I appreciate that icebreaker. I was thinking in my head, you know, we're going from God's goodness and mercy violently hunting you down all the days of your life to God's just violently hunting you down. But our passage this afternoon is going to be, we're back in Romans 1. Romans chapter 1. And we're gonna be finishing up the chapter this afternoon. So Romans 1, where we left off is verse 17. So we're gonna be starting in verse 17. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. who hold the truth in unrighteousness, because that which may be known of God is manifest in them, for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power in Godhead, so that they are without excuse. But that when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened." professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like unto corruptible man, and to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to the uncleanness through the lust of their own hearts to dishonor their own bodies between themselves, who changed the truth of God into a lie and worshiped and served the creature more than the creator. who is blessed forever, amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections, for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature. And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another, men with men, working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meek. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient. being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful. who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only to do the same, but to have pleasure in them that do them." So if you were with us over the past several times I've spoke here, we've looked at You know, the glorious case for the gospel that is revealed, as we read in the beginning of this passage, from faith to faith. So, you know, through our our lives. And Paul is now shifting gears and we see how the righteousness of God is revealed through our faith. But now we're going to shift and look at But how is the wrath of God revealed and who is it revealed against? So those are the things we're going to take a look at this afternoon. But the first thing we need to understand when we're Thinking about wrath is God's wrath and our wrath are completely different They don't compute. So when we think of anger You know, I think of I've got three boys. So they're always uh, you know Angry at each other about something, you know with It's either Ace took Freddy's digger or dump truck, or Freddy told Ace he couldn't say digger or dump truck. Yes, all of our quarrels come back to digger and dump truck at my house somehow. But that's not what the wrath of God is. It's not a silly anger like we have. God's wrath is a righteous anger against the ungodliness of men. one verse I wanted to go to, just to kind of get the seriousness of what we're dealing with here, is the book of Nahum. If you're unsure where that is, it is between, it's right after Jonah. I put a bookmark so y'all didn't have to sit up here and watch me flip for several minutes to get to it. Nahum chapter one. And we're gonna begin reading in verse two. So Nahum 1.2. All right. God is jealous and the Lord revengeth. The Lord revengeth and is furious. The Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries. He reserveth wrath for his enemies. The Lord is slow to anger and great in power and will not at all acquit the wicked. The Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm and the clouds are the dust of his feet. He rebuketh the sea and maketh it dry. He dryeth up all the rivers. Bashan languisheth, and Carmel and the flower of Lebanon languisheth. The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt. The earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world and all that dwell therein. Who can stand before his indignation? Who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? His fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him. So we kind of see in this passage exactly what we're talking about, the seriousness of the wrath of God, how seriously God is taking sin and how seriously this sin of the world is to God. That such language that is used here is, they will not be acquitted at all. you know, that's some serious righteous anger and the God's anger is right because again, the sin is a personal offense to him and to his character. So going back to Romans, we're looking at who this wrath is against. Now that we have a better understanding of the wrath of God that we're dealing with, it says it's revealed from heaven against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. So if we really look at that, the ungodliness and unrighteousness, essentially what that is and what that is meaning is ungodliness would be a sinful position toward God. So it's a sinful position upward. and unrighteousness is a sinful position against your fellow man, so laterally. So if we think of it that way, what Paul is basically saying is they're violating all of the commandments. As Christ said in Mark 12, 29, 31, the greatest commandment is, love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, mind, with all thy heart, and to love thy neighbor as thyself. And in that is all of the law and all the apostles wrapped up. So that is what Paul is saying here. It's ungodliness. So sin against God himself and sin against others is what they are guilty of. We look at the next section here, who hold the truth in unrighteousness. And as I was studying this, it was really interesting. The word hold in the Greek can also be translated to suppress, and it kind of helps you get a little bit better understanding of this verse when you think of it. They suppress this truth