The Gospel is a movement of God and no one can stop it
Romans 1:8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.
Think about Charlie Kirk, his faith was spoken of throughout the whole world. Think of Billy Graham, same thing. But then think about Christians, it used to be it was a tiny sect of Judaism and only 1% of the world's population was Jewish. But now over a billion people all over the world are Christians. This was our assignment, to go into all the world with gospel. Think about this blog, over 800,000 have read it. They could be all over the world. Iran and Russia are both seeing a Christian revival right now. In China the underground church is also going strong. I am a member of the Gideon's and they have distributed over 2.5 billion bibles worldwide and are in 200 countries. The full Bible has been translated into 700 languages and some portions of the Bible have been translated into 1500 to 3,000 languages. Let us begin our understanding of the gospel here, first of all. Gamaliel said that if this movement were not of God it would come to nought and if it were of God you could do nothing to stop it. Clearly the gospel is a movement of God and no one can stop it.
9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; 10 Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.
God is our witness, we have prayed, and labored to send the gospel out into the four corners of the earth.
11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; 12 That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.
This is also true, the protestant reformation began in Germany with Martin Luther. It went to England and then it went to the US. Prior to Martin Luther we had the Gutenberg Bible which helped paved the way for the gospel to have a prosperous journey. From England and the US the gospel went out to the entire world. Now Europe is the one that needs to be comforted. In England and Europe they arrest people who pray or preach in public. So although churches in Africa, India and China were established by missionaries from England and the US we now need saints from those nations to comfort us with their mutual faith.
13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles. 14 I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.
Paul came to Rome as a prisoner. Think of the church today, we are debtors to Martin Luther, Charles Wesley, Hudson Taylor, JN Darby, John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, the people who first printed and published the Bible, Brother Lawrence, G.K. Chesterton, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Foxe's book of Martyrs, Watchman Nee, etc. The Old Testament is almost exclusively Jewish history, but Church history involves the whole world.
Proof that you have been forgiven by the Lord
15 So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.
Every church, every nation, every new believer can bring new life to the Body of Christ.
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.
This is a major departure from the Old Testament which told the Jews not to learn from the Gentiles. The reason for this is "the power of God unto salvation". Pagans are involved in witchcraft and the occult. However, the power of Jesus Christ is greater than that of any demon or fallen angel. As a result we do not need to be ashamed, we can go into all the earth triumphantly because at the name of Jesus every knee must bow. Paul is a debtor to Greeks and Barbarians, not because of what they had in the flesh, but because of what they received from the Holy Spirit after they were saved and regenerated.
17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
This is what he is seeing, righteousness of God is revealed to him from faith to faith. When he meets someone he thought was a pagan destined for hell get saved and come to faith it reveals more of the righteousness of God. Prior to Jesus' crucifixion the salvation of God was not revealed. People did not see that the just, in any nation, would live by faith. Make no mistake, the gospel is that all can come to the Lord, regardless of your parents or how you were raised. The Jews no longer have a monopoly on God or on the word of God.
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
This is where the gospel in Christianity is deficient. Paul has come to the wrath of God after only 17 verses. The wrath of God is integral to the gospel. Perhaps you don't want to lead with hellfire and brimstone, but by all means it may be necessary to arrive there in the first five minutes. The fact that men are trying to hold down the truth in unrighteousness is very important. It makes sharing the gospel into a competition like football. Everything you are trying to do the enemy is trying to stop you from doing that. This makes it much more interesting and captivating for unbelievers. Do not fall into the trap of thinking "can't we all just get along". That would be like thinking that the Chicago Bulls need to get along with the New York Knicks. That is not going to happen. The battle is over the truth. We are battling to speak the truth concerning Jesus Christ and they are battling to hold down the truth in unrighteousness. Very often the reason people don't know God is because they don't want to know God. I used to think the problem was my gospel, if I only had the right words to speak. It was a great revelation to me to realize it is not my job to convince anyone. If you are a witness in a trial no one judges you based on whether or not the jury decides one way or the other. Your only responsibility is to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Unbelievers are always full of excuses for why they can live in sin and still not face the wrath of God. They will blame their parents, they will blame their church, they will blame the way they were raised. But the truth is nothing your parents did or your church did or your teachers did will determine if you go to hell. You will only be sent to hell for what you did and the fundamental reason is that you rejected Jesus Christ. If people were so terrible to you then that should be a strong reason why you would accept Jesus Christ. Instead think of it this way, you have committed terrible sins, you want to blame someone else for this. Instead receive Jesus blood which He shed to pay for your sins. Now if He can forgive you then surely you can forgive those who sinned against you. Now if you forgive those who sinned against you it will strengthen your faith in Jesus, proving that He also has forgiven you. That will be your message, it will be your calling, to let those ones know you have forgiven them.
When you show mercy to those who have wronged you and forgive them it is proof of salvation that no one can debate or argue against.
