September 10, 2026 • 25 mins
The most dangerous place to be is familiar with the Bible but unchanged by it. We keep walking through Romans in our “From Guilty to Glory” series with Dr. Timothy Mann, landing in Romans 2 and the sobering theme of God’s perfect judgment. The core question is simple and unsettling: if we hear God’s truth week after week, what does God expect from us, and what happens when we treat Scripture like background noise?
We trace the warning that hearing without obedience is spiritual self-deception, then connect it to Jesus’ picture of two builders. The storm does not create the foundation, it reveals it. We also clarify the relationship between faith and works: justification comes through faith, yet a redeemed life produces real holiness over time. That means church attendance, Bible study, and religious language are never substitutes for repentance, trust in Christ, and a life that begins to obey what God says.
Then we tackle the fairness question about those without the written law. Romans 2 points to the law written on the heart, conscience, and the thoughts that accuse or defend, showing why no one stands guiltless. We end with the searching issue of motives, because God sees in secret and judges the heart, not just the polished exterior. If you want a clear, Scripture-anchored message on conscience, accountability, and what genuine salvation looks like in daily life, listen now, then subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find Foundations of Truth.
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Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_01 (00:00):
Welcome to Foundations of Truth, the
(00:02):
biblical teaching ministry ofDr.
Timothy Mann.
Our mission is to help you buildyour life on the unshakable
foundation of God's Word.
Rooted in Scripture, anchored inthe grace of the gospel of Jesus
Christ.
Each week, Dr.
Mann opens the Bible to bringclarity, conviction, and
encouragement for everyday life.
Today on Foundations of Truth,we continue our series from
(00:24):
Guilty to Glory, a journeythrough the book of Romans.
We'll pick up where we left offlast time with the message God's
perfect judgment from Romanschapter 2.
This is part four of thatmessage.
And here now is Dr.
Timothy Mann.
SPEAKER_00 (00:38):
There's going to be a test.
The more you hear God's Word.
The more you hear God's truth,the more you are responsible for
believing it and obeying it.
The more you hear God's word.
And unless there is obedience,unless there is obedience, the
(00:59):
greater the hearing, the greaterthe accountability in judgment.
People who only think that theyare Christians merely because
they do such things as attendchurch or listen to sermons or
participate in a Bible study orlisten to Christian music, they
delude themselves.
James warns, for if anyone is ahearer of the word and not a
(01:21):
doer, he is like a man who looksat his natural face in the
mirror.
For once he has looked athimself and gone away, he's
immediately forgotten what kindof person that he was.
James 1, verse 23 through 24.
In other words, what he's sayingis the person who is satisfied
with superficially knowing God'sword is living a spiritual
illusion.
(01:43):
Thinking that he is saved.
And indeed he is not.
See, by looking in a mirror,what you do is you judge
yourself by yourself.
When you look in a mirror, andin the same way, looking in a
mirror, judge yourself byyourself rather than by the word
of God that you know so muchabout, but do not take to heart.
(02:09):
A person's failure to obey whathe or she hears proves that they
do not believe it or accept it.
Continued disobedience provesthat you do not trust in the God
whose word you hear.
And the more you hear withoutobeying, the more you pile up
(02:34):
guilt against yourself in theday of judgment.
So if you're not gonna obey,don't come to church and hear
the word.
I mean, really, that's thetruth.
It's pointless.
If you're not gonna respond andobey to the read or preach word
of God, if you're not gonnarespond in obedience, why even
(02:55):
bother?
Just do what you want to do.
Because you're deceivingyourself anyway.
If you're not gonna respond tothe preached and read and taught
word of God, I think our Lordcertainly had this in mind when
he preached the conclusion ofthe Sermon on the Mount.
In Matthew chapter 7, verse 24through 27, it records these
(03:18):
words.
The Lord said, Therefore,everyone who reads or hears
these words of mine and doesthem or acts upon them may be
compared to a wise man who builthis house upon the rock.
And the rain came, the raindescended, and the floods came,
and the winds blew, and beatagainst that house, and yet it
did not fall, for it was foundedupon the rock.
(03:38):
And everyone who hears thesewords of mine and does not do
them, does not act upon them,would be like a foolish man who
has built his house upon thesand, and the rain descended,
and the floods came, and thewinds blew, and beat against the
house, and it fell.
And it doesn't just say it fell.
It says, And great was the fallof it.
(04:01):
Now the doers of the law, it'smentioned here, the doers of the
law, on the other hand, arethose who come to God in
repentance and faith, realizingthat his law is impossible for
them to keep apart from him, andthat knowledge of it actually
places them under greaterobligation to obey.
(04:32):
According to Galatians 3.
