Message #3 (Evening) - Rebellion

Passage Romans 1:18-3:20

Question: What would you consider to be your favourite book?

In almost every story and literature, you encounter a problem and conflict.

That’s usually what makes the story interesting.

That’s generally because you start to anticipate how the problem or the conflict is solved.

This morning, Leo covered creation and how God created the world.

That’s the beginning of God’s story.

The story is set up in a location where God created the world to be good and very good.

Question: What is the problem with this world? What is the cause of this problem?

People generally recognize that there are problems in this world.

Mental Health

Educational Challenges

Some form of addiction

Drugs

Social Media

Chasing Clout

Loneliness and social isolation

This was especially the issue during the pandemic.

Identity Crisis

Who am I?

Injustice and inequality in the world.

Diseases, Plagues, Illnesses

Cancer

Perhaps there are more we can list out and talk about.

In God’s story, we have a problem. The Bible explains to us what the problem is.

Genesis 3 - The Fall

Not too long after God created the world, the serpent tempted Eve to eat the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, which God commanded Adam and Eve not to eat.

However, they disobeyed by eating it. Subsequently, sin entered into the world and humans inherited sin nature.

It’s not too long later in God’s story we see the 1st physical death in Genesis 4, where Cain murdered his little brother, Abel.

A little later, the whole world is in rebellion against God.

Genesis 6:5: “The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

Some have said sin destroys everything it touches.

So, we have a problem in the world. The problem is rather multifaceted.

First, sin has entered into the world. We have a sin problem.

Second, we have the spiritual enemy, Satan and demons, roaming around the world.

Third, our sin problem arouses the anger of God.

So, we return to the letter of Romans. Paul is helping us understand the gospel of God, which is really about God’s story and His good news. And Paul explains to us that God’s good news is the solution to the sin problem.

However, before I jump ahead of myself, I need to inform of you something.

We have bad news. Problems are usually bad news, right?

Paul doesn’t hesitate to tell us the bad news. In order for us to appreciate the good news, we need to know the bad news.

If we are to understand God’s story, we have to know it on his term, not on our term.

In the letter of Romans, Paul does give us the bad news, which is found in Romans 1:18-3:20.

This is a very length passage. We’re not going to cover all the details, but I’ll give a jet overview of this bad news that Paul talks about.

First, the wrath of God (Romans 1:18)

Humanity rejects God’s revelation (Romans 1:21).

Second, the abandonment of God (Romans 1:24-32)

Because of humanities sin, God gave them up to their sin. Three times, it uses this phrase, “God gave them up.” (vv. 24, 26, 28)

What does it mean for God to give them up?

It is that divine abandonment and its consequences that Paul develops in verses 24–32, the most sobering and fearful passage in the entire epistle.

God’s giving over sinful mankind has a dual sense.

First, in an indirect sense God gave them over simply by withdrawing His restraining and protective hand, allowing the consequences of sin to take their inevitable, destructive course.

In a second, direct sense God gave … over rebellious mankind by specific acts of judgment.

The Bible is replete with accounts of divine wrath being directly and supernaturally poured out on sinful men.

The flood of Noah’s day and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, for example, were not indirect natural consequences of sin but were overt supernatural expressions of God’s judgment on gross and unrepented sin.

God often allows men to go deeper and deeper into sin in order to drive them to despair and to show them their need of Him. Often He punishes men in order to heal and restore (Isa. 19:22)

Here, Paul speaks about it three times of God giving them up over.

First, God gave them up to the lust (or impurity) of their hearts.

Men’s lostness is not determined by the outward circumstances of their lives but by the inner condition of their hearts.

Jesus speaks about the heart.

The heart is not out anatomy.

It is our inner person: our will, motivation, thoughts, and desires.

The Bible says that the heart is deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9).

Plus, Jesus says that our heart comes evil (Matt 15:19-20).

Second, God gave them up to dishonourable passions.

In other words, God abandoned them sexually immoral inclination.

Third, God gave them up to a depraved mind.

Depraved can also carry the idea of worthlessness and uselessness.

Third, the judgment of God (Romans 2:1-16)

God’s judgment falls upon those who practice sin.

Notice, that in verse 5, it talks about God’s righteous judgment.

It’s a right judgment, not a bad judgment.

It’s a just verdict.

On those who do well.

On those who do wrong.

However, God knows that all have sinned without the law (those who are Gentiles).

God also knows that all have sinned under the law (those who are Jews).

Fourth, the impartiality of God (Romans 2:17- 3:8)

It doesn’t matter if you’re a Jew or Gentile (or non-Jewish).

Being a Jew doesn’t give you any advantage.

Who dares to attack and judge God? (Romans 3:5-8)

Fifth, the verdict of God (Romans 3:9-20)

Paul declares God’s verdict on fallen mankind that hasn’t turned from sin.

No matter what we do, we cannot justify or defend ourselves due to our sins.

Paul says, “there is none righteous.”

Perhaps you’ll say, “except for me!”

But Paul says, “there is none righteous, not even one.”

We’re all guilty of all charges before a holy and righteous God.

What’s the main point of this message?

If we are to understand God’s story, we are to understand who God is.