The Normal Christian Life: A Journey Through Romans
Saturday, January 28, 2006
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, As I come to the close of this week of considering what it means to not be ashamed of the gospel, I pray that You will fill me afresh with Your Holy Spirit and give me a boldness of thought, speech and life that will allow me to go to the people on the list I’ve been compiling all week long and share the gospel with them. I pray, O God, for the power of Your Holy Spirit to say and do that which will help them to know that You are real, that You are the God of salvation, and that righteousness comes from You alone. I pray that my tone and attitude will be such that the folks I share with will see You in me and will respond to Your invitation in their lives. God, I pray for myself, that I will put 100% of my faith in You so that I may live in the righteousness that comes by faith from first to last. Keep Your word in my heart and mind that I May not sin against You, and that I may live victoriously in Your Name. This I ask through Jesus Christ, the righteous One! Amen.
God’s Word Today—Romans 1:16-17
Romans 1:16-17 NLT
16For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—Jews first and also Gentiles. 17This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”
Romans 1:16-17 NIV*
16I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17For 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.”
*Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. The "NIV" and "New International Version" trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.
Romans 1:16-17 MOT**
16For I am not ashamed of the Gospel; for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and to the Greek. 12For a righteousness of God is revealed in it from faith to faith, as it has been written: Now the righteous shall live by faith.
**MOT is a literal translation of the Greek New Testament by Dr. Chris E. Marshall
Reflecting on God’s Word
Look through all three of the translations of Romans 1:16-17 once again. Ask God to show you ANYTHING you have missed, and reflect on how You can respond to that in a way that will deepen your walk with Jesus, and make you a more effective witness for Him.
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
Having reflected on these two verses all week long, what does it mean to you now to “not [be] ashamed of the Gospel”?
Give one example of from this week’s text, that demonstrates that it is not about us, but that it’s all about God?
Understanding God’s Purpose for Us
After reading and reflecting on this week’s verses in three different translations, how would you sum up God’s purpose for us?
Applying God’s Word to Our Purpose
While we will be moving on to another set of Scripture verses from Romans tomorrow, I encourage you to continue developing your list of folks who need to hear the Gospel, AND to pray for these folks as well as to reach out to them until: they respond to Jesus as Savior and Lord; they reject Jesus as Savior and Lord; Jesus calls you home! (This will seriously make ALL the difference in your ability to be used of God in His bringing folks into the Kingdom.)
Make certain that you apply today’s Scripture in some practical way. Remember God’s Word is given to be lived without shame!
Thoughts - I Am Not Ashamed!
We’ve invested a lot of time and energy into two verses of Scripture this week, because they are so absolutely crucial. If we can honestly proclaim with the Apostle Paul, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes….” then we are well on our way to being change agents for the Kingdom of God. Most American Christians are not change agents for the Kingdom of God. Most say they aren’t ashamed of the gospel, but never share it with anyone. To have no shame of the gospel means that we will take it into our lives from the moment we wake up until we go to bed, and that whatever happens in between, we will look for the opportunity to say or do something that will help the person respond to the good news of salvation through Jesus, or grow in that response.
There’s an old saying, “When everything’s been said and done, there’s usually a whole lot more said than done.” No where is this more true than when it comes to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others. My challenge to each of us is that we will continue to develop, maintain, pray over, and act on the list of folks who need to hear the Good News that we have developed this week. New Life can make an amazing difference in our community if we take our mission statement seriously every day. That mission is to share the new life of Jesus Christ with the world—one person at a time. Until we do that, regardless of what we say, we ARE ashamed of the gospel. What if everywhere I went I would take Nancy, but would never introduce her to anyone, never say anything positive about her, never include her in anything I was doing? Over time, folks might wonder, “Is he ashamed of her?” The same is true with Jesus. He not only wants to live in our hearts, but He calls us to be unashamed in sharing Him with those we meet every day. We are NOT ashamed……right?
This Week’s Memory Verse:
For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work. Romans 1:16a