Unashamed

The Power of the Gospel

Offered to All

Has there ever been anything offered to all of humanity across all of time? Our societies and nations have from time to time tried to universally offer some benefit. In America wee strive for equality of opportunity, and despite the fact that I believe we have done better than any other nation we are far from perfect in this regard. Other nations have attempted to offer universal healthcare, and how has that gone? Every time humanity has attempted to offer something universally we fail.

I genuinely believe that the gospel is universally offered. I know that my Calvinist brothers and sisters disagree with me here, but I think we can still get along. I consider myself a 4.75 point Calvinist. I don’t believe that atonement is totally unlimited, but I do believe that the gospel is offered to all. There are simply too many verses that point to a universal offer of salvation.

Romans 1:16 “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.”

Romans 6:10 “For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.”

1 John 2:2 “He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”

John 3:16 ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

1 Timothy 2:5–6 “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.”

Effectual to the Elect

Romans 1:16 “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.”

Romans 10:13 “For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””

Ephesians 1:4 “even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love”

The question of limited or unlimited atonement comes down to who does the limiting. Is it limited by God by the choosing of the elect before the foundations of the world, or is it limited by man who choose to accept or reject Christ? I believe the answer is yes.

Remember you don’t have to understand it to be true.

Transforms the Unrighteous

To be honest this is where our focus on the gospel should really be. Rather than on the things we can’t possibly understand.

The gospel has the power to transform

The unrighteous into righteous (Romans 1:17 “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”” )

The wicked into the obedient

The enemy into family

That is power

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

Romans 6:4 “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

Permanently Preserves the Saints

People believe that they can amass power to themselves with wealth, might, reputation or some other means. Let me remind you that none but Christ can save and that is real power. The power to affect eternity.

The Revelation of the Gospel

Without the gospel we would not know God. God has revealed Himself to us in His Word, and the gospel initiates a reconciled relationship between the sinner and God. This reveals God and His righteousness to us in an experiential way.

The Righteousness of God

The gospel makes the righteousness of God manifest in the world. We could say that the gospel is a vehicle of God’s righteousness.

It is interesting that the phrase “righteousness of God” consistently appears in Romans in those sections that communicate the central theme of the book.

It refers to an attribute of God

It refers to a status given by God

It refers to the activity of God in the world

The gospel reveals the connection between righteousness and faith

Romans 3:22 “the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction:”

We are justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ whose righteousness is imputed to us.

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Faith is what connects us to the gospel in a redemptive way.

This is how God’s righteousness is revealed to us from faith and for faith.

God’s righteousness is revealed by faith from beginning to end.

It is revealed by our faith and for our faith. It is what we place our faith in and it is what produces our faith in us, and as our faith is displayed in the world; the righteousness of God is revealed through us.

Paul solidifies his point by quoting from the O.T.

Romans 1:17 “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.””

Habakkuk 2:4 ““Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.”

For those who believe by faith the gospel imputes the righteousness of God thereby making them righteous.

When God justifies sinners on what basis does He declare them righteous? It is on the basis of His righteousness that He has shared with us through the blood of His Son.

To summarize our interpretation of these two verses we can read them from the NLT. Which is useful as a supplement to our Bible reading.

“For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in His sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, ‘It is through faith that a righteous person has life’” (NLT).

While this translation doesn’t perfectly capture every nuance of what Paul was saying it does give us a pretty good idea of the main point. That we are made righteous by God through faith.

The Response to the Gospel

Rejection

There will always be those who respond to the gospel not in faith but in rejection.

They are the enemies of Christ, and their end is destruction.

Philippians

Shame

Paul writes with full knowledge that the church in Rome is facing persecution and suffering under Roman oppression. Many of the believers there are experiencing humiliation and shame because of their faith in Christ. Paul wants them to be assured that the worldly power of Rome cannot hold a candle to the mighty power of God—the gospel of Jesus Christ. That gospel is God’s limitless power directed toward the salvation of men and women. For every person who believes, whether Jew or Gentile, man or woman, black or white, the gospel effectively becomes the saving power of God.

There is a tremendous difference between being shamed for the gospel and being ashamed of the gospel.

The world will always try to shame you for your belief in Jesus. They will try to paint you as hateful, racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, or some other trendy word that presents Christ as the problem rather than the solution.

When you are unashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ the world will try to shame you.

Joy