Romans 1:25

Otherwise, how vain that God should invite men to obedience by the fruits of the field and the elements of this life, when He dispenses these to even irreligious men and blasphemers; on a general condition once for all made to man, "sending rain on the good and on the evil, and making His sun to shine on the just and on the unjust!" Happy, no doubt, is faith, if it is to obtain gifts which the enemies of God and Christ not only use, but even abuse, "worshipping the creature itself in opposition to the Creator!" You will reckon, (I suppose) onions and truffles among earth's bounties, since the Lord declares that "man shall not live on bread alone!" In this way the Jews lose heavenly blessings, by confining their hopes to earthly ones, being ignorant of the promise of heavenly bread, and of the oil of God's unction, and the wine of the Spirit, and of that water of life which has its vigour from the vine of Christ.

For the stars and the luminaries were given to men to shine upon them, but not for worship; although the Israelites, by the perverseness of their temper, "worshipped the creature instead of the Creator," and acted insultingly to their Maker, and admired the creature more than is fit. And sometimes they made a calf, as in the wilderness; sometimes they worshipped Baalpeor; another time Baal, and Thamuz, and Astarte of Sidon; and again Moloch and Chamos; another time the sun, as it is written in Ezekiel; nay, and besides, brute creatures, as among the Egyptians Apis, and the Mendesian goat, and gods of silver and gold, as in Judea.

Ungodliness is the root of wickedness. These people were deprived of God's grace for both of these things.

That we must trust in God only, and in Him we must glory. In Jeremiah: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the strong man glory in his strength, nor let the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understands and knows that I am the Lord, who do mercy, and judgment, and righteousness upon the earth, because in them is my pleasure, saith the Lord." Of the same thing in the fifty-fourth Psalm: "In the Lord have I hoped; I will not fear what man can do unto me." Also in the same place: "To none but God alone is my soul subjected." Also in the cxviith Psalm: "I will not fear what man can do unto me; the Lord is my helper." Also in the same place: "It is good to trust in the Lord rather than to trust in man; it is good to hope in the Lord rather than to hope in princes." Of this same thing in Daniel: "But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, there is no need to answer thee concerning this word. For God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from the furnace of burning fire; and He will deliver us from thine hand, O king. And if not, be it known unto thee that we serve not thy gods, and we adore not the golden image which thou hast set up." Likewise in Jeremiah: "Cursed is the man who hath hope in man; and blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and his hope shall be in God." Concerning this same thing in Deuteronomy: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." Of this same thing to the Romans: "And they worshipped and served the creature, forsaking the Creator. Wherefore also God gave them up to ignominious passions." Of this thing also in John: "Greater is He who is in you than he who is in this world."

Things which were matter for utter scorn, he puts down specially, but what seemed of a graver cast than the rest, in general terms; and by all he shows, that serving the creature is Grecian. And see how strong he makes his assertion, for he does not say, barely. "they served the creature," but "more than the Creator:" thus everywhere giving fresh force to the charge, and, by the comparison, taking from them all ground of mitigation. "Who is blessed forever. Amen." But by this, he means, He was not any whit injured. For Himself abideth "blessed for ever." Here he shows, that it was not in self-defence that He left them alone, inasmuch as He suffered nothing Himself. For even if these treated Him insolently, yet He was not insolently treated, neither was any scathe done to the bearings of His glory, but He abideth continually blessed. For if it often happen, that man through philosophy would not feel the insults men offered him, much less would God, the imperishable and unalterable Nature, the unchangeable and immovable Glory. For men are in this respect made like unto God, when they do not feel what is inflicted by them who would do them despite, and are neither insulted of others who insult them, nor beaten of them when beating them, nor made scorn of when they make scorn of them. And how in the nature of things can this be? it may be said. It is so, yea most certainly it is possible, when thou art not vexed at what is done. And how, it may be said, is it possible not to be vexed? Nay rather, how is it possible to be vexed? Tell me now, if your little child were to insult you, would you then reckon the insult an insult? What, but would you be vexed? Surely not. But and if you were to be vexed, would you not then be ridiculous? Thus too let us then get to feel disposed towards our neighbors, and then we shall have no sense of displeasure. […]

