This is a very somber passage
of the scripture, and as we look at it, we see that the doctrine
here is that one of human depravity in its manifestations from people
in the world. Romans 3, verse 9, here we go. What then, says the apostle,
are we better than they? Are we better? No, in no wise. For we have before proved, both
Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin. As it is written, there is none
righteous, no, not one. There is none that understandeth.
There is none that seeketh after God. They're all gone out of
the way. They are together become unprofitable,
there is none that doeth good, no not one. Their throat is an
open supplicar, or grave, with their tongues have used deceit,
the poison of asp. is under their lips, whose mouth
is full of cursing and bitterness, their feet are swift to shed
blood, destruction and misery are in their way, and the way
of peace have they not known, there is no fear of God before
their eyes." What an indictment. Let me begin, just throw in a
very quick and a very short story. Recently, I got a call from a
man way down in South Texas who found us on the internet, wanted
to talk to him and commend me for a certain sermon that he
had heard. And he told me during the course of the conversation
that he goes out in his town, he has a sign that he puts on
the side of his vehicle, and that sign says $5 if you can
prove that you are a good person. And that, of course, causes people
to stop and start a conversation. So let us be warned this morning
as we embark upon this journey that we will be treading upon
some dangerous and some rough waters as we go on our way. The path will not be smooth,
and the view will not be scenic, and our tour guide will show
us things that will be upsetting and insulting and very humbling
unto many. Now, our subject is the depravity
factor, and by that I mean the premise will be the basis of
our argument will be along this line, that depravity is a factor
that is and must be reckoned with in every human act and condition
and situation. Nothing about the human condition
can be considered or properly understood apart from the factoring
in of depravity. Depravity has leavened the whole
lump of mankind and misnone. All that are born of men and
of women, there is not one that is above or beyond the factor
depravity. We never, never from our birth
until the day of our death are free of the influence of depravity
in one way or one degree or another. Before we seek to plumb the depths
of this great abyss that we find in the scripture, let's make
some preliminary observation that might put our mind in the
right track that we might follow along on our subject. this most
solemn truth of the scripture, and it is a truth and a teaching
of the scripture. There are four or five observations
that we might make in making ready for our real study. Number one, this doctrine is
in the running for to be crowned as the most offensive doctrine
anywhere in the scripture. I don't know if we could find
another, even the wrath of God in hell, that is more offensive
to the natural man and be found in the scripture than this one
of depravity. Few there are in our day who
have their hearts tuned by the grace of God to hear this part
of the scripture, but they are insulted. Now, we must remember
that in the same category with great sinners, they are insulted
to be included. Just as a Pharisee was insulted
to be put in the same category with a wretched and idolatrous
Gentile, so the self-avowed moralists and the self-righteous people
are too proud to be put in the class with publican and with
sinner. The Jew is insulted to be put
on the same level as the Gentile. And so when the full truth of
depravity is set forth, it always kindles a bitter taste in the
mouth of the public. It is a despised and a rejected
teaching in our day. Now the second point that we
might make, this leads us to observe that such a doctrine,
being so disagreeable to the sentiments of men and the high
opinion that people hold of themselves, ought not to be considered as
an invention of the church to manipulate men into the church. What person would ever, writing
in their own volition, ever paint themselves so foul as the Bible
paints us? Now, if the scripture are just
the common writing of an inspired man, why then such a dark view
of mankind as we have in the scripture? If men wrote the scripture
apart from the inspiration of God, would they so strongly impugn
the human character as they do in their writing? It is the general
consensus of the people of the world that all people are basically
good and are basically kind and that they have a good heart within
them. And while some, it is true, do
go bad, some fall off of the deep end, it is not because,
they say, of any original sin or of any immediate corruption,
but some mitigating factor, or circumstances, bad choices, addictions
that they picked up, or something of that nature. And then secondly,
the distaste of total depravity is by no means confined to the
people of the world. It is by no means confined to
those that are unregenerate. It has also invaded the churches,
and it did so at an early age and centuries ago. And even though
partially confessed by some, yet it is badly twisted, badly
perverted by the churches of Christendom in our day and generation. And to repeat, this was done
