Romans 1:32: Though They Know God's Righteous Decree That Those Who Practice Such Things Deserve To Die

Romans 1:32
[32] Though 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. (ESV)

Have you ever had to punish your child and when you confronted your young one on the offense that they committed they responded, "I didn't know!"? If a child truly did not know that their behavior was offensive we could perhaps excuse what they did. Is it possible that mankind can stand before God's judgment and say, "I didn't know!"? The Apostle Paul says no.

In the previous verses Paul has listed every kind of sin imaginable. Sexual immorality, murder, envy, malice, arrogance, gossip, disobedience to parents, and even being inventors of doing evil. The apostle makes a strong claim. He says that man knew God's righteous decree that practicing evil brings death, but they not only committed the sins, but approved others who did them.

This is quite an indictment on the heart of mankind. Man's depravity is so completely consuming that it causes us to look at the righteous decrees of a loving God and ignore them completely. We are told that God will judge us. Our response? We continue to sin and we approve others who do the same things.

All you need to do is look at our modern world. In our own country we have turned the murdering of unborn babies into a money-making business. We have couples engaging in sexual behavior without submitting to a marriage covenant. If we look at those leading the country we have an assortment of characters that include many liars, thugs and bullies. God save us from our willing rebellion.

We are sinners to the core. We know what is wrong and do it anyway. This is the problem with the core of man. We all need the Savior. He died to forgive our rebellion and give us a new heart. I encourage you to turn to him.