NOT ASHAMED OF THE BEST NEWS

Introduction

-As I take a small break from the Gospel of John, I want to do a short series about sharing the best news that there is—there is never a bad time to talk about how we can share the best news this world has ever heard

~Especially in trying times, the world needs to hear some good news. The world has heard plenty of bad news, and the world has heard plenty of fake news, but the world needs to hear the good news.

~And here’s the thing—all of us here are the bearers of that news.

-The gospel of Jesus Christ is the news that people need to hear above anything else because only this news is going to do anything to fix any of that other news.

~Every day we hear the news about COVID. But only the best news of the gospel will give people hope that they will be secure even if they or loved ones do get sick and die.

~Every day we are faced with the effects of racism in our nation, but it is only the gospel of Jesus Christ that will change hearts and bring God’s Kingdom on Earth. You say you want God’s Kingdom to Come and God’s Will to Be Done on Earth as it is in Heaven? It won’t outside the gospel. No social program, no movement, no radical action will bring lasting change if the gospel is not at the center of it

~Every day we are bombarded by political ads and political news. But the gospel points us to the only One that can bring us peace and hope, and He isn’t part of any political party.

-But even in an era of social distancing and doing everything online, we still have the capability of getting that best news out there. And I want to prepare you for that. I want YOU to be the ones sharing the best news there is.

-Today, I want to talk about the fact that we don’t have to be ashamed of this best news. There is nothing shameful at all about a Savior who died on the cross and rose again because the gospel will never put us to shame.

-Sure, the world will try to shame us—calling us bigots and haters and whatnot because we hold to the exclusivity of salvation in Jesus Christ and we preach that God has a standard and He alone sets the standard.

~Unfortunately, because of this pushback, we often keep silent because we have allowed them to shame us into silence.

-But think for a moment how crazy that sounds. Maybe this illustration will help us understand:

~Image that my wife and I are at some sort of social gathering, and we’re standing there and someone approaches us to talk to us. I introduce myself to this person, but I don’t introduce my wife. So, this person asks me if this is my wife and act as if she is not there. Is who my wife? I don’t know what you’re talking about.

~If I were silent about my wife and my relationship with my wife, she would probably assume that I did so because I was ashamed or embarrassed by her. By the fact that I did not want to acknowledge her or share with others my relationship to her, my silence is assumed to come from shame.

{And, as a side note, I am not ashamed or embarrassed at all by my wife…}

-If I do not acknowledge the gospel, if I do not share the gospel, if I try to change the gospel or if I try to water down the gospel I am acting like I am ashamed of the gospel. But why would I be ashamed of the message that led me to salvation?

~In the passage we’re looking at today Paul tells us that we can be unashamed of the gospel, and we will look at three aspects of being unashamed.

Romans 1:13–17 ESV

13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well 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 So 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 for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

1) We should be unashamed of the simple message of the gospel

-Paul just shouts it out loud here in v. 16 that he is not ashamed of the gospel. Now, what is meant by that word gospel?

~The word gospel was originally used in the village square after a decisive battle had

been won. The herald would come back and announce the good news (gospel) of victory to the people.

-Typically, we are not ashamed of announcements that are good news. It makes sense why people are reluctant to share bad news. For example, a doctor having to tell a patient that their cancer had spread is bad news and is hard news to share (even though it is necessary news). But if the doctor had the good news that the cancer is completely gone, he would have no problem telling the patient. In fact, they would be eager to share that news.

-Yet, people act ashamed of the gospel. Unbelievers, who don’t really understand who Christ is and what He did for humanity, heap shame upon Christians for what they believe. They can’t imagine how a message about a Jew who was crucified like a common criminal, dying a painful, cruel, grotesque death could be anything to brag about, talk about, or even glory in. The world doesn’t get it.

-In the days of the early church, the gospel message was the most ridiculous thing that unbelievers had ever heard. The Jews weren’t looking for a sacrificed Messiah, they were looking for the conquering King who would kick the Romans out. A Messiah that died on the cross wasn’t even on their radar, even though it was clear in the prophets that this would be the path of the Suffering Servant (for example, in Isaiah 53 and elsewhere).

