Practical Discipleship
What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus? A disciple's mission is to live a Christ-centered life, reflecting God in all we say and do - evangelizing, teaching, and sharing the gospel so others may know. Austen and Cheyenne share the wisdom of the Bible and discuss how to walk with Christ on a daily basis.
Practical Discipleship
Ep 32: Faith That Reveals Righteousness (Romans ch 1)
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Dive into the theological richness of Romans as we unpack Paul's masterful letter that bridges divine justice and mercy. In this episode, we explore how the epistles—particularly Romans—serve as the theological backbone of Christian faith, explaining the implications of Christ's death and resurrection.
What makes Romans stand out among Paul's writings? We examine how this letter addresses a unique church dynamic: Jewish Christians zealous for the law and Gentile believers who disregarded it entirely. This tension creates the perfect backdrop for Paul's comprehensive explanation of how God's righteousness works through faith, not works.
The episode unpacks Romans 1:16-17, the theological centerpiece where Paul declares, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes." We explore the revolutionary concept that salvation is available to all nations—not through heritage or religious performance but through faith alone. This universal invitation comes with a sobering contrast: those who accept the gospel by faith experience God's righteousness revealed, while those who reject it face God's righteous judgment.
We also tackle challenging passages about general revelation (what can be known about God through creation) versus special revelation (the specific gospel message), and how this distinction underscores the importance of evangelism. The discussion extends to Paul's treatment of sin—including his comments on homosexuality—and how Christians can uphold biblical truth while extending Christ's love to all people.
Whether you're new to studying the epistles or looking to deepen your understanding of Romans, this episode provides both theological depth and practical application for today's believers. Discover how this ancient letter continues to transform our understanding of faith, righteousness, and God's character.
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Welcome back to another episode of Practical Discipleship. I'm Austin.
Speaker 2:And I'm Cheyenne. And here we discover what it means to follow God by engaging with Scripture and igniting our faith.
Speaker 1:So others may know, let's do it. Alright, thanks for tuning back in. All right, thanks for tuning back in. We are now jumping into the epistles, and the epistles are just as a fancy word for letters of the New Testament. The majority of them is what Paul has written Now that we have finished the book of Acts. So thank you guys for those who stuck with it through me through the whole overview of Acts. I dove in a little bit deeper into that one because it's so foundational to understand the rest of the New Testament and these letters that are written to actually specific churches that Paul has engaged with in the past, of whether it was churches that he came across that were already established or ones that he actually established going on these different missionary trips that he went on, are ones that he actually established going on these different missionary trips that he went on. So there's a lot of internal historical context within the Bible itself that we can get for leading up of all these other epistles. So I'm going to try and go through overview of the epistles, maybe a little bit faster, I don't know, but it's kind of hard to because there's so much packed in these, especially doing the Romans today. So a couple of things before we get into the text of what I want to talk about. What's important about the epistles? Well, first of all, the epistles are very important because they make up 21 of the 27 books that are in the New Testament. So obviously they carry a lot of weight. And Paul writes 13 of those. So just the writings of Paul alone make up almost nearly half of the New Testament. And that's not to say that you know, paul was the most important and that we shouldn't pay attention to the other epistles. It's just, I mean, look at the ground that Paul covered, going through the book of Acts and his different missionary trips that he went on. I mean, he met a lot of people, he talked with a lot of people, so he got a lot of different connections and relationships with people. And you know that's important in the Christian life, the Christian walk and, like what I mentioned on the last episode, just the importance of the body of Christ and everything. Not saying that the other apostles didn't do that, but as far as that I'm aware, none of the other apostles necessarily went to the extent that Paul did traveling wise, like covering miles.
Speaker 1:And then another thing that I want to this may seem kind of obvious, but the letters kind of similar, of like how we would write a letter today. They all have an opening, of course, the body itself, and then the closing, and it's important to recognize where these are, especially the body, of course, because the whole point in understanding the theological context of whatever author that we're talking about we'll just say Paul, because we're doing Romans today, but there's a main focus of what they're trying to argue or fix within the church, or if there's different, uh, audiences that it's basically being written to, like the book of Romans, which we'll get into a little bit later. But, um, so yeah, it's, it's just it's a letter that's written to the church or to a specific person, uh, like first and second Timothy, for example, or Philemon. That's not like a church that's written to, that's actually written to a very specific person. Um, and then what's also important to understand about the epistles is authorship, so who wrote it, and then the recipient of who it's written to, and then the date is also important, because that brings in a lot of historical context of what's going on, of like who is Nero at this time, or whatever, or what are the things that the Christians are being persecuted for during this time. So all of those things add factors in and help you understand the cultural context of what's going on, because you shouldn't read every single epistle the exact same. I know this. It might sound weird, but the Bible is not written to you, the Bible is written for you. So we have to understand the recipient of who it's being written to to better understand the context of what's going on in these letters.
