Would you turn with me to Romans
chapter three? This evening, I'm going to be
preaching on greatness in the kingdom of heaven. I have entitled the message for
this morning, people without a Bible. People without a Bible. Now we just read. Psalm 138 too,
where David said that God has magnified his word, the Bible
above all his name. I don't even know what to say
about that. I don't know how to explain it.
That God has actually magnified his word. above all his name. Aren't you thankful for the Bible,
the written revelation of God? Not everybody has a Bible. As
a matter of fact, most of the world's population does not have
a Bible. That's a solemn thing to think
about, isn't it? But it's a fact. Most of the
world's population knows nothing of the Bible. What about them? Somebody may be thinking, well,
what's that got to do with me? Well, I hope you'll see by the
end of this message, but it has something to do with me and you.
But look in chapter three for a moment, verse nine. Paul says, what then? Are we
better than they? Now, who is the we and who is
the they? The we are the people with a
Bible. The we are the people with a
revelation from God. Look in chapter three, verse
one, what advantage then hath the Jew? Or what profit is there
of circumcision? Much, every way, chiefly because
unto them, were committed the oracles of God, the words of
God, the Bible. Are we the ones who have the
Bible better than they, the ones who do not have a Bible? Look in chapter 14 or verse 14
of chapter two, for when the Gentiles, those who have no Bible,
For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, they don't
have a copy of the Bible, they don't have a written revelation
from God, yet they do by nature the things contained in the law.
These having not the law are a law unto themselves, which
show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience
also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing
or else excusing one another in the day when God should judge
the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel." Now,
these people had no Bible. that they still knew the difference
between right and wrong. God's law was written in their
hearts. They knew it was wrong to murder. They knew it was wrong
to lie and to steal and so on. God's law is written in their
hearts, but they have no revelation from God. Now Paul says, are
we who have a Bible any better than they? No, in no wise, for
we have before proved, both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all
under sin, slaves of sin, under the complete dominion of sin. Now, beginning in Romans chapter
one, verse 18, Paul describes those people who have no Bible. And he paints a very grim and
a very accurate picture of human nature. Now he begins in verse
18, For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness
and unrighteousness, sins against God and sins against men. The wrath of God is revealed
from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who
hold or hold down or suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Now he begins with the wrath
of God. There is such a thing as the
wrath of God. It's sometimes called his anger,
his indignation, his fury. Now God is. God is as he reveals himself
in this word. There is such a thing as the
goodness of God. There is such a thing as the
love of God. There is such a thing as the
holiness of God. There is such a thing as the
wisdom of God. There is such a thing as the
sovereignty of God. There is such a thing as the
immutability the changelessness of God. God reveals this to us
concerning himself in his word. There is such a thing as the
power of God. There is such a thing as the
eternity of God. There is such a thing as the
justice of God. And there is such a thing as
the wrath of God. The wrath of God is an attribute
of God. That's who he is. He would not
be God without his wrath. God has attributes or characteristics
that tell us who he is and what he's like. God says, I will by no means
clear the guilty. That's what God says. The wrath
of God is him not clearing the guilty. The wrath of God is His
justice, His punishment of sin. It's the satisfaction of justice. God's wrath is not to reform
people. It's not to restrain people from sin. That's not His
purpose in His wrath. His wrath is for the satisfaction
of His justice. That's who God is. He must be
just. Sin must be punished because
God is just. The wrath of God is derived from
the justice of God. Don't kid yourself. There is
such a thing as the wrath of God. Now, God has no wrath for
His people. He gets mad at his people. The
thing David did displeased the Lord. God gets mad at his people. The anger of God was kindled
against Aaron and Miriam when they spoke against Moses. says
the anger of God was kindled against him. And they were believers.
