Ron Dunn Podcast - When God Abandons Man

Episode Date: January 22, 2020

From the sermon series on Romans

Would you open your Bibles this morning to the first chapter of the book of Romans? It is my intention, as I feel led of the Lord, to preach through the book of Romans. I began last Sunday morning, and I am continuing it this Sunday morning. And for as long as I feel that the Lord would have us to do this, I want us to go through the book of Romans, for it is the clearest gospel of all. If someone came to me and said, you can have only one portion of the word of God and everything else must be destroyed.

We're going to exile you on a desert island and all you can have is just one little letter out of the book of God. Which book would you take? And it would have to be the book of Romans. For every major doctrine in the Bible is dealt with in Romans. If you understand the book of Romans. For every major doctrine in the Bible is dealt with in Romans. If you understand the book of Romans, you'll understand the Old Testament and you'll understand the New

Testament. And everything you need to know about yourself and everything you need to know about God, everything you need to know about where you came from and where you're going is found in the book of Romans. And there has never been any great reformation or revival in the history of Christianity which did not come as a result of the teachings of the book of Romans. It was Augustine, the greatest theologian the church has ever seen, who was converted while reading the book of Romans. It was Martin Luther who was converted and to set into motion the great reformation. He was converted while reading Romans 1 17. The just shall live by faith. John Wesley, the great revivalist of Britain whom historians say because of his revival revival Britain was saved from a bloody

revolution such as took place in France and Wesley went to a little Moravian church one night and a man stood up and read the preface to Luther's commentary on the book of Romans and Wesley John Wesley was converted he said as that night he sat in Aldersgate and heard that man read the preface of Luther's commentary on the book of Romans. He said, my heart felt strangely warmed and I awoke the next morning with Jesus, Master, in my mouth and in my heart.

Back during the World War in the before the during the world war in the night in the early 1900s christianity was soaking up liberalism and modernism and the church was on its way of actually dying out and there was a swiss theologian by the name of carl bart who wrote a commentary on the book of romans and that little commentary he wrote in 1918 on the book of Romans and that little commentary he wrote in 1918 on the book of Romans saved the modern day church from modernism and liberalism the book of Romans God has been pleased to use to bring revival to bring men to Jesus Christ and then to bring those who he has brought to Christ to fullness of salvation. And this morning we're reading verses 18 through 32

and I'm afraid that we're going to read some verses that aren't going to be very pretty, not going to be very pleasant. When I read this passage I'm reminded of how I used to react as a little child when I would go to some of these horror movies and there were certain portions of that picture that I wanted to hide my eyes from you've seen your little children set in front of television as they watched a horror movie and as the shadows begin to creep out of the closet and down the hallway and the lightning was flashing and the thunder was rolling you've seen your little child as he covers up his eyes with his hands because

he doesn't want to see it well i'll tell you there is a tendency i think on the part of every person to cover up his eyes when we read some of the verses that we're going to read the song that we sang a moment ago holy bible book divine that tells me what i am of course the trouble is some of us don't want to know what we are we're like the lady who keeps going to the doctor trying to find one who will tell her what she wants to know not exactly what her condition is but i want us all to follow along romans chapter 1 beginning with verse 18 and reading through verse 32. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who are suppressing the truth in unrighteousness. Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has showed it unto them.

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. Because that when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man and to beat birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. Wherefore, God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lust of their own hearts

to dishonor their own bodies between themselves, who changed the truth of God into a lie and worshiped and served the creature more than the creator who is blessed forever amen for this cause god gave them up unto vile affections for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature and likewise also the men leaving the natural use of the woman burned and their lust one toward another, men with men working that which is unseemly and receiving in their bodies the judgment of their sin which they deserved. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not convenient, being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication,

wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, understanding covenant breakers without natural affection implacable unmerciful who knowing the judgment of God that they which commit such things are worthy of death not only do the same but also have pleasure in them that do them now there are three expressions three phrases that I want to call your attention to this morning. One is found in verse 24, wherefore God also gave them up. Then in verse 26, for this cause God gave them up. And then in verse 28, and even as they did

not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them up. Three times, three times the expression occurs, for this cause God gave them up. God abandoned man. Now to me that is one of the most frightful statements in all the Word of God. It reveals to me that there is a course of action which man can take, which if persisted in, will cause God to abandon him. I think perhaps Paul repeated it three times because he realized that some people would find it hard to believe.