Speaker 1:And the way that the epistles are distinguished from the gospels is that they're not like a narrative composition where the gospels are more of like a redemptive history. The epistles are written more on the other side of the cross and resurrection, so they focus specifically on Christ's death and resurrection, not saying that the gospels don't, but the gospel is of course the story of Christ and then of course ends with his death and resurrection and ascension. But as we start going through these other epistles, you're going to start realizing what Paul is trying to correct theologically in their thinking of whether it's the crucifixion, the resurrection, the ascension or even when Christ is coming back. There's certain theological things that we'll see within these epistles that Paul is fixing or arguing against of whatever they're believing of, whatever heresy is coming about at that time. So I would say there's a lot more on reading the epistles and everything, but for just starting out, I think those are the things to be aware of. So, authorship, recipient, cultural context, of course, which we just went through, the book of Acts and all that, and then just knowing how they differ from the gospels themselves and looking for those theological things that we're looking for.
Speaker 1:Now that that's out of the way, let's get into the introduction of Romans. So, putting application to what I just said, right, so we need to. Before we start getting into the text of Romans, it's important to know who wrote it, who it's written to and the cultural context of what's going on. So, without a doubt, I would say the author is Paul for sure, even though there's some scholars that have argued the authorship of Paul. But even the scholars who argue or doubt the authorship of Paul, their arguments hold no weight. So the authorship of Romans definitely is Paul and the date probably wrote Romans when he was in Corinth on his third missionary journey.
Speaker 1:Okay, and you can go back and read that in Acts, chapter two, or, excuse me, acts chapter 20, verses two through three, in around AD 57. And some of the like historical context that I that I would say that would be very necessary to understand when reading the book of Romans is that the church that he's writing to actually includes both Jewish and Gentile Christians, and so there are some times when you're going through where he's addressing the Jewish Christians and then he's addressing the Gentiles specifically, and it's cool to see how, when you're going through, Paul is argument towards the Jewish Christians, who are so zealous for the law and so, too, focused on the law, and then, on the other hand, then he addresses the Gentiles, who disregard the law altogether, and it's cool to see how Paul graphs this in and together. That would be one of the things that I would say is the major historical context of understanding the book of Romans, and the reason why it's like a mixed church is because the Jews were actually kicked out of Rome, and you can read this in Acts, chapter 18, verse two. But because of that, because of them being kicked out Rome and you can read this in Acts, chapter 18, verse 2. But because of that, because of them being kicked out, the Gentile churches would have developed over the number of years slowly, and then, once the Jews were starting to come back over the years and filter back into the Roman churches. You can only imagine the difficult tensions that probably developed from the Gentiles who were there for many years and they start believing all their weird things so against the law. And you got the Jews, who are starting to come back in, who are very zealous for the law still, and I think they're missing the mark of what Christ has fully completed, and so there's a lot of tension there in the church.
Speaker 1:But it does seem that the majority of the church was made up of mainly Gentile Christians. So this is Romans 1, 5-6, chapter 13, chapter 11, chapter 15. I would say that the majority of it was probably Gentile, but there's definitely those Jewish Christians that are in there as well, and Paul is writing this letter to the church so that they would be united in the gospel that he is preaching and that they would comprehend how the gospel spoke to the issues. That is specifically dividing them. And that which brings me into my next point that I'm talking about is like the theme. The main theme that I think that we can trace throughout the book of Romans is that Romans is the revelation of God's judging and saving righteousness within the gospel, god judges sin but yet, at the same time, manifests his saving mercy. And we'll see that when we get into chapter one here, because it's basically like the, the key verse.
