WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.080 Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain 00:00:07.080 --> 00:00:13.099 Presbyterian Church, and it's my joy to bring God's Word to you today. A special welcome 00:00:13.099 --> 00:00:17.859 if you're new or visiting with us. We're glad that you're here, and we're glad that you're 00:00:17.859 --> 00:00:24.260 here not because we're trying to fill seats, but because we're following Jesus together 00:00:24.260 --> 00:00:31.160 as one community, and as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good, 00:00:31.220 --> 00:00:36.540 they don't need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't have it, which is why we come back 00:00:36.540 --> 00:00:43.060 week after week to hear what God has to say to us in His Word. We're continuing this morning in our 00:00:43.060 --> 00:00:48.900 series in the Book of Romans, and you'll remember that the Book of Romans is a letter written by 00:00:48.899 --> 00:00:55.479 the Apostle Paul in the 50s AD, and it is called Romans for a very simple reason, which is that 00:00:55.479 --> 00:01:01.899 it's written to the churches in the city of Rome. Romans is about the gospel. It's about the good 00:01:01.899 --> 00:01:09.159 news of Jesus' death and resurrection, and it's Paul's hope, as we saw back in verse 11 of chapter 00:01:09.159 --> 00:01:15.859 1, that these churches would be established in the gospel. We're going to see many applications as we go 00:01:15.859 --> 00:01:20.000 throughout the book, and yet again and again, we're going to return to this special focus 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:26.560 on the mission and the unity of the church. As I've told you many times now, we'll have many spokes 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:31.620 that are going to go out and explore different topics, and we will always quickly return back to 00:01:31.620 --> 00:01:38.200 the hub of the gospel. And we're continuing the argument that I mentioned to you during our 00:01:38.200 --> 00:01:44.060 confession of faith that Paul is making through chapters 1 through 3, which is that all have sinned and 00:01:44.060 --> 00:01:49.280 fall short of the glory of God. I mention that because I think it's tempting sometimes when we 00:01:49.280 --> 00:01:54.280 come to church and we hear a passage preached to just think, man, here's a random passage with some 00:01:54.280 --> 00:01:59.359 random points. And so what I want you to see is actually, no, there's this larger argument, there's 00:01:59.359 --> 00:02:07.219 this consistency, there's this theme that shows out over and over. Paul is building this one idea from 00:02:07.219 --> 00:02:13.520 multiple angles. And so our angle this morning on that theme is that everyone, in fact, deserves God's wrath. 00:02:13.520 --> 00:02:20.660 It's not just Jews, not just Gentiles. No, actually, everyone falls short. It's with that I invite you 00:02:20.660 --> 00:02:29.120 to turn with me to God's Word. We're in Romans chapter 2. You can turn in your Bible. You can turn 00:02:29.120 --> 00:02:35.520 on your phone. You can turn in your worship guide. No matter where you turn, remember Proverbs 30, 00:02:35.520 --> 00:02:43.340 verse 5 tells us, every word of God proves true. He's a shield to those who take refuge in Him. 00:02:44.240 --> 00:02:48.380 And so that's why we read now Romans chapter 2, starting at verse 1. 00:02:50.520 --> 00:02:57.120 Therefore, you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another, 00:02:57.240 --> 00:03:03.780 you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the 00:03:03.780 --> 00:03:10.800 judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man, 00:03:10.800 --> 00:03:16.980 you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself, that you will escape the 00:03:16.980 --> 00:03:23.600 judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, 00:03:24.140 --> 00:03:28.540 not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 00:03:28.539 --> 00:03:37.060 But because of your hard and impenitent heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath, 00:03:37.359 --> 