Nov. 13, 2016 Danger of Our Choices by Pastor Josh Sheldon

Well, I will begin with a quote from the 17th century Puritan Jeremiah Burroughs.

Listen to what he says.

It is indeed a dreadful evil.

One of the most hideous and fearful evils that could befall any man on the face of the earth for

God to give him up to his heart's desire.

A Kindred truth is that spiritual judgments are more fearful

than any outward judgments.

The verses before us this morning from the scripture Constitutes some of the strongest

in the entire book of Romans and Then the middle of the passage that we're going to work

through this morning.

We have verses 26 and 27 Which in a controversial section of the

scripture? Are two of the most controversial and in our day

still two of the most applicable.

There are consequences you see there are consequences to our choices now we as reformed believers.

We're not really big on this idea of choice as though there's any efficacy or power

to Humans saying I'm gonna go this way or that way.

We believe in a sovereign God who's the determinant factor in all things.

So with that overarching understanding and not try and step on any toes there are consequences to the

choice that we make and The scripture everywhere pushes us to choose

rightly.

The book of Proverbs from which we began the reading this morning the whole book of Proverbs is these generalizations

these Observations by the wisest man who ever lived until the coming of Jesus Christ himself

Wisdom.

Much of which is to warn us of the consequence of what the choices we make.

The constant call of the Bible is to choose this day whom you will serve whether the gods of your father's

Or the gods of the Amorite Amorites in whose land you dwell.

There's borrowing from Joshua in chapter 10 after his conquering of the land of Canaan

and this Speaks to the issues of our day as the God of self -expression.

Self -gratification has swelled into this Monstrous parody of decency and

orderliness and is captured within its orb a legion of worshipers who serve its

demands for more and more and more and more and as a proverb says

There are four things that never can say enough and he goes on to list fire and the others

never has enough.

Never makes enough demands upon you and the more you give it the more it wants.

And so today This idea that really can be wrapped under the one rubric of

your own personal sovereignty.

I Can do what I want.

I can identify as I please I am my own man.

I'm the master of my own fate.

However, you want to put it the passage before us this morning in

Romans gives us an explanation if not a cure now the cure for this sort

of Iniquity the cure is coming later on in this epistle as we work through it.

And I simply want to tell you this morning.

I'm gonna be a little bit myopic.

I'm gonna stay right on what Paul is saying to us what Jesus Christ The Word of God is

saying to us through this Apostle here in these verses.

I'm not going to go much forward in the book of Romans.

Because God willing we're gonna have a few Sundays ahead of us and we'll keep going through the book of Romans.

We will come to the answer to these things and for right now.

So that the Word of God will hit us with the force that he should hit us.

We're going to stay right on these verses very few references outside of just Romans

1 and verses 24 to 32.

We live in a culture.

We live surrounded by a culture of death and sex.

And I would say we live in a culture we live surrounded by a people a society obsessed

with this these two things as the whole

Revolution what our molar calls the sexual the moral revolution keeps pushing and

grabbing for more and more and more and more and every more is further and further and further from what the

Word of God would say.

And as death becomes more and more and more you're right.

And now with in our state we have what do we call it here?

Is it the right to die or is it death with dignity?

I forget which state is calling it which?

The dark cloud.

Ever expanding and I think a generation ago.

People would have been aghast if you told them what we would be here where we are now

perhaps even 20 years ago I think wise smart godly

people.

Astute observers would have said no way it couldn't go there.

And here we are surrounded by this and This is more than just people who

agree that it's right people who has at the end of what Ken just read to you.

Give approval to those who practice those things.

It's more than that.

We have laws with felony force that have enforced these so -called Rights of

people to conduct themselves and complete discord with nature

with God's created order.

This word from the Apostle Paul was written in a similar cultural

framework to our own 2 ,000 years ago when Paul wrote to the Romans and it was a Greco

-Roman world.

The Grecian morality that philosophy that whole way of living and thinking was infused in

everything.

And that's when Paul wrote then.

Very much like our day sexual excesses.

Especially homosexuality was rampant one of the Corinthians greatest errors.

