warning. Some of you will take it with joy, but we're probably not going to get through all this today. This may turn into be a two-part message for me to get finish it next
[00:43:35] week, but there's a lot here. But I want to pick up in verse 17, down through the end of the chapter in chapter 4. It says, and Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. And he built a city
[00:43:48] and called the name of the city after the name of his son Enoch. To Enoch was born Erad, and Erad begot Mehuael, and Mehuael begot Methushael, and Methushael begot Lamech. Then Lamech took for himself two wives. The name of one was Ada, and the name of the second was Zillah. And Ada bore
[00:44:16] Jabal. He was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. His brother's name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the harp and flute. And as for Zillah, she also
[00:44:31] bore Tubal-Cain, an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron. And the sister of Tubal-Cain was Naamah. Then Lamech said to his wives, Ada and Zillah, hear my voice. Wives of Lamech, listen to my speech. For I have killed a man for wounding me, even a young man for hurting me.
[00:44:57] If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, then Lamech seventy-sevenfold. And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth. For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed. And as for Seth, to him also a son was born, and he named him Enosh.
[00:45:25] Then men began to call on the name of the Lord. Would you pray with me? Father, I do pray in these moments that we have together that you would just speak to all of our hearts,
[00:45:38] that we would hear your voice, and Lord, that we would just let our minds and our hearts be open to your truth. Father, we are so desperate in our generation. We're so desperate in our day
[00:45:50] to know truth. Father, I see these young children all over this campus. I see these young families.
[00:46:00] I see these individuals that have made their way into the house of the Lord. And I realize, Father, today, once again, how critically important it is that your word go forth, because there are families that need to be on a foundation like they've never been before.
[00:46:19] There are homes that need to be established in a way they've never been established before.
[00:46:24] There are cities that need to be established in a way they've never been before.
[00:46:29] And Father, you show us in your Word in this book of Genesis such a foundational picture of how a society really needs to operate and how a society, apart from you, leads to disaster.
[00:46:51] So, Lord, I just ask you to just guide our minds and guide our hearts in these next few minutes as we study your word together.
[00:47:00] I just ask personally you to let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight in jesus name i pray amen well you notice right there in verse 17 a
[00:47:13] question arises tells us from the get-go it says cain knew his wife well we've already talked about that you know that that simply means cain had sexual relations with his wife it says that she
[00:47:28] conceived, and she has a son. Now, who can guess the age-old question that always erupts out of verse 17 of chapter 4 that we just read? You know it. Where did Cain get his wife? That's the age-old
[00:47:52] question. And you know, in fact, that question's been used by individuals for years to sort of sidestep the authority of God's Word. I mean, when Christians have not been able to answer that question, unbelievers, they just tend to laugh in glee, and they think that somehow they
[00:48:11] found an error in the Bible. They found something that is unexplainable in the Bible, and so they laugh in glee, but we need to answer that question. And frankly, it's not a very difficult one to answer. In fact, there are two other verses in the Bible that I want you to look on that come
[00:48:31] to bear on this 17th verse. One of them is go back to verse 20 of Genesis chapter 3. If you go back to verse 20, notice what it says, and Adam called his wife's name Eve because she was the mother
[00:48:49] of all living. So that's important. But then, so there are a number of verses in the Bible and that statement that Eve is the mother of all living, that's where all life begins.
[00:49:06] and then if you go over one more chapter where we've not gotten to yet but look in genesis chapter five in verse four and look what it says after he begot seth the days of adam were 800 years
[00:49:23] and he had sons and daughters so if you put those verses together you connect those dots it's very clear that we're specifically told that Adam and Eve were indeed the beginners of the entire human race, and we are told that they had born unto them sons and daughters.
