NOT ASHAMED of the GOSPEL by Pastor YAU

“ NOT ASHAMED OF THE GOSPEL” By Pastor YAU Text: Romans 1:16-17 February 22, 2015.

INTRODUCTION: 1) Are you ashamed of the gospel: Many, if not most, Christians are either afraid, or if not afraid, ashamed of the gospel. Most of us are not afraid of doing many things, or try to do things we have never tried before. But most Christians are so afraid or ashamed of talking about the gospel that they have never shared their faith with anyone, nor have they led anyone to Christ all their lives. The worst fear that stops us from sharing the gospel isn't the gospel, but us: We are afraid that no one will listen, no one will believe, or we may offend our family or friends. The difficulty of getting people to believe the message God sent to us isn't a new problem. Over 2,500 years ago, Prophet Isaiah lamented the same problem when he told God: “Who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” (53:1) Even so, the message of God for the salvation of man hasn't stopped spreading. Countless faithful of God carried the gospel message all around the world. According to Google search, Christian faith and churches exist in more than 160 countries and the total number of Christians quadrupled from 600 million in 1910 to over 2 billion in 2010, close to 30% of the world population of 6.9 billion in that same year. 2) Paul wasn't ashamed of the gospel: If you are familiar with the Bible, especially the book of Acts and many of the writings of Paul, you can see Paul’s phenomenal contribution in the spreading of the gospel to the world of his time. Although he went through some horrendous persecution, attacks, smearing of his character, physical harm, hunger, imprisonment, and eventual death in the Roman prison, he wasn't afraid of doing what the Lord Jesus called him to do when he was on his way to Damascus to capture those believers in Jesus. He started churches, grew and taught countless believers, and wrote many important documents from which Christian doctrines derived. He helped train the first century Christians and church leaders how to continue the mission Jesus had called him to do. If Paul had been as afraid or timid in the mission Jesus had called him to do as many of our modern-day Christians, and had felt ashamed of the gospel and the sharing of it, do you think we would have churches everywhere in the world today?

REASONS PAUL WASN'T ASHAMED OF THE GOSPEL: 1) Paul wasn't ashamed of his calling: “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God...Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.” (Romans 1:1, 5) Many people throughout history have been proud of their callings in life, their professions and success in their careers as doctors or lawyers, their positions in famous corporations, prestige in their academic, scientific or business professions. People who hold these titles and positions are often respected by many, and proud of their success. How many people in today's society and even in churches respect those who are called to preach the gospel, and honor them with words and deeds? I was called a “church mouse” and treated with little respect when someone learned that I was a preacher. But that wasn't Paul. He was very proud of his call and the mission he had received from Jesus. In the book of Acts, he repeatedly recounted his dramatic experience of that call from the Lord. His life, and that of many preachers after him, was lived not for his personal gain or purpose, but “First to those in Damascus, then those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.” (Acts 26:20) Paul was never ashamed of his call. 2) Paul was never ashamed of his message: The gospel message: “Salvation by faith in Jesus Christ” is the message Paul was called to preach and that was the main cause of all the persecution and hardship in his life. Paul argued this message in 1 Corinth 1:18, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.” Again in 1:21, “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was please through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” Even today, there are still people who claim to be wise but won't believe in the wisdom of God for the salvation of their souls. Even among Christians we see some who still don't believe or practice the biblical principles of life God asks them to live by. Many people still believe that the biblical message, both about salvation and practical daily life, is too naive, far from being practical, or too old-fashioned. This is the biggest foolishness Paul talked about here. With many changes in many areas of science and philosophy, no one can say his theories are final, but the Bible stands firm over the past 2,000 plus years without any change, because God never changes. 3) Paul was not ashamed of losses: Most Christians are afraid of witnessing because they fear opposition from their prospect’s family, friends, colleagues, etc. They are afraid of being unable to answer all questions and being seen as ignorant. They are afraid of losing love or friendship, or relationships with people at work. They are afraid of being seen as religious nuts, old-fashioned, out of touch with the real world, and of being mocked or losing life support. Paul had been the target of accusations, smears, jokes, ridicule and contempt by his own people, and he did suffer for this. But he testified that: “Whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Jesus Christ my Lord, for whose sake I have lost everything. I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ.” (Phil 3:7-8) Yes, we will lose something or some benefits, but we will gain something far more precious. 4) Paul wasn't ashamed of failure: Many Christians are afraid to witness for Christ because they are afraid of failure: People don't believe, they won't accept Jesus, they won't come to church or to Bible class. This is a real fear we all face when we witness for Christ. There isn't any guarantee that we will always succeed when we share the gospel. Even for Jesus and Paul, there still were people who just wouldn't believe them. In the parable of seed sowing in Mt 13:1-9, 3 of 4 kinds of grounds won't bear fruits not because of the seed but because of the ground. But in that 25% of the good ground, God brings great harvest of 100, 60 or 30 fold. Paul said, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (1 Corinth 3:6-7)