Speaker 1:If you're going to pluck one verse out of out of the book of Romans to sum it up, that's, that's what it would be, all right. So, that being said, let's actually dive into the text. Um, I'll read some of it and explain. I mean, there's, like I said, there's so much to unpack in literally just the first sentence. So, again, keeping this moderately Bible overview, but going to dive into the things that I think are extremely necessary or that I think is just cool to point out.
Speaker 1:All right, chapter 1, verse 1. By his resurrection from the dead, jesus Christ, our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith, for the sake of his name, among all the nations, including you, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. We're still not even through the first sentence. Paul loved these run-on sentences just comma, comma, comma, comma, semicolon, colon, semicolon, comma. Literally, the sentence doesn't end until verse 7 here. I love it, but let's go back up to the top and there's a couple things that I want to point out here.
Speaker 1:So, paul, he calls himself a servant of Christ Jesus, but he also calls himself an apostle, which is interesting. So, being an apostle, he's emphasizing that his authority is equal to that of the 12 apostles chosen by Christ, because the apostles were specifically called by Christ. But if you recall what happened in the book of Acts that we went through, the encounter that he has with the resurrected Jesus coming to him and giving him a very specific mission, calling him of what he needed to do, then he's blinded for three days, that whole story. And he also mentions multiple times that this is the gospel that has been revealed to me from God. It's not man's gospel, it's God's gospel, all that, but called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand.
Speaker 1:And now, what I think he's referring to here and this is what I mentioned in my Bible overview series is that promise in Genesis, chapter 3, when he is like what we refer to as the first gospel proclamation after Adam and Eve sinned, and God's talking to the serpent and he says the seed of the woman is going to come and bruise your heel and you're going to bruise his heel and everything. That promise in Genesis chapter three is talking about Jesus coming and dying on the cross. So right as soon as Adam and Eve sinned, god is already planning the story of redemption and that we see that unfolding story throughout Genesis, all the way through the Bible. So he could be referring to that specifically or talking about even beforehand, like before that, because obviously God's all-knowing, he knows what's going to happen in the future and so even before he creates everything, he knew what was going to happen. He's already had that promise beforehand. But then he says through his prophets in the holy scriptures concerning his son, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures. That's why I think it's this is he's referring to this Genesis chapter three promise specifically, because that's something that we can actually go back and look at and have proof that it's like okay, yes, this is what God has said of that whole seed thing that I mentioned.
Speaker 1:If you have no idea what I'm talking about with the whole Genesis chapter three seed thing, go back and listen to our the Bible overview episode that I did. It's literally titled Bible overview and it's the casket empty one that I do. I don't want to go down, you know, get sidetracked and talk about the whole promise thing. But go listen to that episode if you have no idea what I'm talking about. And then, furthermore, starting in verse three, when he even says concerning his son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the son of God in power according to the spirit of holiness and the resurrection from the dead. Okay, so this is, this is really cool when I was reading this. So he says concerning his son, who is descended from David according to the flesh, right, so cause?
Speaker 1:Again, going back to that Bible overview episode that I'm mentioning, I talk about how that promise line, all the way from Genesis, chapter three, that seed going through the 12 tribes of Israel, through Judah, you know, all the way through David, and it says according to the flesh. So God was going to be born in the flesh through, specifically, david's line and then declared to be the son of God in power according to the spirit of holiness. So it's cool how we see, in just the very beginning of Rome, of chapter one, in Romans, that we're already seeing the humanity and divinity of Christ. Paul is literally talking about how he's descended according to the flesh, like he's born, like God comes down in human form. Right, this is Philippians, chapter 3, or, excuse me, philippians chapter 2, I believe. But this is where we, as Christians, how we believe that Jesus is fully man and fully God. I've actually never used this verse to um explain my point on that theologically, but when I was reading it this morning I was like whoa it's, that's cool.
Speaker 1:He's actually literally talking about the according to the flesh, and then the spirit is humanity and divinity of Christ. Putting those two together, I think it's really cool. And then, of course, he goes on to explain how, through Jesus Christ, we have, you know, grace and forgiveness those who seek his name. And he says among all the nations, keep in mind, that's plural, all the nations. He's not talking about just a specific people group by like race or ethnicity, he's talking all nations, literally the doors open for all people. And it's actually been open. The door has been open for all people. Even in the old Testament God tells Abraham I'm going to make you a father of many nations. Again, nations is plural, it's not just a nation, nations. And then he even says, including you, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. So that's just his little opening thing there, Like just what a power punch. Literally sums up all the.