with their unrighteousness. It kind of helps get a better idea, doesn't it, of they have the truth that we're about to get into here in a second, but they're suppressing it with unrighteousness. So they're literally striving against it, trying to squash it and hold it down by just covering it up with unrighteousness. So next, we're kind of getting into the section here of what Paul is saying as far as that it is known to them. He says in verse 19, because that which may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has showed that unto them. Calvin has a really good quote that I found. It's a lengthier quote, so I ask you to bear with me as I read it, but I think it really kind of sums this point up. we were created as worshipful creatures. So from the moment we're born, we have a realization that there is a higher, there is a God out there. That's why I think you see so many different religions and so many different angles that people have gone at, because we were created to worship. And everyone in their heart of hearts has a realization that there is a God out there. And that's what this passage is saying, is God is manifest in them. They don't have the excuse of, well, we didn't know, because it is in them. We'll read this Calvin quote here. Again, I found it puts it a little bit better than I ever could. So this is what Calvin says on the subject. From this we can conclude that it is not doctrine that must first be learned in school, but one of which each of us is the master from his mother's womb and which nature itself permits no one to forget, although we may strive with every nerve to that end. There is within the human mind and indeed by natural instinct an awareness of divinity. This we take to be beyond controversy to prevent anyone from taking refuge in the pretense of ignorance. God himself has implanted in all men a certain understanding of his divine majesty. ever renewing its memory and repeatedly sheds fresh drops. Since, therefore, men one and all perceive that there is a God and that He is their Maker, they are condemned by their own testimony because they have failed to honor Him and to consecrate their lives to His will." So again, I thought that did a really good job of summing that up. Even though they are striving with every nerve to the end to suppress the truth that there is a God out there, even though they are striving to that end, they're condemned by their own testimony, because they realize, they know that there is a God out there. And what their position is, is it's a position of, like in the Psalms where it says, the fool has said in his heart, no God, or there is no God. You can take it either way, and it still means the same thing, is either they're acknowledging that God is there, and they're saying absolutely not, or they know that He's there and they're saying there is no God, equally condemned by their foolishness. And if that's not enough, if the internal revelation is not enough, then in verse 20, Paul goes on to say, for the invisible things of Him are shown in creation, from the creation of the world, being understood by the things that are made. creation even screams that there is a God. You know, you look at just the way that the earth rotates around the sun. You know, we often kind of overthink that, but do you know that if we were 100 miles closer or 100 miles further away, we would burn to death or freeze to death depending on which direction we were? I mean, that's incredible. And that it stayed on that exact axis, exactly where it needed to be to bring the seasons into place, to do all of those things, the way that the trees are going to, you know, they create the oxygen for us to breathe. And that's all of this is incredible. And yet the world will look at that and say, well, a bomb created all of that. What foolishness is a bomb? When has a bomb ever created life? Ever. It doesn't happen. Creation is also manifesting and screaming of God that they may know His power and His Godhead. And it says at the end of verse 20, so that they are without excuse. They have no excuse. When Christ comes back and the judgment of God is here, the wicked will not be able to say, no one told us. will not be a valid excuse because they had the internal, you know, their internal conscience that is pointing them to God and that this passage is saying here. And also all of creation is screaming of God as well. You know, you're fully, you know, the whole 360 degrees condemned, that they're without excuse. So, Next, I kind of want to look at, when we get into this next section, it'll kind of help us as we're going through it. Now we're going to jump into the way that the wrath of God is revealed. And we're going to see a progression here. Those that are taking notes, you can kind of I'll write these down, it'll kind of help us in the sections, but we're gonna see three different areas affected, and it's kind of a progression. So we're gonna have first their worship is affected, next their bodies is affected, and then their minds are affected lastly. So we're gonna see that progression as we're going through this next section. But in verse 21, it kind of begins that. Because that when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God. Neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools." So this passage here is saying they knew God, and yet they decided to glorify Him not as God. But professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. Brothers and sisters, if there's not a passage that better describes the day and age in which we live, and it should also bring comfort that this has been going on since the beginning of time, what we're going through right now, that since the beginning of the world, there