Because haven't we preached that God is a God who loves us, Jeremiah says, with an everlasting love? Haven't we read in the scriptures where he pities us as a father pitieth his children? Haven't we read in the scriptures where it says that he separates our sin as far as the east is from the west and remembers them against us no more? Haven't we heard that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life? It is hard for us because we do not want to believe it, because it is unpleasant to believe it. It is hard for us to believe that man can take a course of action which, if he persists in, will cause God to abandon that man.

And Paul said it three times to make certain there'd be no misunderstanding. For this cause, God gave him up. Now, the word in the New Testament language to give up means to deliver over to the power of something. It is used over and over again to put someone into prison. It is used of loosing a boat and letting the current of the river take it away. Now, you have here the truth revealed of God's restraining grace it's like a boat tied to the dock and the current of the river is extremely strong and the only thing that saves that boat from being carried down the river is the fact that it is restrained by a rope.

If the rope were cut, if the rope were untied, if the boat were loose from that restraint, it would be at the mercy of the current of that river. But the rope is there, restraining, saving, safeguarding. Now, you may not be a Christian. You may have no use for God. You may be even an atheist who proclaims there is no God. Well, that makes no difference.

The work of God's restraining grace operates in your life. If the devil had his way this morning, if sin had its way this morning, it would drag you down right now to hell. It would corrupt you and degrade you and blast your life. It is in the mercy of God, even to those who are lost, that he restrains us. The restraining grace of God who will not let Satan have complete control over us, who will not let us be abandoned to sin's dread control. But there comes a place in the history of an individual or a nation or a civilization

where God cuts loose the rope and he abandons man to sin's control. The Bible has a lot to say about total depravity. Now, total depravity doesn't mean that a man is as bad as he could be. You see, the truth of the matter is nobody is as bad as they could be. I don't care how bad they are, they're not as bad as they could be. You see, the truth of the matter is nobody is as bad as they could be. I don't care how bad they are. They're not as bad as they could be. Once in a while, we'll see someone whom God has abandoned and we'll see them just as bad as they can be and we are appalled at it. When we read about and hear about some of these human atrocities, we just can't understand how in the world a man made in the image of God,

how could a civilized human being, how could a fellow who has the enlightenment and the knowledge that we have, how could they do such a thing? But the potential is there in every one of us. Did you know you have the potential to murder? You do. You're deceiving yourself if you think you could never kill anybody. Every human being has the potential of sin, every atrocity, every crime. The only thing that keeps you from doing it is God's restraining grace. It's not your own self-will, you may think it is. It is not your own enlightenment, you may think it is. It is God's restraining grace. You're not as bad as you could be because God is restraining you. But three times Paul says there comes this place,

this position in the history of a person when God no longer restrains. I repeat what I said a moment ago. To me, that's one of the most frightful statements in all the Word of God, and I want to know why God does that. I want to know what it is that causes God to abandon a man. If it is true that God to abandon a man. If it is true that God can abandon a man and he will live in hell in this life to be continued in the life to come, I want to know what it is that causes God to do that. And he tells us. He tells us. Now I want you to notice the three statements. And every time they are the result of an action.

You see, you have man's action and you have God's reaction. You see, God isn't passive. Oh, I don't know where we get the idea that God's not doing anything today. You say, well, he's talking about what happened in the times past. No, when Paul wrote in verse 18 where he says, for the wrath of God is revealed, that word revealed is in the present tense, which means it's always going on. Paul is writing in the day of grace.

He's writing after Jesus has died, after Jesus has gone to heaven, after the Holy Spirit has descended, after the church has been set up. He might as well be writing in the 20th century because the age of grace is all the same. And Paul says, for the wrath of God is right now being poured out upon men in abandoning them to their sins. Now notice verse 24, wherefore, now that wherefore points to something that goes beyond. Man did something that caused God to give them up.

