April 30
“As much as is in me, I am ready to preach the Gospel to you who are in Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘The just shall live by faith,’” Romans 1:15-17.
The apostle Paul had a strong desire to preach the Gospel to the people in Rome. He felt obligated to bring to them the message of forgiveness, peace, and pardon which was gained for all people by the Lord Jesus Christ. He was eager to bring that message to the people living in Rome, which might have been called the world’s capital at that time.
The apostle Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, although the Jews regarded it as the story of a man by the name of Jesus who was crucified, and the Greeks (the non-Jews) regarded it as a foolish story.
In his Epistle to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul wrote, “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God,” 1 Corinthians 1:18. In the same chapter, he later wrote, “Since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God,” 1 Corinthians 1:21-24.
Because of people’s sinful nature, they regard the Spirit’s pleading and calling through the Gospel as foolishness. Later, Paul wrote, “The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned,” 1 Corinthians 2:14.
Scripture makes it very clear that the Gospel is, “The power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” The Gospel calls to every sinner, “Quit running away from God! Turn around and behold the face of a loving, forgiving Father, who for Jesus’ sake has forgiven your sins!” The righteousness of Jesus Christ becomes ours by faith. “The just shall live by faith.” “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved,” Acts 16:31. By faith in Jesus, we are robed in the garments of Jesus’ righteousness. Before our heavenly Father, we will stand in our robes of righteousness, which have been washed white in the blood of the Lamb of God.
With the hymn writer, we pray:
Jesus, Thy blood and righteousness, My beauty are, my glorious dress;
Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed, With joy shall I lift up my head.
The holy, meek, unspotted Lamb, Who from the Father’s bosom came,
Who died for me, e’en me t’atone, Now for my Lord and God I own.
Lord, I believe were sinners more, Than sands upon the ocean shore,
Thou hast for all a ransom paid, For all a full atonement made. Amen.