Whether they were not dismayed by the egregious sexual misconduct in their ranks

Paul the Pharisee the Jew of Jews He confronted a Greco -Roman culture that condoned that

even applauded excesses which to the Jewish mind.

So infused as it was with the law of God.

Just found abominable here in verses 24

to 32 is the expression of God's wrath upon those whose expression of

themselves it's an intentional and cognizant and willing repudiation of him.

And all that he would have his people stand for.

What the image of God that he put in man is Denied

rejected Repudiated and this is the result of it that we have before us

this morning the expression of God's wrath.

Now this snub against God This Acknowledge him because it's although they knew

God.

We've covered that last week.

They knew God you are responsible for God.

He has shown himself to you whether you believe the scriptures or not the heavens and the

world around you.

Is enough to bring you guilty before him and

so this?

Sort of Behavior conduct lifestyle, whatever you want to call it.

This snub in the face of God is No less clear to God

than perhaps last Tuesday was the message that was sent.

We think of Secretary Clinton President Obama the elite Republicans the pundits all of them must have

felt the rebuke that the election ultimately was.

But God this one being rebuked this one being snubbed it's not from an election.

You're not voting for or against God.

He's no politician.

He is no pundit.

He is the great God and the choice so many have made to intentionally withhold from him the honor that

is due to him has consequences.

There are consequences to our choices to your choices

in his wrath in his wrath God has

given them their desires.

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness.

How is that wrath revealed what does that mean.

Does that mean brimstone and fire gonna fall down from heaven and consume us?

No his wrath is that those who behave in the manner

That we discussed last week Intentionally knowingly rejecting the knowledge of God

so clearly communicated to them his wrath is I Give you over.

Now understand is not as some will tell you that God passively takes his restraining

hand off and Thus they fall into deeper and deeper sin.

No that is not the sovereign God that we worship.

It is him actively Giving them to their desires.

Not in a flippant.

You want it.

You got it sort of way in a grave way.

And if we would say today in a heavy way Here to here

by the active sovereign knowing hand of God giving over.

This is the expression of his wrath.

He gives them over to it.

Those who refuse to give him the honor do his name will themselves suffer dishonor.

A Condition which because they've been allowed to give vent to their own unnatural and dishonorable longings they

bring on themselves.

There are two sections in the text that detail the sins that men engage in once this wrathful

giving over occurs.

At the end close to the end here verses 29 to 31 we have this list of sins very

similar to many other lists We have in Scripture.

There have been many attempts to classify to categorize these.

He just read it to you can just read it to you.

They're full of envy murder strife deceit malicious their gossips slanders haters of God and the rest.

I'm satisfied that we can just let those speak for themselves.

It's a general description of what happens when God gives up men up to a debased or some

versions say a depraved mind.

And from that depravity from that giving over.

Simply going the way that they have seen fit to behave in the first place

now in the midst of This I said there's two sections that speak specifically about what

this is what behavior then becomes more and more manifest.

What are they being given over to if verses 29 to 31 have this general description of sin?

It's not meant to be a comprehensive list.

It's it's a characterization in the midst of it.

We have verses 26 and 27.

What are these about?

What are these about they are about?

Homosexuality.

This is what the Apostle Paul has in mind.

That's all there is to it.

We read them again to you one more time.

Let the Word of God ring true.

Simply on the face of it for this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions.

For their women exchange natural relations for those that are contrary to nature and the men likewise gave up

natural relations With women and were consumed with passion for one another.

There have been many attempts in the last decade or so to twist and to pull this language apart

by men who gyrate and dissemble.

Developing these fantastic theories of What this is actually saying and when they're done

with these theories and all these theological and exegetical and hermeneutical gymnastics

lo and behold What does the scripture come out and prove it proves that what these verses

actually say is something like this.

God approves of Homosexuality be it male or female just so long as that's your God -given

nature and they go on to say that therefore what Paul is saying what

God is saying through Paul is that if you are cut in a Heterosexual way if that's

your God -given nature, it would be sin for you to act this other way, but if you're cut this way

Then it would be sin in God's sight.