And after they've come to him infaith, after you have come to
Jesus in faith, then yourobedient life, your obedient
lives gives evidence of yoursaving relationship to him, and
of the fact, it gives evidenceof the fact that you will be
(04:53):
justified.
That's what that does.
See, the idea here in thisparticular passage of scripture
is not that obeying the law willproduce justification because
scripture makes clear thatjustification comes only through
faith.
We'll see that in Romans 3 andRomans 4 and on.
But what it does say here veryclearly is that you will be
(05:16):
demonstrated to be the just.
You'll be demonstrated to be thesaved by the evidence of your
doing of God's holy law.
That's what this is saying.
Again, Paul is pointing to thesame truth as James in regard to
the relationship between faithand works.
(05:37):
And also like James, he's usingjustification in the sense of a
completed and perfectedsalvation.
And so the person who genuinelyobeys God's word proves by your
divinely empowered obediencethat you are saved, and thereby
(05:59):
you will be recognized asjustified on the day of
judgment.
Now, here's a good question.
Does that mean then that theGentiles are excused from
eternal judgment and punishmentbecause they've not had the
advantage of the law andtherefore have no basis for
(06:19):
obedient living?
I mean, that's a good question,right?
Well, no.
Because as the Word of God isthe Holy Spirit's already made
clear and established theGentiles, that is to say, those
who do not have the law, theyhave God's general or natural
revelation of Himself increation, and they know
instinctively that they areguilty and worthy of death.
(06:44):
But does not Paul say later inthis letter, and he does, that
where there is no law, neitheris there violation?
Does he not say that until thelaw sin was in the world, but
sin is not imputed where thereis no law?
Does he not say that I would nothave come to know sin except
through the law?
Yes, he says all that.
(07:05):
And anticipating such questions,the Apostle Paul here states
very clearly that the Gentileswho do not have the law, they
actually do instinctively thethings of the law, and because
of that, they are a law untothemselves.
Being a law unto themselves.
(07:27):
They have a law.
Just in a different way.
Explaining further, the apostlesays, they actually show the
work of the law written in theirhearts, their conscience bearing
witness, and their thoughtsalternately accusing or else
defending them.
I want to give you this realquickly.
(08:05):
That's one reason.
But secondly, as the apostle nowpoints out, their conduct, based
on the knowledge of the lawwritten in their hearts,
condemns the lost.
I mean, let's be honest,throughout history, and you
probably even know somethingnow, there have been many
unbelievers who have been honestin business.
(08:27):
I mean, they're respectful oftheir parents, they're faithful
to their wives and husbands.
I'm talking about unbelievers.
Unbelievers who are caring fortheir children, they're generous
to those in need, all, all ofwhich good things God's word
commends.
And God's standard of justice isactually reflected in many
secular judicial systems,wherein stealing and murder and
(08:51):
various other forms ofimmorality are actually
considered wrong and against thelaw, illegal.
Many pagan philosophies, bothancient and modern, actually
teach certain standards ofethics that closely parallel
those in Scripture.
Much less to say that the factthat the Bible itself actually
(09:12):
reports good deeds done bypagans such as Darius and the
city clerk of Ephesus and theRoman military officers who
protected Paul and the nativesof Malta who befriended Paul and
his shipmates.
The fact that such people dogood things, did good things,
knowing that they were ethicallygood, that proves that they had
(09:37):
the knowledge of God's lawwritten in their hearts.
And therefore, if those peoplenever come to trust in the true
God, then their good deeds willactually witness against them on
the day of judgment.
That's what this is saying.
SPEAKER_01 (09:56):
You're listening to Foundations of Truth, the
biblical teaching ministry ofDr.
Timothy Mann.
In a culture increasinglygoverned by shifting opinions
and conflicting standards, thisministry exists to proclaim the
unchanging truth of God's Word.
We want listeners everywhere tounderstand not merely what the
Bible says, but what it requiresof every person who hears it.
(10:19):
If this teaching isstrengthening your faith and
helping you view life throughthe lens of the Bible, would you
prayerfully consider supportingFoundations of Truth?
Your financial gifts help usproduce and distribute these
programs so that others can hearthe gospel and receive faithful
biblical teaching.
To learn how you can partnerwith us, please visit our
website, foundationsoftruth.net.
(10:40):
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
And thank you for helpingFoundations of Truth continue
proclaiming God's word clearly,faithfully, and without
compromise.
Now let's return to today'smessage from Romans.
Here's Dr.
Timothy Mann.
SPEAKER_00 (10:56):
And third, the lost or condemned because of
conscience.
Conscience.
People who do not have theprivilege of knowing God's word
nevertheless have a consciencebearing witness to his law.
