The Gospel of Christ

I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ

Romans 1:16-17 provides the theme for this epistle from Paul to the Romans; it has to do with the proclamation of the gospel by Paul in contrast with the misunderstanding of the Jews:

gospel of christ

I am not Ashamed of the Gospel of Christ!

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Rom. 1:16-17)

They thought the Law of Moses without Christ would enable them to have salvation, which is why the Judaizing teachers demanded the Gentiles to undergo circumcision in order to keep the Law of Moses. Nevertheless, Paul taught that those who lived under the Law of Moses by faith that looked forward to the coming of the promised seed of Abraham would lead them to Christ, who would save them, which is what the Law of Moses properly taught and what Paul emphasizes in this epistle. Only with Christ would the Law of Moses lead them to find salvation.

The same thing is true relative to the gospel—the good news concerning the death, burial and resurrection of the Son of God (cf. 1 Cor. 15:1-4). Paul was not ashamed of this gospel, and we are not to be ashamed of this gospel as well. Please examine some reasons why we are not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ.

First, we are not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ because of what it is—it is power! There are different types of power. God demonstrated power in creation, for when He spoke, “Let there be light,” there was light (Gen. 1:3). “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth” (Ps. 33:6). God demonstrated power by the miracles He performed. In fact, whenever God performed a miracle, no one could resist it! Yet, the gospel has moral power: “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God” (cf. 1 Cor. 1:18). It has the power to transform lives! The gospel is powerful because of the relationship Christ has to it (cf. 1 Cor. 2:2; Rom. 8:3-4).

Second, we are not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ because of what it can provide—“unto salvation” (Rom. 1:16). This is why Paul wrote to them in this letter.
For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death… There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Rom. 7:9-10; 8:1)

Third, we are not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ because of whom it affects. There is no need to be ashamed of the gospel because it is universal (Rom. 3:9). Nevertheless, it is conditional, which is what Paul urges his Roman readers in Romans 9-11. We are to follow and obey the law of faith (Rom. 3:27).

Therefore, because the faith of the Old Testament leads us to the complete faith of the New Testament, wherein is the righteousness of God (Rom. 1:17), we do not have to be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ!

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Hearing What We Want to Hear

In a recent conversation the subject came up about how children sometimes hear things.  While many names or words are simply hard for children to pronounce, sometimes the problem lies in the fact that how they say it is how they perceive it.  In a sense, they “ hear what they want to hear. ”

As childhood memories go, when I was about five, I thought the hymn “ Jesus Meek and Gentle” was really “ Jesus Meek and Gentile. ”  (Jesus was a Jew not a Gentile).  Someone else confessed that “Low in the grave He lay… ” was to them “ Low in the gravy lay.”  A third person admitted that they thought “ Let’s have a little talk with Jesus… ” was really “ Let’s have a little chocolate Jesus. ”  The list could go on and on.  While these childhood examples may be comical, it strikes me that children are sometimes the best teachers that adults have.  Think of it: how many grown ups suffer the same problem?  Frequently in the religious world people hear the truth preached or taught, but they somehow miss the point, “ hearing what they want to hear. ”  Paul spoke of such in Acts 28:25-28.  Friends, if you will not “ hear ” the truth, you cannot be saved (Acts 11:14; Heb. 4:2; Rom. 10:17). The choice is yours. “ He who has ears to hear, let him hear! “ (Mk. 4:9).

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Adultery and Fornication

Avoiding Adultery and Fornication

Adultery

Adultery is a Sin Against God.

