-3-
Devolution
Romans 1:19-32
Paul has clearly laid out his reason for this letter to the church(es) in Rome … he wants to come and see them, share with them something useful, and in turn, be blessed by them. He talks about the powerful gospel that he has been sharing all across the land. He points out the fact that both Jews and Gentiles really need this gospel. The Jews could not rest their 'salvation' on the fact that they were born into a race that was called the people of God. The Gentiles had to realize that their salvation had nothing to do with their efforts to live right and be good people. Both Jews and Gentiles had to come to grips with the fact that Salvation was based on coming to the one true God in faith and repentance.
The writer of Hebrews aptly summed it up in one verse: Heb 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
As Paul continues the discussion about the glorious gospel of God we see him showing the downward spiral of mankind and the need to reach them before they go too far and 'cross the line'.
Ro 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
The wrath of God that Paul mentions, is something coming in the future. This is where man is headed without Christ.
But in verse 19 Paul gives us the starting point or the high point before devolution is complete.
Ro 1:19 ¶ For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
I think it is important to recognise that nations of people had evolved or devolved, rather, over time. This was true prior to the flood. Later in history as other various nations rose to conquer their known world, some were entirely ruthless while others brought in culture and government. Some of this can be seen in our present world. We can talk about 'Godless' communism, Dictatorial rule, Democracies etc. Because of the sinful and fallen nature of man, it seems devolution is the norm. That is sort of a broad inclusive view.
But devolution is also true on the individual level. Children are born so innocent and cute. Then something begins to happen. Self begins to happen. Our fallen nature is a selfish nature. To be fair, self preservation is not totally evil. When God created Adam and Eve, the privileges and joys of the garden of Eden would be very 'pleasing' to the self aspect of this couple. When Satan talked to Eve about the benefits of eating the forbidden fruit, he was appealing to her self. Her self nature was not yet sinful and yet the desire to take care of 'self' needs did exist.
So when we dress warmly for winter, when we put snow tires on our cars, when we budget our money and spend it wisely, when we set the thermostat for our house temperature … all this is for the comfort or safety of our 'self'.
Is this of itself sinful? I don' t think so. But if we are honest, there is a gradual increase in our list of things as to what 'self' wants. We even rationalize to the point of believing that some of the things that we want are really needs. And our culture can really help us to become more selfish. Ads on television are designed to appeal to our 'self' in some form or other.
So what we see on the individual level … a baby who only knows selfishness at first, then a toddler who has to be taught to share, then a child that can be reasoned with, to a youth who begins to see what is 'out there' and is taught to want it ... is our own individual 'devolution' or downward spiral.
In the 'western' world it is all about 'me'. Paul prophesied of a time when selfishness would be out of control.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 ¶ But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
How does this downward spiral occur? Perhaps if we can recognize the process we can stop it or reverse it.
Ro 1:20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
Whether we are talking about a civilized nation, an uncivilized nation, or simply a child who marvels at the vastness of the night sky, God can be seen. Logic, left unspoiled, sees a grand design.
The Apostle Paul would have been familiar with this Psalm of David, who put things so beautifully clear.
Ps 19:1 ¶ « To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. » The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge 3 There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. 4 Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, 5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. 6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
And like Romans 1:20 states … that is enough to leave people without excuse.
But here is where the devolution begins.
Ro 1:21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Parents … Grandparents … Sunday school teachers … here is our clue. By emphasizing God, honoring Him, attributing thanks to him … we can avert this downward trend. Clear and obvious thankfulness to God in our normal conversation is an incredible habit to get into. We can learn a lot about being thankful from King David.
He said; Psalm 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
Psalm 107:22 And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!
Psalm 116:17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.
The attitude of thankfulness is opposite to the attitude of entitlement that is so prevalent in the society in which we live.
Because we are living with 'entitlement' demonstrated all around us, it tends to rub off. We have come from a selfish wicked world … to Christ and true Christianity, and we tend to bring wrong attitudes with us.
. These attitudes need to be 'put off' and new ones 'put on'.
How do we get rid of the attitude of entitlement?
Ro 1:22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, Now we have the next layer. First is selfishness. Then we add pride. Our basic nature loves praise. That is just a part of our selfish makeup. Then, when we get praise … we develop pride. And pride so colors and permeates our soul that we begin to believe we are superior. And superiority leaves no room for the One who, the ONLY one, Who is superior.
As national superiority and pride develops, the One Who is Superior and Almighty gets minimized and replaced and rejected.
Ro 1:23 … and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Paul, no doubt, is including heathen idol worship, but I think he goes much further.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
In our day and culture, man is seen as the 'capstone' of evolution. They have exchanged the 'creator God' for a lie. The lie is evolution. That makes civilized, educated and cultured man into God.
