One of my favorite Bible
verses has always been Romans 1:16 which says,
“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.”
As is true with so many other
Scripture passages, the reading of this verse should not stop here, but
continue on to verse seventeen which says,
“For therein is the
righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just
shall live by faith.”
In verse sixteen we see the
power of God bring two groups of people together to form a third; i.e. the
Church (Christians, the bride of Christ). This third group of people on earth
is formed via the acceptance of the Gospel of Christ by those who put their
faith in Jesus and are saved by the grace of God.
Before Abraham there was one
group of people on earth, the Gentiles (Greeks). Then God chose Abraham to form
a second group of earthly people called the Jew (Israel). Then Jesus came and called
to Him a people for His name, the Christians, the third group.
Any person can be a part of
this third group of people, but only if they come through Jesus.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am
the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
(John 14:6)
No person who is so honored
to be called a Christian should ever be ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. Why?
The answer is in verse seventeen which tells us this Gospel contains the
righteousness of God and it is revealed to us from the moment we are saved to
the time we leave this earth.
What is the Gospel in a
nutshell? It is “Jesus.” He is the Gospel, and it is in Him we are saved by
faith and we live day to day by faith. How could we ever be ashamed of the One
who took our penalty upon Himself and saved us from eternal damnation?
Powerful words are spoken by
the Apostle Paul in his last letter, just before his death, to his young
protégé Timothy.
“So do not be ashamed of the
testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in
suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.
He has saved us and called us
to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own
purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning
of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior,
Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to
light through the gospel.
And of this gospel I was
appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.
That is why I am suffering as
I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and
am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that
day.” (2 Timothy 1:8-12)
Notice that he tells Timothy
to not be ashamed of the Gospel (“the testimony about our Lord”) and to not be
ashamed of him, the Lord’s prisoner.
Paul continues by saying that
we are called to live a holy life because of God’s purpose for us and His grace
provided us. Paul always proclaimed the Gospel of Christ and this is why he was
suffering. “Yet this is no cause for shame.” Why is that? Because he knows
Jesus, and he knows that everything Jesus has promised is as good as “already
in the bank.” He knows his Lord will welcome him home with honor.
Why is it that so many
Christians in America do not share the Gospel with others?
Are we ashamed? How can a
true Christian be ashamed to talk about Jesus? That just does not make any
sense.
Are we insecure? Are we
afraid we may “mess up?” Listen carefully. We are told to share the Gospel.
That is all. Now why is that? It is because only God can save anyone. The Holy
Spirit will take our bumbling efforts and use them for the glory of Christ. We
cannot convince someone to come to Christ. Only the Spirit of God can draw
someone to Christ. So we need to be doing two things:
1.
Share the Gospel.
2.
Let God do the
rest.
Are we concerned that someone
may laugh at us, or make fun of us? They may think less of us? We may lose a
friend? What is so bad about any of that?
Jesus was laughed at. They
made fun of Him. They thought less of Him. He lost many “friends.” He was
beaten then crucified naked upon a Roman cross for all to gaze upon. He wasn’t
ashamed of us. How can we ever be ashamed of Him, when He went through so much
for us? How can we ever be ashamed of Him, when He forgave us all our sins and
gave us so much of Himself and all that is His?
Christians, let us mark this
day with a rallying cry to never be ashamed of the One Who was never ashamed of
us. Let us encourage each other as we see the day approaching of His return.
“Yet if any man suffer as a
Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.” (1
Peter 4:16)
“And now, little children,
abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be
ashamed before him at his coming.” (1 John 2:28)
Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: http://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html
