The Holy Hieromartyr Therapontus.
Romans 1:18-27; Matthew 5:20-26.
Read Romans 1:18-27
Saint Paul speaks about what happens when humanity turns away from God and no longer gives God what is rightfully God’s: glory, thanksgiving, worship, and obedience. Paul reminds us that God has revealed Himself through creation. The beauty, order, and wonder of the world point toward the Creator. Yet humanity often chooses to focus more on created things than on the One who created them.
One of the most important lines in this passage is this: “Although they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him.” This is where the spiritual fall begins. Sin is not merely about breaking rules; it begins when the human heart stops living in gratitude and communion with God. When God is no longer at the center, everything else gradually becomes disordered — the mind, desires, relationships, and even society itself.
Saint Paul describes humanity exchanging “the truth of God for a lie” and worshipping created things rather than the Creator. This is the essence of idolatry. Idolatry is not only bowing before statues. It is whenever something else takes the place that belongs to God alone: power, pleasure, wealth, pride, ideology, or even ourselves. When created things become ultimate, the human person loses direction and forgets his true dignity.
From an Eastern Christian perspective, this passage also reminds us that humanity was created to live eucharistically — in thanksgiving. The word “Eucharist” itself means thanksgiving. Human life finds its fullness when it is offered back to God with gratitude and love. But when thanksgiving disappears, the heart becomes empty and restless.
Romans 1 is not only a warning; it is also an invitation. It calls us to restore God to the center of our lives. When we give God what is due to Him — worship, thanksgiving, trust, and obedience — we begin to rediscover order, peace, and the true freedom found in Jesus Christ.