As Wicked As He -- 1/6/08

Sunday, January 6, 2008

WICKED AS HE

I would like to begin this morning by asking you to consider the man whose name is Osama bin Laden. Most of you will recall the man immediately, though we don’t here as much about him now. He was the man who mastermind-ed the 9/11 attack upon the World Trade Centers in 2001. He quickly became the chief object of "The War on Terror." As amazing as it might seem, the United States government and all its allies have not been able to track him down.
In a few words, how would you describe this man? Perhaps he might be referred to as the Hitler or Stalin of our day. Not too long after 9/11, he was hanged in effigy out here between La Luz and Tularosa.

Now let’s take a minute to consider why this man seems to be the personification of evil. Why was his deed so much worse than many others? We could begin by mentioning the number of lives lost. In one devastating action, over 3,000 Americans were killed. While many more lives have been lost in wars, this action was not part of a recognized war. These were typical Americans who were simply doing their jobs in New York City. Relatively speaking, they were innocent people who were minding their own business. What right did Osama bin Laden have to arrange for their deaths?

The loss of life is only the tip of the iceberg. Now consider the families of each individual that was killed. During the days following 9/11, we heard the stories of many of these hurting families. Husbands lost wives; wives lost husbands. Hundreds of children lost a parent. And yes, plenty of parents lost children. The lives of these families will never be the same, and all because of the actions of a man they had never met or even heard of.

Today from time to time certain crimes are classified as "hate crimes." We won’t go into all the details of that, but surely if there was ever a hate crime, this was it. Osama bin Laden was not protecting himself or his people. None of the occupants of the World Trade Center or the Pentagon had done anything to him. Yet he took great delight in the destruction that resulted from his actions.

We might also consider the fact that this was first degree murder. Sometimes a person is guilty of killing another, but it wasn’t something that was planned. That was not the case with Osama bin Laden. Who knows how long he had been planning his attack. He gave attention to every detail. How much money and manpower were expended to carry out this evil deed? This man knew exactly what he was doing. He knew the pain and agony he would cause, and that is the very reason he did it.

Finally, let’s look at the long-range results of 9/11. Through this one action of Osama bin Laden, he changed an entire country, even western civilization itself. If and when you fly on a commercial jet line, part of your plane fare goes to pay the damage caused by this terrorist. No, the money is not used to rebuild the World Trade Centers, but it is used to provide security, in hopes that 9/11 will never happen again. When you are pulled aside and searched, you can thank Osama bin Laden. His heartless deed heightened the "fear factor" throughout our society. Life in this country has never been the same since 9/11. Economically, the United States has paid a great price.

And what does Osama bin Laden deserve? Surely he deserves to be tracked down and prosecuted. I don’t know what you believe about the death sentence, but if there was ever a case where it is justified, surely this would be it. Or maybe the death sentence is too good for a man like bin Laden. But what does he deserve in God’s court of justice? Surely he deserves to be cut off from God completely, to burn in hell forever and ever.

So I ask you: Is not Osama bin Laden an evil man? Can anyone think of another man as evil as he? I can. Every person in this room is as wicked as Osama bin Laden. I can hear your protests, but they mean nothing to God. Let me repeat it: Every person in this room is as wicked as Osama bin Laden.

Now how can I say that? How can I possibly believe that all of us are as wicked as that man? Let me try to explain, but it cannot be done without going to the Word of God, where we find the truth about God and the truth about man.

I. If Not Restrained by the Grace of God, We Would Do the Same or Worse

Most of us have heard the saying, "Except for the grace of God, there go I." That is a saying; it is not taken from the Bible. However, there is much biblical truth in that little saying. Whoever is responsible for these words understood some important biblical principles.

I remind you of Isaiah 64:6, "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." The reason we think some of our deeds are righteous is because we compare them with the deeds of others. In light of what Osama bin Laden has done, I think that most everything I do must be righteous, but that is not what God says.

