The development of a reprobate, how does this happen?
How does somebody go down the road
where they cross a line with God and become a reprobate?
The Bible gives us here an idea of how this takes place
and how somebody comes to this place.
I want you to notice, first of all, they knew God.
And by the way, let me just say this.
Every human being born on earth knows God,
knows of God.
You say, well, how could you say that?
Here's why.
Because God reveals himself to mankind.
Now, not every human being has heard
a clear testimony of the gospel.
Not every human being has maybe even heard
from the word of God.
But God has revealed himself to every human.
You say, how can you say that?
Here's why.
The Bible tells us that God reveals himself
through creation.
We've actually talked about this in our doctrinal series.
Look at Romans chapter one in verse number 18.
The Bible says, for the wrath of God.
I want you to notice, the wrath of God is revealed.
Now, when we talk about the fact
that God reveals himself to mankind,
I want you to notice, God reveals himself through creation,
but only the wrath of God.
Now, what you and I preach when we go out
and preach the gospel is we're preaching the good news.
We're preaching the good news of God.
We're preaching the good news of salvation.
The good news is not revealed through creation.
That must be revealed through a soul winner
preaching the gospel.
But the Bible says that the wrath of God is revealed.
You see that word reveal there?
It means to make known, to disclose, to reveal.
The wrath of God is revealed, notice, from heaven.
That is a reference to nature.
From heaven against all ungodliness
and unrighteousness of men.
Notice, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.
The Bible tells us here that unsaved people
hold the truth in unrighteousness.
Even though they're unrighteous,
even though they're not saved, right?
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
There is none that doeth good, no, not one.
We're all unrighteous.
Here, we're told that they hold the truth in unrighteousness.
So even the unsaved people hold the truth of God
in their heart.
Because that which may be known of God
is manifest in them, for God has showed it unto them.
Verse 20, notice, for the invisible things of him
from the creation, again, that's nature,
of the world are clearly seen.
Those words mean they're manifest, they're revealed,
they're shown, being understood by the things
that are made.
You see that?
You say, what are the things that are made?
That's creation.
Even his eternal power and Godhead
so that they are without excuse.
Here's the point, and you know this,
I've taught this to you before.
Everybody is born, every human that's born
can look up at nature, at creation.
They can see the sun, the stars, the moon.
They can see nature, and that reveals to them the fact
that there is a God.
There's a reason why every civilization,
every group of men and women that have gathered
throughout the history of the world
have all believed in God.
They believed in a God.
They believed in something, some sort of form of that.
You say, well, what about people that are atheists?
Nobody's born an atheist.
Nobody said, you talk to an atheist,
you know, how long you been a man?
I've been an atheist my whole life.
No one will say that.
Because everybody's born with a belief of God,
a revelation of God, and they have to be brainwashed
into not believing in God.
They have to be convinced into not believing in God.
See, God reveals himself through creation.
The invisible things of him from the creation of the world
are clearly seen being understood
by the things that are made,
even his eternal power and Godhead
so that they are without excuse.
Not only does God reveal himself through creation,
but even more powerfully than that,
God reveals himself through the conscience.
Notice verse 19 again.
Because that, and notice what it says.
Because that which may be known,
the word known there is referring to knowledge.
That which may be known of God is manifest.
The word manifest means readily perceived, evident,
apparent, is manifest in the church.
Is that what it says?
Because that which may be known of God
is manifest in the Bible.
Is that what it says?
Now church will definitely make manifest the things of God.
The Bible will definitely make manifest the things of God.
But this is not what the Bible says here.
The Bible says because of that which may be known of God
is manifest in them, inside of them.
For God had showed it unto them.
The word showed there means to be seen
or to become visible.
The Bible says that God has revealed himself in them.
You're there in Romans chapter one.
Just flip over to Romans chapter number two.
Romans chapter number two.
That's why even atheists when they find themselves
in positions where they might lose their life
call out to God.
You say why is that?
Because everybody in their heart knows there is a God.
God has revealed himself through creation
but God has also revealed himself through conscience.
Romans two, look at verse 14.
For when the Gentiles which have not the law.
Now here we're talking about a group of people
that the oracles of God were not given to.
The word of God was not given to them.
For when the Gentiles, Paul tells us,
which have not the law, notice, do by nature,
by nature the things contained in the law,
these having not the law are a law unto themselves,
which show the work of the law written in their hearts,
their conscience also bearing witness and their thoughts.
The meanwhile, accusing or else excusing one another.
I want you to notice that the Bible says here
that by nature, the things contained in the law,
they are in themselves.
They are a law unto themselves
for the law written in their hearts,
their conscience also bearing witness.
Isn't it interesting that all throughout human history,
even in areas where the word of God has not been preached,
where the laws of God have not been given,
people have gotten married.
I mean, men and women have gotten married,
had children, had families.
And by and large, except for maybe some reprobate cultures,
people have seen things like adultery as a negative thing.
People have seen things like stealing as a negative thing.
People in general have seen things like murder
as a negative thing.
Did they need God's law to tell them that?
Now God's law does tell them that,
but they didn't really need God's law to tell them that
because God had already put his law in their hearts.
It's called a conscience.
You ever heard of somebody having a guilty conscience?
They feel bad because they did something.
They don't need a preacher or a Bible
or a law to tell them you did something wrong.
I mean, all those things are available,
but sometimes it's just that conscience
that God put inside of you.
That conscience is God revealing himself in you and to you.
So God reveals himself through nature,
only the wrath of God.
And God reveals himself through conscience.
Now notice verse, if you go back to Romans one,
look at verse 20.
For the invisible things of him
from the creation of the world are clearly seen,
being understood by the things that are made,
even his eternal power in Godhead, he says,
so that they are without excuse.
Notice, nobody will ever stand before God
and have a reason or have an excuse
as to why they couldn't get saved.
Now please understand this.
Whether they know the gospel or not,
because sometimes people get to say,
well, what if they never heard the gospel?
Well, look, if they never heard the gospel,
that's your fault.
That's my fault.
God has given them to us, the ministry of reconciliation.
God has given us to us, the ministry of going
and preaching the gospel until all the year.
That's why we sang that song this morning,
that all the earth may know.
God has given to us the job,
the task of reaching the world with the gospel,
but yet no one will ever stand before God
with an excuse, why?
Because whether they know the gospel or not, they know God.
They know there is a God.
Creation reveals God.
Their conscience reveals God.
Because God reveals himself through conscience
and creation, everyone and anyone that stands before God
will stand, the Bible says, without excuse.