It's So Plain They Are Without Excuse
Romans 1:19-20
“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” -Romans 1:19–20
No one can honestly say there is not a God, or that God does not see, or does not care. Everything about him that can be known, including his invisible attributes like eternal power and divine nature, have not only been revealed but revealed in such a way as to have been clearly perceived throughout the natural order ever since the creation of the world.
This is what theologians refer to as general revelation. Though nature does not tell us about our need for salvation or how to attain it, nature does tell us there is a Creator and Sustainer of the cosmos to whom we are accountable in some way. This is also what Galileo called the first book of God; the second being the Holy Scriptures.
Mankind is, therefore, without excuse for suppressing the truth in rejecting, denying, and rebelling against God because he has literally shown himself to all of creation in a way that can easily be perceived.
Verses 18-20 lay the foundation for the devolution of man; that is, his declining trajectory as a result of the fall. While Paul gives us this picture in a historical sense, the pattern can be witnessed in individuals as well as societies and generations of people.
God reveals himself in creation to such a degree that his eternal power and Godhead are so apparent no man could deny it. In response, man suppresses the truth—he lies to himself and to others—and as it is yet to be demonstrated, he subsequently refuses to honor God or be grateful to him (vs. 21).
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