Auxano Ministry
By the grace of God I am what I am:
1 Cor. 15:10a
God’s Gospel
God’s Gospel the Foundation
Part IV
The Wrath of God - II
God is an Impartial, and Righteous, and Just judge. God is not a respecter of individual persons or a particular group of people. He made the decision to Love the world and so, He gave His son. It is out of this Love that God has invited every person, in the line of Adam, which means everyone, to live eternally with Him upon believing the prophecy of the seed of the woman, later known as the Messiah, and later still, His son, the Lord Jesus, who is the Christ. Whatever time frame a person lives in; it is required to believe.
Hebrews 11:6
But without faith [believing] it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Romans 2:11
For there is no respect of persons with God.
This means an Israeli going to the Temple, or a Christian going to a Church, or a Muslim going to a Mosque: the building is not the key, believing is the key. This refers to all people and all religions. A person must meet the standard, which is God’s righteousness, received by grace when a person believes what God has said. But all humanity has not met God’s standard. By their own decision many have chosen to make their own way to eternity, but all ways that exclude the Lord Jesus Christ will fail.
Numbers 23:19
God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
God is not a man! He does not have the feelings of man; God does not have human emotions. But He uses feelings and emotions to communicate with the mind of senses-oriented man. Otherwise known as body and soul man, or carnal man, or natural man. All these terms apply to a person without God’s gift of holy spirit, or a person with God’s gift of holy spirit who is walking in the flesh.
John 4:24
God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
God is spirit and that is why He must come into concretion to communicate with a person that does not have God’s gift of holy spirit; a talking donkey, a burning bush, a fleece in the morning dew, writing on a wall, a leprous hand, an audible voice, a dream, angels coming for a visit. The Book of Hebrews tells us God used various means to communicate with humanity.
1 John1:5
This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
Light is without feelings.
God works with a person where that person is at. Consider Adam, and Eve, and Cain. God does not make us rise to His level before He will speak with us, or bless us, or take action to care for us. God works with us at the level we are at and that is where the figure of speech anthropopatheia is employed.
In the Greek there is a word parabaino which means a stepping aside. I want to step aside concerning the subject of Romans 1:18-32. Romans 1:18 and following will discuss the people who follow and promote the lies and the schemes of the Adversary. But I want to take a few minutes to talk about the Adversary himself.
The Adversary
God has shown us many different names that apply to the Devil, serpent, dragon, liar, prince of the power of the air, accuser, and many others. I want to briefly consider two of his names. One is about his direct involvement with others, and one is about his indirect involvement with others.
The first is the Devil, diabolos in the Greek which means false accuser or slanderous. It is used 38 times in the New Testament and 34 are in reference to the Devil. The Devil only deals directly with a select group. He deals with the angels that were cast out of heaven with him and he deals with his children, those who are seed of the serpent.
The Devil also dealt directly with two people that were not in these other categories. He dealt with Eve in the Garden because he had no authority or power and needed to introduce his lies. Later Jesus faced the Devil in the wilderness because he had seduced Eve. His seduction and lies did not work with Jesus. No other people have or will face the Devil directly.
The next name comes from the Greek word satanas. It is used 36 times in the New Testament, it is always translated Satan, and it means adversary. This is his indirect influence in the world. He is real, as are the angels, or devil spirits, cast out of heaven with him, and his children by seed. Eve dealt directly with the Devil, then she carried the words of the Devil to Adam. Adam sinned by following the influence of Satan presented to him through Eve. This is how Satan works, indirect influence to turn people away from God or to pervert the right ways of God.
Overall, the Devil has taught the world how to make him into a mythical figure of superstitious times, a cartoon character today. Sadly, many Christians do not even believe the Devil or Satan are real. The Devil and Satan are viewed as symbols of evil or terrible things. Likewise, first century possession by a devil spirit is viewed as ancient superstition and not part of our spiritual reality. Today psychology has replaced demons and so-called science has replaced the Bible.
“Friday is the 13th, and if you're not careful, an evil spirit could enter your body and steal your soul -- or, at the very least, cause you to drop a meatball on your crisp white shirt… Grab a carrot, a replica of the Washington Monument or any other phallic object. According to Romans, such objects seduce the evil spirit away from you -- however, your carrot might then be possessed.” This was printed by the Washington Post, I do not know the exact year.1
The Adversary is a punchline to a joke and that is the way he likes it because it keeps him hidden. He succeeds because most do not believe he exists and thus they forgo the power and protection offered by God.