Speaker 1:I mean he talks about how he was an apostle set apart for the gospel, that which God has promised beforehand, goes through and talks about basically the humanity and divinity of Jesus and how we have all received grace through those who put their obedience and faith in Christ for his name's sake, for all the nations, that everyone's involved in it. Namesake for all the nations, that everyone's involved in it. If, if, if, you make that decision that you put your faith in Christ. And then he says even to you who belong there, are called to belong to Jesus Christ. In just six verses, little power punch gospel message there. If you ever want to know how to preach the gospel in 30 seconds, boom, there you go. Romans, chapter one, verses one through six there you go.
Speaker 1:And then he goes on, starting in verse eight Um, and he's thinking, he's thinking the people there, because, um, in case you didn't hear me say it before, but Paul didn't establish this church here in Rome, right? That wouldn't make sense, because he's literally writing this letter before he actually even goes and visits Rome. Talking about the last episode that I did on the closing part of Acts. He goes to Rome in chains as a prisoner for already doing the work that he's been doing. So he didn't establish the church in Rome here. To be honest with you, I'm not even sure who did establish the church there. I don't know if that's found in church history or anything, but as far as I know I'm not. I'm not sure who did.
Speaker 1:But anyways, he's thanking. He's thanking the church basically for their faith and that that's being proclaimed in all the world and everything, and I think it's just really interesting and cool to see that he's thanking them. First of all, this is something that Paul typically does, uh does in all of his greeting letters within the Thanksgiving. We see this in 1 Corinthians and Philemon and 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy. The reason why I think it's cool is that he's thanking them for their faith that's being proclaimed in all the world and Paul is probably looking at. Keep in mind, paul's focus is it's all preaching the filling the great commission, like that is the mission that God has given Paul to do. We see him go and do all these missionary trips throughout the book of Acts and he's thanking these people because they're playing a specific part and role within that great commission of the gospel advancing throughout all the world.
Speaker 1:I just think it's powerful to see how humble that Paul is. He's not like comparing him, like, oh well, I did this and I went here and I've been here this many years and I'm an ambassador in chains, but he's going, he's actually thanking them for the part that they're actually playing in, and so after he's done doing that in verse 15, it says so I am eager to preach the gospel to you also, who are in Rome. And then you're kind of like wait a minute. I thought he just thanked them for their faith and proclaimed in all the world and all this. So they're Christians, obviously. So why is Paul going to preach the gospel to them who are in Rome?
Speaker 1:And I was thinking on this for a little bit, but I think the answer is that for Paul, the quote unquote the gospel is not just a call to initial saving faith, but it's also a call to continually that daily walk of repentance, that daily picking up your cross. The gospel is not just a one-time thing, it's a daily walk of faith. And the reason why I say this is because, if you, I mean, look at Romans 6, 4 or 8, 4 or 2 Corinthians 5, 17,. Galatians 5, 6. I mean, it's a, it's a continual thing that you have to to live by. It's not just like a okay, I gave my life to Christ and now I can just do whatever I want. So that's how I take that verse. Do whatever I want, so that's how I take that verse.
Speaker 1:But then we get into this is the punch line here of if you wanted to take one verse, or technically two verses, take two verses out of Romans. This is what would be called. This is what we would refer to as the key verse, because it basically just sums up what the book of Romans is about. So I'm just going to read. It just sums up what the book of Romans is about, so I'm just going to read it. This is Romans, chapter one, verse 16 through 17.
Speaker 1:For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. A couple of things I want to point out here about this. First of all, it's awesome just to see how he's saying I'm not ashamed of the gospel, right, but why is he not ashamed of the gospel? He's not ashamed of it because he knows and believes that it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, right. And then you see how he says the Jew first, and also to the Greeks. And now he's talking you know those, the mixed church congregation. Here it's not just Jews or it's not just Greeks. The door is open for everybody. And then it says for in it the righteousness of God is revealed.
Speaker 1:And this is where I kind of like the way that I share the gospel with people. There's one line that I always that I pretty much say word for word, or I make sure that I talk about it in some way or some sense. But I always say that if God is a righteous judge, then there has to be a day of judgment, otherwise he's not a righteous judge if there's not a day of judgment. But he is a righteous judge and there is judgment. That is coming. But Paul's talking about the gospel here. So it's the power of everyone, salvation whoever believes, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed. So what is he talking about there?