00:03:43.680 when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. I invite you to pray with me as we come to this 00:03:43.680 --> 00:03:51.379 portion of God's Word. Our Father in heaven, we do thank you again that you haven't left us 00:03:51.379 --> 00:03:58.500 to wander aimlessly. You haven't abandoned us to figure out things on our own. You haven't treated us 00:03:58.500 --> 00:04:04.259 as orphans in a merciless universe, but instead you do come and speak to us. You tell us 00:04:04.259 --> 00:04:09.680 things that are encouraging, and you tell us things that are challenging and hard. We thank you that you 00:04:09.680 --> 00:04:15.439 always tell us what is true. We ask that you would do that again this morning, that you would be at work 00:04:15.439 --> 00:04:21.160 in our hearts and our minds and our lives, that we would be able to hear clearly from you in your Word. 00:04:21.899 --> 00:04:27.759 And most of all, we'd be able to see your Son. We'd see our Lord Jesus as more beautiful and glorious 00:04:27.759 --> 00:04:33.220 and gracious than ever before. And we ask these things in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen. 00:04:35.659 --> 00:04:40.759 I know that many of you in our congregation are readers. You love to read. You love to read on your 00:04:40.759 --> 00:04:45.620 own. You love to read to your kids. And I know that some of you love to read theology books. 00:04:46.519 --> 00:04:51.639 And one of the most important theological treatises of the church in the 21st century 00:04:51.639 --> 00:04:58.459 was released in September of 2020. Despite its significance, it's been a little bit of a sleeper. 00:04:59.199 --> 00:05:04.259 It's a scandal, in fact, that you can't find it on Christian books. You can't find it in any 00:05:04.259 --> 00:05:09.519 Christian bookstore that I'm aware of. In fact, I'm not sure that many of my pastor friends even know 00:05:09.519 --> 00:05:14.699 about this book. And so, because of that, I've brought a copy with me this morning so that you 00:05:14.699 --> 00:05:23.299 can be aware of it. It's called Everyone Poops by Taro Gomi. It's a significant theological work 00:05:23.299 --> 00:05:30.599 in the last several years. I don't have time to read all of it to you. I will show you the first page, 00:05:30.599 --> 00:05:38.279 though. It tells us, an elephant makes a big poop. A mouse makes a tiny poop. 00:05:40.120 --> 00:05:46.759 Why, though, is this such an important theological work? It is because it drives really clearly to the 00:05:46.759 --> 00:05:51.079 point of Romans chapters 1 through 3, which I've now mentioned a couple times this morning. 00:05:51.539 --> 00:05:57.500 All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. And so, as we get to the beginning of chapter 2, 00:05:57.620 --> 00:06:02.240 Paul is really just saying this one thing to his readers. You think you don't poop? 00:06:02.240 --> 00:06:10.800 You do. You think you don't fall into this category from chapter 1? You need to think again. 00:06:11.840 --> 00:06:19.199 You don't think you deserve God's wrath? Well, then I have some hard news for you. 00:06:20.180 --> 00:06:25.740 Why do we bring up, of course, if this is the point of chapters 1 through 3, why am I telling you about 00:06:25.740 --> 00:06:30.939 this work this week and not next week? And the reason is this, because of what happened the last 00:06:30.939 --> 00:06:36.540 two weeks. The last two weeks, Paul has been making this point in chapter 1 that the Gentiles, 00:06:36.960 --> 00:06:42.939 that those who are not Jews, have given up God, that they've exchanged the Creator for the creation, 00:06:42.939 --> 00:06:49.340 and they've done it in a number of ways. You'll remember last week, verses 28 through 32, 00:06:49.339 --> 00:06:54.359 Andy preached to us this great series, this list, this overwhelming list of all these different sins. 00:06:54.919 --> 00:07:02.799 You may have noticed, as those sins are listed, Paul continually uses the word they. They do this. 00:07:03.179 --> 00:07:10.279 They do that. They are doing these terrible things. Two weeks ago, verses 24 through 27, we had not a long 00:07:10.279 --> 00:07:15.759 list. We focused on the sin of homosexuality. And what was the word there? It was them. 00:07:15.759 --> 00:07:22.019 So they and them, they're the ones who are doing these things. And it's tempting then, 00:07:22.319 --> 00:07:27.659 and Paul knows this. In fact, he's setting us up for this moment in chapter 2. It's tempting to read 00:07:27.659 --> 00:07:35.779 chapter 1 and think, oh, yes, that's right, Paul. I agree with you. Those people out there are terrible. 