I remember sharing the truth of this verse one time. After the service, an older lady confronted me and told me in no uncertain terms that she didn’t believe that. She let me know that she had done plenty of righteous deeds. Though most people are not so bold as this lady, that is the attitude that runs throughout our society and even infiltrates the church. We don’t want to be put in the same category as the Hitlers, Stalins, and bin Ladens of our world. Nevertheless, all of our righteous deeds are like filtgy rags in the sight of God. And if it were not for the grace of God, they would be far worse. Who would believe that Judas was capable of betraying the very Son of God? More to the point, who would believe that David was capable of adultery and murder?

II. We Must Understand that Sin is Against God

I mentioned David, so let’s consider this one who was a man after God’s own heart. He committed adultery and then he became a murderer to cover it up. Months later, with the help one of God’s bold prophets, David finally owned up to what he had done. "I have sinned against the Lord," said David (II Sam. 12:13). Not too long after this, he penned the words of Psalm 51. We know this because the superscription of Psalm 51 gives us the occasion of the Psalm: "A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba." Much of this Psalm is familiar to many of you. David cried out for mercy. He asked God to create in him a clean heart. But perhaps the most startling words of the entire Psalm are found in verse 4, "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight…"

At first glance, we might think that David is cold and callous. Didn’t he have any concern for what he did to Bathsheba and Uriah, her husband? Did he really believe that he had done them no wrong? No, that isn’t what it means. What we must understand is that sin is against God. Who was it that said, "Thou shalt not commit adultery"? And who was it that said, "Thou shalt not kill"? Who was it that made Bathsheba and Uriah? Whose creatures were they? When we answer those questions, we begin to understand the meaning of all of verse 4, "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest." David was grieved because of what he had done to Bathsheba and Uriah, but that was nothing in comparison to what he had done to God. He had rebelled against the God who had delivered him from the lion and the bear and even from Goliath, the God who had made him king over His people and had blessed him immeasurably.

The sin of Osama bin Laden was not primarily against the United States of America, nor was it against the people who died in the Towers, nor the families who lost loved ones. His sin was against Almighty God. And what is true of his sins is true of your sins. You too have sinned against the Creator of the universe. You too have spit in the face of the God who made you and who has done you nothing but good.

And that brings us to a third very important reason I can say that you are as wicked as Osama bin Laden.

III. There Is a Vast Difference Between the Creatures and the Creator

We have a marvelous ability to forget who God is. Let’s go back one Psalm to Psalm 50 and hear the Psalmist speaking to us… (Ps. 50:19-21)
Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit. 20. Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother; thou slanderest thine own mother's son. 21. These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.

Though it is unintentional, sometimes we bring God down to our level. We get to thinking that He is like us. We forget that He is the high and lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy (Is. 57:15).

Consider the most wicked man on earth, even Osama bin Laden, if you like. And now consider the most righteous man on this earth. Get someone definite in mind – both for the most wicked and the most righteous. Place the most wicked way down here, and then place the most righteous somewhere above him. Fit the rest of humanity somewhere in between. And now where will you put God? If between the most wicked and the most righteous there is a thousand miles, where will God fit? In our society, God is just a little higher than man, if even that. But let me tell you how it is. If for illustration purposes, we put a thousand miles between the most wicked and the most righteous of men, then the distance between the most righteous man and God will be the distance to the farthest star in the universe. No, I don’t know how far that is. To put it another way, the difference between God and the most righteous man will be measured in light years. God will be a million light years above the most righteous.
Do you see what that means? That means that the difference between two people, even the most righteous and the most wicked, is negligible. It is nothing. That is why I can say with absolute confidence that everyone of you (and I) is just as wicked as Osama bin Laden.

Why You Protest against the Idea that You Are as Wicked as Osama bin Laden

So why does that offend us so deeply? Why do we have so much trouble accepting that? I believe the primary reason is because we have a tendency to be man-centered. Some of you see a greater difference between the Osama bin Laden and the apostle Paul than between the apostle Paul and God, and that is blasphemy.