Yes, the Lord does get mad at his people, much like you can
love somebody and get mad at them because of what they do. But there's no wrath for God's
people. There's no, they're never going
to experience the justice of God against their personal sin. It's not going to happen. There's
no wrath for God's people. Now, if there were no wrath of
God, There would be no justice of God. And you know, everybody
knows that intuitively. I don't have to convince anybody
of that. You're born into this world believing that God is and
that God is just and that he will reward the righteous and
that he will punish the wicked. Everybody knows that about God. I don't have to convince you
of that. Everybody is born with that knowledge. Now, let me show
you how that is. I want to show you how the wrath
of God is revealed from heaven. Now, verse 18. For the wrath
of God is revealed from heaven against all, Romans 1 18, for
the wrath of God, his punishment of sin is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hold down the truth,
who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Now, while all men know this,
they suppress it. And he shows us how, verse 20. Verse 19, because that which
may be known of God is manifest in them for God has showed it
unto them. Everybody has seen this. Verse
20, and here's what God has shown 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." Now, no man, even if he doesn't
have a Bible, he cannot plead ignorance because this is what
God has demonstrated to everybody by the light of creation. Now
you look at creation. Anybody looks at creation. I
don't care what country, what continent they're in. They see
the sun shining. They see the moon. They see the
beautiful creation and they're forced to this conclusion. Somebody
made all of this. Everybody has thought that. Somebody
has made all this and he was before any of this. He's eternal. He was before He made. Everybody
knows that by the light of creation. And they know He is very powerful. He had to be very powerful to
make all of this. That's what Paul is saying that
the man with no Bible has. For the invisible things, verse
20, 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 divinity. He's not a man so that they are
without excuse. Now, the light of nature, the
light of creation renders all men without excuse for their
sin. Now, what about the innocent
heathen? who has no revelation from God.
What about him? Find me an innocent heathen.
There's no such thing. All men, I don't care where they
are on this planet, by the light of creation, men without a Bible,
all men are rendered without excuse. No one is innocent. Verse
21, because that when they knew God, from what they knew from the
light of creation, His eternal power and Godhead. Because 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. They didn't like what they saw,
and their foolish heart was darkened. That's the judgment of God against
them. Verse 22, professing themselves to be wise, They became fools. Now this is a reference to the
Greek philosophers, Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, and all those different
fellows we read about in grade school, the Greek, the Hellenist
culture and all that kind of stuff. They profess themselves
to be wise, but they became fools. And here's how, verse 23, these
people without a Bible, they changed the glory of the uncorruptible
God into an image made like to corruptible man, to birds and
four-footed beasts and creeping things. They didn't like what
they saw, so they humanized God. They made him like themselves.
They made him like a man. I think of that scripture in
Psalm 50, 17, where God said, Thou thoughtest I was altogether
such a one as thyself. I couldn't help but think about
what Luther said to Erasmus. He said, Erasmus, your God is
too human. Now think about that statement.
Your God is too human. They didn't like what they saw
of God in the light of creation, therefore they modified him to
a God they could control and to a God they could manipulate
and to a God they could tame, a tamed God. That's what every
man by nature seeks to do. And they brought him to the level
of a man and then to the level of beasts, four-footed beasts
and creeping things. That's what these wise men did
in all their wisdom. They changed the glory of God,
the uncorruptible God, into an image made to like the corruptible
man and to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. Wherefore,
verse 24, God also gave them up. That's one of three times
we read this. God gave them up. God let them
go. God said, have it your way. Is
that what you want? I'm going to remove my hand from
you and I'm going to let you do exactly what you want to do.
God gave them up, these wise men, so to speak. Wherefore,
God also gave them up to uncleanness, through the lust of their own
hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves. And
that's talking about the sin that the Greeks were so familiar
with. These wise men all had these
relationships that, speaking of unclean relationships, homosexuality
is what it's a reference to. God left them to themselves when
they changed God or they attempted to change God and bring him down
to their level. God said, OK, have it your way.
And this is what they did. He gave them up to uncleanness
through the lust of their own heart. This is God's judgment
against them to dishonor their own bodies between themselves.
Verse 25, who changed the truth of God into a lie and worshiped
and served the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed
forever. Amen. Here's what they did. They
worshiped the creature, man, instead of the creator. Now,
I want you to listen to this statement real carefully. All you've got
to do is believe in free will, man's free will, his freedom
to do what he wants to do. His will can trump God's will.
God can will something, but man can overcome it with his will.
God can't do what he wants If man won't let him, all you got
to do is believe that and you've made man's will sovereign over
God's will. And you make man's will to trump
God's will. And you worship and serve the
creature rather than the creator. Now that's what these men were
guilty of doing. These men without a Bible. Verse
26, for this cause, God gave them
up. There we, it's the second time
we read that. God gave them up unto vile affections. You know,
all the Lord has got to do is remove his hand from me or you
and we'll be absolute monsters in iniquity. Do you believe that
about yourself? All God did, he didn't cause him to do anything.