Should you quote -unquote pretend to be heterosexual.

It's fantastic.

It makes your brains rattle on.

The face of it it cannot say that in the context.

It can't say that.

Let's be clear verses 26 and 27 speak in the most

Condemnatory tones of this particular sin homosexuality.

The incident in Genesis 19 the destruction of Sodom is often raised in defense of the

positive view the quote -unquote positive view of what these could mean that God condones these sort

of things and they look at Genesis 19 they say that God destroyed the city because of their lack of

hospitality.

Not the homosexual violence threatened against the angels and at one level we can agree with this.

God did not destroy Sodom because of their sexual depravity.

That's not what the scripture says.

Behold Ezekiel 16 this was the guilt of your sister Sodom she and her daughters had pride

Excess of food and prosperous ease but did not aid the poor and needy.

They were haughty and did an abomination before me so I removed them when I saw it.

The idea of not caring for the poor and the needy is often what we call synecdoche.

Where the part stands for the whole so God says you didn't care for the poor and needy.

And what's he saying?

He says overall social injustice.

You are not concerned with the poor.

You didn't look to your neighbor who was destitute and needed help.

Your hand was tight.

It was closed.

Your fist wouldn't open and help them out though.

I gave you this abundance of food.

I gave you riches and because of your social injustice.

So I can agree all we have to do is read the scripture at its plain meaning.

And we can agree that Sodom was not destroyed for that cause

but the depravity of the city.

The general spiritual malaise of that place was ultimately Emblemized by

the men of that city wanting to rape the visitors.

That was the emblem.

That was the paradigm.

That was the sin.

That was the final expression of it.

That proved that God's Condemnation his indictment was completely

justified if you're geared this

way.

If this and I don't mean by that the violence.

I'm talking just simply.

This lifestyle back to Romans 1 26 and 27 if you are geared this way.

If you have family or loved ones who are gay as my wife and I do and no, it's not our son.

We have family members whom we love dearly who are committed to this sort of lifestyle.

I want to tell you that the message this morning.

The message I am preaching is not a message of hate.

There is no hatred in this place.

There is no hatred in the scripture and if I preached that way I

Could be accused of not following what the scripture says.

This is not a message of hate or disgust or rejection or any such thing.

We have one goal this morning to preach God's Word with clarity with accuracy and with

love.

And to tell you very simply this is what God's Word says.

It's very easy for you to find someone who will say that Romans 1 26 and 27 condones

homosexuality.

They lie.

They are lying.

I Will tell you the truth.

Whether you believe it or not is more your affair than it is mine.

I pray you will because by believing God's Word that is how salvation begins.

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God and as best as I am able

without compromise.

And with love I Need to tell you what God's Word actually says.

If you choose to remain as you are.

So be it.

I Would then only hope that by the time I'm done you will see that the Bible offers no cover for you.

That in that sense you're on your own.

We begin with verses 24 26 and 28.

All three of these are about God giving them over.

They they are the ones that Paul landed on back in verse 118 for the wrath of

God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who by their unrighteousness

suppress the truth.

Those who verse 21 says knew God but refused to honor him as God verse 22.

They became fools and in their foolishness.

They changed God's glory into images.

Therefore because of all these reasons therefore God gave them over.

Gave them over.

Those three words translate the Greek Para diddle me para diddle me

and this is God's judgment on sin is giving over.

Now this word is interesting.

It's often used of being arrested as when the Baptist was arrested in Matthew 4 12 or

when Jesus spoke of being handed over to the judge in Matthew 5 25.

In Matthew 10 4 is the word used for Judas's betrayal betrayal of our Lord.

He para diddle me here him he handed him over and all these have this flavor of

incarceration.

And that's what it sounds like that the God is giving over to incarceration or to Imprisonment,

which he sort of is isn't he?

In chapter 6 verse 15 and the rest of it in this book of Romans Paul correlates the

life of sin to what?

To slavery to being imprisoned in this Penitentiary of

death if you will.

