Super Bowl Dark Side
I have to admit that there is a real excitement about the Super Bowl. I’ve had the privilege of witnessing at several other ones before and it really gets people hopped up. It is one of the largest spectacles in sports. It’s great to be here amid this large, enthusiastic crowd. But did you know that the Super Bowl has a dark side?
I doubt very many of you think about the Super Bowl dark side. You’re here to have fun. You’re here to be part of the excitement. I understand that. I attended a World Series game over 30 years ago and there is a level of excitement that you just don’t see at regular games. So It’s understandable that people want to be around this amazing event.
Dark Side
But there is a dark side to it that we need to talk about. Especially on Sunday, the big day, game day, I’ve been in front of the stadium at 9 or 10 am and some people are already stumbling drunk when they walk by. I don’t drink alcohol and I’ve never been inside the stadium at a Super Bowl, so I have no idea how much a beer cost, but it must be expensive. So some people drink and drink a lot ahead of time, I guess to save money. But alcoholism is a real problem in America. One out of every 13 people who take their first drink end up an alcoholic. Did you catch that? One out of 13! Those are horrible odds.
In addition to drinking, drugs are also prevalent at large sporting events like this. So you have drug dealers running around selling drugs. Think of all the people who leave this stadium tonight and will be in no shape to drive. You may be taking your own life in your hands just to get home safe and sound.
You also have ticket scalpers trying to take advantage of people. We see them at every sporting event we witness at and you never know if the tickets are real or not. At the Kentucky Derby we saw the police question a man who appeared to be selling fake tickets. How would you like to over pay for an event only to find out that you’d been duped? That the tickets weren’t even genuine? (This actually happened on Super Bowl Sunday. We saw the police talking to a couple of guys who paid $2,000 each for tickets and they turned out to be fakes!)
Gambling is a real problem in this country too. Last year, over 132 million dollars was wagered in Las Vegas on the Super Bowl. How much money do you think was spent on illegal gambling? How many people bet more than they could afford to lose?
Sex Trafficking
People debate whether the Super Bowl is the highest sex trafficking event in America, but even if it isn’t the largest, it is a real problem. The Super Bowl is the greatest show on Earth, but it also has an ugly underbelly,” Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott told USA Today in 2011. He continued, “It’s commonly known as the single largest human trafficking incident in the United States.” So in 2011 the Texas Attorney General believed that the Super Bowl was the largest human trafficking event in America. Again, whether it is the biggest event or not, sex trafficking is a horrible crime and it is a dark side of the Super Bowl.
How many people walking by right now are going to the Super Bowl to look at the cheer leaders? Did you know that God sees lust as the same thing as adultery? Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
You also know how fanatical some fans are; you may be one yourself. In the past, a New England Patriot’s fan had a sign that said: Our god is an awesome god… His name is Tom Brady. Now most people aren’t this bold or forthright with their idolatry, but this one man was so.
Is Football Your Idol?
Maybe you are here today and you are not getting drunk, high, looking for illicit sex, gambling or lusting. But, is football your idol? Do you love and care about football more than anything else in the world? The first commandment says that we are to have no other gods before God. The second commandment states that we are not to make any graven images.
And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments (Exodus 20:1-6).
I ask you again, is football your idol? Do you worship football? Are you consumed with it? The idolatry of football is also a very real dark side to the Super Bowl. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
Do You Love Your Sins?
Folks, please don’t miss this. The apostle Paul says do not be deceived. The unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. You will not make it to Heaven if you are still in love with your sins. This is not even an all inclusive list of sins that human beings commit, but it is a list of common sins that men are slaves to. Sexual sins, drunkenness, covetous people and yes, idolaters. Those who worship idols instead of the one true God are idolaters. What has your heart today? What do you love more than anything else? Is it football? Is football your idol? If so, you are not on the narrow road to Heaven; you are barreling down the broad road to destruction. Jesus says many are on the broad road to destruction, but few are on the narrow way. The right path.
In America, we have many people who profess belief in God, but very few profess belief in the God of the Bible. Many people tell us that we are too harsh. They say “my God would never send anybody to Hell.” They are right about that. Their false god they worship in their own mind couldn’t send anyone to Hell because their god isn’t real. Their imaginary god has no power.
In 1 Corinthians 6:11, Paul says such were some of you. Let me read 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 for you: Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
Out of the list of common sins known to man, Paul says these sins, actually all sins, all unforgiven sin keeps you from entering into Heaven. People who love their sins and continue in them are headed for Hell and they will enter into it one day. They will know at that time that they made a horrible mistake, but it will be too late. They will understand that the God they mocked all their life was real and He’s the one that says “vengeance is Mine.” They will know that they let their love of sin, love of self, their idolatry take them to Hell. But then it will be too late.
You Used To Be A…
Oh, don’t continue rushing down the broad road to Hell. Come to Jesus. Come to Him through repentance and faith. We are to have repentance toward God and faith toward Jesus Christ our Lord (Acts 20:21). Paul said such were some of you. You used to be drunkard. You used to be a drug addict. You used to be a prostitute. You used to be a fornicator, adulterer or homosexual. You used to be an idolater. But you are washed, you area sanctified, you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus.
If this is not you today, if you can’t say I used to be one of these wretched sinners, then you are still spiritually dead in your trespasses and sins. You are still on the broad road to Hell. No repentance, no salvation. If you have not turned from your sins and put your trust in Jesus, then your sins, your guilt is still upon you. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him (John 3:36).
We want you to receive life today, eternal life. Your eternal soul is worth so much more than a game. Even if that game is the Super Bowl, your eternal destiny is more important. Come over here and talk to us. Come over here and let us expound the word of God more to you. Let us share the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord.
You Have A Dark Side
Just like there is a Super Bowl darkside, there is a dark side to you. To all of us; for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. None of us have loved God with all of our heart, soul and mind all the days of our lives. We have all rebelled against God. We have all sinned against God. Each and every one of us have committed the sins listed in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. None of us deserves to go to Heaven and none of us can make ourselves right with God. You and I can’t undo a single white lie, let alone every sin that we’ve ever committed.
But even though we have separated ourselves from God, He commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). God sent His only begotten Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Propitiation means the wrath was satisfied. God poured His anger over sinful man upon His own precious, sinless Son as Jesus hung on that cruel cross. Jesus never sinned one time. He never lied, stole anything, lusted, coveted or committed idolatry. He always loved God the Father with all of His heart, soul and mind.
Trust Jesus
Yet He willingly laid His life down as a ransom for many. He took the punishment that He didn’t deserve so that we might be saved. Jesus suffered, bled and died for guilty sinners like you and me. He took the punishment that we deserve. He died on the cross, was buried and rose victoriously from the grave three days later. God offers salvation to each and every person who repents and puts their trust in Jesus.
We are not talking about intellectual knowledge. We are talking about life changing repentance and faith in Jesus. When God save you; you are no longer the same old sinner that you were. God cleans you up. He convicts you over your sins through the power of the Holy Spirit. God takes away your heart of stone and gives you a heart of flesh.
Come to Jesus today and be saved. Turn from your sins and turn to Jesus. Confess your sins. Put your trust in Him. Surrender your life fully and completely to Jesus the Christ. Be saved today. Call upon the name of the Lord and be saved. When you repent and trust Jesus, God remembers your sins no more. Your conscience can be cleared. You can have peace with God. You can become a new creature in Christ. Repent and believe the Gospel.
(This message was proclaimed in downtown Houston, Texas on February 4, 2017)