have been those that have professed themselves to be wise, that will follow the science, and They are, I mean, they're professing themselves that they have all of the answers. And yet, what does this passage say? It says that they are fools. They have no understanding whatsoever. You look at the, you know, the evolution, the, you know, the mindset that's going on with the world today of, you know, the transgender movement, all of those things. They say that they're wise. They say they have a scientific reason for all of this, you know, for all of this. But when you really look at it, it's foolishness. It's got holes all through it. It makes no sense. That is, again, it should bring a little bit of comfort that this has been, even in Paul's day it was true, and it's true today, that all of this is the same. And in 23, it says, they changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like unto corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things. So when they knew not God, they then created idols after man and after beasts. Think about it for a second of knowing God, knowing that there is an eternal being out there that created the whole world and created each and every one of us, and yet we're going to build a statue of a donkey or of a pig whatever, or of yourself. That's actually a better fit for the day and age, is that we build a statue of ourselves. You know, people aren't doing like in the old days and making statues of animals as much. It's more common that we're self-worshippers today of I'm, you know, I am the God, or trust in your heart, follow, you know, I'm gonna follow my own heart, do what makes me happy. That's the mindset that's being pushed today. So they're making the change the glory of an uncorruptible God into an image made like an incorruptible man. That's a faulty comparison. That's like getting a, sorry for you non-football people, but that's like taking a gum wrapper and making a ring with it. and trading it in for Tom Brady's Super Bowl ring. It's a phony. It has no comparison of the value. And that's what these people are doing, is they're taking the knowledge of uncorruptible God and putting that glory on a corruptible being, whether it be man or whether it be beasts. They are putting the You know, the glory on that. And it's it's an imitation. It's a cheap, cheap knockoff. You know, it's like the Alibaba version of a shoe that you like. It doesn't hold up. So that is what they're doing here is they're, you know, constantly professing and I enjoyed looking at kind of the the word professing. You can also translate it asserting or affirming. They're constantly asserting or affirming that they are wise, but yet this passage says that they're fools because their worship is pointed in the wrong direction. They have the truth right in front of them, and yet they cover their eyes and put the glory of God on a corruptible creature. And this passage says that they are fools and that they are without excuse in that. So the next section, we can see it affects their worship. But in the next section, starting in verse 24, we're going to see that it also affects, it will next affect their bodies. So God gave them over to uncleanness through the lust of their own hearts to dishonor their own bodies between themselves. So we see that, you know, what does God do when they're glorifying not Him through their worship? They've put it on corruptible creatures. Well, then God gives them over to, you know, to chase after the lust of their flesh. That they are, one, One translation I thought did a really good job. They're continuously dishonoring their bodies, so continuously degrading. Rather than honor and preserving their bodies, they're consistently degrading their bodies among themselves. And that's the sin of fornication. They're chasing after every whim that pops into their head without any filter, without any restraint. if it comes in, they're running full-fledged after it. And this passage says that they are degrading and that they're not preserving their bodies. They're degrading it, and degrading means to break down. If you're degrading a rock, it's slowly washing away bit by bit until there's nothing left. Well, that's what they're doing, is they're destroying themselves in what they think is gonna fulfill them or make them happy. But this passage says that they're dishonoring their body, they're degrading it continuously. In verse 25, it says, who changed the truth of God into a lie, and again, they're worshiping the creature, so striving or looking after, glorifying the human body. that sounds again like today, it sounds like ancient Greece all over again of consistently glorifying the creature rather than the creator. Again, they're exchanging the truth for a lie is what they're doing when they're pursuing after fornication. So, and again, we're intrinsically built to worship. So who we are worshiping is gonna affect our whole entire life. It's gonna affect everything. And that's where the bodies are gonna tie in, is you can see who you worship is gonna lead further and further down this rabbit hole and this progression that we're gonna kind of get into a little bit. But we've gotta get that straight in our minds of, who we worship, that is the key, that's the first domino in a train. If you have that wrong or right, the rest of your life is going to be affected by it. We have the continual degrading of their bodies among themselves with fornication. But then if you look at verse 26, it goes a step further. And it says, for this cause, God gave them unto vile affections for even the women to change the natural use into that which is against nature. Likewise, also the men leaving the natural use of the woman burned in