Every Day Devotion

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 indictm...

Romans 1:30–31 [30] slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, [31] foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. (ESV) When we look at these verses it is easy to just see a list of horrible behaviors. In fact, we are likely to read each offense and compare ourselves. We likely will say, "I am not doing that one, or that one. I must be ok." I want to encourage you not to do that. There is a bigger picture here that we see as we look at the whole book of Romans. The Apostle Paul writes the book of Romans as a primer on Christianity. If ever there was a part of the Bible that defined for us what it means to have faith in God it is Romans. In this first part of the book Paul is making very clear just how evil the heart of man is. The wickedness of man is more than just a list of wrong behavior, rather it is a condition of the heart. Behaviors flow out of that heart. One of the most dangerous beliefs that plague our cul...

Romans 1:29 [29] They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, (ESV) What happens when you remove God from a society? It ought to frighten you. Paul is continuing to describe mankind. God has revealed himself to mankind. Man did not "see fit to acknowledge God," so He gave mankind over to a debased mind, to do what ought not to be done. In verses 29 and 30 he gives a partial list of what we can expect from a godless society. This list given to us in verse 29 is harrowing. All manner of unrighteousness. If you can think of some terrible kind of evil, be sure that someone has already done it or is planning it. We have simply to look back at the history of atheistic nations and consider the atrocities. China, Soviet Union, Nazi Germany are responsible for the ruthless murder of millions upon millions of people. Those who refuse to be filled with the goodne...

Romans 1:28 [28] And 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. (ESV) One of my favorite quotes of all time comes from Dostoevsky. He said, "Without God, everything is permissible." If one is able to believe that God does not exist then he can be led completely by his own desire. We know that our desires will lead us to all kinds of depravity. In fact, everything becomes permissible. Dostoevsky also said, “Now suppose that there is no God or immortality of the soul. Now tell me, why should I live righteously and do good deeds, if I die entirely on earth?" A perfect question. Without a belief in God what is the motivation to do anything good? I have heard atheists claim that they can still do "good." But the bigger question is why would they? The Apostle Paul describes the one who does not acknowledge God as having a debased mind. The Greek word for debased uses the imagery of a me...

Romans 1:26–27 [26] 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. (ESV) There is an expression that says, "Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it." Man rejected the knowledge of God. God's response? God gave them up to dishonorable passions. When God gives you up to your sinful passions it is not an expression of your freedom, rather it is a prison sentence that God gives you over to. You are trapped in your rebellion. In our culture today we are being told that there is nothing wrong with men having sexual relationships with men, and women having sexual relationships with women. In fact, if you have a problem with same sex relationships you are descr...

Romans 1:25 [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. (ESV) In the previous verse Paul explained that those who had rejected the knowledge of God that was given to them were turned over to their own desires. This was not a good thing. This was essentially a prison sentence. They are trapped in bondage to their own folly. Why? "Because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator!" It is amazing the lengths that mankind will go to in order to hold on to the lies of their own creating. I think of modern day scientists who sometimes fall into this trap. I don't want to put all scientists in this grouping, but consider the ones who have embraced the theory of evolution as fact. They have taken a theory of man as the ultimate truth and rejected the truth of God's creation. It would be one thing ...

Romans 1:24 [24] Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, (ESV) Mankind is prone to folly. As we have discovered in the previous verses in this chapter, God takes the first step toward mankind by revealing himself to his creation in the things that he has made. What is man's general response? Ignore God's existence. This ignoring of God leads to foolish thinking. What is God's response? God gave them up in their lusts. Mankind thinks this is a good thing. It is not. This phrase, "gave them up" is a judicial term that basically means they are being turned over to their prison sentence. God walks away from them. This is a catastrophic situation. We know that God is the source of joy, life, light, and all goodness. When he walks away you are left with nothing good. Where does man go after God gives him up? He chases after every impurity that his foolish heart can imagine. It is...