Romans 1:18-23
God created humanity to need a god. God Himself wants to fill that need with a relationship full of love, mercy and grace. A godless person has a broken relationship with God and refuses to accept the reconciliation that God offers through Christ. Some acknowledge that God exists, but still refuse to glorify him as God. They also refuse to thank Him for what He has done, what He is doing and what He is willing to do to save and heal them. Others become so wicked that they suppress the truth and deny that God exists at all. People can live without God, but they cannot live without any god. In their godless condition, their thinking becomes clouded and foolish. They do not all make the same foolish choice, but they do all make a foolish choice.

Some choose to substitute manmade idols and fake gods for the one true God. They create images of animals and images of gods created in the image of man by a man. They worship these images with the foolish belief that by controlling the image they can control god. A false god is never a substitute for God.

Some choose to substitute their own desires and pleasure for God. The pursuit of pleasure becomes our ultimate goal, and they are willing to sacrifice everything of value for one more quick fix, fast thrill, exciting adventure or sexual pleasure. Because pleasure can never substitute for a relationship with God, the drugs have to become stronger, the thrills increasingly riskier and the sex ever more deviant.

Some substitute money, power or fame for God. No matter how much they have, it is never enough to satisfy. They always need more, and they become increasingly wicked in their efforts to get it. What they need is to be reconciled with their creator.

The same is true for all substitutes for God. Nothing but God can fill the hole that is in every human heart. There is no substitute for God.