All he did was remove his hand. God gave them up to 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 in their
lust one toward another, men with men, working that which
is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of
their error which was meat. And even as they did not like
to retain God in their knowledge, there we are again, they didn't
like what they heard, they didn't like what nature said, or the
creation said about God. Even as they did not like to
retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate
mind, a mind void of judgment and discernment, to do those
things which are not convenient, which are not right. And he goes
on, To paint a portrait of man that is accurate, but shows us
what happens. All God's got to do is leave
you alone. All God's got to do is leave me alone. And here's
what's going to take place. Now look, look what he says about
a man left to himself, a man without a Bible. Verse 29, being
filled with all unrighteousness. fornication, sexual sin, sexual
perversions, wickedness, which means malice, covetousness, maliciousness,
a vicious character, full of envy, full of murder. If they don't murder men physically,
they murder their characters with slander and innuendo, full
of debate. quarrels, full of deceit, full
of malignity. That's a disposition that puts
the worst construction on what others say and do. Whisperers,
back biters, slanderers. Notice this, haters of God. Now that's Paul giving his description
of the natural man. Haters of God, not merely ignorant
of God, but haters of God. People who actually hate the
living God and would put him out of existence if it were in
their power. They'd get rid of him if they could. Haters of
God. Despiteful, insolent, insubordinate,
arrogant, proud, puffed up with self-importance. Boasters. Braggarts. Inventors of evil
things. They invent new iniquity. Disobedient
to parents. No respect for authority. Without understanding. Without
discernment. Unable to discern the truth.
Covenant breakers. They break their promise without
natural affection. They become so bad that they
don't even have the affection that a natural lost man has.
Implacable. That means they cannot be persuaded.
They're without a truce. They're going to have their way
no matter what. Unmerciful. Knowing nothing of
the mercy of God, they're unmerciful. Who knowing the judgment of God,
that they which commit such things are worthy of death. They know
these things are wrong. They're born with that knowledge
in their heart. The law of God is written in
their heart. But they know it's wrong. They know that they who
commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same,
but have pleasure in them that do them. They try to bring people
down with them. Not only do they want to sin
themselves, they want other people to be sharers in their crimes.
Now, this is the description of the man without the Bible. And that's a grim description,
isn't it? Grim description. Now, Paul throws
us a curveball. We don't expect this. Look what
he says after making this statement regarding the man without the
Bible. Therefore, thou art inexcusable,
O man, whosoever thou art that judgest. Now, did you hear that
description and say those people are bad? Those people are evil. They're wrong as they can be.
They deserve the judgment of God when they commit such atrocious
sins. And there's not a blacker list,
a more horrifying list of what human nature is anywhere than
right here, where Paul describes them. And if you agree, those
people are awful. They're terrible. They ought
to be judged by God. Therefore thou art inexcusable.
Here's the curveball. Therefore thou are inexcusable,
old man, whosoever thou art that judges, that agrees that people
should be condemned for this kind of behavior. For wherein
thou judgest another, You condemn yourself for you the judge do
the same things. Everything on that list that
I just read, you and I are guilty of. Everything. That's what God says. Therefore, thou art inexcusable. You're without excuse. Oh man,
whosoever you are that says, yes, those people ought to be
condemned. You ought to be condemned by God. Do you believe that? Verse two of Romans chapter two,
but we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth. against them which commit such
things, there's no doubt that those people ought to be condemned
for such wicked actions. And thinkest thou, verse three,
thinkest thou this old man that judges them which do such things,
and you do the same? Do you think you're going to
escape the judgment of God? You agree, these things are wrong.
