I invite you to turn with me in your Bibles at this time to the book of Romans, Romans chapter 1. We'll be looking at Romans 1 verses 16 and 17 together. We'll start reading at Romans 1 verse 1 and read through verse 17. This is on page 1,194, 1,194 in your Bibles. Romans chapter 1. Again, we'll begin reading at verse one. So hear the holy and infallible word of the Lord our God. Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh, and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord. through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you, that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you, but thus far have been prevented, in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish, so I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith. As it is written, the righteous shall live by faith." And this ends our reading from God's Word here this morning, and may He add His blessing to it. Well, congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, these are always some of the moments we look forward to and the moments we love in the life of the church. Those moments when we see others publicly embrace the truth that we ourselves confess, that they confess now with us, acknowledging that truth has touched them, laid hold of them, and set them free. And so we have great joy even here this day as we gather together, great joy in watching you, Hudson and Corinne, and you, Chonish and Golden, making this public profession and reaffirmation of your faith in Jesus Christ and your commitment to His gospel. These moments are an answer to many prayers. They are, we trust, as well, the fruit of much preaching and teaching and discussion with others. But we also know that this is nothing less than an expression of the very truth we find set forth here in our passage of how the Gospel is the power of God. The Gospel is the power of God for salvation for all those who believe. This is one of the reasons why Paul is so glad and joyful and why he glories in the Gospel. He writes here about being unashamed, and that's meant to really drive home how there's no shame on his part when it comes to the Gospel. There's no embarrassment of the Gospel on his part. But he is proud, you might say, of the Gospel. His pride, his boast is in the Gospel. He glories in it. Now that might sound strange at first to say that Paul needs to express here his unashamedness when it comes to the gospel. Why would Paul ever have to say that he's unashamed of the gospel? That's weird, isn't it? But the Scriptures reveal elsewhere that the gospel is a stumbling block and foolishness to the unbelieving. There are many people ashamed of the gospel. There are many people who are embarrassed by the gospel. There are many people who think the gospel is ridiculous, who think it's unworthy of being something on which they build their life. There are many people for whom the Gospel is just completely outlandish, ridiculous, unworthy of any time, consideration, or attention. But the Apostle Paul is different. He glories again. He glories in the Gospel. He rejoices in the Gospel. And he has expressed here his great desire to visit the Roman church because he wants and he's so excited to preach the Gospel to them. And I hope in our time here together this morning that as we consider the reasons why Paul glories and is unashamed of the gospel, that as we consider this, that we ourselves are moved to ever greater joy and thanksgiving and boasting in the gospel of Jesus Christ, that we ourselves grow evermore fully to be unashamed of this gospel we confess and we believe, to glory evermore in the gospel of Jesus Christ, which has brought us to everlasting life and salvation. So, like I said, as we gather this morning, I want to consider the two reasons why Paul glories in the gospel, and it's first because of its power, And then secondly, because of what it reveals. So we'll look at the power and also the revelation of the Gospel. As I said, the first reason Paul glories why he's unashamed of the Gospel is because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. The Gospel is the power of God. And as Paul says that, that statement has roots in the Old Testament. It has roots in the Old Testament. You can think, for instance, of the many ways in which God's deliverance is pictured and how it's often said to be that God rescues or He saves by His mighty hand, by His outstretched arm, which is to say God has saved by His power. You think of Israel, they came out of Egypt. We read the Ten Commandments, God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. You think of Israel having walked through the Red Sea, and as Israel celebrates their deliverance from the Red Sea, they sing about how the Lord has become their strength and their salvation. In Psalm 77, the psalmist says that God is the one who works wonders, who makes his might known among his peoples, having redeemed his people with his own arm. When the reference is made to God's power and might and strength, it is very often in the context of the salvation God works for his people. which is to say that when we think of the gospel being the power of God, one of the ways we can understand that is that the gospel