"THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS"
The Wrath Of God (1:18-32)
INTRODUCTION
- The Scriptures speak of the coming day of God's wrath...
- Revealing the righteous judgment of God - cf. Ro 2:4-6
- A day of judgment of the ungodly - cf. 2Pe 3:7
-- In which the fullness of God's righteous indignation is made known
- The Scriptures also speak of how God's wrath has already come...
- Revealed from heaven - Ro 1:18a
- Against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men - Ro 1:18b
-- In which a foretaste of God's righteous indignation is manifested
[Why does God manifest this "foretaste" of His wrath? How does He
express His righteous indignation even now, long before the day of
judgment? Our text (Ro 1:18-32) provides the answers...]
- WHY GOD MANIFESTS HIS WRATH
- BECAUSE MAN STIFLES GOD'S REVEALED TRUTH...
- By suppressing the truth in unrighteousness - Ro 1:18
- Rejecting what is true
- Justifying what is ungodly and unrighteous
- By spurning what God has revealed - Ro 1:19-20
- Things about God that are manifest in man himself
- E.g., man's intelligence and personality, implying the
same of his Creator
- E.g., man's sense of ought, implying a righteous Creator
- Things about God that are manifest in creation around him
- cf. Ps 19:1-2
- Invisible attributes of God, seen and understood by
things that are visible
- E.g., design and order of the universe imply eternal
power and Deity
-- When man fails to listen to the beauty and design of the
universe that declares "God exists!", God is angry!
- BECAUSE MAN IS UNGRATEFUL AND FOOLISH...
- Not being thankful to God - Ro 1:21a
- Even when they knew Him
- Yet failing to glorify Him as God
- Becoming futile in their thoughts and foolish in their hearts
- Ro 1:21b-23
- The consequence of not glorifying God
- Leading to idolatry (the worship of creation instead of the
Creator)
- E.g., making God into their own image
- E.g., making God into the image of other animate objects
- Modern man has his own idols:
- E.g., secular humanism (worshipping self)
- E.g., covetousness (worshipping money) - cf. Ep 5:5; Co
3:5
-- When man ceases to be thankful to God, and esteems created
things over Him, then God is angry!
[The wrath of God at the last day will involve a fiery end (cf. 2 Pe
3:10; 2Th 1:7-9). God's wrath being revealed today is more subtle, but
terrible nonetheless...]
- HOW GOD MANIFESTS HIS WRATH
- HE "GIVES MAN UP" TO MORAL UNCLEANNESS...
- God "gave them up" (paradidomi) - Ro 1:24a
- No fire from heaven striking them down
- But simply leaving man to his own desires
- To (moral) uncleanness - Ro 1:24b
- In the lusts of their hearts (wherever their wicked hearts
led them, cf. Mk 7:21-23)
- Dishonoring their bodies among themselves (in what way, see
below)
- Why? Because they exchanged the truth of God for the lie - Ro
1:25
- Worshipping and serving that which is created
- Rather than He who is the Creator and worthy to be blessed
forever
- HE "GIVES MAN UP" TO VILE PASSIONS...
- Again, God "gave them up" (paradidomi) - Ro 1:26a
- No lightning from heaven striking one down
- But simply leaving man to his vile passions
- Case in point, lesbianism - Ro 1:26b
- Women exchanging the natural use for what is against nature
- Using bodies designed for procreation in ways that do not
procreate
- Case in point, homosexuality - Ro 1:27
- Leaving the natural use of women (to procreate, to avoid
fornication, cf. 1Co 7:2)
- Burning in their lust for one another, committing with men
what is shameful
- Receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was
due (e.g., AIDS?)
- HE "GIVES MAN UP" TO DEBASED MINDS AND UNRIGHTEOUSNESS...
- Yet again, God "gave them over" (paradidomi) - Ro 1:28
- Since they did not like to retain God in their knowledge
- God gave them over to a debased mind, to do things not
fitting
- The result of being "given up": being filled with all
unrighteousness - Ro 1:29-31
- Wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness
- Envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness
- Whisperers, backbiters, haters of God
- Violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things,
disobedient to parents
- Undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving,
unmerciful
- They know the righteous judgment of God, that such are
deserving of death - Ro 1:32
- Yet they still do it
- And they approve those who do it
CONCLUSION
- God's wrath is manifested today by simply allowing man to go his own
way...
- To follow the desires of his heart
- To follow the passions of his lusts
-- Stumbling in blind ignorance to increasing degrees of depravity
- cf. Ep 4:17-19
- God's mercy is manifested today for those willing to turn back to
Him...
- Willing to acknowledge His revelation
- That given through creation
- Even more so that given through His Son! - cf. 1Jn 4:9,10
- Willing to be thankful to Him
- With the attitude of gratitude - cf. Col 1:12; 2:7; 3:15,17; 4:2
- Showing gratitude through repentance - cf. Ro 2:4
Are we thankful? Do we show it by turning from our sins and turning to
God? If not, we have every reason to fear the wrath of God - not just
the day of judgment, but the consequence in this life of God simply
"giving us up" to our own desires!