[00:49:49] Let me tell you an interesting fact. One commentator taking the age of Adam has estimated, and just think about this. If Adam and Eve had the normal amount of children in that time of history
[00:50:03] in those numbers of years, one commentator said if half of those children had lived to adulthood and if half of those children actually married and if half of those children actually had the average number of children of the period of time, it would be entirely possible that Adam would have
[00:50:31] lived to see over one million of his descendants. Just do the math. He possibly saw as many as a million of his own descendants. So to be honest, the answer is not complicated. Cain married a
[00:50:52] sister. He married his sister. Now, if that bothers you, let me remind you that Adam married a lot closer than that. He married his own rib. Think about that for a minute. That is how God got
[00:51:09] the human race underway. But by the way, that's just a bonus word this morning. That's not really the heart of the message of what I want to get to. What I want to really focus on this morning
[00:51:22] for the next few minutes with you is man's vain attempt to avoid the consequences of the curse that came from God upon that man. We have in front of us this morning right here in this passage a snapshot, or one would even say it's an incredible graphic of what a man-made
[00:51:51] culture, a man-made society, a man-made government actually begins to look like.
[00:52:01] And at its core, we find man's attempt to really form an entity that will have an existence without God. And he's going to do it without God by focusing on all of the material things
[00:52:26] and building a city with his own strength, his own wisdom, his own ingenuity, and he's just going to do it his way without God.
[00:52:46] Now, I want to be clear this morning and make sure you understand.
[00:52:49] I'm in no way condemning the idea of a society organizing themselves into some kind of order.
[00:52:57] But what I am wanting to get across to you is that the real tragedy comes when a society orders itself apart from God, when a society tries to function without a relationship to God in their lives.
[00:53:16] And the reality is there's a word we use for that, and it's called secularism.
[00:53:24] Write that down, secularism.
[00:53:26] And in all truth, for the last couple of generations, the last 60 to 80 years or so, we have watched as our own United States of America, our own culture, has tried to rush headlong into a totally secularized society.
[00:53:50] That's been the emphasis.
[00:53:52] and ladies and gentlemen this is the year of our 250th anniversary the declaration of independence and i don't know about you but i look around and realize hey god has blessed this country as a nation he has blessed us as a nation when the pilgrims came to this nation it cannot be
[00:54:22] denied that while they came seeking soil for their plows, they really came seeking the worship of God for their souls. And we have a godly heritage. Our nation was built on the belief in God. Our nation and our founders recognized that you cannot have a society as God intends
[00:54:47] it to be if you try to ignore him or push him out. And yet every day that you and I either go online or turn on the TV or pick up a newspaper, every day you look at the turn of events. There
[00:55:02] are plenty of people in this country who would move us so quickly from being a nation that has no room for God whatsoever. That's their desire, that God is not a part of this nation,
[00:55:23] of this society. If you go back at the decision, series of decisions, one that banned prayer and Bible reading from our public schools, a decision years ago that also banned the posting of the Ten Commandments in the classrooms of our public schools? Listen, from the time you look at
[00:55:49] those decisions and the decisions that would follow, including putting an end to the life of an unborn child, you can trace forward from that decision a nation whose moral compass has become all out of whack. Folks, you can't kick God out of a nation and continue to be blessed.
[00:56:12] you can't you can't kick god of an out of a nation and it schools and somehow think that you're going to bring up a generation of young people who are magically moral magically love people magically
[00:56:32] love the lord it's not going to happen and we've seen all of the fruit of that when you just look around you today and I will tell you there's some godly folks that are working in our education
[00:56:50] system in this country public and Christian and private and homeschool and I realize that there are some in our public schools that would love to have that opportunity to pray with their children would love to have an opportunity to have an assembly where a preacher comes in and delivers
[00:57:08] the Word of God, that would love to have that opportunity to celebrate patriotism and the foundation of God in our country. And yet, those principles and those leaders are being hamstrung by administrators at a higher level that will say, you cannot do that. And it's tragic.
[00:57:33] It is tragic. And we're paying a price for it, a serious price for it, when they won't even let the children say, God is great. God is good. Let us thank Him for our food. Amen. Because they would
[00:57:55] say that violates who we are as a nation. Listen, there's a lot of things today that I want us to look at this morning as we walk through this passage, but I want you to just kind of just
[00:58:14] realize there's a phrase out there that we better be careful about. It became popular a number of years ago, but it talked about being a citizen of the world, that I'm a citizen of the world.