“The “adversary?” Is that like some magical annoying neighbor who always leaves his sprinklers on at night? Or is it more like some cosmic puppet master who makes malevolent villains out of unsuspecting, weak-minded humans? Or tricks people into believing solid evidence about the nature of life on planet earth? You say that humans share 99% of their genetic makeup with chimpanzees? Why, the devil must have made that up!” This is from a magazine article in Psychology Today.2
Isaiah 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
In his arrogance and pride the Devil sought to overthrow God and become the most high. He failed for none is as powerful as Almighty God.
Job 1:7
And the LORD said unto Satan, whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
The Adversary is not omnipresent, he is not omnipotent, and he is not omniscient. But he is a thief, a murderer, and a liar.
John 10:10a
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy…
The Greek word for “thief” is kleptes and the Greek word for “steal” is klepto, the masculine noun and the verb form. This gives us the figure of speech polyptoton bringing emphasis to the Adversary’s stealing.
Helps Word-studies: kléptēs – a thief who steals by stealth (in secret), rather than in the open with violence.
What does he steal? Anything you allow him to take from you. Your fellowship with God, God’s Word in your mind, your peace, your prosperity, your victory in Christ, your righteousness, your eternal life. Whatever God is giving to you and whatever you have, he wants to steal it from you.
He does not need it. He does not even want it. He just does not want you to have it.
“Comes” is in the middle voice which means the Adversary takes the action and receives the result. What is the Adversary going to do with physical things he steals from people? He is going to give it to his children.
Steal, kill, destroy are all in the subjunctive mood. That means what the Adversary can accomplish against a person is in the power of the individual to stop or prevent. He might steal, he might kill, he might destroy. By the power of God, a person can stop the influence and the schemes of the Adversary. Decisions matter.
Genesis 3:5
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
The Adversary has been feeding this lie to humans since man was in the Garden in Eden. It has not yet come to pass for one person because it is a lie.
When the Bible speaks of the Devil it is speaking of direct contact. He had direct contact with Eve and Jesus. He has direct contact with the demons that were cast out of heaven with him. He has direct contact with those who are his children by seed.
Satan is used for indirect contact, like the cue ball on a pool table. The lies and schemes of the Devil are placed in the world, and then it impacts the other balls on the table.
Let’s continue to take a closer look at what God has to say in Romans chapter one.
The Road Down
Romans 1:18
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
In the last teaching one of the things we considered was the complaint that God was bloodthirsty. Ordering Israel to eliminate an entire tribe. That has now been laid to rest. The next big complaint about God is, how could a loving God condemn anyone to an eternity of pain and torment? We might get to this complaint, but first, let’s see if we can understand what the scriptures have to say about this “wrath” of God.
The word “wrath,’ as we saw in the previous teaching, is the figure of speech anthropopatheia. A better understanding in light of this figure of speech would be judgment. God has set a condition to enter eternity, His righteousness. A person must have the righteousness of God before he can enter eternity. Therefore, it is a judgment, not a fit of anger or vengeance.
The people spoken of in verse eighteen are not only unrighteous and ungodly, they also “hold” the Truth, meaning the Word of God, in unrighteousness. How do you “hold” God’s Word in unrighteousness?
What exactly does “hold” mean?
“Hold” is the compound Greek word katecho and it means to hold down or to suppress. Kata, in this context, means down and echo means to hold. In this context suppress is a much better translation than hold down. An example of this would be the gay community’s response to what God’s Word states about homosexuality. God says it is unnatural and ungodly and that it dishonors the body. Homosexuals say the ban on homosexuality in the Bible was due to culture, not the action itself. Then, along with this statement comes the admonition, Christianity must adapt to the times, to reflect the culture around it. The gay community then suppresses what the Bible actually states to legitimize, spiritually, homosexual behavior. Rather than adapt to the culture around Christianity God says Christians should renew their mind to His Word.
Everyone has the God given right, yes, I said the God given right to their own beliefs. Everyone faces choices, these decisions set our direction and destination. You can believe what God has to say in His Word, or you can reject it as man made trash and make up your own system of beliefs.
Strangely enough, some denominations appear to have agreed with changing Christian doctrine to line-up with the culture of the world. Churches fly the Homosexual Flag in front of their church building. Some denominations ordain homosexual and lesbian ministers, and many perform same sex marriage. Are the actions of these Christians ungodly or unrighteous? Yes!
