What does Romans 1:25 mean?

Paul began this section in Romans 1:18 by declaring that God's wrath is being revealed against humanity's ungodliness and unrighteousness. However, all of the verses since that one have simply described humanity's rejection of God as creator, provider, and Lord.

Only in the previous verse is God described as taking action against humanity for our sinfulness. That action comes in the form of inaction: of God simply getting out of the way and letting us do as we please. At first glance, that action doesn't sound like a punishment. He is said to have given us up to our sexual lusts. In other words, apparently God stopped restraining the human impulse to control our sexual desires. To our modern ears, in our confused thinking, that almost sounds like a good thing.

The result, though, is untold amounts of misery as we have expressed our unchecked sexual desire in all its forms both with and against one another for generation after generation. We may not connect the pain with those actions, but God seems to do so. He seems to view allowing us to fully indulge in our sinful desires as a consequence unto itself.

And why did He do it? Paul writes that it was God's direct response to two things. First, unrighteous, pagan humanity traded the truth of God for a lie (Romans 1:21–22). It seems Paul is saying we traded the truth that God is the creator for the lie that all of creation arrived in some other way.

Second, we began worshiping and serving the creatures God made instead of the One who made them all (Romans 1:23). God takes idol worship personally. The first two of his Ten Commandments to Israel are that they should have no other gods before him and not worship or serve any image of any created thing (Exodus 20:3-6).

Paul, apparently wanting to distance himself even from the idea of setting God aside to worship nature, concludes this sentence by saying that the creator is blessed forever!