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(Clip) God Is Not On Trial, You Are
Tim Conway
0:00
0:00 5:21
Tim Conway

(Clip) God Is Not On Trial, You Are

Tim Conway · 5:21

Tim Conway emphasizes that God is not on trial before humanity; rather, each person stands accountable before God, who calls us to come into the open and face His judgment.
This sermon emphasizes the shift in perspective from viewing God as an object of study to realizing that God is the One who sees, knows, and calls us out. It challenges the notion of putting God on trial with human reasoning and demands, highlighting the importance of recognizing our position before God and His authority over us.

Full Transcript

You see what happened to Adam? He and Eve are no longer viewing God as though God is the one to be studied and examined by them. Suddenly, something's happened. Adam, he's the one. And you show me a man or a woman who's moving towards becoming a Christian, I'll show you a man or a woman in whom a reversal like this takes place. Something happens. Suddenly, there's an awareness. Suddenly, there's a consciousness that we are being looked at. God is looking at us. God sees through us. God knows us. God is calling us out. Come out. Come out into the open. Expose yourself. You're hiding back there in the trees. Come on out. And we're the ones being called out. Where are we? Where are you, Adam? Where are you? This comes home. See, this isn't just some relic from Genesis 3, musty and dry and dusty. This is God speaking to every one of us. And it happens today. And God talks. Where are you? Where are you? Adam, come out into the open. Have you realized? Have you realized this? Among all the opinions and all the banter and all the theories and all the talk, have you ever come to the point where you recognize that in this life, you are the one on trial? God is not on trial. When people make those kinds of flippant statements about God, they're speaking far more about themselves than they're ever saying about God. We are the ones on trial. And I'll guarantee you on judgment day, there's no longer a bantering about opinions, what you believed about election. It's Adam, where are you? Where are you at? What have you done? Man rises up and says, my great brain is going to figure God out. God, You're on trial here and I'm going to figure You out and You better answer to me. I mean, man talks like that all the time. Well, there's genocide in the Bible. God, You better explain Yourself. You ever heard people talk like that? There's election in the Bible. We don't like that. God, You better answer for that. You choosing who You want. Who do You think You are? That's the way man talks. You know that. Sin. How did sin come into the world if God is sovereign, but God is not the author of it? You see, people want to put God on trial. Well, God, You better answer for that. Because I can't figure it out. And I've applied my brain to it and it seems like it's an inconsistency. And if my brain thinks it's an inconsistency, then it is. And so You better explain Yourself. And that's how man is. God, I want an answer to why children get terrible diseases. You need to answer for that tsunami or that earthquake or that hurricane or that tornado. But you know what happens when God comes to a soul and He speaks? Adam, Eve, where are you? Suddenly, we thought God was the one being dissected and analyzed. We thought with our great brains, we were going to examine the Scriptures and we were going to examine God and we were going to figure it all out. But then God's voice comes to us and we recognize, I mean, I just had this picture in my mind. Sometimes we think we're like we're spectators in the stands. We're kind of lost in the crowd. We're watching the game. And we applaud or we boo. We're the judges. But it's almost like the referee just spins around and he throws his finger up into the crowd and he says, you, you're no longer a spectator. You are the one on trial. And you can't just sit there in the crowd like a spectator because you have to do with God. Where are you? And God's not asking us about our opinions. He's interested in us. Adam, where are you? I'm speaking to you. Adam, where are you?

Sermon Outline

  1. I
    • Adam and Eve stop viewing God as the one to be examined
    • Humanity begins to be examined by God instead
    • The call to come out of hiding and face God
  2. II
    • God's question 'Where are you?' is relevant today
    • The reality that humans are on trial, not God
    • The futility of trying to put God on trial with human reasoning
  3. III
    • Common human objections to God's sovereignty
    • The misunderstanding of sin and suffering in relation to God
    • God’s sovereign call to personal accountability
  4. IV
    • The shift from spectator to participant in God's judgment
    • God’s direct address to each individual
    • The necessity of personal response to God’s call

Key Quotes

“Adam, where are you? Where are you at? What have you done?” — Tim Conway
“God is not on trial. We are the ones on trial.” — Tim Conway
“God is calling us out. Come out. Come out into the open. Expose yourself.” — Tim Conway

Application Points

  • Recognize that you are personally accountable before God, not God before you.
  • Respond honestly to God's call to come out of hiding and face Him openly.
  • Avoid trying to put God on trial with human reasoning and instead seek to trust His sovereignty.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean that God is not on trial?
It means that God’s character and actions are not subject to human judgment; rather, humans are accountable to God for their lives.
Why does Tim Conway reference Adam and Eve?
He uses their story to illustrate how humanity shifted from examining God to being examined by God after sin entered the world.
How should we respond to difficult questions about God’s sovereignty?
Instead of putting God on trial, we should recognize our own accountability and seek to understand God’s purposes with humility.
What is the significance of God asking 'Where are you?'
It is a personal call for honesty and openness before God, inviting us to come out of hiding and face Him.
How does this sermon challenge common attitudes toward God?
It challenges the tendency to judge or question God from a human perspective and calls for personal reflection and accountability.

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