00:07:36.779 --> 00:07:42.839 They are bad. That's great. I'm so glad you're finally calling them out on everything they're doing. 00:07:42.839 --> 00:07:48.619 And you know what? I'm so glad that someone else is recognizing how terrible the world is. 00:07:49.319 --> 00:07:59.199 Get them, Paul. Tell them. Make sure they know how bad the Gentiles are. But you know what, man? I'm so 00:07:59.199 --> 00:08:07.719 glad chapter 1 is not about me. I'm so glad that that is about Gentiles and it's not about Jews. 00:08:07.720 --> 00:08:13.840 Those Gentiles out there, yeah, Paul knows he's onto something. They are some dirty, nasty little 00:08:13.840 --> 00:08:20.200 sinners. And you notice how Paul ends chapter 1. He says, this is verse 32 of chapter 1, 00:08:20.660 --> 00:08:26.540 though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, 00:08:27.240 --> 00:08:34.560 they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. And so the person reading chapter 1, 00:08:34.559 --> 00:08:40.839 as they get to the end, think, man, I'm in the right camp. I don't approve of people who practice 00:08:40.839 --> 00:08:47.019 those things. No, I condemn those things. I'm completely in the clear. I'm good. I'm so glad 00:08:47.019 --> 00:08:52.819 we made it to the end of chapter 1. What a relief that that chapter is not about me. 00:08:53.899 --> 00:09:00.119 Paul's actually setting us up for this moment to get to chapter 2, verse 1, because he whips the rug 00:09:00.120 --> 00:09:06.720 out from under us. Told us, last verse of chapter 1, those who approve such things, those people are 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:11.879 bad, okay? It's bad to approve of those bad practices. And then he tells us, you know, the other option 00:09:11.879 --> 00:09:19.700 is also bad. Verse 1, you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment 00:09:19.700 --> 00:09:30.560 on another, you condemn yourself. There's a catch 22. Did you catch it? If you approve of these evil 00:09:30.560 --> 00:09:39.120 things, you're bad. If you judge these evil things, you're condemned. There's actually no good option. 00:09:39.660 --> 00:09:44.860 It's wrong to look at those who are doing evil things and say, man, I approve of that. And it's 00:09:44.860 --> 00:09:49.460 wrong to look at those who are doing evil things and to judge them. And Paul's setting up this tension 00:09:49.460 --> 00:09:55.759 for us to ask this question, how can that be? How can it be that I can't judge them and I can't 00:09:55.759 --> 00:10:03.519 approve of them? This seems completely unfair, right? What am I supposed to do? Why is it that I can't 00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:10.539 judge? Well, he goes on to tell us, verse 1, for in passing judgment on another, you condemn yourself 00:10:10.539 --> 00:10:20.019 because you, the judge, practice the very same things. And if you've tracked with chapter 1, 00:10:20.099 --> 00:10:27.000 your response might be this, no, I don't, Paul. I don't practice homosexuality. That's what you were 00:10:27.000 --> 00:10:34.419 talking about in verses 24 through 27. I'm not a gossip. I don't hate my parents. I don't do those 00:10:34.419 --> 00:10:42.519 things in verses 28 through 32. This is nonsense. How can Paul say, I do the very same things? 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:51.579 And Paul's not saying, hey, you do every single exact action that's been listed in 24 through 32. 