Galatians 1:6-7
I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
They remain a child of God, but unrighteous and ungodly actions will be tried by fire and all unrighteousness acts will be consumed by God’s purifying fire.
1 Corinthians 3:12-15
12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
Back in verse eighteen, the word “against” is the Greek word epi and should be translated upon.
The Greek word for “in” is en and en normally means in or within. But depending on the context it can be translated “by.” When that which is within is used as an instrument to carry out the action, “by” is the better translation. Therefore, the closing portion of verse eighteen would more accurately read, “…who suppress the truth by unrighteousness.” The unrighteousness within them, coming out in words and deeds, become the instrument by which these ungodly and unrighteous people suppress the Truth of God’s Word.
This is what verse eighteen is saying, “The judgment of God is uncovered or revealed out of heaven upon all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth by unrighteousness.”
These people will face the judgment of God through Jesus Christ for these people do not simply have unrighteousness, they have it in the heart! It is a heart issue. We will see this as we continue in this record. These people do not simply suppress the Truth of God’s Word, these people are the movers and recruiters of unrighteous behavior among all people. They seek to turn away people from hearing and believing the Truth of God’s Word, see Grace Overcoming Blindness .
There are three categories or groups of people we are speaking about in Romans 1:18 and following. First, there are those who are already seed of the serpent, a child of the Devil. They are the ones who introduce the lies and schemes of the Adversary. Second, there are those who are becoming the children of the Adversary. God shows everyone the steps the Adversary uses to seduce a person into his family of evil and death. Finally, we have a third group of people who fall for the schemes of the Adversary by believing his lies. This is a fluid group of ever-changing confusion and decisions.
From Romans 1:18 to 1:32 you will see the road down for those who reject God and His Word. The second group of people are those who follow the lies these children of evil introduce to the world. What happens to those who follow these ungodly people? Do they get a card that reads “Get out of judgment” like Monopoly’s “Get out of jail”? Do they get this because they were lied to, they were duped by very clever people? God says everyone, even His children, will give an account of himself. (Romans 14:12)
Decisions not only set our direction, but our direction also has a destination. Where are you headed?
Matthew 15:13-14
But he answered and said, every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.
The answer is in what do these followers believe. God has placed eternity in the hands of each individual person. These verses (1:17-18) tell us two things are revealed in the Gospel of God, the righteousness of God and the wrath, or judgment of God. Both are revealed so that people can make a sound, and educated, and godly decision.
In this last group some will simply follow along like herd animals to their bitter end. Still others will change their religion through the years and join the Church of Climate Catastrophe religion or the Church of Inclusiveness, the religion that accepts everyone, regardless of perversion. The Adversary has many different religions to keep people away from the One True God. But there will be some in these false religions who will see the foolishness of their rejection of God, then in believing God, they will receive His righteousness. (Consider Ephesians 2:1-3)
Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
There are two seeds here, the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. Ultimately the seed of the woman will be Christ and the seed of the serpent will be the antichrist. Along the way, those who believe the prophecy of the seed of the woman, the Messiah, the Christ will become children of God. Easily seen in the Administration of Grace as we have Christ in us, God’s gift of holy spirit, God’s seed.
For those who decide the Adversary is the one true god, they will be seed of the serpent, children of the Devil. Seed makes the decision permanent. That is why Cain proclaimed, “My iniquity (or sin) is more (or greater) than can be forgiven.”
Matthew 12:31-32
31 Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
There is only one sin that is unforgivable, and that is blasphemy against God, who is Holy and who is Spirit. It is unforgivable because it is by seed and seed is irrevocable. Seed defines who and what you are.
Genesis 1:21
And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
I want you to notice a few things about seeds. First, as I said, seed defines who or what you are. Verse twenty-one speaks of whales reproducing “after their kind.” The Hebrew word min means kind. In Genesis chapter one it is used ten times in five verses. The second thing I want you to notice is the duration of the seed. When an adult whale produces a baby whale it is seed after its kind. For its entire existence that baby whale will never lose its seed. By that I mean it will not evolve into a great white shark some years down the road. Because of seed it will always remain a whale. The seed that gave the whale its identification will be a part of that whale’s life while it draws breath.
So, what is my point? Once a person accepts the seed of the serpent, the seed remains, he will always be a child of the Devil. It is the unforgiveable sin, not because God is more upset with that person, but because that person made a decision to accept the Adversary’s seed. Too many focus on the word blasphemy and miss God’s point about seed.
