There is No Excuse for Rejecting God

Thinking about Romans 1:20-21.

Photo by Josh Gordon on Unsplash

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. (Romans 1:20-21)

The Gentile world had the truth about God (Romans 1:18-19). The problem was that they suppressed the truth.

Even when they suppressed the truth, the creation continued to speak to the existence and power of God.

The natural world reveals enough about the Lord God to indicate His existence.

David wrote about this in Psalms 19:1-6.

The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. 

Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. 

There is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard. 

Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, 

Which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, And rejoices like a strong man to run its race. 

Its rising is from one end of heaven, And its circuit to the other end; And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

David and Paul are making the argument that the creation declares the glory of not just a god or deity - but the one true God of heaven, the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-seeing God.

Christians claim more than “atheism is false!” They claim, the ONE who made the universe is the God of the Bible. That’s what the Christian claims!.. We must stop giving our young people the impression we can establish monotheism (Biblical theism) without the Bible and when some crusty old agnostic or atheist makes them try to prove their case (which they fail to do!) they begin to think “God’s existence can’t be proved!” Let’s send them back to the Bible and reason, rather than unaided reason! - McGuiggan, Romans, 78-79

The Gentile world was without excuse.

One of the reasons (not the only one) God created so gloriously would be that mankind would be left without excuse for "shrinking” the Almighty into the likeness of the creature. - McGuiggan, Romans, 79

While the Gentile world actively rejected and suppressed the truth about God - and thought they had done a wonderful job - every night they would go to sleep under the stars created by the One they had rejected and whose truth they had suppressed.

They had a reminder every day that they were suppressing the truth and rebelling against the God they knew something about.

They “knew God” but they did not “glorify Him as God” and they were not “thankful.”

The problem was that although God had revealed Himself in the natural world, men refused this knowledge. They knew better, but they decided not to honor God or to give thanks to Him as the source of life. This is the fundamental sin. - Pollard, Truth for Today Commentary, 59

As a result of their suppression of the truth, the Gentile’s reasoning became “futile” and “foolish.”

Trying to reason without the truth is a great way to get into a tangled mess. That’s exactly where the Gentile world was.

They had sinned and gotten themselves into a big mess. They desperately needed the gospel of Christ.