Why are you here? Why did you choose Mizzou? Are you here because of the degree you are pursuing? Are you here because of the football or basketball teams? Are you here just to party? Why are you here? Why did you choose to attend the University of Missouri?
Not only am I curious about why you are here, but why are we here? Why are human beings on this earth? Are we really here because of billions of years of evolution? Have humans really walked this earth for 4 or 5 million years? Some evolutionists say that we’ve been around for 200,000, while others say it’s been 4.5 million years. Whether you believe that we’ve evolved for millions of years or hundreds of thousands of years, I want to ask you: is this the best we have? After all of this time of evolving, this is the result of natural selection? Have we really evolved into ISIS? We’ve evolved into beheading people and burning people alive? This isn’t evolving, this is regression. These acts are Medieval.
America recently celebrated the 50 year anniversary of the civil rights movement. Now 50 years later we have young men who are members of the SAE fraternity at OU who are chanting racist’s chants. Again, with natural selection, this is the best that we’ve evolved into? Again, this doesn’t sound like evolving humans; it’s more like regressing.
If your worldview is based on evolution and millions or hundreds of thousands of years of evolution and this is the best that we’ve evolved to, then I must tell you that your worldview stinks. We are a pretty pathetic example of natural selection and survival of the fittest. Not only does your worldview stink, but it based on a theory. That’s right, it’s only a theory. Sadly young people are being taught in public schools the theory of evolution as being an undisputed fact. But it isn’t factual and it never will be. It is a theory and it is pure fantasy.
Not only was Charles Darwin wrong about the theory of evolution, he was a racist on top of that. Most people shorten the name of his main book to Origin of the Species, but the full title is: On the Origin of the Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of the Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. Darwin was an out and out racist. If evolution is your worldview, your world view is in trouble. After all this time, this is what we’ve evolved to?
My worldview is a Christian worldview – it is a biblical worldview. We have riots, racism and terrorism because we’ve been around about 6,000 years and we are wicked to the core. . We didn’t evolve; we were created (Genesis 1:26) by our great Creator (Genesis 1:1). We have all of these issues and problems because of us – our hearts are wicked in our natural born states. Jeremiah 17:9 says: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Judges 1:25 states: In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did what was right in his own eyes.
Our hearts are deceitful and they are desperately wicked. Most of us may not be as wicked as ISIS terrorists, but make no mistake, we are all sinners and we are all wicked. We do what we want when we want to because we do what we think is right in our own eyes. But none of us are good. None of us are righteous. We are born with a sinful nature and we are all sinners. Even though God made us in His very own image, we all mar that image. We rebel against God, just like Adam and Eve rebelled in the garden of Eden. Every single one of us have rebelled against God. We have all mocked the very One who gives us every breath that we take. We all have said no to God. We’ve all lived our lives for ourselves, at one time or another.
With a Christian perspective, with a biblical worldview, we can understand and explain why there’s so much evil in this world. It’s time to stop blaming God (the same God that many of you say you don’t even believe in, yet are quick to blame for the world’s problems) and take responsibility for our own actions. If you are concerned about all the thousands of children that starve to death every single day, then do something about it. Sponsor a child through a reputable organization. Personally, I support an organization in Uganda called Watoto. Even college students can work through Convoy of Hope’s Feed One program for $10 a month. Whatever organization you decide to support, please stop blaming the God that you hate and do something about the evil in this world.
The great God of Heaven and earth is not to blame for the problems in the world. The blame is with the little g god of the world – Satan and he’s running rampant. The devil is the father of lies and he has billions and billions of people deceived. But blaming the devil on Judgment Day won’t lesson your penalty. Claiming ignorance or saying the devil made you do it, will be no defense on the great day of the Lord. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31). Do not be deceived today. You cannot cheat death and you will stand before Jesus on Judgment Day, even if you don’t believe in Him. It is appointed to men once to die, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27).
If Jesus Christ is not your Lord and Savior today, then you are a follower of Satan. If you are not born-again, then you are still dead in your trespasses and sins. You are spiritually stumbling around in darkness. Jesus is the Light. He is the Light of the world. Come out of the darkness and into the light. God sent His only begotten Son to suffer and die for guilty sinners like you and me. Jesus who knew no sin, became sin our behalf that we might be made the righteousness of God through Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21). Christ is the great Light.
Those who remain in the dark, those of you who remain in your trespasses and sins are under God’s condemnation right now. That’s why I’m sharing the Gospel with you today. You are already guilty. You are condemned by Almighty God, no matter how good you think you are. No amount of good works can wipe out a single little white lie, let alone all of the many sins that all of us have committed. John 3:18-19 says: He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
Then in verse 20 it continues: For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. You need to stop rebelling against God today. You need to admit that you are a sinner and that you need to be saved. Cry out for God to save you. Confess and forsake your sins. Turn from your sins and turn to Jesus. Turn to the One who never sinned. Turn to the One who suffered and died on behalf of sinners like us. Jesus paid the sin debt that you and I owe. God offers eternal life to each and every person who repents and puts their faith in Jesus. Only Jesus saves. Not Buddha, not Muhammad, not Joseph Smith, not even the pope. Only Jesus saves. Only Jesus can wash away your sins. When you confess your sins, He is faithful to forgive you. God remembers your sins no more.
But there is no cheap grace. You can’t claim Jesus Christ as your Savior and continue living your life for the devil. You need to confess and forsake your sins. A sure sign that you have truly repented is when your life is changed. You stop drinking, you stop having sexual relations outside of biblical marriage. You stop watching porn. When you are truly saved, you don’t stop these things under your own power, but by the power of the Holy Spirit. We can’t clean ourselves up to meet God’s standard. None of us meet His perfect and righteous standard. That’s why you need Jesus to save you. Jesus never sinned. Jesus perfectly kept the 10 Commandments and never sinned one time.
Salvation is only found through Jesus and He said that the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe the gospel (Mark 1:15). Today, I’m begging you to repent and believe the Gospel. Turn from your sins and turn to Jesus. Don’t trust in yourself. Don’t trust your own good works. Believe in Jesus. Believe in His finished work on the cross. Turn from your sins and turn to Jesus. Turn and live. Choose life today. God is offering you everlasting life through the shed blood of Jesus. Choose life. Surrender your life to Christ and then He will reveal to you why you are here. Your real purpose is to honor and glorify God and you do so by sharing your faith in Jesus Christ with this lost and dying world and you serve God in other ways. Discover why you are really here; repent and put your trust in Jesus. Do this today and receive eternal life.
(A rough version of this message was proclaimed at the Speakers Circle at the University of Missouri on March 10, 2015)