[00:58:28] You just really need to be careful about what that means, because this last part of chapter 4 in Genesis is setting us up for what you're going to see happen in chapter 5 and chapter 6
[00:58:47] when God's going to ultimately say, enough is enough. And we've got to see that.
[00:58:57] There are several things that I want to invite you to jot down with me this morning. Like I say, we're only going to get through part of this, I imagine. But the first thing I want you to notice
[00:59:05] with Cain here is that there's a desire for immortality. That's really what kind of got all of this going to start with, was a desire for immortality. Because we find here in verse 17 that Cain decides to build a city. Go back and look at it, if you will. It says,
[00:59:24] And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. And he built a city and called the name of the city after the name of his son. So Cain decides he's going to build a city.
[00:59:40] This morning, we're joined here together in worship in a city, the city of Mooresville, North Carolina. It's important that you understand that word city literally means to raise an alarm. And therefore, as you may know, that's come to mean that a city
[01:00:00] is a place of refuge in a time of alarm. In other words, it's simply a group of people who are grouping themselves together for mutual protection. That's what it's about.
[01:00:14] See, Cain's afraid that somebody's going to do to him what he did to his brother Abel.
[01:00:21] Cain's on the run. God has already told Cain, you'll be a fugitive and you'll be a vagabond for the rest of your life. But Cain's refused to repent. Cain has refused to yield.
[01:00:39] And Cain has made up his mind that he will defy the edict of God. Cain's decided he is going to openly rebel against the judgment of God. Cain has a desire for immortality.
[01:01:01] And here's the plan.
[01:01:04] Cain will build a city.
[01:01:07] And in fact, his plan was to create an artificial paradise to make up for the real one that he had now lost.
[01:01:17] If Cain couldn't have the garden, he would make his own city.
[01:01:22] He would make it with all the comforts and all the conveniences you could imagine.
[01:01:27] He would provide every luxury known to the human mind at that time.
[01:01:32] God could keep his paradise as far as Cain was concerned because Cain was going to make it make his own but I want you to look carefully back at verse 17 I want you to underline something
[01:01:46] it says and and he built a city a more accurate rendering of verse 17 would actually say and he was building a city because that's the actual tense. You say, well, Mark, what's the big deal? Well, I'll tell you why that's important. Cain never completed the project.
[01:02:13] It means that Cain was building a city, but he never lived there. And it means that because God had said to Cain, you will be a fugitive and you will be a vagabond, there was a restlessness in
[01:02:29] Cain. There was something going on inside of Cain. There was the guilt and the burden of his sin that just sent him from this place to that place, to this place, to that place. Cain could never be
[01:02:43] settled because he was always on the move. But I'll tell you another problem that Cain ran into.
[01:02:53] You can't hide in a city. You say, wait a minute, Mark, what do you mean you can't hide in a city. That's what I mean. Some of the loneliest people I know are folks who are trying
[01:03:09] to live in crowds. Have you ever seen folks like that? They always have to be around a crowd.
[01:03:19] They all want to be always in the middle of a mix. But see, they quickly learn that the crowds can't satisfy the deepest longing of their heart because there really is a basic loneliness in the soul of man and the only thing that can solve that loneliness is the presence of god
[01:03:40] himself we talked about it before he's built you with a triangle shaped heart because there's only one thing that can fit in a triangle shaped heart and that is a triune god a father son and holy
[01:03:58] Spirit. And when you try to fit everything else into that triangle-shaped heart, it never seems to fit. And some of the loneliest people I know are trying to find their way into crowds.
[01:04:15] And Cain's plan was simply this. As Cain, he wants to build a social and a political network that, by the way, if you think about it, has become the object of our thinking, the object
[01:04:33] of a whole lot of efforts, and the toils of humanity from Cain's day all the way to our day in 2026. Listen, I don't know how many times you watched the news this week, but I know this.
[01:04:53] if you picked up a newspaper or turned on the news daily, you're going to find a city in this country in some kind of major problem. Have you thought about that? Just in recent weeks,
[01:05:13] we hear about Seattle and what's happened in the city of Seattle. Anybody here heard of Minneapolis lately? It's a joke. Anybody watch what's happening in New York City?