-For the Gentiles with a Greek/Hellenistic background, as they searched for wisdom in the various philosophies, a crucified Savior made no sense. It didn’t match their worldly wisdom or their pagan idolatry. How could the death of a criminal be a help to anybody? And the whole idea of resurrection made no sense.

-In our culture the message of Jesus is balked at because we dare say in this pluralistic world that Jesus died for mankind’s sin and He is the only way for our hearts to be changed and for us into eternal life.

~With the number of religions and philosophies out there, it is thought of as arrogant to have some sort of exclusive hold on truth and salvation. We are labeled as narrow minded as we proclaim that all other religions and worldviews are false, and only the gospel is true.

-But some Christians are ashamed of the gospel because they do not see it as enough of an answer to all the world’s ills. Either they outright say it, or it is the subtext to what it is they actually say, that the gospel isn’t enough to change the world.

~They see it as too simplistic. They think that the world’s problems are too complex for the gospel to be the answer. And when someone dare’s say that the gospel is enough, they think they we are too small in our thinking.

~They think: The gospel alone can’t actually give hope in a pandemic. The gospel alone can’t change racist people and racist systems. The gospel alone can’t fix politics and politicians. The gospel alone can’t fix culture.

-So, instead of looking at the simple gospel message as the way of changing the world, we turn to worldly, carnal, humanistic answers that keep God and Jesus out of the equation. We turn to social programs and Marxist ideologies to bring change, even though they can’t change anything.

-Here’s the thing: in reality, the gospel is the only thing that can bring true, sustaining change to any of those problems. The gospel is not simplistic, but it is simple. And we need not be ashamed that it is the only answer.

-Here is the simple message:

Due to mankind’s rebellion against God, sin has completely changed and cursed this world, which is seen in human hearts and the systems that they set up. Due to this sin, mankind is doomed to face God’s righteous judgment because God is completely just and holy. Yet God so loved the world of man that He made a way to demonstrate His love and meet His justice all at the same time. Jesus, God the Son who left heaven to become man, died on the cross to pay the just penalty, but rose again to demonstrate that He has conquered death and is able to give life.

-This is a simple message that is life-changing, because those who believe become completely new creatures with new hearts and new minds and new spirits who are then able to affect change in the world—real change…eternal change with eternal consequence.

~What is so shameful about that message?

2) We should be unashamed of the supernatural might of the gospel

-Paul says in v. 16 that he is not ashamed of the gospel because it is the POWER OF GOD

~Think about that phrase for a moment because we have a tendency to overlook the importance of that phrase.

-It says that the gospel is power. The gospel is power to change lives. The gospel is power to change destinies. The gospel is power to change hearts and minds. There is nothing else in the world that changes lives, destinies, hearts, minds like the gospel.

~But it is not just any power. The gospel is the power of GOD! Think on that a moment…

~God is the perfect, holy, eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, omnibenevolent Creator and sustainer of the entire universe, who holds everything in its place and is completely sovereign over every aspect of what happens in said universe

~And the gospel contains that power—there is no greater power than God, right? And His power is contained in the gospel, meaning there is no greater power behind any message than the power behind the gospel.

-Let’s think about this:

AAA batteries have some power in them, and they can run remote controls and the like. But AA batteries are bigger and have more power in them and they can power bigger things. But C’s and then D’s are even bigger, so they can run bigger gadgets. And then you have car batteries that power our big vehicles. But then there are nuclear power plants and I read that the power that they put out is like 1.3 million horse-powers, giving power to entire regions.

~And even if you combined the power of every battery and every nuclear power plant and every other source of energy on earth, it wouldn’t even begin to scratch the surface of God’s power. And that power of God is found in the gospel.

-Now, a AAA battery isn’t able to power what a AA battery can power. And a AA battery can’t power what a C or D battery powers. And C or D batteries aren’t going to run your car for you. And a car battery can’t power a single home much less an entire region. And a nuclear power plant can’t power the whole world.

~And I make those comparisons in order to say that there is not one single thing on this earth that can power what the gospel of Jesus Christ can power.

-Yet we humans go around thinking that we know best. We think we can come up with better solutions. We think we can come up with better programs. We think that we have more capability to bring justice into this world. Yet, we and all our ideas are like AAA batteries compared to a billion nuclear power plants.

-The gospel isn’t a message of all that you have to do, it is a message of what has been done for you. It has the power to do for us what we most need but what we lack the power to do ourselves. How can we be ashamed of that?

