Historical Background:  Without question, the Apostle Paul wrote the New Testament book of Romans.  Written as a personal letter to the saints living in Rome, Paul expresses his desire to visit them.  At the time of his writing, the news of their faith in Jesus Christ “is being reported in all the world,” 1:8.  Of course that news would resonate with the Apostle Paul.  At the time of his writing this letter, Paul was completing the work of his 3^rd missionary journey, AD 53-57.  The last part of his work was to revisit the churches of Macedonia and Achaia in order to collect an offering for the Jerusalem church.  Once the offering was collected and delivered Paul was convinced that he would be unhindered in making a visit to Rome, 1:13.  As with other churches that Paul wrote to, his purpose in writing was both pastoral and missional.  He hoped to visit them in order to strengthen them, 1:11, and he hoped that they would support him in traveling to Spain to share the gospel there, 15:22-33.

Doctrinal Emphasis – God has a plan for evangelizing the world.  God’s plan for evangelizing the world is the local church.  God revealed that plan to the Apostles so our understanding of God’s plan for evangelizing the world should be the same as theirs.  We should be about strengthening the local church and planting new churches.  This is not an either/or type of strategy.  It is a both/and type of strategy.  It happens simultaneously and it happens through the preaching and teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Literary Structure – The book of Romans is a systematic presentation of this gospel.  Aspects of the gospel are presented in this order:

• the essence of sin
• salvation accomplished on the cross
• the union of the believer with Christ
• how the Holy Spirit works in the life of the Christian to promote holiness
• the place of the Jewish people in God’s plans
• future things
• Christian living

Today, we are beginning with Paul’s teaching on the essence of sin which he covers from chapter 1, verse 18, through chapter 3, verse 20.  Specifically, our preaching text for today is Romans 1:18-32.

“People Who Suppress The Truth By Their Wickedness”

Romans 1:18-32

“Nothing keeps people away from Christ more than their inability to see their need of him or their unwillingness to admit it.”  John Stott.  Romans: 67.  As Jesus put it:  “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

In this pronouncement, Jesus did not mean that some people are righteous and do not need salvation, but that some people think they are.  In our scripture passage today, we are going to read about some people who do think this way and live this way,  and what God has to say about it.

Romans 1:18

18.  “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness,

Here’s our question of the day?  Do you know anybody, including yourself and excluding Jesus, who is the perfect, eternal Son of God, who is not a sinner and does not need to be saved from their sins?

Last Sunday, Easter Sunday, we began our preaching series on Romans with the “good news” of the gospel and Paul’s bold confession:  “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes:  first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”  (1:16)

Paul goes on to say in verse 17 that the reason why the gospel is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes is because in it the righteousness of God is being revealed [uncovered, made manifest].  What is Paul saying here about the righteousness of God?  What Paul is saying about the righteousness of God being revealed is that God’s plan for saving us from our sins is the only plan that works and it is the only plan that we need.

In a similar manner to verse 17, Paul opens this section of his letter in verse 18 by announcing that the wrath of God is being revealed [uncovered, made manifest] and the reason is because ungodly and evil people are suppressing the truth by their wickedness.  What Paul is saying here is that unless we understand the reason for the wrath of God, we will never respond to the Gospel.  All of the following points are encapsulated in verse 18.

The Wrath of God Defined

1.  Just as grace is God’s response to faith, wrath is God’s response to sin.

2.  The wrath of God is categorically not the same as anger typically expressed by man.

3.  The wrath of God “is being revealed from heaven.”  Paul uses a present tense verb here to indicate that God’s wrath is taking place in the present.   The Greek word is apokalyptetai, and we get our English equivalent “apocalyptic.” 

In addition, with the expression, “from heaven,” Paul is saying that if we truly know the character of God, then we know that He cannot tolerate evil of any kind because He is holy.  God sets the standard for what is right and wrong and He will respond to that which He determines to be wrong.

Sometimes people will ask if God ever changes his standards of right versus wrong?  The expression “from heaven” refers to the fact that the righteous judgments of God are applied universally, equally and fairly.  There is no favoritism with God.  See Romans 2:11.

4.  The wrath of God is a biblical revelation.

The biblical record of human history from its very beginning, Adam and Eve, reveals that any disobedience to God’s commands, is a personal offense to God and brings an immediate response from Him.  The wrath of God is not a new revelation.  It is, also, a continuing revelation that becomes more obvious and more manifest as time goes on.

Romans 1:18-23

(18)  For God’s wrath is against “all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, (19) since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.  (20)  For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

     (21) For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, bu their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  (22)  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools (23) and exchange the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

The Wrath of God Explained

The words “godlessness” and “wickedness” are terms that point back to Mount Sinai and the giving of the Law, particularly, the Ten Commandments.   “Godlessness” by definition is any offense against God that is expressed as rebellion against His sovereign authority and disobedience to His commands.  “Wickedness” is any injustice committed against another person.”  Jesus explained that “godlessness” and “wickedness” are behaviors that are rooted in and that reveal the condition of our hearts.  See Matthew 15:1-20/Mark 7:1-23.

