WONDERFUL WORDS OF LIFE RADIO SERMON
March 27, 1977

WITHOUT EXCUSE 
Romans 10:16‑21
Excuse making is an art that goes back to the Garden of Eden. After he fell into sin, man immediately developed the skill of making excuses. Man is especially adept at making excuses for his spiritual condition. Most of his excuses imply that God has done something that is responsible for man's lost condition.

Actually though man is without an excuse. The Apostle demonstrates this clearly as he anticipates objections raised by the nation of Israel. The men of Israel were constantly seeking to justify their position before God, but the Apostle utilizes the Old Testament scriptures to prove that they are without excuse. But so are you! If you have not obeyed the Gospel of Jesus Christ, you are totally responsible for the lostness that results. You can blame neither God nor your fellowman. You are without excuse. Woven into this text are three things that strip away any excuse you might have for yourself.

THE OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL TAKES AWAY ANY EXCUSE
Not everyone who hears the Gospel chooses to obey the Gospel. Any observation of the preaching of the Gospel will confirm this. "But they have not all obeyed the Gospel". This is true of both Jews and Gentiles. Not all of either ever obeys the Gospel. Many refuse to believe and obey. This word "obey" is a word that means literally to "hear under". To obey is to respond positively to what you hear. This failure for all to obey is consistent with what Isaiah wrote in the great Cross chapter. He began the chapter with the lament, "Lord, who hath believed our report?" The implication was that few if any had believed the message of the Suffering One which Isaiah was given to deliver. Paul uses the passage to say that we should not be surprised if the same thing is true in our situation.

The Apostle puts in one of the most important statements in this entire letter. "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Several of the modern translations read "word of Christ" instead of Word of God". While in substance there is very little difference between, the better manuscripts have "word of Christ". The "word of Christ" is the word concerning Christ.

"Hearing" involves more than just the physical sensation of hearing the sound of words. The emphasis is more upon the thing that is heard. It might be paraphrased, "Then faith is from the message that is received by the hearer of the Gospel, and the message heard is through a spoken word concerning the Christ." The message of the Gospel, the message of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is a faith producing message. To obey the Gospel is to respond to this message in trust and obedience.

This brings up another question. "But I say, have they not heard?" There is an evident note of derision in the statement. The Apostle demonstrates from the words of the Psalmist that they have been confronted with the opportunity to hear the message concerning Jesus Christ. "Yes, verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world." The Psalmist so described the word of God as heard through the voice of the heavens. The Apostle applies the word to the presence of the messengers of Jesus Christ in all parts of the inhabited world. Wherever Jewish men were found scattered across the Roman world, messengers of the Gospel of Christ had come with their message of His death, burial, and resurrection. Almost every city of the world had been visited by these "sent ones." While some may not have heard, they were surely where they had the opportunity to hear.

If that was true in the first century when Paul penned this letter, how much more is this true in our day. If just the opportunity to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ strips away any excuse that a man might have, then no man in our world has an excuse. The opportunity to hear the Gospel which brings faith is before every man about us. Nothing is a better indication of the true spiritual blindness of man than the fact that even when he is invited, beseeched, urged, and everything else, still he does not want to come and hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaimed. He will do his best to avoid hearing the best news that has ever come to man. He will hide from the people with the beautiful feet, he will try to offend them; if all else fails, on occasion he has even sought to silence them by putting them to death. Surely such a man is without excuse.

THE OPPORTUNITY TO KNOW THE WORD OF GOD TAKES AWAY ANY EXCUSE
Israel had a unique opportunity to know the word and ways of the Lord. "But I say, did not Israel know?" Since they were the people to whom the word was given, they should have known it.

That these truths were found in their Scriptures is demonstrated by Paul. "First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you." "First" points to Moses being first in order, first in time. Back at the very beginning of God's revelation of the nation of Israel, he had made clear that there would be a time when Gentiles would be called into the covenant. God purposed to use a "no people" to provoke Israel into spiritual jealousy. God desired the salvation of the Gentiles to became the occasion of spiritual concern on the part of Israel. God also purposed to call a people who were spiritually stupid to provoke Israel to anger. This planned action of God was clearly written in the word God gave through Moses. Every Israelite had access to this word, indeed since most of them could quote the first five books of the Bible from memory, they had this word already hidden in their minds.

With unusual boldness Isaiah declared the same thing, "I was found of them that sought me not: I was made manifest unto them that asked not for me." Clearly this was a word concerning God saving the nations. Included with the writings of their favorite prophet was this word concerning Gentiles being saved. Israel did have opportunity to know so they were without excuse.

This principle should speak to us Gentiles. This is the day in which Gentiles have access to the written Word of God in a way the ancient man of Israel never dreamed possible. In that day before the marvel of the printing press, the written word was very limited in its circulation. No man can claim that he has not had opportunity to hear the Word of God. If a man says, "I am blind and cannot read", the Word is available on tapes and in Braille. If a man says, "I did not have an opportunity to go to school to learn to read, the word is still available on records and tapes for him." Modern man is without excuse.

Again man's aversion and ignorance of the word of God is a tell‑tale sign of his spiritual depravity. The Word of God is the very thing he needs to find life, yet he will refuse to read it. And many times when he does read it, he will twist it and pervert it to his own destruction as did the Jews. But the very opportunity to know the word of God makes man responsible for obedience to the Word. No man who has the opportunity to know the word of God has any excuse for not obeying the Word of God.

THE ATTITUDE OF GOD HIMSELF TAKES AWAY ANY EXCUSE
Does the Jew want to lay the blame on God for his lostness? It cannot be done. "But to Israel he saith, All day long have I stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people." What a beautiful picture! Israel is described as a disobedient people. "Disobedient people" are those who refuse to be persuaded, those who refuse to comply, and those who refuse to believe. The tense of the verb indicates that this was their habitual attitude toward God. Yet His habitual attitude was to keep His hands outstretched to welcome them back into His love and care. The "gainsaying" people talk back to God, they contradict, and they refuse to have anything to do with him. Again this was their continual attitude. Yet God keeps His arms outstretched all of the day through.

While that was God's attitude specially toward Israel, can we be sure about God's attitude toward Gentiles? We can. It is the same. Peter assures us that God "is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." Did not Jesus invite all saying, "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." The attitude of God toward all men is that He keeps His hands outstretched toward them in pleading invitation. If men are not saved, if they are lost from God, God cannot be blamed. He has always been and still is willing to save.

My friend, man is without excuse. He is lost because he has refused to believe and obey the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He is lost because he has turned his back upon the opportunities God has given him to be saved. Man is the one responsible.

My friend, will you not recognize the sinfulness of your heart? While you have been refusing to listen to God's word, while you have been walking in your chosen path of ignorance and darkness, God has been reaching out with arms of love to you. Will you not forsake your darkness and come to Him just now. He stands waiting for you.