Romans 1:18-3:20

• Main Thesis (Rom. 1:16–17):
  The gospel is the power of God for salvation, revealing the righteousness of God by faith.

• Universal Sinfulness (Rom. 1–3):

  • Gentiles are unrighteous (Rom. 1:18–32)

  • Jews are also unrighteous despite having the law (Rom. 2)

  • Conclusion: All are under sin (Rom. 3:9–18)

• Key Doctrine: Total Depravity

  • None are righteous, none seek God

  • Sin affects mind, will, speech, and actions

  • Humanity is guilty before God

10 Truths About God from Romans 1–3

1. God Reveals Himself

   • Through creation (general revelation)

   • Humanity suppresses this truth

2. God is Good and Giving

   • Provides daily blessings to all

   • His goodness is meant to lead to repentance

3. God is Patient and Forbearing

   • Delays judgment

   • Gives time for repentance

4. God is Righteous and Impartial

   • Judges according to truth

   • No favoritism

5. God is Presently Wrathful

   • Wrath is not just future—it is active now

   • Abides on those outside Christ

6. God Judges by Giving People Over

   • Allows people to pursue their sinful desires

   • This is an active form of judgment

7. God Gives Even While Judging

   • Continues to bless sinners

   • His kindness is often misused

8. God Maintains Moral Witness (Conscience)

   • Law written on human hearts

   • Conscience testifies against sin

9. God Sees the Inner Man

   • Judges secrets and motives

   • External religion is insufficient

10. God is Faithful and True

• Human unfaithfulness does not nullify God

• Salvation rests on His faithfulness, not ours

Central Problem

• Humanity suppresses truth, ignores God’s goodness, and remains under sin and wrath.

Central Question

• How can anyone stand before a righteous and impartial God?

Answer

• By the righteousness of Jesus Christ alone

• Flee from sin and rest in Christ

“The Righteous God and the Unrighteous Man”

Key Passage

• Romans 3:9–18

Supporting Texts

• Romans 1:18–32

• Romans 2:1–16

• Psalm 19:1

• 2 Peter 3:9

• John 3:36

• Jeremiah 17:10

1. Biblical Theme: Total Depravity & Divine Justice

• Sin is universal and pervasive

• God is perfectly just and must judge sin

• Humanity cannot achieve righteousness on its own

2. Historical & Theological Context

• Romans Audience: Mixed Jewish and Gentile believers

• Jewish reliance on the Law is dismantled

• Paul builds a legal case:

  • Evidence (sin)

  • Verdict (guilty)

  • Need (righteousness outside ourselves)

3. Key Doctrinal Focus

A. General Revelation

• God makes Himself known in creation

• Leaves humanity “without excuse” (Rom. 1:20)

B. Human Depravity

• Not as bad as possible, but corrupted in every part

• Includes thoughts, desires, and actions

C. God’s Wrath

• Present reality (not just future)

• Expressed in “giving people over”

D. Justification (Introduced)

• Needed because of total guilt

• Fulfilled in Christ (developed later in Romans)

4. Westminster Standards Connection

Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF)

• WCF 6.2–4: Total depravity and corruption of nature

• WCF 7.3: Covenant of grace through Christ

• WCF 11.1: Justification by faith alone

Westminster Larger Catechism (WLC)

• Q25: Sinfulness of man’s estate

• Q27: Misery of the fall

• Q70: Justification defined

Westminster Shorter Catechism (WSC)

• Q14: What is sin?

• Q16–19: Fall and its consequences

• Q33: Justification by faith alone

5. Practical Applications

• Reject self-righteousness
  You cannot stand before God on your own merit

• Recognize God’s goodness rightly
  Daily blessings are meant to lead to repentance

• Take sin seriously
  God sees the heart, not just outward behavior

• Respond to conviction properly
  Don’t numb your conscience—bring guilt to Christ

• Rest fully in Christ
  Assurance comes from His righteousness, not yours

Will you please turn with me to the book of Romans, the book of Romans chapter 3. Romans chapter 3 and this morning I'm going to specifically read that string of Old Testament pearls again that Paul put together for us in verses 10 through 18. The sermon is going to be a recap of chapters 1, 2, and 3. So for your sake, I'm not going to read all of chapters 1, 2, and 3. But here now, God's perfect word. Romans chapter 3, beginning at verse 10.

Oh, verse 9, sorry. What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one. There is none who understands. There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside. They have together become unprofitable. There is none who does good, no, not one.