It's like great Wesley's great hymn with that one lyric that comes to my mind

long my imprisonment my imprisoned spirit lay fast bound and in nature's

night.

So what do we have here?

It's the ungodly rebels of the second Psalm.

Railing against the authority of the Lord.

They're all saying let us burst their bonds apart and cast their cords from us and in the psalm God laughs

at them.

He holds them in derision.

In Romans, there's no laughter.

There's this grave handing over of people to the consequences of their own choices.

So we have this thrice repeated.

Giving over therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity to the dishonoring of their bodies

among themselves.

For this reason verse 26 God gave them up to dishonorable passage.

Passions for their women exchange natural relations for those that are contrary to nature.

Verse 28 God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

Last week we spoke about the wrath of God revealed from heaven.

This week simply the result.

This descent into moral perversion of all kinds is the outcome of God's wrath.

Remember that God is sovereign in this.

It is a giving over.

He didn't say well I would like you to sin and therefore I put you in a place where you will do this because I command

you to this.

It's not that at all, but it is God giving them over.

He's giving him the desires of their heart.

It is the result of his wrath, that's not the reason for it.

But it is the result of his wrath God and his wrath turns them over to be incarcerated in the fulfillment of

their own desires.

But it is they who must own the choices that they themselves made.

Now I want to take a moment and I notice that some of the kids aren't here this morning.

I don't often stop and preach to a particular segment of the Congregation here, but I want to speak to

children.

I don't know how many children we have in here.

I Don't even know if you're paying attention.

So parents get your children raise their hand or something if they're children and they need to pay attention.

I want you to hear this kids a lot of this has been over your head.

A lot of this has been hard even for the adults around you for your parents to understand.

These are tough versus kids.

These are really hard.

This idea of God giving people over to do what's wrong and I want to say something to you.

This is why your parents discipline you this is why you get timeouts, this is why you get

spankings.

This is why your parents are so concerned.

To show you what is right and wrong.

They don't just let you do what you want to do.

Because you don't yet know what you really want to do or what you should do.

There are lots of people out there who think they know better than mom and dad what's best for you.

Don't believe them.

They lie.

Your mom and dad are the ones that God says are to teach you.

God says they are the ones You must listen to and obey and mom and dad will not give you

up the way God does these people were talking about this morning.

I want to tell you why.

It's because they love you.

It's because God says that they are to teach you to train you to discipline you to raise you in the fear and the admonition Of the

Lord not to give you up giving up.

Giving people over to their bad choices is not for your parents to do for you.

That's something for God to decide because only God is sovereign in this and only God is wise enough

for this.

So as I preach this if you keep hearing what I'm saying I don't want you ever to look at your mom or dad and say will you

give me up the way pastor Josh said God Gave them up.

The answer is never.

May it never be.

That is not what your parents are here for.

God gives them a different responsibility and holds that one just to himself.

So I want you kids to know this.

Because your parents love you.

They will not give you up and because your parents love you and don't want you to see don't want to see you make these sort of choices.

You see the consequences for them now.

I

want to talk about what these ones given up have done.

They've taken the clearly communicated truth and they've set it aside preferring

instead a lie verse 23 from last week images preferred to the glory of God

verse 25 a Lie such as believing that these verses condone even enthusiastically

support particular sin that lie is Taken and believed and

preferred in favor of the truth.

Clearly communicated.

Verse 26 another exchange women exchanging natural relations for what is contrary to nature.

What do we have here?

Here in these verses in Paul's day 2 ,000 years ago in that Greco -Roman world and we have to understand

can't just be in Rome.

This is much more pervasive.

It's Isaiah 5 is it not Isaiah 5 played out right before his eyes and I would

argue before our eyes today.

Woe to those who draw iniquity with cores of falsehood who draw sin as with cart ropes who

say let him being God.

Let him be quick.

Let him speed his work that we may see it.

Let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and let it come that we may know it.

Woe to those who call evil good and good evil who put darkness for light and light for darkness.

Who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter?

How accurate is that?

How accurate is that as a description of our day and of

Paul's day?

