Do I Have a Pagan Heart?
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Do I Have a Pagan Heart?
Denying and Replacing God
Text: Romans 1:18-32; Proverbs 4:20-27
- Most people understand the importance of properly caring for their physical heart (e.g., cardio, diet, cholesterol, etc.). BUT most people do not have a realistic view of the true condition of their heart!
- Wise people avoid extremes by regularly checking the condition of their heart with medically established diagnostic instruments that assess and reveal its true condition.
- How can we conduct a diagnostic evaluation to determine the true condition of our heart – or inner man – to identify troubling symptoms and perform preventative spiritual maintenance that will help us maintain a strong, vibrant, and healthy spiritual life that is pleasing to God, profitable to others, and beneficial to ourselves?
- Paul provides us with a powerful diagnostic tool for this sort of evaluation in Romans 1:18-3:32.
- But why would Paul write about the nature of the fallen human heart to believers whose hearts have been made new? There are three very important reasons:
- Understanding the fallen human heart is __________ when we present the gospel to __________ because they will never see the glory of God in the face of Jesus until God shines gospel light into their darkened heart (2 Cor 4:6).
- Understanding the fallen human heart is __________ for evaluating our spiritual condition as __________, enabling us to know how and where to guard our hearts with all diligence. (Proverbs 4:23).
- Understanding the fallen human heart is __________ to avoid __________ ourselves about our true __________ __________ as we examine whether we are truly in the faith (2 Cor 13:5).
- We need to ask and answer six important questions as we go through this series of messages:
- Do I have a __________ Heart (idolatrous and immoral)? (1:18-32)
- Do I have a __________ and __________ Heart? (2:1-11)
- Do I have a __________ Heart? (2:12-29)
- Do I have a __________ Heart? (3:1-8)
- Do I have a __________ Heart (refuses to “fear God”)? (3:9-20)
- How can I have a __________ Heart?
The Answer to this last question is found in two examples Paul gives in chapter 4 (the wrap-up chapter to this whole section):
A. He has to pierce the __________ of an __________ heart like Abraham’s with the Gospel’s call to Salvation! (4:1-25)
That is what is going on in chapters 1-4 of Romans.
B. He has to pierce the __________ of an __________ heart like David’s with the Gospel’s call to Sanctification (4:6-8).
This is what is going on in chapters 5-8 of Romans.
Which leads us to the very difficult question each of us must ask and answer as we go through this series – “What is the true condition of my heart?” Do I have symptoms of a Pagan heart?
- Do I have an idolatrous heart that has replaced the truth about God with someone or something other than God to find satisfaction or significance in life?
- Do I have an impenitent heart that has rejected the sovereignty and moral authority of God over my life because I want to make my own rules and do my own thing in life?
Here is what we have come to know:
- The wrath of God is being revealed against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth that God has revealed to them about Himself (1:18-20).
- Men suppress the truth because they are unrighteous; therefore, they love darkness rather than light.
- Men suppress the truth by actively choosing unrighteousness in worship, morality, and conduct.
- And this happens in three horrific stages, all of which expose the root and fruit of a God-denying heart!
I. Stage One: Suppressing __________ and Embracing __________ (1:18-20)
A. God’s Action – He revealed Himself to all mankind, so every man is without excuse (1:19-20).
- By creation
- By conscience
B. Man’s Response – to actively suppress the truth about God.
- Because they were unrighteous (1:18).
- By refusing to honor Him and give Him glory and rebelling against His moral authority (1:21a).
- By refusing to give Him thanks and failing to acknowledge His beneficial providence and provision (1:21b).
C. The Devastating Consequences that happened to them and in them:
- They became ________ (useless) in their _______ (reasonings) (1:21).
- Their __________ (senseless) heart was __________ (hardened) (1:21).
- They become __________ (morally broken) (1:22).
D. The Incontrovertible Evidence of Their Moral Foolishness
They gave up something genuine and glorious for something counterfeit and worthless!