Their throat is an open tomb. With their tongues they have practiced deceit. The poison of asps 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 ways, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God. before their eyes.

Let's pray. Father, we have read your word, a portion of it. It is perfect and it is true. Father, we pray for your Holy Spirit to give wisdom. Lord, to give us insight to learn who you are. And who we are before you. Father, please help us. Give us your Spirit to understand. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.

One of the favorite moments from R.C. Sproul that I remember is somebody asked him, he would say, what is the most, or what is the least unique thing about Reformed theology? And he said, our doctrine of God. Our doctrine of God is extremely similar to almost every other tradition of Christianity. I said, oh okay, so what is the most distinct thing about Reformed Christianity? And he said, our doctrine of God. And he said he saw them scratch their heads like what in the world are you talking about?

Because every single thing about our theology starts and points to who God is. And so I have a fear of one of the things that we've done in Romans chapter 1 through 3 is my fear is that you may have felt like God has come to you with a sledgehammer of your unrighteousness. That God may be in your mind, you may have thought that He's a tyrant, that at any moment He might strike you with a bolt of lightning like Zeus who's on a bad angry day. But I want to look closely at Romans chapter 1 through 3, even just up to verse 20 that we've seen, and look at how God Himself described Himself in those passages. And I think we're going to find something extremely interesting about the Lord. And so just as an overview in Romans chapter 1. Verses one through seven, it was really, or one through, yeah, one through seven, it was just an introduction.

Who is Paul? He's writing to the Romans. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and Lord Jesus Christ. And then in verses eight through 15, it was really him saying, I wanna come see you, but I can't come see you because I've had to go minister the gospel to Gentiles, but I'm gonna come see you someday. Oh, and by the way, the gospel that I'm preaching of, Let me talk to you about that, and that's what he gets with his thesis statement. His main thing he's going to talk about throughout the rest of the book of Romans is verses 16 and 17.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God. To salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith. So there's good news, this gospel he's not ashamed of. Then he says, okay, well before we talk about the good news, I have to tell you some bad news. And the bad news is the Gentiles aren't righteous.

And that's Romans chapter 1 verses 18 through the end of the chapter. It's all about the sinfulness of sinful men, especially the Gentiles. And God giving them over and giving them over to their sin. But by the time we finished Romans chapter 1 verses 28 through 32, it became pretty clear this was not just talking about the Gentiles.

And so in chapter 2, then the question that Paul has is, so what about Jewish people? Are they also unrighteous? And he says, yes, absolutely. Absolutely, because they had the law and they don't do the law. It's proven true all throughout history. We just read through Jeremiah chapter 9. It's right there in front of us. And so what's his conclusion in Romans chapter 3? Really?

Verses 9 and 9 through 20 is that there's none righteous. Whether you're Jewish or you're Gentile, all are under sin. All are guilty. So my question this morning as I was wrestling this week, translating this passage again as a whole, and praying over it and thinking about it, was who is this God? Who is this God?

And so I need you to buckle up because we're going to be moving fast. There's a reason why I gave you an outline and we're just going to move fast. I didn't even have to fill in the blank. You could just write. Your little fingers can go as fast as you can. If you need more information later, I'll give it to you.

But I got 10 points for you on the God who is being revealed here in the scriptures. And the first that is that the God who is revealed here is a God who reveals himself. He manifests himself. That's what we saw in Romans chapter 1 verses 19 through 20. Because what may be known of God is manifest to them. And how is it manifest to them? For God has shown it to them, for since the creation of the world, His invisible attributes are clearly seen.

You can't see a sunrise without thinking of the One who made the sun come up. God has actively made Himself known. His revelation is clear. And the fact that He has revealed Himself, means that people are accountable to knowing that there is a God. God is self-revealing, and he makes himself truly and clearly known, not for salvation, but to know that there is a God.

And this leaves humanity without an excuse. God is not hidden. It's not that there's not enough light in the world to show us there is a God, it's that we love the darkness. That's why we sing Psalm 19, the week we looked at that, the heavens declare the glory of God. The firmament displays his handiwork. Creation screams out, sings out with a beautiful opera that there is a God and he is infinitely powerful.

But the human response, Romans chapter 118, is to suppress that truth, to take that beach ball and press it down in unrighteousness. Men suppress, distort, and exchange what God has clearly revealed for a lie. So if God has already revealed himself clearly in creation, and we're the ones who by nature want to suppress that truth of God's existence, the question is what type of revelation is he going to have to give that will make somebody actually believe he's real? He's going to reveal himself in the Lord Jesus Christ as the answer. That's the revelation that will ultimately convince the most sinful of people like Paul.

