Sunday Sermon Series – Is the World Worse Now?

Matthew 5: 14-16 (Jesus Speaking)…”You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The world seems worse now, right? Most people feel that way and for plenty of good reasons. Horrors both real and fabricated fill up our media sources no matter which ones we use. It’s inescapable, the horror, the divisions, the shaming, the accusations, the name calling, the labeling, the violence…all of the crazy. It fills our lives through media. But is the world really worse now than before?

The answer depends on which lens we view life and the world from: Through the eyes of God via the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, or through the sin corrupted eyes of humankind, that perpetuate lie upon lie into a continuous false reality to fit any given era. The latter of which is comprised of all media.

In short, if you’re secular, and where I am in the United States, that’s a quickly growing majority, then yes, the world is worse now. Why? Because the infamous they want it to be. The usual gang of puppet masters, secret clubs, world shakers, and whatnots, that conspire to shape the world into something more desirable to their tastes. Currently, they are shaping a future where humans merge with machine and at least in theory, they will gain immortality through artificial intelligence that allows them to live forever. Most of us? Are not invited to that party. That future won’t be nearly as sci/fi cool, and that is why you must be divided and at each other’s throats and not at their throat. There is nothing new about this other than the technology. Otherwise, it’s the same old story that plays out century after century – Who has the power and who gets oppressed.

But through the lens of the Holy Spirit? Life is the same as it was then, now, and forevermore – perfectly wonderful and purely good. Those of us that are his, the light of the world, have a responsibility to shine in this darkness so that those meant to see past the false reality and find – home – can do so. As if we are lighthouses built upon immovable rock shining our beacon in the midst of the raging storm around us. That’s our job. So you say, “Well Gary, I don’t know how to be a lighthouse. I’m just me, my life is crazy, and I’m just barely scraping by day to day to exist in this mean world. What am I supposed to do? I believe in God, I’ve professed by faith in Jesus, but after that, I got things to do.”

Ok, most people that consider themselves Christians feel the same way, and there are precious few among the gatekeepers of faith that are teaching them how to do their job. Mainstream Christianity has morphed into a large club of self-help workshops and defensive postures against a world that has moved on without them. So, though I’m not a teacher, do not wish or desire to be a teacher or be called one, in this continuing series of Sunday Sermons, I’m going to show you ways that you can begin to see the world through the eyes of the Holy Spirit, and in turn, how you can become the lighthouse the world so desperately needs you to be. What are my qualifications? None. Except the only one that matters – the Holy Spirit absolutely dwells within me. If that’s good enough for you, I hope that we can get some work done together in this series.

We’re going to start with the fundamentals. God 101 if you will. When we do not instill the skills we need to possess to do a job correctly, then what’s going to happen? The job gets botched. <<< That right there is lesson #1. You now know why the church in America is not getting the job done. Its workers do not possess the skills required. What they do possess are snippets of scripture out of context, and a slew of self-pity and self-indulgent sermons they hear, but they do not possess the internal resources they need to be the hands and feet of Christ. So, let’s start building those resources in ourselves on our own. The only teacher you need is the Holy Spirit, and if you start doing the work, the Spirit is going to start teaching. I promise.

Your Task: Begin to fill yourselves with Psalms and Proverbs

Psalms is where we go to learn how to get along with God. Rather important, yes?

Proverbs is where we go to learn how to get along with the world. Equally important if we are going to be worth a lick to God in his service.

You’ve heard the saying “garbage in/garbage out” I assume? We’re going to replace the garbage going in that gives us the output that the world is horrible, and we’re going to pour in God’s eternal truth, which will have the glorious output of – HOPE.

If you truly want to change the way you see the world, start reading (1) chapter of Proverbs and (1) chapter of Psalms every single day on repeat. There are only 31 Proverbs so don’t go thinking you’re done after a month. You just start right back at the beginning again. I’ve been doing that for many, many years now. Drilling that wisdom into my soul.

This is where to begin. The fundamentals of God.

I pray that the right eyes meant to see this anywhere in the world will do so, and I welcome you to comment or ask me any questions you’d like.

Have a wonderful Sunday.

Your Friend,

Gary