THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST

Pastor James J. Barker

Text: ROMANS 1:14-17




INTRODUCTION:


  1. I am going to preach today on a subject that is being neglected in many churches today.
  2. I am going to preach "the gospel of Christ" (vs. 16). Notice it is "the gospel of Christ." Most of the modern translations have omitted the words "of Christ" (e.g., the ASV, NASB, RSV, NRSV, NIV, etc.).
  3. This is very important because the Word of God warns us that there is "another gospel" (cf. Gal.1:6-9; II Cor.11:3,4).
  4. For example, there is the social gospel, which emphasizes feeding the homeless and improving society through social programs.
  5. And there is the false gospel of the cults, which teaches salvation through works.
  6. Today I want to preach the true gospel, which is defined for us in I Cor.15:1-4).
  7. The theme of Paul’s epistle to the Romans is the Gospel (Rom.1:1). The key verses of this epistle are 1:16, 17.
  8. Some preachers build their message around Paul’s three "I am" statements:
    1. I AM DEBTOR (vs. 14)
    2. I AM READY TO PREACH THE GOSPEL (vs. 15)
    3. I AM NOT ASHAMED OF THE GOSPEL (vs. 16)
  1. That is a nice three-point outline, but I will approach it a bit differently today:
    1. THE EFFECT OF THE GOSPEL – THE SALVATION OF SINNERS ("for it is the power of God unto salvation" -- vs. 16)
    2. THE EXTENT OF THE GOSPEL – TO THE JEW FIRST, AND ALSO TO THE GREEK (vs. 16b)
    3. THE CONDITION OF THE GOSPEL – FAITH IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST ("The just shall live by faith" – vs. 17).

 

I. THE EFFECT OF THE GOSPEL – the salvation of sinners.

    1. The apostle Paul was a great scholar. He knew the ways of the world. He traveled a great deal, was well read, and was familiar with the various and diverse religions of the world.
    2. And so, it was with boldness, and with confidence in the Gospel, that he could proclaim to the church at Rome: "I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also" (vs. 15).
    3. Paul knew that the only message sinners need to hear is the Gospel – it is far superior to any other religion or philosophy ever known on earth.
    4. It is "the power of God unto salvation…" (vs. 16). The word "power" comes from the Greek word dunamis. This is where we get our English word dynamite.
    5. This world does not need more government programs, more social reform, new philosophies and new religions. This world does not need more entertainment or a better system of education or a higher standard of living – it needs the Gospel.
    6. It is the message of the Gospel that will improve the standard of living, that will allow for a better system of education, that will take away this ridiculous craving for worldly entertainment that is weakening peoples’ minds and destroying their souls.
    7. It is sad to read in the newspapers that the majority of children in our NYC public schools cannot read, and now there are people who want to introduce "ebonics" as a legitimate second language. The school chancellor and the board of education and the teachers’ union and the politicians do not want to admit what the real problem is – they have taken God out of the public schools, and they have taken the Bible out of the public schools, and they have taken prayer out of the public schools. And they have removed phonics and replaced it with "sight reading" and they have removed Dickens and Shakespeare and replaced it with Daddy Has a New Roommate, and other filth.
    8. If they are serious about giving children a proper education, let them admit they were wrong for removing God from their schools.
    9. We need to preach the Gospel – that it is the message this sick, sin-cursed society desperately needs to hear.
    10. One preacher has said, "The gospel message grips the mind, stabs the conscience, warms the heart, saves the soul, and sanctifies the life" (John Phillips).
    11. When comparing this passage with the first chapter of I Corinthians, you will notice several similarities:
      1. The Gospel is for everyone – for the Jew and for the Gentile (Rom.1:16; I Cor.1:22-24). This includes every person sitting here today.
      2. Paul’s great burden was to preach the gospel (Rom.1:15,16; I Cor.1:17,18). Do you have this same burden to see the Gospel proclaimed?
      3. The Gospel is the power of God and the best way to convey this powerful message is through preaching (Rom.1:16; I Cor.1:18,24).
    1. There is a real lack of strong Bible preaching today. I am appalled at most of what I hear on so-called "Christian radio." Also, it has been pointed out that in many churches today, even in some Baptist churches, the pulpit is off to the side – it is no longer central.
    2. Some modern day preachers have even removed it altogether and have replaced it with a bar stool!

 

