"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. 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; 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."
Romans 1:18-21
Part 1
Today: God’s Fearsome Wrath against Sin
“From heaven, God shows how angry He is with all the wicked and evil things that sinful people do to crush the truth” (Romans 1:18, CEV[1]).
If we put out a poll to find out the absolute worst problem mankind has to deal with today, what would you say? Many would bring up “global warming” and the problems of global ecology. Perhaps “world hunger” would be in the top choices. “World peace” and the problems of war, “chemical warfare,” and/or “biological warfare” would no doubt top the chart. “Nuclear weapons” are a fearful possibility. “Terrorism” is on people’s minds around the world. And yet, none of these are the worst issue that humanity will be facing. According to God’s Word, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31). The most significant worry for mankind is the “wrath of the All-powerful God!”
The apostle Paul takes the time to let us in on information we need about the God of heaven and His wrath.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven.”
But what is God angry about, and why is he willing to express His wrath? This doesn’t fit the picture that so many people have of God being like an old white-haired grandfather sitting back in his rocking chair and dozing off because he is weak and tired. That is not the picture of God in the Bible. God is worked up to the point of wrath by one thing in this verse. This word wrath comes from a Greek word that means “to swell.” The picture is something small that grows large by swelling up. Indeed God’s wrath is swelling and swelling, but why? Because man has chosen “his own way” and has sinned against Him.
“For the wrath of God” – “His holy displeasure and righteous vengeance against sin”[2] (JFB).
“We sometimes object to the idea of the wrath of God because we equate it with human anger, which is motivated by selfish personal reasons or by a desire for revenge. We must not forget that the wrath of God is completely righteous in character”[3] (Guzik).
How is God’s wrath “revealed from heaven” to us? There are two ways. The first is through the written Word of God. God has recorded for us what He wants us to know about Him, and His Word is clear. The Jews had an advantage here because they learned about the God of heaven through their Law. The second way that men can know about God is through their God-given conscience. Instinctively, even a child knows when they do wrong that punishment is deserved. God has put certain truths about himself into man’s heart. We are accountable to God, for He is our Creator. The problem for man comes when he ignores either the written Word of God or his own conscience. Just because a man might ignore what God says, it does not excuse him.
“Against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.”
There are two issues here with mankind, their ungodliness and their unrighteousness. Their ungodliness is characterized by wanting nothing to do with God –
“that is their whole irreligiousness, or their living without any conscious reference to God, and proper feelings towards Him”[4] (JFB).
Irreverence is a crucial characteristic of the ungodly. And the ungodly are unrighteous because the lost man is sinful to the core. Unsaved man has no godly morals. Their unrighteousness is seen from what comes out of their hearts. The heart controls their mouths (their speech) and their actions (behavior).
The natural man is unrighteous. “This follows naturally from irreverence. The basis of ethical conduct rests on the nature of God and our attitude toward him, otherwise the law of the jungle (cf. Nietzsche, “might makes right”)”[5] (RWP).
It makes sense then that when a man rejects God, he also begins hating those that God has made. Why is there so much hatred in the world today? Because, for the most part, man has rejected God outright. What a man believes will ultimately show up in what he thinks, does, and says.
“Who hold the truth in unrighteousness.”
Since God has placed a conscience within the heart of every living human being, each person knows some truth about God. But the question is, what will a lost person do with the truth about God that they have? Paul tells us here, they “hold the truth in unrighteousness.” It is not that lost people “hold onto the truth of God” but they “rather, ‘hold down,’ ‘hinder,’ or ‘keep back’”[6] God’s truth (JFB).
“Truth… is out in the open, but wicked men, so to speak, put it in a box and sit on the lid and ‘hold it down in unrighteousness.’ Their evil deeds conceal the open truth of God from men”[7] (RWP).
Now it begins to make sense why God is angered because of our sin. In verse 16, Paul shows us God’s plan for salvation for lost humanity.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16).
“Paul spoke of salvation – but what are we saved from? First and foremost, we are saved from the wrath of God that we righteously deserve. ‘Unless there is something to be saved from, there is no point in talking about salvation’”[8] (Morris).
Please come back tomorrow as we begin to discuss what it is that all humans know about God.
Quote: “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36).
[1] CEV is the Contemporary English Version.
[2] JFB, Jamison, Fausset, and Brown. Jamison-Fausset-Brown’s Commentary, the electronic version in eSword. Romans 1:18. The emphasis is theirs.
[3] Guzik’s quote is from the Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword. Romans 1:18a. The emphasis is his.
[4] JFB, ibid.
[5] A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, the electronic version in eSword. Romans 1:18.
[6] JFB, ibid.
[7] A.T. Robertson, ibid.
[8] Morris’s quote borrowed from the Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword. Romans 1:18a. The emphasis is his.