Notice verse 26, for this cause, what cause? We'll see in a moment, but there is a cause. For this cause, God gave them up. Verse 28, and even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over. Because of man's action, God reacted and gave them up. God abandons man because of his idolatry. God abandons man because of his idolatry. God does not abandon man because of his immorality. God does not abandon man because of his murder. God does not abandon man because of his drunkenness.

God does not abandon man because of his impurity. God abandons man because of his idolatry. You say, well, then that means God will never abandon us because, my, we're not idols. I mean, I've never bowed down to a god of wood. I've never bowed down to a god of stone. I've never worshipped an unknown god. I believe in God. Therefore, God will never abandon

me. Well, then you do not understand what idolatry is. There are three components of idolatry, and I want you to follow along as we see them revealed in this passage. And the person who persists in these characteristics will ultimately face the abandonment by God on his own life. First of all, idolatry is rejecting the knowledge of God. Idolatry is rejecting the knowledge of God. And when a man persists in that, God will finally abandon him. Now notice in verse 18 through 20, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hold, and that word hold means to choke it or to suppress it. They suppress the truth and unrighteousness. Why?

Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them, in their conscience. For God has showed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made even his eternal power and Godhead so that they are without excuse. Here's what Paul is saying. God has manifested in a man, every man, his self, his power, his nature. Nobody is born an atheist. They have to learn to be an atheist. Every man is born, Bible says, in this passage with a God consciousness. Did you know that they have never found an atheist in these pagan tribes?

You can go to the depths of the jungles of South America and India and Africa and hear these people cows. And here are these people worshiping graven images. Here are these people taking their little babies and throwing them into the river as a sacrifice. They have never discovered one atheist among one of those tribes. Because every man, he may not be a Christian, he may never have heard of the gospel, because every man is born with a God consciousness in him

so that they are without excuse. Nobody is without excuse. They may never have heard the gospel of Christ. That does not excuse them because they do have a knowledge of God. You're not born an atheist. You reject the knowledge of God you have. And that's what makes you an atheist.

And you may not be an atheist, but you still may reject the knowledge of God. Everybody has a certain knowledge of God. Idolatry is this. This is what the first step in idolatry amounts to. It amounts to my having some knowledge about God. It may not be full knowledge. It may not be perfect knowledge.

But I have some knowledge about God. Now, what is my reaction to that knowledge of God? How do I react to that knowledge of God? Do I submit myself to that knowledge? Do I obey that knowledge? Do I honor that knowledge? Idolatry is when I know about God and I do not act upon that knowledge accordingly. It's when I refuse to let what I know about God influence me in my daily life and in my worship and in my thoughts. Now, a person can know all about God. He can know this Bible from cover to cover.

He can quote doctrine after doctrine. But if he does not submit himself to that truth, if he does not allow that truth to hold sway over his life, if he does not acknowledge the truth of God in his life, he is committing the sin of idolatry. Why, there's a lot of people that do this, and to persist in it is to make yourself vulnerable to the abandonment of God. Why, you just check out your own life this morning.

All that you know about God. I've discovered something, as I've said in the New Testament, and it is this, that God judges us on the basis of our knowledge. God judges us on the basis of our knowledge. You see, Jesus said in hell, some will be whipped and beaten with few stripes, and others will be beaten with many stripes. He says here, two servants.

One servant knew not the Lord's will. He didn't know what his Lord wanted him to do. Consequently, he did not do it. Now, he shall be beaten with few stripes. Judgment meted out according to knowledge. But here's another servant who knew his Lord's will. He knew what he ought to do, and still he did not do it. Jesus said, he shall be beaten with few stripes.

I want to tell you something. If you don't intend to be saved and get right with God, then you are endangering yourself by coming to church. Because every time you come to church, you are exposing yourself to fuller knowledge about God, thereby bringing down greater condemnation upon your head. Idolatry is not believing in God. You can believe in Him. Idolatry is rejecting that knowledge of God, not allowing it to have a place in my life. Now I want you to notice in verse 18 where he says that they hold to the truth in unrighteousness.

They're choking the truth in righteousness. All right, now listen. God has revealed His truth in my life. Did you know that man was made in the image of God? Did you know what that means? That means that every man ought to be a reflection of God. Every man ought to be a reflection of God. You are made in the image of God.