Romans 1:8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.
Think about Charlie Kirk, his faith was spoken of throughout the whole world. Think of Billy Graham, same thing. But then think about Christians, it used to be it was a tiny sect of Judaism and only 1% of the world's population was Jewish. But now over a billion people all over the world are Christians. This was our assignment, to go into all the world with gospel. Think about this blog, over 800,000 have read it. They could be all over the world. Iran and Russia are both seeing a Christian revival right now. In China the underground church is also going strong. I am a member of the Gideon's and they have distributed over 2.5 billion bibles worldwide and are in 200 countries. The full Bible has been translated into 700 languages and some portions of the Bible have been translated into 1500 to 3,000 languages. Let us begin our understanding of the gospel here, first of all. Gamaliel said that if this movement were not of God it would come to nought and if it were of God you could do nothing to stop it. Clearly the gospel is a movement of God and no one can stop it.
9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; 10 Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.
God is our witness, we have prayed, and labored to send the gospel out into the four corners of the earth.
11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; 12 That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.
This is also true, the protestant reformation began in Germany with Martin Luther. It went to England and then it went to the US. Prior to Martin Luther we had the Gutenberg Bible which helped paved the way for the gospel to have a prosperous journey. From England and the US the gospel went out to the entire world. Now Europe is the one that needs to be comforted. In England and Europe they arrest people who pray or preach in public. So although churches in Africa, India and China were established by missionaries from England and the US we now need saints from those nations to comfort us with their mutual faith.
13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles. 14 I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.
Paul came to Rome as a prisoner. Think of the church today, we are debtors to Martin Luther, Charles Wesley, Hudson Taylor, JN Darby, John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, the people who first printed and published the Bible, Brother Lawrence, G.K. Chesterton, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Foxe's book of Martyrs, Watchman Nee, etc. The Old Testament is almost exclusively Jewish history, but Church history involves the whole world.
Proof that you have been forgiven by the Lord
15 So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.
Every church, every nation, every new believer can bring new life to the Body of Christ.
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.
This is a major departure from the Old Testament which told the Jews not to learn from the Gentiles. The reason for this is "the power of God unto salvation". Pagans are involved in witchcraft and the occult. However, the power of Jesus Christ is greater than that of any demon or fallen angel. As a result we do not need to be ashamed, we can go into all the earth triumphantly because at the name of Jesus every knee must bow. Paul is a debtor to Greeks and Barbarians, not because of what they had in the flesh, but because of what they received from the Holy Spirit after they were saved and regenerated.
17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
This is what he is seeing, righteousness of God is revealed to him from faith to faith. When he meets someone he thought was a pagan destined for hell get saved and come to faith it reveals more of the righteousness of God. Prior to Jesus' crucifixion the salvation of God was not revealed. People did not see that the just, in any nation, would live by faith. Make no mistake, the gospel is that all can come to the Lord, regardless of your parents or how you were raised. The Jews no longer have a monopoly on God or on the word of God.
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
This is where the gospel in Christianity is deficient. Paul has come to the wrath of God after only 17 verses. The wrath of God is integral to the gospel. Perhaps you don't want to lead with hellfire and brimstone, but by all means it may be necessary to arrive there in the first five minutes. The fact that men are trying to hold down the truth in unrighteousness is very important. It makes sharing the gospel into a competition like football. Everything you are trying to do the enemy is trying to stop you from doing that. This makes it much more interesting and captivating for unbelievers. Do not fall into the trap of thinking "can't we all just get along". That would be like thinking that the Chicago Bulls need to get along with the New York Knicks. That is not going to happen. The battle is over the truth. We are battling to speak the truth concerning Jesus Christ and they are battling to hold down the truth in unrighteousness. Very often the reason people don't know God is because they don't want to know God. I used to think the problem was my gospel, if I only had the right words to speak. It was a great revelation to me to realize it is not my job to convince anyone. If you are a witness in a trial no one judges you based on whether or not the jury decides one way or the other. Your only responsibility is to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Unbelievers are always full of excuses for why they can live in sin and still not face the wrath of God. They will blame their parents, they will blame their church, they will blame the way they were raised. But the truth is nothing your parents did or your church did or your teachers did will determine if you go to hell. You will only be sent to hell for what you did and the fundamental reason is that you rejected Jesus Christ. If people were so terrible to you then that should be a strong reason why you would accept Jesus Christ. Instead think of it this way, you have committed terrible sins, you want to blame someone else for this. Instead receive Jesus blood which He shed to pay for your sins. Now if He can forgive you then surely you can forgive those who sinned against you. Now if you forgive those who sinned against you it will strengthen your faith in Jesus, proving that He also has forgiven you. That will be your message, it will be your calling, to let those ones know you have forgiven them.
When you show mercy to those who have wronged you and forgive them it is proof of salvation that no one can debate or argue against.