For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ

Sermon notes from Sunday 30 August 2015 am

Romans 1 verses 1 - 17

Paul is planning a journey, he wants to go to the city of Roman, enjoy fellowship with believers, wants to preach the unsearchable riches of grace, he wants to see men and women saved by the gospel.  What does the gospel mean to you and I today?  Paul made this great statement in verse 16 "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."  When Paul took the letters out of the priest`s hand in Jerusalem on the way to Damascus he asked for the authority to continue the work he had started, to break up the spread of the gospel.  As he made his way out of Jerusalem at midday a light shone from heaven.  That light took him to the dust of the ground.  There he was gloriously saved.  His life was transformed, changed, never to be the same again.  Has your life been transformed by the gospel message?  Totally changed, never the same again since that day?  Paul could said "every time I look at the gospel message I know what happened in this life of mine, the gospel transformed me totally, changed me forever."

A revelation from God.  "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith." Paul knew what he preached was the revelation of God`s salvation for every soul on this planet.  The devil knows in this one verse lies something of the great importance of the plan God had for lost mankind.    There is a mark that has been set.  Man has tried to achieve that mark through his own efforts but failed.  God knew that so he sent his son to live and die on this earth, to shed his precious blood so that we could be saved.  Romans 10 verse 3 "For they being ignorant of God`s righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God."  There are people still trying to do that - doing the best they can.  The apostle Paul sat at the feet of a man called Gamaliel, a clever man who ever existed in the Jewish nation.  Paul listened to every word but when he was saved by God`s grace he went to the Arabian desert for 3 years and God taught him the righteousness of God.  The gospel is unique because when the gospel is planted in the hearts of men and women it will bring forth fruit unto eternal life.  Paul said "I neither received it of men nor taught it of men but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."

The responsibility he has for the gospel.  He had that placed on him when he was saved.  "I am a debtor both to the Greeks and to the Barbarians, both to the wise and to the unwise."  There was a great obligation on Paul.  Paul knew what had happened in his life, that it had transformed him.  He had the responsibility of going out into the world to bring men and women in to hear the gospel.  Moses heading to the land of Canaan asked his family to go with him.  Paul talked about an obligation on him.  There are souls you need to reach and maybe it will be the last opportunity for them to hear the gospel, to come and put their trust in the saving grace.  The responsibility that is on us today.  There are people sitting in darkness, know nothing of the gospel, they are on their way to a Christless hell.  Will you take time to tell them of the gospel?  John Wesley used to talk about the 4 alls - all people need to be saved, all people can be saved, all people can know they are saved and people can be saved to the uttermost.

The responsibility of praying.  In Ephesians we read about putting on the armour of God.  Every piece of the armour should be put on with prayer.  Then Paul asks for prayer for himself "that utterance may be given unto me that i may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel."  We have a responsibility to pray, that God will bring people in to hear the gospel proclaimed.

The responsibility of gathering.  Cornelius in Acts 9 was praying on his knees when the angel came and told him "your prayers have been heard, send for Peter in Joppa and he will tell you words whereby you might be saved."  Cornelius did as he was instructed.  Peter was praying and he came along to Cornelius` house and found he had gathered all his family and friends in because they wanted to hear what Peter would tell them.  He had a desire to see his loved ones in, to hear what Peter was going to say.

The resentment to the gospel.  We will be opposed, will face opposition.  Paul said "I am not ashamed, I will still come back to the word of God, keep preaching the gospel of saving grace."
The reality of the gospel.  Why was he not ashamed - because it is the power of God.  I have witnessed that in lives, seen it at work.  Have we witnessed the gospel?  Paul said to those around him "I have seen this gospel work and at work in a man who was cold in Philippi.  A callous, hard, greedy man, seen him asking me what he needed to do to be saved, asking Christ to come into his life.  He then gathered his loved ones and friends in to hear the gospel."  That is the reality of the gospel - if we know that reality we need to pray for the wisdom to deal with it.