What does it mean to not be ashamed of the Gospel (Romans 1:16)?

These two verses are the key verses of the Epistle. The great words of the doctrinal part of the Epistle are found here. Righteousness and Faith are these words; Paul declared that he is not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. It cannot mean, what it is often said to mean, that Paul was not ashamed to confess Christ. It means that he had the utmost confidence in the Gospel of Christ; he knew it would not make him ashamed; he was not ashamed of it because of its intrinsic character. The world sneered at the Gospel he preached "for the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness" (1 Corinthians 1:18). He knew that in the Gospel was embodied the highest wisdom, that God Himself was its author, that it came from God and leads to God; he knew that through the Gospel the Greek, the Jew, the Barbarian could be saved out of the horrible pit and the miry clay and become a child of God and an heir of God. He was not ashamed of it for "the Gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation." What weighty words these are! The power of God is needed to save man. And that power God has, to save the vilest sinner through the Gospel of Christ. God is omnipotent, but in one thing God is powerless, He cannot save sinners apart from the Gospel of Christ, for the Gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation. The spurious Gospel of today, which denies the Cross of Christ and the blood, which substitutes character, good works or something else for faith in the Work of Christ as sin-bearer, has no power to save. God cannot save in any other way than the way made known in the Gospel of Christ, who died for our sins. And what is salvation? It includes the whole of Christ's redemption work. It includes Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification. Saved from the guilt of sins; saved from the power of sin; saved from the presence of sin. Salvation from wrath and eternal damnation; salvation from the power of darkness and sin's awful dominion; salvation unto eternal glory. The word includes all the sinner needs. The cross of Christ has supplied every need. If man had to do something with it and could help along in his salvation, it would be an imperfect and insecure salvation. But God being the author, it is His salvation and thus (Acts 28:28) it is a perfect salvation, a salvation which is both deliverance and safety forever. (Philippians 2:12 "Work out your own salvation" is often quoted as meaning that we must work to be saved and to stay saved. It means that we are to work out with results the salvation which is ours by faith in Jesus Christ.) And this salvation is to any one that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Faith is the means of obtaining this salvation. Of this we shall hear more in the third and fourth chapters. Furthermore, in the Gospel "the righteousness of God" is revealed. This great word will receive our closest attention in the annotations of the third chapter. Here we briefly state that the Gospel of Christ makes known that the very righteousness of God, which condemns a sinner, is now on the side of the believing sinner. it is revealed from faith to faith, which means that it is not on the principle of works, but on the principle of faith.

As to the gospel itself, he was by no means ashamed to speak of it, even to those who lived at Rome. What though this proud city was the centre of all earthly power, the gospel was God's power. Rome's power was to bring people into its empire by forced submission: God's power was for the salvation of every believer, by means of the gospel, bringing them into His kingdom and under His sway in grace. In it, God reveals His righteousness for the benefit of all who exercise faith in Him. What a mercy it is that we need not be terrified at the thought of the righteousness of God, seeing that it secures the salvation of everyone who in his heart believes the gospel (vv. 14, 17).

However it might be, he was ready, and that because of the value of the gospel — a point which leads him to state both the value and the character of this gospel. For, he says, he was not ashamed of it. It was the power of God to salvation. Observe here the way in which the apostle presents everything as coming from God. It is the gospel of God, the power of God to salvation, the righteousness of God, and even the wrath of God, and that from heaven — a different thing from earthly chastisement. This is the key to everything. The apostle lays stress upon it, putting it forward from the commencement of the epistle; for man ever inclines to have confidence in himself, to boast of himself, to seek for some merit — some righteousness, in himself, to Judaise, to be occupied with himself, as though he could do something. It was the apostle's joy to put his God forward.

Thus, in the gospel, God intervened, accomplishing a salvation which was entirely His own work — a salvation of which He was the source and power, and which He Himself had wrought. Man came into it by faith: it was the believer who shared it, but to have part in it by faith was exactly the way to share it without adding anything whatsoever to it, and to leave it wholly the salvation of God. God be praised that it is so, whether for righteousness or for power, or for the whole result; for thus it is perfect, divine. God has come in, in His almighty power and in His love, to deliver the wretched, according to His own might. The gospel is the expression of this: one believes it and one shares it.