Speaker 1:The message story of the gospel is that, yes, god is a righteous judge and sin must be dealt with. Blood has to be shed for the forgiveness of sin. God doesn't just be like, okay, nevermind, it doesn't matter, I'll just forgive you. I mean, yes, he is loving and he is forgiving, of course, but for those who are only under the blood of Jesus Christ, that is the only way that you can be declared righteous, logically and theologically. If there was any other way, then the gospel wouldn't necessarily make sense. So I'll say it like this Sin blood has to be shed for sin. I mean literally Paul, or the author of Hebrews, says that blood has to be shed for the forgiveness of sin.
Speaker 1:Gospel is that God himself comes down and takes the punishment that we deserve so that you can be declared righteous by putting your faith in Christ. That's what Paul's saying. I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. Right, so it's not off works. It's not how many times that you can go out and preach the gospel, it's not about how much money you make. It's not about how many friends that you have. I mean, yes, like obeying Jesus and everything and keeping the commandments are important, but the gospel, for the power of salvation, is everyone who believes. It's a heart posture to the Jew and to the Gentile, so literally anyone in the world, because if you're not a Jew, you were literally a Gentile. Well, it says Greek here, but Jew or Gentile.
Speaker 1:And then he talks about how the righteousness of God is revealed. And the righteousness is revealed because of what Christ has done on the cross. God is righteous and he is a man of his word, so that he comes down in human form and takes that punishment for us. Again, going back to the beginning of chapter one, his opening statement talking about how he came, descended from David, right. So he talks about his humanity. And then he talks about his divinity. Jesus is God. And then, of course, he says from faith for faith, as it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. So he says by faith, again just confirming the fact that there's nothing that you can do to earn your salvation. It's a free gift from God. All you have to do is accept it by faith, because there's not a single man or woman in this world that is completely righteous without the blood of Jesus Christ. It is only through the blood of Jesus that makes you righteous, that God can wash away the sin.
Speaker 1:If you want more details on that, I'd recommend that you read the book of Leviticus. We also have an episode on the podcast about Leviticus and we actually have a solid pastor who's on there giving his commentary on Leviticus and everything. But Jesus is the fulfillment of everything in Leviticus Not just Leviticus, obviously, the entire Bible, but specifically the sacrificial system that they had to do. So read the book of Leviticus and then the gospels and see how Jesus is the fulfillment of all that. And if you have a hard time understanding what I just said about the righteousness of God being revealed, read the book of Leviticus and then read the gospels and then maybe come back and read Romans, chapter one. Actually, you know what I'll make it easier for you Read the book of Leviticus, read the gospel of John and then reread Romans, chapter one and maybe, if you're someone who struggles with that of what I just said about the righteousness of God being revealed, maybe the Holy Spirit will speak to you and open up your eyes to that, because logically, it makes sense to me.
Speaker 1:I don't see how it could be any other way, because I truly do. Look at it as there has to be a day of judgment, because God is righteous and he is just. It's just through what Christ has done on the cross. And then he even takes it further that for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. So there's a contrast here. There's the difference between people who put their faith in Christ the righteousness of God is revealed, but those who don't put their faith in Christ, the wrath of God is revealed. So, yes, god is a just and righteous god that's revealed from heaven.
Speaker 1:You either put your faith in christ and the righteousness of god is revealed, or you don't put your faith and the wrath of god is revealed. And there is no in between. You're either for god or you're against god. If you're on the fence, then you. That that's that's not for God, that the fence line belongs to Satan. And I think that the enemy loves lukewarm Christians, because lukewarm Christians can really deceive other people and people of the world or people who struggle with their faith. They can look at a lukewarm Christian and be like, oh well, I guess that's okay to do because he's a Christian. So maybe I will follow God if it means that I can keep doing X, y, z, whatever. And then, moving on to verse 19, it says For what can be known about God is plain to them because God has shown it to them, for his invisible attributes, namely his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world and the things that have been made.
