Romans Series 3

The Power Of The Gospel

POWER FOR ALL TO ESCAPE GOD’S WRATH

Text: Romans 1:16–17 “16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”

VERSE 16

What we have come to could be called the “nerve center” of this letter.

Paul declares his extreme confidence in the gospel of Christ.

“not ashamed”

He never had a sense of embarrassment.

He never forgot the kind of man he used to be.

Will you be ashamed or embrace the shame?

Mark 8:38 “38 Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

“gospel of Christ”

This was not a gospel of the past.

This gospel has not bee left in the past. It was an event in the past, but it’s power is not restricted to time.

“power of God to salvation”

1 Corinthians 1:18“18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”

1 Corinthians 1:24“24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.”

Much of our message today is considered foolish to some:

Only one triune God.

Human hearts are naturally wicked

Jesus’ crucifixion & resurrection

Jesus truly provided atonement

Jesus was bodily raised from the grave

Jesus is equal with the Father

Jesus is the ONLY WAY to salvation

In the final judgement, every knee will bow and tongue confess Jesus as Lord

This power is imputed at the moment of belief on this particular message!

It’s about a bloody Savior and an empty tomb.

The “gospel” contains the power of God.

Quote: (Michael F. Bird) “The gospel is a speech-act, in that it not only announces the way of salvation, but actualizes the salvation in those who hear it with faith.… The gospel manifests God’s death-defeating, curse-reversing, evil-vanquishing, devil-crushing, sin-cleansing, life-giving, love-forming, people-uniting, super-über-mega-grace power that results in salvation.”

Believing on the gospel commands you to transfer one’s confidence from self work to Christ’s work.

Other Romans refs: 5:1, 9; 8:1, 18, 23, 30, 33; 10:10

Paul is not only speaking of a single faceted rescue!

“to everyone that believeth”

This is NOT saying, the gospel was provided to a preselected group God has predestined to believe.

The emphasis is who does the power transfer too; THE PERSON WHO BELIEVES.

VERSE 17

“the righteousness of God”

A couple of things are probably brought into view here.

FIRST - God has demonstrated His righteous character in the saving actions he has determined.

SECOND - God has places a “righteous” status on “unrighteous” people.

Quote: (John Stott) “The righteousness of God is God’s righteous initiative in putting sinners right with himself, by bestowing on them a righteousness which is not their own, but his.”

“revealed from faith to faith”

From what faith to what faith is Paul describing here?

We have to ask, “How does Paul typically use the term faith when describing how someone receives that benefits of the gospel?

Faith is the one and only instrument by which we can obtain the gospel’s benefits.

So, Paul is probably referring to salvation is by faith from start to finish.

Refer back to verse 5 — “for obedience to the faith”

“the just shall live by faith”

Quote from Habakkuk 2:4 “4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: But the just shall live by his faith.”

“Faith” is consistent throughout all of scripture!

Interestingly, Paul quotes from the Old Testament in Romans more than in all his other letters combined. There are at least sixty-one direct quotations from fourteen different books (Akin, “The Epistle to Romans”). And there are many more echoes of the Old Testament. Psalms and Isaiah are the most frequently quoted.11 Tony Merida, Exalting Jesus in Romans, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2021), 19.

MAIN POINT…the Bible teaches that faith is the only way one stands right before God.

Concluding Thoughts

We all must realize that we CAN’T earn divine righteousness.

For any believer listening, I pray this gospel rich letter clarifies your understanding of the gospel and motivates you to tell others about the gospel.

DON’T BE ASHAMED!!!