Romans 1:16-17: "The Power of the Gospel"

Paul began this book by explaining who he was, as he was called to be an apostle and set apart by God to proclaim Him. He then explained who Christ is and gave a bried explanation of the gospel. He then tells the Jews of Rome why he is in ministry and his desire to see them. Paul now moves into the meat of his letter. What is often called the thesis of Romans, vv. 16-17 provide us with the whole purpose of Paul's ministry.

As Christians, we are all aware, at times, of the difficulty of confronting others with the gospel. So often, we are around others that we know need to hear the gospel of Christ for the salvation of their souls. However, far too often, we hide from that conviction and go on with our lives. Why is the gospel so hard to tell others about. We have heard the question, "if you had a cure for someone who was dying, wouldn't you share it with them?" Well of course we would, but giving that cure to them is not as offensive as the gospel. And for that reason, it is so hard to do. The gospel is an offensive proposition to those who live their lives for self. The gospel is so antithetical to the natural ways of the sinful world that it is hard to get people to see what you are trying to tell them. Matt. 10:34-35 warns us that the gospel will be divisive, "Do not think I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law." This must be our approach. If we approach each person as wanting to be their friend, we will fail. This is not to say that we share in such a way to be rude or obnoxious, for we are to let our actions be sweet and loving. But we must be firm and speak the unadulterated truth. It is this 'fear of man' that drives us away from proclaiming the truth. It is easier to sit back and enjoy your own personal relationship with God, and not face persecution, or at least an uncomfortable conversation with someone who doesn't know God. But who said once you became a Christian that things will be easy? In fact, we are told just the opposite. "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you" (John 15:18). We must get out of our comfort zone and look to do the will of God, which is to share His word's with the lost. This is a huge problem with the "church" today. I put church in quotes, because I don't believe it to be the true church. Today many churches are doing everything in their power to make church fun and exciting and entertaining w/ no regard for the integrity of the gospel. They may be filling their seats, they may have thousands of people coming in that they didn't before. But all they are doing is exposing them to a false gospel. Paul, speaking to the Corinthians says, "But I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully" (II Cor. 11:3-4). May we not be found sugar-coating or backing down from the gospel, but instead proclaim loudly as Paul does, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel".

Paul then goes into telling us why he is not ashamed of the gospel. He explains, "for it is the power of God for salvation". The main reason that Paul is not ashamed of the gospel, is because he understands who is in control. If man were in control, and they decided our eternity, Paul would be fearful (and for those who believe that live this way). However, Paul knows that God is in control and only God has the power to change lives. Knowing this has erased any fear towards man that would keep him from proclaiming the truth. We must change our minds to truly believe that God is in control and that only he has the power to change lives. When witnessing with someone we must not think that WE can save them, we must believe that we have God's words to help them see the truth, but it is only in God's power that someone will be "made alive to Christ". We must understand that it is not our smooth approach, great speech, or flawless presentation (this is the world's thinking), it is instead, "the power of God" that will change their lives. Paul understood this when he wrote, "For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void. For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God" (I Cor. 1:17-18). This should be a relief to us, knowing that it is up to God, and not our feeble attempts, to save sinners. It is our responsibility to know God's Word and give a clear gospel message without compromise, but it's up to God to do the rest. Unbelievers often look to so many things in this world for salvation, they look to their girlfriends/boyfriends, spouses, jobs, money, fame, etc. We need to show them their need for true salvation, and we can only do that when we tell them what they need to be save from.

Paul then goes on to explain who can be saved, and how they become saved. The who is answered in the last part of v.16 "to everyone" and is conditioned with the how, "who believes". MacArthur writes, "Pisteuo (believes) carries the basic idea of trusting in, relying on, having faith in. When used in the New Testament of salvation, it is usually in the present, continuous form, which could be translated "is believing." Daily living is filled with acts of faith." God shows us that it's not a ritual, or some type of work we have to do, He shows us it's not something we can earn; instead God tells us we must believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in order to receive salvation. And he also shows that he does not discriminate. Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ will be saved. Ephesians 1:13, "In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation - having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise . . ." Also Romans 10:9, "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved." MacArthur commentates, "Salvation is not merely professing to be a Christian, nor is it baptism, moral reform, going to church, receiving sacraments, or living a life of self-discipline and sacrifice. Salvation come through giving up on one's own goodness, works, knowledge, and wisdom and trusting in the finished, perfect work of Christ." Paul further explains that the gospel was presented "to the Jew first and also to the Greek." We cannot fully comprehend or understand all that God has done throughout history. However, we do know that God ordains everything, and in His perfect plan He decided to bring salvation to the Jews first, and use them to spread it throughout the world. According to the Scottish evangelist Robert Haldane, "The preaching of the Gospel to the Jews first served various important ends. It fulfilled Old Testament prophecies, as Isa. 2:3. It manifested the compassion of the Lord Jesus for those who shed His blood, to whom, after His resurrection, He commanded His Gospel to be first proclaimed. It showed that it was to be preached to the chief of sinners, and proved the sovereign efficacy of His Atonement in expatiating the guilt even of His murderers. It was fit, too, that the Gospel should be begun to be preached where the great transactions took place on which it was founded and established; and this furnished an example of the way in which it is the will of the Lord that His Gospel should be propagated by His disciples, beginning in their own houses and their own country." The fact that the gospel went first to the Jews was a privilege, but by no way means that the Jew is any more righteous than the Gentile. God sees all his children equally. No racial lines are drawn by God, He merely chose to begin everything with the Jews as His chosen people. Paul addresses this later in Rom. 3.

Lastly, in v. 17, Paul explains that the faith we have as believers "for in it the righteousness of God is revealed form faith to faith." Paul will later go into more detail about how the believer is counted righteous when he believes, but for now, he simply exclaims that when we first believe in Christ we received the righteousness of God. In fact, this righteousness we receive can be seen in each individual believer as their lives change. Paul states it is "revealed from faith to faith". This connotates that each believer's life is proof of the transforming work of Christ. That in each believer there is proof of righteousness. In fact, this is the most overwhelming evidence for the reality of Christ. Looking over the history of the church and seeing the millions of lives that have drastically changed and been transformed from the "righteousness of God" as it is given to all who believe. Paul then shows us that it was God' plan all along for us to live in righteousness by faith in Christ as he quotes from Hab. 2:4, "But the righteous man shall live by faith". MacArthur writes, "Abraham, the father of the faithful, believed, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness (Rom. 4:3), just as every person's genuine faith, before and after Abraham, has been reckoned to him as righteousness (Heb. 11:4-40)." What an amazing truth that can be seen all throughout history. That everything pointed toward Christ, and everything points back to Christ, and those who truly believe in His name will receive His righteousness.