Not ashamed

Paul’s next statement could be called the thesis statement of the epistle: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16). That is one of the most potent, penetrating statements in all the New Testament.

Paul equates the gospel itself with God’s almighty power! No wonder he says he is not ashamed of the gospel. The rest of the epistle is an exposition of this one statement, unfolding in brilliant detail the truth of the gospel and showing why it is so powerful.

That’s why Romans takes such a prominent place among the Pauline epistles. Paul was so committed to the gospel that occasionally he referred to it as “my gospel” (Rom. 2:16; 16:25; 2 Tim. 2:8). Far from being ashamed of it, he spoke of it as if it were his own prized possession!

But as Paul well knew, the cost of standing up for the gospel could be great. Consequently, too many Christians did behave as if they were ashamed of the gospel.

Mockery was a key weapon used by the earliest enemies of Christianity. The Romans especially tended to look upon Christianity as a crude and uncultured religion. Rumours circulated among the Roman society that Christians were cannibals because they partook of the Lord’s Supper.

Christians were accused of sedition, murder, and other treacherous crimes. Some enemies of the gospel claimed the Christians were having orgies. Pagans even attacked believers as atheists because they rejected all the mythological gods. The price for following Christ could be extremely high.

The gospel itself is disagreeable, unattractive, repulsive, and alarming to the world. It exposes sin, condemns pride, convicts the unbelieving heart, and shows human righteousness—even the best, most appealing aspects of human nature—to be worthless, defiled, filthy rags (cf Isa. 64:6).

It affirms that the real problems in life are not because of anyone but ourselves. We are fallen sinners, with deceitful hearts, evil motives, pervasive pride. We cannot blame anyone else for our failure and misery. That is not a popular view, particularly in today’s psychological climate. It comes as bad news to those who love sin, and many who hear it for the first time react with disdain against the messenger.

It is not easy to take a bold stand for the gospel and be unashamed. Most of us must confess that we have a lot in common with the weakness of Peter, who on the night of Jesus’ crucifixion denied the Lord three times, cowering in fear before a servant girl who recognized him as a follower of Christ (Luke 22:56–62).

There is no record of any incident like that in Paul’s life, however. From the moment of his conversion, Paul was a man with a mission, and he never wavered from his one purpose: to preach the gospel.

He knew the gospel’s remarkable power to transform lives, and he longed to be the herald to proclaim it. How could he ever be ashamed of the gospel? Having received the gospel directly from the risen Lord Himself (Acts 20:24; 1 Cor. 11:23; 15:23), Paul was eager to proclaim it to everyone, without fear or shame.



THE GOSPEL IS THE POWER OF GOD
It is hard to imagine that anyone who truly understands the power of the gospel can possibly be ashamed to proclaim it. “It is the power of God” (1:16). Dunamis is the Greek word translated “power.” We derive the word dynamite from the same Greek word, and dynamite is not too strong a word to express what Paul is saying here.

Inherent in the gospel message is the power of an omnipotent God. That power alone is sufficient to save the vilest sinner and transform the hardest heart—apart from any human arguments, illustrations, or ingenuity.
The prophet Jeremiah wrote, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?

Then you also can do good who are accustomed to do evil” (Jer. 13:23). The truth is, people are utterly powerless to overcome their own sin. Sin is part of our nature, like a leopard’s spots. We cannot change ourselves. Self-help techniques and recovery programs might temporarily help people feel better about themselves, but they have no power to remove sin or change the human heart.



Only the gospel can do that. It is the power of God unto salvation. In other words, the objective truth of the gospel is inherently powerful for transforming lives when divinely applied. Peter spoke of the Word of God as the seed that generates new life and a new birth: “You have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding word of God” (1 Peter 1:23).

Both apostles were saying essentially the same thing: God’s Word—the message of the gospel—is the vehicle through which God’s transforming power invades a life and brings about the new birth.

We noted Paul’s similar words to the Corinthian believers: “The word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18, emphasis added). And, “We preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (vv. 23, 24). The gospel is the only message God uses for salvation.

Note that the gospel “is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16, emphasis added). Some people remain unaffected by the gospel. As powerful as the message is, it has no positive effect on those who turn away disbelieving.

Paul, of course, experienced much rejection and mocking from those who rejected the gospel. Nevertheless, he refused to change his methods or adapt the message to their tastes. He did not assume unbelievers’ rejection was due to any lack of power in the gospel. 

He knew too well the unrivalled power of the gospel to transform “everyone who believes.” In referring to the gospel as “the power of God for salvation,” Paul was also affirming that the gospel reveals the only way of salvation. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (John 14:6).

Acts 4:12 says, “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved.” Biblical preaching means preaching Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:5)—His person and work.

Perhaps the most serious indictment of contemporary market-conscious preaching is the absence of Christ. His name or some fact about Him may be thrown in at the end, but our Lord is rarely central in the trendy preaching of today.


Author: MacArthur, J. F., Jr.