00:10:52.599 --> 00:11:00.579 No, not necessarily. He's saying you have the same heart. Remember, all of those evil actions were 00:11:00.580 --> 00:11:05.900 downstream of the fundamental problem. The fundamental problem we saw in chapter 1 is that 00:11:05.900 --> 00:11:12.860 they exchanged the creator for the creation. And so, Paul's not saying, hey, you've done everything 00:11:12.860 --> 00:11:19.700 in this long list. He's saying this, you, Jews, who think you're so righteous, are exactly the same as 00:11:19.700 --> 00:11:30.440 the Gentiles in this sense. You also have exchanged the creator for the creation. You also have a heart 00:11:30.440 --> 00:11:40.100 of sin. And let me prove it to you. This is what verse 1 is saying. Let's judge you by your standard. 00:11:41.200 --> 00:11:49.080 Okay, you're going to judge the people around you. Can you live up to that same judgment? Can you, 00:11:49.080 --> 00:11:58.560 Jew, live up to the standard you use to judge the Gentiles? Can you, Christian, live up to the standard 00:11:58.559 --> 00:12:04.979 that you use to judge non-Christians? I bring up Christians and non-Christians because this Jew-Gentile 00:12:04.979 --> 00:12:13.279 distinction does not have the same, it's not a live issue for us in 2024 in the same way that it was a 00:12:13.279 --> 00:12:19.519 live issue for the churches in Rome in the first century. The relevant distinction for us really is 00:12:19.519 --> 00:12:24.039 the religious people and the non-religious people. That's what Paul's trying to say here. Hey, you're 00:12:24.039 --> 00:12:30.959 religious. You know the right way to live. You have God's moral law, His ethical code. Can you live up 00:12:30.959 --> 00:12:39.199 to that as you use it to judge the world outside? Even that, though, may not help us feel kind of how 00:12:39.199 --> 00:12:46.199 offended we're supposed to be by chapter 2 here. And so I want to push this a step further. If you want 00:12:46.199 --> 00:12:52.139 to get at how scandalous what Paul's saying in chapter 2 is, you've got to pick a group, you've got to find a 00:12:52.139 --> 00:12:59.139 group that you really despise. You have to find a group that is those people out there who do all 00:12:59.139 --> 00:13:07.460 kinds of crazy things in comparison to me and here who are good and just and upright. And I'm going to 00:13:07.460 --> 00:13:13.600 suggest there are a few things in our culture right now that get at this issue as much as our politics. 00:13:13.600 --> 00:13:22.000 That political party, the political party that you don't belong to, that party out there, those people 00:13:22.000 --> 00:13:28.019 are the evil ones. It's gotten so bad, in fact, and you'll see this on the back of your worship guide. 00:13:28.580 --> 00:13:32.899 There's this concept, if I can get there, 00:13:32.899 --> 00:13:42.519 concept called motive attribution asymmetry. And motive attribution asymmetry is a fancy way of saying 00:13:42.519 --> 00:13:49.840 everything I do is motivated by good. I'm purely benevolent. Everything those people I hate do 00:13:49.840 --> 00:13:56.379 is obviously motivated by wickedness. And so, like, I'm the good guy, they're the bad guy. 00:13:56.980 --> 00:14:01.079 So much so, and this is, again, on the back of your worship guide, researchers found the average 00:14:01.080 --> 00:14:08.120 Republican and the average Democrat suffer from a level of motive attribution asymmetry comparable 00:14:08.120 --> 00:14:14.820 with that of Palestinians and Israelis. And so, I want you to think about that. This is what Paul's 00:14:14.820 --> 00:14:20.520 doing. He's listing in chapter one all the things that that other political party does, the one you 00:14:20.520 --> 00:14:26.920 don't like, and you're thinking, yeah, Paul, get them, tell them. We know. We've all known all along. 00:14:26.919 --> 00:14:32.799 We know they're so bad. Chapter two, verse one, you're guilty of the same thing. 00:14:33.919 --> 00:14:39.699 That's the whiplash we're meant to experience here in this chapter. Paul is saying, okay, 00:14:39.959 --> 00:14:49.219 you hate that group out there. Let's judge you by that standard. You're upset that that other party 00:14:49.220 --> 00:14:57.639 you don't like doesn't care about human life. Okay? Let's judge you by your standard. How is your 00:14:57.639 --> 00:15:06.879 driving on the highway? Does it reflect a concern for human life? How are your words when you speak 00:15:06.879 --> 00:15:11.160 about other people? Is there a sense that you believe they have dignity, that they're made in 00:15:11.160 --> 00:15:17.060 the image of God? Let's say that other party that you hate, you think that party is super greedy. 