Verses check in chapter 1 verses 19 to 21 of Romans would say that all this is done in

the face of the certainty that God is and that his Self -revelation in nature is adequate for men to

know that Romans chapter 1 verses 26 and 27 Describes something that is

in God's sight Abominable and that this divine perspective is adequately

communicated in the created order.

And I think that was one of my longest sentences in all my preaching.

Let me say it again verses 19 to 21

of Romans 1 tell us that what God has done or what these people have done in the face of

God excuse me in the face of the certainty that God is.

That his self -revelation in nature is Adequate for men to know that these

verses speak of a particular sin abominable in God's sight and This

has been adequately communicated just in what is in the created order of

nature itself.

And what are they on?

Not just for this particular sin.

Those given over to it all but this one is the one that is made prominent here.

I I liken it to a great slide one of those fun rides like at the water parks.

You know, it's kind of a spiral thing.

It just goes round and round you have the water keeping going and you go faster and faster and faster.

But this one is so much faster and so much steeper and so much longer.

And it just goes quicker and quicker a mile after mile and on either side of you.

There's crowds just cheering you on giving approval.

Applauding as you go and you're squealing with delight.

The high sides are all that keep you from tumbling off the side into oblivion and There is no

way off this.

You suddenly notice as you're going down this slide no way off.

You got to keep your feet up because if your feet should catch you're gonna tumble head over heels and be hurt.

When I used to climb the mountains.

They teach you and you practice this that if you ever fall.

The first thing you do is you get your feet up because if one point of a cramp on should catch.

We probably gonna break your leg.

But you're gonna become Simply a rock tumbling down.

You're not going to be able to stop.

So here you are on this slide.

No way to slow down.

You can't put your foot down as a break because you'll simply break your foot your legs.

You'll tumble over.

It'll be a disaster.

You're just stuck on the slide too far to jump off

you're going too fast anyway and.

The crowds on both sides.

Ecstatic that you choose to express yourself.

They're cheering you on they're egging you on they're Congratulating you at every stop as this slide

goes from the top.

That's almost as if if you turn around and go back down the stairs.

Truth.

You turn towards the slide the lie.

You jump on anyway.

And now you can't get off.

Do you remember when our president soon to be former president he publicly Congratulated Michael Sam

for being the first openly gay man drafted by the NFL.

Here's what he said from the playing field to the corporate boardroom.

LGBT Americans prove every day that you should be judged by what you do and not who you are.

Now part of that we could agree with.

You judge a man by his works by their fruits you shall know them, but there's this prominence.

There's this taking out of time for this one thing because of this one thing because of this one choice.

Cheering the man as he's on the slide and going further and faster.

Stay on the slide.

He says you're such an example of bravery and what is right?

He did much the same with the NBA player Jason Collins.

But for example the Raiders Derek Carr a heterosexual man one who by the

way is turning it out to be a smoking good quarterback and we Raiders fans who've been waiting for us so long.

For another quarterback like him.

But he worked just as hard as anybody to be able to compete at that level.

No time was taken out to condone What he did but time was

taken out to good known what God detests and Particularly because he was in that

camp and that's pretty much our world today.

Tolerance which is a much abused word it long ago devolved into acceptance and now it's gone

to active promotion.

And if we don't do that, then we're hateful and all these other things that they must force us into and I deny them all.

I'm not hateful.

I don't believe anybody in this room is I'm not intolerant, and I don't believe any of you are.

I Deny it all.

Just because we don't agree because we hold to the Word of God even preaching the Word of God Doesn't make

us any of those things.

You don't have to be forced into that camp nor do you have to feel defensive.

As you're talking to your neighbors in the coffee room at work.

We don't have to be locked into this.

It's almost like that.

What do we call it in rhetoric a red herring and we get sucked into that argument naked.

I wouldn't even go there.

There's a variety of opinions on what is meant by nature.

As Paul uses it is it something intrinsic to someone such as by nature?

He's sort of a grump or does it refer to nature as we usually think of it the created order?

And I think it's sort of both.