[01:05:27] talk about tragedy and go across the pond to london and they say london will never recover london will never find its way and again go back again look at new york city how many times have
[01:05:54] i read through the years new york's gone bankrupt new york city blackouts look at los angeles they've been in the news a lot this last week look at chicago even the bears are leaving chicago what's up with that what is it about these cities charlotte down the roads had its
[01:06:31] own major problems what is it about these cities that are known for their violence these cities that are known for their crime why is that what's the problem in the city I'll tell you it's the problem that's traced all the way back to the founding and the building of
[01:06:54] that city with Cain they've tried to build it by leaving God out we've tried to build it with no time for God we've tried to build it with no room for God you know how the average city all those
[01:07:08] great cities I just listed for you you know how they and you know how they all work they get started, and then they want to get all of the liquor that they could possibly get into that
[01:07:20] city. They get started, and they think they've got to get all the adult entertainment they could possibly get into that city. They've got to get all of the pornography they could possibly get into that city. They've got to get all of the filth that they could possibly get into that
[01:07:38] city. But we don't have room for God. What we're observing is as old as the beginning of time.
[01:07:59] And isn't it incredible that God performs miracles week after week in a lot of downtown areas?
[01:08:09] I stopped and thought about this week when I was looking at this message and preparing some of it. I started thinking about the fact that I've been in pastor now for more than 37 years it was 38 years and i have more than half of that was spent in a downtown church
[01:08:28] the city of augusta was at curtis baptist church for a number of years and the longest term i'd shared with or served was at first first baptist church charlotte downtown in the heart of the city and i thought about you know hundreds of people that would come in and out there through
[01:08:46] the week, thousands that would come there throughout the week in these downtown churches, and yet nobody hardly noticed it. Why? Because we're living in the midst of a culture without God. We're living in the midst of a society without God. And Cain has a plan to fulfill his desire
[01:09:13] for immortality. And it's building a city on his terms in his way. But the problem is he's doing it without God. But let me just say something to every one of you here this morning that I want to make sure you understand. What I'm wanting to get across
[01:09:37] is not an indictment of cities in and of themselves. In fact, the Bible says you and I are going to spend eternity in a city. Amen? You say, well, Mark, I don't like city life.
[01:09:56] Well, you're going to have to get to liking it because the Bible says you're going to spend eternity as a believer in heaven in the city of God. The Bible says one of these days we are going
[01:10:10] to a new Jerusalem. And yes, there are going to be streets of gold. And yes, there are going to be gates of pearl. And yes, there are going to be lots of people there, but you know what? You're
[01:10:22] not going to have any bad neighbors in that city. You're not going to have any pollution problems in that city. In fact, you're not going to have any crime. You're not going to have any murder.
[01:10:40] You're going to not have any theft in that city. Why? Because it's the city of God.
[01:10:52] And one of the things that I realized through the years as a pastor is God is determined that while we are here on earth, we should be reaching these cities with the gospel of Jesus
[01:11:10] Christ. See, for the last, listen, for the last half century, the church, I have noticed, has tried to get out of the city. Churches have been leaving the cities. You look at a number of your
[01:11:25] churches in these major cities and they're getting out of town. But I was never in favor of any of the downtown churches I pastored of considering moving out of town. And I'll tell you why. Because the church needs to understand that the gospel is not to move out of the city.
[01:11:45] We are to move right into the heart of the city and to proclaim, thus saith the Lord God, and proclaim, here are the principles for living a full and meaningful life, and offer those to
[01:12:00] the people in that city. That's what we're called to do. And that's, you study, you go back and look in the book of Acts. You study the missionary journeys of the Apostle Paul. Where did he go?
