INTERNET BIBLE STUDIES Romans Lesson 2
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Romans Chapter 1:18-32

Distributed by:  Internet Bible Studies

 

Memory verses for this week: Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

 

Introduction:     We continue our study on the first chapter of the book of Romans this week.   Last week, Paul told the Roman church how that he had been separated unto the gospel of God.  He spoke of how the church there in Rome was known all around the world due to their faith.   Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and you and I should show forth that same confidence and determination in our daily walk.

 

I.  The Wrath of God Against Sin Revealed

Rom 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 

We see that the wrath of God comes because of sin.  We know that God hates all forms of sin, but he loves the sinner and has provided payment for our sins through Christ for all who will come unto him. 

Gen 6:5  And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Gen 6:6  And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

Gen 6:7  And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 

It was sin in the days of Noah that caused God to destroy all the people outside of the ark.  God’s wrath was poured out upon mankind.

 

Gen 13:13  But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly. 

Gen 19:24  Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;

Gen 19:25  And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. 

The sin of homosexuality was the cause of the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.   When people glorify sin and call it good, God is not pleased.  We should never pick out one particular sin and be ultimately hard on it, but when people say a sin is not sin, we should let God’s Word decide what is truth. 

Isa 5:20  Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Isa 5:21  Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! 

Verse 18 declares that God’s wrath is against ALL ungodliness and unrighteousness.  It is also against those who hold (or hinder) the truth in unrighteousness.   You don’t have to look far around you to see this going on in many religious circles today.   We need to be strong men and women and stand on “thus saith the Word of God.”

 

II.  Two Natures

 Rom 1:19  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them.

 Verse 19 speaks of the nature that is in man.   We have the knowledge of right and wrong, but we are fallen creatures due to the sin nature we inherited from Adam.    Verse 19 declares that it is God who has shown this to man.

 

Rom 2:14  For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:

Rom 2:15  Which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)

 

Matthew Henry in his commentary on Romans said this about our sinful condition.  “The apostle begins to show that all mankind need the salvation of the gospel, because none could obtain the favour of God, or escape his wrath by their own works. For no man can plead that he has fulfilled all his obligations to God and to his neighbour; nor can any truly say that he has fully acted up to the light afforded him. The sinfulness of man is described as ungodliness against the laws of the first table, and unrighteousness against those of the second. The cause of that sinfulness is holding the truth in unrighteousness. All, more or less, do what they know to be wrong, and omit what they know to be right, so that the plea of ignorance cannot be allowed from any. Our Creator's invisible power and Godhead are so clearly shown in the works he has made, that even idolaters and wicked Gentiles are left without excuse.”

 

Rom 1:20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

 

It says that the invisible things of God (His eternal power and divinity) are see in the universe which is the work of God’s hands.   

Gen 8:20  And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

Gen 8:21  And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

Gen 8:22  While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

 

God declared that there would be seed time and harvest.. this declared that there is a God.   When we look up into the heavens at night, the handiwork of God is displayed.   What could hold all of the planets and stars in place if it were not for a higher power that exists than man.   The bible declares that it is God that holds the stars in place and on their course. 

Job 9:2  I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?

Job 9:3  If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.

Job 9:4  He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?

Job 9:5  Which removeth the mountains, and they know not: which overturneth them in his anger.

Job 9:6  Which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble.

Job 9:7  Which commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars.

Job 9:8  Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea. 

Psa 19:1  To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork.

 

Acts 14:17  Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.

 

God did not leave Himself without a witness.   Nature itself points to the existence of the mighty Creator of the Universe.  By the two natures, man can know that there is a God and is left without excuse.  The most primitive of tribes when found are worshipping something.   There is an indwelt nature of man to know that there is something greater and bigger than man.   But that knowledge can not save a man or woman, it is by them hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ and turning to God with faith and repentance, both of which are gifts of God.

 

III.  At the Beginning All Men Knew God

 Rom 1:21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Rom 1:22  Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

 

In the early years of man, all men knew God but became foolish and turned from Him.  There were perhaps men wise in man’s wisdom.   God has several interesting things to say about the wisdom of man.

