Romans 1:16–17 (NIV84)
16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
Our God is a mighty God! He has plenty of power. He spoke and the world came into existence. He condemned, and fire rained down from heaven to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. He parted the Red Sea and Israel crossed on dry land. He brought the sea back together and the entire Egyptian army was defeated. Of course, God is powerful! He proves it on the pages of his word.
So, what is God’s greatest power? His power lies not in destroying but saving. The gospel, the good news of Jesus’ death on Calvary and real resurrection is the ultimate power of God that brings salvation. The Lord describes his power for what it truly is: the good news of Jesus is his power that breaks through hearts that are ignorant, hearts that fail, hearts that don’t believe. It powerfully changes them into hearts that do believe, trust and cling to the One who never failed. It is the good news that he has removed the guilt of those who have failed.
In the gospel, God reveals his righteousness – his holiness and perfection – and gives it to us free of charge through Jesus. Jesus is the one who provides everything we need for salvation, the perfection God demands, and the payment for our failures. It’s all found in the gospel, God’s 100% reliable message of love, forgiveness, and righteousness.
Since it is so reliable, there is no hesitation to share, no doubt that would cause us to keep it to ourselves. It’s God’s power for the salvation of everyone who believes. This is what God uses to change people’s hearts and create the gift of faith. Through faith, we possess the righteousness of God, won for us by Jesus.
The Holy Spirit gave these words to the apostle Paul. The gospel was the reason he was eager to visit the people in Rome. He was not ashamed to share the gospel with them, or with anyone. Neither are we. We also have the privilege to share the gospel, knowing that the power lies in the good news of Jesus, and not in the person who is sharing the good news.
We’ve seen the power in our lives. We live as God’s righteous people by faith in Jesus. Don’t be ashamed to share it.
PRAYER: Dear Savior, thank you for the complete reliability of your gospel message. Continue to use your powerful good news in my heart, so I can be bold to share your righteousness with others. Amen.