early on in history, as enemies sowed the tares of error, or
the errors of tare, among the truth. And here's some example
from way back in the history of the church. There were those
that were called Pelagian. They were followers of a man
named Pelagius in the 4th century, and this man denied original
sin, and he denied the corruption of the nature of humanity, and
that all of Adam's effect upon the human family was that he
left us a bad example. And then came the Sosinian, followers
of Foster Sosinia in the 15th century, that all Christ did
and all that was needed from Christ was a good example to
set the way for others. Then there's a man called Pygius,
whom Calvin called a dead dog. Albert Pigius, whom he in another
place called Calvin, called him an unclean beast because of the
doctrine that he held. He held that there was absolute
free will in salvation and he denied the corruption of nature
produced down from Adam and through all of the generation. Then we
could speak of the papists confessing original sin and yet at the same
time claiming that a few drops of water upon the forehead are
able to wash it away and put grace in the soul for the first
time. Closer to our day and our experience
are the Armenian, who run in the age of accountability, which
does greatly smother the doctrine of innate depravity and of total
corruption. Now, one final point that we
might make. an error on the true nature and
the true extent of depravity will lead to an error concerning
the remedy. If we do not know what is wrong,
and if we do not know the extent of that we do not know the proper
antidote that might be a cure. We can actually make the patient
sicker if you do not prescribe the proper medicine for the proper
disease. And it can even result in death,
and such has been the case. Now, some bacteria or some infection
we've learned lately are only sensitive and respond to a certain
antibody that is designed for that particular disease or remedy
or infection. And so the only remedy for man's
depravity is the death, blood redemption of our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ. Now, coming to our text here
in Romans chapter 3, as we consider its relationship to the flowing
context of the book of Romans and the purpose of the apostle
in including these things that we have read in the writing in
this particular play. Now the context is this. Paul is building up an undeniable
case for the guilt and corruption of the whole, the entire family,
of the whole world, of the whole race, in the two great sections
of humanity at that time. The Gentiles, also called the
world, or the nation, or the heathen, and the Jews, Now this
rather long section of Romans, as I said, begins at one and
verse 18 and concludes at chapter three and verse 20. And in all
that passage, he is dealing with a corruption of the human family,
the Gentile and then the Jew. And both of them, he said, have
transgressed the law of God therefore are become guilty before the
God of heaven. And in this passage, he establishes
the guilt of the Gentile, chapter 1, verse 18 through verse 32. Then in the second chapter of
Romans, he shows the guilt of the Jew, though they had the
law, though they thought themselves to be teachers, example and instructors
of other finally then chapter 3 9 and following Paul shows
that collectively collectively lumped all together the two peoples
are guilty they are corrupt they are condemned as they stand in
themselves before God Law transgressors they are. And he draws his conclusion
in the passage that we read, there is none righteous, no not
one, not even so much as one in all this great number, in
all these generations that come one after the other. In all the
history of the world and mankind, God saw none righteous after
the fall of Adam and Eve. Now we need to qualify this,
I guess, do we not? For there are many, such as Abraham,
and what the Bible calls his children, who have righteousness
imputed unto them. But it is not innate righteousness. It is not of their self. It is
an imputed righteousness. And it is variously called or
spoken of in the Scripture, the righteousness imputed, as in
Romans chapter 4. It is also referred to as the
righteousness which is by faith of Jesus Christ. In all of them
that believe, Romans 321, Philippians chapter 1, Philippians chapter
3, verse 9 and it's the righteousness
that fulfills the righteousness of the law that the law requires
Romans chapter 8 and verse 4 but it is not the result of any work
or any law keeping by the person or by the individual because
in Romans 3 and verse 20 by the deeds of the law There shall
no flesh be justified in his sight. But another means of justification
is provided, and that is Romans 3, 21 and 22. It is without the
law. It is apart from the law. It
is the righteousness of God by faith, so that all unrighteousness
are not hopelessly lost, for there is a method and a way and
a purpose whereby God accounts and makes us righteous in his
sight. But back to chapter 3 again. Paul concedes in the opening
of the chapter that there is an advantage to the Jew, and
that advantage consists in this. They were given circumcision,
they had circumcision, and they were given custody of the oracles
of God or the word of God. Other privileges are mentioned
in Romans 9, verse 4, verse 5, we won't look there this morning.