is this story, is the telling of God's wondrous power at work to deliver us fully, freely, fully and completely from all our sins, to bring us the complete salvation He had long promised to His people. The Gospel is what proclaims how God in His power has overcome and defeated all the guilt of our sins. How God in His power has overwhelmed and defeated all of our enemies. He's defeated Satan. He's defeated all of our troubles. He's overcome death itself through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. The Gospel is that message of the power of God in Jesus Christ. Isn't it amazing, even you think of the gospel again, you think of the power of God and what God has done by His power in Jesus. God's own wrath against sin, taken care of by Christ. God's, or rather, our condemnation through the law, God's dealt with that in Jesus Christ. This duty, this obligation to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbor as ourselves. Done in Jesus. The opposition of Satan. Christ triumphed over him. Rejected all the temptations. The penalty of death. Jesus went through it and rose victoriously on the third day from the grave. Right? The power of God through Jesus Christ, marvelously displayed over all that confronts us, all that attacks us, all that stands in the way, all that opposes, are receiving a salvation wiped away by the power of God in Jesus Christ. And the gospel is what marvelously proclaims that power of God in Jesus Christ. The gospel you see reveals the power of God in a way far greater than any other expression of God's power anywhere else in history. We're amazed by Egypt, and we should be, and the plagues that were poured out, but God's power in the gospel, God's power in Jesus Christ, far greater than anything he did in Egypt. They're walking through the Red Sea, that's nothing compared to the power of God at work in Jesus Christ by means of the gospel. This is the greatest, fullest expression of the power of God in this Gospel of Jesus Christ. And that's why Paul glories in it. Because he doesn't see the power of God anywhere else like he does than in this Gospel. It is one that speaks to his heart so wondrously of God's power and commitment to save us lost sinners. But that's not the only idea behind The Gospel being the power of God. Because it isn't simply the message of God's power, it isn't simply a picture of God's power, but because the Gospel is the power of God for salvation. What's in mind here is how the Gospel is God's active power. The Gospel is what God uses to bring us to salvation. You know, you think of this, you think of what God has done in the heart of every true believer. God has taken his word, he's taken the gospel and he's brought it to us, he's ministered that gospel to our hearts and he made our eyes to see, see our own sins, see the glory of Christ, see the need to flee to Christ for salvation. He has come and he's spoken his word to our minds and given our minds understanding so that we can understand the things of God. He has sent His Word and it's smashed into the hardness of our hearts, broken it to pieces, and created in us a new heart that actually loves God and that loves His Word and wants to obey Him. He has sent this power, this gospel, He sent His gospel to conquer our unbelief, to conquer our blindness, to create faith. The gospel is the power of God for our salvation. You know, what a glorious reminder that is, too, for us, as it brings before us, once again, the message of where we can find strength. You know, we often struggle with that, don't we? We think we're so weak, and we are so weak. We're so feeble, we're so easily shaken, we're so easily tossed about by every wind of change and every little philosophy that may come our way. We're shaken, we're troubled. But the gospel is the power of God. You know, how are your fears overcome? How are your doubts defeated? How do you become strong to do God's will? How will you find the strength for all the many challenges you face? How do you find the strength and the ability to go forth for God's service as you head off to work, as you return to your family, as you spend life in your home, as you go off to school? Where do you find the strength for all these things? The answer is in the gospel. The gospel is where you find the power of God for salvation. The gospel is where you find the power and the strength to overcome all your doubts and all your fears and all your worries, all your anxieties. Where can we be strong? In the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That wondrous message of the Christ, our Savior, who triumphs over all our sins and brings us forgiveness and pours out God's love and grace and mercy upon us. This is where the power of the Christian comes from. in this wondrous Gospel that God gives us of Jesus Christ. As God works by His Spirit through this Gospel to triumph over all that dwells within us, all the sin and all the evil, He overcomes it all by His power in the Gospel. We owe our entire life and our salvation to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Yet we should not miss here as well with verse 16 that the gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. How do we come to