00:15:17.059 --> 00:15:24.079 They're just out for gain and money. Great. Let's judge you by your standard. Let's look at your 00:15:24.079 --> 00:15:31.279 bank account. Let's look at your credit card statements. Is there any greed? Can you live up to 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:36.799 the standard that you use? Maybe you're angry at that other party and you say, that party that I hate, 00:15:36.859 --> 00:15:41.599 the evil party, they don't care about caring for our earth. They don't care about the creation. 00:15:41.600 --> 00:15:49.180 Okay, great. Let's judge you by your standard. How does your consumption impact the earth? 00:15:52.220 --> 00:15:58.180 Maybe you look at that other party and you say, man, that party, they are so confused about sexuality. 00:15:59.300 --> 00:16:06.800 They are so off the rails. I can't believe they're promoting those things. Great. Let's judge you by 00:16:06.799 --> 00:16:13.959 your standard. How do you use your sexuality? Do you always use it to build up others and nurture 00:16:13.959 --> 00:16:25.439 them? Do you never use your sexuality to control or manipulate? Can you live up to the standard you use? 00:16:26.399 --> 00:16:31.939 Maybe you think this, that party that I hate, the bad party, they don't care about the poor. 00:16:31.940 --> 00:16:41.140 Great. Let's judge you by your standard. How do you measure up? If we look at your hours and your time 00:16:41.140 --> 00:16:52.320 and your money, do you care about the poor? And Paul's point here is this, you can't. You can't live up 00:16:52.320 --> 00:16:57.580 to your own standard. And you might be thinking at this point, man, this is super unfair. You're drawing 00:16:57.580 --> 00:17:02.540 this false moral equivalence. Yeah, my party, you know, my party has some issues, right? They have 00:17:02.540 --> 00:17:10.019 some things going on that aren't perfect, but it's nothing like the bad party, right? How unfair of 00:17:10.019 --> 00:17:15.160 you to compare these things? Like they're not equal. They're not the same, right? No one is perfect. 00:17:17.319 --> 00:17:18.700 And you know what? That might be true. 00:17:18.700 --> 00:17:29.259 It also completely misses Paul's point. Because Paul's point is this, both groups are under God's 00:17:29.259 --> 00:17:39.039 judgment. Both groups break God's law. You can argue all day, right? You can measure and order and say, 00:17:39.140 --> 00:17:43.840 man, that other group is so much worse. Paul said, you know what? That's kind of irrelevant. 00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:49.779 You've fallen into this trap. You've said, hey, I can find someone else to compare myself to 00:17:49.779 --> 00:17:55.240 and feel better than them. Of course, I have the moral high ground. And Paul is saying, no, 00:17:55.319 --> 00:18:01.019 you're not comparing yourself to how better you are than another group. You're comparing yourself 00:18:01.019 --> 00:18:03.939 to God's holy standard. 00:18:03.940 --> 00:18:14.640 And when you measure up against the law of God, everyone falls short. 00:18:17.759 --> 00:18:21.640 And so it's irrelevant, right? We don't need to order and measure who is worse. 00:18:22.480 --> 00:18:26.299 Again, this is why this is such an important theological work that I introduced to you earlier 00:18:26.299 --> 00:18:34.740 today. What does it say? An elephant makes a big poop. A mouse, a small poop. Yeah, you can measure 00:18:34.740 --> 00:18:40.539 who's worse or bad. What's the point at the end of the day? Everyone poops. That's Paul's point. 00:18:41.700 --> 00:18:47.799 Look, don't get on your moral high ground. When you are compared to the righteous law of God and His 00:18:47.799 --> 00:18:55.440 holiness, he will say, can you stand up to your own standard? Can you live up to the rules that you have 00:18:55.440 --> 00:18:59.140 set for this world? The answer is no. 00:19:01.019 --> 00:19:06.220 So the point is this. Paul is saying, everyone is a hypocrite. 