Sermon Tone Analysis

God Made Us All

Introduction: I am in between Sermon Series today.

As most of you know, I finished up last week a series on what it means to live our lives by the book -meaning we live according to the Bible and the foundations, principles and commandments given to us by God in His Word.

Next Sunday I will preach the first of a two week series titled: “One Night with Jesus,” from , which is the account of Nicodemus going to Jesus with his questions in the middle of the night.

ME SECTION: This sermon today has been weighing heavy on me ever since last week.

Today we will dive into some difficult waters that are swirling with a lot of different emotions.

Pray for me because I want to be very broad with the stories, stats and illustrations but very specific in speaking about the root issue at hand and what God is calling us to do about it.

One thing that really solidified the direction I was going with sermon is the young man I met this week.

Panhandling.

Covered in Tattoos.

Twisted up from car wreck.

Recovering Heroin Addict.

I gave him ride and took him to local clinic to pay for him a dose of legal medicine to help stay of illegal heroin.

Saw several other run down and rough looking recovering addicts.

Often overlooked members of our world now, except by pimps and drug pushers and drug users.

Something else God used to move my mind about over this sermon, Billy Graham’s death.

I was moved by his death because of the impact of His life and the message he preached - God’s judgment and God’s love seen in the gospel.

Then later I heard about a comment on social media from a writer for Teen Vogue Magazine who has great influence over the young minds in our society, and here is her view on Rev. Graham’s life and passing: “Have Fun in Hell, …(expletive).

Something else God used to move my mind about over this sermon, Billy Graham’s death.

I was moved by his death because of the impact of His life and the message he preached - the gospel.

Then later I heard about a comment on social media from a writer for Teen Vogue Magazine who has great influence over the young minds in our society, and here is her view on Rev. Graham’s life and passing: “Have Fun in Hell, …(expletive).

Purposeful Question: Imagine how the ones who follow her are beginning to form their perspective views on the value of others.

WE SECTION: Maybe you heard in the news this past week - 13 Russians and 3 Russian Companies were indicted for trying to cause division in our society through Facebook and other social media.

The kind of division that results in incidents like:

In the last Governor race in Texas a Facebook user commented on Repub page saying that if Dem won in November, a “.50 caliber headache was waiting for her.”

Woman rep for NRA on stage at CNN town hall, another rushes the stage yelling “Burn Her!!”

Purposeful question: What makes someone say such a thing about or to another human being?

Why do you think the Russians were so active?

Do you think they were successful?

Have you seen the new Gerber Baby - Little Lucas Warren, first Gerber Baby with Down’s Syndrome in Gerber’s 91 year history.

- While in Ohio the ACLU has recently sued to halt “an unconditional law banning abortion based on baby having Down Syndrome”

About 10 yrs ago an scared high school senior - walked into a crisis pregnancy center with panicked parents.

The new mother choosing life.

The girl’s dad, a deacon in his church, pushing for abortion because the new babies father was a law student at an ivy league school - who happens to be African American.

Purposeful Question: Why do you imagine people would receive notice from a prenatal test and then make a decision to terminate the life of someone with Down Syndrome?

What is it that causes a professed Christian and deacon in his church to be pro-abortion in this situation?

Since 2012 - several black men and women killed by a cop.

Supposedly here in SC a couple

Since 2014 - several cops gunned down in the line of duty, often ambushed.

5 in Dallas by an African American

Purposeful Question: Why such chaos and animosity in these situations?

A 19 year old walks into his high school and pulls the trigger killing 17 people.

The shooter and his brother had been adopted from the “system.”

Reports of abuse before that.

People in the school says “if anyone is going to shoot up the school it will be him.

He looks like someone who would do that.

He is a loner, always wearing hoodies, etc.

A 19 year old walks into his high school and pulls the trigger killing 17 people.

Law enforcement had been given various reports 38 times.

The shooter and his brother had been adopted from the “system.”

Reports of abuse before that.