The Adversary uses his children to promote his lies and schemes. When he gets a person to reject God and His Word that person’s mental corruption begins and the Adversary begins to mold a person toward becoming seed of the serpent.
John 8:42-44
Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
There are two places the Adversary likes to place his seed to cause the most harm, at or near the top of religious groups or organizations and at or near the top of governments or world organizations.
Jesus was in a confrontation in John chapter eight with some Pharisees, the religious leaders of Israel. These are children of the Devil, seed of the serpent. That does not mean all Pharisees were children of the Devil, but these in John chapter eight are. The Adversary’s children will carry out his “lusts,” meaning they will do what pleases the Adversary, what the Adversary is greedy to accomplish.
Acts 13:6-8
6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus:
7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God.
8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.
Elymas has placed himself close to the leader of Cyprus to influence Sergius Paulus with the lies of the Adversary.
Acts 13:9-10
Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him.
10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?
The only way to know who is a child of the Devil is by the manifestation of discerning of spirits, or revelation from God. You cannot tell from their words; you cannot tell from the way they carry themselves. It can only be determined by revelation or the manifestation of discerning of spirits. If you know God’s Word, you will know and see the lies of the Adversary, but carrying a lie does not make you seed of the serpent.
Abraham Lincoln had a saying that fits well.
You can fool all the people some of the time,
and some of the people all the time,
but you cannot fool all the people all the time.
These who have unrighteousness in their heart will seduce the minds of others with the lies of the Adversary. The Adversary will stay hidden and even have his children proclaim, “he is only an ancient superstition.”
Some people will be fooled all the time.
What do I mean by that statement?
I mean the Adversary will succeed in turning some people away from the Word of God and the righteousness God has made available.
But how are the people fooled?
They are fooled due to ignorance of God and His Word.
They do not see the lie as it is veiled behind a “good cause,” a “good feeling,” a “righteous” deed.
Revelation 12:9
And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
The Greek word for “deceiveth” is planao and it means to roam, to go astray. This is what God means when He shows us the children of the Devil will turn people away from God and His Word. Their lie and schemes will lead some astray from God and occupy some with the latest “good cause” or worldly emergency.
The Greek word for “world” is oikoumene and refers to the inhabited world. The word “whole” refers to the entire inhabited world. It is the Greek word holos and it means completely.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
The Greek word for “lost” is apollymi and means perishing. They are not lost and out of the reach of God, but their current direction ends in their perishing. A child of the Devil cannot change his spiritual destination, but those who have been deceived into following the lies of the Adversary can still see the “light of the glorious gospel pertaining to Christ” as in Ephesians 2:1-3. Most of God’s children walked in and with the world and believing the world, at one time. Some of God’s children still walk with the world due to a lack of renewed mind.
2 Corinthians 11:3
But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
The word “beguiled” is the Greek word exapatao.
Helps Word-studies: exapatao (from ek, "wholly out from," intensifying apatao "deceive") properly, thoroughly deceived ("hood-winked"), describing someone taken in, and enslaved by, Satan (sin, darkness). ("deceived into illusion") emphasizes the end-impact of deception – i.e., missing true reality because "biting on the bait that brings the hook!" (apatáō), (eksapatáō) means, "thoroughly taken in – biting the bait that hides the hook!")
If these children of the Devil are so evil, how can they deceive so many?
2 Corinthians 11:13-15
For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Looks can be and are deceiving, that is why the manifestation of discerning of spirits is required. Without God’s gift of holy spirit and an accurate knowledge of God’s Word, a person is blind and cannot see the lies and is headed for the ditch Jesus spoke of to his disciples.
Romans 1:19
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
“Because” is the Greek word dioti. A combination of dia and hoti. Dia means through and hoti is a conjunction that answers the question “Why?”
Verses 19 and 21 begin with dioti and verse 20 begins with the word gar. So, we are about to get some explanations.
Verse 19 begins with what “may be known...” The text reads “is known” rather than “may be known.”
Romans 1:19a
Because what is known of God is manifest…
Darby Translation
Romans 1:19a
Because that which is known of God is manifest…
Young’s Literal Translation
The next words, in the King James Version, are “manifested in them…” “in” is again the Greek preposition en. You must always be careful about just plugging in a Concordance definition every time the same Greek word is used. “En” is normally translated in or within, and we have just seen it translated by, and now the best translation is “to them” or “among them.” Because en is in the plural the best translation is to them or among them.