3) We should be unashamed of the saving ministry of the gospel

-In v. 16 Paul goes on to say that he is not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for salvation

-Here’s the thing—everyone at some point is going to die (unless Christ returns first). When you die, you can die with fame, power, position, or any other thing, but what good is it if you

die without salvation? And salvation is not found anywhere else. The simple message of the gospel alone contains the supernatural might of Almighty God to bring salvation to humanity.

-Imagine things this way. Let’s suppose that one pharmaceutical company comes up with the only cure for COVID 19. If you get COVID you take their pill and you will be completely cured. There is nothing else on this earth that can cure it.

~Now, suppose you do get COVID. The doctor tells you that you can take this one pill because it is the only cure and you will be cured immediately. But you think that you know better than the doctor. You decide, you know what, all I really need to do is take some ibuprofen and I’ll be fine. Or maybe, all I need to do is take some of this Tylenol Cold and Flu and I’ll be fine. But you refuse to take the one thing that is actually a cure for the virus.

-This is humanity. Here we have the gospel: believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved because there is no other way to receive eternal life. But instead of believing in this one cure for sin, people think they know better.

~Well, if my good outweighs my bad, I’ll be OK

~Or maybe, you know, Buddha gave us some enlightenment, so I think I’ll follow him because he taught some pretty intense things; etc.

-NO! There is only one cure. You either believe in Jesus and are saved, or you don’t believe in Jesus and then you are not saved, you are still in your sins. The gospel alone is the power for salvation

-And you notice that it is the power of salvation for everybody: Paul says it saves Jews and Greeks—which means everybody. It doesn’t matter what category you put yourself in, only the gospel has the power to save.

-That being the case, the gospel is the only thing we have to offer people that is worthwhile. In fact, if we have received the gift of salvation, we owe it to share to other people, just like Paul said in v. 14 that he is under obligation to everybody—he received this great gift, and he is under compulsion to share it, not act ashamed of it

-“Every saved person this side of heaven owes the gospel to every unsaved person this side of hell.” – David Platt

~We have confidence going into eternity because of the gospel of Jesus, and others who have no

hope right now can do the same if they place faith in Jesus Christ.

Conclusion

-I want to give an illustration that will hopefully give us an overall perspective on the importance of not being ashamed of the gospel. This is not original from me, but comes from Robby Gallaty:

Imagine that, out of the blue, you receive a phone call from a friend requesting you come to his house immediately. Upon your arrival, he begins with these words: “I am about to entrust you with information that will save millions of lives and change the course of history. However, there is only one stipulation: you must take it to the world.” After affirming your commitment to follow through with his request, he proceeds to share with you the cure for cancer. How will you broadcast this life-saving remedy? That night you would call every newspaper and news channel available to report the story. Appearances on talk shows and television programs would fill your calendar. Every one of your Facebook posts and Twitter entries would contain information about this newfound discovery.

Two thousand years ago, the Creator of the universe wrapped Himself in human flesh and came to earth on a mission to redeem mankind. He did not come with the cure for cancer, AIDS, or any other life-threatening illness. He came with the remedy for our greatest problem: His sacrifice on the cross would cure the soul-destroying cancer of sin. How would the Lord spread the greatest news in the world? He could write it in the clouds or announce it from heaven. He could employ all of His supernatural powers to instantly transmit this crucial message across the face of the earth. But He didn’t. In His infinite wisdom, Jesus entrusted the message of redemption to twelve ordinary men. He chose to leave the mission of taking the gospel to the world in the hands of His disciples…

<Sharing the Best News>

Bad News

Our sin has separated us from God.

“... for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” ROMANS 3:23;

“... the wages of sin is death ...” ROMANS 6:23

Worse News

We can do nothing to remove our sin. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the

gift of God.” EPHESIANS 2:8

Good News

At the cross, Jesus did for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves. He died on a cross and shed his blood to pay for our sins. “... the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” 1 JOHN 1:7

Best News

Through faith, we freely receive forgiveness and eternal

life. “... The free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.”

ROMANS 6:23

Accepting Jesus’ Free Gift

“... if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

ROMANS 10:9

-Believer, don’t be ashamed; Unbeliever, believe…