II. THE EXTENT OF THE GOSPEL – to the Jew first, and also to the Greek

    1. Paul wrote that he was a debtor both to the Greeks and to the Barbarians (vs. 14). The ancient Greeks and Romans divided up the world that way – you were either a civilized, educated Greek or you were a crude, uneducated Barbarian.
    2. The Greeks and Romans prided themselves on their great culture and education but they were just as lost as the Barbarians.
    3. There are a lot of people around today like the Greeks and Romans – educated heathens! They have been to the university, they wear nice clothes, they live in beautiful homes, they drive fancy cars – but they are lost and on their way to hell.
    4. Paul is pointing out that he is a debtor to all classes of people, to every man – Greek and Barbarian, wise and unwise (vs. 14).
    5. How was Paul a debtor? How was he indebted to these people he had never even met?
    6. This is the answer: He was a recipient of the grace of God and he knew that many others had never heard the gospel, and he was indebted to them.
    7. Beloved, you and I have a debt to pay and we have not paid it off yet. It will not be paid until all have heard the Gospel, the good news that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, and rose from the dead, and will save from hell all who repent and believe on Him.
    8. Paul was a debtor and preaching the Gospel was the way his debt could be discharged. How is your debt being discharged? Maybe God wants you to preach. Some of you cannot preach but can still go out and knock on doors, and give out tracts.
    9. We had a nice meeting last Sunday night and I asked two Jewish Christians to give their testimony. After the meeting, one of the ladies from our church quoted Rom.1:16, "to the Jew first."
    10. We all smiled at that, and it was on my mind all night and the next day. But I kept thinking – are we really bringing the Gospel to the Jew first?
    11. While you are contemplating whether or not you are bringing the Gospel to the Jew first, let me share with you some of my thoughts on this.
    12. I do believe "first" here means first in time, rather than first in priority. In other words, the Gospel came to them before it came to the Gentiles. The Jews were privileged – first of all, they were given the Scriptures (cf. Rom.3:1,2).
    13. The great British prime minister, Benjamin Disraeli, was once teased in the House of Lords about his Jewish ancestry. He replied, "Yes, my noble lord. I am a Jew. And when your ancestors were living on acorns in the German forest my ancestors were giving to the world law, literature, religion, and our very Saviour."
    14. Jesus "came unto His own, and His own received Him not" (John 1:11). He instructed His disciples not to go "into the way of the Gentiles…But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt.10:5,6). The Great Commission was to begin "at Jerusalem" (Luke 24:47).
    15. To insist that "first" in Rom.1:16 means "first in preference" or "first in priority" would make it extremely difficult, if not impossible for those ministering in countries where there are few, if any Jews (parts of China, Africa, and so forth).
    16. Having said all that, however, I do believe that most churches, even those in areas where there are large numbers of Jewish people, are not making a serious effort to reach Jewish people.
    17. We have looked at the effect of the Gospel, and then the extent of the Gospel – to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. Now, let us examine the condition of the Gospel.

 

III. THE CONDITION OF THE GOSPEL – faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

    1. As we have just seen, salvation is universal in scope – the gospel is to be preached to the Greeks and to the Barbarians, to the Jews and to the Gentiles.
    2. However, while it is universal in scope, salvation is limited to "every one that believeth" (Rom.1:16; cf. Mark 16:16).
    3. By the way, Mark 16:16 (and other Scriptures) indicate that baptism is not essential for salvation but closely follows salvation. If you are genuinely saved, if you sincerely desire to be obedient to God, then you will submit to believers’ baptism and church membership.
    4. I have to wonder about some folks who say they are saved but have never been baptized. [Of course, I have to wonder about some people who were baptized as well, but that is another story].
    5. There is only condition to the gospel, to the "good news" that Jesus saves from sin, and saves from the penalty of sin – and that one condition to the gospel is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
    6. The word "righteousness" appears frequently in Paul’s epistle to the Romans (1:17). The word means "conformity to the divine claims on man." This conformity can only be attained by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
    7. God is not satisfied with man’s righteousness (cf. Isa.64:6). Paul is talking here of the imputed righteousness of Christ. When God saves a sinner, He places Him in Christ, and He sees him in Christ.
    8. The repentant sinner is completely accepted, not because of anything good that he has done, but because of what Christ has done for him.
    9. And the only method of receiving this righteousness is by faith (cf. Phil.3:9).
    10. "From faith to faith" (vs. 17) means being saved by faith, living by faith, walking by faith, being prepared to die by faith, and going up to heaven by faith. Do you have this faith?
    11. "As it is written" (vs. 17) refers back to Hab.2:4. This O.T. verse is quoted three times in the N.T. – here, Gal.3:11, and Heb.10:38.
    12. This verse is the verse that converted Martin Luther from a confused, unhappy Augustinian monk to a preacher of the Gospel and leader of the Reformation.
    13. Now, as a Baptist I realize that our roots go back to the apostolic church, not to the Protestant Reformation. And I have some serious disagreements with Martin Luther and with Lutheranism. But think of the influence this man had on the history of mankind.
    14. He translated the Bible into German, and spearheaded the Protestant Reformation. If it had not been for his bold stand against the Roman Catholic church, Europe might have stayed under their control.
    15. If Europe had stayed in the clutches of the pope of Rome, England probably would have also. Think of how that might have affected our great nation. Today the USA is about 25% RC. However, if it had not been for the strong Protestant influence of England, things could have turned out much differently.
    16. John Wesley attributed his conversion to reading Martin Luther’s preface to Paul’s epistle to the Romans. Historians all agree that had it not been for the great revivals launched by John Wesley, England probably would have been wrecked by the same revolutionary spirit that destroyed France during the French Revolution.
    17. The course of western civilization might have turned out much differently had it not been for men who were able to open up the Word of God and read: "The just shall live by faith."

CONCLUSION:

  1. The great radio preacher, Charles Fuller, preached the Gospel to folks all over the country through his radio ministry. He once announced that he would be speaking the next week on the subject of heaven. During that week he received a beautiful letter from an elderly man. This is part of that letter:
  2. "Next Sunday you are to talk about Heaven. I am interested in that land, because I have held a clear title to a bit of property there for over 55 years. I did not buy it. It was given to me without money and without price. But the Donor purchased it for me at tremendous sacrifice. I am not holding it for speculation since the title is not transferable. It is not a vacant lot. For more than half a century I have been sending materials out of which the greatest Architect and Builder of the Universe has been building a home for me which will never need to be remodeled nor repaired because it will suit me perfectly, individually, and will never grow old.
  3. "Termites can never undermine its foundations for they rest on the Rock of Ages. Fire cannot destroy it. Floods cannot wash it away. No locks nor bolts will ever be placed upon its doors, for no vicious person can ever enter that land where my dwelling stands, now almost completed and almost ready for me to enter in and abide in peace eternally, without fear of being ejected…I hope to hear your sermon on Heaven next Sunday from my home in Los Angeles, California, but I have no assurance that I shall be able to do so. My ticket to Heaven has no date marked for the journey – no return coupon – and no permit for baggage. Yes, I am all ready to go and I may not be here while you are preaching next Sunday evening, but I shall meet you there some day."


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