"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 3
Yesterday: God Put the Knowledge of Himself in Us – We Can Know Him!
“Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them.”
“For God hath showed it unto them.”
Today: Man’s Ignorance of God Is Inexcusable!
“There are things about God that people cannot see—his eternal power and all that makes him God. But since the beginning of the world, those things have been easy for people to understand. They are made clear in what God has made. So people have no excuse for the evil they do” (Romans 1:20, HSB[1]).
Yesterday, as we looked at verse 19, we saw that God gave man some eternal truth about himself. Paul said, “that which may be known of God is manifest in them” (v 19). God has given every person a conscience that points up to Him. Today we will see that there is more than a man’s conscience that points to God.
“For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen.”
What are things about God that are clearly seen? The Word of God is sure, and God’s unseen things are distinctly seen. Yes, there are things about God’s nature that are invisible to the naked eye, yet we can see the results of these things every day. The 2 invisible things that Paul brings up are “God’s eternal power” and “His Godhead.”
How long have these invisible things been visible to God’s creatures on the earth? The Bible says from the beginning, from the time His creation was completed, these testimonies to the invisible God have been observable.
You might be thinking, but how can I see invisible things? Paul’s words may seem puzzling, but these things about God –
“Are clearly seen…. We have here an oxymoron, literally a pointedly foolish saying; a saying which is impressive or witty through sheer contradiction or paradox. Invisible things are clearly visible”[2] (Vincent).
“… the mind brightly beholding what the eye cannot discern” [3] (JFB).
This is how it’s possible to see invisible things –
“Being understood by the things that are made.”
“Since ‘God is spirit’ (John 4:24), all His qualities are invisible to physical eyes and can be understood by the human mind only as they are reflected in what has been made, that is, in God’s creative work”[4] (BKC).
As we observe the handiwork of the Creator, day after day, season after season, year after year, we must give honest thought to 2 truths about God:
1. He exists.
2. He is very powerful.
We could say it another way, God’s fingerprints are all over His creation. The order and design of the universe point to the power and majesty of the Creator. Yes, every design must have a designer.
What we see about God in creation boosts our faith in Him.
“That faith has its primary sources within our own breast (Romans 1:19), but it becomes an intelligible and articulate conviction only through what we observe around us (“by the things which are made,” Romans 1:20). And thus are the inner and the outer revelation of God the complement of each other, making up between them one universal and immovable conviction that God is”[5] (JFB).
“Even His eternal power and Godhead.”
“God’s eternal power” – creation is the proof that there is an Eternal Power, not just some mysterious “force,” or “spirit of nature” (as in pantheism). There is obviously the power of the living “Godhead.”
“His Godhead” – is “His divinity.” This mighty God plainly exists.
The ancient word used here as “Godhead” is the Greek word that literally means “godhood.” It means the “sum-total of divine attributes”[6] (Vincent).
“The attributes of God’s nature defined here as ‘his everlasting power and divinity’[7] (Robertson).
We certainly can trust the God who has made us. He has demonstrated over and over again His love and care for us. Besides all he has done for us, He has given us His Word that explains his love and redemption. Yes, He is the God to be trusted. And yet sadly, the natural man so often refuses to believe this evidence of God’s existence and power that is all around us. They are blind and groping for the truth in their own minds that they will never find.
“So that they are without excuse.”
Any human being who stands before God at the Great White Throne Judgment and tries to argue that they did not understand and that they did not know that God is there will soon learn that they have “no excuse.”
“The revelation of God’s power and divinity is given, so that, if, after being enlightened, they fall into sin, they may be without defense”[8] (Vincent).
“The universal revelation of God’s power and deity in creation means that no one can claim ignorance for failing to honor God as God (vv. 21–23). God’s wrath is therefore just (v. 18)”[9] (FSB).
“Paul’s conclusion to this description of natural revelation is important—men are without excuse. The witness to God in nature is so clear and so constant that ignoring it is indefensible. Their condemnation is based not on their rejecting Christ of whom they have not heard, but on their sinning against the light they have”[10] (BKC).
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let’s be faithful to continue to warn of this terrible judgment day coming. Today is a day of grace. Today salvation is possible. So let’s share the Gospel message faithfully.
Please come back tomorrow as we look at the fallen man’s chosen destructive path.
Quote: “Spurgeon rightly argues that if we do not preach the coming judgment and wrath of God, we do not preach the gospel at all. We would be like a surgeon who didn’t want to tell his patient that he is ill. He hopes to heal him without his knowing that he was sick. So he flatters him that he is well and the man refuses the cure. Such a doctor would be a murderer. And so are we, if we do not warn people about God’s impartial, certain judgment of our every secret, and then point them to the good news that Christ offers forgiveness to repentant sinners as their only hope”[11] (Cole).
[1] HSB is the Harvest Study Bible from Harvest Ministries in Guam.
[2] Vincent, M. R. (1887). Word studies in the New Testament (Vol. 3, pp. 15–18). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. The emphasis is his.
[3] JFB, Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 2, pp. 224–225). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
[4] BKC, Witmer, J. A. (1985). Romans. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, pp. 441–443). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. The emphasis is theirs.
[5] JFB, ibid. The emphasis is his.
[6] Vincent, M. R., ibid. This is Vincent’s take on theitoēs.
[7] A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, the electronic version in eSword. Romans 1:20.
[8] Vincent, M. R., ibid. The emphasis is his.
[9] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ro 1:18–23). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[10] BKC, ibid. The emphasis is theirs.
[11] Cole’s quote is from his sermon titled “God’s Impartial Judgment (Romans 2:12-16).” Downloaded: September 17, 2021. From: https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-11-god-s-impartial-judgment-romans-212-16.