This is the forty-third in a series of verse-by-verse expositions of the book of Romans. This message was delivered at Hillcrest Baptist Church on the morning of March 23, 2014. This message deals with the fact that all have heard, ignorance is no excuse. This post contains an audio recording of my message, along with my sermon notes and a study outline. Please note that the sermon notes are not a full transcript.
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Romans 10:18-21
It is clear that Paul is appealing to his Jewish brethren here, for he invokes the Psalms, Deuteronomy and Isaiah.
He appeals to them through the writings, the law and the prophets.
v.18:
The first Scripture invoked is Psalm 19:4
Paul appeals to them from the standpoint of natural revelation.
God has revealed Himself through His creation; therefore, there is no excuse. No on can claim ignorance of God.
Psalm 19:1-4
Romans 1:19-20
Natural revelation has some limits, in that it isn’t specific.
Natural revelation does not tell us who God is, or what He wants from us.
Natural revelation doesn’t reveal Christ; therefore, it is no substitute for the Bible.
Natural revelation simply tells us that there is a creator.
However, if one looks at the creation, acknowledges a creator, and wants to know who He is, we can rest assured that God will reveal Christ to that person.
A great example of this is Phillip and the Ethiopian.
Acts 8:26-39
So. . . we can safely say that because of God’s natural revelation, no person on earth has ever had a valid excuse for ignorance of Christ.
v.19:
In the case of Paul’s Jewish brethren, they had also had the words of the law and the prophets, which had revealed Christ to them.
This quotation was a prophecy by Moses
Deuteronomy 32:21
Moses told them that they would be jealous of the gentiles, and that’s exactly what happened.
They thought they had an exclusive claim to God, but they hadn’t understood His intent.
Their faith was based on works rather than grace, so they were never able to attain a proper relationship and understanding of Him.
So, when a group came along who accepted God’s gift of grace through Christ, and God poured out His love on these people, the Jews became jealous. . . Just as God had said.
v.20:
This quote was a prophecy from Isaiah 65:1.
Isaiah prophesied the God would save the gentiles, and that’s exactly what happened.
The gentiles hadn’t been seeking God, they had their own gods and idols.
However, God sought them out, and many have accepted His grace.
Now He uses them to be His light in the world. It is the church who, today, carries the torch of the Gospel.
And in these prophecies, God’s word proves true, time and again!
v.21:
The conclusion here is a message of hope from Isaiah 65:2
Even today, God still reaches out to Israel. He is not yet finished with them, and they will be redeemed.
Even today, God blesses and waits for us.
Though we can be stubborn and disobedient, He reaches out.even when we don’t deserve it.
He reaches out to us. Let us not be like the Jews of old, and refuse to spread God’s light throughout the world.
He reaches out to us, let us extend the reach, and share the Gospel.
In Defense: The Blog 
Posted on March 27, 2014
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