25 October, 1998
INTRODUCTION
Fritz Kreisler, the world-famous violinist who lived from 1875-1962, earned a fortune with his concerts and compositions, but he was such a generous man that he gave most of it away. So, when he discovered an exquisite violin on one of his trips, he wasn't able to buy it. Later, having raised enough money to meet the asking price, he returned to the seller, hoping to purchase that beautiful instrument. But to his great dismay it had been sold to a collector. Kreisler found out who had bought it and made his way to the new owner's home and offered to buy the violin. The collector said it had become his prized possession and he would not sell it. Very disappointed, Kreisler was about to leave when he had an idea. "Could I play the instrument once more before it is consigned to silence?" he asked. Permission was granted, and the great maestro filled the room with such heart-moving music that the collector's emotions were deeply stirred. "I have no right to keep that to myself," he exclaimed. "It's yours, Mr. Kreisler. Take it into the world, and let people hear it." (Our Daily Bread February 4, 1994)
This, I believe, was the Apostle Paul's attitude toward the gospel of Christ - that he had not right to keep it to himself.
BACKGROUND
Paul has already made it very clear that he is obligated to preach the gospel to all men regardless of who they are. It was such an obligation that he was ready and eager to preach to everyone. Here in Romans 1:16,17, he goes further to say that the reason he is so eager to preach the gospel is because he is not ashamed of the gospel. And when you understand truth of the gospel as Paul did, you can understand why he was not ashamed of the gospel and was never reluctant to preach it. And when you consider Paul's experience as a missionary, you can see why this statement is so significant. Here was a man who had been imprisoned in Philippi, chased out of Thessalonica, smuggled out of Berea, laughed at in Athens, and in Corinth his message considered to foolishness to the Greeks and a stumbling block to the Jews. All of which was the result of him preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. And now he says, in spite of all of that, he is not ashamed of the gospel.
If all of that had happened to some of us, we might find ourselves feeling somewhat reluctant to do what Paul did so eagerly. We might even be kind of embarrassed by preaching this message that was continually being mocked and rejected. But Paul did not hesitate and was never reluctant to preach the gospel. He never hung his head in shamed or preached with anything other than a definite confidence in the message he was proclaiming. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ and he tells us why here in these two verses.
Now the gospel that Paul speaks of here is the word that is used over and over in the NT of God's good news to mankind. Among the Greeks the term was a technical one for "news of victory" with a whole ritual surrounding the coming of the messenger who brought this news. And it is this good news that Paul has no reservations about preaching.
Why was Paul so eager and ready and unashamed to preach the gospel?
1. BECAUSE OF THE GOSPEL'S POWER - 1:16
The power Paul speaks of here is the word dunamis. It means power, might, strength, and force. Paul is asserting here that the gospel message, the good news of God to mankind, carries with it the omnipotence of God. The gospel of course is the message and that message of the gospel is the power of God unto salvation. In other words, God saves through the message of the gospel. The gospel as the power of God unto salvation, simply put, is that it is powerful and it is from God.
One of the strongest arguments for the power of the Gospel of Christ is the personal testimony of those whose lives have been changed by it. A man by the name of Charles Bradlaugh, who was an avowed infidel, once challenged a preacher by the name of H. P. Hughes to a debate. The preacher, who was head of a rescue mission in London, England, accepted the challenge with the condition that he could bring with him 100 men and women who would tell what had happened in their lives since trusting Christ as their Savior. They would be people who once lived in deep sin, some having come from poverty-stricken homes caused by the vices of their parents - obviously a group of people from all walks of life. Hughes said they would not only tell of their conversion, but would submit to cross-examination by any who doubted their stories. Furthermore, the minister invited his opponent to bring a group of non-believers who could tell how they were helped by their lack of faith. When the appointed day arrived, the preacher came, accompanied by 100 people who had been transformed by the power of Christ. But Bradlaugh never showed up. The result was that the meeting turned into a testimony time and many of those unbelievers who had gathered to hear the scheduled debate were converted.
The gospel is certainly the power of God unto salvation for it is in the proclamation of the gospel that God draws a person to Himself and enables that person to respond to His grace by faith.
All we are obligated to do is to proclaim the message - the truth and nothing but the truth and God uses that message to bring salvation to those who are lost. Paul declares later in Romans 10:17 that "faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." And when that message of the gospel is proclaimed, the power of God is unleashed unto salvation. How it all works, I don't really know. But what I do know is what Paul declares here and that is that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation. And for that reason, we should not be ashamed of it.
