Holding the Truth in Unrighteousness

Romans 1:18-20LITV

The Bible says, For God's wrath is revealed from Heaven on all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, holding the truth in unrighteousness, because the thing known of God is clearly known within them, for God revealed it to them. For the unseen things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things made, both His eternal power and Godhead, for them to be without excuse.

The word truth here does not mean, or does not refer to the gospel, because not all men possess the knowledge of the gospel, but here it refers to general revelation, as seen in v. 19, 20, referring to creation and conscience. That is the reason a person who has never heard the gospel is without excuse, because if they lived up to the light he or she had, and earnestly seek to know the true God, then God will bring the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to them, to hear the good news, so they may be saved.

For example, we see this in the Bible, with the Ethiopian eunuch, in the book of Acts ch. 8. He had just been to Jerusalem, and he was seeking the true God, but yet he did not know Him, because he did not know Christ, and he needed to hear the gospel. What happened? God sent his messenger, Philip, to go to Gaza, the deserted place, to tell him about Christ. Philip joined him on his chariot, and the eunuch was reading from Isaiah 53, and from Isaiah 53, Philip preached the gospel to him, he preached Jesus. 

Look in v. 35 LITV, And opening his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture, Philip announced the gospel to him, Jesus. Obviously, a person is not saved by just hearing the gospel, but hearing the gospel, and believing the gospel. Exactly what happened! The eunuch asked Philip, what prevents me from being baptized. Acts 8:38 LITV, And he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. 

What did Jesus command in Matthew 28:19 ESV, Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Notice Jesus commanded to make disciples, disciples are believers, and to be baptized as a believer in Christ, which is seen here in Acts 8 with the eunuch. He was saved by the Lord Jesus in Gaza, the deserted place. God made him ready to hear the gospel, and to believe the gospel. 

It is also true, if a man who has never heard the gospel, does not live up to the light he has, knowing there is a God, and not seek after Him, the true and living God, to know Him, and does not come to the Lord Jesus Christ, they will die in their sin, and they will face the wrath of God, and will spend eternity in hell. There is only one way to God, and His Name is Jesus.

But understand also, a man who had been given more light, for example heard Bible teaching, heard the gospel, and refused Christ, they will receive a higher degree of punishment in hell, than those who did not hear the gospel, and refused Christ. Both will be in hell forever, no way out for either, but one will receive a higher degree of punishment in hell for all eternity, the other, a lesser degree of punishment in hell for all eternity. What did the Lord Jesus say about the people in Capernaum, Matthew 11:23 LITV, And you Capernaum, who "have been exalted to the heaven, you will be thrown down to Hades." For is the powerful acts happening in you had taken place in Sodom, it would remain until today. But I say to you, It will be more bearable for the land of Sodom in Judgment day than for you.

The people in Capernaum, they will receive a higher degree of punishment for eternity than even Sodom, because Jesus taught and preached in that city, and they received Him not. Both will go to hell forever, but one will receive the greater degree of punishment for eternity, the other a lesser degree of punishment for eternity. 

Now, look at the word, holding, in v.18. It is the Greek word, katecho, and literally means, to hold down or to quash. You notice this is in the present tense. This indicates that all ungodly people continually, wilfully, intentionally, to pin down and holding the truth in unrighteousness. 

In this same chapter in verse nineteen, the Bible teaches there is something in man that causes him or her to know there is a God. The word, truth, refers to that which is out in the open, not an open secret. One commentary says, unrighteous men continually put the truth in a box and sit on the lid and hold it down in unrighteousness. It speaks of people who hold down or quash his truth, and rather hold on to their wicked sins, and not the Lord. These are people who hold onto their sins but hold down the truth. They love their sin but hate God. They love their sin and hate God, so they suppress the truth, and seek to go even deeper into their sins, into their wickedness. The reason an atheist deceives themselves to believe there is no God is because to admit there is a God, means they are in trouble.

What does the Bible teach about a man who says there is no God or says no to the true God. The Bible says in Psalm 14:1 LITV, To the chief musician. A Psalm of David. The fool has said in his heart, There is no God! They acted corruptly; they did hatefully in deeds; there is none doing good. The Bible tells us in John 3:19 LITV, And this is judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness more than the Light, for their works were evil. Why do people love their darkness instead of the light of God,  because rebellious sinners want to live their way, and not the way of God. They have pleasure in sin. People are in open rebellion towards God. These people continually quash the truth of God, while persistently they are clinging onto their sins. 

It is like the boy who was told by his mum not to eat the cookies out of the cookie jar before dinner, but the boy was disobedient, and he put his hand into the cookie jar, and heard his mum coming back to the kitchen, and got his hand caught in the cookie jar while attempting to take his hand out, because he would not let go of the cookies in his hand, because he would not let go of his sin. 

