“So I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News. For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This 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 1:15-17 NLT Paul was eager to preach the gospel (Good News) to everyone who would listen. He was unashamed of the truth. We should be unashamed as well. In Matthew 10:32-33 Jesus tells us "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” KJV. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ was the price paid for the sins of man. Freedom was achieved through the perfect life and death of Jesus. He, as the perfect substitution for our sin, once, and for all, made it possible for man to be free from the bondage of sin. This was the "Good News" Paul was speaking of. It is available to all who will believe! (see John 3:16) This salvation can only be received. He, Jesus, achieved the salvation for us. It is our appropriate response to recognize our sin that placed Him on the cross in our stead. When we repent (change our mind and direction), we, then, can receive the gift of eternal life. (See 2 Corinthians 7:10; I John 1:9; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 10:8-10, 13; Ephesians 2:8-10). A gift is something given at the expense of the giver and is ready for reception by the intended receiver, at no cost to them. Salvation is available to us all, but we must recognize the giver for who He is, what He has done, and be willing to receive forgiveness from Him. As we do this, we reach out and take the gift He has purchased for us. We, then, are born again (John 3:1-7). All of this is by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! Paul quoted Habakkuk 2:4 in verse 17 of the text above. We can only receive this gift by faith. There is no other way! Nothing else is acceptable to God! (See Galatians 3:11 and Hebrews 11:1,6).
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![]() Rev. Curtis Norris Archives
March 2020
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