We need the wrath of God explained because we are sinners by nature and by choice.  We cannot plead ignorance before the wrath of God because the witness of creation is a clear testimony of God’s eternal power and divine nature.  Therefore, we are without excuse.  (19-20)

We need the wrath of God explained because we are sinners by nature and by choice.  We cannot plead innocence before the wrath of God because we have chosen not to glorify God as our Creator nor to give thanks for His goodness in providing for our basic needs. Our conscience bears witness that we know God but because of our sinful choices we have exchanged the glory of God for foolish idols.  (21-23)

We need the wrath of God explained because we are sinners by nature and by choice.  We cannot plead ignorance nor innocence before the wrath of God because of the witness of Creation, our conscience and now, even the cross. 

Jesus has promised that He will come again and with this promise He also warns us to be ready for His return because that Day will be the day of God’s judgment.  This is a truth that we must not suppress.  The wrath of God is not a convenient truth for us today.  It is culturally unacceptable but it is still God’s truth.  Let’s look at how God reveals His wrath in the lives of those who refuse to repent of their sins and receive the forgiveness that God offers through faith in Jesus Christ.

Romans 1:24-32

     (24)  “Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.  (25)  They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised. Amen

     (26)  Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts.  Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.  (27)  In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.  Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

     (28)  Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.  (29)  They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity.  They are full off envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice.  They are gossips, (30) slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; (31) they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.  (32)  Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they no only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”

The Wrath of God Revealed

What does God’s wrath look like right now?  Thunder bolts from heaven?  Don’t we normally associate wars and rumors of wars, natural disasters and, even, persecution of Christians, along with their increase in intensity and frequency, with the imminent return of Jesus Christ, which, again, is associated with the Day of God’s wrath? Yes, we do.  See Matthew 24.  Even this prophetic prediction is being suppressed.  See 2 Peter 3:3.

What does God’s wrath look like right now?  To us, it may look like tolerance of or, even worse, an indifference to “the godlessness and wickedness of men.”  Paul explains the truth of how God’s wrath is being expressed in the world today.  We don’t want to miss this.  For people who suppress the truth of God (18), who know “God’s eternal power and divine nature” from the witness of creation (19-20), for people who refuse to give God the glory that He deserves or give Him thanks for his goodness and create for themselves their own gods – “exchanging the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles (21-23) – God gives them over:

to sexual impurity (24); to shameful lusts (26); and, to a depraved mind (28).

God’s wrath is being expressed in the lives of godless and wicked people by letting them live out their sinful desires and suffer the consequences.

Concerning sexual impurity, vv. 24-25, idolatry leads to immorality.  Paul does not specify what kind of immorality he is thinking about but I’m sure that he has seen a lot.  Remember that Paul is writing this letter from Corinth, a major city in the Roman province of Achaia during the latter part of his 3^rd missionary journey.  Corinth was know for its idolatry and sexual perversity.  Paul doesn’t have to specify what kind of immorality he is thinking about.  He has seen sexual degradation.  He knows where it comes from.  It comes from people who “exchange the truth of God for a lie and [who]  worship and serve created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised.  Amen.”  (25)

Concerning shameful lusts, vv. 26-27, unnatural relations lead to the due penalty.  Paul does specify what kind of shameful lusts he is referring to.  He is referring specifically to lesbian practices and homosexual relationships. The reason Paul can specify these practices and relationships as “shameful lusts” is because he knows God’s original intent in creation:

God created humankind “male” and “female.”  God instituted marriage as a heterosexual union.  What God has created and united, we have no liberty, right or freedom to separate. Genesis 1:27; 2:24; Mark 10:5-9.

Only God knows the penalty for people violating this created order.  Whatever the penalty is, it is just and they receive it within themselves.

Concerning a depraved mind, vv. 28-32, a seared conscience leads to anti-social behavior.  Paul, again, specifies some anti-social behaviors, which taken together, lead to the breakdown of human society. Where do these behaviors come from and why would anyone with common sense and logic do these things?  Notice verse 32 for the explanation.

“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.”

It’s not the truth that these people are suppressing.  It is God’s righteous decree that they are suppressing .  They know the consequences of sin and that, according to God’s decree, they deserve death.  They choose to ignore it, and even worse, encourage others to do the same by approving what God disapproves.

So there we have it.  The wrath of God is very much in evidence in the world today in the behavior and attitudes of people who choose godlessness and wickedness for how they want to live their lives.

Are any of these things – sinful attitudes and behaviors – present among us.  If they are what should we do?  Should we harden our hearts and suppress the truth by pretending that it’s no big deal?  We are going to learn more about this next week when Paul shifts his attention to the problem of self-righteous arrogance through the works of the law, but you don’t have to wait until next week to get right with God.

Before we get to the connection points and your response to God’s message today, I would like to wrap this up with a song that truly reflects my response.  It is entitled, “All I Have Is Christ.”

I once was lost in darkest night, yet thought I knew the way.

The sin that promised joy and life had led me to the grave,

I had no hope that You would own a rebel to Your will,

        and if You had not loved me first, I would refuse you still.

But as I ran my hell-bound race, indifferent to the cost,

You looked upon my helpless state and led me to the cross.

And I beheld God’s love displayed, You suffered in my place, You bore

          the wrath reserved for me.  Now all I know is grace.

Hallelujah!  All I have is Christ.  Hallelujah!  Jesus is my life.

Now, Lord, I would be Yours alone, and live so all might see

The strength to follow Your commands could never come from me.

Oh, father, use my ransomed life in any way You choose,

          and let my song forever be, my only boast is You.

Hallelujah!  All I have is Christ.  Hallelujah!  Jesus is my life.

[Words and Music:  Jordan Kauflin.  2008:  Sovereign Grace Praise]