It’s Still an Abomination – Romans 1:25-28

Romans verse by verse: The sin of Sodomy (homosexuality) is exposed in these verses as an example of the depravity man sinks to when he rejects the Creator.

Brief review of last lesson – The downward spiral of unbelief: Irreverence – Imaginations – Ignorance – Images – Immorality

This lesson: What the Bible teaches in this passage about the sin of sodomy.

From the beginning of time, Satan has been interested in the corruption of human sexuality.

The Cause (Vs. 25-26a)

The Human Side (Vs. 25)

1. They exchanged truth for falsehood (25a)
2. They worshiped nature (25b)
   1. “worshipped…served” = religious devotion
   2. ‘creature’ = creation, nature
   3. ‘more’ = comes from Greek word ‘para’ which means “alongside, beside”. The preposition indicates passing by the Creator altogether, not merely giving preference to the creature. (Wuest)
   4. “who is blessed forever Amen” = Expression used by the Apostle to inflict a greater stigma on idolatry…we ought to honor and adore God alone, and are not permitted to take away from Him even the smallest ray of His glory. (Haldane)
3. Note: Link between the religion of environmentalism and support for the homosexual lifestyle (e.g. the Green party)

The Divine Side (Vs. 26a)

1. “for this cause” = Vs. 25
2. “God gave them up”
   1. He handed them over, a judicial act. God is not a neutral by stander when it comes to man’s rebellion against Him.
   2. Same word used in Mark 1:14 to describe John being “put in prison” (same Greek word)
3. Question: Is there any hope for such individuals? Can they be saved?
4. Answer: Yes, depending on how far down the spiral they have gone (S. Vs. 28)
   1. 2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
   2. 1 Cor. 6:9, 11 “…abusers of themselves with mankind (sodomites)… And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” Note: Corinth had a notorious reputation for sexual immorality, including this sin.

The Character (Vs. 26b-27a)

Unclean Lust (Vs. 24)

1. ‘uncleanness’ = in a moral sense
2. Note: Unclean lust brings about unclean activity. Uncleanness of heart fruits in uncleanness of lifestyle.

Dishonorable to the body (Vs. 24)

1. “abusers of themselves with mankind” 1 Cor. 6:9
2. “defile themselves with mankind” 1 Tim. 1:10

Vile affections (Vs. 26)

1. ‘affections’ = passions. Word always used in a negative light in N.T.
2. Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”
3. An Abomination: Lev 18:22-30 “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.”
4. Death penalty under O.T. law: Lev 20:13 “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” (Same truth reiterated in Vs. 32)

Unnatural practice (Vs. 26-27)

1. Women
   1. Note the phrase “for even their women”.
   2. “Paul first refers to the degradation of females among the heathen, because they are always the last to be affected in the decay of morals, and their corruption is therefore proof that all virtue is lost.” (Hodge)

Burning lust (Vs. 27)

1. ‘burned’ = to inflame, set on fire. “The rage of lust.” (Wuest)
2. It is not uncommon for homosexual males in the USA & other western countries to have 300 partners a year (JM)
3. Example of Sodom & Gomorrha
   1. Genesis 19:1-11
   2. Jude 1:7 “Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”

Unseemly activity (Vs. 27)

1. ‘unseemly’ = want of form, disfigurement, shame
2. Refers to obscene, disgraceful acts

Error (Vs. 27)

Warning!

Beware of femininity amongst men and masculinity amongst women! Today, men are being feminized and women are being masculinized.

1. Gen. 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
2. Distinction in Clothing: Deut. 22:5 “The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God.”
   1. “The real pants revolution came in the 1960’s with unisex fashions, though even at this time women wearing pants were often refused entry to restaurants and the whole subject was one of heated debate.” Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Costume and Fashion
   2. An article entitled “Pants for Women” on a secular web site BookRags.com observes that “pants for women emerged” from “the feminist movement.”
3. Distinction in Hair Styles: 1 Cor. 11:14-15 “Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him? But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.”
   1. Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys sported long hair and popularized the “surfer cut” in the early 1960s. Commenting on the significance of this hair length, Wilson’s biographer observes: “The ‘surfer cut,’ as it came to be known, was a radical thing to behold in 1962. Few parents would permit their sons to sport the look.” (Jon Stebbins, Dennis Wilson: The Real Beach Boy, p. 24)
   2. Paul McCartney of the Beatles flippantly acknowledged their role in overthrowing sexual distinctions: “There they were in America, all getting house-trained for adulthood with their indisputable principle of life: short hair equals men; long hair equals women. Well, we got rid of that small convention for them. And a few others, too”

The Consequences (Vs. 27b-28)

Recompense in the body (27b)

1. ‘recompense’ = a reward, penalty. The word here refers to that natural result of their sin which pays them back for what they have done. Like a person who contemplates doing something wrong says, “I suppose I shall pay for this.” (Wuest)
2. ‘meet’ = fitting, necessary (as ordained by Divine law)
3. Examples: STD’s, AIDS etc…Homosexuality used to be listed as a Psychiatric Disorder by the Australian Medical Association (removed in 1973).
4. 1 Cor. 6:18 “Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.”

Reprobation by God (Vs. 28)

1. “as they did not like” = they did not approve of retaining God in their knowledge. The Greek is akin to the Greek word ‘reprobate’
2. “reprobate mind”
   1. Refers to that which does not stand the test. A term commonly used of metals that were rejected by refiners because of impurities. Literally, a mind or state of thought, rejected after test. It means abandoned, refused (Moule)
   2. “Virtually, they pronounced the true God disapproved, and would have none of Him, and He in turn gave them up to a disapproved mind, a mind which is no mind and cannot discharge the functions of one, a mind in which the divine distinctions of right and wrong are confused and lost, so that God’s condemnation cannot but fall on it at last.” (Denny)
   3. Robertson says, “Like an old abandoned building, the home of bats and snakes, left “to do those things which are not fitting,” like the night clubs of modern cities, the dives and dens of the underworld, without God and in the darkness of unrestrained animal impulses.
3. “…My spirit shall not always strive with man…” (Gen 6:3)

Conclusion

Challenge: If man persists in his rejection of God, eventually he passes the point of no return. Turn to Christ while there is still time. “…now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation.” (2 Cor. 6:2)

Are we living Christian lives that are distinct from the “Sodom-like” culture we are living in?

Sermon 7 of 42 in Romans Series

Sermon Audio Id: 610172236370