Is God Angry? Understanding the Wrath of God in Romans 1

So, if someone came up to you and said, “I’ve got good news and bad news—what do you want first?” what do you usually pick?

Some of us say, “Give me the good news first; maybe it’ll soften the blow.” Others want the bad news right away: “Rip off the Band-Aid and let me deal with it.”

When Paul begins the book of Romans, he doesn’t give us that choice. He starts with the bad news—on purpose.  We’re in a series in Romans called “Growing Undone: A Study in Romans” asking a huge question:

How can I be right with God?
Last week, we looked at the people involved: Paul and the church in Rome. Paul was a Pharisee, a religious man who thought he was doing God a favor. Then Jesus met him, and now he calls himself a slave of God and a servant of Christ. The believers in Rome were once sinners, now called saints and beloved of God.

Paul’s desire was to establish their faith and encourage their faith—so that both he and they could share in the fruit of what God was doing.

Now he shifts gears. He moves from introductions into deep doctrine—but not theory for theory’s sake. This doctrine is meant to change lives.

And he starts with three verses—Romans 1:16–18—that are like the three pillars holding up the whole letter. Then from verse 18 all the way to 3:20, Paul shows us the bad news: humanity is under the wrath of God.

Why? Because you can’t really treasure the good news—the gospel—until you feel the weight of the bad.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
  For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘The just shall live by faith.’
  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.”

Let’s sit with these three verses:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘The just shall live by faith.’
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.”
— Romans 1:16–18, NKJV

Paul gives us four big ideas—three obvious, one often overlooked.

If Paul had a “life verse,” I’m convinced verse 16 might be it:
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…” (Romans 1:16).

That word “power” is dynamis in Greek—where we get dynamic and dynamite. It’s explosive power. Revolutionary power. Transforming power.

• It is power – not suggestion, not advice, not inspiration. Power.
• It is power for salvation – rescue, deliverance, being made whole, brought into peace (shalom) with God.
• It is power for everyone who believes – Jew first and also Greek. In other words, everyone.

I teach high school math—geometry and algebra—and you’d be surprised how many students stumble over words like “all,” “every,” “everyone,” “everywhere.” Those little words are huge.

When Paul says “everyone who believes,” he means everyone. Your atheist coworker in Brooklyn. Your cousin who mocks church. The neighbor you stopped inviting because you got discouraged. You might have given up on them. God hasn’t.

The gospel is available to all.

Then verse 18 drops like a weight on the table:
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” (Romans 1:18)

The Greek word here is orgē—used twelve times in Romans, every time in connection with God.

One theologian defined it like this:
“Wrath is the holy revulsion of God’s being against that which is the contradiction of His holiness.” – John Murray

God’s wrath is not God losing His temper. It’s His holy, settled, righteous opposition to evil.
You cannot talk honestly about the gospel without talking about wrath. The good news is good because there is very real bad news.

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.”
— Romans 1:18–20

Paul is describing society in light of God, not God in light of society.
We tend to say, “Look at all the evil in Brooklyn, in the world—God must not care.” Paul flips it and says: the evil is evidence that God’s wrath is already being revealed.

Verse 19–20 tells us humanity has a problem—but it’s not ignorance.

“…what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen…” (Romans 1:19–20)

God has built into creation and into the human heart a knowledge that there is a Creator.
I grew up not really religious. We saw churches, temples, Catholic buildings everywhere in Brooklyn, but we didn’t go. Still, as a kid, I always had this sense: “I think there’s a God. I think Someone is watching me.”

Later, I went on a mission trip to Haiti and spoke to local pastors. I tried to explain that in America there are a lot of people who say they don’t believe in God. They were honestly shocked.

They’re very spiritual, very aware of the supernatural. For them, to say “there is no God” sounded insane. They said, “Look at creation! How can you not see a Creator behind it?”
That’s Paul’s point. People know there’s a God—but verse 18 says they “suppress the truth.”
To suppress means to hold down, restrain, push away, stifle.

So the problem is not that they never knew. It’s that they refuse to keep knowing. They don’t want the implications of God, so they push Him out of their thoughts.

Result? “They are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20)

No one will stand before God and honestly say, “I had no clue You existed.”

