SOS from the non-believers (Romans 1:18-32)

[Stephan Choe]

October 9, 2026

Leading Verses

18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.”

21 “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

Today we hear about wars in Ukraine, the Middle East, and Iran. Because of these wars, gasoline prices have skyrocketed, and food costs are also rising. The word "war" has spread like a pandemic in people's minds.

However, there is another pandemic far more deadly than war: sin – it can lead us to spiritual death and eternal damnation. Therefore, the Apostle Paul describes the deadly consequences of sin and issues a serious warning against it.

We want to examine ourselves with regard to sin by examining the chapters of the Epistle to the Romans.

Today we will consider the first point: godlessness and injustice.

1. The Cry for Help from the Unbelievers (18–20)

Today, disbelief in God is spreading like a pandemic. As a result, people are crying out in their distress.

Verse 18 reflects the cry for help of the unbelievers:

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.”

The cause of the suffering experienced by unbelievers lies in their lack of faith in God and their unrighteousness. God is gracious and merciful. Therefore, He wants to lead us—people who have sinned—to recognize our sin and repent. However, if we disregard God's mercy and patience and persist in sin, God's wrath is kindled, and He punishes us.

Unfortunately, many people don't want to hear about God's wrath. They believe that either there is no God or that God would never punish them. They say, "Let's indulge in sin, because tomorrow we die."

However, we should take the devastating consequences of sin seriously, repent of our sin as soon as possible, and accept God's forgiveness in Jesus Christ.

Jesus once told the story of a rich man and a poor man named Lazarus (Luke 16). The rich man lived in splendor and joy every day. In contrast, poor Lazarus suffered greatly from a skin disease and had to beg the rich man for alms; dogs came and licked his diseased skin.

If physical death were the absolute end, then Lazarus would indeed have been miserable and the rich man happy. But physical death is not the final end of human life. After death, the rich man went to hell, while the poor man went to Abraham's side—to where Abraham is in the kingdom of heaven. The rich man called out to Abraham, “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this flame” (Luke 16:24).

Many people don't believe in the existence of hell or heaven. But hell and heaven are real. God judges people after their physical death and sends them either to hell or to heaven. We call this "God's judgment of wrath."

Divine judgment—God's wrath—is not merely a matter of the distant future; it is also a present reality. People who live in sin and far from God experience God's wrath even in this world. Through this present wrath, God wants to lead us to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, so that we do not end up in hell. God's wrath is thus an expression‎ of his loving action, with which he wants to lead us to repentance and eternal salvation.

Some people ask, "What sin have we actually committed? I can't remember any significant sin!"

Paul then explains why all people are sinners and desperately need forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

The sin of those who do not (yet) believe in God can be divided into their unbelief – or their godlessness – and their unrighteousness (18).

Today, many people believe that God does not exist or that God remains inactive. But God lives and reigns over the world. Because people cannot see God with their physical eyes, they deny his existence.

People believe they are truly free without God. In reality, however, they find no freedom without him; they lack a sense of purpose in life and fall into a state of spiritual disorientation.

Their disbelief in God leads to ingratitude, spiritual corruption, family breakdown, and moral failure.

2. Consequences of unbelief in God (verses 21–32)

First: Ingratitude (verse 21)

Verse 21 reads:

“For although they knew God, they neither honored him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

It is God's will that we perceive his presence and thank him, for he loves us and cares for us. Yet people do not thank God, and this ingratitude towards him is the root of sin.

For example, God has given us the gift of life; he has provided us with water, air, light, warmth and food; he has cared for us through our parents and others and has helped us in many different ways.

God even sacrificed his son, Jesus Christ, to redeem us from sin, to take us on as his children, and to give us eternal life and the kingdom of heaven.

At the 2010 Thanksgiving celebration, I listed ten things I was thankful for. These included God, Jesus Christ, my parents and siblings, my teachers, my fellow believers and mentors, my wife and family, my colleagues in the churches in Dortmund and Bochum, as well as Andreas and Renate. Of course, there are many other things one can be thankful for. In all these cases, God worked through various people and events. I am sure that not only I, but every individual, can name many reasons for gratitude.

Unfortunately, people forget God and the blessings for which they should be thankful; they become ungrateful and ignore God. This ingratitude marks the beginning of humanity's sin against God.

Second: spiritual corruption (22–25).

Due to ingratitude, people easily fall into disbelief and empty thinking.

Verses 22–23 read as follows:

“They boasted of being wise, yet became fools. They exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images representing mortal men, birds, four-legged animals, and reptiles.”

Disbelief and empty thoughts lead us astray – into darkness and active sin. Disbelief in God and ingratitude are therefore the root of all human sin.