Another reason for Paul being unashamed of the gospel is...
2. BECAUSE OF THE GOSPEL'S IMPARTIAL AND LIMITED APPLICATION - 1:16
There are many who believe that all men will be saved. But Paul makes it clear that this gospel is only effective in the lives of those who believe.
I had a friend back in NC who cited 1 Timothy 4:10 where Paul says that "we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe." He used this verse to claim that eventually everyone would be saved - whether they had put their faith in Christ or not. It mattered not how a person lived right up until they died, even though there might be some kind of punishment for living life like they wanted, everyone would eventually be ushered into heaven. That was his theology of salvation.
Without getting into the implications of that verse at this time, let it be clearly understood from what Paul says here in Romans and other places in the NT that salvation comes only to those who believe. It has nothing to do with a person's ethnic, religious or social background. It has everything to do with a person responding in faith. I think it is safe to say that not everyone will be saved because not everyone will exercise saving faith. Many will go into eternity without Christ because many will not coming to saving faith in Jesus Christ. You can preach a universal salvation all you want but not everyone will be saved - only those who respond to the gospel with saving faith. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who exercises saving faith - for the Jew first and also for the Gentile.
Now I know that there is this age old question of the heathen who might have died without ever hearing the gospel and having a chance to respond in faith. I think that part of that answer will be addressed later on here in chapter 1 when Paul says "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-- his eternal power and divine nature-- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." (Romans 1:20) So I guess the bottom line is that those heathens who die without ever hearing the gospel will be in the hands of a just and a merciful God and the final decision of their eternal destiny will be up to Him. But here Paul clearly says that it is only those who respond with saving faith that are saved.
So what is the point? The point is that it is up to us to preach the gospel to all men, regardless of their ethnic, religious, or cultural background. We have no right to keep the gospel from being preached to anyone because of personal prejudices. We are obligated as Paul was to preach the gospel "both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish." And as we fulfill our responsibility and obligation, God will take it from there.
And for that reason, Paul was not ashamed of the gospel.
The third reason for his strong feelings about the gospel is....
3. BECAUSE OF THE GOSPEL'S HOPE-FILLED MESSAGE - 1:17
This is the main reason that Paul is not ashamed of the gospel. And the message of the gospel is what Paul explains here in verse 17.
First of all, that...
a. Salvation has been provided
The word salvation is a word that is used 5 times in Romans and simply means deliverance, preservation, or rescue. It includes forgiveness of sins, it promises the restoration of that which sin has marred or destroyed, and it involves the work of justification (the act of being brought into a right relationship with God) reconciliation (the act of the sinner being reconciled to God), sanctification (the work and process of being made holy) and redemption (being bought out of slavery to sin and death). It is simply the deliverance from sin and it's punishment and admission into eternal life. All of this is included in the salvation that has been provided through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. And it is the power of the gospel that delivers people from their lostness, the wrath of God, the willful spiritual ignorance from false religions and the ultimate penalty of sin.
That is the message we proclaim in the gospel. That is the message that brings people to the realization of their need of a savior. And that is the message that we must proclaim without apology and without reservation. Because it is that message that is the power of God unto salvation.
Another part of this gospel message is that...
b. A Righteousness from God is Revealed
This is actually the major theme of the book of Romans. The reference to this work of justification appears over 30 times in one form or another. It is a theme that is discussed at length in chapter 3:21. The word righteous simply means, "uprightness."
This phrase has been translated to mean either, "the righteous standing which God gives," or "the righteous character which God is," or "the righteous activity which comes from God." It seems very unlikely that Paul is referring to a divine attribute per se such as uprightness or justice or goodness because it is obtained by faith. And when you consider that Paul says elsewhere that this righteousness from God is a gift (5:17) and not to be our own (10:3). Therefore this must mean either the righteousness of which God is the author or which He approves. In essence it means both of those. It is a righteousness by which we are made righteous before God and which God gives and approves.
Charles Hodge explains it best by saying, "...this states the righteousness by which we are justified is not due to anything done by us, but something done for us, and imputed to us. IT is the work of Christ, what He did and suffered to satisfy the demands of the law. Hence both external or ceremonial works are excluded as the ground of justification, and also the works of righteousness. This includes every kind of deed, no matter how excellent it is."