And yet the unbelief of many Jews did not void the promise
or the word of our great God. Verse 9 that we read has two
questions, which as to the context show, they are intended first
and foremost for the Jew. The question, what then? What
then, after all that he has said about the depravity of the two
peoples, what then? This is classic Paul. This is classic Paul, especially
in the Roman epistle, as he asks again and again, what is to be
inferred, what is to be concluded from what has been said or what
is being said. For example, chapter 4, verse
1. What shall we say then that Abraham
our father has found? And again, chapter 6, verse 1.
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that
grace may abound? God forbid. Chapter 6, verse
15. What then? Since we're not under
the law, but under grace, what then? Chapter 9, verse 14. What shall we say then? Again you have it, chapter 10
and verse 30. What is the state or the case
or the conclusion to be drawn from all of this? What then?
Now the second question is more difficult of interpretation as
seen in the way that commentators are divided concerning the meaning
of it and this issue. And the question is, are we better,
and King James has in italics than they, Are we better? The last two words being in italic. Some render it, are we excel? Meaning the Jew. Are we having
excellence? Are we excelling them? Have we
the excellency with regard to our stand, condition, and position
before Almighty God. Some have it. Are we preferred
before them or before them? Are we in a better case than
they? And some even understand the
question to be, are we in a worse state or condition than they? Now Paul settles it. No, not
at all. Are we better? No, not at all. They had advantage, but no excellency. The reason, Paul gives, for we
have before proved both Jew and Gentile that they are all under
sin. Now, two things about this. First of all, the word for introduces
for the reader the reason to why Paul answers the question. He uses a word in the second
place that is translated by four words in the English. We have
before proved. The margin has it charged. We have before charge, meaning
to make a prior accusation, to return a bill of indictment,
literally, to make a prior accusation that is in the form of a forensic
or a legal accusation. Literally, Paul said, we have
before laid out the charge, which no doubt refers to what is contained
chapter 1 verse 18 to chapter 2 and verse 29. And what then
is this bill of indictment? Look at verse 9 and the last
part. That both Jew and Gentile are
under sin. Now to be under sin, to be under
the dominion of sin, they are sinners, yes. They have all sinned. But the words are much stronger
than that. They are both people, the educated
Gentile and the religious Jews are under sin. In other words,
they're guilty of it. Sin has the dominion over them. They are liable to damnation
on account of that, except a remedy be provided by God. Now, to be under sin means to
be under the condemnation for sin, just as to be under grace
in Romans 6, 14 means to be justified in the sight of God, both Jew
and Gentile. And in verse 19, that every mouth
may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God. now in that line or like consider
two things number one that every mouth may be stopped and that
we had that there in verse 19 Every mouth may be stopped. What does that mean? Well, that
no one will have anything to say in their behalf. They will
have no excuse. They will have no defense, none
whatsoever. Shedd put it this way. Complete
and entire silence under the accusation of the law is meant
Every mouth may be stopped. Now this is the case with those
under and that are transgressors of the law. It says to them,
it speaks to them, and they cannot answer. And it calls them guilty,
and they have no defense. But yet, secondly, it gets even
worse. The whole world is guilty before
God. And as Haldane put it, the term
guilty means to be subject to condemnation at the hands of
God. And it respects divine judgment
to be poured out upon them. And in the end of verse 19 again,
Paul says that this guilt or this subjection under condemnation
is, quote, before God, unquote. This condemnation, this guilt
is before God, under judgment to God, answerable to God. Everyone is in that category. The whole world is liable before
God as transgressors of the law. Such are not guilty in relationship
to any earthly magistrate or judge. It is not a human court
to which they must stand and answer. It is not to the standard
of the society in which one is living. or the religion that
they embrace, or the laws of the land. And their punishment
will not proceed from such sources as that. Before God, in the eyes
of God, who is the judge of all of the earth. We read in Genesis
chapter 18. And the instrument and the standard
of this guilt and of this judgment is the righteous law of God,
those that are under the law, those to whom the law is speaking. Now, how does Paul use the term
law here in this particular place? In Romans, the word law is used
in various ways. But how does Paul mean it here
in this verse of Scripture? Is it the ceremonial law? Is
it the law of nature that he talked about with the Gentile?
