Romans 1-3 Speaks of: Condemnation (This article was written as a rebuttal in a debate on homosexuality on a theology forum)

... and the need of God's righteousness for:

1. unrighteous gentiles (vs. 1:18-32),

2. unrighteous Jews (vs. 2:1-3:8),

3. unrighteous mankind. (vs. 3:9-20)

Verse 1:18 - God's wrath is revealed against men, who although they are convicted of their sin, oppose and resist God's truth by holding fast to their sins. Paul is speaking of those who reject Christ, unbelievers.

1:21 - another point of this being spoken to the lost: 'their foolish hearts were darkened" When man rejects Christ his heart is darkened and spiritual falsehood reigns in it. Look at John 3:18-20

"18. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

19. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

20. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved."

Also - Psalms 14:1-3 and 53:1-3:

"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.

2. The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.

3. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one."

"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.

2. God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.

3. Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one."

1:20 - God revealed his righteousness

1:24 - So, because they rejected Christ, did not believe His message and instead turned to vain philosophies and their own wisdom, God then gave them over to an 'unclean mind', to the lust of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves.

"Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves:

25. Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

26. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

27. And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.

28. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

29. Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

30. Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

31. Without understanding, covenant-breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

32. Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them."

God does NOT give over believers, this is only as a result on continual rejection of Christ.

The Greek term for ‘gave them over’ is speaking of handing a prisoner over to his sentence, i.e. when men consistently abandon God, He will abandon them.

The verses 24-32 are the essence, expression and extent of man's sinfulness:

1. uncleanness - general term for a rotting corpse, used here speaking directly of sexual immorality which begins at the heart and like leaven begins to work through the whole lump of dough.

2. 'they changed the truth of God into a lie' - the denial of God's existence and His right to be obeyed and glorified by man.

3. vile passions - identified here as homosexuality

4. women exchanging affections - Greek word for 'female'

5. men exchanging affections and receiving in them the due penalty - Paul refers to self-destructive nature of this sin, homosexuality, of which AIDS is just one evidence.

6. God gave them over to a debased mind - debased here often referred to metals which were thrown away because they contained too much impurity to be of any use. God, having tested these men's minds, found them useless and worthless.

7. verse 1:32 - knowing God. Not ignorance, but blatant rebellion against God. They knew God because their conscience bore witness to God, the word conscience is literally 'with knowledge of'. A good example of this is a pagan, in simple words, but one as verse 20 tells us was revealed the attributes of God by the conscience and creation itself bearing witness of God.

Pay attention to the beginning of verse 1:26 - 'For This Reason', God gave them up, because they denied God's existence and worshiped nature over God they no longer have conscience to the issues of sin and homosexual and vile passions eventually follow, according to these passages.

8. 1:28 - this list of sins: they are the result of being given over, the result of unbelief, rejection of Christ and the denial of God's Word. They were 'filled' with these sins, the word filled is the key phrase; in other words they did not do them once, or slip-up, but they did them continuously, with no conscience to it. 'Full of' envy, strife, etc. Again, being rejecters of God, unbelievers, God had seared their conscience, meaning their conscience no longer existed and they were full of and known of these sins listed as a result.

Ending here, Paul has addressed the immoral pagan, rejecter, hater of God, Christ and His word, and in the next set of verses (2:1-16) begins to speak to the religious moralist, both Jews and moral gentiles. In verses 2:1-16, Paul catalogues six principles that govern God's judgment: knowledge (verse 1), truth (2,3), guilt (4-5), deeds (5; 6-10), impartiality (11-15) and motive (16).

Paul starts Romans off with ‘I am not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the Power of God’

In almost all of Romans we find the Gospel of salvation. In verses 1:18-32, which speaks of the unbeliever, we see God’s wrath upon the unrepentant wicked.

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

24. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

26. To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Romans 3:23-24

This excludes the previously mentioned in verses 1:18-32, as the justified are only those who believe in Jesus as Lord. The Scripture also states, that ‘If ye love me, keep my commandments." John 14:15; this obedience is a result of the Spirit living in a believer, that he keeps the commandments of his Lord. And if we sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Christ Jesus.

All of us have sinned; we participated in breaking God’s holy law and His commandments.

God in His justice and holiness found us guilty of sin; we were unable to free ourselves from our wickedness, so Christ in the most loving and compassionate act of all lowered himself a little lower than the angels and came to earth as a man, died for our sins bearing the penalty of our sin which was death. By repenting of our sins and receiving Christ we have been washed of the former wicked ways we once walked in and no longer are slaves to sin; we are servants of the most High God.

This is the melody of Romans, as a believer walking in Christ but still having a fleshly nature and tenancies towards fleshly things, and struggles against the flesh, but do we go back and continue in those things which we formerly did as unbelievers? No.

"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

2. God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

3. Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4. Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Romans 6:1- 4

Newness of life; no longer slaves to sin. We bear the marks of our Lord in our walk, and that we, positionally in the Kingdom, stand righteous and blameless in God’s sight because of Christ.

- Steven

We encourage you to email the author to prove or disprove, from the Scriptures, the intent, meaning, purpose or doctrine of this piece.email Steven