And God is saying through the apostle Paul that man cannot go any lower than to suppress the knowledge of God, and in the place of God, elevate mankind and science as a god. At this point our loving God begins to back off. These are people that are crossing over the line that God draws in the sand, and we are reading that God is giving up on them.
Ro 1:26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God (retain God in their knowledge), God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.
This statement, “God gave them up” is one of the saddest in the entire Bible. It is a phrase that we don't use much. Before we talk about what it means and includes, let's talk about the work of God in the world BEFORE He reaches the point of 'giving up' on anyone.
When we say that unbelievers are 'dead' in their trespasses and sins (Eph 2:1) we are not saying that they are like a corpse, unable to hear the voice of God until he breathes life into them. No. we are saying that only one part of them is dead … not their body, not their soul … only their spirit.
This means that God's Holy Spirit has some kind of affect on them, even though we call them dead. This is clear from the following verses: John 16:7,8 ¶ Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
He will convict the world. This means that the world is not so dead that they cannot be convicted. Sin, righteousness, and judgment … three areas that the Holy Spirit will somehow deal with in the lives of unbelievers. Some have said that the Holy Spirit only does that through the church. I certainly hope that is not the only way, because we are not doing a good job of it out in the world. Whatever way that God chooses to do it, the Holy Spirit's influence must have a restraining effect on sin running rampant in this world.
It appears from this passage (Romans 1:28) that God's giving up on someone has to do with their conscious decision to push God out of their thinking. This probably is true on two levels. Level one: individually. When one person clearly and decidedly pushes God out of their thinking, there will come a point that God gives up on them. Level two: collectively. God gave up on the world at the time of the flood in Noah's day. God is going to give up on the world as a whole, in the future. Here is a passage from Second Thessalonians that speaks of the future.
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 2Th 2:7
When God gives up on an individual, there will no longer be any convicting work of the Holy Spirit in that person's life. They will not be walking around in total despondency saying, “Oh no! Woe is me! I have sinned away the grace of God. It is too late. I cannot be saved.” Rather, I believe they would be displaying a cynical attitude that totally does not care about sin in their lives.
Having touched on this, it is very important to say that we are not judges. Never can we say or think that someone has gone too far, and God has given up on them.
…. to do what ought not to be done. (Romans 1:28) Here Paul is referring back to verses 26 and 27 (Ro. 1:26,27)
Homosexuality is perversion. It is Satan's joy to pervert everything Holy. When God gives up on individuals, He does not cause them to become homosexual. That is Satan's doing. Satan was doing that just before the flood. And Jesus says that Satan will do it on a huge scale at the end time … because God is giving up on those who push Him out of their thinking.
Lu 17:26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot — they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all — 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
The specific reference to the time of Lot when he was living in Sodom is significant. Reference to the time of Noah is understandable … because it was world-wide. But reference to the sin of Sodom is localized. It is one city. Why include them as a sign of the second coming? It is because of the one most outstanding sinful practice of that city. That sin was 'sodomy' or homosexuality.
As we compare scripture to our present time we have to ask questions:
Has God already begun the process of giving up on 'restraining' nations from sin? Have we entered into the period known as 'The Great Apostasy'? (2Th 2:3, Mt 24:11,12)
In the next verses Paul talks about accelerated wickedness … increasing to the point of 'filling' them.
.Ro 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, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 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.
There are those who say that as a result of our current technology, specifically with reference to media, that we think that the world has grown incredibly wicked, but in reality the world has always been just like it is now. There are those who say that just because we hear of massive earthquakes around the world that it is no indication that they have increased, but simply that we can now hear about them. I would say that, to a certain degree, that would be true … that is, it is true that we can hear about them via media.
But we know better. When have you seen a recent TV show or movie … without homosexuality? It gets 'worked into' almost everything. Gender bender teaching seems to be the main doctrine of public schools.
Is the ratio of homo-sexually oriented persons the same as it ever was, but now they are brave enough to 'come out'?
I believe the number is significantly growing and that is because restraints are being removed.
As we scan verses 29 to 32 we get a picture of a very dark world. The evil list ends with a statement that is so very unpopular in our culture. Paul says that people who practice these things deserve to die. Do we believe that? Most likely Paul is referring to the Laws given to Moses. The death penalty is applied to a number of different sins or broken commandments. These laws were not given specifically to the world, as such. They were given to govern the nation Israel. So why would Paul say that heathen people are doing deeds worthy of death? My understanding is, because God gave the law to Israel and included in it the death penalty for various things, that allows us to see and perceive God's thinking and opinion regarding these sins. So if a heathen commits these things, God's attitude toward the sin would be the same as if an Israelite had committed it.
