Title: God's Wrath
Contents Matthew logically presents the gospel of God. To summarize this: In the first place, we are naked. Second, God puts on us the garments of righteousness. After that, he makes us people of the Holy Spirit. Finally, he makes us holy living sacrifices on his altar.
Today's text is the word that makes us naked. This is the most difficult part of the book of Romans to read. There is not a single verse that rejoices in our hearts. From the beginning to the end, the names of sins that are difficult to even talk about appear one after another. This is something we want to avoid. Nevertheless, we must go ahead with these words. In order to receive the Gospel as the Gospel, we must see our wickedness and corruption when we were outside Jesus.
A sick person should go to a doctor for an accurate diagnosis. An incorrect diagnosis will lead to incorrect treatment. We too need to accurately diagnose our spiritual condition. Only then will we immediately understand the gospel of the cross, the solution to God's wrath, which is the result of man's sin and sin. We often confess that we are sinners before God, but in fact, very few people know how dirty sinners were. To what extent do you know that you are a sinner?
Today's text begins with the word God's wrath. In fact, the main body of the book of Romans begins with today's text, verse 18. However, the first word begins with the word we do not want to hear, which is the wrath of God. Why should the main body of the book of Romans, which proclaims the gospel of God that brings salvation to all who believe, begin with the wrath of God? Because here is an important truth that we must not miss.
What is God's wrath? It is a response to sin because of the holy disposition of God, who cannot tolerate any sin. Therefore, God can never forgive sins. The manifestation of God's justice in judging sin is God's wrath. Among the wrath of God, the greatest wrath is the wrath of the cross. Jesus took the wrath of God for our sins. In this way, it is the wrath of God that he made even his son substitute for the judgment of sin.
However, the judgment of God's wrath takes place in two stages. The first is the eschatological judgment. The wrath of God will be revealed in the final judgment according to the words of 2:5. It will be eternal judgment. The second is the present judgment. In verse 18, the verb “appears from heaven” refers to an event that is currently in progress. It is a fact that God's wrath is manifesting here and now. Today's text does not deal with the eschatological wrath of judgment, but with the present wrath of judgment. I hope that you will receive an accurate spiritual diagnosis through today's Word. I hope that it will be a time to deeply realize the importance of the gospel of the cross.
1. Why does God show His wrath? (Verses 18-23)
First, look at verse 18. “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” God is angry because people block the truth with unrighteousness. Because they reject the truth and instead accept ungodliness and injustice.
The word godliness here means a heart that fears and loves God. Therefore, ungodliness is not loving God, and it is a state of not having a heart to fear God. Ignorance is called Godlessness in English. Literally, there is no God. Ignorance refers to hostility toward God, a religious sin. Those sins are listed in verses 21-25. Unrighteousness refers to the sins in verses 26-32, and it refers to evil that harms neighbors.
Rejecting the truth presupposes that you have already received it. It presupposes that you know the truth about God. Can a man say he knows God? Is it not because we have the instinctive knowledge of God to say that there is no God? In verse 19, God answers. “The things that may be known of God are revealed in them, and God has revealed them to them.” Calvin even said about this, "The consciousness of the existence of God is so ingrained in the marrow of man that it is impossible to erase it, and it may be easier to change the nature."
Then, with what did God first make Him known? Look at verse 20. He is making himself known through the things that God has created. Therefore, we declare that people cannot make excuses for not knowing God. Nevertheless, God's wrath is being revealed because people reject the truth.
Why does God's wrath come? This is because people become unthankful and foolish and serve idols. What attitude does one who rejects the truth have toward God? First, look at verse 21. “Knowing God, neither glorifying him as God nor giving thanks.” Then why do people commit the ungodly sin of knowing that there is a God, but knowingly not glorifying God? Look at verses 21-22. The first is that their thoughts became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Second, it is because they say they are wise but have become foolish.
Dear saints, when people reject the truth, what will they eventually serve? Verse 24. Instead of the glory of the eternal God, they will serve as idols the images of corruptible humans, animals, and waste. What idols do modern people mainly worship? Modern people serve themselves as idols. Also, modern people worship money as an idol. In this way, God's wrath is manifesting because they do not glorify God and foolishly serve the creatures as idols.
2. How, then, does God reveal his wrath? (Verses 24-32)
Verse 24. “Therefore God gave them over to uncleanness according to the lusts of their hearts.” It is a manifestation of God's wrath in itself that God allows people to sin more. Look again at verse 26. “For this reason God gave them over to shameful lusts.” We repeat again in verse 28. “They did not want to have God in their hearts, so God gave them over to a lost spirit.” It means that you have been abandoned by God.
Brothers and sisters, what you do as you please is judgment. God abandoned it. The forsaken person is now free to do as he pleases. This is judgment, and the wrath of God is upon us.
What is the specific judgment of God's abandonment? The first is idolatry in verse 24. What is left over in verse 24 is to be left to idolatry. Man was created to serve God. Nevertheless, denying God is itself being judged by God. Worshiping idols is also receiving the wrath of God, who “disgraces our bodies to one another.” Rather, to serve what a person should rule and rule is to give up the glory of a person and dishonor it.
What causes people to worship idols? The cause is that it comes from the lust of the heart. Therefore, idols are their masters. You can do it yourself. If you don't like it, you break it down and rebuild it. What is important in idols justifies sin. No one repents while serving idols. It is to justify oneself and to receive blessings. It is the essence of idolatry that aims at the enjoyment of depraved pleasures and lusts.
What are the consequences of God's forsaken wrath? What are the terminal effects of sin in corrupt humans? It is the fall of the castle. In verses 26-27, homosexuality is described. Some shocking studies show that 14 out of 15 Roman emperors were homosexuals. The emperor could have any number of women as concubines, but their shameful greed further pursued unnatural sex. This sexual depravity itself is the wrath of God. You can see that the law of causality and retribution appears relatively quickly in the fall of sex. Verse 27 says, “He received a due recompense for their wrongdoing.” We are seeing a terrible disease coming from sexual depravity. We see homes destroyed and families wounded.
What is the result of God's forsaken judgment? Verse 28. “God has given them over to their lost will, to do things that are not fitting.” A lost heart is a lost heart. What have you lost? I have lost God. What is “unworthy” here? These are the sins of verses 29-32.
Dear brothers and sisters, there is no greater blessing than being given an opportunity to repent and having a heart to repent even through tribulation and discipline. A heart that humbly repents at the moment of thought of sin is a blessed heart. A person who refuses to repent with any excuses when he thinks about his sin or when he is criticized for something wrong is an abandoned soul. Repentance is the evidence of a saved heart, that is, the state of not being forsaken by God. However, if you do not have the heart to repent even after you know you have done something wrong, and you only have the heart to make excuses, you will become more stubborn and seek stronger excuses. Then you end up thinking that what is wrong is right and insisting on it. This can be evidence that you have been abandoned by God. I hope you believe that being able to discover your sins and repent is a blessing.