00:19:07.880 --> 00:19:13.860 Everyone, in some way, has exchanged the creator for the creation. 00:19:15.500 --> 00:19:20.400 Repentance is not just for those people out there. 00:19:21.779 --> 00:19:23.920 Repentance is for these people in here. 00:19:23.920 --> 00:19:30.320 Repentance is not just for the non-religious people who do all these terrible things. 00:19:31.279 --> 00:19:37.800 No, repentance is for the religious people who have the same rebellious heart. 00:19:40.039 --> 00:19:44.779 I've mentioned to you before the Russian author Alexander Solzhenitsyn, 00:19:44.779 --> 00:19:51.440 who wrote the Gulag Archipelago about his time in prison in the Soviet Union. 00:19:51.799 --> 00:19:53.720 And I've given you an abbreviated quote before. 00:19:53.799 --> 00:19:56.960 The full quote this morning is on page 8 of your worship guide. 00:19:57.259 --> 00:19:58.039 He says this. 00:19:58.039 --> 00:20:06.720 Gradually, it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, 00:20:07.159 --> 00:20:12.159 nor between classes, nor between political parties either, 00:20:12.539 --> 00:20:20.000 but right through every human heart and through all human hearts. 00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:27.319 Therefore, you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges, 00:20:28.200 --> 00:20:32.279 for in passing judgment on another, you condemn yourself. 00:20:32.279 --> 00:20:40.319 Oh, you think there's a group out there that's unrighteous and a group in here that's righteous? 00:20:40.599 --> 00:20:40.879 No. 00:20:40.879 --> 00:20:51.879 No, the line between good and evil goes right through every human heart and through all human hearts. 00:20:52.599 --> 00:20:55.579 It goes to the hearts of the non-religious. 00:20:55.579 --> 00:20:57.099 It goes to the hearts of the religious. 00:20:58.099 --> 00:21:00.720 It goes to the hearts of the Jews. 00:21:01.299 --> 00:21:04.319 It goes to the hearts of the Gentiles. 00:21:06.960 --> 00:21:11.480 As Paul's point in verse 1, verses 2 and 3, 00:21:11.559 --> 00:21:15.019 he goes on essentially to draw the logical conclusion of that. 00:21:15.799 --> 00:21:17.899 Verse 1, you can't live up to your own standard. 00:21:18.799 --> 00:21:21.559 Verses 2 and 3, if you can't live up to your own standard, 00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:26.399 of course you also are going to face God's judgment. 00:21:27.079 --> 00:21:32.079 Verse 2, we know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 00:21:32.619 --> 00:21:34.899 So verse 1, you know you can't live up to your own standard. 00:21:35.379 --> 00:21:39.879 Verse 2, because you can't live up to your own standard, God's judgment is coming for you too. 00:21:40.700 --> 00:21:45.639 Verse 3, do you suppose, O man, you who judge those who practice such things, 00:21:46.099 --> 00:21:49.619 and yet do them yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God? 00:21:49.619 --> 00:21:55.279 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, 00:21:55.599 --> 00:22:00.439 not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 00:22:01.819 --> 00:22:04.139 And Paul here is answering another objection. 00:22:04.879 --> 00:22:09.059 Someone might hear the logic of verses 1, 2, and 3 and think, 00:22:09.179 --> 00:22:12.139 well, okay, I hear you, Paul, but my life is really blessed. 00:22:13.739 --> 00:22:16.059 Everything I've done has prospered. 00:22:16.479 --> 00:22:18.299 I don't see God's judgment anywhere. 00:22:18.299 --> 00:22:21.879 I don't see it in my life. 00:22:21.940 --> 00:22:23.079 I don't see it in my friends' lives. 00:22:23.159 --> 00:22:26.700 No, everything I'm doing seems to be working super well. 00:22:26.799 --> 00:22:30.279 And so you, Paul, are saying, like, I'm falling under God's judgment, 00:22:30.460 --> 00:22:31.980 but look at all this blessing in my life. 00:22:33.639 --> 00:22:35.859 Obviously, I'm not under God's judgment, right? 