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Gospel, the Power of God

Romans 1:16-17

1. Read v. 16 and 17. How did Paul summarize the meaning of the gospel message? Why might he be ashamed of the gospel? Why wasn't he? Why shouldn't we? How can we proudly share the gospel in an unbelieving generation?

2. Read v. 17. What is righteousness? Why do people need it? What is the difference between self-righteousness, and a righteousness from God, both in regards to ourselves (Jer. 31:33-34), and to our relationships with others?

3. Read v. 17 again. What does it mean that the righteousness from God is by faith? From first to last? Why is this good news? What then, as Christians, is the main struggle of our spiritual life? How is this different from that of Jews or Muslims? What is our assurance in carrying out this struggle? (See Ro. 8:37-39 as well)

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Message

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GOSPEL, THE POWER OF GOD

Romans 1:16,17

Key Verses: 16,17 “ I am not  ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

  Last week, we learned why the Apostle Paul was eager to preach the gospel to the saints in Rome. According to verse 14, Paul was obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. Paul felt indebted to God for what Christ Jesus had done for his life. The grace and love of Jesus Christ forced him to share the gospel of God. But if he preached the gospel only with a sense of obligation, his joy would be limited. If we are required to do something with a sense of obligation, we are not always happy. For instance, if you come to our early morning prayer meeting with a sense of obligation, your joyful heart will be replaced with a complaining spirit. However, the Apostle Paul did not only preach the gospel with a sense of obligation, but with a sense of great expectation and anticipation. He absolutely believed the power of God for salvation in the gospel. He believed the perfectness of the righteousness of God who is in Jesus Christ. Today we will study why Paul is not ashamed of the gospel, and why the gospel is the power of God, then why Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God.

First, why are people ashamed of preaching the gospel? People are not ashamed of the gospel itself, but ashamed of preaching the gospel. In fact, they are ashamed of themselves because they do not live as they should. In the past, one young man wrapped the Bible with newspaper when he went to church. He did so because he was ashamed of identifying himself as a Christian to his friends who knew about his double life, with one foot in God and the other in the world.

People are ashamed of preaching the gospel, because the world opposes and sometimes ridicules the gospel. We are sometimes afraid of rejection, persecution and segregation from the world. Someone said, “I am not ashamed, but afraid.” During Paul’s time, the gospel of God is the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Some believers in those days were not willing to share the gospel because it was the story of Jesus who was condemned and executed by Roman soldiers, and who was raised from the dead mysteriously. From a human point of view, the gospel is a story of the sympathetic death and mystic resurrection of a Jewish carpenter. So it was not easy for the early believers to share the gospel with others. But, how did Paul encourage Timothy while he was in prison? In his second letter to Timothy, Paul said, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, or of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner.  But join with me in suffering for the gospel, the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life…” (2 Ti 1:7-9)  Let us study why Paul was not ashamed of the gospel.

Second, Paul was not ashamed of the gospel because it is the good news. The word “gospel” means “good news”. No one is ashamed of preaching and sharing the good news because it is the GOOD news. It is not easy for us to share bad news or tragic news with others. When your children bring home a bad school report to you, or when your spouse loses a job, or when you lose your loved ones, you will be very uneasy and uncomfortable about sharing the news with others. But, the gospel is the complete opposite. The Gospel is the good news, especially good news about salvation.  Everybody wants to share good news with others as soon as possible and with as many people as possible. For instance, yesterday I received a phone call from Dr. Oleg who wanted to hear about us and the St. Louis UBF ministry. I was so happy to share the news of the Christmas worship service with him. I told him that God abundantly blessed our worship service and sent missionary Sarah Barry as a messenger, and that He filled the meeting hall with 108 worshipers. Then I added with excitement that I am so thankful for our students, missionaries and children’s beautiful co-working and participation in the work of God. Dr. Oleg, after hearing my joyous report, said with cheer, “It is too good to be true.”  We shared joy together by phone in sharing the good news.  Likewise, people share their good and encouraging news with great excitement and joy, not with shame.

  Whenever we go to reach out to students on campus, we need this kind of attitude. Are you excited when you share the gospel with others? We should be excited because we bring them good news, the encouraging news about their salvation. We must be proud of ourselves and be confident of what we are doing. So Paul said in 10:15, “And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

Third, the Gospel is the power of God for salvation. Let us read verse 16 again, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.” Paul was not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for salvation. If the gospel has its power from any human beings or authorities, it is limited. If gospel is relativistic, we are not sure of its effectiveness. However, the gospel is the power of God who is almighty and whose power is limitless. Paul said that the gospel is not about the power of God, but is the power of God itself. Paul strongly believed the power of God in the Gospel, which contains the way of salvation. In the Gospel there is the unfathomable, unconditional and sacrificial love of God for sinners. In the Gospel there is the way of salvation through forgiveness of sin. In the Gospel there is a living hope in the kingdom of God. The Gospel has the power to save whoever believes. The Gospel has the power to change each person. The Gospel has the power to change nations and the whole world.