It means the qualities of human hood that we have that are intrinsic to us as a certain mode of

existence and behavior.

That is part of and consistent with the created order.

God's revelation of himself is in the created order.

It's in nature 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 the heavens declare the firmament shows his

handiwork.

It's a communication of God's nature.

Impressed in everything that he's made.

We can borrow a little bit from 1st Corinthians 11 14 does not nature itself.

Teach you that if a man wears long hair is a disgrace for him.

I'm gonna be very anxious when our brother Connolly gets to chapter 11 in our Bible study of

1st Corinthians, I Don't say that in a sardonic way or hoping for him to stumble.

It's got some tough stuff ahead of him.

Like this one, but the created order itself Communicates certain

things to you that there's a Schema if you will to the way things are

made and it says something about the way then we should live.

Because this the created order Says something about the God who made it

and therefore says something about the image of God given exclusively to

Mankind.

So verse 26.

Where lesbianism is contrary to nature in verse 26 27?

Which with the likewise pulls men into its orbit they say the same thing.

They say that homosexual conduct is wrong.

Nature makes us a truth that is clearly perceived men and women physically and emotionally by

nature correspond to each other.

Where the Bible speaks of becoming one flesh it's speaking of physical intimacy as a normal

intimate Private gift to be enjoyed by a man and a woman in the

confines of marriage.

The scripture from Genesis onwards and most especially and most importantly our Lord Jesus Christ

himself in Matthew 19 and elsewhere affirms exactly this.

The author to the Hebrews said the marriage bed should be honored by all and he's hearkening back

to this

to the church let me say What I'm saying here

Would be in the Canada in Canada in the United Kingdom.

It would be felonious hate speech by law felonious hate speech.

And my personal opinion is and I have very little acumen in politics, and I very rarely even brush upon it here.

I've never told anyone that you got to vote this way or that way or anything of the such or anything

of that nature.

But my personal opinion is that had the election gone other than it did it would soon have been hate

speech here as well.

I Happen to think the president -elect Trump is an ungodly and

non -christian man.

I think Secretary Clinton would have proven to be a virulently anti -god and actively

anti -christian leader.

Just my opinion.

I Think the murder rate that we now find so appalling the one

foisted against the unborn those who cannot speak for themselves.

I think that after a couple of years had it gone differently in about 2018 we'd look back and we would see this as

just a trickle.

Compared to the floodgates that might have gotten opened.

God only knows.

So you're hearing only?

Speculative opinions by me.

I Just see a few heads nodding in agreement.

What is the message to the church?

We all know these things are wrong.

I'm not trying to hammer or be polemic or hateful or in any way acerbic towards a Certain

slice of the population any kind of a slice of the population.

My message is to the church.

My message is to those who are in the Lord Jesus Christ by faith.

By having repented for their sins and gone to him for forgiveness.

Forgiveness.

Trusting the promise of the word that says there at the cross.

Should you bow down before God at the feet of Jesus Christ and trust in his

sacrifice and that alone?

That's the church.

To the church.

What do I say?

Don't allow yourself to be pigeonholed here.

There's so much pressure on us today.

To leave this behind to take words like this and elsewhere.

Not just on this one issue as something other than what they mean.

And if you won't well now you're bigoted you're hateful.

You're this a phobia that a phobian on and on and on it goes.

This is not hate speech.

We're just not willing to allow God's plain meaning to be twisted.

Our God is not a marionette that will dance on all fours for anyone.

And we don't have to allow the scripture to be so abused and if we stand on God's word say no.

This is what it says.

It is so plain.

They say well, you must then be this and that and the other it's almost to the proverb Do not answer a fool according to his folly

lest you become like him in human terms.

It's almost an argument.

You can't win.

I don't know if it's even worth Going after too much

if you can win that argument, please tell us how you did it.

Because it would really be useful for us.

No, we don't have to Allow people to say well, therefore you must be this.

Or to come up with these silly theories that this word says something or condones something that it clearly does not it's

the opposite.

To our friends to our neighbors to our co -workers to our loved ones who have opted for this manner of

life.