Speaker 1:So this is, um, this is what I was talking about a couple episodes ago, about the difference between general revelation and special revelation. So what, what Paul's referring to right here is general revelation, and what I mean by general revelation is that he's talking about if you go out and you look at the world and you see nature. You see the trees, stars, sun, moon, whatever anything of nature. What Paul's saying here is basically that you should be able to walk out and know that there is a creator, because you were looking at the evidence of the creation, and so that's what's referred to as general revelation. Special revelation is where I talked about the example in Acts, when Paul's in Athens and he sees the altar made to the unknown God. Right, so they already had the general revelation. They're like hey, we're looking at the creation, we know that there has to be some type of creator, there's some type of God or deity or whatever spirit, whatever. You know, people call it different things, but at least they are recognizing the general revelation. And then Paul comes in and corrects their general revelation and reveals to them the special revelation, that is, jesus or the entire gospel, and that's what he says. That so that they are without excuse, because anybody should be able to look at creation and know that that's evidence of a creator. We look at a painting as proof of a painting, a builder as proof of a builder, creation as proof of a creator. Not some of the mainstream science of the. I love real science and what's being taught about evolution. That's not science. I mean what we witness and what we see in the world is literally what the Bible teaches us in Genesis 1. This is general revelation. We see that animals are made after their own kind, just like what Genesis 1 says. God made the land animals according to their kind, made the birds according to their kind, made the creepy crawling things according to their kind, everything in the sea according to their kind. It says, according to their kind. Over and over and over again. And that's literally what we see and witness today. We cannot do the scientific method on the fact where they claim that complex life forms come from simplistic life forms. For one, that makes absolutely no sense to me, but two. We've never witnessed it. And anytime that you you mentioned that part of the argument, people will say oh well, it takes millions of years. It's like, okay, well, I don't have millions of years. Let's actually let's think about this logically. But anyways, I don't want to get off track. That's not the important part. The important thing is that Paul is talking about general revelation here. They're without excuse.
Speaker 1:But also just one, one quick thing that I also want to say about general revelation. That's not, it's kind of a trying to think of how I want to say it. So you can't, you can't be saved from general revelation, right? Because the Bible is clear that Jesus is the only way to the father. So we can't get into this mindset of being like oh well, you know general revelation, we don't need to necessarily go out and preach the gospel because of general revelation. General revelation is not what brings salvation, it's Jesus himself. So, if anything, it should actually urge you more to go out and preach the gospel, because there is evidence of this creator and you want to come and bring the gospel and being like let me show you this creator who loves you, who has created everything that you witness here, and even you, and bringing in this special revelation. I just mentioned that because I've heard some interesting things of the general revelation you know, and I think that that borderlines universalism, which I, which I don't agree with.
Speaker 1:Universalism is where people believe that everyone will be saved, um, and even Satan himself. So, yeah, I, just I, I reject that altogether. I don't think that's um theologically accurate. I don't think that's theologically accurate. I don't think that we see that in the Bible. And so, yes, going out preaching the gospel is necessary. So keep in mind, here we're still talking about the wrath on unrighteous people here. This is still under the same title here of what we're reading from.
Speaker 1:And Paul goes on to talk about the dishonorable passions that hinder people. So he says Consumed with passion for love of one another, Men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. I mean, I think that's pretty self-explanatory. I don't know how you can argue against that. People who think that's not talking about homosexuality. I think it's clear it is talking about homosexuality. It's talking about women who have exchanged their natural relations for those that are contrary to nature. So Paul's saying is like, look, that's not, that's not normal, that's not natural. And then he also even mentions the men. So it's not just men or it's not just women, it's men and women talking about homosexuality, because I've heard the argument where people will say, well, the the word homosexual or the word homosexuality doesn't appear in the Bible until, like, the first version of King James or something like that. I forget the year that people mentioned, but it's like, okay, even if the word specifically homosexuality is not in the Bible until then, what word would you use for verse 26 through 27? I mean, I can't think of a better word to use. I mean, he's talking about dishonorable passions, exchanging natural relations with one that are contrary to nature, Men who go into unnatural relations with a woman or, excuse me, men who likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another. So, and then you know, men committing shameless acts with men. I mean, so yeah, even if the word specifically homosexuality was not necessarily in one of the translations until later on, Paul breaks it down pretty clear here, but he doesn't stop there and I think this is um.
