Romans 1:16-17
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. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
COMMENT
This is quite an amazing couple of verses, when interpreted through Paul's eyes. The first thing that strikes me is the word gospel, which many will quickly tell you means, "good news." But do people really know what the gospel truly is? And how does that match up with Paul's vision of what the gospel is?
Today, many might say, "Well, the gospel is the good news that Jesus died in your place, and now if you give your life to Him you will go to heaven when you die." But is that enough? Because I believe there are many people who have said a prayer or even been baptized and believe that is all it takes. Maybe some go beyond that and go to church, live decent lives, avoid things they deem to be sinful, and think that is the answer. But what was the gospel to Paul?
I think it was a lot of things. One, it was the means of salvation through the blood of Christ. Two, it was Christ's sacrificial death that freed us from not only the punishment of the law, but the power that the law held over us. Look at the book of Galatians. Some wanted salvation, but held on to the idea that we were also still under the law. Paul was not afraid to say that this was wrong, and that Christ's sacrifice freed us from the law. Three, the gospel did demand a response to Paul. But it was not the response of living up to a set of regulations, but rather a response of sacrifice because of what the gospel means to those who are saved. To truly be saved by the gospel, to truly be freed by the gospel, one must have a change of heart (repentance) that affected how that individual would live from that point forward. This does not look the same for everyone, and we must be careful about how we judge another's response, but none the less, a change must be evident. The gospel is God's power, displayed in His gift of salvation, and it is for everyone who believes.
Notice that Paul did not just say "it is for everyone," but added "who believes." That belief is evidenced by the life change that individual then exhibits. Yet it is not just the change that matters, it is the motivation behind that change that is a part of the believing. It is not a change that musters its strength to be a good person, but the change that happens because that person has seen God's mercy and responds to it. (See Romans 12:1-2)
The gospel reveals God's righteousness. If the gospel is reduced to a ritual or a prayer, does that really reveal God's righteousness? However, if the gospel is God's forgiveness of our transgressions through the atoning sacrificial death of His Son, that drips with righteousness. A loving God, but also a holy and just God who made a way to satisfy that holiness is amazing. A God who demanded holiness for the unholy and made it possible, but by faith in His righteousness and not through our works or effort is an amazing revelation. So the response that we have is not to try to do our best, but to live by faith. To respond to His grace and love from a heart that is altered by the realization of that grace and love.
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