Is it the five books of Moses, sometimes called by the Jew the
law? Is it the word of God, also at
times called the law of God? Or is it the moral law, the Ten
Commandments, the law of God? Now, perhaps we're helped to
answer the question we've raised by two things. Number one, the
result of the law speaking, and that is that every mouth may
be stopped and all the world become guilty. And the second
one, in verse 20, the impossibility of any being justified by the
works of the law. None can justify themselves by
doing or keeping the law. Now, as we notice, All things
mentioned here in verse 10 through verse 18 are transgressions of
the law of God, as well as we notice that while the Jew had
the law from God and the Gentile had the law of nature written
in heart and conscience, yet both the Gentile and the Jew
transgressed that respective law and what the law was saying
unto them, and contracted guilt thereby. So let's come to consider
the depravity factor in the human family. Now the English word
factor, I should explain, I guess, is capable of multiple meanings
as we use it in our language. We might see it connected to
mathematics. We might see it pop up again
in relationship on the biology. But we use it in the sense or
the meaning given in the dictionary as being an element or a condition
or a quality that is involved in a result or is an agent, an
integral part of a component or the whole. And here is the
essence of the depravity factor. We can never truly explain or
understand the condition or the behavior of the human family
apart from the biblical view of human depravity. All things
must be judged in the light of human depravity, and it must
be the view of the scripture, not the view of the psychiatrist
or the psychologist or of the philosopher, but the behavior
described in the scripture. Romans 1, 18 through 320. None are righteous, not even
one, verse 10. None understand or seek after
God, that's in verse 11. All are turned aside, all are
gone astray. Collectively they are unprofitable
or useless, as the word might be rendered. Not even one does
good in verse 12. And from these verses that I
lifted, two statements from John Murray on this passage. One,
as to the intellect or the mind or the thought process, there
is no understanding of God, no right understanding of God apart
from grace. Secondly, as to seeking God,
are looking after him or unto him, there is no movement, says
Murray, toward God. And you look at verse 11 again,
and it confirms that. Now again, to get to the root
of this depravity, we must begin at the beginning, which is, human
nature was corrupted in the sin and the fall of Adam and Eve. And the very fountain, therefore,
of humanity. The very origin and the very
fountain became fallen and depraved, and a corrupt fountain cannot
send forth pure, sweet, or good water. Therefore, a corrupt tree
cannot bring forth sweet fruit. It just is impossible. So how can he that is born of
woman be clean? The question is raised a couple
of times in the book of Job. That fallen human nature cannot
procreate itself in either righteous or innocent offspring. Corrupt human nature cannot do
that. All like David. Psalm 51 and
verse 5 must confess. I was shapen in iniquity and
in sin did my mother conceive me. Have you ever read that before?
that with all our birth already stained with depravity. Soon
as we come into the world, estranged from the womb, they go forth
as soon as they are born speaking lies, Psalm chapter 58 and verse
3. They're called a transgressor
from the womb, Isaiah chapter 48 and verse 8. And any that
bear, any that raise a child will soon discover what Solomon
wrote indeed true. Proverbs 22 and verse 15, foolishness
is bound up in the heart of a child, folly is there entwined. We should be clear, sin is not
just an influence from without. Do not think of sin only as an
influence from without, nor is it something that is tangible
or something that is material matter. Neither is sin merely
a disease, as sometimes the Armenians portray it Nor is it a poison
in the blood, as others have said. And listen to this, and
this is the essence of it. We do not sin to become sinful
or a sinner. It is not that we sin in order
or that result in us becoming sinful or a sinner. We sin because
we are already sinful. Now, if that's not true, why
is there not a single one in all of the history that has avoided
or escaped this corruption and depravity? Now, this depravity
is not a sleeping element. It is not something that lays
dormant when we are born and then must be stirred into activity. Louis Burkhoff called it an inherent
positive inclination or disposition to evil, unquote. Not negative
and not neutral, but a positive inclination toward evil. Something that all will follow. They are born, they live, and
they follow in the way of depravity. Now, we usually consider this
corruption of nature under two headings. A.W. Pink's done so
in his book on depravity, or from two standpoints. Number
one, there is total depravity. Number two, there is total inability. Total depravity and total inability. Total depravity, all are totally
depraved from being a descendant, not just of our natural parent
or our grandparent, but from our first parent, Adam and Eve. because we were in them seminally. Think about that. We were seminally
in Adam and in Eve. When we say total depravity,
we do not imply that all are as bad as as they might be. That's not what we mean by it.
