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c) The Righteousness of God is Established and Realized in us Through Constant Faith (Romans 1:16-17)
ROMANS 1:16
16 For I am not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, for it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes; for the Jew first, and also for the Greek.
Paul was aware that the word “gospel” was both familiar and had a pleasant meaning in Rome, for there were many gospels, i.e. proclamations of glad tidings at the royal family level, which the people of the capital were interested to hear.
He raised the glad tidings of salvation to the same level of the royal proclamations, as if he wanted to say: “I am not ashamed of my epistle, which comes from Palestine, the small colony. Instead I bring it out in the midst of the capital, for I carry to you the glad tidings that the only God has a unique Son, who proceeded from him before all ages, and became incarnate to be near to us in his divinity, and to redeem all men by his death and resurrection. My epistle does not contain an annunciation that a mortal son was born to the mortal Caesar, but it contains the glad annunciation of the birth of the eternal Son of the eternal Father. If the royal gospels carried to you glad tidings of victories of the Roman armies, or announced to you the royal games or the food to satisfy the multitudes, I hereby carry to you the good news that all mankind is entirely redeemed from sin, death, Satan, God’s wrath, and judgment. My gospel is greater than all the Roman gospels, for it is universal, lofty, eternal, powerful, great, and glorious. It is not built on philosophies, books, or empty hope, but is centered on one person”.
The Romans did not know the various meanings of the word “Christ” as given by the Jews. They understood its meaning as “the anointed one”, which was a title given to the Caesar, who, in addition to his civil functions, was regarded as the high priest. Caesar combined in himself the political, military, and lawful functions together with the ministry of reconciliation of the multitudes to the national gods and spirits, as if he were the mediator for all blessing and peace.
However, Christ is the Lord of lords, to whom all power was given both in heaven and on earth, for he is the true High Priest, and our only Mediator and Intercessor with God.
By this announcement in the beginning of his gospel, Paul did not only clarify the sonship of Christ to God and his divine nature, but he also clarified his functions as the Lord, Judge, King, Ruler, and Reconciler, who alone deserves the title: “Savior of the World,” which at that time belonged solely to the Caesars.
This glad tiding of the Son of God and his different ministries is not a mere thought. It is an explosive power which is greater than all the powers of the world, for the gospel contains all the power of God. The Lord himself is present in the gospel. He speaks through the black letters, creating a new life in the hearers and regenerating the called. So, do not put the Book of books on the same level with other books on your shelves, but raise it and put it in a suitable place, for this book condemns all other books. The gospel is perfect in itself, as God is perfect and filled with power to build a new universe.
The power of God did not come to the world, through the gospel of Christ, to destroy our evil world, but to save it, for God desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Our heavenly Father is not a dictator. He does not force anyone to accept the gospel of his Son, but he offers his truth to everyone freely. Whoever opens his heart to the words of Christ, and trusts him, experiences the power of God. There is no salvation without faith. Whoever believes becomes united with the Son of God, who places his divinity in the believer, and purifies, sanctifies, and revives him.
Faith in Christ establishes eternal salvation in whoever opens his heart to him; and trust in the Son of God is the only way to salvation. Through faith, the believer receives forgiveness and resurrection from the dead. Therefore, faith is the decisive act in the Epistle to the Romans, for without faith you do not know God, or feel his power. He who believes, however, becomes justified, and lives indeed.
The Jews experienced this pleasant truth, though the majority of them rejected Christ, hated him, and crucified him. However, the humble choice knew him and believed in him. They became filled with the Holy Spirit, and continued in the love of God. The power of the Holy Trinity, even today, dwells in people through the testimony of the early apostles.
When the minority of the Jews had accepted the salvation of Christ, the multitudes of the Greeks and other nations, who opened their hearts to the gospel of salvation, followed them. They experienced that this message was not empty words, but was filled with power of God, which connects the believers with the living Christ in an eternal covenant.
Dear brother, if you carefully read the gospel of Christ, open your heart to his word, believe in the divinity of Jesus, and speak with him in your prayer, you will experience that the crucified and risen Christ is the true Savior and Priest, the Mighty King, and Redeemer of the World. So, be courageous and build your life completely on the gospel that the power of God may be magnified in your weakness.
PRAYER: We glorify you, O God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, because you proclaim yourself in the gospel of Christ, and you purify us in faith, and dwell in us in your fullness. We also glorify you because your power works completely through the letters of the Epistle to the Romans, and pours out from every book of the New Testament. Open our eyes and our minds that we may hear your voice, trust in you, and commit our life completely to your providence and your guidance.
QUESTION:
- Which statement in verse 16 do you consider as the most important? Why?