"Reality Check" 6-8-25
Overview
Reality Check: Sin, Grace, and Our Ambassadorship
Recent polling tells us that only 81% of religiously affiliated American adults believe heaven is real, and just 69% believe in hell. But polling does not determine reality. Heaven and hell are real—and so is the sin that separates us from God. Proverbs 24:19-20 counsels, "Do not fret because of evildoers, do not envy the wicked, for the evil have no future; the lamp of the wicked will go out." That lamp going out is a picture of complete destruction—a sober warning we cannot afford to soften.
Here is the harder reality check: when we read about "evildoers," we are tempted to picture someone else. But Scripture will not let us off that easily. The works of the flesh listed in Galatians 5:19-21—idolatry, strife, jealousy, anger, impurity, and the rest—are not just out there; they live in us. We make idols of food, family, power, and money. We jump into quarrels online and in person. Our words and thoughts are not always pure. We even find ourselves envying the wicked, imagining how much easier life would be if we could simply please ourselves without thought of consequence. But there is no such thing as no consequence. The wages of sin is death.
The deeper reality, however, is grace. 2 Corinthians 5:21 declares that "for our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." On the cross, God the Father made God the Son to be sin, taking the image of fallen Adam upon himself and exchanging it for his own righteousness. In the waters of baptism, the old image was put to death, and a new creation rose up: "If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" 2 Corinthians 5:17. You have been purchased by the blood of Jesus, sealed with the Holy Spirit, and led now by the Spirit who bears the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control Galatians 5:22-23.
This frees us from fretting and envying—and it gives us a job. Proverbs 24:17-18 warns, "Do not rejoice when your enemies fall." When the wicked stumble, our reflex is to cheer; but 2 Corinthians 5:18-20 reminds us we have been entrusted with the ministry of reconciliation as ambassadors for Christ. It is not your job to save a soul or convince anyone—the Spirit does that work. Your job is to proclaim what Christ has done for you and for all the wicked, that they too may hear, repent, and be saved. So the reality check, summed up: sin is real, hell is real, but God's grace is more real still—and heaven is your eternal home.
Transcript
If you would please open your Bibles to the Book of Proverbs 24th chapter, if you're using 2s
a Pew edition of the Bible, this can be found on page 569 in the Old Testament, where 10s
in the Book of Proverbs 24th chapter. 18s
I was looking at a Pew research poll that was done in 2023 and 2024, and it said that 81% of 23s
US adults with religious affiliation believe that there actually is a heaven, only 81% 33s
only 69% of US adults with religious affiliation believe in hell. 41s
Reality check here, reality check is that heaven and hell are real. 49s
Heaven and hell are real, and before we go too deeply into pondering about or over 58s
this particular reality check, we're going to seek wisdom. 64s
We're going to seek wisdom from God's Word in Proverbs. 69s
Look with me please, at the beginning of verse 19 of our reading today, where it says, 73s
do not fret because of evil doors. 80s
Do not fret because of evil doors, but if we look, evil doors abound. 83s
It's really hard not to fret over evil doors because evil doors are everywhere. 89s
We look everywhere we look. 97s
We can see evil. 99s
We can see what the Bible refers to as works of the flesh. 101s
In Galatians chapter 5, we read of those works of the flesh, where Paul under the 105s
inspiration of the Holy Spirit says, now the works of the flesh are obvious. 112s
Fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmitys, strife, jealousy, anger, 118s
quarrels, disensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, curousing, and things like these. 130s
We witness the works of the flesh every time we step outside our door. 140s
We see the works of the flesh and it is everywhere. 147s
And we are appalled for shame, for shame. 154s
We don't want the impure imposing upon our youth. 161s
Have you seen the licentiousness and idolatry that abounds everywhere you look? 166s
It's just sickening. 172s
And we good people should be sickened by all of the sin that is out there, all of the 176s
filth that is out there. 185s
And so we read, do not fret and it's such a good word. 187s
We hear those words. 193s
As if God were saying, take heart, you are not them. 195s
Reality check. 203s
We are them. 207s
We are them. 210s
We're going to have more on this momentarily. 214s
But first we need to see that that's not the end of verse 19. 217s
And look with me please again, do not fret because of evil doers, do not envy the wicked. 221s
envy the wicked. 227s
envy the wicked. 228s
Who in their right mind would envy the wicked? 229s
Well, the answer is me. 234s
The answer is you. 237s
We. 239s
We envy the wicked. 240s
We envy the one who idolizes power and wealth and will achieve worldly gain by any 242s
means necessary. 250s
We envy those who submit to their every desire of pleasure. 253s
We envy the person who is able to seemingly speak his or her own mind without regard 261s
of how it may affect the ones hearing what they speak. 271s
Wouldn't it just be easier? 277s
Wouldn't it just be easier if we could just live? 281s
However we wanted to to please ourselves according to our own rule and want without having 286s
to think of others? 295s
You see there's a sense of responsibility that comes with being a Christian. 299s
There's a sense of responsibility and pressure when owning the call of being a Christian 305s
people and quite frankly it can feel exhausting. 314s
We find ourselves envying the unbeliever because they get to do without thought or concern 320s
about consequence. 331s
Reality check. 334s
There is no such thing as no consequence. 337s
There's no such thing as no consequence. 343s
The consequence that we all face in this life is the consequence of our sin. 347s
