GOD GAVE THEM UP
Romans 1:24-27
This is the 6th sermon of the series, “Romans: The Gospel Blueprint.”
Paul explains that the gospel is God’s saving power for everyone who believes. In the gospel, God reveals his righteousness, received by faith. Paul cites Habakkuk 2:4: “The righteous shall live by faith.” Paul then explains why this saving revelation is needed: God’s wrath is revealed against human ungodliness and unrighteousness because people suppress the truth. Creation reveals God’s eternal power and divine nature, leaving humanity without excuse. The result of rejecting this revelation is moral and spiritual decay: a futile mind, a darkened heart, and the exchange of God’s glory for created things, even images resembling humans, birds, animals, and creeping creatures. The apostle will further explain God’s judgment: it is giving them up to spiritual and moral decay.
God’s Wrath
The word “therefore” may refer to the wrath of God and the reasons behind it (1:22-23 or 1:18-23). Mankind’s rejection of the knowledge of God led them to decay. Furthermore, God gave them up to their own lusts. One sign of God’s wrath is people becoming more impure. It implies a loss of restrictions and limits.[1]
Romans 1:24: Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,
The failure to acknowledge the Creator, the failure to honor and thank Him, leads to a futile mind and a darkened heart. Paul shows that it also leads to the dishonoring of the body through sexual immorality.
Exchanged the Truth for a Lie
Paul repeats the fall of man by writing that fallen man exchanged the Creator for the created. The apostle explained that men exchanged the truth for a lie; they worshiped and served the created rather than the Creator.
Romans 1:25: 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.
The thought of idolatry repulsed Paul so much that he needed to praise the Creator, “who is blessed forever! Amen.”[2] But the apostle has more to say about this decay to decadence.
Dishonorable Passions
Paul repeats, “God gave them up.” This time, he offers greater clarity: the apostle explains that God gave them up to perversion.[3] As exchanging God for lesser beings is unnatural, so men and women succumb to the unnatural. Idolatry is perversion; the shameless sexual acts described are perversion.
Romans 1:26-27: For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Fallen men gave up the obvious: worshiping God. God gave them up so that they abandoned what is obvious: heterosexual sex. Falling into such perversion is a clear sign of God’s wrath.
Application
1. Our only hope is the gospel of Christ, which is the power of God to salvation. Thus, we believe in the gospel because the “just shall live by faith.” On our own, we are sinners who give more importance to the created rather than the Creator.
2. We must understand that God executes His judgment by giving people up to their idolatry and perversions. Such men and women will only store up more wrath. Thus, we preach what is natural: to worship God and to husband-to-wife sexual relationships, that is, male and female.
3. We are not ashamed of the gospel. We must proclaim it because mankind is under the judgment of God. Furthermore, humanity’s decay will continue without God. Let us not be surprised by perversions; yet, like Paul, we do not want to be passive. We must proclaim the gospel.
[1] Michael F. Bird and Scot McKnight, Romans (Zondervan Academic, 2016), 58.
[2] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 1:25.
[3] Thielman, Romans, 1:26.
Poem
PERVERSION AND IDOLATRY by Ed Pilapil Jr God gave them up, that is judgment Seen in the perversions of men It began by suppressing truth In lies, they think their minds will soothe The truth of God is what will soothe He’s the Creator, that’s the truth There’s no rest for the souls of men Rebellion only brings judgment Man’s decay to idolatry It’s not beautiful poetry To honor and serve things that creep It means decay that is so deep Sexual perversion that is so deep Like honoring things that creep Men-to-men is no poetry Disgusting like idolatry
Study Guide
1. What did God do to those who decayed because they failed to honor and thank Him? (Ro 1:24)
2. What was Paul’s explanation of why God gave them up? (Ro 1:25)
3. Explain the connection between God’s judgment, idolatry, and sexual perversion, such as homosexuality and lesbianism? (Ro 1:26-27)