As we proceed into Romans 2 Paul unfolds truth about the wrath of God against sin, against willful sin, and impending judgment which is to come.
But also in Romans 2 we will also get to see the heart of God, his mercy, his grace.
The writer of Hebrews aptly summed it up in one verse: Heb 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
As Paul continues the discussion about the glorious gospel of God we see him showing the downward spiral of mankind and the need to reach them before they go too far and 'cross the line'.
Ro 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
The wrath of God that Paul mentions, is something coming in the future. This is where man is headed without Christ.
But in verse 19 Paul gives us the starting point or the high point before devolution is complete.
Ro 1:19 ¶ For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
I think it is important to recognise that nations of people had evolved or devolved, rather, over time. This was true prior to the flood. Later in history as other various nations rose to conquer their known world, some were entirely ruthless while others brought in culture and government. Some of this can be seen in our present world. We can talk about 'Godless' communism, Dictatorial rule, Democracies etc. Because of the sinful and fallen nature of man, it seems devolution is the norm. That is sort of a broad inclusive view.
But devolution is also true on the individual level. Children are born so innocent and cute. Then something begins to happen. Self begins to happen. Our fallen nature is a selfish nature. To be fair, self preservation is not totally evil. When God created Adam and Eve, the privileges and joys of the garden of Eden would be very 'pleasing' to the self aspect of this couple. When Satan talked to Eve about the benefits of eating the forbidden fruit, he was appealing to her self. Her self nature was not yet sinful and yet the desire to take care of 'self' needs did exist.
So when we dress warmly for winter, when we put snow tires on our cars, when we budget our money and spend it wisely, when we set the thermostat for our house temperature … all this is for the comfort or safety of our 'self'.
Is this of itself sinful? I don' t think so. But if we are honest, there is a gradual increase in our list of things as to what 'self' wants. We even rationalize to the point of believing that some of the things that we want are really needs. And our culture can really help us to become more selfish. Ads on television are designed to appeal to our 'self' in some form or other.
So what we see on the individual level … a baby who only knows selfishness at first, then a toddler who has to be taught to share, then a child that can be reasoned with, to a youth who begins to see what is 'out there' and is taught to want it ... is our own individual 'devolution' or downward spiral.
In the 'western' world it is all about 'me'. Paul prophesied of a time when selfishness would be out of control.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 ¶ But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
How does this downward spiral occur? Perhaps if we can recognize the process we can stop it or reverse it.
Ro 1:20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
Whether we are talking about a civilized nation, an uncivilized nation, or simply a child who marvels at the vastness of the night sky, God can be seen. Logic, left unspoiled, sees a grand design.
The Apostle Paul would have been familiar with this Psalm of David, who put things so beautifully clear.
Ps 19:1 ¶ « To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. » The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge 3 There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. 4 Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, 5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. 6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
And like Romans 1:20 states … that is enough to leave people without excuse.
But here is where the devolution begins.
Ro 1:21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Parents … Grandparents … Sunday school teachers … here is our clue. By emphasizing God, honoring Him, attributing thanks to him … we can avert this downward trend. Clear and obvious thankfulness to God in our normal conversation is an incredible habit to get into. We can learn a lot about being thankful from King David.
He said; Psalm 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
Psalm 107:22 And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!
Psalm 116:17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.
The attitude of thankfulness is opposite to the attitude of entitlement that is so prevalent in the society in which we live.
Because we are living with 'entitlement' demonstrated all around us, it tends to rub off. We have come from a selfish wicked world … to Christ and true Christianity, and we tend to bring wrong attitudes with us.
. These attitudes need to be 'put off' and new ones 'put on'.
How do we get rid of the attitude of entitlement?
- Diagnose your heart. Ask yourself a number of questions, such as; In what areas of my life am I discontent? Why am I feeling so disappointed right now? What do I think I need in order to live 'an abundant life'? In what ways am I comparing my life to someone else's life?
- Remember God's word and His promises
- Imitate our Saviour.
Ro 1:22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, Now we have the next layer. First is selfishness. Then we add pride. Our basic nature loves praise. That is just a part of our selfish makeup. Then, when we get praise … we develop pride. And pride so colors and permeates our soul that we begin to believe we are superior. And superiority leaves no room for the One who, the ONLY one, Who is superior.
As national superiority and pride develops, the One Who is Superior and Almighty gets minimized and replaced and rejected.
Ro 1:23 … and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Paul, no doubt, is including heathen idol worship, but I think he goes much further.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
In our day and culture, man is seen as the 'capstone' of evolution. They have exchanged the 'creator God' for a lie. The lie is evolution. That makes civilized, educated and cultured man into God.
And God is saying through the apostle Paul that man cannot go any lower than to suppress the knowledge of God, and in the place of God, elevate mankind and science as a god. At this point our loving God begins to back off. These are people that are crossing over the line that God draws in the sand, and we are reading that God is giving up on them.
