 Romans 1:32 When we think of death we often, humanly, think "it can't possibly happen to me". The Christians viewed death in a different light. To us it is not a cessation of life, but a type of "sanctification", a separation into another sphere of life. The soul departs the sleeping body to live with God in the heavenlies. "Spiritual" death is also a type of sanctification or separation.
The "sinner apart from Christ is spiritually dead", that is, separated from God because of the barrier of sin in his life. Man has three parts that makes up his being: "body, soul, and spirit". In "physical death" the soul is separated from the body so that the body can no longer interact with the world around it. In "spiritual death" the spirit is separated from the soul, so that the soul of man can have no interaction with the Heavens and God. Spiritual death in this life can be either temporary or permanent. If the sinner, lost and undone, accepts Christ as his Savior, then God the Holy Spirit "regenerates" or makes that person spiritually alive. After regeneration the believer has rapport with God his Father. However, if the sinner leaves this life unregenerate; that is, he makes no attempt to rectify his spiritual deficiency while he walks this earth, then that "spiritual death becomes eternal". Application: If a sinner apart from Christ is spiritually dead, then:
Note: Here Paul addresses the Jew directly. The Jew is ready enough to judge Gentiles, but forgets that the same principle which condemns the Gentile (doing evil in spite of knowing better) condemns him also. Though the Jew was not doing the exact same sin, he was sinning in much the same way. Application: What does the Bible teach about judgement? Careful now:
Application: What is holiness, and how does it relate to us? Previous Paul established that God, evident in nature, is not hidden from mankind. He is truly there, and He is not silent. Paul now carries this discussion to it's obvious conclusion: Man has no excuse. The Jews, because they were the chosen of God from Old Testament times, held themselves up as superior to the Gentiles in every way. Yet these same Jews, keepers of God's Law, failed just as miserably in serving the Almighty as did the Gentiles they condemned. Paul reiterates a teaching of our Lord Jesus:
"Christ told the listeners not to judge their brothers, as God alone is capable of judgment." God's standard alone is pure, He alone can see the soul of man and determine his intentions. Paul extends this concept to the Gentiles as well. In the Church Age salvation was extended to both Jew and Gentile equally. The new steward of the Gospel, the Church, is where all saved believers meet and share with one another. God alone can judge His children who fall under the saving plan of Christ in the Church. Application: If the Jews failed in their stewardship and were punished, what makes us think that we, the Church, will not suffer the same fate?
Can you find a revelation of the Church in the Old Testament? "Therefore thou art inexcusable" is the Greek "ANAPOLOGETOS", which means "without apology or defense". The Jews have no excuse before God for failing in their stewardship. The Gentiles, who had the revelation of God through nature, but did not possess the Law of God as did the Jews, had less incentive to accept Christ as Savior (and yet, they did). The Jews possessed greater revelation, and yet rejected Christ. Israel was totally "without excuse".
The Israelites felt that since their nation was chosen by God, that they would escape "individual punishment". Lest you quickly rebuke the Israelites for such silly thinking, think of how many Church members feel that they are automatically saved "because they are affiliated with the Church". To be a good Baptist means nothing to God: "but being saved in Christ guarantees eternal security". Salvation is of the Lord, through belief in Jesus Christ only. Yet even in our day, people join the Church feeling that this association will in some way save them. To these Paul states: "thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God". The underlined text is in the Greek "emphatic position", that is, the words are to be heavily emphasized: "Do you really think this!?". "No man, woman, or child will ever be saved by association with an organization, no matter how pure that association's purpose may be."
Application: WAIT a MINUTE! If I'm saved, doesn't this mean that I'll never be judged? Yet this text speaks of being judged for my deeds. "despisest" is the Greek "KATAPHRONEO", literally meaning "To look down the nose at". The question is asked in such a way as to force a "yes" answer: "You are despising God's riches, aren't you?". The Jews, by their very action, held the longsuffering, goodness, and forbearance of God in low regard. Yet it was these very qualities of deity that lead them (and us) to repentance unto salvation:
"If God were not longsuffering toward humanity, I dare say that none of us would be saved today." Had God struck out in anger each time we rejected the Gospel message, the Church (and the world itself) would be much more sparsely populated. God stayed His judging hand in love, not willing that any should see eternal damnation. The Jews saw this longsuffering and, in so enjoying God's mercy, began to confuse His inactivity with passivity. The same text that teaches God's longsuffering also teaches His judgment. Eventually He, in His infinite wisdom, dispersed the Jews under Rome in 70 AD. Though He is longsuffering, this patient attitude will never last an unrepentant lifetime.
God, in His compassion, allows the fruitful seasons and harvests to all mankind, regardless of spiritual condition. If it were not for this longsuffering then man would perish before he had the opportunity to accept or reject the Gospel message. Theologians call this working of God's goodness "Common Grace", or the Grace that God bestows freely to all mankind. This same Common Grace is a witness of God's existence:
The witness which God shows through nature, providing for all mankind, leads men to repentance when they see it's infinite and yet so perfect design. The natural revelation of God is always expressed through His provision in nature. Notice in verse 5 above that the disobedient Jew "treasurest up unto" himself "wrath". Remember that "wrath" is the Greek "orge", meaning "a violent provoked move of the mind into rage". "Treasurest" literally means "To gather, store up, lay aside so as to save for later". This verse is very illustrative of God's Judgment on unrepentant man:
Application: If I have no staying power, if I have not been changed by salvation, then am I saved?
