Romans 1:29 – They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips…
Welcome back, dear readers. As we continue on with our study of Romans chapter one, we now find a whole catalog of evils/sins which eventually overtook the Gentiles when they rejected God’s revelation of himself through nature and through their consciences. 
As Paul shows us, once God is abandoned, mankind becomes destitute of all righteousness and the sins listed in this chapter become apparent in their lives. While it is true that no one particular person is guilty of all the sins listed here, everyone is guilty of at least some of these evils.
Paul also points out that as sin increases, shame and remorse decrease. Consequently, as man falls further and further away from God, sins are no longer practiced in secret; they are flaunted openly. They are no longer causes for reproach, but reasons to publicly celebrate.
This kind of unrestrained sin affects not only the sinner, but his/her neighbors as well. The bible tells us that sin is like leaven which is placed into a ball of dough. It silently and gradually works itself into the whole batch until every part has been corrupted or influenced by it:
I Corinthians 5:6-8 – Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Thus, we find that the smallest hidden speck of sin in man’s nature has the demonic ability to spread and grow until it corrupts the entire person and rules the man himself. It then seeks to infect those around it.
Through the following list, Paul will show the repulsive wickedness that is found in the hearts of all unbelievers.
GENERAL SUMMARY: In this passage of scripture, Paul is focusing on the Gentiles. He outlined the specifics of man’s descent into utter sin once he rejected God. Prior to verse 29, Paul was using homosexuality as a specific example of this, but now he gives us an entire catalog of different sins which also prove/show the utter depravity of man.
DIGGING DEEPER: Being filled: In this case, to be filled means to be consumed by something or for something to abound or to be common. The unrepentant Gentiles were filled with or consumed by every manner of unrighteousness and sin. These sins were so common in Roman society that no one was shocked by them anymore.
Can you relate to that? I remember a time when sexual sins (homosexuality, adultery and fornication) weren’t spoken about in front of children, because these sins were considered so shocking. Now these same sins are so common, many people no longer associate them with sin at all.
Unrighteousness: This is a general term referring to all things contrary to justice and righteousness. It implies utter disregard for all moral restraints.
What examples of unrighteousness can you think of? One example would be the behavior of gangs who take over streets, burn cars, assault police officers and cause general confusion and chaos.
Fornication: God’s commands declare that sexual intercourse is lawful between a man and a woman who are in a marriage covenant with each other. Any sexual activity which takes place under any other circumstances is sin. For example, fornication is sex between unmarried people, while adultery is sex 
between two people when at least one of them is married to someone other than their partner.
It is shocking that so many people today consider themselves Christians, yet they indulge in all manner of sexual sins. If you are in such a situation, I urge you to read the word and pray about your situation.
Covetousness: Covetousness is the desire to obtain or possess that which belongs to another; it is an intense love or lust for gain. It is also defined as greed or avarice (excessive greediness). Those who covet are dissatisfied or discontent with what they have. Although this term is frequently used in relation to money, it can apply to anything.
What sorts of things do people covet other than money? How about fame, power, opportunities or even other people?
Have you ever been tempted to covet? Giving thanks to God for your blessings and being content with what you have will help your resist the temptation to inordinately desire what others have.
Malice/wickedness: Those who are under the influence of malice have a spirit that delights in the harm or misfortune of another. They are spiteful, bitter and even dangerous. They have the constant desire and willful intent to vex, annoy or injure others.
For example, someone who tells lies about a coworker in order to get them fired is acting with malice. Someone who puts a bomb on a bus and kills innocent people is malicious. A person who hears their neighbor’s house burned down and says, ‘Good, they deserve it’ is displaying a malicious attitude.
Envy: Who among us is not familiar with envy? The official definition of envy is pain or discontent excited by another’s prosperity, accompanied by some degree of hatred or malice.
But honestly, do we really need a definition? Who among us is not familiar with this evil? It is a sin that reaches out to tempt all of us at time or another. But we must diligently guard our hearts against it:
Proverbs 14:30 – A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, bur envy makes the bones rot.
Again, praise and thanksgiving are helpful in casting out the temptation of envy. You will also help make your heart tranquil by remembering that God wants to give us the desires of our heart, but only if it is for our ultimate good. So, if you desire something you don’t have, don’t envy – take your request to the Lord and find out what he has to say about the matter.