Ro 1:26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. 28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God (retain God in their knowledge), God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.
This statement, “God gave them up” is one of the saddest in the entire Bible. It is a phrase that we don't use much. Before we talk about what it means and includes, let's talk about the work of God in the world BEFORE He reaches the point of 'giving up' on anyone.
When we say that unbelievers are 'dead' in their trespasses and sins (Eph 2:1) we are not saying that they are like a corpse, unable to hear the voice of God until he breathes life into them. No. we are saying that only one part of them is dead … not their body, not their soul … only their spirit.
This means that God's Holy Spirit has some kind of affect on them, even though we call them dead. This is clear from the following verses: John 16:7,8 ¶ Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
He will convict the world. This means that the world is not so dead that they cannot be convicted. Sin, righteousness, and judgment … three areas that the Holy Spirit will somehow deal with in the lives of unbelievers. Some have said that the Holy Spirit only does that through the church. I certainly hope that is not the only way, because we are not doing a good job of it out in the world. Whatever way that God chooses to do it, the Holy Spirit's influence must have a restraining effect on sin running rampant in this world.
It appears from this passage (Romans 1:28) that God's giving up on someone has to do with their conscious decision to push God out of their thinking. This probably is true on two levels. Level one: individually. When one person clearly and decidedly pushes God out of their thinking, there will come a point that God gives up on them. Level two: collectively. God gave up on the world at the time of the flood in Noah's day. God is going to give up on the world as a whole, in the future. Here is a passage from Second Thessalonians that speaks of the future.
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 2Th 2:7
When God gives up on an individual, there will no longer be any convicting work of the Holy Spirit in that person's life. They will not be walking around in total despondency saying, “Oh no! Woe is me! I have sinned away the grace of God. It is too late. I cannot be saved.” Rather, I believe they would be displaying a cynical attitude that totally does not care about sin in their lives.
Having touched on this, it is very important to say that we are not judges. Never can we say or think that someone has gone too far, and God has given up on them.
…. to do what ought not to be done. (Romans 1:28) Here Paul is referring back to verses 26 and 27 (Ro. 1:26,27)
Homosexuality is perversion. It is Satan's joy to pervert everything Holy. When God gives up on individuals, He does not cause them to become homosexual. That is Satan's doing. Satan was doing that just before the flood. And Jesus says that Satan will do it on a huge scale at the end time … because God is giving up on those who push Him out of their thinking.
Lu 17:26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot — they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all — 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
The specific reference to the time of Lot when he was living in Sodom is significant. Reference to the time of Noah is understandable … because it was world-wide. But reference to the sin of Sodom is localized. It is one city. Why include them as a sign of the second coming? It is because of the one most outstanding sinful practice of that city. That sin was 'sodomy' or homosexuality.
As we compare scripture to our present time we have to ask questions:
Has God already begun the process of giving up on 'restraining' nations from sin? Have we entered into the period known as 'The Great Apostasy'? (2Th 2:3, Mt 24:11,12)
In the next verses Paul talks about accelerated wickedness … increasing to the point of 'filling' them.
.Ro 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, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 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.
There are those who say that as a result of our current technology, specifically with reference to media, that we think that the world has grown incredibly wicked, but in reality the world has always been just like it is now. There are those who say that just because we hear of massive earthquakes around the world that it is no indication that they have increased, but simply that we can now hear about them. I would say that, to a certain degree, that would be true … that is, it is true that we can hear about them via media.
But we know better. When have you seen a recent TV show or movie … without homosexuality? It gets 'worked into' almost everything. Gender bender teaching seems to be the main doctrine of public schools.
Is the ratio of homo-sexually oriented persons the same as it ever was, but now they are brave enough to 'come out'?
I believe the number is significantly growing and that is because restraints are being removed.
As we scan verses 29 to 32 we get a picture of a very dark world. The evil list ends with a statement that is so very unpopular in our culture. Paul says that people who practice these things deserve to die. Do we believe that? Most likely Paul is referring to the Laws given to Moses. The death penalty is applied to a number of different sins or broken commandments. These laws were not given specifically to the world, as such. They were given to govern the nation Israel. So why would Paul say that heathen people are doing deeds worthy of death? My understanding is, because God gave the law to Israel and included in it the death penalty for various things, that allows us to see and perceive God's thinking and opinion regarding these sins. So if a heathen commits these things, God's attitude toward the sin would be the same as if an Israelite had committed it.
As we proceed into Romans 2 Paul unfolds truth about the wrath of God against sin, against willful sin, and impending judgment which is to come.
But also in Romans 2 we will also get to see the heart of God, his mercy, his grace.