How does my answer effect "Eternal Security"? It is easy to dwell on the aspect of God in giving reward or blessing. We all know that believers will be judged for reward at the Judgment Seat of Christ, and every action that we take between now and the afterlife adds to or takes away from our "reward account". Yet the wicked unsaved also treasure or store up a judgment account for themselves in the afterlife. Unbelievers think that, when they commit a foul act but are unpunished in this life, that they "got away with it". Believers often fall into the trap of complacency and think, "Well, who'll know?". Yet they are also treasuring up an account that will be settled (not by loss of salvation, but by loss of reward) in the afterlife. As the text in verse 6 states: "Who (God) will render to every man according to his deeds".
Application: As Jesus said, "every tree is known by his own fruit.". The proof of a believer's conversion into eternal life is whether or not he serves the One who saved him. An old idiom is this: If a pig goes to the altar and prays and, after returning is still a pig, then this is not a believer but a deluded lost soul. But if a pig goes to the altar and prays and, after returning is a sheep of God, then the conversion was true toward salvation. Joining the Church saves no one, no more than being a person born into Israel. Only faith in Christ for salvation through repentance of sin leads to the changed life characteristic of the Christian. Note: Vincent defines the "judgment of God" here as not the act of judging, but the content of the judgment.
"do not obey" is the Greek "APEITHEO", which means "To not allow oneself to be persuaded, to refuse or withhold belief". The Greek mood and tense of "doeth" denotes "working out to the finish." The Jews had the truths of God's Word, and yet insisted on creating vain fables of the "Uncertain lineage of Christ". The Jewish historian Josephus said that the orthodox Jews of that time even went so far as to say that Jesus was the son of a harlot, without a known earthly father. The Jews paid others to say that the resurrection was false, that Jesus' body was taken out of the tomb by His disciples:
As Paul discussed earlier, these were those who "held down the truth" (Romans 1:18) in a misguided attempt to maintain their own lost status quo.
Note: Alford, "The Apostle is here speaking generally of the system of God in judging the world. The judging according to each man's works, punishing the evil, and rewarding the righteous. No question at present arises how this righteousness in God's sight is to be obtained. But the truth is only stated broadly at present, to be further specified by and by, when it is clearly shown that by works of law no flesh can be justified before God. The neglect to observe this has occasioned two mistakes: (1) an idea that by this passage it is proved that not by faith only, but works also in some measure justify by God, and (2) an idea that by good work here is meant faith in Christ." "worketh" means "To work out to the finish". Every man who keeps working diligently for God in this life, who stays on the pathway of righteousness, lays up for himself reward in the next life. Paul himself fell in this category:
Application: If I "walk the aisle" yet turn my back on God, forgetting all about Him, am I saved? Again, the reward spoken of is not the reward of salvation. We already possess salvation through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. This is the reward of a Christian life lived in purity, a life lived while seeking to please the Father. God rewards faithful believers in the next life (see 2 Corinthians 5), just as He removes reward from unfaithful believers. "there is no respect of persons with God", that is, His judgment is equally applied to all people regardless of their outward appearance. "Respect of persons" is a Greek word that means "To look on the outward countenance and, based on this, make a decision about that person's value". God doesn't look at the outward, but at the inward man, the activity and motivation of the soul.
"For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law..." "Perish" is the Greek word APOLLUMI, which means "to be under a judgmental death". The Jews, who were given the Law of God, were accountable to live by the same Law. The Gentiles, who were "not" given the Law, were accountable to God through His natural revelation in the world around them. "All mankind, therefore, is without excuse (Romans 1:20) when it comes to eternal judgment." The Gentiles would not be judged by the revelation of the Law for they had never received the Law (as the Jews did). But they were given revelation, the revelation of Nature, and were thus accountable. All who die outside of union with Christ shall be judged by either written Law (the Mosaic Code) or by unwritten Law (Natural Revelation). No unbeliever escapes judgment. An interesting side point is this: "Apollumi" is never used for Christians in the Bible. When a Christian dies he is said "to sleep". The Christian's death is always described in peaceful and restful terms, whereas the unbeliever is said to "perish", "die", or "suffer death". "Not the hearers of the law are just before God,". "hearers" is the Greek "AKROATES". The "akroates" were professional men back in the time of Christ who attended synagogue regularly to listen to the reading of the Law. These men had no real relationship with the Father: what they did was on the scale of empty ritualism and religious behavior. They were akin to the people of our era who attend Church regularly, hear the sermon preached, and yet never pay attention to the intent of the message in the sermon. Many in our churches today feel like they can, by regular church attendance, enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. God views this type of person as the unjustified, the religious but lost. "Hearing and studying God's Word without applying it's precepts is useless:"
The blessings of God only come on us when we hear God's Word and then, applying it's precepts, do what it asks. Only by "doing" what God commands do we see blessing. This was aptly demonstrated in the life of Jacob:
Only "after" Jacob did what God commanded was he then blessed with the Promised Land. Too often as believers we stand before God, hands outstretched, waiting to be blessed. And yet we want to receive that blessing without putting forth the effort of service that God demands. Works certainly don't bring about salvation, but they are necessary after salvation if you want to receive the blessings of God. Click Here! Click Here! 
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