Speaker 1:I think this is a hard thing that the church has a hard time with, especially in today's age with the whole LGBT thing, and if anyone out there is listening, I just want you to know that the church doesn't hate you. The church, or at least the church should. Christians in general when I say the church, I mean the body of Christ should hate sin, not the person. The battle that we fight is not against flesh and blood, but it's a spiritual enemy that we fight. Speaking from the book of Ephesians, that the reason why the church has a hard time with this one is because usually people who do live live that lifestyle. It's pretty evident that they live that lifestyle, and so I think they have a hard time of being like okay, well, yes, we want this person to come to church, but how do we not associate or, I guess, like make it seem like we're okay with their sin? I don't know if that makes sense or like I don't know if I'm explaining that correctly, but I just want to. I want people to know that, yes, God loves you, and there are some Christians that I think have have painted Jesus in a bad light with this specific sin.
Speaker 1:Now, I'm not. I'm not saying that the sin is okay, but let me just be absolutely clear here. It is a sin and it is serious. Um, but that's not the only sin that's mentioned in the Bible. You know, adultery is serious, that's a sin, and we're going to go through here these next couple of verses. Paul literally lists out all these other different sins, Um, but it seems like I'm just focusing on the homosexuality one, because it seems like that's just so evident in our culture and it's becoming a norm in our society.
Speaker 1:Actually, it is considered a norm, it's not becoming it. It has reached the point where it is considered normal. And the Bible talks there is still forgiveness and, yes, the church wants you to come and experience a hard one to deal with, because they look at it as like it's their identity and they're born that way. And so then we get people that are coming and be like, yes, I'm a Christian and I'm gay, and they, they, they don't look at it as a sin. Okay, so there's a there's a completely different heart posture of someone who comes to Christ and they're like Jesus, I want you, Lord of my life and I struggle with with um, same sex attraction, but I know that it's wrong. Okay, so there's a difference between someone like that and then someone who says, yes, I'm a Christian and I'm gay, and God's okay with it. Those are two totally different heart postures, and I think there's. I mean now, of course, there's all these like affirming churches that are coming up and everything, because Christians are starting to relax on God's word here a little bit Actually, not a little bit, a lot, and it's concerning and there's going to be a time of judgment.
Speaker 1:Keep in mind this part. Verse 26, is under the portion of God's wrath for the unrighteous. If you don't want to experience his unrighteous, come to Christ by faith and the righteousness of God's wrath for the unrighteous. If you don't want to experience as unrighteous, come to Christ by faith and the righteousness of God is revealed, not the wrath of God. So I just wanted to say that, because it's so prevalent and it's so prevalent in our culture today and I got to be honest I have a hard time explaining this specific doctrine with people of the LGBT community because they look at it as like you're just tearing them down because they are so closely related to that thing as being their identity and they believe that the God has made them that way. But I'm going to tell you that he didn't. He didn't make you that way and you're believing lies from the enemy and there is hope in Christ for that.
Speaker 1:The righteousness of God will be revealed, and that goes on to say with all these other sins that Paul mentions here too. I mean, he talks about evil, covetousness, malice, envy, murder, strife, deceit, haters of God, boastful, so he goes through this whole list of things and the same things apply with those. This is the the, this is the fruit of the unrighteous people. You can't call yourself a Christian and fit within this list. Now, I know that people just struggle with things. Of course, it's like, yeah, we're not supposed to show hatred, but it's like, well, yeah, I got angry the other day and went off of, probably of something that that I shouldn't have said or done, but the overall thing, the overall message here, is that, um, us, as a Christian, our life should look differently than someone who's not a Christian, and people around you shall, or people around you should, should, notice that, and people around you shall, or people around you should, should, notice that.
Speaker 1:Actually, I was listening to, uh, this podcast. Uh, it was actually Charlie Kirk's wife. I was. I was listening to her her latest episode. I mean, she hasn't put it out. She hasn't put out a new episode ever since you know he was assassinated, of course, because you know everything she's going through Um, but her latest episode. I highly recommend you listening to it because it was so good.
Speaker 1:Um, basically, what she she talks about is the sermon that people never hear you preach. Is that? That's the title of it? But basically what? What she's saying is that you should be able to preach the gospel just by the way you live your life, and without words. I was just like whoa, I've never heard it said like that before and that is just so, so life-changing to hear it like that. You know, we see, you know some, some of these pastors are good about getting up in the stage and and preaching stuff that sounds really good or like even on a podcast or whatever. But she asked the question. She's like but what are you doing? Like how do you walk your faith? How do people look at you?
