Romans 1:16
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16
The Power Of Good News
In his book, The Priority of Knowing God, Peter Deison tells about Ramad, a man in India who belonged to a gang involved with armed robbery. While burglarizing a house, he noticed a book with very thin pages fit for making cigarettes. He took it. Every evening he would sit around the fire and tear out a page, roll some tobacco in it and have a smoke. But upon noticing that the small words were in his language, he began reading them before rolling his cigarettes. One day after reading a page, he knelt on the ground all alone and asked the Lord Jesus to forgive his sins and save him.
Afterwards, he turned himself into the police, much to their bewilderment. Ramad was transformed from being a bandit to being a prisoner for Christ. While serving his jail term, many people came to the knowledge of the Saviour through his witnessing. The small book he was reading was a bible. The Holy Spirit used the gospel of Christ only to transform the life of the bandit. The reason why many Christians are hesitant to witness for Christ is that they fear failure. We usually forget the life-changing power of the gospel of Christ.
The Big Scandal
During the days of Paul, the resurrection was to the public world a great scandal. People thought it was foolish, and for that reason, many sat on the fence about it. To all those who are perishing, the message of the cross is foolishness. But to us who are being saved, it is the power of God (1 Corinthians 1:18). Let us look at some potential reasons why Christians are ashamed of the gospel. One is fear of being persecuted.In a world like today where we are careful not to be offensive, many are afraid of persecution. The book of Acts is full of evidence that persecution follows where the gospel is preached (Acts 13:50).
Following Jesus
Another reason why we are ashamed of the gospel is that to some people, it may sound ridiculous. People have their own form of godliness. Paul refers to the gospel and says that “ “…but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles…” (1 Corinthians 1:23). However, the fear we have is short-sighted. The gospel of Christ is much more than a collection of brilliant ideas. The gospel is the method through which God has chosen to change the lives of people. When the gospel is preached, the sick are healed, demons flee, sinful lives are forgiven, relationships are restored, and eternities altered. That is powerful.
The gospel brings salvation to all who believe. The word salvation refers to the process of rescue and restoration. It is also not automatic; we must accept it. It is not about who your parents are, your culture, tradition or even your education. It is about believing wholeheartedly and giving your whole life wholeheartedly to Jesus.
King James Version (KJV)
“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.”
New International Version (NIV)
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”
New American Bible (NASB)
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”
The Living Bible (TLB)
“For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is God’s powerful method of bringing all who believe it to heaven. This message was preached first to the Jews alone, but now everyone is invited to come to God in this same way.”