Tonight we are going to talk about another reason why some people are not interested in the God of the Bible.
The second element of any worldview is the way it explains the human dilemma. Why is there war and suffering, disease and death? "Why?" This one word question has been the motivation behind many arguements, theories and speculations throughout the years trying to explain what is wrong in our world today. There are two basic worldviews that create a need for dealing with this topic and that is the utopianism view and the Biblical view. Let me explain what the utopian view is first then what the Biblical view asserts.
The Utopian view says humans are intrinsically good and that under the right social conditions, their good nature will emerge. We have seen this philosophy at work in many different ways through the years. It was and is believed that we are the products of the environment. The reason for poverty, ignorance, crime and other undesirable social conditions is because we have yet to create a better environment. One does this by improving education, enhancing economic conditions, and reengineering social structures. Given the right conditions, utopianism believe human perfectibility has no limits. This is the answer utopianism gives for why there is evil.
We saw this in the Great Society of the 1960’s where politicians were converted into thinking that what would take to help solve poverty and crime would be a well-designed, well-funded government program. Unfortunately history tells us that that wasn’t the answer. The utopianism of the Great Society offered no real answer to the dilemma of moral breakdown because it redefined moral maladies as technical problems that could be solved by bureaucrats. Instead of treating human beings as moral agents who must be addressed in the language of duty and responsibility, the Great Society treated them as objects to be shaped and manipulated.
What has been the result of this philosophy? Our children today are taught above all else, to like themselves. Grammar errors go uncorrected for fear the read X mark will damage the student’s self-esteem. The reason for our wrong behavior is not because we made a wrong choice but because we are products of a bad environment. Our behavior is caused by our view of life or view of our parents. There is no longer personal responsibility. Adults who once gave firm and unequivocal moral direction—parents, teachers, even pastors—have been indoctrinated with the idea that the way to ensure healthy children is not to tell them what’s right and wrong but to let them discover their own values. And that is exactly what they are doing!
ILLUSTRATION: In Oakland, California, a teen with a knife chases a woman down the street, while a crowd gathers and chants, “Kill her, Kill her!” like spectators at a sporting event. Someone in the crowd finally trips the frightened woman, giving her assailant a chance to stab her to death. (Naples Daily News August 15, 1993)
In Dartmouth, Massachusetts, three boys surround a ninth-grade classmate and stab him to death. Afterward they laugh and trade high fives, like basketball players celebrating a slam dunk. (Boston Herald, Sept. 25, 1994)
In New Jersey, Brian Peterson takes his girlfriend, Amy Grossberg, across the state line to a Delaware hotel room, where she gives birth. They kill the newborn and dump him in the trash. (Washington Post, Nov. 19, 1996)
These are not just the kids from the rough neighborhoods and broken homes. These are people who come from great homes, have two cars in the garage, loving parents, and a great education. Every possible explanation is debated except the explanation of sin. The blame must be pointed to everything and everyone else but me. And so, we are reaping the terrible consequences of this worldview.
The Biblical view says that we were all created in the image of God. We were created not to be robots but to be people who have been given the ability to make a free choice. We were created not to think and react instinctively like animals but given the ability to make rational choices on our own. In Genesis 3 is says, “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’ The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it or you will die.” ‘You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”
Thus we see what happened when mankind fell into sin for the first time. Sin is choosing what we know is wrong. God gave man free choice. And Adam and Eve chose to disobey God. From that moment on sin entered the world and has reaped devastation. You and I see sins destruction all the time. It is important that we be reminded about sins’ results. Sin…
· Alienates us from God
· Brings moral and spiritual blindness
· Alienates us from each other
· Produces suffering
· Produces death
Here is the truth about "sin":
1). All people sin
“There is not a single person in all the earth who is always good and never sins.” Ecclesiastes 7:20 (NLT)
“…for there is no one who does not sin” 1Kings 8:46 (NIV)
I have heard it said before, “Cheer up you are worse off than you thought!” There is not a person in this place or outside this place who has not chosen to do what is wrong. This is definitely not a truth our world wants to hear. We can not “not” sin. The reason all people sin is because we inherited it. All of us would test positive for a terminal disease right now and that disease is sin. We know that we don’t have to teach a young child to know how to do wrong things. They just do it. For instance here are the property laws of a toddler:
a). If I like it, it’s mine. b). IF it’s in my hand, it’s mine. c). If I can take it from you, it’s mine. d). If I had it a little while ago, it’s mine. e). If it’s mine, it must never appear to be yours anyway. f). If I’m doing or building something, all the pieces are mine. g). If it looks just like mine, it’s mine. h). If I saw it first, it’s mine. I). IF you are playing with something and you put it down, it automatically becomes mine j). If it’s broken, its yours. (Source Unknown)
When Adam and Eve made that decision to disobey God, the effects would now spread to all men “This is called original sin in that it comes from Adam, and it is also original in that we have it from the beginning of our existence as persons, but it is still our sin, not Adam’s sin, that is meant” (Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, p. 495). Another truth about sin is…
2). Every part or our being is affected by sin
Our intellects, our emotions, our desires, our hearts (the center of our desires and decision making processes), our goals and motives, and even our physical bodies.
“I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh.” Romans 7:18
Sin ravages everything about us. Here is another truth about sin I want to deal with tonight:
3). We are unable to deliver ourselves from the power of sin
“What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 7:25
Notice it does not say new laws. It does not say, new politicians, or a better environment. Paul emphasizes in Romans chapter 7 that he is a sinner in trouble and need of someone else--someone outside himself-- to come and rescue him. That Someone was Jesus Christ.
ILLUSTRATION: When I was a freshman in high school I wanted to play football. So, at the end of the summer we had to get a physical exam at the local clinic. I was pumped up because it was my first year in high school and I wanted to make my mark early and so the easiest way I knew how was through sports. After the physical the doctor told me I had better go see a neurologist because he was concerned after one of the test results Well, I felt fine. I figured if I wasn’t bleeding or dead then there was really nothing wrong with me. So, I just decided not to tell my parents about it because hey, I felt fine. After the physical I was talking to one of my friends named Victor and just happened to mention what the doctor told me and didn’t think anything of it. Well, wouldn’t you know Victor opened up his big mouth and told my mom. And so, that next day my mom made an appointment to see a neurologist. And after a 10 minute visit with him I was scheduled to have surgery three days later to repair a double hernia. Of course my first question is “will I be able to play football?” The answer was no. I had to sit out 6 weeks. I was so upset. My doctor reminded me that all it would take is a simple tear in my abdomen and I could have bled to death right there on the football field.
Everyone of us here are broken today and we need fixin. You might feel fine tonight and everything is going well but I submit to you—you need fixing. The richest man in the world needs fixing tonight. The poorest man in the world needs fixing tonight. You might be here and you are struggling with guilt and sin and you are tired of it. You need fixing tonight and I know the right person for the job. Jesus said, “I have not come for the healthy but for the sick.” Jesus wants to mend your heart and take away the sins that have caused havoc on your life. We don’t need therapists to tell us to rationalize our behavior and get the attention off of ourselves. We need to step up to the plate and face the music. Realize we are sinners in need of someone beyond us to help us. Jesus is the one to do that. He will if you let him come in.
