Romans 1:19 Commentary and Bible Study

‘That which may be known’ – what an interesting phrase! God is invisible. He is untouchable. He is a spiritual being beyond our comprehension, eternal in glory. But there are things that may be known about him; he has revealed them himself, and the apostle says that some of the most important things about God can be known even though he is invisible, even though you cannot touch Him. Certain vital things may be known about him, even without a Bible being opened before you. Even if you have never heard the truth, even if you are illiterate and in some place where you have no education whatsoever, there are certain vital principles about God which are known to everyone. You don't have to search for them; they are not known only to the more intelligent, or only known to those who inquire. Everybody knows them without any advantages, ‘because that which may be known of God is manifest in them’, fully shown within them. This is a special kind of knowledge. Something within you wakes up to this, and you are aware of certain things about God without anybody telling you. These things are ‘manifest’, opened up, made fully known within you. ‘For God hath showed it unto them.’ It wasn't necessary for your mother, or your father, or your school teacher to explain these things to you; that wasn't needed. God, the finest teacher of all, who knows you through and through, who knows every particle in your brain, has imparted this knowledge to you and given you the ability to recognize the being of God through his workmanship. What are these things that God shows to every one of us? The apostle believed that the gospel is actually self-authenticating in the minds of the hearers. That knowledge of his being which God has given to all is the perfect foundation on which to build gospel understanding.The gospel has authority; it is God’s message. It has a right to be heard, and when you hear it, it authenticates itself, and there is something in every human mind which will say, that is true, that is right. Even if the person, as quickly as he or she possibly can, immediately suppresses the thought, the gospel will authenticate itself. It will touch a raw nerve, and even the pagan hearer will say, ‘That is right.’ It is for this reason, Paul is not put off, but he is motivated to preach the gospel.