Marriage, Sex and Sexuality 5 - Rom.1:18-32

What is the most severe crisis humanity is facing?  For the Apostle Paul, the answer underpinning any other answer we might have to that question is ‘the wrath of God’ (1:18).  We are likely to find this destabilising for a number of reasons, but not least because Paul seems to think that God’s wrath is already being revealed here and now.  This isn’t some future event – or at least it isn’t merely a future event.  It seems that in this sense at least, condemnation mirrors salvation.  As Christians we know that some albeit limited aspects of our salvation are experienced in the here and now.  Yet much of what we anticipate about bring a Christian has a future, end-of-the-age, focus.  Similarly, the articulation of God’s wrath against sin has its centre of gravity in the end-of-the-age, but elements of it find expression in this age.  So Psalm 7:11, ‘God is a righteous judge, a God who displays his wrath every day’.

Sometimes we can miss the big picture stuff in the Bible…  But as we read through Scripture it’s extraordinary how many of what we call ‘natural disasters’ are attributed to the expression of God’s wrath against the realities of human sin (not always, but often).  Our mechanistic view of creation tends to obscure the sense of cause and effect.  But the revelation of God’s wrath is not limited to the physicality of our world.  It also finds expression in the moral world of human ‘thought, word and deed’.  Human sin is not merely the cause of God’s anger.  The relationship is more sophisticated than that.  The proliferation of human sin is also the revealing of God’s wrath.  Our rejection of God and His ways at both personal and societal levels results in our being given over to a deeper experience of our corporate sinfulness.  It is worth noting in passing that catches up ‘all the godlessness and wickedness of people’…  and not just the expressions of sin that we might find particularly distasteful (see vv.28-31).

Of course, the Epistle to the Romans is all about what God – in His love - has done in Christ to break the cycle of sin and judgment.  But Paul’s exploration of the Good News starts with our confronting God’s wrath.

Do you think it’s right to say that natural disasters are the expression, or revealing of God’s wrath?  Can you think of passages that either support or refute such a claim?  Do you think the same is true today?

What do you think about Paul’s claim that the result of sin is God giving humanity over to greater sin (1:24; 26; esp. v.28)? 

Is there a gradation of sin…  is some sin ‘worse’ than other sin?  What about sexual sin… is some sexual sin ‘worse’ that other sin, or even other sexual sin?  Can you think of passages from the Bible that back up your view?

Is Paul right that everyone knows the truth about God, but is suppressing that knowledge (1:18-19; 21; 28)?  …and later, that everyone knows ‘God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death (1:32)?

What do you think is the link between the idolatry of vv.21-25, and the ‘sexual impurity’ of vv.24 & 26-27?   Do you think such a link continues to feature in a secular society?

In light of the observation in last week’s sermon that it wasn’t until Freud that our sexuality came to be considered as our identity, do you think it is appropriate for Christians to use labels such as ‘heterosexual’ or ‘homosexual’ to describe people?  Is it something the Bible ever does?

Do you agree with Paul’s assessment of human culture and behaviour in vv.29-32? …or do you think he is overstating his case?  Does Paul think there are any good people in the world? 

Can you think of any examples of the way that our culture approves of those who practise things that lead to death (1:32)? 

Why does Paul spend so long (1:18-3:20) underlining the sinfulness of humanity?  Is he simply being negative?