Murder: We are all familiar with this sin. Murder is the taking of a human life by a person of sane mind. Do you remember the first murder that is recorded in the Bible?
That’s right – Cain murdered his brother Able back in the book of Genesis (Genesis 4:1-8). He was jealous and angry that God accepted Abel’s sacrifice, but was not pleased with his own.
The sin of murder was very common in the Roman empire. They had very little regard for human life; this was evident in their love of the gladiator contests that took place in the colosseum or amphitheater. These contests resulted in the deaths of thousands of captives, slaves, criminals and even Christians, all for the amusement of the Roman public.
In fact, murder rears its ugly head in every society, in every generation.
Strife: Strife is the act or state of fighting or violently arguing; it is angry or bitter disagreement/conflict over fundamental issues.
Society was full of strife during the life of Paul. The Jews were at odds with the Romans, while the Christians were at odds with the Jews. In fact, there was even strife in the church (especially over circumcision), as the Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians figured out how to become one united body of Christ.
Obviously, there is strife in our society as well. We don’t have to look very hard to find strife in our political system, court system or even in our school systems. There is strife between the industrialists and the environmentalists, between the socialists and the capitalists, and even within our own families and churches. Strife is especially dangerous because it can tear people apart (Mark 3:25). Strife can ignite other evils such as hatred or malice.
Proverbs 15:8 – A hot tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.
As Christians, we need to be walk a fine line between standing up for our rights and striving with those around us. Holy Spirit will help us in this endeavor. 
Deceit: To deceive is to mislead another. It includes any act or declaration which causes someone to believe what is false. It is also defined as fraud, trickery, falsehood or deception.
Of course, the biggest deceiver of all time is Satan. He deceived Eve into thinking that God was lying to her and through that deception, sin and death entered the human race. He is still practicing deceit today; at every opportunity he tells people that sin will bring life and happiness when in reality, it offers only destruction and death.
Gossip/slander: Gossip is spreading unfavorable information about someone, regardless of whether the information is true or false. It involves disparaging others and sowing seeds of suspicion about them. Gossip is a terrible thing – it breeds strife among friends and it violates the reputation of another person.
Slander (officially listed in the next verse) is even worse. It is the specific, malicious act of spreading false information intended to deliberately damage someone's reputation. The key difference between gossip and slander is intent – slander is always meant to be malicious.
My guess is that all of us have gossiped and/or slandered someone at one time or another. We tend to consider gossip and even slander as ‘lesser’ sins, but the bible does not. It wholly condemns both practices:
Leviticus 19:16 – You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people… I am the Lord.
Ephesians 4:31 – Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.
Gossip and slander are both sins of the tongue. The apostle James warns us against allowing our tongues to be out of our control. He likens the tongue to a flame that can kindle a great forest fire (James 3:5-6) and result in great destruction.
Romans 1:30 - …slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,
Haters of God: Hatred of God is the essence of rebellion and sin, just as the love of God is the essence of obedience and holiness. Therefore, all sinners are haters of God.
Because sinners hate God, they hate Jesus also:
John 15:24-25 – If I [Jesus] had not done among them [the world/sinners] the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. But the word that is written in their Law must be fulfilled: ‘They hated me without a cause.’
This kind of hatred shows the madness of the unrepentant human heart and mind. God is supremely righteous, holy, just and loving. He is man’s greatest benefactor. Salvation is found in him alone. To rebel against him is to choose death over the giver of all life; it is pure insanity/madness.
Insolent: Insolence is grossly rude, insulting, abusive or disrespectful behavior or speech. Insolence shows a lack of respect for both God and others. It is the opposite of treating your neighbor as yourself (Galatians 5:14).
Insolence often manifests as hostility and contentiousness. It is seen as a form of foolishness and rebellion that leads to strife and conflict.
I don’t know about you, but I find insolence everywhere I go! Instead of exhibiting patience and kindness in stressful situations, sinners immediately become frustrated and abusive. In these times, let us seek to practice self-control and show the love of Christ to a lost world.