But secondly, what do we learn about this God from Romans chapter 1, 2, and 3? Well, we learn that this is a God who is good. and giving. Did you miss that in Romans 1 through 3 with all the judgment? Did you miss that he was good and giving? It's easy to bypass. But look at Romans chapter 1, 21. Although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God, nor were thankful.

Now this is indictment language, but I need to unpack this for you a little bit. Do you give thanks to just anyone? If somebody spits in your face, do you say, oh, thank you? If somebody steals your shoes, do you say, oh, thank you? No, you say thank you to people who give you good gifts.

God has given you the breath in your lungs, the light for your eyes, the food for your stomach, the clothes for your body. He has cared for people every single day of their life, sustaining them. He knit us together in our mother's womb. And what do people naturally do? Whatever. Just get on with life. I need more.

And that's why in chapter 2 verse 4 it said, or do you, speaking of Jewish people here, or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? The goodness of God is meant to lead people to repentance. The goodness of God that gave the Jewish people all the oracles of the word was meant to bring them to repentance. Not self-righteousness. It was meant to boil up in their hearts thankfulness. God's goodness is real. His goodness is active. He gives good gifts even to sinners.

Now that might rub you a couple people the wrong way. What do you mean God gives good gifts to sinners? How many of you, have you, well maybe I'll just talk to the farmers here. Does God only make rainfall on Christian farmers fields? No, he makes the rainfall on the just and on the unjust. But that rain that's bringing the free nitrogen and moistening the ground is... that's meant to bring people to repentance and thankfulness. Acts chapter 14 verse 17, Nevertheless God did not leave himself without witness, and that he did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.

God continually provides for people, even for those who don't honor Him. God is good and God is giving. And so the question is, if God's goodness is meant to lead us to repentance, and yet we regularly take it for granted or ignore Him, what kind of grace do you think is going to be required of us to turn us to God? to actually make us glorify Him and be thankful to Him.

It's going to take an amazing work of His Holy Spirit is what it's going to take. But thirdly, I want from these sections of verses for you to see that we worship the God who is patient and forbearing. We worship the God who is patient and forbearing. Look with me at Romans chapter 2 verses 4 and 5.

Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and long-suffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God. You know, God is incredibly patient.

I think about when Abraham was promised that he was gonna have the whole Canaanite land, but he doesn't let him have it right away. Do you know why God says, not right now, in a couple hundred years you can have this land? Do you know why the Lord didn't just give it all to Abraham right away? I mean, he died with only the deed of one gravestone for his wife. Why?

Why'd he have to wait hundreds of years? because the sins of the Amalekites was not yet full. God was patiently for hundreds of years allowing His goodness to continue to show, His glory to continue to shine in creation before He would finally bring judgment. See, we want to act like when we read through the Bible that every time that we hear of God's judgment, it looks like Sodom and Gomorrah, Nadab and Abihu. It looks like the opening up of the ground under the rebellion of Korah, right? We think of God's dramatic displays of His wrath and we forget that often it looks like God just letting people sin and heaping up for themselves judgment. God is patient and forbearing. He delays immediate judgment. He endures with sinners.

2 Peter 3.9 says, The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, and as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Thank God. He didn't strike you dead the first time you sinned. He's kept each and every one of us alive. Sustained every one of our breaths that He might bring us to repentance. He's not slow, but He is patient.

Point four, the God We worship the God who is righteous and is the impartial judge. Look with me at Romans chapter 2 verses 2, 6, and 11. Romans chapter 2 verse 2, but we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. And then verse 6, who will render to each one, this is God, God will render to each one according to his deeds.

Romans 2.11, for there is no partiality with God.

God is righteous, He judges according to truth, and He is impartial. He doesn't grade on a curve. He judges according to truth and works, and He doesn't judge depending on favoritism. No, it's all one standard. The bar of righteousness is here, and the measure is His holiness. And no one escapes, based on how smart they are, what family they were born into, or what degrees they may have behind their name. His judgment is morally perfect.

This is why Deuteronomy chapter 32 verse 4 says, he is the rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice. Righteousness, a righteous and upright is he. This is the God we worship, the one who is righteous and impartial.