Verse 21–23 shows a tragic progression:
“Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.”
— Romans 1:21–23

Three failures:

• They did not glorify Him as God – no worship, no honor.
• They were not thankful – no gratitude, no acknowledgment that all good comes from Him.
• They became futile in their thoughts – their thinking became empty, pointless, circular.

You see this in our city. People walking out of Dunkin’ with a $7 drink, wearing $200 sneakers, latest iPhone in hand—absolutely miserable, unthankful, and empty inside.

Then Paul says they make three exchanges:

• They exchange glory for images – trade the incorruptible God for gods of their own making (v.23).
• They exchange truth for a lie – more on that in verse 25.
• They exchange the natural for the unnatural – we’ll see this in verse 26–27.
• 
  

The result? Their hearts grow darker, not lighter. Their reasoning becomes futile. They “profess to be wise” but in God’s eyes, they’re becoming fools.

Now, how does God respond to this rebellion? Does He smite them with lightning? Sometimes. But here, the judgment is far more terrifying.

Three times we read the phrase: "God gave them over."

• He gave them over to sexual impurity. (v. 24). He said, "You want to misuse your body? Fine. Go ahead." When we stop worshiping God, we start worshiping sex, food, comfort. We misuse the gifts He gave us.
• He gave them over to shameful lusts. (v. 26). This is a further step into darkness.
• He gave them over to a depraved mind. (v. 28). This is the final stage. It’s not just that they do wrong; they can no longer even think straight. Their moral compass is shattered.

The judgment of God is often simply this: He gives us what we want. If we want to live without Him, He says, "Okay. Try it." And the result is a total breakdown of society.

Look at the list in verses 29-31: envy, murder, strife, deceit, gossip, slander, God-hating, pride, disobedience to parents. Does that sound familiar? It sounds like the evening news. It sounds like the comments section on social media. It sounds like a family dinner where politics comes up.

And here is the kicker, the most sobering verse in the chapter:

"Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them." (Romans 1:32, NIV)

We have arrived. We don't just tolerate sin; we celebrate it. We dedicate months to it. We make movies about it. We call it "love" and "pride" to approve of what God calls sin. This isn't just secular society; this is the air the Church breathes.

And this is where the shoe pinches for those of us sitting in the pews. Paul writes about this same list of sins again in 2 Timothy 3. But there, he adds a terrifying descriptor: these people will have "a form of godliness but denying its power."

The sins of the world have infiltrated the Church. We have church members who are lovers of themselves, lovers of money, proud, ungrateful, unholy, without self-control, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. They show up on Sunday, they sing the songs, they know the Christianese language. But there is no power. There is no transformation. They have the form, but they are denying the power.

We need to ask ourselves a hard question today, especially if you call yourself a believer in Brooklyn or wherever you are reading this: Has the gospel changed you?

Are you different than you were a year ago? Are you more patient? More loving? More holy? If there is no change, if we are just playing church while living just like the world, we may have never truly encountered the gospel’s power.

Closing Application: Are You Suppressing the Truth or Being Set Free?
Romans 1 isn’t a chapter you casually breeze through. It’s heavy, searching, uncomfortable—on purpose.
Paul is not talking about “those people out there” as if we’re safe and they’re the problem. He’s laying a foundation that will end in Romans 3:23:
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23, NKJV)
So let’s make this personal.

• Have you been suppressing the truth?
You know God is there. You know some things are wrong. But you’ve been pushing it down, drowning it out with work, entertainment, relationships, or “Brooklyn busy.”
• Have you stopped glorifying God?
When something goes right, do you chalk it up to “luck,” “the grind,” or “my hustle”—instead of worship and gratitude?
• Have you become unthankful?
God’s been good, but you’re walking around miserable, comparing, complaining, numbing.

Do you see yourself in the list of Romans 1:29–31?
Envy, pride, gossip, sexual sin, disobedience to parents, unforgiveness, harshness, lack of love—most of us can circle several of those and say, “That’s me.”

The bad news is: this is what it looks like to live under God’s wrath.
The good news is: God reveals His wrath so that we will run to His grace.