As for Paul, the power of God for salvation was manifested and approved wherever the gospel was preached. The Gospel worked mightily in the powerful city of wisdom, Athens. (Ac 17) The Gospel saved many demon-possessed people and idol worshipers in the powerful city of commerce, Ephesus Asia Minor (Ac 19). Paul had a clear vision and conviction that the power of God would be demonstrated in the city of Rome, the power center of the Roman Empire. Paul had witnessed how the gospel of Christ Jesus disarmed Satan and freed the Gentiles from the slavery of sin. (Ac 16:18) Paul had clearly seen how the gospel of God transformed incorrigible sinners into the holy children of God (Ac 14:21, 16:5,14,34, 17:12,34, 19:10,20). Paul was more than sure that the news of Jesus’ death and resurrection unshackled the chains of sin and darkness and unveiled the secret of eternal life in the kingdom of God.  Paul himself was a witness of the power of God for salvation.  In the past, he was a persecutor and murderer who harmed the believers and damaged the Lord’s church. He was an enemy of God. But, Jesus forgave him of all his sins and appointed him as an apostle of the gospel (Ac 9:15). Only by God’s grace and by the merit of Jesus’ death on the cross was he saved. Paul knew very well whom he believed. He was sure that the gospel has the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. So he said in 2 Ti 1:11,12, “And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.”

  The power of God will be demonstrated and revealed through those who preach the gospel. In other words, we experience the power of God when the gospel is preached. Suppose you have plenty of electric power in your house, but don’t use it at all, then the power is useless. You will suffer much in cold weather in a house without any heat. The effectiveness of power will be demonstrated only when it is used. In the same way, the power of God for salvation will be demonstrated when the gospel is preached through our mouths and through our confessions. As we experience electric power as soon as we plug in, so we will experience the power of God as soon as the gospel is proclaimed. 

  Paul did not say that the gospel was the power of God, but IS the power of God. He used the present tense of the verb. He meant that God is still working mightily for salvation here and today. Jesus died for our sins, for sins in the past, present and future. Jesus has the power to forgive all our sins including the original sins which Adam, the first man, had committed. Jesus forgave all my sins which I had committed in the past, forgives my sin at present, and will forgive my sins in the future. Likewise, wherever the gospel is preached, the power of God is revealed and wherever the gospel is proclaimed, the work of salvation will be displayed. Amen.

Fourth, the gospel is salvation for everyone who believes. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel because it is the good news of salvation for everyone who believes. Suppose the gospel is only for the Jews, then the Gentiles would be excluded. Then, Paul would have nothing to boast about. People would say, “Paul, shame on you!  Is it only for your people?” But, the gospel is universal. Everyone who believes, whether they are Jews, or Greeks, Americans or Chinese, young or old, the schooled or the unschooled, will be saved. So Jesus said in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his One and Only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” The Lord said whoever, which means no exception. The gospel is applied to everyone who believes in Jesus. Acts 2:21 says, “And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

  Since the gospel is applied to everyone, we are confident of approaching any kind of students on campus, whether they are believers or unbelievers, wise or foolish, atheists or agnostics, homosexuals or heterosexuals, and so on. Once the gospel is preached to them, we wait with a great expectation to see how God will work in their hearts. We pray with great anticipation how the power of God will be manifested in those who listen to the gospel.  Sometimes we will see the great work of salvation by the power of God in their hearts. At other times, we will see the work of Satan who disturbs the way of the Lord. In either case, we praise the Lord who enabled us to share the good news with them.

Fifth, the righteousness of God, Jesus Christ (17) Look at verse 17. “For in the gospel the righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” The word ‘righteousness’ is the state of being “in the right” in relation to God. In other words, to be righteous is to have a right relationship with God. Then, how can sinful men have a right relationship with the Holy God?  Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:10 adds, “As it is written:“There is no one righteous, not even one.” Men failed to be righteous by their own will power. No one satisfied the requirement of God’s standard by keeping the law. All were condemned and destined to die due to their sins.(He 9:27) But, God sent his One and Only Son Jesus Christ and by condemning him on the cross in our place, God’s righteousness was satisfied.  God paid the penalty of our sins through the death of Jesus on the cross. Therefore, whoever believes in Jesus Christ will be freed from condemnation. Whoever has faith in Jesus Christ will be credited with righteousness. What good news for perishing human beings!  What a gift of God for those who were helpless under the power of sin and death! Abraham and David were great men of God. Still, they were not justified by their works. They were credited to be righteous because of their faith in God’s promises.  (Ro 4:5) In the same way we can be righteous before God not by any works or good deeds, but only through faith in Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God and who died for our sins and rose again from the dead. Amen. Thus, it is true what the Lord said, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.” (Lk 18:27)  Thus it is true what the Scripture says, “The righteous will live by faith.” (Hab 2:4, Ro 1:17)

Today we studied why we should not be ashamed of the gospel through the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. The Gospel is the good news. The Gospel is the power of God because there is the way of salvation in it. In the Gospel there is the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. Therefore, we are proud of ourselves when we bring the gospel to others. We should be confident of what we are doing. We start each day, each month with great expectation and anticipation. We know well our Lord Jesus Christ whom we believe. Let us expect great things from God this year. Let us attempt great thing for God new year, especially for the work of salvation in young people’s hearts through Bible study. May God make America a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Amen.

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• GOSPEL, the power of God (1).doc