If we don't believe in God or thank Him, our hearts are empty. Consequently, we seek a substitute god and worship him to fill this emptiness. This substitute god might be a person, money, luck, or a particular achievement. Even if this substitute god isn't inherently bad, it remains something transient; it cannot give us true meaning in life or lasting joy.

Over time, we become dependent on our idols. Money, for example, is actually good for our livelihood and for serving God and others. However, if one loves money more than God or people, the heart grows cold towards God and one's fellow human beings, and one ends up worshipping money.

Many people today believe that disbelief in God doesn't cause any particularly serious problems. But it most certainly does! Let's now consider the consequences of disbelief for family and society.

Third: the disintegration of the family (26–27).

When we worship an idol instead of God, we also experience a gradual moral decline. This corruption leaves its mark, especially on our family relationships. Today, unnatural relationships are considered normal. Why does the general public see it this way? It is a consequence of a lack of faith in God. Because the number of true Christians has drastically decreased, God's commandments are being replaced by godless laws.

Love is a beautiful thing. But distorted love acts like a deadly poison for our souls. When a family breaks apart, the couple and their children suffer greatly. Some historians believe that the disintegration of the family was the root cause of the collapse of the Roman Empire. Thus, the breakdown of the family represents a serious societal problem.

Living as a healthy, faithful family is a powerful testimony to God and Christ. May God use your families as witnesses to the world.

Fourth: The Decline of Society (28–31)

When we reject God, our hearts become empty. Consequently, we try to fill this emptiness with a substitute god. In doing so, we also fall into moral corruption.

Verses 29–31 list the behaviors of corrupt people: injustice, wickedness, greed, disregard for God… lack of understanding, faithlessness, lovelessness, mercilessness, and so on. Moreover, they not only commit evil deeds themselves, but also condone others doing the same. Those who behave rightly before God are mocked and reviled.

Quelle: https://fowid.de/meldung/religionszugehoerigkeiten-2019,0

Religious affiliation of the population in Germany in Dec. 2019

Quelle: https://fowid.de/meldung/religionszugehoerigkeiten-2025

Religious affiliation of the population in Germany in Dec. 2025

 Um das Jahr 1945 herum waren fast alle Deutschen entweder evangelisch oder katholisch. Im Laufe der Jahre ging die Zahl der evangelischen und katholischen Christen stetig zurück. Im Jahr 2019 waren etwa 25 % der deutschen Bevölkerung als evangelisch und 27 % als katholisch registriert. Bis 2025 waren 21 % der Deutschen als evangelisch und 23 % als katholisch verzeichnet.

Innerhalb von sechs Jahren sank der Anteil sowohl der evangelischen als auch der katholischen Christen an der Gesamtbevölkerung um jeweils 4 Prozentpunkte.

Etwa 9 % der Katholiken und 3 % der Protestanten besuchen regelmäßig Gottesdienste.

Christen, die Freikirchen und anderen Konfessionen – wie etwa orthodoxen freikirchlichen Gruppen – angehören, machen rund 3 % der Gesamtbevölkerung aus. Allerdings besuchen nur etwa 13 % von ihnen regelmäßig den Sonntagsgottesdienst.

Ich schätze, dass die Zahl der wahrhaft gläubigen Christen etwa zwei- bis dreimal so hoch ist wie die Zahl der regelmäßigen Gottesdienstbesucher. Das bedeutet, dass nur etwa 10 Prozent der deutschen Bevölkerung tatsächlich an das Evangelium glauben. Wahrhaft gläubige Christen stellen somit eine kleine Minderheit dar.

Es ist kein Wunder, dass im Bundestag Gesetze verabschiedet haben, die nicht auf biblischen Werten beruhen. Ebenso wenig verwundert es, dass viele CDU-Abgeordnete Gesetze zur Gleichstellung unterstützten und damit deren Verabschiedung ermöglichten.

Wir leben in einer Welt, die von einer postmodernen Denkweise geprägt ist. Die vorherrschende Ansicht ist, dass es keine absolute Wahrheit gibt – oder anders ausgedrückt: dass es jedem freisteht, seine eigenen Götzen anzubeten.

Früher war ein Skandal wie die VW-Dieselaffäre in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland kaum vorstellbar. Doch mit der zunehmenden Abkehr von Gott in Deutschland ist ein solcher Skandal tatsächlich eingetreten.

Wir sollten die Ungläubigen und Korrupten nicht beneiden, auch wenn sie uns bisweilen attraktiv erscheinen mögen. Stattdessen sollten wir Gottes Zorn über sie ernst nehmen und Mitleid mit ihnen empfinden – mit einem Herzen, dem ihr Wohlergehen am Herzen liegt. Wir sollten uns nicht von der gottlosen Welt beeinflussen lassen, sondern vielmehr versuchen, ihnen durch das Evangelium zu helfen. Gott wird unsere Gebete für sie gewiss erhören. Amen!