In an earlier post about the problem of evil, I made a reference to the limits of natural theology. As I was reflecting on that, something new occurred to me that I had never noticed before about what Paul has to say on the matter in Romans 1.

When Paul writes of the attributes of God that have been made plain to men, he mentions God’s eternal power and divine nature. He does not say we can look at the things that have been made and conclude that God is love or that He is perfectly good. And yet, Paul concludes that the ability to clearly perceive God’s divinity and his eternal power is sufficient to impose an obligation on men to honor Him and give thanks to Him. Romans 1:21 makes clear that based even on that limited knowledge of God, people ought to respond in this way.

According to Paul, having no more revelation than this is not a sufficient justification for withholding honor and thanks to your creator.