Broken: Because of the consequences of sin - Romans 1;18-32
Broken because of the Consequences of Sin
Romans 1:18-32
I. Introduction
A. Genesis 3:14-19 – The are cursed for their disobedience
B. The consequence of sin is this: The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness (18)
II. We deny God’s glory (18-23)
A. Illustration –
B. Exegesis
1. We know about God (18-20)
a) His invisible qualities are plain to them
(1) Eternal Power – shown in creation
(2) Divine nature – Shown in our conscience
b) They are clearly seen and understood through creation
c) He is great and worthy of glory – We should honor and serve Him as Lord – following Him as such away from sin
(1) Glory=kabod=weight
(2) We are giving God’s great weightiness to the creation instead of the creator
2. But we did not glorify Him or thank Him
a) We knew Him
b) We, in our sin nature, wanted to be our own Gods
(1) We didn’t want His obligations
(2) We didn’t want anyone above us
(3) We wanted to turn only to ourselves for what we wanted to do
c) Thinking became futile - Literally it was “worthless” – there was no value to their thoughts – they did not make sense with truth
(1) Dr. Mohler’s commentary on biocentric plant rights – giving plants rights and having to treat them humanley
d) Claimed to be wise, but exchanged the glory of the immortal with the mortal
(1) Look at the descent – man, birds, animals, reptiles
(2) Gave up the immortal for the mortal
(3) Incorruptible for the corruptible
(a) If we desire the corruptible, he will allow further corruption
(4) In our sinfulness, we take the nothing over the greatness of God rather than being constrained from our sin
C. Application
1. We bring God down to nothing
2. We like to be our own God (IDOLATRY)
3. We make up our own idols, therefore our own gods in our image – that we can live up to and who accept us in our sin
4. When we do this we deny the glory of God which He wants to share with us
III. We deny God’s truth (24-27)
A. Exegesis
1. God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts
a)
b) To sexual immorality
c) And the degradation of their bodies with one another
(1) Speaking specifically of homosexuality because it is a complete inversion of God’s natural (and obvious) order
(2) But sin does degrade us in everyway – it cheapens who we are as the creation of a perfect God and the object of His salvation
2. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie - Served created things rather than the creator
3. God gave them over to their shameful lusts
a) He gave them over to their sin – gave them what they wanted
b) Homosexuality is the illustration – He let sin run it’s course
4. Examining the course of homosexuality
a) Never enjoying the joys of a monogamous heterosexual relationship in marriage that was intended by God
b) No procreation –
(1) No children
(2) Lower birthrate for society – The population explosion is no longer the problem. In most modern cultures the population is in decline causing destabilization because the younger population cannot sustain what the larger population has built (i.e. social security in the US)
c) Health risks
d) Ultimately judgment for living against God’s will – receiving due penalty
B. Application
1. Every big problem in life begins with denying God’s glory (idolatry)
2. Then we deny His truth
a) Alcoholism –
(1) begins with the denial that God can handle our problems and the feeling that we, as our own gods, must handle them ourselves
(2) Then we deny the truth that drunkenness is wrong and we do it anyway
(3) Then we find ourselves in problems that we cannot get over
b) Sexual infidelity
c) Relationship problems – begin with the idolatry of selfish pride
3. We must accept God’s truth as the only truth
4. There is an aimlessness to the morality of those who reject God. We don’t know what is right and what is wrong. We don’t even know what right is as a concept. Is anything right or wrong. Consequently, we bring destruction upon ourselves, but rather than call something wrong we deny the connection. Homosexuality with all it’s destruction is considered normal to a public that does not believe in God. The same is true of the destruction of lust and sexual promiscuity. We are slow to call sex outside of marriage, but we continually see the difficulties of multiple partners, the shame and emotional damage of unwed sex, the out of control inflation of unwanted pregnancies. We deny the emotional pain of abortion, not to mention the social damage of a lost generation who will not be able to economically sustain the generation or retirees coming up because it is more right to give a woman choice
IV. We deny God’s blessing (28-32)
A. This morning we made cinnamon rolls for the kids. Just as they came out of the oven Jake was yelling, “I want a cinnamon roll.” I explained that they were hot and needed to cool. He relied, “no they’re not hot.” My first thought was to give it to him to show him. He was giving up the truth to satisfy his want. I could have given him up to his desire and allowed the truth to “burn him.”
B. Exegesis
1. The punishment of sin is sin!!!
2. In Genesis 3, what did God want for His people – perfect relationship in paradise
3. Since we have chosen idolatry and sin, God gives us what we ask for – Gives us over to a depraved mind – we spiral downward in our sin
4. He lists sin – multitude of bad – Sinful society
5. The worst is they have lost all shame – they give approval to others who practice evil – they celebrate sin
C. Application
1. We are deceived into believing that we are creating a utopia of sin in our lives, but the reality is never that way. We are miserable and wanting something different desperately.
V. Conclusion
A. This is a snapshot of our society – what will we do about it?
B. This is a snapshot of many of your lives – what will you do about it?
1. accept God’s glory
2. accept God’s truth
3. accept God’s blessing
C. The wrath of God in this case is actually God’s grace. It teaches us of His truth and mercy while we can till turn. There will come a time when God’s wrath is irreversible. We can still turn to Him in His glory, His truth, and receive His blessings through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who took upon Himself the full wrath of God on our behalf
D. Hope - 1 John 1:8-10, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives."
Biocentric Plant Rights – Switzerland amended it constitution to require, “That the dignity of creation” must be taken into account “when handling animals, plants, and other organisms.”
The wall Street Journal in an article said,
“Defenders of the law argue that it reflects a broader, progressive effort to protect the sanctity of living things. Last month, Switzerland granted new rights to all "social animals." Prospective dog owners must take a four-hour course on pet care before they can buy a canine companion, while anglers must learn to catch fish humanely. Fish can't be kept in aquariums that are transparent on all sides. The fish need some shelter. Nor can goldfish be flushed down a toilet to an inglorious end; they must first be anesthetized with special chemicals, and then killed.”