The society in which we live has become absolutely man-centered. Man has become the measure of all things. And that attitude has permeated the professing church in our society. That is one of the primary reasons that we are so messed up. We have been conformed to the world’s idea that all thinking begins with man.

Consider what is called "the seeker sensitive" church. The concept goes something like this… People are turned off to today’s church. We better find out why. So we go out and take surveys of why people are down on the church and what they would like to see in the church. Then we tailor our services and ministries to meet the needs of the people around us. Of course, we do not compromise the message of the gospel. We must never do that. We meet the felt needs of people, and then we will have opportunity to give them the gospel.

You may say, "And what’s wrong with that?" I’ll tell you what’s wrong with it. When we start with man, we have already compromised the message of the gospel. The true gospel begins with God, not with man. A man-centered gospel is no gospel at all. Why would we ever want to survey the world to find out what the church should be doing? Why would it ever be okay for the world to dictate the actions of God’s people. We don’t have to ask people what they need; we know what they need, because God has told us in His Word. People need to understand that God is holy and righteous, that man is wicked to the core and has rebelled against God, and that there is no hope except in Jesus Christ. That gospel will always be foolishness and a stumblingblock to unbelieving men, but praise God that the preaching of the cross is the power and wisdom of God to them who believe!

Now let’s just read through some scripture. Let’s begin in Romans 1. Rom. 1:16-32…
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 18. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19. Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. 20. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21. Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23. And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 24. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25. Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 26. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27. And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet. 28. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; 29. Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, 30. Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31. Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32. Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

That is Paul’s general description of mankind, because the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness. Look again at verse 21, "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened." Who can say that this is not true of him? If not now, there was a time when you did not glorify Him as God and you were not thankful. The terrible sins that are listed in the rest of the passage come out of that attitude. If you are not guilty of all those specific sins, understand that you are guilty of the root cause of them, and if it were not for the grace of God, you would have committed every one of them.

But again, you protest, "Don’t lump me in with homosexuals and murderers and haters of God." Okay, let’s just keep reading. Rom. 2:1-11…
Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. 2. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. 3. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? 4. Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 5. But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 6. Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7. To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8. But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9. Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 10. But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 11. For there is no respect of persons with God.

Hear those words, "Whoever you are that judges another, you are condemning yourself." Do you see the picture here? Some (especially the Jews) would read that list of terrible sins and say, "Yes, that is perfectly true of the great masses of mankind, and I agree that you are right in judging them – but there are others, of course, like myself, who hate those sinful tendencies and wouldn’t think of doing those things." To them Paul says, "In judging them, you are judging yourself, because you do the same things."

Wow! How could Paul accuse his fellow-Jews of doing the same things? It was such sinful acts on the part of the pagan Gentiles that caused the Jews to despise them in the first place. And now Paul says that they do the same things. How can that be? Are you getting a glimpse? It is just like my statement that everyone of you is as wicked as Osama bin Laden. You haven’t done the exact same things, but in principle you have. You have rebelled against the same God with a heart as wicked as his.

Be careful when you are quick to assign God’s judgment to those you consider wicked. When Paul concluded the words of chapter 1, I can just hear Jews (and perhaps other so-called "moral men") saying, "Amen. That’s right, Paul. They deserve the judgment of God." To this Paul replies in verses 3-4, "And do you who judge them and do the same things that they do think you will escape the judgment of God. Or do you despise the riches of His goodness and forbearance? Don’t you know that God’s goodness is designed to lead you to repentance?"

Now come to verse 5, "But after your hardness and impenitent heart you treasure up for yourself wrath which will come upon you on the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God" (paraphrased). Now Paul speaks to the man who has indeed despised the goodness of God and has refused to repent of his pride. That man is storing up wrath for himself in the last day. Bear in mind that the Jews to whom Paul was speaking were very moral men. Paul himself had been a Pharisee of the Pharisees. He is speaking to those who thought they were too good to commit the sins listed in chapter 1. Nevertheless, they are under the wrath of God.

And what do you make out of verses 6-11? God will render to every man according to his works. Let’s read it again… (Rom. 2:6-11)
Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7. To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8. But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9. Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 10. But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 11. For there is no respect of persons with God.

