What was the context of Romans 1?
Idolatrous prostitution.
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Homosexuality.
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http://www.gaychristian101.com/ The context of Romans 1 is idolatry and worship of false gods, not lesbians, not gays, not homosexuality. Romans 1 - Recently I was asked if I have any Bible studies on Romans. We are studying the book of Romans verse by verse at our House Church in Pensacola, Florida. I joyfully offer as a FREE gift, in pdf format, my Romans Commentary and Study Guide Questions for you to print and freely use. You are welcome to make copies of these pages to pass out FREE at your Bible study or church or other ministry. You may freely use these lessons in your Bible teaching ministry as long as you: from the rowdy port city of Corinth, where sexual immorality and prostitution were openly practiced. Yet Rome was even more idolatrous than Corinth. Sporting events in the Circus Maximus and fertility goddess worship in pagan temples echoed the adulation of idolatrous Romans. Rome was a city wholly given to idolatry. To understand the Bible, we must factor in the biblical, cultural, doctrinal, historical, linguistic and religious context. In Romans 1:26-27, the context isn't two gay guys or two gay gals who fall in love and covenant to spend their lives together as a couple. 1. The biblical context is Paul making an argument against idolatry by summing up the Old Testament record of pagan Gentile worship, not homosexuality, not gays and lesbians, not transsexuals. 2. The cultural context is the greatest pagan city of the ancient world, an idolatrous tableau featuring hundreds of pagan temples where multitudes worshiped false gods. 3. The doctrinal context is righteousness. God requires righteousness for salvation. We lack righteousness, as evidenced by the pagan idolatry Paul references. God provides righteousness as a free gift to everyone who wants it, including pagan idolaters. 4. The historical context is mid-first century Rome about 25 years after the resurrection of Christ, where the main problem was idolatrous worship of false gods, not gays, not lesbians not trangendered people. 5. The linguistic context is Paul using the Greek word, akatharsian, in Romans 1:24 and 6:19, the same word used in the Greek Septuagint to describe idolatry and shrine prostitution. Paul drives home his point by using the Greek word latreuĊ in v. 25, which we translate as, served. This word, in the Greek Septuagint, always refers to serving false gods. Paul used these words with purpose, to indicate he was referring to shrine prostitutes and their unholy worship of false gods. Paul further drives home his point by using the phrase, arsenes en arsesin in v. 27 or men with men. This reminds us of arseno in Lev 18:22 and 20:13, clear references to shrine prostitutes. 6. The religious context is Cybele, the Phrygian mother goddess who was worshiped by temple prostitutes in at least six of Cybele's pagan temples in Rome in the mid-first century AD. For more, please click the link I have provided. Side: Idolatrous prostitution.
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Romans 1:18-23 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,[a] in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. 24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. Let's go through what is going on here with what Paul is conveying: First observation-This is about God getting mad (For the wrath of God [orge] is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men...(v.18)[the Greek word 'orge' means anger] Second observation: There is a specific progression that leads to God's "orge"of anger... (v.18) They suppress the truth in unrighteousness (v.25) They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the creator. (v.24) God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity... (v.26) They "exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural." (v.32) They encouraged others to do the same. (v.18) Therefore, the wrath of God rightly falls on them...they are worthy of death (v.32)...they are without excuse (v.20) This is a clear condemnation in the New Testament of homosexual behavior by the Apostle Paul right in the middle of his most brilliant discourse on general revelation. He is NOT speaking about life in the Greco-Roman culture and their peculiar local aberrations, idols, and temple prostitution as some have claimed. Again, Paul's words he used to describe the behavior.... An impurity and dishonoring to the body (v.24) A degrading passion that's unnatural (v.29) An indecent act and an error (v.27) Not proper and the product of a depraved mind (v.28) There is only one way you can miss this...and that is if you are in total rebellion to God. According to Paul, homosexual behavior is evidence of active, persistent rebellion against God. According to (v.32) it's rooted in direct, willful, aggressive rebellion against God--true of any Christian defending his homosexual behaviors. In verse (v.26) For this reason I gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire for one another. So the word "function"...The Greek word kreesis, is used only twice in the NT. Kreesis is translated "use, relations, functions, especially of sexual intercourse." So the word meant the biological natural sexual function of men and women's bodies. Men were not built to function sexually with other men. Natural desires, go with natural functions that the body was biologically built for. The passion that exchanges the natural function of sex for the unnatural function is what Paul calls a degrading passion. Conclusion: One could argue that the Bible is wrong on its teaching on homosexuality, but there is no mistaking what is being said here in Romans. It takes an impressive twisting of rationalization coupled with denial to actually attempt to explain that one away. Side: Homosexuality.
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Next time, find a link, please. According to Wisdom 11:24, eunuchs are those who desire not women. Furthermore, I am bisexual, and hatred from people like you, and WBC, I almost chose to kill myself. Thanks a lot. I have been in a relationship with Jesus since before I was aware of being bisexual. Side: Idolatrous prostitution.
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