their lust one toward another, men with men working that which is unseemly and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meat." Again, it's kind of a comfort that the day that we are living in where homosexuality is rampant and it constantly being shoved, feels like being shoved in front of us 24-7, there's nothing new under the sun. This is not a shock to God or to Christianity to have this in front of them, or to be constantly badgered by this mindset. Because it was around, you know, we've got stories of Sodom and Gomorrah. It was around then, it's around now, and it will be around till Christ comes back. Because it is the progression of things. And it says God gives them up. So again, He's giving them up to constantly degrade their bodies among themselves in fornication. But then we go a step further when that doesn't do it. He gives them up yet again to vile affection. So he says it's vile, it's a stench before God, and it's to that which is against nature. It doesn't even make any sense by nature to do these things, and that's what they have been giving over to and to chase fully after. So it's kind of a sobering thought that, you know, just to see the progression of things. I mean, we don't very rarely do people jump into the massive big sins right away, but it's a slow degrading of themselves with with sin that they harbor and hold on to. And it starts with their worship. You know, you worship yourself and you you think, you know, who's your your ultimate goal to please? Well, it's yourself. And if you want something, then you're going to go get it. And that just progressively goes until You know, the old saying, 100% true, sin will keep you longer than you wanted to stay, and it will cost you more than you wanted to pay, you know, take you further than you wanted to go. That road, even though it looks, you know, you think, well, I'm going to start here, I'm going to end here, no one knows, and it's fine. it honestly goes further than that because when you get to the end of the road, you'll find it's not enough. I've got to go, you know, then it's the next step and the next step and the next step. And you look up and you're so far from where you started. Um, and that's the progression that we have here is that they are slowly progressing further and further into sexual immorality. Um, because they've, They have missed the point. They have glorified the creature more than the Creator. And again, it's a comfort to us to see God is not shocked by what we're going through right now. I mean, that's that's a huge comfort that this is nothing new to God, that this is nothing that He hasn't seen before. We can take comfort through that, can't we? That these saints here in Rome, they saw the same thing that we're dealing with today, and they made it through it. And that's Brother Lewis' sermon this morning, that the providence of God, He will see us through, He's with us on the mountaintop, and He's with us through the fire, He's with us through the flood, no matter where we're at, He's promised He will be with us, and we can take comfort in that and see in that. So next, we'll see that in the progression of things, in verse 28, we'll see that the mind is now affected. It says, even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, You can also translate that they refuse to acknowledge God in their minds. So again, they're suppressing the truth in unrighteousness. They're not acknowledging God in their minds as they're constantly trying to suppress and cover it up with more unrighteousness so that they don't have to think about it. So because of that, God gave them over to a reprobate mind. And the translation for reprobate, it simply means a worthless, unapproved, and rejected mind. Worthless, unapproved, rejected. Some pretty strong language that we're seeing of just completely without any value. It's worthless. It is completely rejected of God and debased. So, And they're working things that are not convenient, meaning basically what that means is an absolute denial of what is fit or becoming. So, not only do they have a worthless mind, but they're in complete denial of what would be fit and becoming for a person to be. We're going to look at a couple of these. I'm going to try to go quickly. I would encourage you, I really enjoy kind of studying these, some of these out. I would encourage you to do a word study on them. Some of these words don't get used today, so it can kind of help get a better understanding of what's being talked about here. And I really feel like it would be edifying. But it says that their minds are filled with these things. Fornication, that's one that we mostly know, it would be the lust of the mind. Wickedness, mischief or harm to others. Covetous, greed, desire for more and more. Maliciousness, ill will or spite. Full of envy, wholly given over to resentment or jealousy for what another has. Murder. That one's pretty self-explanatory. The taking of human life. Debate. Constant discord, contention, or quarreling. Deceit. Trickery or craftiness. Malignity. Which is, the translation of that is, it's kind of like a mischief. Seeking to ruin others. Whispers or gossips. Backbiters, slandering, speaking down against others. Haters of God, having nothing to do with and hostile towards God, His way, His will, and His word. Despiteful, violent, or brutal. Proud, conceited, and arrogant. Boasters, braggarts, or loudmouths. Inventors of evil things, seeking out new wickedness and new ways to be sinful. disobedient to parents. Now kids, I want my kids to listen to this. I want you to take note of disobedient to parents being listed in this group of things. That is horrifying if you really think about it, that God takes the