Haughty/proud: Pride can be defined as improper or excessive self-esteem. It can also be defined as elevating one’s own opinions and thoughts over the word of God.
Boastful: Boasting is closely connected with pride. Those who have an inordinate or excessive idea of their own importance and/or achievements will not fail to publicly proclaim just how great they are and how much they have accomplished.
As all Christians know, we must be on constant guard against these evils. We would do well to remember that whatever we have (whether talents, abilities or possessions) we did not earn them ourselves; we received them from God who is the fountain of all good things. Besides, the most precious thing we have is our relationship with God so if we need to boast, let us boast in him:
Jeremiah 9:23-24 – Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.”
Inventors of evil: This refers to the desires of unbelievers to invent new ways of gratifying their lust and passions. The Gentiles were so intent on fully participating in sin, that their minds were happy to try and invent new ways to practice/gratify/satiate their evil desires. Since sin never satisfies, old forms or practices of indulgence lose their luster after time and new ways of rekindling passions must be found.
Disobedient to parents: This expresses the idea that children do not show their parents the honor, respect or attention they were due. This idea circles back to the concept of ‘unnatural affections’ which is discussed below.
Romans 1:31 - …foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
Foolish/without understanding: To be foolish is to exhibit a lack of judgement or discretion, to be irrational, weak in intellect, or void of moral or spiritual understanding. Those who are foolish are incapable of discerning right from wrong. Essentially, to be foolish is to have a reprobate mind:
Psalms 53:1 – The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
Faithless/covenant breakers: This evil concerns the making of oaths or covenants, whether public or private. It has always 
been understood that every oath/covenant was made in the presence of God. He was the witness to the agreement, and it was up to him to avenge misconduct. Even today, when a witness gives testimony in a court of law, they are ‘sworn in’, which alludes to the fact that God is listening to their testimony, and he will avenge any wrong that is done.
But because the heathen rejected God, there was no final authority underlying their oaths or covenants. Consequently, they felt no compulsion to abide by the agreements they made, so anytime it benefited them, they simply broke their word. You can imagine how awful society would be if this were considered normal.
Heartless/without natural affection: Generally speaking, this refers to any affection natural to a relationship. But in this instance, Paul is focusing on the love of parents for their children. Or, more accurately in the case of the heathen, the lack of love for their children.
In nearly every generation, the heathen have shown a pattern of killing children that are deformed or unwanted. Children were often left outside to die by starvation/thirst, or the actions of wild animals or by exposure to the elements. Worse yet, children were also used as sacrifices to the heathen idols.
This mindset leads to the practice of adult children killing their parents if they become a burden in old age, another practice common among the heathen.
As far as disobedience to parents and lacking natural affection are concerned, we can find similarities to this in our own day and age. Abortion amounts to killing a baby if you are unhappy with them for some reason. As this trend continues in our society, we should not be surprised if disrespect for parents and callous disregard for the aged is eventually considered normal in our culture.
Ruthless/implacable/unmerciful: A person who is implacable is incapable of being pacified or appeased. They are vindictive; they will hold a grudge or bear a deadly enmity. This is the highest form of unforgiveness. It refers to people who refuse to be reconciled to God or to other men.
To be unmerciful is to be incapable of showing mercy to an enemy or adversary due to deep rooted wickedness in your own nature. Such a person will have no pity or compassion for people in distress.
Can you name any instances of people who appear to be ruthless, implacable or unmerciful?
Romans 1:32 – 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.
GENERAL MEANING: Anyone can fall into sin as a result of temptation. But that isn’t what Paul is talking about here. He is describing Gentiles who deliberately and consistently engaged in sin for the pure enjoyment of it. Even though they knew these sins were an abomination to the righteousness of God, they continued to practice them.
But their wickedness didn’t end there. They spent time and creative energy finding new ways to indulge their sins. They also flaunted their sin publicly and drew others into their debauchery. When others joined in, they applauded them for it.
They completely ignored the fact that these sins would eventually result in spiritual death.
DIGGING DEEPER: Paul closes this chapter with a very grim conclusion – through the light of nature and the confirmation of their own consciences the Gentiles knew that their lusts/sins were wrong. But they did not repent.
