One of the most famous pieces of English literature written is an epic poem by a man named John Milton, and the title of the poem is Paradise Lost. It was written in 1667. According to Milton, his purpose in writing this was to justify the ways of God to men, which is ultimately the responsibility of every person who calls themselves a Christian.
Although the poem is limited in its ability to fulfill Milton’s expressed purpose, it does point us to Adam and Eve’s fall from grace, being cut off from the glorious life with God for which man was created; the severe consequences of that fall not only for Adam and Eve, but for all mankind; and our desperate need for a Savior (Luke 2:11), to rescue us from the consequences of the fall, and to restore us to the glorious relationship with God for which we were created.
The Bible teaches that in the beginning, the eternal, infinitely glorious God created a world that was good – very good (Genesis 1:31). We are told that God created all things for His glory (Psalm 19:1-6) (Isaiah 43:7); that the infinite and eternal perfections of His Being, the beauty, magnificence and excellence of His person would be seen, known, displayed, enjoyed and rejoiced in by all of creation, most importantly by those whom God would create in His image and likeness – mankind.
God’s good and just intention in creation was and has always been that men and women created in His glorious image, with the beauty of His holiness stamped on every aspect of our being, would gladly and fully trust in his infinite goodness, wisdom and power; that we would joyfully submit our life to His grace, entrusting our lives to His love and thus image and proclaim and enjoy the infinite expressions of His goodness and love that were to be found in intimate relationship with Him and one another, subject to His authority and rule.
This is obviously not the world we live in today – far from it. The present world and everything in it, including and especially man, are corrupted versions of that which God created in the beginning and called good.
God, in the minds of most people, has become at best, irrelevant, inconsequential and unnecessary to their happiness and wellbeing in this world, and at worst, an unnecessary and despised hindrance to the pursuit of their present joy, pleasure and satisfaction in life. For many, we are told in Psalm 10:3-4, God is not ever in their thoughts.
As such, mankind has gone from being the objects of God’s love as we were created to be, to the objects of God’s judgment and wrath. (Romans 1:18-34).
The Apostle Paul in Romans 1:18 tells us that the wrath of God is (being) revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men” ….
When the Bible speaks of ungodliness and unrighteousness in particular, it is referring to that which lacks conformity to the nature and character of God, and thus exists in opposition to His person and purposes. In 1 John 5:17 we are told that all unrighteousness is sin.
When the Bible speaks of God’s wrath it is referring to His active, passionate, personal and necessary expression of His hatred of and righteous indignation toward sin; His just and measured vengeance toward sinful men, women and angels who oppose his purpose for and rule over their lives. The Bible identifies sin as the corrupting influence that entered into God’s good and perfect creation to bring about the devastation, disruption and gross disordering of this world and our lives in it, and death as God’s judgement for sin. (Romans 5:12).
There are two massive issues related to Truth in Romans 1 that incite sin and incur God’s wrath. In Romans 1:19-22 it is our suppression of Truth, and in Romans 1:25 it is our exchange of the Truth, for the lie.
In subsequent posts I will explore the consequences of the suppression and exchange of Truth on our world today, and most importantly, how our faith in Jesus and in His word will free us from the lies that motivate this suppression and exchange, and save us from the wrath of God that is to come in response to it. (John 8:31-32) (1Thessalonians 1:9-10).
Grace and Truth ×