"Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen."
Romans 1:24-25
In continuing his diatribe against the unrighteous
in his letter to the Romans, Paul writes that God has allowed these people to
pursue impurity. In His sovereignty God has elected for certain individuals to
continually and eternally reject Him. He has hardened their hearts so that it
is impossible for them to believe in Him. Much like a judge hands over a
prisoner to the warden after his conviction, so too does God hand over the
reprobate to Satan. Satan tempts this person with a life filled with the lusts
of their own selfish desires, resulting in a punishment of divine judgment.
But why would a benevolent, gracious, and merciful
God allow people to fatally mire in their own sin? If He really loves His
creation, why would He choose this fate for certain people? The answer is that
sinful mankind rejects the truth of Christ that has been clearly revealed in
many different forms (Romans 1:18-23). The truth is offensive. The reality of their
sinful condition cuts to the bone. Therefore they have traded the truth for a
lie, choosing to serve the god of their own desires and refusing to worship and
give honor to the Almighty God, the Creator of all things.
All mankind has been blinded by sin. But thank the
Lord that He, in His sovereignty, has opened the minds of His elect through the
conviction of the Holy Spirit. We would all be eternally doomed, wallowing in
the filth of our own desires. But God has washed, sanctified, and justified His
people through the death of His Son and the work of the Holy Spirit (I
Corinthians 6:11).
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