2022 0925 Romans 1:24-32

The Letter so Far - Chapter 1

Verse 1

Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God

Verse 16

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

Verse 18 and 19

Romans 1:18–19 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.

Romans 1:24 NIV

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.

therefore

let us be clear

God promised a life of righteousness and eternal life to mankind - he was free, free indeed

a life of wickedness was simply not ignored by God

God instituted a set of consequences, in order to reveal our need for his saving grace

it is wrong for humans to complain about God’s actions or his apparent inaction

Romans 1:25 NIV

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

the truth of God is the benchmark

Jesus says of himself - I am the way, the truth and the life

Satan offered a lie in the garden - that man was as important and powerful as God

man threw away God as the centre of our existence

man replace that with himself to be the centre

man worshipped and served himself

unsaved mankind is the ultimate expression of wickedness

Romans 1:26 NIV

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones.

Because of this

there are repercussions when we throw away God’s values, morals, law

instead of righteousness, evil is promoted within self

Paul is speaking from the culture of his times

he could be speaking into our times, such is the emphasis on sexual freedom

the focus on self leads to destructive lusts - what is proper gets distorted

Romans 1:28 NIV

Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done.

Furthermore

it gets worse - take this as a picture of what wickedness creates

the lack of God knowledge depraves the mind

want freedom then know Jesus Christ more fully

Ephesians 1:17 NIV

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

remember this is Paul giving an all encompassing overview of man, and his rebellion

followed by God ‘s redemptive grace in Jesus

Romans 1:29 NIV

They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,

Become Filled

every kind of wickedness comes from a corrupted spirit and a depraved mind

this now flows into the emotions

there is use, as suggested by commentators, of the list of wickedness or sins common at that time

the top 10 worst sins

quite relevant for today you would say

Romans 1:30–31 NIV

slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.

Romans 1:32 NIV

Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Approve Evil

the final fall from grace

the celebration of evil as being right, as being good

this is the depravity that sin brings

even though they know the righteousness of God in their being

even though they know their actions are wrong

they are so embedded in a life of wickedness that they celebrate evil

there is no reason, there is no excuse yet they do not see, do not hear

let us be people of light, doing what is right

we have the knowledge of Jesus Christ