The truth of God is in you. And as you walk about, as you talk, as you live your life, your life is supposed to reflect God himself. Now here is idolatry. Here is the great sin that we're committing. We are covering up the truth of God by the way we live. You're hard put to find anybody today that you can look at their life and see God in it. Saved or lost. And what we're doing is we're covering up the image of God. We're covering up the truth of God by the way we live, by our unrighteousness. And that's idolatry.

Idolatry is, first of all, rejecting the knowledge of God in my life. You know what you ought to do. There's not a person here this morning who does not know what's right. You know what you ought to do. If you do not do it, you are making the first step towards abandonment by God, if you persist in it. All right? Idolatry is not only rejecting the knowledge of God,

it is also refusing to glorify God. All right, now let's look in verse 21. Because, in verse 20 it says, they are without excuse, because that when they knew God, they knew God, they had a knowledge of God. They glorified him not as God, neither were thankful. Now this is the next step. Every man has a knowledge of God. You are born with a God consciousness.

There is a hunger and a thirst after God. Augustine said, God made the heart and the heart is only at rest when it finds God. This is why there's restlessness in your own life if you don't know God. You are born with a God consciousness. Now, if you reject that God consciousness, if you refuse to submit to what you know about God, the next logical step is that you're not going to glorify Him in your life. Now, what does it mean to glorify God? The word glorify means to place a value upon. It means we

don't value God. Our evaluation of God as a prized possession of our life is nil. We do not glorify him. Neither are we thankful. You see, when God reveals himself to you, when God confronts you with himself, the response he expects is thankful submission to him. And that's what he still expects this morning. And idolatry is refusing to glorify God in my life. Now, to glorify God is not the same thing as acknowledging God. To acknowledge God simply means, yep, there's a God. Right. I'm no atheist. I believe there as acknowledging God. To acknowledge God simply means, yep, there's a God.

Right. I'm no atheist. I believe there's a God. That's not glorifying God. Glorifying God means that I submit to his lordship. That's what it means. I honor him. The word glorify means to honor him,

to exalt him, to edify him. And the reason that God gave these people up is that they refuse to have any Lord except themselves. They refuse to submit to any will except their own. They refuse to bow to any power except their own power. And I want to ask you this morning if you're glorifying God in your life. I want to ask you what value you place upon God. I want to know this morning if you have ever bowed the knee of submission to Jesus Christ. I'm not asking you if you're religious. I'm not asking you if you believe in God or if you have ever acknowledged His existence.

I'm asking you, have you ever submitted yourself to His Lordship? Well, that's exactly what it means to glorify God. And idolatry is knowing about God and yet refusing to honor Him and glorify Him in our lives. And then there's a third step. The logical step in idolatry is replacing God with other things. Replacing God with other things. You see, nobody lives in a vacuum. Man is a religious animal. God made you that way, and friend, there's not anything you can do about it. You might as well stop fighting it. You might as well admit it. You are religious in one way or another. There must be

something outside yourself you must attach yourself to and worship. No man is sufficient in himself. He must always reach out for something else to complement his own life. The freak of nature is the hermit. He is the exception, not the root. And even he must have something. he's got to have solitude. Now notice, in verse 25, they changed the truth of God into a lie, now notice, and worshiped and served the creature, that which is created, more than the creator.

There's our dollar. It is replacing the creator with that which is created. It is giving our affections, our love, our energy, our heart to that which is created instead of that which is the creator. I want to ask you this morning, what's the most important thing? This chair was made by a human being. This chair was made by a man. I ask you, which is most important this morning, the chair or the man who made it? Which is to be prized more highly, this chair or the man who made it. Which is more valuable in your estimate? The chair or the man who made it? Now if you say the chair is more valuable than the man who made it. You are a idolater.

Now I ask you. Who is more important this morning? This universe or the God who made it? Who is to be more highly prized this morning? The material things that you have in your life and that you can enjoy are the God who made them. If you say either by lips or by life that that which is created is more valuable and to be more highly prized than the God who made it, you are an idolater.

Now you think for just a moment all the things in your life that mean so much to you and the things that you place before God. Oh, listen, you can come to church every Sunday morning and sing these hymns and sing the doxology and still be in idolatry. That's not what he's talking about. He's talking about your daily life, where your heart is.