REASONS PAUL BELIEVED IN THE GOSPEL: 1) Paul believed in the power of God: “I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God.” (1:16) The gospel message itself doesn't cause Paul to be ashamed. The source of the gospel energized Paul to be bold and not ashamed, and that source is the power of God. The Greek word for power, dunamis, means dynamite, the most powerful substance at the time. The power of the gospel message to save souls, change lives, refocus goals, set standards of value, just to list a few, is far more powerful than anything or everything man may think of, such as laws, political systems, education, wealth, or theories of man. Throughout human history, man has devised many ways of trying to change the heart of man by indoctrinating people for the better, to bring peace to the world or to the soul, and seeking lasting security in anything, but all have failed because no man has the power to change anyone else, much less his soul. God creates the soul, and only God can do anything to change that soul. Men have created many philosophical theories, religions, political systems, and education methods, hoping to change man for the better, but men have become increasingly evil. 2) Paul believed in saving souls: “It is the power of God for salvation.” (1:16b) Salvation, soteria, means to deliver or to save someone from a very serious danger like drowning. In this case, man is destined to ultimate damnation for his sins, but God sent him someone, Jesus, who can save him from that eternal death. This is the main difference between the Christian gospel and all the teachings of all world religions. All world religions can be summed up as some moral teaching, some rules man may follow, hoping to achieve the ultimate goal for his soul. But the Christian gospel is the only way God sent to man, the only way to save his soul from eternal loss, and the guarantee is in the power of God. Throughout history, many men of good will derived many ways, from religion to education, philosophy, political system or some mythical self-discipline techniques, hoping to save the souls of men. History shows us clearly that man cannot save himself because of the gravity of sin in his soul. Man needs someone stronger, not from the human realm, to deliver him, to pull him out from his own sinful nature. 3) Paul believed in saving all souls: “For the salvation of everyone who believes; for the Jews, then for the Gentiles.” (1:16c) The term “universal” in salvation was new and often scary to the early Christians, who were mostly from a Jewish background. The Jews believe that they are the only chosen people who are the object of God's grace for salvation. But God called and sent Paul to bring the salvation message to more than just the Jews, but also to the Gentiles, people of all races. In this verse of the Bible, Paul reiterated God's intention to save all the people of the “world,” as is indicated in John 3:16. All the dividing walls by race, class, human moral achievements, socioeconomic status and religious affiliation, have been removed. (Eph 2:13-16) No one in whatever condition or situation is beyond the grace and love of God. All he or she has to do is to repent of his sins and ask for forgiveness from God, and he will be delivered from the eternal damnation of his sins. (1 John 1:9) 4) Paul believed that is the only way: And the only way is by faith in Jesus. “For in the gospel, a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.” (1:17) The theme “saved by faith” was a brand new teaching in Paul's time. For thousands of years, the Jews had been taught their hope of salvation was by “walking in the law.” The idea of salvation was by the merit of man's work. But God had a new plan to save all men of the world: by faith in his Son, Jesus Christ. For this reason, Paul was fiercely opposed and severely persecuted. With the weight of sin and its impending punishment, no man may achieve enough good work to qualify himself before a holy God. Man can only be saved because of God's love, not because of any good work he may have done. In describing the futile efforts of all men, the good and the bad, and everyone else in between, the Bible says, “The lowborn men are but a breath, the highborn are but a lie; if they are weighed on a balance, they are lighter than nothing.” (Psalm 62:9, KJV)

APPLICATIONS OF TRUTH: 1) It's the gospel you need to know: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) And that name is Jesus, the Christ, according to the first gospel message preached by Peter at the beginning of the church era. If you are serious in searching for new life, for forgiveness of sins and making peace with God, you have found it today: The name Jesus is all you need. Make that decision today, ask Jesus to enter your heart, ask him to forgive your sins, and allow him to lead you to a higher ground the rest of your life. 2) It's the gospel we need to spread: In the Old Testament time, God called the prophets to present his message to his people, the Israelis. In the New Testament time, God called the apostles to spread his message to the Roman world. In our time, Jesus calls all his followers to “make disciples of all nations...to the ends of the world,” (Matt 28:19; Acts 1:8) so people may know that God has prepared a way that all may be saved by putting their faith in Jesus Christ. According to research data, over 80% of the world’s population still have never heard the gospel message. It's our duty and honor to bring this life-saving gospel to all the people, starting from those in our inner circle of life: our family, in our school, workplace, and neighborhood, friends and others in our community. All of them are created by God and beloved by God. Their souls are our mission field. Don't be afraid or ashamed to share this life-saving message with them.