“WHAT A MESS!” – Part 2 Romans 1:18-32
FBCF – 9/14/25
Jon Daniels
INTRO – “World Needs Jesus” video (fade out at 2:50)
“In the midst of a generation screaming for answers, Christians are stuttering.” (Howard Hendricks)
This world just continues to throw us curveballs.
- Last week, started sermon w/ shooting at Catholic Church in Minneapolis
- This week, our nation is reeling from the brutal assassination of Charlie Kirk in broad daylight in front of 3000 people at the Utah Valley Univ.
- We also witnessed a senseless, horrific murder of a Ukrainian refugee girl on a commuter train in Charlotte, NC.
- At same time this week, we are remembering the terrorist attacks on the WTC towers 24 yrs ago on 9/11/01 that killed nearly 3000 people.
All these things are rocking people’s worlds. Feel like we’ve been punched in gut. “What’s going on in the world? Why is there so much evil? What’s wrong w/ people? Why would people do these things?” Multiple people called me asking these questions while planes were crashing into buildings 24 yrs ago on 9/11, & multiple people texted/called me this week after Charlie Kirk’s assassination wanting Scriptural help in understanding what’s going on or needing some Biblical input for comfort & peace.
Parents concerned about the future for their kids. Grandparents for their grandkids. The chasm between political parties is wider & deeper than it’s ever been & continues to grow. The ability to agree to disagree w/ those w/ different viewpoints has vanished. Civil discourse & legitimate debates are a thing of the past. You’d never see anything like this in a Presidential debate today: (video) After debate, Mondale: “If TV can tell the truth, as you say it can, you'll see that I was smiling. But I think if you come in close, you'll see some tears coming down because I knew he had gotten me there. That was really the end of my campaign that night, I think. [I told my wife] the campaign was over, & it was.” We are SO far away from this type of gentlemanly debate. Nowadays, debates are out-of-control free-for-alls where the candidates attack each other, ignoring the debate rules & decorum, talking over each other & over the moderators, shouting at each other – no substance, just insults – just another indicator of the uncivilized condition of our nation now.
So, today’s sermon is not what I had planned to preach but I believe I need to speak into the chaos that surrounds us right now – more so, let the W of G speak into the chaos. This sermon builds on last week & is designed to give you some biblical foundation to stand on as our world seems to continue to spiral out of control. Not going to be my normal sermon w/ 3-4 points that all begin w/ the same letter.
EXPLANATION – Romans 1:28-32
Briefly revisit these verses that I preached on last Sunday & then move to other passages. V. 28 – 3rd time – “God gave them up” – Also v. 24 & 26. God gives people up to the consequences of choosing to live for themselves rather than for Him. Understand this: He doesn’t give up on people – He gives them up to themselves when they exchange His glory for idols; when they exchange His truth for lies; & when they exchange His plan for sex for their own lusts & passions. “Exchange – I don’t want it, I don’t like it, doesn’t fit me.” Difference – 3rd judgment, He finally gives them up to a debased or reprobate mind. Word means to completely lose the ability to make moral judgments – wrong is right & right is wrong. And THAT is where we are in our nation now. THAT is why we are seeing all the vile, depraved, corrupt, immoral things going on all over our nation now – from the smallest towns to the biggest cities – there is nowhere that is untouched by the sin in our world today. We are woefully deceived if we think that living in a small town & putting our kids in a private school is going to protect & shelter them from this sin-sick world. It is OUR responsibility as the Church to live a passionate, Christ-honoring, Scripture-permeated life, & pass that on to the generations behind us.
APPLICATION – The Church must understand & stand against the sin that surrounds us.
Take lots of notes today. Giving lots of Scriptures to go back & read & meditate on in the days to come.
Theologian Karl Barth: “Take your Bible & take your newspaper & read both. But interpret newspapers from your Bible.” Today – “Bible in one hand & phone in other – social media posts/news apps/blogs/podcasts.”
Here are some things to understand:
We live in a broken, sinful world filled with broken, sinful people – Romans 3:11-12 – “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
The world would have you believe that people are inherently good. But Bible makes it clear that we are not. Joby Martin: “wretched, blackhearted sinners.” Not saying that people can’t do good, benevolent, helpful things – soup kitchens, boys & girls clubs, change flat, even rescue someone from burning house. But point is that none of those things merit salvation or change a person’s stinking, selfish, sinful heart. All that is happening around us makes it abundantly clear that we live in a broken, sinful world filled w/ broken, sinful people.
Expect this in the last days – 2 Timothy 3:1-5 – “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.
The downward spiral of sin will continue - Romans 1:28-32 NLT – “Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking & let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, & gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, & boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, & they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, & have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.”
DON’T BE SURPRISED! JESUS: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” John 15:18-19
PAUL: “…a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.” 1 Corinthians 16:9
As Christ-followers, we MUST remember that we are not fighting against flesh & blood but against Satan & his forces – Ephesians 6:10-12NIV – “Finally, be strong in the Lord & in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh & blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world & against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
“Our battle is not a political one. It is, above all, a spiritual one. Spiritual warfare is palpable.” (Erica Kirk)
Don’t lose heart but remember the Jesus is our ONLY HOPE! – 1 Peter 1:3-6 NIV – “Praise be to the God & Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, & into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though NOW for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.”
We must fix our eyes on JESUS ALONE & keep running this race to the very end! - Hebrews 12:1-2 NIV – “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders & the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author & perfecter of faith.”
None of this should surprise us. None of this should scare us. And none of this should SILENCE us!
We MUST continue making much of JESUS & keep telling others about JESUS!
- “The Best News” seminar
- John 3:16 – STAY THERE & DO NOT MOVE!
- We cannot & will not be intimidated into silence but will keep proclaiming the Good News!
Finally, remember that those of us who know Jesus are on the winning team! – Revelation 19:11-16 – “Then I saw heaven opened, & behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful & True, & in righteousness he judges & makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, & on his head are many diadems, & he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, & the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white & pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, & he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe & on his thigh, he has a name written, King of kings & Lord of lords.”
“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 ESV
CONCLUSION – So here’s the wakeup call for the Church – We ALL must be engaged, intentional, in prayer, in the Word, in the presence of God, & in step with the Spirit of God. ALL OF US!
- Young adults – single & married – who are totally consumed w/ seeing how much fun you can have & how deeply in debt you can go are completely missing out on what God would have you do w/ your life right now.
- Median-age adults who are totally consumed w/ building a career & a portfolio are completely missing out of what God would have your do w/ your life right now.
- Senior adults who believe that the purpose of their lives is to take trips to look at flowers & eat at all-you-can- eat buffets are completely missing what God would have you do w/ your life right now.
Time is running out for all of us & our kids, teenagers, & college students are in desperate need of adults who will invest in them & help them prepare for the onslaught of evil & sin that is barreling straight at them in this world. B/c of that phone that never leaves their hand, they see everything that’s going on 24/7, & they’re stressed, scared, & seeking help. And you are, too.
So, today – RUN TO JESUS! He’s our only Hope – our living Hope!
- Bring your fears to Him.
- Bring your anger to Him.
- Bring your confusion to Him.
- Bring your family to Him.
- Or maybe, bring your heart to Him for the very first time! No better way to defeat Satan in a time where he thinks he has really dealt us a crushing blow!
