Romans 1: 18-25
For the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men
All of Mankind, every one of us, deserves God's wrath, because we have all been born with the damaged DNA of our forefather Adam, and we have all thought and said and done things that are not up to God's standard of perfection.
But there are those who go beyond just personal turning away from God.
who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,
They actively push down God's Truth to keep it from being known by others.
because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.
God has not hidden Himself from any of us, but has revealed Himself to every one of us, making it obvious who He is. Here's how:
For since the creation of the World His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made,
When we just look around at the World, this Earth and how it works, and the Universe it resides in; reasonable people have always understood that Someone intelligent has made it all. It can't have made itself.
so that they are without excuse.
Since they obviously saw the same World and Earth and Universe, then they had to have deliberately decided to deny the evidence and make up some other, twisted reason for it all. So they'll have no excuse when they face their Judge and give account.
For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Since they refused to acknowledge God, they became vain in their imaginations, or futile in their speculations; they made up stories that had no basis in fact and were empty and useless.
This was very foolish, to deny what is real and make up fiction instead.
So God allowed them to replace the light He had given them with darkness. Jesus said that, if the light in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! (Matthew 6:23). We discussed this in this blog entry of that portion of the Sermon on the Mount.
Professing to be wise, they became fools,
The wisdom of this World is foolishness to God, because it's not how He designed this World to function.
and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures (reptiles).
The Second Commandment forbids the making of any statues like these, and also of anything in Heaven, too. So we are not to make any kind of image or statue or picture of anything or anybody anywhere to bow down to or pray to or light a candle to or sacrifice to or in any way give it the honor that belongs to God.
Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.
The ancient Pagan religion required sexual acts in worship of their demon deities. These included every deviation that could be devised in the imagination of Mankind, as inspired by the demons.
This has never changed. As Mankind has progressed in his societies to become more civilized, he has never let go of these deviations, which have been revived in in some way in every people group of every time in every place, where God is not worshiped.
For they exchanged the Truth of God for a lie,
Anything that is not of God is not true, because God is Truth.
and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Since it is programmed into Mankind to need to worship, when people turned away from God, they worshiped what they could see, what was created by the Creator. And it is the Creator who will be blessed forever.
Tomorrow we will continue in this chapter, to see how the Roman society was infected with the results of this turning away from God.
O my Father, You are the only One to be praised and honored and glorified forever! You are Creator who made everything that is.
The basis of all our Science is Thermodyamics, and its first law is Constancy--Whatever is, is. Nothing can be increased or added to it, and none of it can be destroyed to cease to exist, only to change form.
This is Your creation, Father. You alone are Creator, and You finished it, resting from creating on the seventh day. No one else can create, only change the form of what is.
And one Day, Father, You have decided that this Universe will be finished, and You will destroy it all, and make a whole New Heaven and Earth. Different from this one.
You are God, not us.
Just as my son could take his Legos and build a castle, or a town, or a forest; then, since he was god over his "creation," he could break it all down and build another castle, or town, or forest, whatever way he wanted; so You, God Almighty have authority over what You have made.
Father, Your Love for us is totally amazing! Even though we all deserve Your wrath, You sent Your own Son to take it upon Himself for us! Your justice demanded that it be poured out, but Your Love had You let our Lord suffer that wrath in our place, so that we could live with You! You Loved me that much!
You Love each of us that much! O Father, please strengthen Your children, teach us how to share Your Love with everyone, and help each one of us to reach those people that only we can reach, so that every person alive, everywhere in the World, in every Nation, in every people group, to understand Your gracious gift enough to make an informed decision whether to accept or reject Your unimaginable offer!
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, and every tongue will proclaim that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, the sovereign King of the Universe, to the glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever, Amen!
Even so, come soon, Lord Jesus!