00:22:37.119 --> 00:22:39.680 And Paul's saying, no, no, no, you've missed something here. 00:22:40.339 --> 00:22:46.019 You haven't experienced God's judgment yet because of his patience and forbearance. 00:22:46.019 --> 00:22:49.859 God is actually holding back his judgment. 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:51.319 He's giving you time to repent. 00:22:51.740 --> 00:22:53.859 This is not proof of your goodness. 00:22:54.559 --> 00:22:55.940 It's proof of God's goodness. 00:22:57.319 --> 00:23:03.599 Don't think that because you haven't seen judgment yet, judgment is not coming. 00:23:03.599 --> 00:23:14.099 In the Wikipedia entry, for everyone poops, we're told this. 00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:20.240 The book is intended to relieve shame and embarrassment around the act of defecating 00:23:20.240 --> 00:23:24.279 by explaining to children that it is a natural part of life. 00:23:25.559 --> 00:23:27.959 And here is where Paul's point is the exact opposite. 00:23:28.699 --> 00:23:30.939 Paul is not trying to remove shame and embarrassment. 00:23:30.940 --> 00:23:33.920 No, Paul's actually trying to wake us up. 00:23:34.640 --> 00:23:35.240 Guess what? 00:23:35.720 --> 00:23:37.820 Everyone poops, and that's a really bad thing, right? 00:23:37.900 --> 00:23:40.559 God's judgment is actually coming on this world. 00:23:41.019 --> 00:23:43.480 You might think that you've escaped it for a time. 00:23:43.640 --> 00:23:46.720 You will not escape it forever. 00:23:47.340 --> 00:23:49.080 You think you're okay. 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:50.220 You're not. 00:23:51.100 --> 00:23:54.080 There is no place to escape. 00:23:55.019 --> 00:23:58.920 Chapter 1, verse 32, those who approve the evil things, they're condemned. 00:23:58.920 --> 00:24:04.420 And chapter 2, verse 1, those who judge the evil things, they're also condemned. 00:24:05.019 --> 00:24:08.519 There is no place to escape. 00:24:10.340 --> 00:24:14.039 To illustrate this point, one pastor tells the story of a farmer. 00:24:14.920 --> 00:24:16.279 This farmer was not a Christian. 00:24:16.420 --> 00:24:20.560 In fact, even more than just not being a Christian, he was very hostile to Christianity. 00:24:20.559 --> 00:24:25.559 And he owned a tract of land that was right next to a church building. 00:24:26.379 --> 00:24:31.220 And so every Sunday, while the folks in the church building were worshiping, he would get 00:24:31.220 --> 00:24:33.240 out on his tractor and he would work his land. 00:24:33.740 --> 00:24:37.740 And it was his way of saying, like, hey, I'm going to do the exact opposite of what you 00:24:37.740 --> 00:24:38.720 religious people do. 00:24:39.500 --> 00:24:42.240 Turned out his farm was extremely successful. 00:24:42.720 --> 00:24:44.119 He had a great harvest, a great cop. 00:24:44.119 --> 00:24:49.219 And so he writes this letter to the pastor and he says, Pastor, I've done the exact opposite 00:24:49.219 --> 00:24:50.339 of what God commanded. 00:24:50.859 --> 00:24:52.859 God tells me to be in church on Sunday morning. 00:24:53.139 --> 00:24:55.739 I've been plowing my fields on Sunday morning instead. 00:24:56.199 --> 00:24:58.439 I've experienced tremendous blessing. 00:24:59.500 --> 00:25:01.139 Clearly, God doesn't exist. 00:25:04.279 --> 00:25:07.699 Pastor writes him a letter back that says one sentence. 00:25:07.700 --> 00:25:11.539 God doesn't settle his accounts in October. 00:25:14.819 --> 00:25:17.940 Yeah, you might experience blessing now. 00:25:19.539 --> 00:25:25.200 Verse four, do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, 00:25:25.680 --> 00:25:31.080 not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 00:25:32.600 --> 00:25:34.360 Why did you experience blessing? 00:25:34.359 --> 00:25:39.299 Not because you're good, but because God is good. 00:25:41.439 --> 00:25:46.500 And so to pull it back to Paul's point here in these three chapters, he is telling us once 00:25:46.500 --> 00:25:54.539 again in a different way from a different angle, all have sinned and fall short of the glory 00:25:54.539 --> 00:25:55.679 of God. 00:25:56.819 --> 00:25:59.459 Yeah, being a good person, not enough. 