Rom 1:18-1:32, God "gave us" what we wanted and it isn't very pretty

Rom 1:17-20 (ESV) For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith."


18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.


• Do you notice the parallelism of these verses?
• A righteousness of God is revealed -- from faith and for faith
• The wrath of God is revealed -- from heaven against …
• Ungodliness (of men)
• And unrighteousness (of men)
• Both the warning (wrath) and the solution (righteousness) are revealed
• How then does God view man's situation? Men are without excuse
• Why?
• What may be known about God is plain to man (it is obvious)
• God has shown it to man (it is purposeful -- so you can say there is no evidence for the existence of God, but God's response is that is not true)
• What is known?
• His invisible qualities, eternal power and divine nature, are clearly perceived
• Invisible … perceived -- God says that we should be able to "see" these qualities
• How are they seen?
• Understood from what has been made -- since creation -- everything that has been made
• Complexity -- watch requires a maker
• Logically -- cause and effect suggests a first cause that is eternal (uncaused)
• Morality -- we know in our hearts things are wrong
• Meaning -- we recognized the importance of meaning to life
• If one understands creation, they will see the hand of God
• This is a fascinating point.  Because some scientists have reasoned that we are the product of random chaotic forces
• Not all scientists agree
• Mathematically, the theory has some incredibly small probabilities
• But science gives us little insight into the metaphysical questions of existence and cannot prove or disprove them
• Summary: Satan and our own evil desires have blinded our understanding of what should be obvious from creation.  But God will still hold men accountable on the day of judgment


Rom 1:21-25 (ESV) For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22  Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.


24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.


• This is the first step in a downward spiral of sin.  How does is start?
• Men knew God
• Apparently, the knowledge of God was much more widespread in the days prior to Noah
• The very number of religions suggest some deep inner acceptance of something that is bigger than self
• Men did not glorify him as God.  Interesting -- they knew God but they don't glorify him -- why?
• To glorify him or to accept him requires obedience (many atheists make this very argument)
• Men did not give him thanks.  Again, why?
• Because we want to be our own gods
• Gen 3:5 "… you will be like God …"
• Gen 3:5 "… your eyes will be opened … knowing good and evil …" (Gnosticism)
• These are the conditions, knowledge of God but failure to glorify or thank.  The result then follows
1. Their thinking becomes futile
• Thinking is the use of our minds to reason and choose
• A definition for futile, is that it serves no purpose, and it is occupied with trifles
2. Their foolish hearts become darkened
• Hearts represent our passions or emotions
• Darkened means to not see clearly
3. Pride.  They claim to be wise
• The reality is they became foolish
4. They exchanged God's glory for images (we are still doing that today when we remake God into the image we want … "well, my God would not … ")
• They reduce God to something they can control
• They reduce God to something they created
• They reduce God to look like the rest of creation
• The consequence of their sins is one of the three "God gave them up"
• The first "God gave them over" to sexual impurity (which was the sinful desire of their heart)--this is what men wanted--God gave them what they wanted
• They now start to worship their lust
• They degrade their bodies with one another (perverting the goodness of sex which God had created for pleasure within set boundaries)
• The serve created things (material things consume their passion) or they served the creature (Satan)
• Ps 81:11-13 (ESV)
11 "But my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel would not submit to me.
12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to follow their own counsels.
13  Oh, that my people would listen to me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!
• The consequence of not listening is that you often get what you wanted …


Rom 1:26-27 (ESV) For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.


• So because they worship their lust (sexual and material), God gives them up (over-NIV, AMP, HCSB, NET)  a second time
• Homosexuality or  unnatural relations
• Consuming passion
• Shameful acts
• Bodies receive the due penalty for their perversion
• Perversion means to use something for a purpose it was not created
• Not sure what the due penalty would be.  It would seem that AIDS would be so today, but most likely there is some other spiritual effect from homosexuality that occurs to a person's spirit (since homosexuality has been around for a long time)
• There were some studies which showed brain differences in persons with homosexual behavior -- I've also seen studies that show brain changes based on behavior
• APPLICATION:
• Deliberate sin has an effect upon our bodies
• Even worse, is sometimes we get what we want and it is not good for us


Rom 1:28-32 (ESV) And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.


• Additionally to the perversion of sex, what else does mankind do?
• It does not value the knowledge of God
• It is not worthwhile
• It is a waste of a person's time
• It is one thing to replace God with images you can control, but now the knowledge of God, however poor, is disdained
• The result of their disdain of God's existence, is that God gives them up a third time.  What is the overall category here that God gives them over to?
• A depraved mind
• Definition: impairment of virtues and moral principles (thefreedictionary.com)
• Doing what ought not to be done
• The list is incredible and pretty much describes most societies today.  I want to focus on the last verse, vs. 32
• Men know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death
• Men know the result is death
• Men continue to sin
• Men approve of those who do the same things
• APPLICATION: Deep down, we all know that we sin.  We all recognize that 'certain sins' leads to death.  But where we fool ourselves is thinking that our sin does not deserve death