HOW DID THE WORLD GET SO MESSED UP?
Reframe: Embracing a Biblical Worldview
I. THE REASON: WE’VE ALL SINNED
“Sin came into the world because of what one man did, and with sin came death…” Romans 5:12 (NCV)
“… There is not a single [person] in all the earth who is always good and never sins.” Ecclesiastes 7:20 (TLB)
“… There is none righteous, no, not one.” Romans 3:10
“… There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.” Ecclesiastes 7:20 (KJV)
“If we claim we have not sinned, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” 1 John 1:18 (ESV)
II. THE RESULT: WE LIVE IN A FALLEN WORLD
NATURAL DISASTERS AND DEFORMITIES
“… Creation was condemned to lose its purpose…” Romans 8:20 (GNT; TEV)
“… Creation is confused…” Romans 8:20 (CEV)
“… All of creation groans with pain…” Romans 8:22 (GNT; TEV)
PHYSICAL DECAY & DEATH
“… Our physical body is becoming older & weaker…” 2 Corinthians 4:16 (NCV)
“… Everyone dies because all of us are related to Adam, [the first man].” 1 Corinthians 15:22 (NLT)
“[All creation anticipates] the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay.” Romans 8:21 (NLT)
EMOTIONAL DISTRESS & DISAPPOINTMENT
“They are distressed, because they had been confident; they arrive there, only to be disappointed.” Job 6:20 (NIV)
“I realize I don’t have what it takes. I can will it, but I can’t do it.” Romans 7:18 (MSG)
RELATIONAL DISTANCE & DISCORD
“… they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they [strung] fig leaves together to cover themselves.” Genesis 3:7 (NLT)
● Sin makes us defensive in our relationships.
● Sin makes us demanding in our relationships.
● Sin makes us distant in our relationships.
SPIRITUAL DISCONTENT & DARKNESS
“I am like a caravan, lost in the desert… searching for water.” Job 6:18 (CEV)
“They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God but with reality itself.” Ephesians 4:18 (MSG)
“I cannot find peace or remember happiness … Just thinking of my troubles and my lonely wandering makes me miserable. That’s all I ever think about, and I am depressed. Then I remember something that fills me with hope. The LORD’s kindness never fails! If he had not been merciful, we would have been destroyed. The LORD can always be trusted to show mercy each morning. Deep in my heart I say, “The LORD is all I need; I can depend on Him.” Lamentation 3:17; 19-24 (CEV)
III. MY RESPONSE:
1. RECEIVE GOD’S GRACE DAILY
“… Through the sin of one man death began to rule because of that one man. But [now] how much greater is the result of what was done by one other man, Jesus Christ! All who receive God’s abundant grace and are freely put right with Him will rule in life through Christ.” Romans 5:17 (GNT: TEV)
2. REMEMBER THIS PLACE IS TEMPORARY
“I am here on earth for just a little while…” Psalm 119:19 (GNT; TEV)
“… This world is not our home; we are looking forward to our everlasting home in heaven.” Hebrews 13:14 (TLB)
3. REJECT MAN MADE SOLUTIONS
“… My people have done two evil things: They have [forsaken] Me – the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!” Jeremiah 2:13 (NLT)
4. REACH OUT WITH GOD’S LOVE
“Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving message into the night…” Philippians 2:15 (MSG)