It is not just they have rebelled against the truth of God, but they have rejected the truth of God. There is no excuse they will be able to use on the Day of Judgment, as Christ rejectors. There is something God has put in man to know there is a God, and a need for God, but when the ungodly who has pleasure in unrighteousness, and quash the truth, they are guilty of their denial of the truth of God, and are subject to the wrath of God, because ultimately, they reject the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the very same chapter of Romans, Paul makes noticeably clear, in v. 16, the one who genuinely believes in God, believes in Christ. To know God, you need to know Christ. Salvation is only found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul wrote, For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone believing, both to the Jew first, and to the Greek. v. 17, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, even as it has been written, "But the just shall live by faith."

Let us not forget, as believers in Christ, we are to be continually be thankful to our God, for once we were going our own way, and rejecting the way of God, which is Christ, but God interrupted our lives, and saved us by His grace in His Son, and made us sons and daughters of God. Amen. By God's grace, we stopped rejecting the way of God, which is Christ, and received the way of God, which is our Lord Jesus Christ, by the gracious hand of God. Amen. 

For the Lord Jesus Christ paid our sin debt with His life, when He was crucified, and was buried, and rose again on the third day for our justification. He has satisfied the justice of God for His people. We serve a risen Lord, a victories Lord. Our God deserve all the praise and glory for our salvation. The Lord Jesus took the wrath of God for us. Let us give Him continual thanks and praise and honour, for He is worthy, but let us not just be thankful by the fruit of our lips, but let us be thankful in the way we live for Him according to His Word. Amen. We can lay our head at night, and know whatever happens, we will never go to hell, but be with Christ in heaven, all by the grace of God in Christ Jesus. Amen.

The False Doctrine of Modalism

There are so called Bible teachers called modalists who attack the doctrine of the Trinity (One God, but three persons), when they teach their false doctrine.

When a person rejects the Trinity, naturally they will present a false gospel which says the Father did not send His Beloved Son, whom He has had an eternal relationship with, to enter into His own creation and take on humanity, to lay down His life for sinners.

They do not believe that God is One God, three Persons, but they believe God is One God, one person, who takes on three modes or manifestations, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They believe God manifested Himself as the Father, then God manifested Himself as the Son, and presently, God is manifesting Himself as the Holy Spirit. 

First of all, the Bible clearly teaches that the Father and the Son had an eternal relationship before the world was created. John 17:4 LITV, And now Father, glorify Me with Yourself, with the glory which I had with you before the existence of the world. Notice Jesus prayed "And now Father, glorify Me with Yourself, with the glory which I had with you". The Son is communicating with another person, the Father, and He expresses their eternal relationship. It is not as some suggest, the human nature praying to the divine nature, because the human nature had a beginning, but His divine nature did not have a beginning, and we see here that the Son is praying to another who had no beginning like Himself, which is the Father, sharing the glory together before the world ever was. 

Secondly,  in John 14:16 LITV, the Lord Jesus said to His disciples, And I will petition the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may remain with you forever. Notice the word 'another'. The word in the Greek in the context it is written means, 'Another of the same kind',  not the same person, but of the same kind, meaning the One true God. Jesus says in John 14:26 LITV, Jesus says, "but the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things and shall remind you of all things that I said to you."  Notice all three person are in verse 26, the Father, and the Son (in My name), and the Holy Spirit, and they are expressed clearly as three distinct persons. 

Thirdly, there is only One God. The Bible says in Isaiah 46:9 LITV, Remember former things from forever, for I am God, and no one else is God, even none like me. Isaiah 44:6 LITV, So says Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of Hosts: I am the First and I am the last; and there is no God except Me. And in Revelation 1:17-18, Jesus calls Himself, The First and the Last which is a title for God alone, He says, "And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet, as dead. And He put His right hand on me, saying to me, Do not fear. I am the First and the Last, and the Living One; and I became dead; and behold, I am living forever and ever." The Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit are three distinct Persons, but They are the One true and living God, Yahweh.

Just looking at these fews verses, this truth can be seen, but there are many other verses in the Bible, which testify to this very truth about God.

The Father has declared in His Word that only through the Son, can you come to the Father. The modalists teach that the Father did not send His Beloved eternal Son, but the one person of God who was the Father in the Old Testament, then became the Son. This is a false gospel. They reject the testimony of the Father, and believe not in the unique Son of God.

The Bible says in 1John 5:10 to 13 LITV, The One believing in the Son of God has the witness in himself. The one not believing God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the witness which God has witnessed concerning His Son. And this is the witness: that God gave us everlasting life, and this life is in His Son. The one having the Son has life. The one not having the Son of God does not have life. I wrote these things to you, the ones believing in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have everlasting life, and that you may believe in the name of the Son of God.