Romans 1:19a
Because what is known of God is manifest to them…
“Manifest” and “shewed” are the same word in the Greek. The adjective form and the verb form and they mean to make clear, to be visible, to be apparent. Once again we have the figure of speech polyptoton. The essence is this, “Because what is known of God is apparent to them for (gar) God has revealed or made it clear to them.”
The logical question here is, how did God make it known to them?
Romans 1:20
For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
“For” is again gar. A further explanation of what was just said, what was said is that God showed them. The invisible or unseen things “of him,” of God. “From” apo meaning out from the Creation of Genesis chapter one, of the “world,” kosmos, the arrangement of the world, the order of the world. These invisible, or unseen, things of the order of the world are “clearly seen” by those who suppress the Truth by their unrighteousness. They can clearly see; it is apparent to them that God has ordered or arranged the world.
Helps Word-studies: kathoráō (from katá, "down," which intensifies horáō, "to look") – properly, look down (from a higher vantage point), to see clearly, with perception.
“Are clearly seen” is the Greek word kathoráō. Kata again means down and horao means to see with the eyes or the mind, to become familiar with through experience. These unrighteous and ungodly people look down upon what they have seen. They believe they are right in going a different way. They do not want what God is offering. In their arrogance, remember Isaiah chapter 14, they think they have a better plan than God. Adam thought he had a better plan. Cain thought he had a better plan. King Saul thought he had a better plan. Lucifer thought he had a better plan. Many think they have a better plan than God. All who think this way are foolish. How could someone who lacks knowledge and awareness of the next moment have a better plan than God who sees every detail of every tomorrow?
Helps Word-studies: noiéō (from noús, "mind") – properly, to apply mental effort needed to reach "bottom-line" conclusions.
Understand is the Greek word noeo. Noeo means to give careful consideration and deliberate reflection. Therefore, as a man considers and reflects upon the invisible, or unseen, things of God he will clearly see it is God. Both clearly seen and understood are in the passive voice, which means God is showing them through their consideration and deliberate reflection.
How did God show them?
Did He give them revelation? No, they do not have spirit from God.
Did He show them through their mental effort and His likeness imprinted upon the life of body and soul man? Yes, through mental effort and the spirit of man.
Zechariah 12:1
The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.
Look around, at the arrangement, the order of the world. What do you see? Is the arrangement of the world you see based on random chance? No different than a roll of the dice at a casino! Or is it the work of a Supreme Being?
The Egyptians saw the sun rose in the east each morning and moved across the sky each day until it set in the west. Then one Egyptian noticed the dung beetle rolling a piece of dung before him as he walked and suddenly the dung beetle became a symbol of a new god who moves the sun each day across the sky. The children of the Adversary introduced this lie to Egypt. This is idolatry.
We could get into a debate between science and the Word of God, but God handled that debate and the wisdom of science in First Corinthians.
1 Corinthians 1:18-21
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.
20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
While science tries to figure out how one cell morphed into birds, lizards, fish, dinosaurs, flowers, trees, and even people, Genesis chapter one declares the Truth. A person who believes God can look at the beauty and magnificence, and the order of God’s creation and marvel in thankfulness.
Have you ever witnessed the aerodynamics of a hummingbird? Who taught the hummingbird to hover in one spot? Have you ever walked among the caribou as they care for their young? Who taught that calf where to find food or taught the cow it was okay to allow this calf to feed from her? Have you ever considered the salmon as they swim upstream to the place where they were born? Who taught them how to find that place after years in the ocean? Who taught the squirrel to gather nuts for the approaching winter? Who taught the squirrel a winter was coming, and nuts will not grow in the winter? Who gave the squirrel his sense of smell so that he can find those nuts, buried in the ground, under a blanket of snow? Who taught the eagles how to fish in the ocean?
The invisible things of God are clearly seen, they can be determined mentally, and they are understood by what people observe of God’s creation. The ungodly apprehend the knowledge verses comprehend the knowledge. “Apprehend denotes the laying hold of a thing mentally, so as to understand it clearly, at least in part. Comprehend denotes the embracing or understanding it in all its compass and extent.”3
Surely the God who did all these things, and more, is all powerful and glorious and is the One True and Living God deserving of our honor and thankfulness.
