Without Excuse...

Anyone who’s read this blog for a while knows that I get certain thoughts in my head that roll around for some period of time as they mature. Often the writing helps me to think things through more thoroughly and solidify them in my mind. I really do think this is a process of God renewing my mind. I just take you guys along for the ride.

Of course the latest thing that I am thinking through is this idea of ‘God Preached’ versus ‘the God not preached’ (again, see this post). I was mulling over Romans chapter one where Paul goes into his dissertation about how the wrath of God is being revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of those who suppress the truth. I have often heard it said from the pulpit that men are without excuse for not believing God because, as Paul says, the invisible attributes of God have been clearly shown in the creation (v. 20). “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened” (v. 21 ESV).

Paul states (as is true) that God is self-evident. He goes so far as to state that men ‘knew God’ through the evidence of the creation. I, for one, think Paul was right. All men ‘know God’, though they may deny it (Paul says “by their unrighteousness suppress the truth” in v.18). And all men by nature refuse to honor Him as God. But why? This is where the idea of ‘God not preached’ begins to take shape. The creation reveals the invisible attributes of God – his eternal power and divine nature. Humankind is neither eternally powerful nor divine in nature, so our only response to this ‘God not preached’ is denial or abject fear. Most generally we choose to suppress this truth by our unrighteousness – denial.

Now this puts a bit of a different spin on things. While God reveals himself plainly to all men in the evidence of the creation so that His existence cannot truly be denied, men actually have a very good excuse for denying Him honor. There is nothing really embraceable in the part of God that nature reveals - floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, fires – this planet which God has created seems to be bent on killing us at every turn. Nature speaks of a huge, incomprehensible God. God the tyrant. You will hear it said of the God not preached, “I could never believe in a God who would create hell.” “I could never believe in a God who could treat humankind with such cruelty.” “I could never believe in a God who would let my child die.”

Now I read verses 18-32 and I do not see Paul as speaking in anger. He is merely making a statement of fact. Mankind will deny this God whom they cannot comprehend. Because they refuse to honor Him He gives them over completely to their human nature. Paul expresses not anger, but empathy. These people are trapped under the cloud of a God not preached.

In chapters 2 and 3 things go from bad to worse as the law gets heaped on top of that. Starting with a naturally revealed God who is incomprehensible and frightful, we then experience a God whose commandments we cannot keep, who declares every last one of us as unrighteous. When we are confronted with this we again have two courses of action; abject fear or absolute denial. We become painted into a corner by God revealed in nature and God revealed in Law.  

At the end of chapter 3 dawns God preached: “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.” (v. 21 ESV)

If we get this, we can understand Paul’s theology so much more clearly. We understand why he would declare “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Cor 9:16) We can understand this passage from Romans 10:

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:14-17 ESV)

In Paul’s theology, men committing shameless acts with other men was not something to be railed against because God having given these up to the lusts of their hearts (Romans 1:24) was clear evidence that they did not yet know the preached God. They were denying and hiding from the God not preached, as anyone in their right mind would do, and in so doing were burrowing deeper into darkness. This is not to say that everyone to whom the gospel is preached will respond, but to say that no one will respond to the God not preached. It makes preaching the pinnacle of Christian faith because all theology leads us to preach. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16 ESV)

The target audience for this blog is Christians, so I always like to bring it around to something applicable to the Christian life. Here’s the application: the only reason that you acknowledge and accept the God not preached is that you have heard the preached God. Do not think that you have a natural inclination toward faith because that will lead you to become complacent (see Romans 10:17 above if you've forgotten where faith comes from). Don’t spend vast amounts of time pondering the God not preached because He is still scary. There are things which are above your pay grade which can drive you away from faith. Keep hearing the preached God for there, and nowhere else, is your salvation. That is the gospel truth.

God Bless