That's what it says here.
That word conscience literallymeans co-knowledge or knowledge
(11:17):
with, co-science, knowledgewith.
The very idea behind the wordtestifies to the fact that
people recognize that they havean instinctive built-in sense of
right and wrong that activatesguilt.
In my study for this particularmessage this past week, I was
looking at some things relatedto conscience, and I came across
(11:40):
kind of a backward tribe inAfrica.
It's reported that a tribe inAfrica had an unusual but a very
effective way to test the guiltof an accused person.
A group of suspects would belined up and the tongue of each
would be touched with a hotknife.
Now, if saliva was on thetongue, then the blade would
(12:01):
sizzle but cause not as muchpain.
But if the tongue was dry, theblade would stick, creating a
vicious searing burn.
Can't you feel it just a littlebit right now?
See, see, the tribe knew that asense of guilt tends to make a
person's mouth dry.
(12:22):
And a seared tongue, therefore,was taken as proof of guilt.
That's a good lie detector test,isn't it?
I'll tell you what.
Hey, listen, the making of sucha dry mouth is, of course, the
work of the conscience.
It's our conscience.
Now, obviously, consciences varyin sensitivity, depending on the
(12:42):
degree of one's knowledge oreven your own feeling about
right and wrong.
But the person who hasconsiderable knowledge of God's
word most usually will have amore sensitive conscience than
someone who's never had anopportunity to know Scripture.
But consciences also vary insensitivity depending on whether
they are obeyed or whether theyare resisted.
(13:04):
And the neglected and resistedconscience becomes more
insensitive and eventually maystop giving warning signals
about wrongdoing.
As a matter of fact, the ApostlePaul speaks of heretics and
apostates in the last days whoseconsciences will be desensitized
as if cauterized by a hot ironbecause of their persistent
(13:28):
opposition to God and to histruth.
I think we may be there in ourculture.
And you know this to be thetruth.
God uses, if you're his child,if you've been saved by God's
grace, the Holy Spirit dwells inyou, you know that God uses the
conscience of his children asvehicles for his guidance.
He does that.
And it's interesting, theApostle Paul, based on that,
(13:49):
makes various appeals allthrough Scripture for believers
to be faithful to the leading oftheir own conscience and to
respect the conscience of otherbelievers.
So the conscience is a reasonthat the lost are lost,
condemned.
Another one is the lost or lostbecause of their contemplation,
their thoughts alternatelyaccusing or else defending them.
(14:12):
Now that natural faculty isobviously closely related to the
conscience.
But building on the instinctiveknowledge of right and wrong
that the conscience provides,even unbelievers have the
obvious ability to determinethat certain things are
basically right and basicallywrong.
(14:33):
I mean, look at the facts of thematter.
Many people who fight againstcrime or uh are advocates for
the poor, for example, they donot get their motivation from
scripture or necessarily from asaving relationship to Jesus
Christ.
I mean, just as human beings,period.
As human beings, they simplycannot help but know that
opposing crime and helping thepoor are good things to do.
(14:56):
I mean, even the most godlesssociety becomes absolutely
incensed when a child or anelderly person is attacked or
murdered.
Even pagans and agnostics andatheists are able to discern
basic right and wrong.
And for these four reasons thatI've given you right here, we
need to understand and knowthis.
(15:18):
No person, no person can standguiltless before God.
Not one.
The fact that they do not turnto God proves that they do not
live up to the light that Godhas given them.
Jesus declared categorically, ifany man is willing to do his
(15:38):
will, his will, he shall knowthe teaching, whether it is of
God or whether I speak frommyself.
The Apostle Paul assured hispagan listeners in Athens on
Mars Hill that God, and I quotehim in Acts 17, made from one
every nation of mankind to liveon all the face of the earth,
(16:00):
having determined theirappointed times and the
boundaries of their habitation,that they should seek God if
perhaps they might grope for himand find him, though he is not
far from each one of us.
God is impartial in his perfectjudgment.
But not only that, there's alsoyour motive.
(16:22):
That's verse 16.
And my motive.
(17:41):
Jeremiah 17, 10.
Through Jeremiah, God said, Ithe Lord search the heart, I
test the mind, and give to eachman according to his ways,
according to the results of hisdeed.
As a matter of fact, three timesin his Sermon on the Mount,
Jesus said this.
He said, Your father who sees insecret.
(18:04):
Think about that.
Your father who sees in secretwill repay you.
He knows your motive.
He knows your heart.
Now there's obviously, I mean, Iknow this.
There's obviously such a thingas relative human goodness.
(18:25):
And many unbelievers, you knowsome.
Many unbelievers live on a highmoral plane.
Sad to say, compared to someprofessing believers.
