Romans 1:28-32 Part 1

Romans 1:28-32 (New American Standard Bible)

 28And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, ^(A)God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper,

 29being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are ^(B)gossips,

 30slanderers, ^(C)haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, ^(D)disobedient to parents,

 31without understanding, untrustworthy, ^(E)unloving, unmerciful;

 32and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of ^(F)death, they not only do the same, but also ^(G)give hearty approval to those who practice them.

"And just as they did not see fit..."  The phrase "see fit" is translated from the Greek word Dokimazo.  This word means to try, prove, discern, distinguish, approve.  It has the notion of proving a thing whether it is worthy to be received or not. 

Other forms of the word mean

•  to test; 
  
• that which endures the test, worthy

"...to acknowledge God any longer..."

Acknowledge is translated from the Greek word Epignosis which means knowlege, meaning clear and exact knowledge.    It is more intentional than gnosis (knowledge) because it expresses a more thoroughly participation in the object of knowledge on the part of the knowing of the subject. 

This term is used only the in Pauline epistles and always refers to the knowledge with so powerfully influences the form of the religious life, a knowledge laying claim to personal sympathy and exerting an influence upon the person.

In other words, this is an active and highly involved act of getting to know something or someone and is so powerful that it affects actions, thoughts, motives, and life.  

These two concepts above make it clear that man no longer sought to try or prove God.  They did not care.  They no longer vested themselves in trying, proving God as worthy to be honored as God.  They had fully give themselves to the pursuit of their sin.  There was nothing on the part of man thought sought to honor God as God and to prove His worth.

In that light, let me rephrase this phrase:  "And just as they did not seek to prove whether God was worthy to be received by them nor to engage themselves in getting to know Him, God gave them over..."

Repeated now for the third time, we see that God gave them over, removed His hand of restraint from them, so that they could fully engage themselves in sin without His restraint and by doing so allow them to endure the natural consequences of what their sin would bring.

God gave them over to a depraved mind (an unapproved, unworthy mind that is abominable and abhorred by God and man.) to do things that are improper.  Who decides what is proper?  Why the Creator of all things of course.  He has deemed what is proper and what is not and man opposed what He deemed proper and did the opposite.

What am I to understand from the fact that God has repeated the phrase, "God gave them over" three times now?  Perhaps some of these make sense:

• It is important and He is stressing it.
• It is making it clear that God has removed His hand of restraint from man and is allowing him to freely partake in sin as a consequence unto itself.
• It is making it clear that we have no one to blame but ourselves for the state of our country, nation, and world.  The depravity and depth of sin and its consequences are not God's fault, but our own.  Man stopped seeking Him.  Man stopped honoring Him as God.
• The solution is simple;  HONOR GOD AS GOD AND WORSHIP HIM.  APPROVE HIM AS WORTHY.  

Tomorrow I will begin to look at the remaining verses and break down the words and concepts there to better understand them.