This makes it very clear that God gives everlasting life in His Son, and not in a person who was first the Father, and then became the Son, because this is not the Son declared in scripture. You have to have the Son recorded in scripture to have life. The Bible says, The one having the Son has life. The one not having the Son of God does not have life.

The Bible says the one denying the Father and the Son (notice two persons) this is the antichrist. The Bible says in 1John 2:22-25 LITV says, Who is the liar, except the one denying, saying that Jesus is not the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one denying the Father and the Son. Everyone denying the Son does not have the Father. The one confessing the Son also has the Father. Then what you heard from the beginning, let it abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you will abide both in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise which He promised us: everlasting life.

Notice the Bible says, both in the Son and in the Father, which speaks of two persons, not one person, not two modes or manifestations, but two persons. Modalists who reject the Triune God, deny the Son found in scripture, and the Bible says, "Everyone denying the Son does not have the Father." Someone can only know the Father through the Son, the Son who is revealed in scripture, the reason it is important you have the right Jesus,  because it is only through Him, you can have the Father also. There are many false Jesus' out there, and believing in any of them will led a person to hell, there is only one true Jesus, the Jesus found and taught in the Bible, and believing in Him will give you an eternal home with Him in heaven by the grace of God. Make sure you have the right Jesus.

Brothers and sisters in the Lord, If you ever come across a person who claims to be a Christian minister, and rejects the Triune God revealed in scripture (Three persons, but one God), and teaches God is one person, they are a false teacher teaching people to reject the Triune God revealed in scripture, and to believe in a lie. 

God always achieves His plan

It is important to understand, God depends on no man to achieve what He has planned to do. God does not hope there will be some who will come to repentance and faith and be saved, God does not hope for nothing, He is God. God chose to have a people for Himself in Jesus, and chose them before the foundation of the world. The Bible says in Ephesians 1:4 LITV, according as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, for us to be holy and without blemish before Him in love, and everyone whom He has chosen for salvation will be saved in His Son, the Lord Jesus, by the grace of God, and they will be in heaven with Him. That is what 2Peter means when the Bible says in Ch. 3 v. 9 LITV, The Lord of the promise is not slow, as some deem slowness, but is long-suffering toward us, not having purposed any of us to perish, but all of us to come to repentance. God has not purposed any of His Elect people to perish, but all His Elect people to come to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus. God will grant them by His grace the gifts of repentance and faith to receive the gift of salvation in Christ Jesus, which is also by the grace of God. Salvation is by the grace of God in Christ Jesus. That is what 2Peter 3:9 means. Every one of God's elect will come to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and not perish.

Some may say then, if God did not choose me, then it is not my fault I do not come to repentance, and I go to hell because God chose not to save me. No. A person goes to hell because they willfully rejected Christ and die in their sins. They have offended a Holy God, and receive what they deserve, which is the righteous justice of God for their offences. John 3:18 LITV, The one believing into Him is not condemned; but the one not believing has already been condemned, for he has not believed into the name of the only begotten Son of God. 

Understand, because God has chosen whom He will save for His eternal glory, and will accomplish what He has planned to do, that does not take away the responsibility of man, to come to repentance and faith in Jesus. Man is very much accountable for rejecting Jesus Christ. God has given His revealed will, which is the Bible, and God commands in the book of Acts 17:30b LITV, now strictly commands all men everywhere to repent, and a person is very much accountable for willfully rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ, and will face an eternity in hell for their rebellion, if they die without Christ Jesus.

If you do not know Christ Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, come to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, trust in Him to save you by what He has done, by His death, burial, and resurrection, and the Bible says you shall be saved, which is all by the grace of God. The Bible says in Romans 10:13 LITV, For everyone, "whoever may call on the name of the Lord will be saved." There is only one way for salvation and His Name is Jesus. John 14:6 LITV, Jesus said to him, I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. Amen. 

True Joy and Peace in Christ Jesus

Philippians 4:6, Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, Rejoice!

There is a difference between happiness and joy. This generation is seeking happiness. We live in a generation in search of happiness, but we know, plain and simple, your are not happy all of the time. Happiness depends on circumstances, and if you put your trust in happiness, you are going to be a casualty to circumstances, because happiness will not stay the same, and there will be times when you are happy, and times when that happiness will disappear.

But we know as true believers in the Lord, our Lord is unchanging, He is the unchanging God, and the Bible says in Hebrews 13:8 LITV, Jesus Christ, the same yesterday and today and forever. The Word of God, here in Philippians 4, does not tell us to rejoice in our circumstances but in Christ, for it says in Philippians 4:4, Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, Rejoice! The Lord never changes, never, and the Word of God says, Rejoice in Him always. 

