“For I am not ashamed of the gospel…” (Romans 1:16). It is a bold statement that I want us to think about as we begin this lesson. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel. Do you feel ashamed of the gospel? We do not want to be ashamed but we can certainly be tempted to be ashamed. I believe everyone would readily admit that we need to have more boldness. As bold as we might be with the gospel, all of us want to have a greater courage regarding the gospel. I want us to think about Paul saying that he was not ashamed of the gospel. This was a man who had been severely mistreated because of the gospel. Paul was imprisoned because of the gospel. He experienced beatings for the gospel. He was often near death for the gospel. Five times he was scourged with 39 lashes because of the gospel. Paul was beaten with rods three times for the gospel. Paul experiencing stoning for the gospel. Three times he was shipwrecked for the gospel. He experienced hunger, thirst, and sleepless nights for the gospel. Paul was in constant danger from people and from nature due to the gospel (cf. 2 Corinthians 11:23-29). How was Paul not ashamed of the gospel even with all he experienced? Notice that is how the apostle framed this when he wrote to Timothy.
For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. (2 Timothy 1:12 NASB)
In spite of all he endured for the gospel, he was still not ashamed. What can we learn from the apostle Paul so that we will never be ashamed of the gospel? Open your copies of God’s word to Romans 1 and we will begin in verse 16.
The Reason To Not Be Ashamed (Romans 1:16)
So why is the apostle Paul not ashamed of the gospel? The answer is almost self-evident. The gospel is good news of God’s powerful work of redemption through Jesus risen from the dead. How can we be ashamed of good news? Who would be ashamed of the good news to us? But there is more that Paul says. He explains that it is because the gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. I want us to think carefully about this proclamation. Our definition that we gave of the gospel in the first lesson will help this make sense. We observed that the gospel was the declaration that your God reigns, proclaiming peace, happiness, salvation, comfort, and redemption for his people (cf. Isaiah 52:7-10). This victorious reign is seen when Jesus raised from the dead as the Son of God in power and sat down at the right hand of God with all authority (cf. Romans 1:4; Acts 2:33-36). Jesus raising from the dead as the conquering king is the power of God for salvation. What I want us to think about is that Jesus rose from the dead not just to proclaim himself as the Son of God in power but to unleash salvation to everyone who believes. The gospel is what we need for life, restoration, and hope. God’s power is observed in the gospel. Paul says it like this to the church in Corinth:
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:17-18 ESV)
The gospel is the power of God to save. The gospel is the work of God to save his creation. Now here is what we need to think about. How could we be ashamed of anything that was the power to save us? Think about the times you have watched the news regarding a heroic event of salvation. Perhaps you have seen a news story about a firefighter rescuing a person from a burning home or building. Perhaps you have seen a police officer protecting another person a shooter. Maybe you have seen lifeguard run out into the waves to rescue a drowning person. Think about any of these kinds of rescue stories. Are the ones who are rescued ever ashamed of the person that rescued them? Are the ones who were doomed to die but lives were snatched from the jaws of death ever ashamed of the person who saved their lives? Never! Not only are those people not ashamed of what their rescuer did for them, they boldly proclaim to anyone who will listen what that person did for them. You see that Paul is saying that he is not ashamed of the gospel because it is the saving power of God from judgment. We will look at this point in a future lesson. But we see in Romans 1:18 that the wrath of God has been revealed against all ungodliness. Paul will say in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death. So we are not fine just as we are. We are in need of rescue and the gospel is the power of God for our rescue.
Friends, I hope it would just be shocking to us that we would ever be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus. I want us to especially consider this when we think of all the things we are not ashamed of proclaiming in our lives. We can be bold and unashamed when it comes to supporting our political party, telling everyone how right our party is and how wrong their party is. We can be so brazen and public about our political beliefs. But then we are ashamed of the gospel that has saved us. We can fearlessly talk about some of the most controversial things in the world but somehow be ashamed of the gospel. We can talk for hours about so many topics that have absolutely no importance to anything in this world. As much as I love and enjoy sports, sports have absolutely no lasting value or worth. We can talk about food, entertainment, finances, clothing, and so many other things with strong opinions and great boldness. But when it comes to spiritual things and our salvation, suddenly we are quiet and are ashamed of our Savior and what he has done.