The sin of adultery and fornication is quite prominent in our society today. The media has desensitized its effects by glamorizing it and renaming it into a less harmful word, as an “affair.” Yet, no matter what man may say, God has never changed His feelings about the subject; He still knows the damage and destruction that it causes within families. Thus, Christians should be people with a disposition to avoid such a strong and dan­gerous temptation. Thanks be unto our God that He has revealed unto us a wonderful example of such in virtuous Joseph (Gen. 39). By the providence of God (Gen. 39:2-3), Joseph was a slave in the house of Po­tiphar, an Egyptian officer of Pharaoh. In fact, be­cause of the righteous living exemplified by Joseph, Potiphar elevated Joseph to oversee his entire house (Gen. 39:4), giving him a level of responsibility un­heard of at that time (Gen. 39:6). Yet, Potiphar’s wife noticed that Joseph was a handsome man [the phrase “a goodly person, and well favored” (Gen. 39:6) in the Hebrew denotes his physical attractiveness]. Consequently, when one becomes prominent and is good looking, people take notice, and she was among the first in line for Joseph. She tempts his purity by offering herself (Gen. 39:7), but he refuses. His re­sponse and actions thereafter give a wonderful pat­tern in how to avoid adultery and fornication.

First, Joseph recognized her for who she re­ally was—“his master’s wife” (Gen. 39:7-8). Thus, he would respond to her in reference to her husband, Potiphar: “…thou art his wife” (Gen. 39:9). Joseph knew that she did not belong to him. He knew that because Potiphar was married, he had no rights whatsoever to become involved in “a fling,” “an af­fair” or whatever anyone might want to designate. In the heart of Joseph, she was off-limits. He knew, believed, appreciated and obeyed the matrimonial principle that would later become a foundational ba­sis for Israel from God: “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife” (Exod. 20:17). When marriage es­tablishes a man and woman together with God (cf. Gen. 2:24), there is no room for anyone else.

Second, Joseph recognized that Potiphar kept back his wife from him (Gen. 39:8-9). When Potiphar promoted Joseph to be responsible for overseeing his house, he knew that did not include liberties with his wife: “There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee” (Gen. 39:9). Joseph clearly understood that Po­tiphar kept back his wife from Joseph. What a great principle! Husbands need to keep back their wives from others, and wives need to keep back their hus­bands from others. If spouses would work more in such ways, there would be less cases of adultery and fornication, and consequently, less divorce. Spouses need to keep back their mates by continually reaf­firming their love, devotion and loyalty to each other. Spouses need to keep back their mates by assuring that each are dressing modestly in public.

Third, when Joseph initially recognized the temptation, he did everything he could to avoid such (Gen. 39:10). While she did not relent, but kept tempt­ing him daily, he not only verbally refused, but also even made every effort not “to be with her.” It was only when she seized an opportunity when no men were around that she persisted further by grabbing his garment, only to find herself holding an empty gar­ment in hand as he ran away. He exemplified what we find in the New Testament: “Flee fornication” (1 Cor. 6:18). “Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteous­ness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Tim. 2:22). When temp­tations of such happen, Christians who value purity will immediately seek to avoid all such encounters. When coworkers make advances, we should avoid such people to the greatest extent possible.

If we will seek to follow the guidelines that Joseph demonstrated, we may protect our marriages and homes, and adultery and fornication will only be a problem in the world where people do not respect divine matrimonial laws.

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Guilty! What do you say?

What Can You Say When You Are Guilty?

Joseph’s brothers were in dire circumstances when they stood with Benjamin and were questioned by the most powerful man in Egypt (Gen. 41:40-42). This was not the first time they had been there to buy grain. The first time, they left and all their money was given back to them and hidden in their sacks of grain. This time, when they left and opened their sacks, they again found their money but also the royal cup of Joseph had been placed in Benjamin’s sack.

They were guilty and stood helpless before Joseph. Judah was the spokesman, but he had no defense. He said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves” (Gen. 44:16)? Their guilt was obvious to the ruler, Joseph, and it was obvious to them. What defense can there be? Hear his words, “What shall we say?”

