Not Ashamed

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

Romans 1:16-17

Here is the message itself, the gospel which the apostle will preach to the Christians and thus reach all the nations. Paul says that he is not ashamed of it, and this is a way of saying that he is proud of it. He can't wait to get to Rome.

Paul especially is not ashamed of the gospel in Rome because the Romans appreciated power, just as Americans do. The Romans prided themselves on their power. They had military power that could conquer all the nations that stood in their path; they had a tremendous program of road-building; they had some of the greatest lawmakers of history; they had the power to write literature and create art. But Paul knew that the Romans also were powerless when it came to changing hearts. They were powerless to eliminate slavery; half of the population of the Roman Empire were slaves. They were powerless to eliminate violence; the Roman Empire was full of violence and corruption and the suicide rate was extremely high. The Romans could do nothing about these things. And Paul says that is why he is so proud of the gospel — because it is the power of God to do those very things that people cannot do. We never need to apologize for the gospel. It is absolutely without rival.

Paul is not ashamed of the gospel because it reveals a righteousness from God. Righteousness is an old word that we don't understand very much. I would like to substitute for it the word worth, a worth before God. A sense of acceptance before God is given to you. You can't earn it, you don't deserve it, but it is given. God really accepts you because of the good news of the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf. Therefore, it is something that anyone can have, and it is complete.

This righteousness is received by faith. It is not something we can ever earn; it is something we can take anytime we need it, and that is good news. Our worth before God is not something we receive once, by faith, at the beginning of our Christian lives. It is something we remind ourselves of every time we feel depressed, despairing, discouraged, defeated, etc. God has loved us, restored us, and we have perfect standing in his sight. He already accepts us and loves us as much as he possibly can; nothing more can be added to it. This is the righteousness that is revealed in the gospel, by faith, to all who believe, no matter what their background or training may be.

Father, how hopeless my condition would be were it not for the gospel! Help me to know that nothing could have saved me from the evil one but the intervention of the grace of God through Jesus Christ. Amen.