The Wrath of God is known to every man
Rom. 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness
I. How is the wrath of God revealed to man?
The gospel reveals the grace and righteousness of God toward mankind.
Before the natural man can receive the gospel message, he must know that he needs that message.
If the man refuses to accept that God is his righteous judge, he will naturally refuse the gospel message.
There is a natural conscience of mankind, which reveals that there is a God and that man is accountable to him.
The natural man would want to deny this is so because every man knows in his own heart that he deserves the severest judgment of God.
A man might admit there is a God, but to admit that God is able to do anything about sin is another matter altogether.
An agnostic can admit there is a God, and go on his way, not worrying about his accountability to that God.
The agnostic can be indignant toward God, not caring if He likes what he does or not.
If that same agnostic admits he is accountable to that God, the entire picture is changed.
That agnostic must now be careful to please that God, or be held in indignation by that God.
Apply the hardening of a person’s heart to Romans 1, noticing the progression into sin as a person continually rejects the fact that God is their righteous judge.
Because people refused to believe God was their creator, they made up another way of creation. Rom. 1:23.
After God gave them over to that, these rejecters began to worship the creature more than the creator.
The result is men worshipping the intelligence of other men.
In the Charismatic movement, men have placed their "word of prophecy" as being on equal terms with the Bible.
Rom. 1:26,27 - The worship of others intelligence, plus the rejection of God as creator and judge, naturally led to the worship of bodies.
Rom. 1:28 - The worship of bodies has naturally led to God giving people over to a polluted mind.
Understand that this falling away into sin takes some time.
The flood in Noah’s day took place in 1656 A.M.
Noah took 120 years to build the ark.
This made 1536 A.M. when God instructed Noah to build the ark.
The complete destruction of Egypt in Moses day took some time.
The chain of events in Rom. 1 also takes some time.
II. The creation and people rejecting Christ.
There is a certain thing about God speaking the worlds into existence that every man will run away from.
If it is admitted that God spoke the worlds into existence, that the worlds and everything thereon was made for His glory and honor, than we are all are accountable to that God.
There is plenty of evidence in the Bible concerning God’s judgment against wicked sinners.
Most people in the United States have heard about Lot’s wife being turned into a pillar of salt because she looked back.
Along with this story, most people know about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and why these cities of the plain were destroyed.
They know it was because of gross wickedness, homosexuality, which is often called sodomy.
People today are trying to forget about the times God judged the wickedness of mankind, and are trying to remember that God is a god of infinite love.
They believe God will accept them because He is a God of infinite love, but they forget that the love of God for righteousness has a counterpart: that God hates sin.
It is no accident that the first message I remember is on the judgment of God, not on the love of God.
God knew that I needed to understand that He is a God of severest judgment and punishment before I could ever understand even the smallest portion of his love.
Some religious leaders had said that it is not necessary to preach against sin, to never name sin because that is very offensive to lost people.
Lost people know what their sins are and that they are a sinner.
All that needs to be preached is the love of God and how He can save sinners. This philosophy hasn’t worked!
III. People often harden their hearts against the gospel message. How does a person harden their heart?
A. Ex. 4:21 - God told Moses He would harden Pharaoh’s heart.
1. God is telling Moses about the final outcome so he won’t be surprised when Pharaoh doesn’t immediately let Israel go.
2. This is the final outcome after Pharaoh had hardened 10 times.
3. God is said to harden Pharaoh’s heart 9 times while Pharaoh is said to have hardened his own heart 10 times.
B. People make a judgment against God’s decrees, and continuing down that road make many more judgments and decisions which are against God’s will until finally they have committed gross sins against God.
Daniel 7:25 - A part of Satan’s plan for taking over the world is to change times and laws.
This is very evident in the United States of America as the past 40-50 years has seen a complete change in the basic attitude of Americans.
There was a time when lost people respected Sunday as a day of rest and worship, but today even "saved" people treat Sunday like it is just another day of the week.
There is a great change in the way people think about marriage and raising children.
There is a great change in the way couples think about women working outside the home instead of being a help meet to her husband and raising their children.
There is a great change in the way men think of their role in the home.
This thinking has led men out of the home, leaving those chores up to the wife.
There is a great change in the attitude toward sin.
Hardly anything is "sin" anymore. Abortion has been accepted, Homosexuality is being condoned by many.
All of the above has taken place, not because men say there is no God, but because men say God will not judge them!
God and His laws are simply not reverent to most people today.
They do not include God in their world and cannot see why they should include Him.
Psalms 73 declares that the wicked are satisfied without God because of the wealth and pleasure.
Job 21 declares the same thing.
Eccl. 8:11 - Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.