Do you think that you're going to escape the judgment of God
when you are guilty of doing the precise same things? Now, somebody's saying, I am
not that bad. You are. You are. You are. Verse four. Or despisest thou the riches
of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering. You know,
the very fact that me and you aren't in hell right now. says
something of the riches of His forbearance and goodness and
long-suffering. You know the reason I'm not in
hell right now? Because God's good. Because He's forbearing. Because He's
long-suffering. Not knowing that it's the goodness
of God that leads thee to repentance. You won't change your mind. You'll
stay this way unless God in his goodness brings you to repentance,
a change of mind concerning himself. But verse five, he says to this
one without a Bible and this one with a Bible that judges
the one who doesn't have the Bible. But after thy hardness
and impenitent heart, that's the description of the natural
man's heart, hard and unrepentant, you treasure up unto yourself
wrath against the day of wrath. and the revelation of the righteous
judgment of God who will render to every man according to his
works. Absolute impartial justice. God is going to reward every
man according to their works. He says to all, I know your works. You can hide if you want. But
God says, I know your works. Now, if you take this route,
verse seven, to them who by patient continuance and well-doing seek
for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life. Now, anybody who
by patient continuance and well-doing They have nothing but well-doing,
and they continue in it. You know what they're going to
have? Eternal life. God's going to give them according to their
works, if you do that. But, verse 8, unto them that
are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness. Here's what's coming to them.
Indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish upon every soul of
man that doeth evil. Of the Jew first, the man with
a Bible, and also the Gentile, the man without a Bible. God
is no respecter of persons. Verse 11, there's no respect,
or verse 10, but glory, honor, and peace to every man that worketh
good. to the Jew first, and also to
the Gentile, the man with a Bible and without a Bible, for there
is no respect of persons with God. All he looks at is your
works. He doesn't look at who you say
you are, who you're connected to. He looks at your works. There's absolutely no respect
of persons with him. Aren't you, really, aren't you
glad the Lord's that way? Absolutely just, unlike us, absolutely just. He says in verse 12, For as many
as have sinned without the law shall also perish without the
law. And as many as have sinned in
the law shall be judged by the law. For it's not the hearers
of the law that are just before God, but the doers of the law
shall be justified. I've got the law. I believe the
Bible is the word of God. Congratulations. That won't do
you any good at all. It's not the hearers of the law
that are just before God, but the doers of the law. Now, does it really say that?
Yes, it does. Only the doers of the law, those
who have perfectly kept the law will be just before God. Verse 14, but when the Gentiles,
those people who have no Bible, which have not the law, do by
nature the things contained in the law. These having not the
law are a law unto themselves. Now, they have no revelation
from God, but they have the work of the law written in their heart.
They all know what's wrong with life. Everybody knows adultery
is wrong, sexual sin is wrong. Everybody knows you ought not
murder. Everybody knows you ought not cheat. You know, people say,
we need to teach people how to live. That's baloney because
everybody already knows how to live. You're born with that knowledge. with the Gentiles, which have
not the law do by nature the things contained in the law.
These having not the law are a law unto themselves, which
show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience
also bearing witness. And here's how they deal with
the law and their thoughts, the meanwhile, accusing or else excusing
one another. Everybody has a conscience. And
here's how our conscience responds to the law. Either it accuses
us or we try to make an excuse for our sin. Self-vindication. Self-justification. That happened
in the garden. It's amazing, but it paints a
picture of us so clearly. When Adam sinned and God said,
where are you? What did you do? And Adam said,
the woman that you gave me, You set me up for failure, Adam says.
The woman you gave me. If you wouldn't have given me
this woman, this would have never happened. The woman that you
gave me, she gave me of the fruit and I didn't eat. Therefore,
ultimately, this is not my fault. Excusing or accusing. Accusing one another. And look
what he says in verse 16. In the day when God shall judge
the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. And the secrets of men are what
we really are. We try and keep those secrets
hidden from the view of others, the secret sins, the secret desires
that God sees so clearly. God is going to judge the secrets
of men and they're all going to be exposed. And notice he
says he's going to judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ. Every man will be placed by Jesus
Christ. Everybody in the universe, everybody's
ever been born. I don't know how all this will
work, but everybody's going to be placed by Jesus Christ. And
if someone is not exactly like him, if they've got any secrets,
God, will cast them into hell. God is just. God is just. Don't humanize God. Somebody
says, well, God loves the sinner. He just hates the sin. That's
an attempt at humanizing God. Tell the people in hell that.
They know better. God is just. God is going to
judge the secrets of men. They're going to be put right
beside of the Lord Jesus Christ. And if they're not exactly like
him, God will cast them into hell. Now that's just the truth.
That's who God is. The wrath of God revealed from
heaven. But notice, he says in the days when God, in verse Romans
2, 16, in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men, by
Jesus Christ, but look at this next phrase, according to my
gospel. And this is not a generic term.