honoring of your parents while you're under their authority seriously. Anyway, I thought that that is taking me off guard this whole time. Had to make a quick, you know, had to point that out. Rebellious against God-given authority and refusing it. Without understanding, undiscerning, without moral or spiritual understanding. So they have no moral or spiritual conscience whatsoever. Covenant breakers. They're untrustworthy. Breakers of promises and agreements. Without natural affection, unloving toward those closest to them, namely like a family relationship. Implaceable, unforgiving without positive thoughts towards others. So just a generally bitter, evil person that has nothing good to say about anybody. I'm sure y'all have probably run across someone like that. Unmerciful, cruel, no pity, calloused, no desire to help those in need. So that is a lengthy list, but you can kind of see that that is what Paul is saying. God has fully given over the world to this reprobate mind, to this worthless, rejected mind, that they are full of these things. And it wouldn't take you very long to go out in the world and to see that, that there's rampant just hatred, backbiting, covenant breakers, the lying, the disobedient to parents. All of that is rampant in the world society because this is the progression of things that the further, God has fully given them over to a reprobate mind or a worthless mind. And it says they are fully aware in their conscience and are under the righteous judgment. So that says in verse 32 is saying, knowing the judgment of God. So they they know they're guilty. They can have the prick, you know, the prick in their conscience. And it says they're constantly trying to suppress that with their unrighteousness, that they realize that this is wrong. and yet they're constantly trying to suppress it and to cover it up. And they're not only doing these things, so not only are they taking part in all of this, but they have pleasure in those that do them. And that's why it is so, so important of who our friends are. I remember growing up, my parents made a big deal about it, and I never really got it, I thought, well, you know, it's not that big of a deal. But the the older you get, the more you realize and I'm probably just, you know, I'm not even a drop in the bucket to some of y'all. So y'all probably know more about more about it than I do. But, you know, you can see it that who you closely align yourself with, you know, who your friends are says a lot about what's what's in you. You know, it's like a mirror that reflects because who you call friend A friend, what are they? They're the ones you have the most in common with, the closest fellowship with. If that person has a reprobate mind and is chasing after all of these things, you need to closely examine where you are because it says more about you than you think. It really does. So they're not only doing these things, but they're having pleasure in those that do them. So you probably noticed about three or four times in this passage, so how is the wrath of God revealed? Well, the wrath of God is revealed by the hand of restraint being removed. He is not the shepherd of the world. He is not the good shepherd that has their good in mind, but he is letting them run after all that their heart desires, knowing that they will bring about their own destruction. And we see that in the world today, that this lifestyle, although it can seem, they'll tell you how glossy it is, when you really talk to somebody that's engaging in it, they are miserable, miserable people. Because all that this brings is brokenness, heartache, and destruction is all it does. I was watching a football game the other day, There was a commercial for a depression pill you take with a depression pill to make the depression pill more effective. Think about that. That is the condition of the world, is there, you know, depression and anxiety, suicide, all of those things are so widespread. And people are asking, well, why? Well, this is why. They've been given over to the reprobate mind, to a worthless, degenerate mind to chase after all that they'd ever want. to have all that they'd ever dreamed of. And when they catch it, they find out that they traded a Super Bowl ring for a gum wrapper ring. It's worthless. It has no value. It belongs in the trash. So that is the wrath of God to the people, to the wickedness of the world right now, is that the hand of restraint is removed. And I think sheep is an apt description for us as people. Because without the shepherd, you know, Lewis did an excellent job several years ago. I remember growing up about the worth, you know, the the stupidity of sheep. They can't do anything. They can barely eat by themselves. If they fall over and lay too long, they'll they'll die. The shepherd has to bring them, you know, flip them over. They're worthless. And if left up to their own desire, they'll walk straight off a cliff. And that is the perfect description of The world, when God removes the hand of restraint, they're just going wherever their heart desires, but they're walking straight to destruction. They're walking toward the edge of the cliff. And it's as awful as that judgment is, it is only a drop in the bucket compared to the wrath that they're storing up under the day of wrath. Romans 2.5 says that. You probably, if your Bible's like mine, you can look at it from where we're at. Romans 2, 5. But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and the revelation of the righteous judgment of God. So again, the wrath that they're experiencing right now, the wrath that they're under, the wrath of God right now, they are still treasuring up much more to come in the day of wrath. But this is only