And yet, how do humans respond? How do we as people respond? Romans chapter 2 verse 1, you who judge practice the same things. And then in verse 3, do you think that you will escape the judgment of God? God is the only one in this scenario who is righteous and perfect. So often we are like the Jewish people who have the law, we have the words, we have the commandments, and yet we don't do them, and yet we judge everybody else for their sins. We want to make small our sins and rack up the list of their sins. But none of us are righteous. He is the one that's righteous. And so if God judges impartially, how, how could anyone stand before Him? If the judgment is just a simple binary, are you righteous or are you unrighteous? And if the answer is, I'm unrighteous, how will we ever stand before Him? Because He gives us the righteousness of His Son, Jesus Christ. Because He redeemed us, He bought us back from the guilt of our sin by the blood of His own Son.

This is what, I'm doing this for a reason because I want you to move as we go through the book of Romans to not get a twisted or distorted view of what Romans is meant to show us. It's meant to show us a God who is just and a God who is loving. A God who is full of righteousness and of truth and yet merciful and forgiving. How do grace and truth meet? And it's in the name and in the person and the work of Jesus Christ. So who is this God we worship?

Point five, he is the God who is presently wrathful. Romans chapter 118, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. God's wrath isn't just something to come at the last judgment day, but God's wrath is present now. His anger is seen now.

John chapter 3 verse 36 says, He who believes in the Son has everlasting life, and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. God's wrath isn't just something that's coming, God's wrath abides, remains on anyone who's not resting in Jesus.

So what do people do with that type of knowledge? Knowing that there is a judgment. Knowing that there is a righteous judge. Well Romans chapter 1 verse 32 says it. Knowing the righteous judgment of God, dot dot dot, we might hope that they repent. They turn to Jesus. Their lives are reformed. But no, what does Romans chapter 1 say? Is a normal mode of operations for the human heart? Not only do they do the same, but they also approve of others doing it.

So if the wrath of God is not merely future, but it's already being revealed, and even abides, remains upon those who do not believe, how can that present wrath be removed from us? What's your answer? How do you deal with a wrath of God that abides on those who are workers of iniquity? Today, if you are outside of Christ, the wrath of God abides on you. The anger of the Lord is upon you. How do you get out from under the hand of the God who is angry at your unrighteousness. You flee to Christ. You run to the Lord Jesus Christ, the only righteous one. How does God's anger look?

How does He judge today? Well, point six, we worship the God who judges, even today, by giving people over. Romans chapter 1 verses 24, 26, and 28. Therefore God also gave them up to the uncleanness and the lust of their hearts. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind. God's wrath is revealed in humanity today by allowing people, not doing violence against their will, not forcing them to sin, but saying, fine, you want to sin, go ahead.

The theological technical word, phrase for this is judicial abandonment. Now I hate the word abandon though, because it makes it seem like God is deistic, right? Like he's just like hands off and he disappears from the scene. No, he's not disappearing from the scene.

He's very much there. You saw it in Jeremiah chapter 9, didn't you? Did you catch it? Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet, but who is doing the weeping in Jeremiah chapter 9? It was the Lord. It was the Lord weeping over His people, even as He allowed them to continue to chase after the Baals. God judges people even today by giving them over. He judicially hands sinners over to the power and consequences of the sins their hearts freely choose. This is not passive absence. This is God's active judgment in this life. And so how do people respond?

Their foolish hearts were darkened. They changed the glory of the eternal God and they made little figurines, little statutes, little dumb things that looked like birds and snakes and people and animals. And they bowed down and worshipped the created rather than the creator. They did not retain God in their knowledge.

So if God's judgment includes giving people over to their sins and we see that happening all over us in our culture as people continue to reject Christ, continue to reject his word, what hope do we have as a nation? What hope do we have as a community? What hope do we have as a family? What hope do we have for people in our own circles? What hope do you have?

You run to Christ. You flee to Christ. You go to the one who is able to rescue you and free you from the dominion of sin. Seventhly, the God who we worship is a God who gives even while He's judging. Look with me at verses 21 and 24. Although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, or do despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and long-suffering. Even in the context of judgment, God's goodness and giving are still present. People are still receiving from Him even while they aren't thankful to Him.

He continues to show real goodness. He continues to provide for even unbelievers. He continues to sustain their lives even as His wrath is being revealed upon them. By letting them do with the good things He gives them, even their own bodies, whatever their desires are. God's judgment does not mean absence. God remains actively good even towards those under His judgment.