That's sad, isn't it?
Many unbelievers live on a highmoral plane, but that's not the
kind of goodness that satisfiesGod.
Because nothing is truly goodthat is done from any motive
(18:50):
other than his glory.
Nothing is truly good that isdone in any power other than his
own.
Everything that is done in theflesh can only serve the flesh.
And it is by nature tainted withimperfection and self-interest.
It cannot be done out of onlythe right motive, that is to
(19:13):
say, pleasing and glorifyingGod.
I mean, whether it's whether youdo anything to impress others
with your own goodness, or youdo it to react to peer pressure
or to alleviate guilt feelingsor to simply feel better about
yourself, don't we do thingssometimes just for that reason?
Just to feel better aboutourselves.
(19:33):
Am I the only one being honestin here?
Come on, tell the truth.
You do some things just to feelbetter about you.
Whether you do any of thosethings, anything that is not
done for God, anything that isnot done through his power, is
basically sinful andunacceptable to him.
(19:57):
That's hard to hear.
I know it.
But the truth is, it doesn'tmatter how hourly good or how
self-sacrificial it may appear,if it's not done for God and
through his power, it isbasically sinful and
unacceptable.
David committed terrible sinswhile he served as God's
anointed king, as God's overGod's chosen nation.
(20:19):
And as I noted in my previousmessage last week, many of his
sins, such as his adultery withBathsheba, his the murder of her
husband, Uriah, do youunderstand?
Those were capital offenses forwhich God could have justly
demanded David's life.
But the basic motivation anddirection of David's life were
(20:42):
not of selfish ambition andunrighteousness, but the service
and worship of God.
That'll give some of us a littlebit of comfort, especially if we
messed up badly in the past.
He readily acknowledged and heconfessed his sins before God,
throwing himself on the Lord'smercy and grace.
(21:05):
But Judas, on the other hand,was outwardly upright.
He was religious.
He was even a professed followerof Christ.
And he was thoroughlyself-centered.
Inwardly, he came to havecontempt for Christ and his
(21:26):
gospel of grace.
And the heart desires that movedthose two men and us, our heart
desires that move us, the heartdesires of those two men were
open books to the Lord.
And their respective guilt andtheir respective deeds, just as
ours, will be truly judged, willbe judged for what they truly
(21:50):
were and not the way theyappeared to other people.
If Romans 2, verse 16 through 16teaches anything, it teaches.
That a redeemed life willproduce holy living.
And it teaches that a life thatreflects no holy living has no
(22:10):
claim on eternal life.
Right living, which can onlycome from the right motivation.
Is God given evidence of genuinesalvation?
And lack of right living is justa certain evidence of lostness.
(22:31):
God's impartial.
I don't know if it's right tosay this.
Maybe just my opinion.
I think I have scripturalbacking and grounds for this,
but I would I would just aboutsay this though.
Very well could be one of thehardest pla one of the hottest
places in hell, one of thehottest places in hell will be
reserved for those who havewasted the greatest spiritual
(22:52):
opportunity.
You're accountable for what youhear, for what you know of his
word.
And he is impartial, and he willjudge on that basis.
If you're a true doer of thelaw, you come to Christ knowing
you can't keep his law and youthrow yourself on his mercy.
And the Holy Spirit of God, whenyou're born again, then
(23:14):
regenerated, born again, heempowers you to not only have a
new desire but a new capacity.
The disposition of your heartwill be changed, and you will
want to follow him and do hisword and do his will.
And in the end, it will bearout, it will be demonstrated
that you are a part of the justfor that reason.
(23:39):
What's your motive?
What's your secrets?
God will judge that.
Is your motive right?
SPEAKER_01 (23:48):
Thanks for spending part of your day with us on
Foundations of Truth, thebiblical teaching ministry of
Dr.
Timothy Mann.
If you'd like to hear thismessage again or give a
financial gift or get morebiblical resources, you can do
so online.
Foundationsoftruth.net.
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
And thank you so much.
Join us again tomorrow foranother opportunity to study the
(24:11):
scriptures and discover theunchanging truth of God's Word.
Join Dr.
Mann Saturday, September 19th,10 a.m.
to 2 p.m.
at From My Library to YoursChristian Bookstore in Port
Orange for a special authorevent featuring his book, Saved,
Understanding God's Work in Us.
There'll be book signing,conversation, and brief talks
(24:32):
with a QA at 10:15 a.m.
and 1.15 p.m.
That's Saturday, September 19that the pavilion next to Massage
Envy in Port Orange, Florida.
Foundations of Truth with Dr.
Timothy Mann is supported inpart by Luther Rice College and
Seminary, equipping men andwomen for ministry through
biblically faithful theologicaleducation.
