All Roads Lead to Romans
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.... 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 (just) shall live by faith." Romans 1:16-17 (NIV)
"All roads lead to Rome" is an expression that was used as early as 1175 by the French poet Alain de Lille. The Roman roadways were part of what made the Roman Empire so strong. The Romans had an advanced road system that enabled their armies to march to all points of the Empire. All of the major roads led directly to the capital. The "all roads lead to Rome" idea could be used to describe the book of Romans. All books of the Bible point to Romans. Author John Stott writes, "It is the fullest, plainest and grandest statement of the gospel in the New Testament."
I began teaching a 10 week women's Bible study last week on the first eight chapters of Romans. Today's verses are the theme verses of our study The Gospel and Doctrines of Grace. Whenever we take a trip, it's important to make sure that we have a GPS to help us in our navigation, correct our course miscalculations, and make sure we arrive at our intended destination. For our journey through Romans 1-8, our study GPS is an acronym that spells out the word ROMANS. I first discovered the ROMANS acronym a number of years ago when I read Robert J. Morgan's book The Promise. Our ROMANS acronym represents the following:
R - Ruin (Romans 1-3), all are guilty; the bad news of the gospel
O - Offer (Romans 3:21-31), "but now," the Grammar of Grace
M- Model (Romans 4), Abraham, the model of faith
A - Access & New Adam (Romans 5), Access to God by faith in Christ
N - New Man (Romans 6), Dead to sin, alive in Christ
S - Sanctification (Romans 6-8), no condemnation and no separation for those who are in Christ
The book of Romans was actually a letter written by the Apostle Paul to Christians living in Rome around 56 AD. Paul had never been to Rome, but hoped to go there soon. Although Romans is the first pastoral epistle that we find in the New Testament, most scholars believe that it was actually the sixth pastoral letter that Paul wrote. Letters to the churches in Galatia, Thessalonica(2), and Corinth(2) were written prior to Romans. In his introductory remarks to the Church at Rome, Paul assures them that he thanks God for them (1:8); prays for them (10); longs to see them (1:11), and had previously planned to visit them, but been prevented from coming (1:13). He then makes three "I am" statements about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul writes:
"I am obligated....I am so eager....I am not ashamed of the gospel." (1:14,15,16)
Each word used in Paul's "I am" statements conveys a different attitude toward the gospel. Obligated implies duty. Eager references Paul's attitude toward sharing the good news of the gospel. But Paul wasn't just eager. The NIV translation states that Paul was "so eager." And "not ashamed" or unashamed reminds us that Paul had plenty of reasons to be ashamed of the gospel. At the time he wrote this letter Paul had already been:
Imprisoned in Philippi
Chased out of Thessalonica
Smuggled out of Berea
Laughed at in Athens
Ridiculed in Corinth and
Stoned in Galatia
In spite of all of his personal suffering and despite the immoral, idolatrous culture of ancient Rome, Paul was obligated, eager, and unashamed to share the good news of Christ. He was captured by the Gospel (Acts 9) and his life was never the same. In today's culture, we may eventually face many of the same consequences that Paul encountered. Pastor Harry Reeder lists the 4 M's of suffering for Christ's sake as: mocking, marginalizing, maligning, and martyrdom. Paul faced each one and was eventually martyred in Rome. Already we are seeing Christian bakers, florists, and photographers facing intense pressure to conform their business practices to the current culture's standards. What will our attitude be toward sharing the good news that Christ still saves sinners? Will we, like Paul, be obligated, eager, and unashamed?
Paul's confidence in the gospel never rested in his own ability to present its message. Instead Paul was unashamed of the gospel's message because it was backed up with God's power to save all who believe.(1:17) Oh that we would have that kind of courage and confidence in both the gospel message and the One who stands behind it.
Obligated, eager, and unashamed of the Gospel!