Hodge goes on to explain that, "...God's righteousness, which the gospel reveals and by which we are constituted righteous, is the perfect righteousness of Christ which completely meets and answers all the demands of that law to which everyone is subject and which everyone has broken." (Charles Hodge, Commentary on Romans, p. 27-32)
And friends, this is the good news of the gospel. The fact that we bring nothing to the work of salvation except our sin. We can take no credit whatsoever for our right standing with God. It is all God from beginning to end. And if we are proclaiming a message that says that we are brought into a right relationship with God by virtue of our own merits, good works, or anything else, we are not preaching the gospel. If we are claiming that we bring something to the work of salvation in our lives, other than bringing our sin, we are not preaching the gospel.
c. Faith is the means by which we are saved
The word Paul uses here for believe is the pisteuo and it means to trust, rely on and have faith in. This faith that Paul mentions here is understood to be found with three elements to it: (a) it is a faith that is mental, in the mind understands and grasps the truth of the gospel (b) it is a faith that is emotional in that there comes an act of the person embracing the truthfulnesss of the facts of the gospel (c) and it is a faith that is volitional in that there is a submission of our will to Christ where we trust in Him alone as our only hope of salvation. And based on Paul's statement in Ephesians 2:8, this faith is a supernatural, gracious gift of God and it is the only means by which anyone can be saved. (The MacArthur Study Bible note on believes, p. 1692)
I came across this illustration that I think makes the point well. Imagine if you will, a ship filled with people crossing the Atlantic Ocean. In the middle of the ocean there is an explosion. The ship is severely damaged and it begins to slowly sink. Most of the passengers are dead, and the rest are rushing for the lifeboats.
Now suppose one man doesn't know about the lifeboat, so he does not get aboard. He doesn't have knowledge, so he is not saved. Suppose another man knows about the lifeboat and believes it will save his life, but he is grief-stricken over seeing his wife killed, so he chooses not to get aboard and dies with his wife. He has knowledge and mental assent, but he is not saved. Others believe the lifeboat will save them, and they get into the boat. They are saved by faith, that is they have knowledge, mental assent, and trust. However, it is not their faith that saves them--no matter how much they have. It is the boat that saves them. So saving faith trusts Christ, and Christ saves. (Evangelism, A Biblical Approach, M. Cocoris, Moody, 1984, p. 77)
Faith is the avenue by which we are saved and the object of our faith is Jesus Christ and what He has done on the cross for our salvation. And Paul stresses two very important facts about this faith.
(1) It has always been this way
There are some of who might think that this gospel of salvation by grace and through faith alone is something that is new - something that was introduced by Jesus and the apostles. But Paul makes it clear that it has always been God's intention for a person to be justified and brought into a right relationship with Him by grace and through faith alone. And to prove his point, Paul cites Habakuk 2:4 where he writes, "...as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith.' "The Bible clearly teaches that no one has even been declared righteous before God except by faith alone. It goes all the way back to Abraham who is considered to be the father of faith. Looking back at Genesis 15:1-6 we can see how God declared Abraham righteous based in his faith. And Paul will use this example in chapter 4 to drive the stake even further.
It has never been and never will be God's intention for us to do anything that would warrant being declared righteous, except maybe to exercise the faith that even He gives us to respond.
(2) It must be a way of life
The word here is in the present tense which indicates that this faith is to be on-going. Genuine saving faith is not a one time response but it is an on-going continual faith. The idea is that there never comes a point when I trust in or rely upon my own merits for salvation. For the rest of my days, I will continue to rely upon and trust in what God has done in me and for me.
And let's make the point again so that there will be no confusion that authentic faith will always produce genuine obedience. When a person comes to faith in Jesus Christ for salvation is genuinely justified by God, reconciled to God, regenerated and sanctified by the power of the Holy Spirit, there is going to be an obvious change in that person's life. Will that person still sin. Absolutely. But there will now be a propensity toward obedience. And when that person disobeys God, the Holy Spirit will convict that person of sin, giving the opportunity for repentance and forgiveness. And even though that person does sin, he or she is still in a right standing before because, by faith, that person has been declared righteous.
CONCLUSION
When you consider the truth of the gospel as Paul explains it here, you can understand why he so passionately defended it and was never ashamed to preach it. As a matter of fact, he literally gave his life for the sake of the gospel. He defended until his dying day. And we should do no less.
When you consider the fact that the gospel is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes - how can be ashamed of something like that? How can you be ashamed or hesitant to share a message that has such life changing power. How can you be ashamed of sharing a message that is able to do what the gospel can do.
I want to leave with you a question to take with you and think about. Maybe even ask the Lord to apply it to your heart. The question is simply this, "Are you ashamed of the gospel?"