Speaker 2:I was just like man that is that's a good way of putting it.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, I highly recommend you go in and listen to that podcast. The podcast is called midweek rise up by Erica, and it's episode 67. And it's literally only like 10 minutes long or 11 or whatever it is, but I think it's relevant of what we're talking about here towards the end of chapter one in Romans, about the different sinful natures. And then, lastly, what I'll end with here is verse 32. And he says they not only do them, but give approval to those who practice them. And so here's where Christian struggle, I think you know, including myself. So maybe maybe you, as a Christian, you're, you're, probably you may be good about not doing these things, but Paul says but giving approval to those who practice them. So by you giving approval to those who do practice them, that's just as bad and I think I think I could be wrong about this.
Speaker 1:This kind of goes back to the book of Ezekiel, of the prophecy of the watchman, when God's basically telling Ezekiel being like hey, you're supposed to go out there and warn these, these unrighteous people, and if you don't, their blood's going to be on your, your hands. But if you do warn them and they still don't turn, then their blood is on their own hands because they've known the truth. So we, as Christians, we actually have a job to go out and warn people about the path that they're going down. That's our job, right. Our job is not to save people. We can't save people because we are imperfect ourselves. Christ is the only one that can save. But Christ has, through his grace and mercy, given us the great commission to go out and preach the gospel to people who don't know it, so that the righteousness of God is revealed. Right, going back to verse 16 and 17, and not giving approval to those who do practice those sinful natures. So when I look at that last verse in chapter one, verse 32, that's how I'm taking that.
Speaker 1:I don't know if that's necessarily taking that out of context or looking at it in the wrong way, but I look at it as a conviction of like, hey, we have a job to not only tell these people the truth but stand against and making sure that they know that we don't approve of those who practice these things, of course in a loving way, of those who practice these things of, you know, of course in like a loving way. I think there's a there's a very hateful way that you could do this. That's not beneficial for the gospel and I think that's why, specifically, people who live that homosexual lifestyle not not all of them, but a good portion of them that don't want to go to church or they're either afraid or they hate the church, because I think we as Christians in the past have done this part of showing disapproval in a very hateful way, and that that that's not just for that, for that sin. I think it's for for sin in general. Um, because I've heard a lot of people's testimonies of like oh yeah, I grew up a Christian but I got really hurt by the church. Um, I did, you know, whatever X, y, whatever, xyz I'm not going to throw anyone out of the bus here on the podcast, but and then they're like, and I kind of basically got shunned from the church. People stopped talking to me or I just I felt weird going in there because they knew or and that's not, that's not how we should be as gospel believing Christians. It's like yes, we recognize sin, someone comes, they repent, we deal with it and we move on, because that's what Jesus does. Jesus gives us that forgiveness so that we can move on.
Speaker 1:Look at Paul for an example. Paul, literally, as he's going up there in the last episode of Acts that I did, he's literally going on his way, making his way through the government ranks, giving his testimony of how he used to be murdering people, committing people to the death penalty, just because they're Christian. Yet in some of his epistles he literally talks about how he has a clear conscience. Why does he have a clear conscience? Because he believes in the gospel, because of the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. Everyone who comes to Jesus will receive forgiveness, because God is good, god is love and love is not acceptance.
Speaker 1:Um, well, sorry, let me re, let me rephrase that, cause I don't want to say it the wrong way. Love is not just being accepting of anything that you want to do. So this is where this is where the gospel is both inclusive and exclusive. It's like both of these same things where, yes, anybody can come to the, anyone can come to the table, anyone can come to the cross of Jesus Christ and accept forgiveness of the blood that Jesus has shed on the cross. So that's how it's inclusive. Right, it's open for everybody, but it's exclusive in the sense of like.
Speaker 1:Okay, but there are parameters within Christian doctrine or church, whatever that we, as Bible-believing Christians or gospel-believing Christians however you want to word it need to live by that. We're a Christian and then go live however we want. Otherwise I would say that you haven't accepted the gospel truly in your heart. By faith, and going back to the contrast here of you, either accept the gospel by faith and the righteousness of God is revealed, or, for those who don't accept it by faith, the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and righteousness of men. Thank you, guys for listening. We'll see you, guys next time.
Speaker 2:Thanks for listening to another episode of Practical Discipleship. Follow, subscribe and make sure you tune in next week.