Paul calls this my gospel. That which is good news to me. Oh, would to God that the gospel
would be my gospel now. In the context of this passage
of scripture, Paul tells us exactly what he means by my gospel. Now, look back in Romans 1 verse
1. Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ,
called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God. Now the
gospel called Paul called my gospel is the gospel of God.
It's not man's gospel. It's not something that I came
up with. This is the gospel of God. This is what God calls the
gospel. Not what men, men have their
gospels, but those gospels won't save. This is the gospel of God. Look what he says next. Verse
two, the gospel of the God is the gospel, which he had a promise
to for. It's the eternal gospel. It's always been the gospel.
It was the gospel before the foundation of the world when
Christ was the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
It's the gospel which he promised to four by his prophets in the
holy scriptures. It's the gospel that the scriptures
bring out. God's word. It's not man's gospel. It's the gospel of the Bible.
And here's what it is. It's the gospel concerning his
son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, which was made of the seed of
David, according to the flesh and declared to be the son of
God with power, according to the spirit of holiness. by the
resurrection from the dead. I love the way he calls this,
it's a gospel concerning his son. Now this takes so many by
surprise because everybody thinks, well, the gospel is concerning,
God wants to save people, he wants to do this, and man has
these needs, and God wants to fulfill these needs. That's the
gospel concerning man. This is not about man, this is
about him, the Lord Jesus Christ. The gospel concerning his son,
the Lord Jesus Christ. Now look in verse 16 of Romans
chapter one. Paul says, for I'm not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ. This is the gospel of which Paul
was not ashamed. It's the gospel of Christ. It's
a gospel that can be defined. It's the gospel of Christ, the
prophet, God's prophet. He's the word of God, God's priest.
The only way I can come into God's presence is through him,
God's king. I'm not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ for it, it's The objective gospel, it, the gospel, not,
not my way of presenting it, not my way to make it relevant
to people. No, it, the gospel by itself with no help from me.
God's truth. It is the power of God. It's a powerful gospel. It's
the power of God. You know, there's some things
only the power of God can do. Only the power of God can make my
sin to not be. To where I don't have any secrets. I love thinking about that. You
know, when you think of all your thoughts or motives and soul
being put up on screen and how ashamed you'd be, listen, the
power of this gospel makes all your thoughts put up on a screen
and they're just like Christ because they are Christ's. That's
a powerful gospel, isn't it? It makes my sin to not be. It
makes me to be holy and righteous before God. What a powerful gospel. It's the power of God unto salvation. It's a saving gospel. The gospel saves. It doesn't
make salvation available. It doesn't try to save. It saves. Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners of whom Paul said, I am the chief. And that's
exactly what he did. When were you saved? When Christ
died and put away my sins. When were you saved? Before the
foundation of the world. Isn't that wonderful? This is
a saving gospel. And it's a discriminating gospel.
It's not saving to everybody. It's saving to everyone that
believeth. That person who believes the
gospel. And you know what I do? I believe
the gospel. That doesn't just mean I believe
in its accuracy. I'm relying on the Lord Jesus Christ making
it to where I don't have anything to be ashamed of. I don't have
any secrets. I am perfect in God's sight. Verse 17, For therein, in the
gospel, is the righteousness of God revealed. Now, here's how, Paul says, God should judge the
secrets of men by my gospel. My secrets are going to be brought
up and they're all good because every believer, now this is the
very, oh, I hope, I hope I preach this
every time I preach in the power of the Holy Spirit, really believing
what I'm saying. The gospel reveals the righteousness
of God. It reveals the righteousness
of God in my damnation. It reveals the righteousness
of God in my salvation, how I deserve to be saved. It reveals the righteousness
of God as my personal righteousness before God. God's going to judge the secrets
of men. And everyone who does not have the righteousness of
God. will be cast away. All secrets
will be exposed and revealed. Now, Paul called this my gospel. You know what? It's mine just
as much as it was Paul's, or just as much as it is Paul's.
This is my gospel. The gospel that reveals the righteousness
of God. That I'm not afraid for every
secret, every thought of my heart to be exposed before men and
angels and demons. There'll be nothing but that
which is holy and perfect and pure. Having the very righteousness
of God. Now, what does a man without
the Bible need? Same thing a man with the Bible
needs, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank God for his gospel. Believe. Remember, this righteousness
is for all who believe. Believe. Rely. upon the Lord Jesus Christ, and
thou shalt be saved. Let's pray together.