We do not mean that all are as wicked as they are capable of
being. We do not mean that all are as
wicked as some in the human family are. And we do not mean that
every person will commit every sin to the greatest degree that
they are capable. But we do say that depravity
is total. is what scripture teaches that
every faculty, every member of the soul and of the body has
been corrupted by sin. I named some. The heart, the
understanding, the will, the conscience, the affection, the
mind, all of those things are corrupted by depravity. And scripture speaks and speaks
very strongly in support of human depravity. I mentioned A.W. Pink. He once wrote, I'm quoting,
there is no dogma invented by the church, but is a truth of
holy writ, unquote. In fact, it is one of the most
prominent teaching and doctrine and subject to be found anywhere
in the scripture. The sin of man, depravity, is
a leading doctrine of the scripture. Where will you read that you
will not meet human depravity in the scripture? None righteous,
none good. In fact, our passage here in
Romans chapter 3, verse 10 through verse 18, if you were to count
them, and to trace them out, you would find that this is for
the most part simply a collection of Old Testament scripture declaring
the depravity of the race. I think somebody said There are
15 references here to the Old Testament scripture as the manifestation
of depravity. But then, not just total depravity,
that it is inward and that it is in every member and every
faculty, but then we have to say there is total inability,
total inability as to doing anything that might save one or bring
one to justification before God or make them righteous. Now,
I think this is probably a stronger offense than the first part,
total depravity. Or some will admit that they
are sinners and have sinned. You know, if you talk to a person,
if they think long enough, If they really think about it, they
can remember a sin or two along the way in their life. If they
really think about the total depravity, Ah, they bow their
neck at it, and this is a hard saying. The Lord Jesus Christ
emphasized total inability. You read the writing, the words
of our Lord, and you find him emphasizing total inability. For what did he teach? He taught
that apart from divine influence, none can come to him. You want
to read it? John 6.44 and again in chapter
6 and verse 65. Or none can believe, he said,
John 10.26, because they're not his sheep. Or enter into the
kingdom of God unless they're born again. John chapter 3. They cannot repent. Now, it is
not that men have lost their faculties in the fall. It is
not that these faculties have been eradicated or eroded or
have been done away with, but that they have fallen under the
power and the corruption and the bondage of depravity. Now this truth is at variance
with the favorite idol and doctrine of Arminianism, Universalism,
and their favorite idol of free will. But the Roman free text,
if you will, being the conclusion of the section on depravity,
lists therefore us some manifestations of depravity committed by various
members of the body. And is it surprising, those that
Paul emphasizes, the throat, the tongue, the lips, the mouth?
Please note here the verbal evidences of depravity. Verbal evidences
in almost every utterance. He likens the throat unto a grave. deceit, cursing, bitterness,
proceeding out as if it were a foul grave opened up. But that's not all. He mentions
violence, killing, maiming. Every day and night on the news,
we have new evidences of depravity in the killings and the murders
of the day, sometimes mass murders. Then he says they have no peace. Then he says they have no fear
of God before their eye. Winding down this message, let's
call attention to a sad fact, and I think this is a sad fact
indeed, and that is that the pulpits of our land have all
but fallen silent on the subject of the depravity of the race. It is so unpopular, they're afraid
of their faces. The half is never told concerning
the depravity of people. You know, how many people have
you heard say, why, I go to church, I don't want to be run down.
I want to be made to feel good. Be made to feel good in your
sin. Be made to feel good that you're
under the power of depravity. Many want to go to church and
leave walking upon a cloud. Many, therefore, are deceived. because they do not see themselves,
they do not think themselves so great a sinner in the sight
of God, they do not think themselves so bad, and their conscience
is mollified falsely by the preaching of the day. Psychiatry is brought
into the pulpit rather than the Word of God, and it has produced
a generation of self-righteous people who are not aware of the
extent of the depravity at which God has charged upon them. Depravity is very versatile. It can adapt itself or accommodate
itself to every age and to every social and to every cultural
condition that we might find. The young have their particular
temptation and sin, and the old have theirs. The poor and the
well-to-do may have different sin. The poor may be robbing
convenience stores and banks. The well-to-do are doing it with
a pencil and another way. But let me say this in closing. If you will not accept the fact
of total depravity, if you will not accept the fact from what
I've said that the family is totally depraved, then let me
say that death is the ultimate proof of depravity. If you die,
it is because of sin. Death has come by sin and not
any other reason. And therefore, it is the final
proof of the depravity of the race of mankind. Yes, the depravity
factor, and it is to be considered in almost any situation that
we might be in in our life.