Romans 1:18-25

 

Three Truths from These Verses

  1. God Has Clearly Revealed Himself in Creation and Conscience. … Paul shows us that God has revealed Himself to us through creation and through us by our conscience. This is what we call “general revelation.” Creation is an amazing thing. Consider just Earth. The number of things that had to be perfect just for life to exist here is staggering. If any of those variables were altered just a little, life would not exist here
  2. But Humanity Has Suppressed the Truth. … This is not ignorance. When we suppress the truth, we are actively working against it, like holding a beach ball underwater. The revelation in creation and our conscience is enough for us to recognize God is real.
  3. This exchange has resulted in…
    1. Ingratitude … The people showed no gratitude to God. Everything we have is from God and we should show our gratitude to God. Instead, we often raise ourselves up for the successes in our lives when we really should be praising God. 
    2. Confused Thinking … The term “sophomore” fits here. It means “wise moron.” Often, we think we know things we don’t really know. And we’re confident in our thinking. But when we go against God, we’re wrong, we’re fools--morons. 
    3. Idolatry … The people didn’t stop worshiping. Instead, they started to worship other things, things created by men that resembled things God had created. They started worshiping created things instead of the Creator. It’s ok to admire things. The problem is, as Tim Keller puts it, “the human heart loves to make a good thing into its god thing.” 
    4. Moral Decay … God allowed the people to fall into immorality when they suppressed the truth and stopped following Him. Without God, there is no absolute moral standard. As a result, a society without God will tend to fall into immorality. 

 

For Further Study/Resources the Pastor Used to Prepare This Message

  • Exalting Jesus in Romans by Tony Merida
  • Teach the Text by Marvin Pate, Romans
  • Preach the Word by Kent Hughes
  • ESV Expository Commentary by Robert Yarbrough
  • Romans for You by Tim Keller
  • The Story of God Commentary by Michael Bird
  • Living Insights by Chuck Swindoll
  • NIV Application Commentary by Doug Moo