The gospel is the power of God for the salvation to every person who believes. But in our fear, shame, and embarrassment we want to water down the good news. We want to change the good news. We want to make the good news more palatable and more acceptable. The gospel is not some good advice. The gospel is not just some good teachings from a good teacher. The gospel is not the way to have your best life now. The gospel is not some rules to follow. The gospel is the power of God. The problem is that people cannot be saved if we water down the good news. If you are sick and given a prescription to take, that prescription will not help if you water it down. Antibiotics come with warnings about making sure you take all of the medication or else the prescription will not complete its work. But in our fear and shame we dilute the message. What is sad is that this is the opposite approach of our Savior. Listen to what the writer of Hebrews says:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2 ESV)
What did Jesus think about the shame of the cross? He disregarded it. He despised it. He saw the shame of the cross and cast it aside for the joy that was set before. But what we do is try to remove the shame of Jesus and the cross. Jesus did not avoid the shame but we try avoid it. We refuse to talk about certain things about Jesus and his teachings so that we do not experience shame. So let’s talk about why we feel ashamed and how we can overcome that shame to be bold disciples of Jesus.
Overcoming Shame
First, we need to be more concerned about the praise of God over the praise of people. Often we are ashamed because are far too worried about what that person will think about us. We are afraid of losing friendships. We are afraid of losing relationships. We are afraid of rebuke or scorn. We are afraid of losing family members. We don’t want to be cut off. The gospel has always caused this struggle. Look at John 12:42-43. In the context, the scripture is noting that even though Jesus had done many signs, they did not believe in him (cf. John 12:37).
Nevertheless many, even of the rulers, believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, so that they would not be excommunicated from the synagogue; for they loved the approval of people rather than the approval of God. (John 12:42-43 NASB 2020)
These people believed but their love for the approval of people prevented them from confessing him. They believed but their belief was not enough to cause them to open their mouths or to change their lives to follow Jesus. Now here is the warning. The whole point of the paragraph is that their desire for the approval of people meant that they did not have true belief. Perhaps you will allow me to say it using the terminology of Romans 1. The love of the approval of people kept them from the obedience of faith. Listen to what Jesus said earlier in the same book:
How can you believe, since you accept glory from one another but don’t seek the glory that comes from the only God? (John 5:44 CSB)
Our first step to overcoming shame is to ask ourselves whose glory to we want. Why are we seeking the approval of people and not the approval of God? The two cannot work together. You either want the glory of God or the glory of people. Both cannot be achieved at the same time. They are opposed to each other. But here is what I want us to think about it. The people that we truly desire approval from are people that we care about. But if we care about them so much, then we would want to seek God’s approval first because those people need the gospel to be saved. How can we want their approval and watch them die in their sins? On the day of judgment every person you care about will be grateful to you for warning them rather than seeking their approval now.
Second, we can overcome shame by understanding that the gospel changes lives. The gospel is the prescription for what ails humanity. There is not a single person on earth who does not need to the Great Physician and his gospel prescription. Whatever any person is going through, the gospel is the life-changing answer. We can boldly speak into people’s lives because we know that the answer that they really need to hear is that they need Jesus as their King and Savior. The gospel will change who they are. The gospel will change the direction they are going in life. The gospel will save them from the wrath to come.
Finally, we should be ashamed that we are ashamed. Listen to this scripture and you will see what I mean by this point.
But we do see Jesus — made lower than the angels for a short time so that by God’s grace he might taste death for everyone — crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death. For in bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was entirely appropriate that God — for whom and through whom all things exist — should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters…. (Hebrews 2:9-11 CSB)
Jesus is not ashamed of us. How could we be ashamed of him? If anyone should be ashamed of anyone, it is Jesus who should be ashamed of us! There is nothing shameful about Jesus. He proved who he was and experienced shame for our rescue, not for himself. Jesus is not ashamed to stand before the throne of his Father and intercede on our behalf for our sins. But then we are ashamed to stand before people and bring them to the knowledge of Jesus. Jesus knew this would be the temptation so he gave us an important reminder and warning:
For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. (Luke 9:26 ESV)
If we have been ashamed of Jesus and his teachings, then when we need him to stand for us on our behalf when we stand in judgment, Jesus says then he will be ashamed of us. If we cannot tell people that we belong to him, then how can Jesus say that we belong to him? Jesus is not ashamed of us, but we are walking around hiding our wedding ring that we belong to him. The gospel is the power of God for salvation and we are debtors of the gospel to teach the world and teach each other about our victorious Savior.