Does it sound like Paul is contradicting his teaching elsewhere that salvation is by grace through faith? That is not the case. This passage is about judgment. Throughout the scripture, we are taught that every man will be judged by his works. Salvation is indeed by grace through faith, but judgment will be by works. We must understand that grace and faith do not give a person license to sin without punishment. Rather, they enable a person to live a holy life, a life that is described by the words "by patient continuance in well-doing week for glory and honor and immortality." The only person who will "work good" (vs. 10) is the person who has been saved by the grace of God and enabled by that same grace to bring forth good fruit.

For our discussion, the key words are in verse 9 – "of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile. Paul tells us that both are contentious and guilty of disobedience. We see more of this truth in chapter 3.

So let’s come to chapter 3. In verse 9, Paul takes the Gentiles and Jews together and writes these words in 3:9-18..
What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; 10. As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11. There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 13. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: 14. Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15. Their feet are swift to shed blood: 16. Destruction and misery are in their ways: 17. And the way of peace have they not known: 18. There is no fear of God before their eyes.

Paul makes it clear that whether Jew or Gentile, we are all under sin. We quote verses 10-11 often: "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one; 11. There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God." We accept that with no problem. And verse 18 is okay too, when Paul says, "There is no fear of God before their eyes." But we have trouble with verses 13-16 especially. Surely some of us do not have a throat that is an open sepulchre, nor is the poison of snakes under our lips. Surely our mouth is not full of cursing and bitterness. We are blind to the fact that the indictments of verses 10, 11, and 18 are far more serious than the specific sins listed in between. Because no man seeks after God and there is no fear of God before there eyes, the door is opened to every foul deed that can be imagined. For every sin you can prove that you have not committed, there are a dozen more that you have and a thousand more you would have committed, had it not been for the grace of God. You are part of the race that has committed all of the sins listed in Romans, and you have done more than your share.

I tell you, every one of you – you are as wicked as Osama bin Laden.

Conclusion

So what is the point of all this? Why am I laboring to convince us of our wickedness? I must say that it would be much easier to preach another sermon. And there are certainly plenty of messages we need. So why this? Is it not because the wickedness of pride, arrogance, and self-sufficiency are more evil than we are able to comprehend? Is not our tendency to compare ourselves with others a sure sign of man-centeredness?

Perhaps you are saying: "I am not wicked. I have been redeemed by the blood of the lamb; I have been raised up to sit in the heavenlies with Christ; I am dead to sin and alive to God through Jesus Christ my Lord." If that is where you are, then praise God that He can do such marvelous things for a person as wicked as Osama bin Laden.

You will remember that Paul said, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief" (I Tim. 1:15). I don’t claim to have perfect insight into what Paul meant, but he did say, "I am the chief of sinners." It isn’t, "I was the chief of sinners," but "I am the chief of sinners." Was it not because Paul saw his life as a whole? He remembered well how he had persecuted the church of God and wasted it (Gal. 1:13). He realized that there was no sin of which he was not capable. But then he could say: "By the grace of God I am what I am; and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all; yet not I, but the grace of God which was in me" (I Cor. 15:10). It was that grace working in Paul that delivered him from the depths of sin which he had committed and was capable of committing.

I am reminded of the story of the sinful woman who anointed the feet of Jesus. Simon, the Pharisee, noted that she was a very sinful woman. Why would Jesus let her get close to Him, if He were indeed a prophet? But remember the words of Jesus: "Her sins, which are many are forgiven, for she loved much; but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little" (Lk. 7:47). I love little because I cannot grasp how much God has forgiven in my life.

Praise God when He delivers us from our sin. May we never forget that He did it; we didn’t. Though we are as wicked as Osama bin Laden, God has poured out His mercy and grace upon us. And if we are in Christ, we are new creatures. May God give us grace never to take an ounce of credit for the change; all glory belongs to Him!

Read the song: "And Can It Be That I Should Gain (p. 57)