[01:12:21] he always went to the cities he went to the population centers he went to the heart of the cities and he planted the gospel flag in the heart of downtown and yet there are those who try to say
[01:12:38] i don't know preacher i don't know that you can really live for jesus in these cities oh come on now don't be stupid paul waded through the moral cesspools of an ancient world paul stayed true
[01:12:54] to the gospel of jesus christ paul lived a separated life and he won souls in all of those major cities you can't tell me when i go to washington every week that you can't live out
[01:13:11] your faith and live it out strongly and live it out pointing people to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. There's not a city in this nation that you and I could not go into and live out our
[01:13:25] faith and live it out strongly before the Lord. Because we have been blessed in this nation with the freedom, the freedom to be able to share. We don't know how much longer that's going to last, quite frankly, because we see the lights of freedom being shot out, or at least shot
[01:13:51] at every day. I'm thankful we've seen some course correction in recent years from some of those decisions that were made from our Supreme Court a generation ago, but still yet, you and I have got
[01:14:12] to recognize that Jesus has the power to claim this city of Mooresville for Jesus Christ.
[01:14:23] And he has the power to claim the city of Charlotte for Jesus Christ. And he has the power to claim the city of Seattle, or the city of Chicago, or the city of L.A., and I could keep
[01:14:35] name or the city of New York. He has the power to claim it, but we've got to be willing to be those willing vessels to let him work in us and through us. And that's one reason that we're doing
[01:14:57] Trinity Christian Academy. It's one reason that you keep reading and hearing about the opportunities and why it is so important for all of us to be engaged and all of us to be involved.
[01:15:08] because here is a place where there will be a generation of young people that are going to be raised with a christ-centered biblical worldview that is absolutely foundational listen when we get back next sunday we're going to pick up here where i left off and we're going to talk about
[01:15:28] the declaration of independence interestingly enough from verse 18 through verse 24 because what you're going to find there and we're going to walk through it as i list them for you a actual description of a culture without God. And I'm going to show you some of the things with
[01:15:44] the names and the individuals that were there that lay out for us how we know this was a culture operating without God, even though they had religion. They started with religion, but it was a culture built without God. But I'm telling you, there's nothing you can do
[01:16:03] that can change things faster than to realize that the children that we're raising are getting the foundation that they need because it's only when they're getting a foundation spiritually, physically, emotionally, and mentally that we're going to be able to turn the tide
[01:16:36] in these moments and in these days.
[01:16:39] So I just ask you to continue to pray about how God wants to use you and how he can use the gifts that he has poured into your life that they would help this school
[01:16:53] be able to be a success because there's so many things you see it coming out weekly of opportunities and I just pray that you will pray about how God's going to use you because pouring into this generation
[01:17:08] is the only way you're going to see the next saved because as we'll see next week, it was a generation lost, and quite frankly, so lost that the whole genealogy line just stops, just stops cold, and God goes a different direction.
[01:17:42] It'll be sobering. It will be sobering to see. Would you bow your heads right where you are, please heads are bowed and eyes are closed listen this morning i don't know what's going on in your
[01:18:05] life i don't know what you may be dealing with in your own heart but i would just ask you this morning if you would just ask god right now lord lord help me really grasp this picture that's
[01:18:27] being drawn for us in genesis lord we see things every day on the news and we just shake our heads and we go, oh, that's too bad. It's more than just too bad. It's an entire pattern that has
[01:18:45] been established over centuries and millennia that we are still dealing with to this day from the building of this city that Cain sets out to build to where we find ourselves in june of 2026 the pattern is staggering and it comes brings us back to what i've said time
[01:19:20] and again short of a real genuine spiritual awakening will not make it as a nation will not make it we will run the course the due course of time but thank god when you look at our history
[01:19:45] there have been those moments when God stepped in and brought that spiritual awakening and how desperately we need to be seeking that awakening once again.
[01:20:00] Asking God today in your own life to not only grant you the understanding of how all these dots connect, but to grant you understanding of why He's got you alive in June of 2026 and how you can be a part of the course correction
[01:20:21] and how you can be a part of making the difference, how you can help usher in and bring about the spiritual awakening that we all, I think, would agree is desperately needed.
[01:20:42] Would you?
[01:20:43] Would you just pray and ask Him that this morning?
[01:20:47] Brother Robert's going to come.
[01:20:49] He's going to be here at the front.
[01:20:52] You come this morning.
[01:20:56] Father, I just ask you to guide this invitation.
[01:20:59] I ask you just to give wisdom and discernment to each one this morning.
[01:21:05] That, Father, that they would simply hear your voice and they would do what you're asking them to do.