 

1 Cor 2:4  And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

1 Cor 2:5  That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

1 Cor 2:6  Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:

 

1 Cor 1:20  Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

1 Cor 1:21  For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

1 Cor 1:22  For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

1 Cor 1:23  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

1 Cor 1:24  But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

1 Cor 1:25  Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

 

 

Rom 1:23  And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 

We see man professed himself to be wise, and in so doing became a fool.  We need to understand our weaknesses and look to God for wisdom.  Remember what the beginning of wisdom is? 

Psa 111:10  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.

Psa 112:1  Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.

 

In verses 21-23, we see several things that these fools did.

 

·        They refused to glorify God.

·        They were unthankful.

·        They became vain in their imaginations.

·        Their foolish hearts were darkened

·        The professed themselves to be wise

·        They became fools.

 

What is it that causes a person to become a fool?  It is their rejection of the light of God’s knowledge. 

John 3:19  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

John 3:20  For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

John 3:21  But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

 

IV. The Results 

Rom 1:24  Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 

The physical man is going to control us if the spiritual man does not.   Until we are saved, there is just the sin nature.  But when we are saved, a battle goes on inside us.   It is a daily battle, and the only way the spiritual man will win is if we are walking close to the Lord and reading our bibles and letting the Holy Spirit direct our lives.  When man reverts to his sin nature, it is displeasing to God.  Verse 24 says God gave them up to uncleanness through the lust of their hearts. 

Rom 1:25  Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 

Man changed the truth of God into a lie.  Do we have any of that going on today?  Almost every month a new version (or perversion) of the Bible is being released, and that is not how God does things.  God settled His word in the Heavens years ago, and we do not need 15 versions to read to try and figure out what God has said.   While I know that the King James Version of the bible is a translation from the Greek and Hebrew texts, I believe it is the Word that God promised to preserve down through the ages.   As man keeps tampering with the Words that God stated, it becomes more and more diluted and farther from what God originally said.   I’d much rather read the exact wording of what was said than to listen to scholars debate what they “think” God meant to say.   God promised to preserve His word forever, and I believe we still have that “preserved Word” in our bible today.   Verse 25 goes on to say that man worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator.   More and more books are written on how we ourselves determine our lives.   God gives each of us a brain to use, but our lives are truly in God’s hands.   We need to worship God and put Him in his proper authoritative position. 

From the beginning, Satan has changed the truth of God into a lie.  Today, we have many preaching a number of things as prerequisites to salvation… works, baptism, ordinances, etc. etc.   But the truth is that God by His mercy and Grace saves us, and it is wholly and totally of God.   Salvation is a gift, and we do not work in order to obtain it nor to keep it. 

Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Eph 2:7  That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

Rom 1:26  For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

Rom 1:27  And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.

Rom 1:28  And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

 It is a sad day when God turns a man or woman over to their vile affections.  We need to crucify the flesh which wars against our spiritual man.  We see condemnation of the sin of homosexuality again in verse 27.  It goes on to say that they did not retain God in all their knowledge.  People in the world today have seared their consciences as it were with a hot iron.   They go on in the sinful ways thinking that judgement will never come.  But it will come, many times before we are ready to meet God.  

Rom 1:29  Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

Rom 1:30  Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

Rom 1:31  Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Rom 1:32  Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

 

It says that they knew that the judgment of God was coming, but they still committed such things as were worthy of death.   Some were even pleased in seeing others commit sin.   We are wrong to feel this way, and should guard ourselves not only against such things, but stand up and be counted against the things that God hates.  God is a loving God, but he truly hates sin and those who are still under that curse and condemnation need to find Christ as Savior. 

Psa 7:11  God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.

 

 

Internet Bible Studies are prepared and distributed free of charge.  The lessons may not be sold without consent.   If you have questions or wish to discuss the lessons, or possibly need help in finding Jesus Christ as your Personal Lord and Savior, contact David Parham at 940-322-4343.

 

Prov 4:18  But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

 

e-mail at:   davidparham@cst.net

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