The consequence that we face is the consequence that all of creation faces. 355s
And the consequence of our sin is death. 366s
But there's more to it than just that. 372s
Look with me please at verse 20, for the evil have no future. 376s
The lamp of the wicked will go out. 381s
Medaphorically this lamp going out symbolizes the destruction of an individual or group. 388s
The lamp going out that we read here is the complete destruction of the evil. 397s
Of the evil door. 404s
Remember when we had that reality check that we are the them. 406s
Well we are the ones who engage in acts that God has declared wrong. 412s
To do evil is to do what God has declared to be wrong. 418s
We like all that have been born after Seth have all been born in the image of Adam, the image of man. 426s
Born with the image of sin imprinted on our very being. 435s
God has declared idolatry to be wrong yet I so easily make an idol of food family power money. 442s
God has declared quarrels to be wrong and yet it's so easily easy to jump in quickly to the latest 452s
argument that we stumble across online or in person and we want to throw our two cents in. 460s
God has declared impurity to be wrong and yet the words that cross my lips. 469s
The words in my mind are not always found to be pure. 476s
Reality check in our created nature. 483s
We cannot help but to be wicked. 490s
Who? 499s
Who then can enter the kingdom of heaven. 501s
Reality check by God's grace you are not called to remain in a state of sin. 509s
When you were called into faith by our Lord, you were called into a new birth. 520s
You were reborn in the image of God and God in His great love for you. 528s
Took your image of sin and took it upon Himself and replaced it with His own image of righteousness. 535s
In second Corinthians the fifth chapter we read that for our sake he made him to be sin who knew 545s
no sin. So that in him we might become the righteousness of God for our sake for your sake. 553s
God the Father made Jesus. God the Son. Sin. 562s
The one who knew no sin became sin bearing the image of sinful man of all time all places upon 567s
Himself and exchanging it for His righteousness for our sake for our sake for your sake. 577s
If we look at verse 17 in second Corinthians chapter 5 we read so if anyone is in Christ there is 591s
a new creation everything old has passed away see everything has become new. 601s
All this is from God who reconcile us to Himself through Christ. 609s
The righteous are promised heaven. You have been made righteous by God Himself as he claimed 616s
you through the waters of baptism he washed the old image the image of Adam was put to death. 626s
And instead out of the waters of baptism rose the new image the new creation that is the image 636s
of God the image that you bear as a righteous and beloved child of the Lord. 643s
You are promised that you are righteous. You have been purchased by the blood of Jesus. 652s
You have been sealed in the promise in the Holy Spirit. His own spirit abides in you. 660s
Working in you transforming you, leading you and guiding you. You have absolutely no need to 670s
fret evil doers because you have God's own spirit within you. You have no need to envy the wicked 678s
because you have the life of God that leads you. The ways of the flesh are all around 690s
but you are led by the spirit that dwells within you the spirit of righteousness the spirit that 701s
bears fruit. The fruit of love joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, 709s
and self-control. Knowing that we do not need to fret over evil doers, 717s
knowing that there is no place for us to envy the wicked that instead we live in the righteousness 726s
of the spirit in which we have been called and claimed these are words of wisdom. 734s
These are words of wisdom that comfort the conscience. These are words of wisdom that 744s
suves our souls because we're assured we're assured that we live in the reality of those born in the 751s
image. We live as those who have been given God's own spirit to dwell within us. 772s
So let's put this into practice. Looking pleased at verses 17 and 18 of Proverbs 24. 780s
Do not rejoice when your enemies fall and do not let your heart be glad when they stumble or 788s
else the Lord will see it and be displeased and turn away his anger from them. 794s
In 2 Corinthians chapter 5, we hear that God has given us the ministry of reconciliation 800s
that is in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, 809s
and in trusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ. 817s
Since God is making His appeal through us, reality check you, child of God, 825s
you have been given a job. When the wicked that we see, when they stumble, when they fall, 838s
when we see them crash, our inclination is to celebrate to cheer. Hip hip hooray, the wicked is gone. 847s
But we are ambassadors of the ministry of reconciliation. We are ambassadors 860s
of the proclamation of salvation in Christ and Christ alone. Our job, dwelling in the spirit, 867s
leading us forth, our job is to bring the good news of salvation to the wicked. 876s
Our job is to proclaim all that Christ has done for you, for me, for all the world. 883s
It's not your job to save a soul. It's not your job to convince anyone. 893s
But it's your job to preach. It's your job to proclaim it's your job to share 900s
as an ambassador what Christ has done for you, what Christ has done for all the wicked. 912s
And maybe the word will go forth and the wicked will hear and the spirit will work in their 925s
heart and transform them and mold them and call them into repentance so that they no longer 935s
face the reality of hell, but that they can know that they too have forgiveness in Christ and 944s
Christ alone. Your job is not to celebrate or delight in another's downfall or demise, but to share 956s
God's good word so that repentance may take hold. You are God's ambassador. You are appealing 966s
to those who are stuck in sin and inviting them to experience life in the freedom and grace of God. 975s
So our reality check summed up. A sin is real. B, hell is real. 990s
See God's grace is realer. God's mercy is realer. And heaven will heaven is your eternal 1010s
reality. 1031s