[01:21:12] Just help us to all be obedient in Jesus' name.
[01:21:17] Amen.
[01:21:18] Would you stand to your feet right where you are as Brother Grant comes to lead us and we begin to sing.

[01:21:23] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[01:21:23] we invite you to begin to respond i must tell jesus over the ways of not bad and so jesus i must tell jesus jesus can have jesus amen amen well church it is such a blessing to gather in

[01:24:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:24:18] the house of the lord with you this morning and lift high the name of jesus christ the name above Just a couple of quick announcements before we head on out.
[01:24:26] And one is a tremendous opportunity to, it's almost like a loves and fishes type opportunity for us as it pertains to Trinity Christian Academy.
[01:24:35] You might have seen in your bulletin a little slip of piece of paper in here that said, an anonymous donor has come forward and offered to match up to $50,000.
[01:24:44] That's a dollar for dollar match.
[01:24:46] So if we raise $50,000, TCA will receive $100,000 towards their inaugural year.
[01:24:51] and that is such an important blessing as we seek to establish that military missional installation right there in the heart of mooresville and we need your help the shortfall that's projected is several hundred thousand dollars if we were to end this physical year today with the projections
[01:25:07] that we currently have so this would help to put a tremendous dent in what is needed we need things like a gym floor we need things like um we're renovating the chapel as we speak and what a
[01:25:18] blessing it is to have children come here on Sunday morning and hear of the gospel what a blessing it is on Wednesday night to hear of the gospel what a what a blessing vacation Bible school
[01:25:27] is Monday through Friday they can come in and hear the gospel what a blessing camp is they're getting ready to go to camp and they're going to get Jesus from sun up to sun down we've got an opportunity
[01:25:37] here in this city to not just have a Sunday school but a Monday school a Tuesday school a Wednesday school a Thursday school a Friday school that's a return on investment if you do anything for a matter of time the more you do it the better return you get I'll eat a salad one
[01:25:56] time and I'll think I'll lose 10 pounds but what if I were to work out every single day eat right every single day what if they were to go and hear about Jesus every single day you're going to see
[01:26:07] a big impact so we have an opportunity to see that come to fruition please help spread the word maybe you could take this insert and hand it to somebody in the community you knew you know that
[01:26:17] could make a difference please help us spread the word sound the alarm isn't that what city means didn't pastor say that sound the alarm so help go out these doors tell people about tca tell people
[01:26:26] about the gospel and trevor how about you tell us about camp thank you hello oh there we go thank

[01:26:32] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[01:26:32] you uh pastor mark uh for that awesome message and thank you guys if y'all haven't got a chance to meet me i'm trevor gravel i'm the youth minister here at trinity baptist and yes we
[01:26:41] are about to head to camp tomorrow morning. At 11 o'clock, we're going to hit the roads for Andrews, North Carolina. And I just want to thank you guys for your generosity, for investing in our
[01:26:52] youth. We have 23 spots that are going to camp tomorrow, and I'm super excited about it. Yeah, we're going to have fun going down the Nantahala River, whitewater rafting and playing paintball and all that. But they're going to hear nine sessions about the gospel. The theme this year
[01:27:07] is God with us, Jesus who dwells with us. We serve a personal God, and I'm super excited about that.
[01:27:14] Also, we have one spot available, so if you know a teenager that just finished sixth grade through twelfth grade that would like to come with us last minute, we would love for them to come with us.
[01:27:26] And then thank you to our chaperones who are giving of their time, energy, and efforts, and lack of sleep to come with us to camp this week. So I'm very thankful for them. For our benediction today,
[01:27:37] I'm going to read Philippians 3, 20 through 21.
[01:28:01] to himself. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, thank you for today. Thank you for this powerful message. Thank you for a camp that's coming up. Lord, I pray that would be a church that would pray for our
[01:28:11] young people. Pray for those who are going to camp. Pray for our schools that are here in Mooresville. Lord, I pray that you would lift up a school that would serve to make missionaries, Lord, one day. Lord, we are just thankful for today. Lord, I pray that we would go out of
[01:28:28] these walls and share the good news of Jesus to others around us. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.