The Power of God unto Salvation

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. (Romans 1:16)

Now that Paul has ended his salutation to the Romans, he is now going to elucidate at length as to what the Gospel of Jesus Christ is. This verse and the next sum up not what the gospel actually is, but what its function is. We know that the gospel is defined as the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

Not Ashamed

He begins, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.” By implication, there are those that are ashamed of the gospel! Paul writes elsewhere, “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). As a Christian, there have been many times where I have shrunk back when the subject of religion had come up in conversation. Religion is “weird” in many parts of our society. We are truly in the flesh when we feel the need to “justify” our faith to others, because the gospel “is the power of God unto salvation.” Consider the following:

And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. (Mark 8:34-38)

When the Day of Christ arrives, Jesus will be ashamed of those who were not witnesses for His name in this life. We must choose to be witnesses for Christ because He is the only way for people to be saved. Witnessing for Christ is the purpose of this life.

The Power of God

The gospel (good news), which we know as the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is “the power of God.” The gospel is neither dynamic words that we speak, nor is it pithy statements from ancient sages. The gospel is even more than a historical event, for it is the fulfillment of the Word of God starting in Genesis all the way throughout the whole Bible. This is the good news because this is the way that God is fashioning the new creation. This is how God is taking you and me, the flawed, marred creatures that we are, putting us to death on His cross, and creating us entirely new in a resurrected life. We are born again into a new creation as new creatures, and we have new, fresh, eternal life from God himself. The gospel is God’s power, and it is the only way we can be saved.

Unto Salvation

The gospel is “the power of God unto salvation.” We have a shallow view of salvation if we believe it is merely “going to heaven” and escaping hell. Most Christians do not get too far passed this. Salvation also means being saved from the ruling power of sin, being setting apart to God for His service, and being the new creature before we ever make it to heaven. And even this is only the beginning. Jesus came to “save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Every One That Believeth

This gospel is “the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.” Righteousness and all the heavenly blessings are not imputed to all of humankind. It is to “every one that believeth.” Without believing God’s promise of eternal life in Christ, there is no receiving of the promises.

To the Jew First, and Also to the Greek

This gospel is “the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Paul will discuss at length the dichotomy of Jews versus Greeks in Romans 2. The Jews could be the “privileged class” spiritually, while the Greeks were pagans and had little knowledge or care of the creator God Jehovah. However, the two groups have the same access to the same salvation the same way, both in times past and today.

Thank God that salvation is God’s power, and not ours! Amen and amen.