- Two Examples
- __________________ – Daniel 5
- ___________________– Acts 12:1-23
So where does this all lead? What does God do in response?
II. Stage Two: The Devastating __________ of Human Culture (1:23-31)
Three Devastating Human Exchanges and Divine Judgments
A. Exchanging the __________ of the immortal God for __________ __________ results in Senseless Idolatry (1:23)
- Result – Judicial deliverance over to __________ __________ (1:24).
B. Exchanging the truth about God for “__________ leads to Perverse Sexual Immorality (1:25)
- Result – Judicial deliverance to __________ Passions and __________ __________ Immorality (1:26-27).
NOTE: Paul is not singling out homosexuality as somehow more reprehensible or morally culpable than the other sins mentioned in this chapter – he tells us they are all worthy of death (1:32). Rather, Paul points to this sin for four reasons: 1) it was pervasive and socially acceptable in pagan cultures and in the Roman Empire. 2) This sin involved the exchange of the natural sexual design of the human body – it was counter to creation or the biological design of the human body (male and female). 3) This sin led to the disruption and destruction of the creation mandate to procreate – in general, to fill the earth with image-bearers who would worship and serve God; and specifically, to stop the arrival of a particular human being – the divine champion. 4) What is condemned here is more than the practice of same-sex relations – what is condemned is the disordered desires that underlie those actions and practices.
We should make sure to take away the following ideas:
- Same-sex sexual activity of any kind is counter to God’s stated design, and it is disobedient to God’s moral demand – it must be rejected.
- Same-sex desire, even when not practiced, is disordered; it is contrary to God’s design and moral demands and must be recognized and resisted.
- Same-sex disobedience (even long-standing) is redeemable; there is mercy, grace, forgiveness, and restoration when we repent and turn to Christ.
- Same-sex desire may be an ongoing struggle for a Christian—similar to how other sinful propensities and desires are significant challenges for other believers. There is grace and strength for the battle through the power of the Spirit, the encouragement of the Word, and the means of grace (worship, prayer, the ordinances, and community).
C. Exchange the __________ of a Sovereign God for deviant human __________: Results in Wide-Spread Depravity (1:28)
- Result – Judicial deliverance over to Depraved __________ and Debased __________ (1:29-31).
III. Stage Three: The Unrestrained __________ and Moral __________ of all Humanity (1:32)
Paul concludes with the sobering reality that when men suppress the truth about God, He allows those fallen men to descend into complete, unrestrained depravity (1:32).
- They are filled with all manner of unrestrained wickedness.
- They commit these sins personally.
- They celebrate, defend, and promote these sins collectively.
Who are “They” in this chapter?
A. __________ __________ in General
- Not everyone commits all these sins personally.
- Not everyone sins to the same degree.
- But collectively (when you look at the whole culture), fallen humanity is totally depraved!
B. Anyone Who __________ __________
- My unsaved neighbor or co-worker who denies the truth about God.
- My backslidden friend or family member who disobeys the truth from God.
- Me – when I disregard the Word of God!
Conclusion: Where do I go from here?
When you reject God and refuse His righteous moral mandates for human flourishing, God’s judgment is to actively hand you over to those passions that enslave, dishonor, and ultimately destroy the people and cultures that practice them!
So, how do we avoid this judgment? We must ask five brutal questions:
- Am I suppressing the truth from God in any area of my life?
- Have I traded the glory of God for an idol that I am serving and looking to for satisfaction and significance?
- Has my dissatisfaction with God led me to reject his wise design for me or his moral authority over me?
- Have I replaced the sovereignty and authority of God with my own autonomy and moral authority?
- Am I regularly practicing, approving, defending, and promoting the sins that God prohibits?
- What is the answer to a pagan heart? The Gospel – repent and be saved from God’s wrath!
- What is the answer for a Christian whose heart has been re-infected with some of these practices? The Gospel – repent and be restored to fellowship with God and usefulness for Him!