THE BOOK OF ROMANS

THE BOOK OF ROMANS
“God’s Case Again Men”
Romans 3:13-20
January 25, 2012

Last week we began talking about Paul’s dealings with the Jews that they felt that, they were better than the Gentiles. He then goes on to talk about the sin nature of man. What did Paul say about that sin nature? WAIT It was ignorant, indifferent and selfish, crooked, useless and evil. Paul then says that the tongue is sinful because:

IT IS FOUL AND CORRUPT -- Romans 3:-13a “Their throat is an open grave, With their tongues they keep deceiving,"

The words “an open grave” is a symbol of corruption. Man’s mouth is dirty, obscene, polluted and offensive. By their wicked words they bury the reputation of all men. The whole verse speaks to men’s habit of lying and slandering, etc.

The obscene mouth can range from, off colored humor to plain filthy jokes to immoral suggestions to outright propositions. The point is that a person with a foul mouth stinks just like a decaying body in an open grave. Man’s filthiness causes not only the character of others, it also decays the character of the person who is speaking filth. That person becomes as offensive as that of a decaying corpse. The filthy mouth kills character, integrity, morality, honor and godliness.

James 3:6 says, “And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.” Then Paul says that the tongue is sinful because:

IT IS DECEITFUL -- Romans 3:13b “With their tongues they keep deceiving,"
Psalm 5:9 says, “They flatter with their tongue.” They make professions of friendship; but everything they say is hollow and full of deceit. A person who is deceitful has a tongue that is false, lying, cheating, misleading, treacherous, and deluding.

The word “deceit” in the Greek carries with it the meaning of man who is not only guilty of deceiving, constantly hiding his true thoughts and feelings with the purpose of protecting himself to allow him to get what he wants. Then Paul says that the tongue is sinful because:

IT IS PIERCING AND POISONOUS -- Romans 3:13c “The poison of asps is under their lips.” The Greek word for “asps” refers to the cobra. God charges man with having a tongue that is just as piercing and poisonous as the tongue of a deadly cobra. A poisonous tongue talks and gossips about others, it strikes out against others, it poisons the character and reputation of others, it wants to cause suffering for others, it lies in wait like a coiled snake just waiting for the right moment to strike. Colossians 3:8 says, But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Then Paul says that tongues is sinful because:

FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS -- Romans 3:14 " Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness;” A cursing tongue is a sinful tongue. Men use profanity. They curse both God and men. Their cursing may range from what society considers to be a mild word of slang to using God’s Name in vain. No matter how mild or how acceptable it is to society, it is sin.

And folks, I want to caution you in the use of the name of God. Far too many today, including those in the church who profess to be born again, use the name of God flippantly. “Oh my God.” That is using the name of the Lord God in vain. Exodus 20:7 states the 3rd commandment, " You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.

Man’s tongue is also full of bitterness. It is often sharp, resentful, cold, harsh, distasteful, unpleasant and relentless. Any expression involving any of these is sin to God. God want men to be filled with joy, love and peace and to express those things in his life. So what can you do when you are around someone who is using language that is off colored, foul, mean spirited or untrue? WAIT Then Paul moves on from a tongue that is sinful to

SINFUL ACTS -- Romans 3:15-18 “Their feet are swift to shed blood, destruction and misery are in their paths, And the path of peace have they not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Paul states that sinful acts:

ARE MURDEROUS -- Men are ready to spill blood out of their hurt and shame; or to get what they want. Men are cruel and their object is to inflict pain and suffering; grief and injury. Then Paul shows that sinful acts:

ARE OPPRESSIVE -- They destroy and cause misery because man is full of pride, selfishness, and greed and his destructiveness brings heartache to his own family, neighborhood, and city. Sinful acts are:

ARE GODLESS -- They ignore and neglect God living as if there were NO God. They don’t fear God or God’s anger and wrath. They have little or no desire to worship God, or honor God. So these things are God’s case against man. Finally, Paul addresses:

THE CASE OF THE LAW -- Romans 3:19-20 “Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.” The law or the Scriptures:

SPEAKS TO EVERYONE -- It’s an obvious truth that cannot be missed. God’s Word charges everyone with sin and that everyone is subject to sin’s power. No one can escape God’s case against sinfulness. The law or the Scriptures:

STOPS ALL BOASTING -- In light of the sinfulness of man’s nature and man’s tongue, who can boast about man’s goodness and righteousness? God’s Word declares that no man is good. So, man is silenced and doesn’t have any reason to brag about his goodness. The law or Scripture:

MAKES ALL THE WORLD GUILTY -- All of the world today stands face to face before God as being short of His glory and guilty of sin. The law or the Scriptures:

SAYS NO ONE IS RIGHTEOUS -- There is no law or work that can say that man is justified or righteous in God’s sight. Finally, the law or the Scriptures:

SHOW MAN’S SINFULNESS -- What’s the purpose of the law? It’s to point out that all men are sinners. Its purpose is to show man that he needs to seek God for forgiveness and that they need a Savior who is Jesus Christ.

Father, again we thank You for Your Word and just how grateful we must be for the work of Jesus Christ in Calvary’s Cross. Without the Cross and the shedding of the innocent blood of Jesus Christ, we would stand forever guilty for our sinfulness and condemned to an eternity separated from Your love, peace and joy forever. Help us to be mindful of the gift that we have received from You and to know that our life must be lived in view of the Cross where we can find forgiveness and acceptance from You. Let us live that fact daily so that others will see Jesus in us and be drawn to Him. In Jesus name, I pray. AMEN