“18 For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, 19 since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse.”
We read last time that the gospel of God is the power of salvation to those who have faith, and today we will see that to reject the gospel is to be in direct opposition to God. Those who persist in their unrighteousness will face God’s wrath.
Verse 18 refers to the fact that every godless and unrighteous person – that is, all of us before we are saved in Christ – suppresses the truth about God in order to continue in transgression. How is it that the unrighteous suppress the truth? They suppress the truth of God as Creator and Ruler of the universe. To pretend that our sin is acceptable, we must convince ourselves that God is not real, or at least that He doesn’t care enough or doesn’t have the power to judge us. If God doesn’t care about our sin, then we can feel free to do as we see fit. So then, the unrepentant suppresses the truth that they might continue in unrighteousness. It’s not a problem of human ignorance. Paul says that the truth about God’s existence as Creator, Ruler, King, and Judge is made evident to every single human. Unrighteousness is not a matter of ignorance then, it is an issue of morality.
The suppression of the truth by sinners is not new. It is the root of all sin. Consider the original sin in the Garden of Eden:
“Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’” “No! You will certainly not die,” the serpent said to the woman. “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” — Genesis 3:1-6
Every sin, at a fundamental level, is partaking in the suppression of the truth about who God is, what He demands of us, and how we are to submit under His authority. Paul will make clear that there is not a single human being who is without guilt and that there is no excuse for those who continue in sin. So how is it that God has made Himself known, evidently and plainly, to every human being?
God is revealed to every human through what is called natural revelation. Every flower that grows on the earth, every star that twinkles in the sky, the wind the blows and the rain that falls on the fields, the complexity of the human body, and absolutely everything else declares and proclaims the divinity and power of God Almighty.
“But ask the animals, and they will instruct you; ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you. Or speak to the earth, and it will instruct you; let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? The life of every living thing is in his hand, as well as the breath of all humanity.” — Job 12:7-10
“The God who made the world and everything in it — he is Lord of heaven and earth — does not live in shrines made by hands. Neither is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives everyone life and breath and all things. From one man he has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live. He did this so that they might seek God, and perhaps they might reach out and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.” — Acts 17:24-27
God has revealed Himself to all of us through what He has made. No one can look at creation and deny that God exists, to do so is suppression of the truth. God’s creation of the universe shows His deservedness of worship. God displays His divine nature, that is, His godness, through what He has made. God commands His right to be worshiped and proclaims the eternal nature of His power which is displayed through all that He has made.
The way by which God created and orchestrates all of the universe and its processes to provide life and joy to us, and glory to His name, attests to His eternal power and divine nature. Both God’s creation, and how He uses His creation to bring about human flourishing and His own glory, result in people having no excuse to deny His existence. Through this, God has revealed Himself, and all humans will be held accountable.