a drop in the bucket compared to what God has in store for them. And it is coming sooner rather than later. So what do we do with this? What's our application? And I think Lewis in his, I'll call it an icebreaker, but his introduction did a really good job of kind of tying these in. But for us that are believers, this would make us incredibly thankful that the wrath of God that we had stored up was cast upon Christ. God does not see that when he looks at us anymore. God is not violently hunting you down. His goodness and his mercy are now violently hunting you down. That when he looks at you, he doesn't see the wrath that you had stored up like he does in the world. All he sees is Jesus Christ and him crucified so that you are not without excuse. You are completely blameless. It's a beautiful contrast that the world will have no excuse before God. They will stand there and they will try to throw every excuse in the book and he will have none of them. And all we have to do is point to Jesus and say, because of him, and we will be accepted. That's a beautiful thought. And it says in Romans 8.1, this is becoming one of my favorite verses, but there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. So there is now, right now, currently, at this very moment, no, none whatsoever, condemnation. Again, that is a beautiful, beautiful thought that we are completely accepted and our wrath has been done away with. But it should also cause us to take sin seriously. seeing how God views these things. And the beautiful reality is, now that we are in Christ, the old man is dead. So all of these thoughts, all of these things that we, if we're honest with ourselves going down that list, if you're anything like me, you stopped a couple times and thought, I've been guilty of that before. in Christ we have the desire to fight these things and put them to death. That we're not enslaved to them like the world is anymore. That we don't have to continue the progression of running after these, this is gonna be the analogy of the sermon, but the gum paper rain. We don't have to do it. That we have the ability to fight and that anytime we sin, It is not because anything that made us, but because we of our own free will chose to disobey and to walk away from God. So it should cause us to take sin seriously, knowing how God views sin, that God takes sin seriously, because it's a personal offense to Him and His character. And lastly, to the believers, it should cause us to have compassion and to pray on those that we know that are lost. Because we realize the true state of where they are at, that even though they refuse to realize it, and that's what this passage says, they refuse to realize where they are. We know that they are treasuring up wrath under the day of wrath, and that they are currently under the wrath of God right now. and that we should pray for them to have their eyes open to see the light of their condition. And not that the Christian life is this rainbow road with no issues, but the difference is, whereas you are under the wrath of God and you are completely left to your own devices and you're storing up wrath unto the day of wrath, for us, God didn't promise an easy road, but he promised he would be with us on the road. So both lives are going to be difficult because we're in a sin-cursed world. But the difference is we are no longer storing up wrath, and Christ has promised he would be with us every step of the journey. No matter if we're walking through the fire on the mountaintop, he is with us. The wicked, the only thing they have is they themselves and I. They have nothing to lean on, no hope. other than storing up wrath in the Day of Wrath. And to the unbeliever, I would say, again, this passage does make it clear there will be no excuse before God in the Day of Judgment. There will be no, I didn't know, I wasn't told. He will not accept it. And there is no gray area. You're not gonna be able to sell that, well, I went to church on Easter. It's not gonna work. You are in Christ or you are outside of Christ. End of story. There is no gray area. And Solomon, or Solomon says in Proverbs 13, 15, I'm not gonna turn there for sake of time, but, good understanding giveth favor, but the way of the transgressor is hard. You are on a hard path. The path that you're on is only going to lead to hurt and destruction in the end. But Christ has promised that all those that will come to Him, He will in no wise cast out. And there is an answer. There is an answer for the wrath that you have stored up. It's Jesus Christ. So I would encourage you, if you've seen your sin today, that you would run to Him, because He is the only answer for the wrath that you have accumulated under yourself. And this wrath is like credit card debt. You can continue to run it up, but eventually it comes time to pay. So that is what I've got. So we'll close in prayer real quick. Our gracious Heavenly Father, Father, we just thank you so much for Jesus and His shed blood, that you have told us that there is now no condemnation for us that are in Christ Jesus. Father, we thank You for that reality that Christ came and died on the cross for our sins, that our wrath is no longer... that the wrath of God towards us was cast upon Him. And Father, we just thank You so much for that reality. We pray for any of those that are here that are not in Christ today, Father, that You would prick their heart and draw them to Yourself. That You would show them their position before You and that they would see that the true answer is Jesus Christ the righteous. Thank you for our service today, and I pray that you would just bless each and every one of us as we go out from this place. It's in Jesus' name I pray, amen.