Now, there is nothing wrong with happiness, or being happy, but happiness functions best when happiness originates from the joy of the Lord. The joy of the Lord does not depend on happiness, but depends on the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

There will be times of sorrow, times when you are not expected to smile. There were times when the Lord Jesus wept, and the Bible tells in Luke 19:38 LITV, And as He drew near, seeing the city, He wept over it. And in John 11:32 LITV, Jesus wept. 

There is a difference between happiness and joy. Tragedy, sorrow, heartache and pain, they come, and as Christians, we are not immune to them, but there is something Christians can have through these times, which them without Christ Jesus can not know, and can never know without Him, and that is true joy and true peace in our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We can know true joy and true peace when we face and go through tragedy, sorrow, heartache and pain.

We can experience joy and peace in Him, as we go through tragedy, sorrow, heartache and alike, in the One who loved us and gave Himself for us, and made us His own, and He is with us by His Spirit, and we can look to Him and lean upon, and we can come to Him, and stand on His Word and trust Him, for the Lord has said in His Word, in Romans 8:28 LITV, But we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to purpose. We can have peace and joy in Him, no matter what we face. Psalm 46:1b LITV, God is our refuge and strength, very much found to be a help in distresses.

In Acts 16, we see Paul the apostle commanded a demonic spirit to come out of a certain slave girl in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It says in v. 18 LITV, And she did this over many days. But becoming distressed, and turning to the demonic spirit, Paul said, In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out from her! And it came out in that same hour. Notice Paul was distressed or annoyed by what was going on with this slave girl who had a demonic spirit in her, who kept following after Paul and them with him, and saying, These men are slaves of the Most High God, who are announcing to us a way of salvation (v. 17). Paul was distressed and he turned and commanded the evil spirit to be gone from her. Now when Paul had commanded the spirit to leave her, her owners saw their hope of making a profit from her, like they did before the evil spirit left her, had vanished, which caused them to make trouble for Paul and Silas, and in v.19-23, Paul and Silas were dragged, beaten, and thrown into prison. 

Then in v. 23, the Bible says, And laying on them many stripes, they threw them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them securely. Now, do you think at this time, Paul and Silas had a big smile on their face, happy these evil men were doing these wicked things towards them, no, of course not, they would not have been happy one bit about the evil things that they were doing to them, and no where in the Bible says we are to be. Yes, the Bible says we are blessed to be persecuted for Christ’s sake, and indeed they would have been blessed to be persecuted for Christ’s sake, but that is not the same as being happy about sin, and happy about evil men doing evil things. 

For example, If we went out somewhere and when we got back, our house had been robbed, all our things have been taken, and the place had been completely wrecked, do you think the Bible teaches that we are to be happy about that evil, that we are to say, I am so happy that my house has been robbed. No, absolutely not, you would be very unhappy about that, and the evil that had taken place, and rightly so, but this is important, even though someone has robbed our things, there is one thing they cannot steal from us, and that is the joy and peace we have received from the Lord in Christ. Our joy is in Him, and no one can take Him away, Christ remains always, He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and our joy and peace are in Him, and not in our circumstances. When our circumstances change, Christ does not, and He remains the same, where our joy and peace is to be found. Whatever we go through we can have true peace and joy in Him.

When we carry on with Paul and Silas, we see v. 25, having been thrown in prison, the Bible says, And having prayed, toward midnight Paul and Silas praised God in a hymn. And the prisoners listened to them. Even though they had been dragged in the streets, and beaten with many stripes, and thrown into prison, they rejoiced in the Lord. They had true joy in Him. They prayed to God and sang a hymn. They had peace in Him. Then in v. 25, and the prisoners listened to them. What a witness. They were different to the other prisoners, and the jailer. We see in this true story, the jailer got saved, and not him only but his family too believed. The Lord was with Paul and Silas, and He never left them nor forsook, and God will never leave us nor forsake us neither, no matter what we go through. Amen. 

So may we always remember, there will be times when we will not be happy, legitimately not happy, but we are to rejoice in the Lord, and have joy and peace in Him, In Him who we belong to, In Him whom we have been justified before a holy God, who loved us and laid down His life for us, raised for our justification, and represents us in Heaven, and is coming again for us. We can have confidence in His Word and can stand on His Word, for His promises in Christ are Yes and Amen. Our God is the God of truth, and His Word is truth. The God who has saved us in our Lord Jesus, is the God who will keep us in our Lord Jesus. We are sealed unto the Day of Redemption by the Holy Spirit of promise in our Lord Jesus. God can be fully trusted, and we can stand on His Word, whether in life or in death. When the lights are on, or when the lights go out. Know that joy and peace that has been given to us in Christ Jesus, and know we are in His hands, and He will never let us go. Amen.