00:25:59.460 --> 00:26:03.480 Being a good person, not up to God's standards. 00:26:04.460 --> 00:26:10.559 Being a good person still falls short of your own judgment. 00:26:11.920 --> 00:26:12.700 And so what do we do? 00:26:14.120 --> 00:26:19.860 Paul's telling us, look, everyone actually needs a righteousness that comes from somewhere else. 00:26:21.240 --> 00:26:25.680 No one's works are good enough to stand before God on the last day. 00:26:25.680 --> 00:26:29.519 Everyone needs repentance. 00:26:30.519 --> 00:26:32.680 Everyone needs God's grace. 00:26:33.360 --> 00:26:34.940 Everyone needs what we've already talked about. 00:26:35.019 --> 00:26:37.740 Romans chapter one, the theme verse for the book of Romans. 00:26:38.820 --> 00:26:44.019 For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith. 00:26:44.720 --> 00:26:48.880 As it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. 00:26:48.880 --> 00:26:55.600 If there's a catch-22, if those who approve are condemned and those who judge are condemned, 00:26:55.840 --> 00:26:56.580 what's the solution? 00:26:57.860 --> 00:27:00.560 The solution is to find a righteousness from somewhere else. 00:27:01.720 --> 00:27:03.880 And of course, we know where that righteousness comes from. 00:27:04.560 --> 00:27:07.040 The solution is to have the righteousness of another. 00:27:07.900 --> 00:27:11.900 A righteousness not from our approving or our condemning, a righteousness that comes from 00:27:11.900 --> 00:27:19.519 Jesus Christ, who lived the perfect life that we should have lived, who died the death that we deserved, 00:27:20.140 --> 00:27:24.759 so that he, in his punishment, makes it so that we can live. 00:27:25.200 --> 00:27:26.200 That's the only way. 00:27:27.000 --> 00:27:28.880 There's no good group or bad group. 00:27:29.519 --> 00:27:33.620 There's all groups who stand before God, deserving judgment. 00:27:33.619 --> 00:27:36.599 And that's the good news of the gospel. 00:27:37.459 --> 00:27:39.759 Good news is that the catch-22 has an answer. 00:27:40.699 --> 00:27:42.299 The good news is that there is a way. 00:27:42.919 --> 00:27:45.179 It is not our own works, our own actions. 00:27:45.379 --> 00:27:48.279 There's a way that recognizes, hey, actually, I can't live up. 00:27:48.299 --> 00:27:49.579 I can't live up to God's standards. 00:27:49.939 --> 00:27:51.599 I can't live up to my own standards. 00:27:52.799 --> 00:27:55.979 And Jesus takes the punishment for me. 00:27:56.959 --> 00:27:57.799 That's the good news. 00:27:57.919 --> 00:27:58.919 Romans chapter one, again. 00:27:58.920 --> 00:28:03.900 I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone 00:28:03.900 --> 00:28:08.440 who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 00:28:10.460 --> 00:28:17.460 The story is told of the English writer G.K. Chesterton, who saw in a newspaper an essay 00:28:17.460 --> 00:28:20.940 prompt inviting folks to write in to answer this question. 00:28:21.920 --> 00:28:25.160 The question was, what's wrong with the world? 00:28:25.160 --> 00:28:29.759 G.K. Chesterton wrote a very short letter in response. 00:28:29.900 --> 00:28:35.140 He said, dear sirs, regarding your article, what's wrong with the world? 00:28:36.180 --> 00:28:37.019 I am. 00:28:38.300 --> 00:28:40.259 Yours truly, G.K. Chesterton. 00:28:42.519 --> 00:28:43.220 Let's pray. 00:28:45.140 --> 00:28:50.480 Our Father in heaven, we do thank you that we're not stuck or caught in a catch-22. 00:28:50.480 --> 00:28:56.140 We thank you that you've provided a hope and a future for your son and our Savior, our 00:28:56.140 --> 00:28:56.640 Lord Jesus. 00:28:57.360 --> 00:29:02.579 We ask that you would show us the extent and the depth of our sin, not so that we would 00:29:02.579 --> 00:29:07.220 wallow in it, but that we would run to you in your glory and your grace and your mercy. 00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:11.420 That our hope and our only hope would be in your son and our Savior, our Lord Jesus. 00:29:11.940 --> 00:29:13.920 It's in his name that we ask all of these things. 00:29:14.279 --> 00:29:14.480 Amen. 00:29:14.480 --> 00:29:14.620 Amen.