For which causes God most justly indeed delivered them up, in the desires of their heart, to uncleanness, so that they might dishonor their own bodies among themselves: who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Although each of these points seems to be explained consistently according to the faith of the Church — namely, that for the foregoing causes of their faults, those who hold down in iniquity the truth which they know by God's revealing are by right and desert abandoned by God, and that through this abandonment they are handed over to the desires of their own heart, whose heart's desires were these, that they should afflict their own bodies with uncleanness and dishonor among themselves; and that with whatever judgment they used toward the veneration of the divinity, while they drag down the glory of the incorruptible God to base and unworthy forms of men or of animals, with such a turn also they should be dealt with toward themselves, so that men endowed with reason live after the manner of irrational beasts — nevertheless let us ask those who deny that the good God is also a just judge, what they answer concerning the things the Apostle says, that God handed them over, in the desires of their heart, to uncleanness, so that they should dishonor their own bodies. For in this it will seem that not only their reasoning, which is utterly excluded, but our own reply as well is hemmed in. For how will it be just that one who is handed over — even though he be handed over on account of sins — should nevertheless be handed over to lusts, and handed over for this purpose, that he should afflict his own body with uncleannesses and lusts? […]

They exchanged what in truth belonged to God and applied it to false gods. "Worshipped" (ἐσεβάσθησαν) is used instead of: paid honor (ἐτίμησαν). And "served" (ἐλάτρευσαν) is used instead of: rendered service by deeds; for λατρεία means honor rendered in deed. He did not simply …

Everything that is adored other than God is either an intellectual creature, such as angels and demons; or a corporeal creature, such as heaven and earth and water and the like; or it is a figment of the human mind. Concerning idolatry with respect to …

Sun and moon are subject to change and variation, as is evident in an eclipse. This refutes the folly of those who worship the creature. Now, anything that is subject to change is not God, for by its very nature it is subject to corruption and change.

Then, when he says, who changed the truth, he mentions the sin of ungodliness committed against the truth of the divine nature. First, he mentions the sin; second, the punishment, at wherefore, God gave them up. The divine nature can be considered in two ways: …

Or, above the Creator, paying more devout respect to their inferior deities, stars, heroes, demons, thinking the supreme God inaccessible, or above their worship. The sin itself was their worshipping the creature at all; but this is mentioned as an aggravation of the sin, that they worshipped the creature more than the Creator.

By whom they were given up. God gave them up, in a way of righteous judgment, as the just punishment of their idolatry--taking off the bridle of restraining grace--leaving them to themselves--letting them alone; for his grace is his own, he is debtor to no man, he may give or withhold his grace at pleasure.

Who changed the truth - The true worship of God. Into a lie - False, abominable idolatries. And worshipped - Inwardly.

Who changed the truth of God into a lie,....

How abominable and filthy is man! Lord, what is man? says David; what a vile creature is he when left to himself! How much are we beholden to the restraining grace of God for the preserving any thing of the honour and decency of the human nature!

Who changed the truth of God into a lie--that is, the truth concerning God into idol falsehood. and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator--Professing merely to worship the Creator by means of the creature, they soon came to lose sight of the Creator in the creature.

Changed the truth of God into a lie - In the place of the true worship of God, they established idolatry. In various places of Scripture idols are termed lies. Isa 44:20; Jer 10:14; Jer 13:25. The true God was known among the primitive inhabitants of the earth, those who first became idolaters literally changed the truth of God into a lie: they did know the true God, but they put idols in his place.

Their only danger is that the idealist can easily become the idolator. And the American has become so idealistic that he even idealises money.

It is the mark of religious forms that they declare something unknown. But it is the mark of worldly forms that they declare something which is known, and which is known to be untrue. When the Pope in an Encyclical calls himself your father, it …

The crux and crisis is that man found it natural to worship; even natural to worship unnatural things. The posture of the idol might be stiff and strange; but the gesture of the worshipper was generous and beautiful. He not only felt freer when he …

I have always maintained, quite seriously, that the Lord is not in the wind or thunder of the waste, but if anywhere in the still small voice of Fleet Street. I sincerely maintain that Nature-worship is more morally dangerous than the most vulgar man-worship of …