Therefore, “I did not understand” or “You did not really show me.” will not carry the day for the ungodly. They are without excuse when the day of judgment arrives. The Lord Jesus Christ is a no spin judge.
Romans 1:21
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
“Because” is once again dioti. Why are they without excuse? Because when they knew God, the Greek word for “knew” is ginosko. Ginosko means to know, to have knowledge of, to perceive. It is experiential knowledge. They saw and knew it was of God!
Helps Word-studies: ginṓskō – properly, to know, especially through personal experience (first-hand acquaintance). ginṓskō ("experientially know").
They glorified Him not as God. “Glorified” is the Greek word doxazo and means to praise, to hold in honor, to magnify. They refuse to praise God, to give Him honor as God.
They saw the righteousness of God and suppressed it by the unrighteousness in them. They saw the majesty and power of God. They saw God’s arrangement of the world and refused to praise God or honor Him. This was all accomplished to bless their lives and to give them reconciliation, but they were not thankful. “Were thankful” is the Greek word eucharisteo. The root of eucharisteo is charis, the Greek word for God’s grace.
When charis is used of God to man it is God’s blessing, God’s favor, God’s gift of grace to man. When charis or eucharisteo is used of originating from man to God, it is man saying thank you to God. These saw no reason to be thankful.
They are without excuse.
Romans 6:17
But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
1 Thessalonians 2:13
For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.
Back to Romans chapter one.
Romans 1:21b
… but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
“But” in contrast to praising God and being thankful, they became vain. “Vain” is the Greek word mataoo, from the root maten (groundless, invalid). Vain means empty, useless, lacking in content. In their “imaginations,” their dialogismos, which means reasonings, deliberations. Their logic is not logical. In their rejection of God and His Word, they lost the ability to reason like a sane person. Their reasoning, their deliberations have become empty of sane content. How else could they declare, with a straight face, “men can have babies.” These have also said men can have a menstrual cycle. I am sorry, but the internal organs and plumbing are simply not there to make either of these reasonings true. Their imaginations and reasoning are empty and useless. They can no longer add one plus one and arrive at the answer of two. Their reasoning is empty, there is no value to their insight.
The Greek word translated “foolish,” regarding the heart, is asynetos. Look at these definitions!
Blue Letter Bible defines asynetos as follows: “unintelligent, without understanding, stupid.”
Bible Hub defines asynetos as, “unintelligent, without wisdom, unwise, undiscerning, (implying probably moral defect).
Helps Word-studies: asynetos (from a "not" and synetos, "synthesized understanding") properly, without comprehension; foolish because incoherent (failing to "put facts together"). describes a person failing to structure information in a meaningful way, and therefore unable to reach necessary conclusions. This person is illogical because he is unwilling to use good reason.
The prefix “a” is from the Greek word alpha, which, when used as a prefix means no or not. The stem word synetos means intelligent, wise, having understanding, learned. An asynetos mind is a mind whose thoughts are not rational. They show no signs of intelligence.
For example, God formed a man and a woman, a male and a female. Now some have declared that there are genders in-between or beyond the two genders God made. This is asynetos thinking. It has no basis in reality, no sign of a coherent mind. Look around your city, your town, your neighborhood. Is the local school running a drag queen show for the first graders? Sexualizing children is asynetos. It is from a heart that has been darkened.
When a mind rejects the simplicity of what God has said or done, it loses the capacity to reason with intelligence. In this context, God says I have a simple plan for your redemption, believe on the seed of the woman, the Messiah, the Lord Jesus.
The unrighteous say, No! I will not do it God’s way. My way is better than God’s way.
Where did they become foolish or as Blue Letter Bible said, stupid? In their heart. We all understand the importance of our physical heart to our physical health. Spiritually God calls that place in our mind where we formulate everything that we believe, our heart. Their hearts were darkened, skotizo, to cover with or in darkness. Remember what we read earlier from First John, “…God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all.” These people develop a blinding brain fog because they stand with the Adversary.
Romans 1:22
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
“Professing” is the Greek word phasko and it means to proclaim, to speak with an air of confidence, authority. These ungodly people say with great confidence and assurance that they are wise. The word wise means expert or skilled.
They were the experts in 1967 that said we would have great famines by 1975, they were wrong. In 1970 these experts said we would have an ice age by the year 2000, wrong again. In 1978 we were told there was no end in sight to the 30-year cooling trend, until we switched it to global warming. In 1989 we were told nations would be obliterated by the year 2000 from the melting glaciers and rising sea levels. In 2008 former Vice President Al Gore told us the arctic would no longer have ice by 2013.
