The Wrath of God Romans 1:18-32

Last week I talked about the faithfulness of God; today I would like to talk about the wrath of God.  God tells us who he is in Scripture; it tells us about his character and attributes.  We may be familiar with some of them as his holiness, his love and mercy, justice, and others.  Some people just like to talk about certain qualities of God and not others.  We love to talk about his love, grace, mercy and grace and we do not like to hear about his justice.  How about his wrath or judgments?  God cannot be just love and no wrath, then he would not be God at all because he would be unrighteous.  For God to love righteousness, he must also hate evil and sin; for God to love what is good and right, then he must also hate what is evil and wrong.  All through Scripture we read about God’s righteous wrath on humanity’s rebellion or lawless acts. (Genesis, Zephaniah)

John 3:16 so that whoever believes in him should not perish (come under his eternal wrath)

John 3:36 whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

What is this wrath of God? Rom.1:18-32

Paul addressed this topic in the letter to the Romans.  Here we see that the wrath of God is revealed (disclosed) from heaven.  In other words, it comes from God; it is part of who God is.

It is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth. (suppress = refrain, hinder, detain).

God’s is showing his anger all the way from heaven against people who act wickedly and those who are law breakers; those who hinder his truth)

God has revealed himself through his creation (v.19)

-What is known about God is plain (evident, manifest) because God has made it evident. (This is what is known as God’s general revelation; God revealing himself in what we see, in his creation.

(v.20) For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. ESV

People can have a knowledge of God by observing his creation:  Just like when you look at a painting, you know there was a painter.  A building, there is an architect.  People could see evidence of God in nature itself.  God made it evident.  The Psalmist understood this when he said.  Psalm 91:1-2 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.2Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. NIV

Psalm 8:3When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?

People are without excuse when it comes to the knowledge of God, for God has made it evident for them to know him.

His wrath is made known from heaven because even though his knowledge is evident, people do not acknowledge him as God or honor him (v.21)

-People have become futile in their thinking and darkened hearts (v.21)

-Claiming to be wise, they have became fools.

–They exchange the glory of God for images resembling man, birds, and animals. (v.22).  Think about how foolish it is to worship something you make instead of worshiping the Creator.  This is very stupid!

Verse 24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

 God let them do whatever they wanted to do.  “Have it your way”

–They dishonored their bodies among themselves.

-Exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served creature rather than the Creator.

God is just in pouring out his wrath on humans because we have worshipped the creature rather than the Creator.

God gave them up to do dishonorable passions. V.26

–Women exchanged nature relations for those that are contrary to nature.

-Men gave up natural relations with women for unnatural relations with other men.  They committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error (perversion)

God pours out his wrath on people because of their wickedness (sinful behavior)

Since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. (28)

When people refuse to acknowledge God, he abandons them to their foolish thinking.  God let them do what their depraved minds want to do.

Romans 1:29-32 29They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.

God is just in pouring out his wrath on people who do not recognize him as God; people who exchange his truth for a lie; those who exchange God’s standard for their own rules to satisfy their desires.  God has always poured out his wrath on those who disobey his rules.  God’s wrath is his righteous judgment on those who refuse him as God; God’s judgment on the wicked, those practice things contrary to what God has ordained in his word.

His wrath is coming, judgment day will come.  His wrath is revealed from heaven against all those who practice or approve of these wicked things.

God is love and just.  Just like he loves what is good, he hates what is evil and wicked.  Judgment day, the day of his wrath will come and who will escape?  Rev.6:16-17

Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us ^f from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17For the great day of their ^g wrath has come, and who can withstand it?” NIV

How can you escape God’s wrath?  These is only one thing people can do be exempt from this wrath.  To believe in Jesus.  John 3:16

Those who believe in Jesus as Lord and Messiah will not experience his wrath.  Those who refuse to believe in Jesus are already marked for judgment because of their refusing to believe in God’s Son.