experience this power of God for salvation? How do we come to know it? How do we come to enjoy it? It's through faith. Through faith. That's what matters, faith. And I think that's so beautiful for us to as well just take note of for a moment here this morning as well. We're all from different backgrounds. We're all from different ethnicities. We're from different countries like Canada or Turkey. We're from different times, time periods, histories, and so on. But none of that matters, you see, when it comes to the gospel. Because the only thing that matters when it comes to the gospel is faith, whether we have faith. You see, where the gospel meets with faith, there the power of God is known for salvation. Where the gospel meets with faith, that's where sin is overcome. That's where doubts and fears are laid to rest. That's where hearts are made alive. That's where spirits are revived. As we come to this gospel in faith, trusting, resting in its message and proclamation of the Lord Jesus Christ. And so why does Paul rejoice in the Gospel? Why is he so unashamed of this Gospel? Because Paul himself has seen time and time again just the power of God at work through this Gospel of Jesus Christ. He's known it in his own life as he was transformed from a hater of Christ to a preacher of Christ. And he's seen it as he's traveled on all his missionary trips to different lands and nations and peoples as he's gone to the ends of the earth to Jews and Greeks and barbarians and Scythians and slaves and free and men and women and children. And he's seen this Gospel powerfully lay hold of their hearts and their lives. And transform them into lovers of God, servants of God, believers in Jesus Christ. Those who live holy and upright lives. Paul rejoices in this gospel because it is that in which we find and experience the power of God unto salvation. And so his great joy and glory is the gospel of Jesus Christ. But there's a second reason why Paul rejoices in the Gospel, why he's so unashamed of the Gospel, and it's because of what the Gospel reveals. It reveals the righteousness of God, from faith, for faith, as it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. The Gospel reveals the righteousness of God. What is this righteousness of God? What is this righteousness of God he refers to here? Well, if we look at the book of Romans more broadly and we look at those many passages where the righteousness of God is connected with faith, we come to realize, we come to understand that Paul is talking about the righteousness which God requires for us to be right with Him and which we have in Jesus Christ. Let's unpack that for a moment here. The righteousness of God, that which God requires for us to be right with Him and which we have in Jesus Christ. One of the chief questions we face as sinners is very simply, how can I be right with God? We may not often think of it in those terms, but that really is the central question we face. How can I be right with God? As sinners, we've offended God. As sinners, we've broken His commands. We have dishonored Him. We've not loved Him. We've disobeyed Him. It goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve, their sin. And in their sin, what happens? They're kicked out of the Garden of Eden. And you see, as Adam and Eve are driven out of the Garden of Eden, it's a picture of how we are not right with God. And because we're not right with God, we cannot live with God. We cannot be in His presence. We cannot survive in His presence. Because of sin, we are not, you might say, on good terms with God. It's like you also can read in Isaiah 6. You might remember how Isaiah receives this vision of God. He sees the glory of God. He hears the angels crying out, holy, holy, holy. And you remember how Isaiah responds? He sees this marvelous vision, and he doesn't respond by, God, how great you are, but Isaiah immediately responds, woe is me. Woe is me. And why does he say that? Isaiah says it because He declares, I'm a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of an unclean people. Isaiah knows that because of his sin, His relationship with God is broken and he cannot survive being in God's presence. And so even though he meets with the most glorious vision imaginable to behold the glory of the immortal God, he responds with abject terror and fear. because he so understands how his relationship with God is broken by sin. The central question we face is how can we be made right with God? How can God and I be brought into good terms so that we can have fellowship, so that we can live with Him, so that we can survive being in His presence? There's this great need that we have to be made right with God. That means we need a righteous standing with God. We need a righteous standing with God to be accepted by Him. And you see, Paul rejoices in the Gospel. He's unashamed of the Gospel because the Gospel reveals that this righteousness we so desperately need is received in Jesus Christ. The righteousness we need to be accepted by God, to be welcomed by God, to be received by God, to live with God forever. This righteousness we so desperately need, God grants to us. freely bestows upon us, credits to us in Jesus. That's what the