The whole of humanity is examined in this section, under the scrutiny of a righteous and Holy God: 

Rotten Sinner (1:18-32) 
Self-Righteous Sinner (2:1-16) 
Religious Sinner (2:17-3:20) 

Each group has their light, not the gospel as we know it, but light none the less for which God holds them accountable and responsible: 

Rotten Sinner (1:18-32) - has the light of creation 
Self-Righteous Sinner (2:1-16) - has the light of conscience 
Religious Sinner (2:17-3:20) - has the light of law or covenant 

Then the…

Vs 1- 7 – The Reality of the Gospel – Confidence of Paul 
Vs 8-17 – The Results of the Gospel – Converts at Rome 
Vs 17-32 – Requirement for the Gospel – Condition of Fallen Humanity 

Vs 1- 7 – The Reality of the Gospel – Confidence of Paul 

Don't need to understand everything 

Our faith doesn't lie in the fact that we have answers to all of the possible questions that could be asked but rather our faith is founded upon certainties, we at the moment see through a glass darkly. 

Vs 8-17 – The Results of the…

If you are going to give your life for Christ and the Gospel, you need to have confidence / need to be convinced that it is real 
Paul gave his life for the gospel 
He needed total confidence in the message 
Sometimes our service for Christ can be hindered by a lack of confidence in Christ and in the message: 

Is it real? 
Is it reliable? 
What about all the other messages? 
Can so many people be wrong? 

When faced with doubts there are 3 things we can so: 

Deny them - they tend to come back 
Be Destroyed by them…

'If its new its not true and if its true its not new' 

How authentic is this message? 

Did it come from man? 

Did it come from God? 

The authenticity of the Gospel. 

verse 1 - The Man 

verse 2 - The Message 

Hardly a more important question than this - is it real? 

Reasons the Gospel is Real: 

Personal Experience (v1) – Paul – Servant, Sent One and Separated 
The Promise (v2) - The Gospel lies (not very well) hidden in OT promises 
The Person (v3) - The Lord Jesus Christ is real 
The Power (v4) - The power of…