(24:53):
As a leader in online learning,we are grateful for their
partnership in helping carrybiblical truth farther.
We're thankful for AMN Plumbing,a local ministry partner serving
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and surrounding areas withDefendable Plumbing Service.
Their support helps makeFoundations of Truth available
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(25:15):
Foundations of Truth with Dr.
Timothy Mann is supported inpart by Cat Care Clinic, located
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We're grateful for theirpartnership in helping carry
biblical truth farther.
Welcome to Foundations of Truth, the
(00:02):
biblical teaching ministry ofDr.
Timothy Mann.
Our mission is to help you buildyour life on the unshakable
foundation of God's Word.
Rooted in Scripture, anchored inthe grace of the gospel of Jesus
Christ.
Each week, Dr.
Mann opens the Bible to bringclarity, conviction, and
encouragement for everyday life.
Today on Foundations of Truth,we continue our series from
(00:24):
Guilty to Glory, a journeythrough the book of Romans.
We'll pick up where we left offlast time with the message God's
perfect judgment from Romanschapter 2.
This is part four of thatmessage.
And here now is Dr.
Timothy Mann.
SPEAKER_00 (00:38):
There's going to be a test.
The more you hear God's Word.
The more you hear God's truth,the more you are responsible for
believing it and obeying it.
The more you hear God's word.
And unless there is obedience,unless there is obedience, the
(00:59):
greater the hearing, the greaterthe accountability in judgment.
People who only think that theyare Christians merely because
they do such things as attendchurch or listen to sermons or
participate in a Bible study orlisten to Christian music, they
delude themselves.
James warns, for if anyone is ahearer of the word and not a
(01:21):
doer, he is like a man who looksat his natural face in the
mirror.
For once he has looked athimself and gone away, he's
immediately forgotten what kindof person that he was.
James 1, verse 23 through 24.
In other words, what he's sayingis the person who is satisfied
with superficially knowing God'sword is living a spiritual
illusion.
(01:43):
Thinking that he is saved.
And indeed he is not.
See, by looking in a mirror,what you do is you judge
yourself by yourself.
When you look in a mirror, andin the same way, looking in a
mirror, judge yourself byyourself rather than by the word
of God that you know so muchabout, but do not take to heart.
(02:09):
A person's failure to obey whathe or she hears proves that they
do not believe it or accept it.
Continued disobedience provesthat you do not trust in the God
whose word you hear.
And the more you hear withoutobeying, the more you pile up
(02:34):
guilt against yourself in theday of judgment.
So if you're not gonna obey,don't come to church and hear
the word.
I mean, really, that's thetruth.
It's pointless.
If you're not gonna respond andobey to the read or preach word
of God, if you're not gonnarespond in obedience, why even
(02:55):
bother?
Just do what you want to do.
Because you're deceivingyourself anyway.
If you're not gonna respond tothe preached and read and taught
word of God, I think our Lordcertainly had this in mind when
he preached the conclusion ofthe Sermon on the Mount.
In Matthew chapter 7, verse 24through 27, it records these
(03:18):
words.
The Lord said, Therefore,everyone who reads or hears
these words of mine and doesthem or acts upon them may be
compared to a wise man who builthis house upon the rock.
And the rain came, the raindescended, and the floods came,
and the winds blew, and beatagainst that house, and yet it
did not fall, for it was foundedupon the rock.
(03:38):
And everyone who hears thesewords of mine and does not do
them, does not act upon them,would be like a foolish man who
has built his house upon thesand, and the rain descended,
and the floods came, and thewinds blew, and beat against the
house, and it fell.
And it doesn't just say it fell.
It says, And great was the fallof it.
(04:01):
Now the doers of the law, it'smentioned here, the doers of the
law, on the other hand, arethose who come to God in
repentance and faith, realizingthat his law is impossible for
them to keep apart from him, andthat knowledge of it actually
places them under greaterobligation to obey.
(04:32):
According to Galatians 3.
And after they've come to him infaith, after you have come to
Jesus in faith, then yourobedient life, your obedient
lives gives evidence of yoursaving relationship to him, and
of the fact, it gives evidenceof the fact that you will be
(04:53):
justified.
That's what that does.
See, the idea here in thisparticular passage of scripture
is not that obeying the law willproduce justification because
scripture makes clear thatjustification comes only through
faith.
We'll see that in Romans 3 andRomans 4 and on.
But what it does say here veryclearly is that you will be
(05:16):
demonstrated to be the just.
You'll be demonstrated to be thesaved by the evidence of your
doing of God's holy law.
That's what this is saying.
Again, Paul is pointing to thesame truth as James in regard to
the relationship between faithand works.