Gospel reveals. The Gospel reveals that this need we have for righteousness is freely provided in Jesus Christ. Now, how can we say that? Well, think again of what Jesus has done. Jesus lived a life of intense suffering. Especially as He hung upon the cross, He endured all of God's wrath and anger. He experienced the forsakenness of God. He was punished for the guilt of our sins. Isaiah 53 makes that very clear. In that suffering, we see Jesus taking away all of our debt, all of our guilt, all of our shame. He pays the price for all of that. He does that for us, just like we sing, in my place condemned He stood. He was condemned instead of me. But what we're also told in the Gospel is not only that Jesus went to the cross and died there for our sins and was raised the third day, but we're also told in the Gospel about a perfect Jesus. A Jesus who perfectly fulfills the whole law of God. A Jesus who did and does love God with all His mind, heart, soul, and strength. A Jesus who loves and who loved His neighbor as Himself. Jesus who accomplished God's complete and entire will for man. If you think of it in terms of us as creatures, us as humans, just like Adam, we owe God obedience. We owe God obedience. But where we and Adam were disobedient, Christ was completely obedient. Christ perfectly did all that God required of Him, not simply as the Messiah, but as a human being, as a man. And so Jesus Himself is perfectly righteous. I don't think there's any debate there, is there? Jesus Himself is perfectly righteous. The perfectly righteous One, the righteous man. So we need righteousness. Jesus is the righteous One, possessing all righteousness. And so how can we receive what Jesus has? And we find the answer right here in verse 17. The righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith. It's another way of saying that it's about faith from beginning to end. The righteousness which God demands, the Gospel reveals, He provides in Jesus Christ, and it's a righteousness we have through faith. And you see, this is what makes Paul so happy and joyful in the Gospel. You know, think about it again. Paul was a Pharisee of Pharisees, a Benjamite, circumcised on the eighth day, etc., etc. Paul was one zealous according to the law. And he hated the Gospel. He absolutely hated the Gospel, didn't he? He went out of his way to attack other people who dared to believe it. He went out of his way to travel abroad, to try to put men and women and children in prison for daring to believe the Gospel. Paul hated Jesus. He actively persecuted anyone who dared to believe in Jesus. But things changed, didn't they? He saw the risen Christ and God revealed the glory of the Gospel to him. And so we find him writing in Philippians 3, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him. And listen to this, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ." What happened when Paul met Jesus on the Damascus road? What did Paul come to see? What did he come to understand as he beheld the risen Christ? Paul came to understand that he could never have righteousness by the law, and he came to understand the gospel of God, which says that this righteousness he needs is freely provided in Christ. And as you come to Christ in faith, you have that righteousness you need. So Paul says, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ. The righteousness from God, the righteousness of God that depends on faith. See, Paul glories in this gospel of Christ because it is so, so freeing, so glorious, so wonderful. Because the gospel reveals our righteousness not based on our own works, not based on our own efforts, not based upon our own prayers, our tears, our efforts, but our righteousness of Christ that entirely depends upon faith. So how are we made right with God? How can we ever be made right with God? The gospel tells us. by receiving the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ. We can't make ourselves right with God. We can't give God enough obedience to make up for our sin or to somehow earn life or blessing. Salvation has nothing to do with our works. It's all about faith. You see, that's why Paul even, he quotes from Habakkuk 2, the righteous shall live by faith. Who are the righteous? Those who have faith. And those who have faith shall live forever. You see, that's so beautiful, isn't it? Isn't that what's so amazing about the gospel? I don't know, brothers and sisters, how much you've actually looked at other religions or other faiths. I don't know how much you've heard from others who believe different things or worship other gods. But you know, there's only two religions in the world. There's the religion of works, there's the religion of faith and grace. You see, the Christian faith is the only faith in the entire world that is all about grace, that is all about the work of another person to save you. Every other religion under the face of the sun is about you, by your own works, somehow gaining life and salvation. The gospel is the only message, the only good news, which says, no, you are saved by the work of another. So that as you believe in Him and you trust in Him, you have everything you need to be accepted and loved and welcomed by God