This blog post is based on Romans 1. There, the apostle Paul makes the case that God is good and sin has corrupted His good creation. Paul specifically lays out his case for why the Gentiles—specifically treated in chapter 1—are guilty before God’s tribunal: idolatry, depraved sexual immorality, and a lack of gratitude towards God. They have followed their sinful natures and desires rather than God and have willingly suppressed their innate knowledge of the truth.
What exactly does Paul say?
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.” - Romans 1:18-23
What do humans, apart from God’s specific revelation and intervention, do by nature? In verses 18-19 Paul tells us we suppress the truth which we innately know about God. Why do we do that? Paul says we do it because of our unrighteousness and because we do not want to submit to God’s law. Sinful man does not by nature desire God and His lordship, and thus suppresses the truth about God, exchanging it for the lie as Paul says (v.23).
We know from Ecclesiastes that God has set eternity in the heart of man. But because we have all been corrupted by sin, our natural tendency is to re-create God in our own image—the height of blasphemy and idolatry.
“[Romans is] the most pessimistic page of literature upon which your eyes ever rested [and simultaneously] the most optimistic poem to which your ears ever listened.” – G. Campbell Morgan, British preacher and author
Paul says in verses 21-23 that these people about whom he is writing knew the truth of God, but hardened themselves against Him and His truth and refused to submit to the revelation they had received. They also refused to be thankful to God, instead giving heed to foolish speculations about Him and to false religions and idolatry. Man’s ingratitude to God for His many blessings and His goodness was one of the primary things that so bothered John Calvin about the state of sinful humanity.
“The heart of man is a factory of idols.” – John Calvin, 16th century Reformer
Paul says that they profess themselves to be wise, but in so doing they became fools. He then goes on to explain how they became guilty of idolatry, refusing to worship the true God and rather worshipped His creation. Paul then uses the remainder of the chapter to speak of the debauched sexual practices these people wandered into, further cementing his case that humans are sinful, unholy creatures.
But let’s look specifically at verse 20: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”
This is what theologians call general revelation, and it speaks to the fact that God has revealed certain aspects of Himself to humanity through creation. And because He has done this, all are without excuse. We can all look at nature and know that there is a Designer behind it. While Paul was dealing with Gentiles who were pagan and polytheistic, in 21st-century Western culture we see far more commonly a denial of God’s existence (not the existence of a “god,” but the existence of the God of Scripture): this was Paul’s case against sinful humanity.
Several years ago, I was sitting in the outdoor amphitheatre on a Wednesday afternoon at my old church in southern Oregon. It was a gorgeous day, and while sitting there, this verse came to mind. I started thinking about that which we can know about God by simply looking at His creation. And since all of creation (except the righteous angels) has suffered under the curse of sin and the Fall, there are many things in creation that do not properly reflect God’s nature.
But consider the variety of colors in nature! Look at the different seasons and weather patterns. Feel the cool breeze blow across your face and contemplate the flight of the radiant butterflies. Gaze up at the stars on a clear night: I dare you not to be completely awed. It’s incredible.
I say all of this to encourage us who are Christians to appreciate nature and recognize the beauty and goodness of God in it. Then, glorify Him for it.
As a musician/artist, my desire is that we the Church be the most creative, beauty-inspired people on the planet. We have the Creator as our Father and Savior, and it is our joy to reflect His beauty, goodness, and truth back to a lost world.
As the Psalmist wrote so long ago, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the expanse proclaims the work of His hands. Day after day they pour out speech; night after night they communicate knowledge. There is no speech; there are no words; their voice is not heard. Their message has gone out to the whole earth, and their words to the ends of the world.” – Psalm 19:1-4a
May we join our voices with the rest of creation in singing praise to our Triune God, whose infinite beauty and holiness are reflected in His beautiful creation.
“These things are merely a whisper of God’s power at work.” – Job 26:14a