You don’t have to stay here. You don’t have to stay stuck in the spiral. Whether you’re in Bay Ridge, Bensonhurst, Sunset Park, Flatbush, or anywhere in Brooklyn or beyond—the same gospel power that changed Paul, that birthed the church in Rome, can change you.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…” (Romans 1:16, NKJV)

If as you read this you sense the Holy Spirit convicting you—that’s mercy, not condemnation. Conviction is God’s invitation: “Come home. Stop suppressing the truth. Stop approving what I disapprove. Turn to Me.”

How?

• Acknowledge the truth: “God, You’re right. I’m wrong.”
• Confess your sin honestly. Don’t excuse it or rename it.
• Believe that Jesus bore the wrath you deserve on the cross.
• Ask Him to save you, forgive you, and give you a new heart.

Step into community—if you’re in Brooklyn, plug into a gospel-preaching church (we’d love to meet you at Calvary Life).

The wrath of God is real. But so is the power of the gospel. And the gospel is for you.

Father,

We come to You humbled by what we’ve read in Romans 1. Your Word exposes us. It shows us not just what’s wrong “out there,” but what’s wrong in our own hearts.
We confess that we have often suppressed the truth. We have known what is right and chosen what is wrong. We’ve traded Your glory for lesser things. We’ve been unthankful, proud, and stubborn.

Lord, we do not want to live under Your wrath. We want to live under Your grace.
Thank You that in Jesus, Your wrath was poured out so that we could be forgiven. Thank You that the gospel is Your power to save everyone who believes—including us.

For anyone reading this who doesn’t yet know where they stand with You, I ask that You would open their eyes, soften their hearts, and draw them to repentance and faith. Let them stop running. Let them surrender.

For those who do belong to You but have been drifting—grieving and quenching Your Spirit—call them back. Restore to them the joy of salvation. Break the patterns of sin they’ve been tolerating, and fill them again with gratitude, holiness, and love.

Lord, purify Your church here in Brooklyn. In our neighborhoods, in our homes, in our gatherings—let us be people who no longer play religious games, but truly know the power of the gospel.

We ask this in Jesus’ name.  
Amen.

God’s wrath is not the opposite of His love; it’s actually part of His love. A God who doesn’t get angry at evil, injustice, abuse, and sin is not loving—He’s indifferent.
The Bible describes wrath as God’s holy revulsion against all that contradicts His holiness. His wrath is just, measured, and rooted in His perfect character (Romans 1:18).

At the cross, God’s love and wrath meet: Jesus willingly bears the wrath we deserve so that we can receive the love we don’t deserve (Romans 5:8–9).

To “suppress the truth” (Romans 1:18) means that people do know something about God—through conscience and creation—but they push it down. They choose not to think about Him, not to honor Him, not to obey Him.
It’s like trying to hold a beach ball under water. The truth keeps pushing up, but you keep forcing it down. Eventually that becomes a way of life—avoiding God, avoiding conviction, avoiding repentance.

Yes. Paul says clearly:
“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen… so that they are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20)

Even without a Bible or a local church, every person has general revelation—the witness of creation and conscience that there is a Creator. That light is enough to make us accountable. We still desperately need the special revelation of the gospel to be saved—but we cannot say we “didn’t know God existed.”

This is one reason churches in Brooklyn and around the world are passionate about missions and evangelism: people everywhere need to hear the good news of Jesus.

Three times in Romans 1 (verses 24, 26, 28), Paul says “God gave them up” or “gave them over.” This is one expression of God’s wrath: He removes His restraint and allows people to fully pursue the sinful desires they insist on.

It’s as if God says, “If you’re determined to go that way, I will no longer hold you back.” That path leads to deeper bondage, greater confusion, and more pain. Sin becomes its own judgment.

The good news is, as long as you are alive and responsive, God is still inviting you to repent and come home.

That’s actually the best place to start. The gospel is for people who know they’re guilty—not for people who think they’re fine.

To be right with God:

Admit your sin and that you are under His just wrath.
Believe that Jesus died on the cross in your place and rose again (Romans 10:9).

Call on Him in faith—ask Him to forgive you, save you, and make you new (Romans 10:13).

Begin to walk by faith—get connected to a Bible-teaching church (if you’re in Brooklyn, we’d love to see you at Calvary Life), start reading Scripture, pray, and grow in community.
Remember:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)
That “everyone” includes you.

 Engage in prayer and surround yourself with a supportive faith community to help you focus on His promises.