forever. This is why the Gospel again is so beautiful. And why Paul is unashamed of it. Why he glories in it. Why he rejoices in it. because there is that freedom, that freedom of knowing we don't save ourselves, we don't have to depend upon ourselves, we don't have to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps, but know we look to Christ and we hear that wondrous testimony of the gospel of all that Christ has done for us. And as we believe that gospel, as we trust that gospel, the righteousness we need is received. through faith, never by works. That which we owe God, we receive as a gift. That which God demands, He freely gives. And that's what makes the Gospel so very precious to the heart of the Apostle, and what's to make it also so precious to our own hearts. There is nothing like this Gospel. And that's, again, why Paul is so unashamed of it. It's the most liberating, it's the most encouraging, it's the most satisfying message of salvation that sinners could ever receive. It's the message of grace. And I'd like to encourage you, Chadash and Golden, especially as you are seeking training for the gospel ministry to go back to Turkey and preach the gospel there. Love this gospel. This is the most precious news the entire world could ever receive. Love this gospel. Rejoice in this gospel. Never be ashamed of sharing it with all those around you. Hold fast to it. Cling to it all your days. And we trust that God will give you that great joy in the gospel. And for you too, Hudson and Corinne, this is the gospel you've come to know. This is the gospel you've come to hold dear and precious. And I pray that God too would make you unashamed of this gospel and to rejoice in it ever more fully every day. To rejoice in this gospel of God's free grace and righteousness in Jesus Christ. There is nothing like this message. There's nothing like this news. And there's nothing to give you such hope and peace of mind and comfort than this news of Jesus Christ. Joyfully share it with those around you. And dear congregation, I hope you understand too that this is the gospel in which we hope and in the only gospel in which we stand. This is the gospel we seek to preach. This is the gospel we seek to teach. This is the gospel we seek to take into the workplace, into all our relationships with all those who are around us. This is the only gospel that saves. The gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of God's free grace, giving us the righteousness of Christ through faith that we might be accepted by Him. For many of us, that's perhaps old news. Old news. But I hope and pray that we never cease to understand that this is the only good news. that however old it may sound, however old it may feel, that it yet is still that good news we cling to with all our hearts and our souls, and which continues to brighten our day, which continues to give us hope for tomorrow, which continues to give us peace when we're confronted by our own sins and our own failures and our own shortcomings. This world may ridicule the gospel. Many others corrupt this gospel. But this Gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith." Paul is unashamed of this Gospel. Are you unashamed of this Gospel, brothers and sisters? Are you unashamed of this Gospel? Do you joyfully call it your own? Do you joyfully share it with those who are around you? And does it continue to minister to you as you face every trial and challenge every high and every low? Is this gospel your joy? May God preserve our joy in this gospel all our days. Amen. Let's pray. O Lord, our Heavenly Father, as we gather before you again this day, we thank you for the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, by which your power is at work, Father, to save those who believe. And we thank You, Father, how You have been at work by Your power in the Gospel in our lives. How, Father, You brought us out of darkness into Your marvelous light. How You converted us from being dead in our trespasses and sins and brought us to life in Jesus Christ as this Word came to us and was used by Your Holy Spirit. Thank You, Father, for all that You have done in us by the work of the Gospel with Your Spirit. And would You continue to further Your work in our hearts and our lives through this Gospel, which reveals the righteousness of God from faith for faith, that righteousness of Jesus Christ that we have through faith, and that is not of our own doing or our own works. Father, may we continue to see Your wondrous grace. May we continue to understand the glorious, complete work of Jesus Christ for us. And may that continue to fill our hearts with great peace and comfort and rest. Lord, you tell us that this day is to be a day of rest, a day when we cease from our labors. And Father, may we truly enjoy this as a day of rest, as we understand that salvation is all the work of Jesus Christ, not of our own doing, not the works of our own hands, but always the work of our Savior. So Father, give us that rest, that we may have all manner of joy and thanksgiving this day, even as we gather in worship to your precious name. So grant us your blessing, fill us with your peace, and answer us for the sake of Jesus Christ. Amen.