Dear Student of the Word,
Greetings from Kenya! I have found a bit of time to edit my first installment of our next study and that will be Paul's letter to the Romans! This week, we dive into Paul's introductory remarks, which lead to his startling explanation of sexual impurity being rooted in idolatry! I hope you enjoy this next online study. Here is a sneak peek at what I wrote in this week's study:
Study One, Part Five
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, 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, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
1:18&19 – These next verses clearly explain the source of much of the world’s perversity, wickedness and sexual impurity. It all starts when men suppress the truth—truth that is plain for all to see. There are always implications when anyone suppresses the truth—someone once said if you don’t deal with what’s in you, what’s in you will deal with you. If you hate, and suppress the truth that God wants you to see about love and forgiveness, then that hate will manifest itself in other ways. God’s wrath will ultimately rest on that hatred and it will come to light, perhaps through slander, bitterness or even, God forbid, murder.
God makes things plain for all to see, but you can make things complicated so that you won’t have to face the truth. That is the human condition—God is pursuing man, but man is running from God and from His truth.
Are you suppressing the truth in any area? Are you avoiding your purpose, or something that God wants you to do? Are you ignoring a heart issue that bubbles to the surface every now and then to beckon you to deal with it?
1:20 – This verse refers to what theologians call “general revelation.” All creation speaks to the existence of God. It is possible for someone to sit on a hillside, look up at the stars and the expanse of heaven, and conclude that there is a God. Someone else may see a baby born, or the vastness of the oceans and determine that there is a God. Either of these are examples of general revelation. General revelation cannot reveal God’s plan for salvation or the need to put faith in His Son, but it can point men to the knowledge of God’s existence.
And obviously, God holds men accountable to come to the proper conclusion that He exists from this general revelation.
1:21 – Men who knew God refused to glorify Him or give thanks. When that happens, the mind becomes darkened and logic leads to futility. If God isn’t given His proper place, over time all men’s efforts lead to foolishness. That is certainly the condition of the modern world.
As always, I welcome your comments to this week's study. For additional Bible studies, check out my website archive, which contains a complete collection of all my verse-by-verse New Testament studies, along with the unpublished volume of The Faith Files.
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