The Power of the Gospel

Right before Paul begins a long, honest, and blunt teaching regarding God’s wrath against unrighteousness, he sets the stage for that teaching with four important theological truths. Those truths permeate all of his doctrine throughout his entire letter to the Roman church, and they have particular relevance to God’s wrath toward the sinfulness of people. They also point to his love for those people and his desire to rescue them from that wrath. In Romans 1:16-17, Paul gives us these four points by declaring that he is unashamed of the gospel because he sees God’s unmistakable supernatural power working through it to save anyone regardless of their religious or ethnic background; that this effectiveness is tied to how God’s righteousness is apparent in it; that the gospel’s power perfects a person’s embryonic faith in God from infant trust all the way to its maturity. Finally, he proclaims that righteous people live their lives through their maturing trust in God rather than by what they think they see in the world around them (2 Corinthians 5:7). 

In short, Paul’s points are:

1. The gospel is powerful enough to save anyone.

2. It is powerful because it puts God’s righteousness on display.

3. The gospel’s power perfects or matures a person’s trust in God.

4. People who are made righteous through that trust live their lives by it.

When you understand the gospel, you recognize that you are a sinner who cannot save yourself. You recognize that you are doomed to suffer the wrath of God against you because of how your sin(s) tarnish the image of himself that he has coded into you as you carry that image while consistently choosing selfish and corrupt pursuits.  Then, in awe, you recognize how a righteous, sinless, holy God made the ultimate loving sacrifice on a criminal's cross to rescue you from that wrath, as well as from the clutches of your own darkness. You recognize that he did this not because you deserve it in any way, but because he loves you. This realization transforms you into a person who follows him out of love for him. This new loving respect for God produces in a person spiritual fruits like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).  These four points demonstrate precisely why the once vaunted Paul can say he is not ashamed by a gospel that clearly opposed his previous and prideful false righteousness. How did the gospel do that for Paul? First, it showed him that he was a blatant and unrighteous sinner when he compared himself to Christ instead of to his fellow man (1 Timothy 1:12-17, Philippians 3:4-12, Romans 7:14-20). Second, he realized that he couldn’t live up to the standard of Christ, and therefore needed Christ’s righteousness transferred to himself (2 Corinthians 5:21). His recognition of Christ’s love for him compelled him to live a life for Christ and for others instead of for himself (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).  This gospel matured Paul’s trust in Christ – even through imprisonment, suffering, and probably martyrdom – convincing him that God would guard his life through the world’s bentness and challenges, and even beyond his own physical death (2 Timothy 1:12 NASB). Paul then continues through the rest of Romans 1 bluntly detailing the ungodly state of men, and how their unrighteousness puts them at odds with a Holy God. 

When did you realize you were at odds with a Holy God? When did you realize God’s love for you, and how did it impact your life?