We don't deny that you may have been born with this predilection we all have certain tendencies.

Verse 29 to 32 says that they're filled with all manner of unrighteousness evil

covetousness malice.

Let me finish these verses.

Full of envy murder strife deceit maliciousness.

They are gossips slanderers haters of God insolent haughty boastful inventors of

evil disobedient appearance foolish faithless heartless ruthless

despite the prominence.

It's not the only sin that Paul is railing against is it?

Lists like this ends in another place.

I think I mentioned this last week and such were some of you.

We all have sins, which we enjoyed that kept God away or so we thought.

Homosexuality though it gets this certain prominence and that's true.

We can't deny that.

Few other lifestyles receive all the effort to force our Holy Scripture to say something.

They don't so we might have to be forgiven having a little bit of defensiveness here

and None on the list.

I just read are practiced openly and proudly.

We don't have Haters of parents pride day

we don't have support your local extortioner day or any of the other and

Nor is there all the cheering for people who are committed to such a lifestyle.

When I preach a message like this.

Please know that I didn't choose to preach this because I thought today would be a good day to condemn

someone.

It came up in the sequential order of a series that we started a month ago.

And this church is committed to verse by verse exposition.

You are not targeted.

This is the fifth message since we started the book of Romans, and this is simply where it is.

And I'm not going to skip it over because it might hurt somebody's feelings.

Many parts of this Roman look at this book of Romans are gonna hurt all of our feelings.

I Didn't target anyone.

Not you not your loved ones.

Not your friends.

It simply came up in the order and we are pre we are committed to preaching through books of the Bible

in order.

You're not targeted as best as I am able.

I've told you the truth if you say you don't accept it at least understand that there is no hatred here if

After I say amen in a moment you are still committed to your choice.

I say with all my heart.

We hope that you will stay for the fellowship afterwards.

That you'll have lunch with us that you will let us enjoy your company for a while.

A friend of mine sent me this.

I Was once at work discussing Christianity with a female

co -worker and a gay male co -worker.

Afterwards the lady approached me and said she was surprised.

I did not bring up his homosexuality.

I told her that it wasn't his homosexuality that made him a sinner.

It was his nature.

He was born a sinner.

Everyone is born a sinner gay and straight alike.

It is not the sin that keeps you from God, but the you've rejected the Savior Jesus Christ and

That is the difference between Christians and non -christians.

Christians act against their nature when they sin.

Non -christians act in their nature when they sin.

Christians sins are forgiven.

All others are not.

I Like the way he said that I like the boldness and the clarity

with which he explained it to this co -worker.

I Will say to you though and to your loved ones should they be here in this

place?

That the end of the slide that you're on which seems so fulfilling and so satisfying now is Something that all

those people who are giving you approval all those so -called Bible experts who convince you that God just loves

Everyone and never shows any wrath because we don't like wrath.

He never even really gets stern with anyone.

The end of that slide is death.

For the wages of sin is death any sin.

But no other sin finds such glad approval and promotion than this one

with the possible exception of abortion.

The end of the ride you're on is eternal separation from God.

It is hell.

I've told you the truth about Romans chapter 1 verses 24 to 32.

Here's another truth and with this we will close.

There is no sin so great.

There are no insults hurled at God that he cannot forgive.

He did mine.

If you believe in Jesus Christ he did yours.

The state of California in this last election.

Has confirmed the death penalty

with God?

It was never at issue.

We will all die some to eternal punishment some to eternal life.

I say to you now.

Whatever your lifestyle is.

Wherever it was described in chapter 1 verses 24 to 32 whichever section you might say in

your heart of hearts.

Well, I fall into this one.

There is forgiveness in Jesus.

Turn to Jesus for a new nature.

Turn to Jesus for the rebirth.

This spoken of chapter 3 in Jesus talk with Nicodemus.

Look to Jesus.

Go to him in faith fall down before him and repent of your sins and beg him for forgiveness and

from him receive Forgiveness and with that a reborn nature and then live

in the assurance of eternal life.

Amen.

Let's sit quietly for a few moments.