Romans 1:16-17 - I Am Not Ashamed

16 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.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

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The Power of God

Vs. 16 - 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” - The reason Paul is eager to preach the gospel (see Rom 1:13-15) to the Romans is as follows:

“I am not ashamed of the gospel” - What an interesting juxtaposition of shame and joy! Why would you feel shame at knowing Jesus, or at being free from sin and death and guilt? Why should having peace with God and having the peace of God be a cause feeling inferior or inadequate? Why should the joy of eternal life with God be the source of embarrassment, humiliation and shame? What is the negative of knowing Christ?

Perhaps it is because we have accepted and believed the lies of Satan?

Witness: We face continual assault from the world for our belief in Christ.
The intellectual and sophisticated tell us we are simplistic and should listen to reason and logic - science is the answer.
The tough guy tells us our faith is a crutch because we are weak.
The arrogant says he would rather be playing poker in hell with his buddies than being bored silly in heaven.
We are told our faith is suitable for Sunday morning worship only, and not welcome in the everyday workplace and world.

It is understandable and perhaps should be normal to be ashamed of the sinful things you have been doing in the flesh. (See: Rom. 6:21) We should never feel guilty or ashamed that we believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Don’t fall into a trap of being pressured or coerced into doubting your faith in Jesus.
You believe in the Lord of Lords.
On the other hand, do not be arrogant in your faith. You are not saved by anything you may have done, but by the grace and power of the Lord. (See: Titus 3:5) Humility and thanksgiving are the watchword.

To repeat: We do not need to be ashamed to be called children of God. (1 Pet. 4:16). God is not ashamed to call us His children (Heb. 2:11). God is not ashamed to be called our God. (Heb. 11:16). We should not be ashamed of our personal testimony, nor of any persecution that comes to us (2 Tim. 1:18, 12, 16).

We already know that our lives now are surrounded by hate, anger, jealousy, and sin of all kinds. There is no bad or evil in the presence of God. We have been promised eternal life without sin, and in the presence of our God and Savior, in joy and triumph.

“it is the power of God for salvation” - Salvation comes from God through faith in Jesus Christ. His power transforms us. His power moves us from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of light of His son Jesus. (Col. 1:12-13) Remember, you are not saved simply because you exist, nor because of your righteous works. (Titus 3:5-6) The power is in Christ, his death, burial, and resurrection.

“Everyone who believes” - The power is transferred to us when we believe. "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (John 3:35-36)
“Jesus answered and said to them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.’" (John 6:29)
“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, [even] to those who believe in His name,“ (John 1:12)
"He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:18)
The other side of this equation: without faith (belief) in Christ Jesus there is no salvation. That is a clear and bright dividing line. It is not an impossible task, e.g., climb Mt. Everest, or else. See: Acts 15:11; 16:31; Rom 10:9

“to the Jew first and also to the Greek” - The “Great Commission” is to send us to announce the gospel to the whole world. Jesus’ last words sent the apostles to the Jews first and then to the Gentiles: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." (Acts 1:8)

Vs. 17 - For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.

“righteousness of God is revealed” - Our salvation, supplied by God, shows He is righteous. How is this so? God shows no favorites. No one gets a pass. No one can say, “It’s not fair. You let that guy into heaven, and he did...” God does not ‘grade on a curve’. We all agree that great sins are worthy of being judged. We begin to quibble over what little indiscretion is not worthy of judgement. The answer, from the Holy God of the universe: There is no lower limit.

There is no sin, no matter how small, that can be ignored by a holy and righteous Lord. We are born in sin. We will die in our sin. Where does that leave us? What can we do? To paraphrase a heavy metal anthem, “Works. What are they good for? Absolutely nothing!”
This is the point where God’s righteousness is revealed. Rather than requiring us to do something to get salvation, God Himself pays the price. He does not ignore our sin, which would be immoral. A perfect sacrifice, someone as great as God, was made to pay for the sin of the world. The sacrifice had to be perfect to be acceptable, and efficacious. The sacrifice does not turn away from the sin and penalty, but faces it straight on, and pays the price. That is righteous! Justice is satisfied. Mercy is shown.

“From faith to faith” - Faith and nothing but faith. God, through the Holy Spirit, provides the faith to the person seeking Him. Faith in Christ saves you. Believe in Him and you shall be saved. Faith to be saved; faith to live the Christian life; faith to spend eternity with our Lord and Savior.

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Romans 1:13-15 - Obligated to Gentiles

13 I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.
14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.
15 So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.

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I Really Want to Come to Rome!

Vs. 13 - I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.

“often I have planned to come to you ” - The churches in Rome most likely know that Paul has travelled throughout Macedonia and Greece. Paul is answering a probable question, “Why doesn’t he come here?” He hasn’t forgotten about them. He isn’t ignoring them. He has been prevented from coming to Rome.

“ that I may obtain some fruit among you also ” - I think there are a couple of meanings in this phrase. One: Paul wants to come to Rome to share the gospel that more Gentiles will be saved. Two: Paul wants to see the believers be filled and controlled by the power of the Holy Spirit. Both are reasonable understandings. Jesus told us to be ready to lead people to salvation, because the fruit of the harvest is ready! (See: Luk. 10:2; John 4:35) Thinking of the alternate meaning: Jesus indicated that living for Him will bear much fruit. (John 15:5, 8, 16) In the Galatian letter Paul contrasts fruit of the Spirit with the deeds of the flesh. There are other references to righteousness of the believers as being the fruit of faith. (See: Eph. 5:9; Heb. 12:11; Jam. 3:18)

Vs. 14 - I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.

“ under obligation ” - Why would Paul feel he is in debt to the Gentiles? Why call himself a debtor? What does he owe them? What have they done for Paul that he would be ‘in debt’ to them?
Think of the men and women who have served in the United States military from the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, through both World Wars and those since, there is a significant debt owed to them for the sacrifice they have paid to keep us free. Because of that price paid, we are obligated to live up to the ideals and principles of the the Declaration of Independence and U. S. Constitution.

Paul sees the price Christ paid to make us free from sin. Paul was tapped by Jesus to take the Gospel to Gentiles. If he doesn’t share the message of saving grace in Jesus Christ he is not living up to his calling. Paul’s obligation is to Christ to speak the message. It doesn't matter if the listeners are sophisticated Greeks, or uneducated people from remote areas. It doesn’t matter if they are wise in the ways of the world, or naive and foolish. There is no way for them to come to Jesus if they have not heard. There is no way for them to hear if a preacher doesn’t tell them. (Rom. 10:14)

Vs. 15 - So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.

“ I am eager to preach the gospel to you ” - Preaching the Gospel makes payment on the obligation. The debt can never be marked “paid in full” by Paul. Christ alone can pay - and has paid.

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