People in the school says “if anyone is going to shoot up the school it will be him.

He looks like someone who would do that.

He is a loner, always wearing hoodies, etc.

Now calling him a monster.

Reports have been given of 18 different shootings in schools or school zones since Jan. 1st - one of them happened to be a middle school boy killing himself in the bathroom.

Last year one of the biggest Netflix shows is 13 reasons why, (which I didn’t agree with because it glorifies suicide), where the story is a girl leaving a tape for 13 people who harmed, bullied or abused her in some why telling them why she is dead.

Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death of young persons aged 15-24.

Purposeful Question: Many people like myself asking the question, how can someone go kill innocent people like that.

I also ask the question, what makes a person say that another looks like a school shooter?

I also ask how bad had things been at home or in school to make a young middles school boy want to end his life in a bathroom?

How does such a show become so popular?

Why are so many kids take their own life?

We arrived in Jonesboro Illinois in June of 2014.

Our kids began school that fall.

It was not long after school began that our community was wrapped up in a bit of turmoil.

A high school boy, grandparents in our church, handsome, athletic, on the football team - was taken after practice, hog tied with duct tape, thrown in the shower without any clothes, water turned on, video taped and shared on social media.

Making fun of a kid in a wheelchair brings the ire of many, yet a kid who just wants to be loved and accepted suffers years bullying in school because of a special need like PTSD or ADHD that can’t be seen.

I remember one of my daughters telling me about starting at one school, trying to reach out to several different girls only to hear - we don’t talk to those people.

I remember in 3-6 grade my mom taking me to counseling sessions over being bullied by a boy in school - who was also in my youth group.

I also am not proud of moments in high school where I used racist words and picked on kids smaller than me.

Making fun of a kid in a wheelchair brings the ire of many, yet a kid who just wants to be loved and accepted suffers years bullying in school because of a special need like PTSD or ADHD that can’t be seen.

I remember one of my daughters telling me about starting at one school, trying to reach out to several different girls only to hear - we don’t talk to those people.

I remember in 3-6 grade my mom taking me to counseling sessions over being bullied by a boy in school - who was also in my youth group.

I also am not proud of moments in high school where I used racist words and picked on kids smaller than me.

Purposeful Question: How or better yet why does something like what happened to the football player happen?

Why in the world are these young girls having to worry about how their bodies and their shoe laces look?

I used to ask myself as a teen, how can someone in my youth group treat me like this?

He should know better.

Didn’t his parents teach him better.

As an adult I ask myself, how could I a professing Christian treat another human with such disrespect?

I knew better.

I was taught by my parents not to be that way.

Joanna gave me permission to share her story.

As a Senior in High School (I believe) she was dating a GI who became extremely abusive physically and then eventually, when she tried to leave him, ended up raping her.

Those of you here on Wednesday got to hear from the Baynes who are going to be missionaries in a city of Brazil that is the number 1 city in the world for human trafficking.

They told the story of a young 8 yr old girl learning from grandmother and mother how to make money - selling herself to men.

Thank God she heard the gospel and now is telling others how to have freedom in Jesus.

Globally, the average cost of a slave is $90.

There are approximately 20 to 30 million slaves in the world today.

There are approximately 20 to 30 million slaves in the world today.

The average age a teen enters the sex trade in the U.S. is 12 to 14-year-old.

Many victims are runaway girls who were sexually abused as children.

Human trafficking is the third largest international crime industry (behind illegal drugs and arms trafficking).

It reportedly generates a profit of $32 billion every year.

Of that number, $15.5 billion is made in industrialized countries.

Purposeful Question: Abuse of women is a prominent issue right now with the #metoo movement, but why has it taken this long for it to become something important enough to talk about?

We look at a guy who does horrific things with a young boy or young girl and are disgusted, and wonder how it could happen and why is human trafficking so prevalent?

Some of you may have identified with one or more of these stories due to personal knowledge or personal experiences.

In a congregation of our sizes many opinions.