Man does not merely ignore God's goodness. The unregenerate person does not just ignore God's goodness. He misuses it. And he refuses to be thankful or give glory to the God who gives it to him. Without Christ, we act like a bunch of spoiled kids, entitled and thinking we have a right to do anything we want and get more of it. So if God continues to give goodness even while judging and people respond to that goodness by misuse and even despising God for it, what's it going to take for people to see His justice and turn to Him with thankfulness? It's going to take taking out their heart of stone and giving them a heart of flesh. It's going to look like circumcising their hearts. to escape the righteous judgment of God. We're almost done. Eighthly, who is the God we worship? We worship the God who maintains moral witness.

Now we've talked a lot about the sinfulness of people, but I need you to listen here because we're not saying, when we talk about depravity of man, we're not saying everybody is as bad as they ever can be. That's not what we're saying. actually quite the opposite, Romans chapter 2 verses 14 and 15.

For when the Gentiles who do not have the law, that's the Ten Commandments, the Torah, all that stuff, by nature do the things in the law, these things, these, though not having the law, are a law to themselves. who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them." See what it's saying is that even though God has left them to themselves, every created human being has a conscience.

The fact that they shrink back from murdering someone proves that they know that murdering is wrong. The fact that they take care of their parents when their parents are old and ill shows they know they ought to honor their parents. The fact that they worship an idol shows that they know that there is a God who is to be worshipped. Their consciences bear testimony against them is what Paul is saying.

And who gave that moral witness in their hearts? It is God himself. God himself is the one who maintains a moral witness in man. God sustains an internal conscience within humanity that reflects the fact that we were made in his image. You weren't made, I wasn't made for unrighteousness. We were made for righteousness. But that's why when we look at our hearts we seek counterfeit righteousness. Proverbs chapter 20 verse 27 says, the spirit of the man is a lamp of the Lord searching all the inner depths of his heart. God uses the inner life of us to show us that we do have a moral conscience even outside of Christ.

But that conscience condemns us because what do we do with the knowledge of God and of what we know is right and wrong even as Gentiles? We take that and we suppress it in unrighteousness. So where do we go? Where do you go? Your conscience condemns you? Where do you go?

You know what's right and you don't do it. You know what's wrong and you don't do it. But you know things that are right and yet you don't do them. You knew this even before you were a Christian and you had guilt. You felt bad about your sins. You knew that they were wrong. You may not know why. How do you get a clean conscience?

You got a few options. The world will tell you, you're just human. The world will tell you, you're just making something big out of a small thing. The world will tell you all sorts of ways that you can philosophize it away. Or you may go and you may drink your troubles away. You may need to shoot something in your arm or snort something up your nose or fill your lungs with some type of smoke because you can't deal with the pain of it. And you just need to numb.

But there is a way. And there is one who is greater than our consciences, and even when our consciences condemn us, we can run to Jesus Christ, who is greater than our consciences, and who can give us true peace, because He is righteous. And when we sin, we don't have to hide it. We can take our guilty consciences, but look for the Lord and confess our sin and our guilt, knowing that if we confess our sins, it is He who is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all of our unrighteousness. So ninthly, we're almost done here, two more, stick with me. We worship the God who sees the inner man.

Romans chapter two, verse six. In the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel, did you notice God is the one who judged the secrets of men? is not the one who is a Jew outwardly, but he is a Jew who is one inwardly. And circumcision is that of the heart and the spirit and not in the letter.

I don't have regeneration goggles up here. I cannot put on my fancy spectacles and see which one of you are born again or not. All I can do is trust what I hear coming out of your mouths and maybe sometimes what I see in your life. But that's not the case with the Lord and His judgment.

He knows even the secret thoughts of our hearts. That's really concerning to me. Right, because you read through the Gospels and Jesus is interacting with people, and all of a sudden the passage will just, right, the black letters that sometimes we just run past because we're really worried about the red letters, but the black words will say something like, and Jesus knowing the thoughts of their hearts, and then asks them a question.

If that doesn't scare the socks off of you, We can't hide. We don't get to... Before other people, you're gonna hide your sin. As elders, we try to do shepherding visits, we try to visit you, we wanna talk to you, we ask how we can pray for you, we wanna be involved in your life, but we don't know what's going on in your heart. We don't know what's happening in your house. We don't know what's going on behind closed doors. Only you and your family know that, and maybe it's not even your family, just you.