Genesis 8:22
While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.
But contrary to expert, “they became fools.” The Greek word translated “fools” is moraine and it means mentally dull. But in their own eyes they are sharp, intelligent, and right in all that they think, say, and do.
Isaiah 5:20-21
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!
All their “intelligence” and “wisdom” will leave them without an excuse when it comes time to stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Romans 1:23
And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Idolatry.
We do not speak of idolatry very often today. After all, that was an Old Testament thing. We no longer worship the sun, or the moon, or the stars. That is, except those who must read their horoscope each day. Then there are more than one billion who have the cow as the scared manifestation of their mother goddess.
Exodus 20:2-3
I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
This is what God had to say to Israel at Mount Sinai.
Isaiah 45:5
I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:
The One True God does not want people to call any other thing a god. Whereas the Adversary is called the “god of this world” it is the figure of speech metonym of subject meaning he is the god of this world only to the angels that followed him out of heaven and those who are his children. To us, he is just another false god that is beneath our feet.
1 Corinthians 12:2
Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led.
“Carried away” is the Greek word apago and it means to be led away, a separation from where you were to another place. Sometimes this word carries with it a forced removal as in taking away a prisoner. The words “ye were led” is the Greek word ago. Ago means to be guided or to move by influencing the mind, whether for good or evil.
When someone’s rallying cry is “men can get pregnant and have a baby” do not follow that person. When they think it is okay for teenage boys to dress and undress in the girl’s locker room, recognize their thoughts as useless and stupid. Do not go where that person leads. Do not allow their words, which demonstrate their mental dullness, to influence your mind.
These false gods always demand more once you are hooked by the bait. For example, accept the logic of the gay community and then you get the “trans” insanity. Then, after you have agreed to acceptance, they feel deserving of special rights to a woman’s bathroom, locker room, and sporting events. Woman’s rights are lost to a make-believe gender.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”4
Notice it says, “…endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights…” The Creator only has two genders and “trans” is not one of them.
Romans 1:24
Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
“Wherefore” is the Greek word dio and means on account of. On account of these turning to idolatry, worshipping, as God, things or people that are not God, the One True and Living God gave them up. “Gave up” is the compound Greek word paradidomi. Para means along side of and didomi means to give, to give something to someone. Here you could say, God gave them over to their false god. God gave them over to uncleanness. Uncleanness is the Greek word akatharsia which means impurity.
What is impurity?
For someone who is already a believer it is mixing walking in the flesh with walking in the spirit. It is an impure mixture. For the person who is body and soul only, not having God’s gift of holy spirit, it is the mixture of the spirit of man with the walk in the flesh.
The impurity comes from the lust in the individual heart. The compound Greek word for “lusts” is epithymia. Epi, the prefix here, generally means upon, but is seen and translated differently depending upon its case. Here epi is in the dative case and thus it means superposition. What this shows us is that uncleanness, the impurity, rests upon the lusts in the heart like it is the foundation of impurity.
The stem of epithymia comes from the root thymos which can be positive or negative, the context here goes to the negative side and is correctly translated as lusts. To make the matter even more negative, these lusts are in the heart.
“Dishonor” is the Greek word atimazo.
Blue Letter Bible defines atimazo as, “treat with contempt whether in word, deed, or thought.”
Helps Word-studies: atimázō – treat dishonorably (shamefully, with indignity) because perceived as having no value (honor, worth).
The word “between” is once again the Greek preposition en and once again is used with a plural and should be translated among.
Romans 1:24 is saying that God turned them over to their false god, to their impurity, due to the lusts in their heart, to treat with contempt their own bodies among themselves.
Romans 1:25
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.
These have changed, or exchanged the Truth of God into a lie and worshipped or honored and served the creation more than the Creator. Go back a few pages and read again about the climate worshippers. They have reverence for the planet but not the Creator. The word “served” is the Greek word latreuo. It means to render religious service to a god.
Have you noticed how climate change activists are zealots for the climate to the point of insane thinking? Climate activists have turned global warming into a religion and a religion that demonstrates great mental dullness spoken of in verse twenty-two.
When man says Amen, it means “let it be so” or “so be it.” When God says Amen, it means “it is and shall be.”
Romans 1:26
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:
“Gave them up” is again paradidomi. In verse twenty-four God gave them over to the false god they had chosen to worship. Now God gave them over to the “lusts” of their false god.