In fact, the opposite was true. They took a perverse pleasure in engaging in sin. they refused to restrain themselves from evil in any way; they allowed wickedness to have full control over their hearts, minds and bodies.
They felt no shame, remorse or need to repent. They were pleased with their sin and they were happy when others joined them. Scripture describes them this way:
Proverbs 2:12-15 - …men of perverted speech, who forsake the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness, who rejoice in doing evil and delight in the perverseness of evil, men whose paths are crooked, and who are devious in their ways.
As if delighting in personal sin was not enough, they went one step further, encouraging others to participate and approving/applauding their sin as well. This was the highest degree of moral depravity. It is the climax of Paul’s charges against the heathen. Taking pleasure in evil simply because it is evil is the aim of Satan himself.
Anyone can be tempted into sin (obviously – we’ve all been there). If a person recognizes their mistake and repents, there is still hope for him or her. But when a person reaches the point where they cast away all shame and exalt in/approve of utter wickedness, they have reached the point of a reprobate mind where they are no longer able to seek the mercy and forgiveness of God.
Summary: If we step back and look at the last half of this chapter in a broader sense, we find three steps or stages which eventually result in a reprobate mind where man has become like Satan (loving evil for the sake of evil).
Step #1 is found in Romans 1:18-23. In this step, mankind rejects God and embraces idolatry. In other words, he serves a god of his own choosing or creation.
Step #2 is found in Romans 1:24-27. In this step, God honors the free-will choice he has given mankind – he allows man to embrace sin which is a natural consequence of idolatry.
Step #3 is found in Romans 1:28-32. In this final step/phase God removes his hand of restraint. This is actually an act of punishment, because it allows mankind to descend into complete and radical depravity.
Think of it this way: Step #1 is taken by the free-will choice of man. But generally speaking, as the chasm between God and man becomes greater, the wrath of God becomes more and more apparent as God interferes less and less to save the sinner from his fate. 
So, what final conclusions can we reach from this passage of scripture?
First of all, we can’t help but notice that the charges that Paul makes against the Gentiles were evidently well known. Paul does not quote the Gentile philosophers, nor does he offer any other testimony or witnesses to back up his accusations. This was because the charges of sin were so well founded and publicly known that they could not be denied. These sins deserve judgement which results in eternal death.
Second, at the time of this writing, the Romans were at the very height of their power, intelligence and splendor. They were one of the most enlightened and refined nations in antiquity. Yet, they were utterly incapable of righteousness. Over and over and over again history shows that mankind has no means of righteousness; he cannot save himself through his own works nor can conceive a plan to justify himself in the eyes of a holy God. All human attempts to reform mankind have been tried and shown to end in failure.
Third, it is crystal clear that something else is needed. Man cannot justify himself in the sight of God. He needs the help of God himself. This help has been provided through the person of Jesus Christ, the Mediator between God and man.
John 14:6 – Jesus said unto him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me.
The atoning work of Christ is the one and only means whereby man can be justified in the sight of God. There is no other way. This is the major theme of the book of Romans.
Let me offer you some encouragement:
As we read through this list of evils and see them at work in our own generation, we may be tempted to be discouraged. But take heart – God is in control.
During the days of the Romans things were just as bad or maybe even worse than our society today. But the Spirit of God moved throughout the land bringing revival and hope.
God will do the same in our generation. Let’s continue to seek him, praise him and pray for a mighty revival to transform our nation!
Let me offer you some relief:
None of us is perfect. Scripture tells us that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. But the good news is that Holy Spirit is constantly at work in our lives, continuously shaping us into the image of Christ, our risen Savior and King.
So, when you stumble and fall or you get fooled by Satan, don’t quit – get back up, get forgiveness and continue on your victorious journey toward Christ!
Let me offer you some strength:
Many people are paying for family and friends who have not yet come to Christ. If that is you, I want you to know that there is still hope.
Scripture tells us that the fervent prayers of the righteous are effectual (James 5:16). In other words, even though you don’t see anything happening in the life of your loved one right now, it doesn’t mean that nothing is happening.
In fact, Holy Spirit has your loved one on his radar right now. He is working all things out to bring them to a place where they are ready, willing and able to recognize their sin and seek repentance for it.
Stand strong and keep on praying!