Where is your heart? Where is your heart? I know some people won't come to church on Sunday night because they're out trimming up their yard, manicuring the yard. Did you know that? Did you know that? I've passed by some of our church members on the way to church Sunday night, and they're out working in the yard. You know what they're doing?

They're serving the created more than they are the creator. That's all there is to it. That's idolatry. I've never in my life seen anything more up to date more relevant than this we are a nation of idolatrous because what do we prize more highly I don't mean to be picking stones at anybody but man we've had a devil of a time

over there at that crusade this week because we couldn't get on the grass well now we don't want to tear up the grass but you know it's a pitiful thing when we care more about a football game than do the souls of men. Idolatry is replacing God in our affections, in our energies, with that which is created. God abandons man because of our idolatry. Now, the second point and the closing word. God abandons man to their iniquity, to their impurity.

Now, I want you to notice something. There's a lot said about immorality in this passage. And the first time I began reading through this just casually, I had the idea that God was abandoning man because of their gross immorality. But the more I studied this, I realized that God was not abandoning them because of their immorality. God was abandoning them because of their immorality. God was abandoning them to immorality. Immorality was not the cause of their judgment. It was the consequence.

God is using impurity, immorality, as an instrument of his judgment. Do you see that there? What is God giving them up to? The judgment of God, the abandonment of God is when God abandons man to sin's control. And once God removes his restraining grace from the life of an individual, that individual is sucked up completely by sin and iniquity. And God punishes sin by giving them over to more sin you know how God punishes

you know how God judges by giving people what they want what was the punishment of the prodigal son getting what he wanted you remember over in the book of numbers the 11th chapter, God's people were griping and complaining.

They were trying to serve God, but they wanted to go back to the flesh pots of Egypt. They said, oh, man, they'd sit around the campfire at night and said, oh, I wish we could go back to Egypt. You remember the good food we had over there in Egypt? You remember the high prime beef we had over there in Egypt? You remember that chili we had over there in Egypt? You remember that chili we had over there in Egypt? Oh, I wish we could have that.

And God said in Numbers chapter 11, verses 18 through 20, He says, all right, I'm going to judge you. Now, how did God judge the people? By giving them what they wanted. He said, I'm going to give you meat. You'll eat it not for a day. You won't eat it for a week. You will not eat it for a month,

but you will eat it until it runs out your nostrils and you're sick of it. And the prophet says the backslider shall be filled with his own ways. And that verse 27 says that men shall receive in their bodies their own judgment. Once God removes his hand of restraining grace, he abandons that fellow, turns him over to the control of sin. He just gets worse and worse and worse and worse. Now I want to tell you something. Verses 26 and 27 have some very unpleasant things to say.

I want to tell you that the rising tide of homosexuality in America is an evidence that God is abandoning our country. It is irrefutable evidence that God is abandoning our country. England has legalized it and I predict that if we keep going in the same way we're going within 10 years, it'll be legalized in the United States.

I can remember when you didn't even talk about stuff like that. Not even boys to boys would not even talk about dirty stuff like that. And now they laugh about it on television everywhere you go. The movies are made about it. We're exalting it. We're glorifying it. It is irrefutable evidence that God is abandoning our country unless we come back to him in spiritual revival. Once God abandons a nation

or a civilization or an individual, that fellow is turned over, turned over to the prison of his own sin and it begins hell on earth and it continues into this next life. I don't think it's funny. I resent it. I hate it.

I resent the television networks for putting that filth on the air. I resent the television networks for putting that filth on the air. I resent it. Exposing our children to it. I resent it. It's godless. It is evidence that God is abandoning our country. God gave them up.

God gave them up God God gave them up those words sound as Dr. Robertson said like clods of dirt falling on the coffin of a civilization and I tell you God is placing us

in the coffin unless we come back to him and repent and get right with God And I tell you, God is placing us in the coffin. Unless we come back to him and repent and get right with God. The Ron Dunn Podcast is available only for personal edification, not to be duplicated, uploaded to the web, or resold without prior written consent. It is managed and operated by Sherwood Baptist Church. If you would like to listen to additional Ron Dunn messages, visit sherwoodbaptist.net slash bookstore and search Ron Dunn.

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