It began with their rejection of God and His Word. This action corrupted their minds so that they no longer thought like sane people. Then in verses twenty-four and twenty-five we see moral corruption enter their lives. Now in verses twenty-six and twenty-seven we see their bodily corruption as they turn to homosexuality.
Now the religion of homosexuality denies what God says about homosexuality in His Word.
Genesis 1:28
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
This is Genesis chapter one, and God said, “Be fruitful, and multiple, and replenish (to fill, be full) the earth.” These are the first words God spoke to Adam and Eve together in the Garden in Eden. Do you know what will happen if a woman lays with another woman, or a man lays with another man? They are rejecting God’s first spoken words to Adam and Eve as a couple.
During the days of the Tower of Babel ungodly men had a plan.
Genesis 11:4
And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
Once again certain men moved against God’s plan for all the earth to be inhabited. So, God changed their languages, and they could not understand one another.
Genesis 11:9
Therefore, is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
The Will of God shall be done!
Romans 1:27
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 recompence of their error which was meet.
The word “unseemly” is the Greek word aschemosune.
Helps Word-studies: asxēmosýnē (from a "without" and sxḗma, "form") properly, deformity (improperly fashioned); (figuratively) improper behavior that fails to fulfill the needed purpose (lacking what is fitting or proper).
These people know the Will of God but refuse to live by it. Therefore, they are without excuse.
The Greek word translated “recompence” is antimisthia and it means reward. The Greek word translated “error” is plane and it means to stray, to wander. They wandered away from God and are led astray by the lies and schemes of the Adversary. “In” themselves is once again en and used with a plural should be translated to themselves. “Receiving” is apolambano and means to receive what was promised. The word “meet” is dei in the Greek and means fit or necessary.
The end of Romans 1:27 says this, “…men with men performing that which is unfit or improper receiving into evidence in themselves the reward of their wandering.” Some point at this verse and proclaim AIDS, but the context is not about now, it is about at the time of judgment.
Romans 1:28
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.
“They…did like” is the Greek word dokimazo, from dokimos which is to evaluate, to determine authenticity and genuineness. These did not find God’s Word to be genuine or authentic. So, they did not “retain” echo in the Greek, meaning to hold, God in their knowledge, Knowledge is epignosis.
Helps Word-studies: epígnōsis (from epí, "on, fitting" which intensifies gnṓsis, "knowledge gained through first-hand relationship") properly, "contact-knowledge" that is appropriate ("apt, fitting") to first-hand, experiential knowing.
Then for the third time God uses the phrase, God gave them over, paradidomi. In verse 24 God gave then over to the morality of their false god. In verse 26 God gave them over to their vile affections of bodily corruption, and in verse 28 God gave them over to complete mental corruption, an adokimos mind, a mind void of authentic knowledge of God.
Why did God give them over these three times? Because God allows each person to decide the direction they will take in life. Adam had a choice between two trees, Israel had a choice between life and death, every person has a choice and God has given each person that right to decide to be with God or to walk away.
John 3:19-20
And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
It is truly sad to see anyone make choices that lead to their destruction mentally, physically, spiritually.
Romans 1:29-31
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, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
“Filled” is the Greek word pleroo and it is filled to capacity with unrighteousness. You cannot get more unrighteousness in the mind, they have joined the family of the serpent.
Fornication – not in the text
Wickedness – we get our English word pornography from this Greek word.
Covetousness – fraud
Maliciousness – moral evil
Full of envy – the mind is crammed with jealousy, envy
And the list goes on…
They imitate their father; the Devil and it tears at your heart to know this happens to anyone.
Romans 1:32
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.
Romans 1:32
Although they know full well God’s just sentence that those who practice such things deserve to die they not only do them, but even applaud[v] others who practice them.
Holman Christian Standard Bible
God's desire is for all men to be saved and to come unto a knowledge of the Truth. He has no desire that anyone is lost to the lies and schemes of the Adversary. But the choice is up to each individual, God will not force anyone to come to Him. God loves us and holds the desire that you will return His love.
Do not follow a lie down a dead end road.
Choose life.
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1. Short article in the Washington Post by Andrea Sachs
2. The Devil? Seriously? | Psychology Today, September 28, 2015
difference between apprehend and comprehend - Search (bing.com)
Declaration of Independence, July 1776
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God's Gospel Series