But the Lord knows what the thoughts and the intents of our hearts are. Jeremiah 17, I the Lord search the heart, I test the mind, even to each every man according to his ways, according to the fruits of his doing. External religion isn't enough before a God who sees your heart. So where do you go when your heart is just laid bare? What do you do before a God who's judges without partiality? A God who is perfectly righteous, who knows every secret of your heart?

It's not gonna look like self-justification. He doesn't put up with excuses. It's not gonna be, well, I was baptized, So you got sprinkled with some water. It's not going to be, well, I'm not as bad as the axe murderer over there. Yeah, but I saw when you had that hatred and bitterness even towards your spouse and your heart. I saw when you lusted. I saw when you stole and you thought nobody was looking. I saw all those things.

What will you answer when the righteous judge judges on the judgment day? The only answer that will suffice is to say, I am guilty, but remember Jesus, your son, who is righteous. Do not look to yourself or your righteousness. Look outside of yourself and throw yourself at the feet of Jesus.

Be like the woman who wanted to just touch the hem of his garment, and if I just touch the hem of his garment, I could be healed. Jesus sees you. He says, come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden. I will give you rest for your soul. You don't have to hide.

Because finally, point 10, we worship the God who is faithful and true. Romans chapter three, verses three and four. For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not. Indeed, let God be true and every man a liar. Human unbelief does not somehow negate God's faithfulness or truth. It doesn't change His character. God is faithful. God is true.

You're never going to be faithful enough to keep yourself a Christian. You will never, even after you are regenerate, even after you are born again, even after you come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and receive and rest in Him alone, even after you have repentance unto life and you have a grief and a hatred of your sin and you turn from them and turn from death unto life, even when you do all of those things, your righteousness will never save you. Because you will always fail in your faithfulness. Because you're gonna wake up the next day, and even though you've been freed from the bondage of sin, yet you will find yourself wretched again, and sinning in all sorts of new ways.

We're like Shrek, some of us are just like ogres. Every time we think that we're smelling pretty good, there's another layer of the onion that's peeled off, and our eyes start to cry, and we realize just how deep to the core we are sinful. Thanks be to God, your salvation and my salvation does not rest on our faithfulness, but on God who is faithful. Let every man be proven a liar and unfaithful, but God will be true, and God is faithful.

So who are you resting in? What is your hope that you cling to It must be God. And in the son that he has given you, his own son, Jesus Christ. That's what the rest of the book of Romans is going to be about. So I hope and I pray that you will worship the God who is true, who is just, who is loving and patient and kind, And I hope that your heart is filled with thankfulness and a desire to bring him glory as you rest in Jesus. And I'm not gonna hide it, I don't want you to rest in anything else other than Jesus. If that's the only goal I have is for you to know who God is and to have nothing but Jesus to rest in, if that's accomplished this morning, then my job is done. And I can die a happy man. Believe in the God the scriptures reveal to you and rest in the son that he has given us, Jesus. Let's pray.

Father, you are good, and this has been a long sermon, 10 points, but you have shown us so much from your word. And you are so wonderful to us, even when we are sinful. You are so faithful to us, even when we are faithless. God, so often we have to cry to you, we believe, help us in our disbelief. God, we confess to you that we are sinful people in need of a righteous Savior.

So Father, please, please, Lord, don't give us any hope other than Jesus. And when we find him, Lord, fill our hearts with such assurance of salvation because he is so sweet to us and we would have none other. Thank you that you have given us your son and that you have been patient with us even though we are sinners. Remember us in your son and give us the joy of your salvation that will never end. We pray this in Jesus.

• Why is it important that Paul proves both Jews and Gentiles are under sin?

• How do people today suppress the truth about God?

• In what ways have you seen God’s goodness taken for granted?

• What does it mean that God “gives people over” to their sin?

• How does understanding God’s impartial judgment affect your view of salvation?

• Why is external religion insufficient before God?

• How does the doctrine of total depravity humble us?

• What does it look like practically to “flee to Christ”?

• How can we respond rightly when our conscience condemns us?

• Why is God’s faithfulness the only secure foundation for salvation?

• Total Depravity: Sin affects every part of human nature

• General Revelation: Knowledge of God through creation

• Special Revelation: God revealed in Scripture and Christ

• Justification: Being declared righteous by faith in Christ

• Wrath of God: His holy response to sin

• Imputation: Christ’s righteousness credited to believers

• Conscience: Internal moral witness given by God

• Forbearance: God’s delay of judgment

• Judicial Giving Over: God allowing sinners to pursue sin as judgment