(05:37):
And also like James, he's usingjustification in the sense of a
completed and perfectedsalvation.
And so the person who genuinelyobeys God's word proves by your
divinely empowered obediencethat you are saved, and thereby
(05:59):
you will be recognized asjustified on the day of
judgment.
Now, here's a good question.
Does that mean then that theGentiles are excused from
eternal judgment and punishmentbecause they've not had the
advantage of the law andtherefore have no basis for
(06:19):
obedient living?
I mean, that's a good question,right?
Well, no.
Because as the Word of God isthe Holy Spirit's already made
clear and established theGentiles, that is to say, those
who do not have the law, theyhave God's general or natural
revelation of Himself increation, and they know
instinctively that they areguilty and worthy of death.
(06:44):
But does not Paul say later inthis letter, and he does, that
where there is no law, neitheris there violation?
Does he not say that until thelaw sin was in the world, but
sin is not imputed where thereis no law?
Does he not say that I would nothave come to know sin except
through the law?
Yes, he says all that.
(07:05):
And anticipating such questions,the Apostle Paul here states
very clearly that the Gentileswho do not have the law, they
actually do instinctively thethings of the law, and because
of that, they are a law untothemselves.
Being a law unto themselves.
(07:27):
They have a law.
Just in a different way.
Explaining further, the apostlesays, they actually show the
work of the law written in theirhearts, their conscience bearing
witness, and their thoughtsalternately accusing or else
defending them.
I want to give you this realquickly.
(08:05):
That's one reason.
But secondly, as the apostle nowpoints out, their conduct, based
on the knowledge of the lawwritten in their hearts,
condemns the lost.
I mean, let's be honest,throughout history, and you
probably even know somethingnow, there have been many
unbelievers who have been honestin business.
(08:27):
I mean, they're respectful oftheir parents, they're faithful
to their wives and husbands.
I'm talking about unbelievers.
Unbelievers who are caring fortheir children, they're generous
to those in need, all, all ofwhich good things God's word
commends.
And God's standard of justice isactually reflected in many
secular judicial systems,wherein stealing and murder and
(08:51):
various other forms ofimmorality are actually
considered wrong and against thelaw, illegal.
Many pagan philosophies, bothancient and modern, actually
teach certain standards ofethics that closely parallel
those in Scripture.
Much less to say that the factthat the Bible itself actually
(09:12):
reports good deeds done bypagans such as Darius and the
city clerk of Ephesus and theRoman military officers who
protected Paul and the nativesof Malta who befriended Paul and
his shipmates.
The fact that such people dogood things, did good things,
knowing that they were ethicallygood, that proves that they had
(09:37):
the knowledge of God's lawwritten in their hearts.
And therefore, if those peoplenever come to trust in the true
God, then their good deeds willactually witness against them on
the day of judgment.
That's what this is saying.
SPEAKER_01 (09:56):
You're listening to Foundations of Truth, the
biblical teaching ministry ofDr.
Timothy Mann.
In a culture increasinglygoverned by shifting opinions
and conflicting standards, thisministry exists to proclaim the
unchanging truth of God's Word.
We want listeners everywhere tounderstand not merely what the
Bible says, but what it requiresof every person who hears it.
(10:19):
If this teaching isstrengthening your faith and
helping you view life throughthe lens of the Bible, would you
prayerfully consider supportingFoundations of Truth?
Your financial gifts help usproduce and distribute these
programs so that others can hearthe gospel and receive faithful
biblical teaching.
To learn how you can partnerwith us, please visit our
website, foundationsoftruth.net.
(10:40):
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
And thank you for helpingFoundations of Truth continue
proclaiming God's word clearly,faithfully, and without
compromise.
Now let's return to today'smessage from Romans.
Here's Dr.
Timothy Mann.
SPEAKER_00 (10:56):
And third, the lost or condemned because of
conscience.
Conscience.
People who do not have theprivilege of knowing God's word
nevertheless have a consciencebearing witness to his law.
That's what it says here.
That word conscience literallymeans co-knowledge or knowledge
(11:17):
with, co-science, knowledgewith.
The very idea behind the wordtestifies to the fact that
people recognize that they havean instinctive built-in sense of
right and wrong that activatesguilt.
In my study for this particularmessage this past week, I was
looking at some things relatedto conscience, and I came across
(11:40):
kind of a backward tribe inAfrica.
It's reported that a tribe inAfrica had an unusual but a very
effective way to test the guiltof an accused person.
A group of suspects would belined up and the tongue of each
would be touched with a hotknife.
Now, if saliva was on thetongue, then the blade would
(12:01):
sizzle but cause not as muchpain.
