The Power of the Gospel
Romans 1:1-18
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, [2] which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, [3] concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, [4] who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, [5] through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His name's sake, [6] among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; [7] to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
[8] First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. [9] For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you, [10] always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you. [11] For I long to see you in order that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established; [12] that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other's faith, both yours and mine. [13] And I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented thus far) in order that I might obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. [14] I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. [15] Thus, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
[16] For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. [17] For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "But the righteous man shall live by faith."
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus,
A bond-servant is one who gives himself up. He was not born a servant, but has become one by personal choice. Personal choice would not allow him at some point to decide otherwise.
called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
His call to apostleship was all that he was to do…he was under God’s authority to be an apostle. Though Paul was called to be and apostle, the word “apostle” (euangello) as translated here is not to be seen as an office title. It is the verb form and, therefore, implies more of the action of a function than title. He is a declarer. He is an envoy sent on a mission…it actually has the meaning of “one going on a mission representing someone else. The action of the duties of an ambassador adequately translates the meaning. This is not the same word
as the one Paul uses in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “we are ambassadors for Christ” , but in its practical use, the implication is the same.
He was set apart means that because God called him boundaries were put upon him; he was not free to do what he wanted, but rather he submitted to what God declared that he would do
[2] which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
The word gospel means good news: the prophets foretold of one who would come and be their savior, the One who would free them. Unfortunately, this Savior, was not One who would deliver or save them from the ravages of an earthly tyrant, but One who would deliver them from the tyranny of sin. Notice in verse three the reference to the “descendant of David.” The Hebrews saw this “descendant” through the same kind of “fleshly” manner of King David…a warrior.
[3] concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,
Paul was referencing the humanity of Jesus with “to the flesh,” not that He would be the same kind of physical deliverer. It also must be noted that He would not succumb to the tendency of sinfulness, as His human ancestor David did. He had to be of the Spiritual nature…the perfect, sinless, righteous Son of God so that He could sufficiently redeem the sin indwells the flesh.
[4] who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
Many did not recognize Him as the Son of God, as a Savior, as a Messiah until after the resurrection. In Peter’s Jerusalem declaration, in Acts 2, is the declaration of the “Good News” was the gospel.
Acts 2:22-41
"Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know-- [23] this Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. [24] "And God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. [25] "For David says of Him,
[29] "Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. [30] "And so, because he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants upon his throne, [31] he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. [32] "This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. [33] "Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. [34] "For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: 'The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, [35] until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.’” [36] "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ-- this Jesus whom you crucified."
[37] Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" [38] And Peter said to them, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. [39] "For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself." [40] And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation!" [41] So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
It took the resurrection to bring many of them to faith.
[5] through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His name's sake,
Paul is quick to say that it is through this “Christ” that he (an apostle) and those working with him have been called to bring the gospel, the good news to the Gentiles. It is the Good News that brings about the obedience of faith in one’s heart (“faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17)
Ephesians 2:8,9
[6] among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; [7] to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. [8] First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. [9] For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you, [10] always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you. [11] For I long to see you in order that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established; [12] that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other's faith, both yours and mine. [13] And I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented thus far) in order that I might obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. [14] I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. [15] Thus, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
[16] For I am not ashamed of the gospel,
kataaischuno, shame, disgrace; to dishonor, make ashamed
“To You they cried out, and were delivered; in You they trusted, and were not disappointed.” Psalm 22:5
“Just as it is written, ‘behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and he who believes in him will not be disappointed.’” Romans 9:33
“For this is contained in scripture: ‘behold I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone and he who believes in him shall not be disappointed.’” 1 Peter 2:6
The word “disappointed” as is used in the preceding verses is the same Greek word that is translated “ashamed.” The rendering is true also in the Hebrew…the same word “bosh” is used to get ashamed and disappointed. So what is the meaning of this? Paul says that he cannot be ashamed because he will never be disappointed by the Lord. How can we be ashamed of something that never disappoints? If I find Christ to be sufficient in everything, how is it that I should ever be disappointed? In the end, on the day of Christ, I will not be ashamed knowing that I will not be standing here when the rest of the bride of Christ is being taken away.
for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,
What is the “Good News” of the gospel? The “Good News” is seen in the “power”: power for faith, power for change, power for sanctification, power for the final resurrection. The Good News is power for faith, as we have already seen in Romans 10:17 and Ephesians 2:8,9. Salvation cannot be accomplished without the presence of the Word. The Word reveals my sin. It reveals a Savior whose blood has made it possible for the separation between God and man because of our sin to be bridged and bring us into a place of righteousness. 2 Corinthians 5:21.
Power for change: before the Good News comes to a person, they are bound, not in chains of His love, but in the bondage of sin. Faith in Christ frees us from who we are to who we are becoming. The beginning point of change is repentance. Change can only take place when we repent. We can only repent when we are made alive. We are first made alive through the dispensing of the Good News of Jesus Christ and place our faith in Him. Faith opens the door for repentance. Repentance opens the door for sanctification. Sanctification is the process of being changed into His likeness.
Power for sanctification: this is no work of our own. I am not changed through some design of my own. It is not something I decide to do. It is the power of God being release in me through faith and repentance. It is the work of His righteousness being released in me. The sanctification process is the power of His righteousness being performed in me. My sanctification process is the same as yours and yet, it is not the same as yours. The power is the same. The target is the same…to be like Christ, but the time table, circumstances, etc. are different. Therefore, we have to be careful that we don’t make demands upon people that they be like us in every facet of life. I don’t understand God’s process of sanctification in you. If it were up to me I would want you to be as “perfected” as I am and you would want me to be as “perfected” as you are. The fact is, though, neither you or I are God. Only He is! Thank goodness. His ways are perfect. His plan is perfect. And He is perfectly working in each of us who by faith are being changed into His likeness. That is powerful: we are not God, are being changed into the likeness of God.
This presents the final power…power for the resurrection: there will come a day when we shall be like Him…not in His personage…but in His likeness. We will finally be able to see Him for who He is…for we will not be encumbered by the sinful flesh. There will be no pride, ego, or other hindering sins that would cloud our vision of Him. We will know as we have been known, 1 Corinthians 13:12.
[17] For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "But the righteous man shall live by faith."
The gospel works in us a fuller understanding of just how righteous God is. From our worldly position, from our fleshly sinfulness, there really is no way of understanding a true sense of righteousness. However, in time, as Paul states, “from faith to faith”, there comes a deepening sense of God’s righteousness, to the degree that we should not want to live in any way other than that expression of who He is. Though we don’t fully understand His righteousness, the clearest mark of a believer is his desire for the righteousness of God to be worked out in his life. To live by faith means to live in relationship to the power of God…which means to live as one completely under the control of God.
Points to Ponder: