The Gospel: The Power of God Unto Salvation
He leads me …
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek (Romans 1:16 NKJV)
For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. (Romans 1:16 NLT)
The first version of Romans 1:16 above is probably the one that most Christians are familiar with, but the second version may be a little easier to understand.
I am not ashamed of the gospel: This reveals Paul’s heart. In an affluent city like Rome, some might become uneasy by a gospel based on a crucified Jewish Savior and accepted by the lowest classes of people – but Paul is not ashamed.
For it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes: This is why Paul was not ashamed of a gospel centered on a crucified Savior. He knew that the gospel – the good news of Jesus Christ – with the help of the Holy Spirit - has intimate power in helping an unbeliever transition into becoming a follower of Jesus. Once this is done the new follower is developed - again with the help of the Holy Spirit - to become progressively more like Jesus as they mature in their Christian walk.[1]
The gospel is the power God uses to save everyone[2] who believes, without any discrimination regarding sex, age, physical or mental abnormality, nationality, skin colour or any other personality characteristic. Anyone who asks Jesus Christ to be their Saviour will be saved. This gospel is not just the way God saves people, but it also prepares the way for Him to heal and deliver them if necessary too. The gospel is the power of God to rebuild lives
Jesus Christ took all believers’ place on the cross. He took all our sin – past, present and future. This is His righteousness (uprightness and morality) placed on us in the place of our sin. The price has been paid in full. Christ says, ‘I am your substitute.’[3]
For salvation: Salvation is being freed from the penalty of sin, and happens the moment we believe. Salvation has other positive aspects too, such as being made right with God and enjoying at peace with God (Romans 5:1), receiving ‘every possible spiritual benefit’ (Ephesians 1:3 PHILLIPS), and also receiving ‘the endless treasures available in Christ (Ephesians 3:8 TLB), It is important to see that salvation comes from God through His Spirit. It is by His grace (unmerited favour) that we are saved through the faith that He has provided for us to liberate us from sin and its consequences.[4]
For the Jew first and also for the Greek: This is the pattern of the spread of the gospel, demonstrated both by the ministry of Jesus (Matthew 15:24) followed by the initial ministry of the disciples (Matthew 10:5-6) and also combining with Jesus’ final command (Acts 1:8 and fulfilled in Acts 26:20) . The Jews have a priority over Greeks (who are an example of all Gentiles) because of their special role as God’s chosen people. He placed His blessing on them and set them apart from everyone else simply because it was His free choice (Deuteronomy 7:7-8). Having set them part, God then gave His special revelation and promises to them through Moses and the prophets.
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed: Simply, the gospel reveals the righteousness (uprightness and morality) of God. It is essential to understand what this righteousness of God does not speak of the holy righteousness of God that condemns the guilty sinner, but of the gracious righteousness that is given to the sinner who puts their trust in Jesus Christ.[5]
Usually, people are said to be righteous in human courts because of their good behavior. This is righteousness by works. It comes from their own efforts and is not a gift from God. Paul, however, maintains that it is not those who work, but those who believe who are righteous before God (Romans 4:4 –5).
‘…But He loves the one who pursues righteousness’ (Proverbs 15:9 NASB).
‘For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him’ (2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV).
As we have seen God’s righteousness is His gift to us when we first become believers in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. This gift sets us apart for God’s special purposes and we start to have fellowship with God and begin on a journey towards holiness as the Lord calls us to do (Romans 12:1; Ephesians 1:4; 5:27; Colossians 1:21-23; 3:12; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 1:8; Hebrews 3:1; 1 Peter 1:15,16; 2:5, 9; 2 Peter 3:11).
This journey should be an adventure with the Lord. In Deuteronomy 31:6 and Hebrews 13:5 He tells us that ‘I will never leave you; I will never abandon [forsake] you’ (EXB). With the Lord’s help we go through the highs and lows of life together. The Lord will use all kinds of experiences during this time to help us to progressively become more like Jesus in how we live.
God does not do everything to enable us to become like this. We should be obedient to Him and want to change too. In John 15:14-15 we read Jesus’words to the disciples –
You are my friends if you do what I tell you to do. I shall not call you servants any longer, for a servant does not share his master’s confidence. No, I call you friends, now, because I have told you everything that I have heard from the Father (Phillips).
This applies to all Christians. The special point of being Jesus’ friend is that He then trusts us. It becomes an intimate relationship – but if only we do what He tells us to do. The intimacy referred to here comes from a mutual love for each other, which then flows into everything we do as a result. This includes loving others the way Jesus would. We are then fulfilling Jesus’ words in Matthew 22:37- 40 which - ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind’, and ‘Love your neighbor as much as you love yourself’ (TLB).
This is not a legalistic relationship like the Pharisees had in applying the Old Testament. It is an intimate heart to heart relationship with our Lord and Saviour. Too many of us have been fearful about getting too involved with Jesus because we read words in the Bible like ‘command’ ‘authoritty’and ‘law’ and we do not think that we will be able to stand the weight that comes with what He tells us to do.
If we have an intimate relationship with the Lord there has to be mutual trust. Both sides need to know that the other can be trusted to do what is right whenever possible. We know what it is like when someone says that they will do something for us but then lets us down. This cannot happen in an intimate relationship.[6]
Can we imagine what it would be like to be this close to Jesus? Is an intimate relationship with Him what we really want? If it is, then maybe we start talking to the Lord about it sooner rather than later.
Dear Reader – If you have found some value in this blog, please feel free to send a copy on to your family and friends. Kind regards, John
[1] Romans 1 – The Human Race Guilty Before God, David Guzik, Enduring Word;
https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/romans-1/
[2] There are several words in italics that highlight that all people/everyone can become a Christian. There are people who think that what they have done is too much for God to forgive. That is a lie.
[3] Romans 1:14-17 Jesus Christ is the Power of God to Salvation, Wil Pounds, AbideInChrist.com;
http://www.abideinchrist.com/messages/rom1v16.html
[4] The Gospel: God’s Power for Salvation (Romans 1:16-17), Steven J. Cole, Bible.org;
https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-5-gospel-god-s-power-salvation-romans-116-17
[5] Romans 1 – The Human Race Guilty Before God, David Guzik, Enduring Word;
https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/romans-1/
[6] R. Loren Sandford, Yes There’s More, Charisma House, Florida, USA, pages 80-92.
