TEACHING NOTES Part 2: Leaving God Behind ‌ Introduction ‌In the last session we learned that Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel because it is the truth and reveals the character (goodness) of God. Therefore, we should not be ashamed of truth because we are responsible to be God’s representatives to others. This session will help us understand: (1) the proper understanding of God’s wrath, and (2) what happens when we suppress truth. ‌ Romans 1:16–17 ESV 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” ‌ The Gospel (Truth) reveals the goodness of God and His desire to rescue humanity from its own desires. ‌Unrestrained immorality reveals that God is letting humanity have what it wants. ‌ Paul’s View of God’s Wrath: Romans 1:24-32 is Paul’s explanation of God’s wrath on those who reject God and suppress truth. Paul is teaching us an important principle about God’s wrath. ‌ God’s wrath is often viewed as God adding punishment. ‌Paul describes God’s wrath as God letting people get what they want. ‌ Romans 1:18 ESV 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. ‌ Wrath = Grk. orge - anger, wrath, strong displeasure. ‌ Ungodliness = Grk. asebeia - godlessness, living as if God doesn’t exist. ‌ Unrighteousness = Grk. adikia - living in violation of God’s standard of what is right and what is wrong. ‌ Of men = Notice that God’s wrath is not necessarily against people, but against the godless actions of people. God can love people and hate what they are doing. ‌ Suppress the truth = Grk. katecho - to hold back, prevent, restrain, cause to be ineffective. The Greek word for “truth” is aletheia, that which is in accordance with reality. Truth is about objective reality, not merely subjective ideas. Those who reject the truth also want it suppressed and hidden from others. ‌ Suppressing truth is a rejection of reality. ‌Without objective truth everything becomes subjective (relative). ‌Moral relativism is illogical, self-defeating, and destructive. ‌ How to Respond to Relativism: Claim: There’s no such thing as absolute truth. ‌Response: Is that statement true? If so, how and why? ‌ Claim: What’s right for me may not be right for you. ‌Response: What if I steal your car and claim it felt right to me? ‌ Romans 1:19–20 ESV 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 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. ‌ What can be known about God is plain = The Greek word for “plain” here is phaneros, which means obvious, evident, or widely known. This refers to what is called general revelation. Paul is claiming that all people can look at creation and see that an all-powerful God exists. ‌ His invisible attributes are clearly perceived = This is why all cultures throughout all of history believed in some kind of God and religion. All people see the work of God in creation. Deep down they know that God exists and is the Creator of the universe. ‌ They are without excuse = No one can claim that they did not know God exists. Paul gets this idea that creation displays the existence of the Creator from Psalm 19:1 “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” Paul echoes this in his sermon in Athens in Acts 17:26-27 “26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,” ‌ God has clearly displayed His glory and power in creation so we would realize He exists and would seek to know Him. ‌ Modern people look at creation to find reasons NOT to believe in God. ‌ Romans 1:21 ESV 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. ‌ They did not honor him as God or give thanks = Although people know there is a Creator, they reject God by refusing to honor (praise) Him and thank Him as their God. ‌ They became futile in their thinking = Notice that God is not doing this to them, but it is a natural result of their rejection of God. The Greek word for “futile” here is mataioo, which means useless, empty, or vain. ‌ Their foolish hearts were darkened = The Greek word for “darkened” here is skotizo, which is used as a metaphor for unable to understand. ‌ When we suppress truth and reject God, we become illogical and foolish. ‌ Romans 1:22–23 ESV 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. ‌ Claiming to be wise, they became fools = When we begin to think that we are too smart to believe in God, we have become fools. Paul is alluding to Jer. 10:14 “Every man is stupid and without knowledge; every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false, and there is no breath in them.” ‌ Exchanged the glory of God for idols = Paul is quoting Ps. 106:20 “They exchanged the glory of God for the image of an ox that eats grass.” ‌ When we reject our Maker, we begin to worship gods of our own making. ‌ Romans 1:24–25 ESV 24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 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 gave them up = The Greek word translated “gave them up” is paradidomi, which means to hand over or deliver. This word is also used to describe being handed over to another’s authority. Rejecting God is to reject His authority over you and hands you over to the authority of the enemy and yourself. God is handing them over to themselves and their enemy who they have chosen to follow. This is how Paul defines God’s wrath. God’s wrath is not something God has to do to us, but simply allowing us to do whatever we want. ‌ This kind of wrath (God giving us over to what we want) is worse than God simply killing us. If God simply killed us, we would be prevented from doing damage to ourselves and others. God giving us over to our own self-destruction is a often a long process of painful consequences, but is also gracious in that it gives us more time to repent and turn back to God. ‌ Lusts of their hearts = In Greek this refers to one’s deepest desires or cravings. As already seen in v. 21-22, their rejection of truth has already led to their hearts becoming darkened and foolish. God is handing them over to their darkest foolish desires. ‌ Impurity = Grk. akatharsia - unclean, immorality, sexual impurity. ‌ Dishonoring of their bodies = Grk. atimazo - degrade, dishonor, treat shamefully. ‌ Eph. 4:17-19 “17 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.” ‌ They exchanged the truth for a lie = The Greek word for “exchanged” here is metallasso, which means to exchange, barter away, give away one thing for another. Paul is saying that they sold the truth to buy a lie. ‌ Worshiped the creature rather than the Creator = All humans worship/serve something or someone. A rejection of the Creator only leaves us with creation. ‌ When we reject God, we exchange truth for destructive lies. ‌ Conclusion ‌The first step in Why the World’s Gone Mad is to reject God and suppress the truth. This puts a culture on a path toward its own destruction. ‌ Step 1: Reject God and truth. ‌Step 2: Embrace lies and worship created things. ‌Step 3: Embrace sexual immorality.