But if the tongue was dry, theblade would stick, creating a
vicious searing burn.
Can't you feel it just a littlebit right now?
See, see, the tribe knew that asense of guilt tends to make a
person's mouth dry.
(12:22):
And a seared tongue, therefore,was taken as proof of guilt.
That's a good lie detector test,isn't it?
I'll tell you what.
Hey, listen, the making of sucha dry mouth is, of course, the
work of the conscience.
It's our conscience.
Now, obviously, consciences varyin sensitivity, depending on the
(12:42):
degree of one's knowledge oreven your own feeling about
right and wrong.
But the person who hasconsiderable knowledge of God's
word most usually will have amore sensitive conscience than
someone who's never had anopportunity to know Scripture.
But consciences also vary insensitivity depending on whether
they are obeyed or whether theyare resisted.
(13:04):
And the neglected and resistedconscience becomes more
insensitive and eventually maystop giving warning signals
about wrongdoing.
As a matter of fact, the ApostlePaul speaks of heretics and
apostates in the last days whoseconsciences will be desensitized
as if cauterized by a hot ironbecause of their persistent
(13:28):
opposition to God and to histruth.
I think we may be there in ourculture.
And you know this to be thetruth.
God uses, if you're his child,if you've been saved by God's
grace, the Holy Spirit dwells inyou, you know that God uses the
conscience of his children asvehicles for his guidance.
He does that.
And it's interesting, theApostle Paul, based on that,
(13:49):
makes various appeals allthrough Scripture for believers
to be faithful to the leading oftheir own conscience and to
respect the conscience of otherbelievers.
So the conscience is a reasonthat the lost are lost,
condemned.
Another one is the lost or lostbecause of their contemplation,
their thoughts alternatelyaccusing or else defending them.
(14:12):
Now that natural faculty isobviously closely related to the
conscience.
But building on the instinctiveknowledge of right and wrong
that the conscience provides,even unbelievers have the
obvious ability to determinethat certain things are
basically right and basicallywrong.
(14:33):
I mean, look at the facts of thematter.
Many people who fight againstcrime or uh are advocates for
the poor, for example, they donot get their motivation from
scripture or necessarily from asaving relationship to Jesus
Christ.
I mean, just as human beings,period.
As human beings, they simplycannot help but know that
opposing crime and helping thepoor are good things to do.
(14:56):
I mean, even the most godlesssociety becomes absolutely
incensed when a child or anelderly person is attacked or
murdered.
Even pagans and agnostics andatheists are able to discern
basic right and wrong.
And for these four reasons thatI've given you right here, we
need to understand and knowthis.
(15:18):
No person, no person can standguiltless before God.
Not one.
The fact that they do not turnto God proves that they do not
live up to the light that Godhas given them.
Jesus declared categorically, ifany man is willing to do his
(15:38):
will, his will, he shall knowthe teaching, whether it is of
God or whether I speak frommyself.
The Apostle Paul assured hispagan listeners in Athens on
Mars Hill that God, and I quotehim in Acts 17, made from one
every nation of mankind to liveon all the face of the earth,
(16:00):
having determined theirappointed times and the
boundaries of their habitation,that they should seek God if
perhaps they might grope for himand find him, though he is not
far from each one of us.
God is impartial in his perfectjudgment.
But not only that, there's alsoyour motive.
(16:22):
That's verse 16.
And my motive.
(17:41):
Jeremiah 17, 10.
Through Jeremiah, God said, Ithe Lord search the heart, I
test the mind, and give to eachman according to his ways,
according to the results of hisdeed.
As a matter of fact, three timesin his Sermon on the Mount,
Jesus said this.
He said, Your father who sees insecret.
(18:04):
Think about that.
Your father who sees in secretwill repay you.
He knows your motive.
He knows your heart.
Now there's obviously, I mean, Iknow this.
There's obviously such a thingas relative human goodness.
(18:25):
And many unbelievers, you knowsome.
Many unbelievers live on a highmoral plane.
Sad to say, compared to someprofessing believers.
That's sad, isn't it?
Many unbelievers live on a highmoral plane, but that's not the
kind of goodness that satisfiesGod.
Because nothing is truly goodthat is done from any motive
(18:50):
other than his glory.
Nothing is truly good that isdone in any power other than his
own.
Everything that is done in theflesh can only serve the flesh.
And it is by nature tainted withimperfection and self-interest.
It cannot be done out of onlythe right motive, that is to
(19:13):
say, pleasing and glorifyingGod.
I mean, whether it's whether youdo anything to impress others
with your own goodness, or youdo it to react to peer pressure
or to alleviate guilt feelingsor to simply feel better about
yourself, don't we do thingssometimes just for that reason?