These same words were spoken by Ezra who was part of the restoring of Israel after their seventy years in Babylon. The temple had been rebuilt by Zerubbabel, and with the return of Ezra, the priest, the people focused even more on living according to what God taught. The leaders came to Ezra and spoke of the unlawful marriages the Jews had made with the pagans. They said, “The holy seed is mixed with the people of those lands.” When Ezra heard of this he tore his garments and literally pulled hairs from his head and his beard in despair. At the time of the evening sacrifice, he fell on his knees before God and spread out his hands.

In his prayer he confessed their sins. They were guilty and stood before the holy God as sinful men. Ezra said, “O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken Your commandments” (Ezra 9:10). God knew they were guilty. They knew they were guilty. The words of the priest sum it all up—what shall we say?

These are not just two interesting Bible stories, for both illustrate the plight of all mankind who someday shall stand guilty before a holy God. To picture that day as a courtroom scene robs it of reality. In a courtroom, men stand before their peers. On that day, they will stand before the Almighty One. Those who are lost will know their destiny as they stand there. There will be no legitimate excuses. God knows they are guilty, and they know their guilt. Think about the question which could be asked, “What can we say?”

We must not forget that we shall be there. The petty excuses we offer to ourselves today will be meaningless. Faithful Christians will stand in awe with hopeful expectation. Sinful men and lukewarm Christians will cower in fear before the Almighty.  If you are lost now, you will be lost on that day. You are guilty. “What shall we say to our Lord?”

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John 3:16 and God

John 3:16 Means What it Says

From the time we were small children most of us have known this beautiful verse. Unfortunately many in the world have twisted and corrupted this beautiful text failing to accurately portray God’s love for mankind and leaving countless souls hopelessly lost to what God expects of all those He loves. So just what does this verse say?

God

God So Loved The World…

First of all it says that “God,” the one and only true deity, who created all things and who has in His power the salvation and condemnation of His creation, “ so loved the ‘kosmos,’” every man. This word in its context means “ the inhabitants of the earth, men, the human race .” Since humanity, in its totality, has sinned and separated himself from God and life (Isaiah 59:1 – 2; Romans 3:10, 23; 512), God in His infinite love, chose to do something in order to redeem mankind and offer him a second chance.

What was that? “…he gave his only begotten Son.” The second person of the Godhead agree to take on the role of Son and Savior; and was “made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Hebrews 2:9). The Father sent His son, the only begotten Son of God, to die for our sins. He was the only sacrifice worthy to pay the price and sanctify us. Now if the verse stopped right there then we would not have to do anything and the non – religious, who want to live any way they choose and claim God’s Son as a universal, unconditional sacrifice, could continue on in the way they are going.

However, Jesus continued and said, “that whosoever believeth in him should not perish.” There are three important things for us to notice here: 1) There is a burden placed upon every man ( whosoever ) who has ever lived since the death of Jesus. The word “believeth” here means to “place your faith and trust in.” It is more than just a mental affirmation that Jesus is the Son of God and that He died for the sins of all men. It means that we have to listen, heed, obey, and be faithful to His teachings. 2) The English phrase “should not” is rendered from the single Greek word which means that this is the ONLY way (John 14:6) to keep from perishing eternally. 3) The word “perish” indicates a foundational biblical principle; as long as we are joined to God in a spiritual relationship we have spiritual life. But since sin separates us from God, that sin brings forth spiritual death, if we die physically, separated from God, we have eternal death (separation). The only hope we have is Christ.

So the natural, logical, and honest question would be the same as it was on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:28), for Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:6), or of the Philippian Jailor (Acts 16:30), “What must we do in order to be saved?” Obviously God’s love shown to us in the sacrifice of His Son demands a reciprocal love from us. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). He asks us even today, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46).

Repent of your sins (Acts 17:30); confess Jesus with your words and with your life (Luke 9:26); and do what those men on Pentecost, Saul of Tarsus, and the Philippian Jailor all did. “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41). “And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). “And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway” (Acts 16:33).

But then remember, this is only the beginning, not the end! One must “…observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:20), and “be thou faithful unto death” (Revelation 2:10).

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