Just to feel better aboutourselves.
(19:33):
Am I the only one being honestin here?
Come on, tell the truth.
You do some things just to feelbetter about you.
Whether you do any of thosethings, anything that is not
done for God, anything that isnot done through his power, is
basically sinful andunacceptable to him.
(19:57):
That's hard to hear.
I know it.
But the truth is, it doesn'tmatter how hourly good or how
self-sacrificial it may appear,if it's not done for God and
through his power, it isbasically sinful and
unacceptable.
David committed terrible sinswhile he served as God's
anointed king, as God's overGod's chosen nation.
(20:19):
And as I noted in my previousmessage last week, many of his
sins, such as his adultery withBathsheba, his the murder of her
husband, Uriah, do youunderstand?
Those were capital offenses forwhich God could have justly
demanded David's life.
But the basic motivation anddirection of David's life were
(20:42):
not of selfish ambition andunrighteousness, but the service
and worship of God.
That'll give some of us a littlebit of comfort, especially if we
messed up badly in the past.
He readily acknowledged and heconfessed his sins before God,
throwing himself on the Lord'smercy and grace.
(21:05):
But Judas, on the other hand,was outwardly upright.
He was religious.
He was even a professed followerof Christ.
And he was thoroughlyself-centered.
Inwardly, he came to havecontempt for Christ and his
(21:26):
gospel of grace.
And the heart desires that movedthose two men and us, our heart
desires that move us, the heartdesires of those two men were
open books to the Lord.
And their respective guilt andtheir respective deeds, just as
ours, will be truly judged, willbe judged for what they truly
(21:50):
were and not the way theyappeared to other people.
If Romans 2, verse 16 through 16teaches anything, it teaches.
That a redeemed life willproduce holy living.
And it teaches that a life thatreflects no holy living has no
(22:10):
claim on eternal life.
Right living, which can onlycome from the right motivation.
Is God given evidence of genuinesalvation?
And lack of right living is justa certain evidence of lostness.
(22:31):
God's impartial.
I don't know if it's right tosay this.
Maybe just my opinion.
I think I have scripturalbacking and grounds for this,
but I would I would just aboutsay this though.
Very well could be one of thehardest pla one of the hottest
places in hell, one of thehottest places in hell will be
reserved for those who havewasted the greatest spiritual
(22:52):
opportunity.
You're accountable for what youhear, for what you know of his
word.
And he is impartial, and he willjudge on that basis.
If you're a true doer of thelaw, you come to Christ knowing
you can't keep his law and youthrow yourself on his mercy.
And the Holy Spirit of God, whenyou're born again, then
(23:14):
regenerated, born again, heempowers you to not only have a
new desire but a new capacity.
The disposition of your heartwill be changed, and you will
want to follow him and do hisword and do his will.
And in the end, it will bearout, it will be demonstrated
that you are a part of the justfor that reason.
(23:39):
What's your motive?
What's your secrets?
God will judge that.
Is your motive right?
SPEAKER_01 (23:48):
Thanks for spending part of your day with us on
Foundations of Truth, thebiblical teaching ministry of
Dr.
Timothy Mann.
If you'd like to hear thismessage again or give a
financial gift or get morebiblical resources, you can do
so online.
Foundationsoftruth.net.
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
And thank you so much.
Join us again tomorrow foranother opportunity to study the
(24:11):
scriptures and discover theunchanging truth of God's Word.
Join Dr.
Mann Saturday, September 19th,10 a.m.
to 2 p.m.
at From My Library to YoursChristian Bookstore in Port
Orange for a special authorevent featuring his book, Saved,
Understanding God's Work in Us.
There'll be book signing,conversation, and brief talks
(24:32):
with a QA at 10:15 a.m.
and 1.15 p.m.
That's Saturday, September 19that the pavilion next to Massage
Envy in Port Orange, Florida.
Foundations of Truth with Dr.
Timothy Mann is supported inpart by Luther Rice College and
Seminary, equipping men andwomen for ministry through
biblically faithful theologicaleducation.
(24:53):
As a leader in online learning,we are grateful for their
partnership in helping carrybiblical truth farther.
We're thankful for AMN Plumbing,a local ministry partner serving
the Ormond Beach, Daytona Beach,Fort Orange, New Smyrna Beach,
and surrounding areas withDefendable Plumbing Service.
Their support helps makeFoundations of Truth available
to more listeners each week.
(25:15):
Foundations of Truth with Dr.
Timothy Mann is supported inpart by Cat Care Clinic, located
in Ormond Beach, and servingfamilies with thoughtful and
compassionate veterinary carefor cats.
We're grateful for theirpartnership in helping carry
biblical truth farther.
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