We now begin to approach the question as to what the gospel is. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel: for it is the power of God to salvation, to every one that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” The reason why he is not ashamed of the gospel is stated clearly. The law commanded, but had no power to deliver from sin; nay, it was given that, not sin, but the offence might abound. But, in direct contrast, the gospel is the power (not of man, but) of God to salvation. There is a vast meaning in this. We will seek to make this plain to our young readers by a few illustrations.

A Gospel for Saints. — Now this Gospel is a Gospel for saints of God. To such in Rome he desired to preach it (1:15). How much had the preaching of it cost him already? What dangers and trials he had passed through in the prosecution of this service, 2 Cor. 4:7-15 and 11:23-33 can tell us. Had his ardour abated? Was his spirit cowed by all that he had suffered? Fearless, energetic, unwearied was this chosen vessel of the Lord Jesus Christ. He knew well to what dangers and harassing troubles the preaching of the Gospel had, and might still expose him. Yet, like one going forth in all the freshness and ardour of youth, though withal a veteran grown old in the service, he was ready, as far as in him lay, to preach the Gospel, as he writes, "to you that are at Rome also." "For," he adds, "I am not ashamed of the Gospel*; for it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from (or, on the principle of) faith to faith: as it is written, But the just shall live by faith" (1:16-17). He knew well the temper of the weapon he wielded. He knew well the effect it could produce, for he had proved it in his own case. It was the power of God to salvation to every one that believes. "Unto salvation." That was the end to be obtained. Yet not confined to the salvation of the soul, but taking in that of the person as well. The former is present blessing, as Peter reminds us; for the latter we wait, as he in common with Paul teaches (Rom. 8:23; 1 Peter 1:5-9). "To every one that believes." Nationality, prejudices, training, let them be what they might, it mattered not, to both Jew and to Gentile the Gospel which Paul had received, and which he preached was God's power to salvation. He had proved it to be so amongst ignorant heathen (Acts 14), as well as amongst the educated and highly civilised Athenians (Acts 17) and the licentious Corinthians (Acts 18). He had proved it in the centre of idolatry, even in the city of the great temple of Diana (Acts 19). He counted on further proof of its divine power to salvation within the walls of Rome. Nor, as we know, was he disappointed, for in the household of the Emperor the Gospel won its way (Phil. 4:22).

The enemies of Paul had said that when it suited Paul he also preached circumcision. He had had Timothy circumcised because he thought this would help him. Paul now asks a question that completely answers these wicked taunts: "But as for me, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted?" Paul had already in Galatians 1:7-8, 9, 10, spoken of the same wicked charge they were making against him. Now he answers it more definitely. It was always the Jews who persecuted Paul. It was they who were so bitter against him because he preached to the Gentiles, and set aside their ancient customs. But if Paul was truly preaching the doctrines of the Jews, why should they persecute him? Paul was still being persecuted, and this was a proof that he was still preaching that circumcision had no power and that faith in Christ alone can save. But what about the Galatians? Were they still being persecuted? When they turned from Christ to circumcision, then their persecution would cease. It may be that Paul would gently remind them of this. If Paul were preaching the doctrines of the Jews, then the scandal of the cross would surely have ceased. It was such a scandalous thing to preach about a Man who had been nailed on a cross. This death was worse than being hanged on a gallows. This death was kept for slaves and for criminals of the worst kind. A Roman citizen could not be crucified. But Paul gloried in the cross. He loved to tell the story of the cross. He was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, nor of the cross of Christ. To him it was the power of God unto salvation. But to men of the world, it was a scandal. "We preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block (or scandal), and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God." 1 Cor. 1:23-24.

Finally in verse 16 of our chapter we read "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power (dunamis) of God unto salvation to every one that believeth." As Paul pondered over the mighty dynamic power of the glad tidings and their far-reaching effects for the glory of God and the blessing of men, he exclaims "I am proud of the gospel" (the original language carries this alternative rendering). Well may he be!

And how deep though blessed is that testimony! an already possessed salvation from God, and a holy calling, "not according to our works but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has been made manifest now by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, Who annulled death and brought to light life and incorruption through the gospel, whereunto I was appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher [of the Gentiles]". It was for this cause Paul was also suffering these things. Never was there a more worthy reason. Certainly he was not ashamed: how terrible to think that any Christian could be! how humbling that even such as had once known Paul were! For if ever there was a servant whose life and labours, whose spirit, ways, and speech harmonized with the gospel, was it not Paul? Yet were brethren ashamed of the testimony of our Lord and of him His prisoner, when zeal and affection ought to have been most drawn out to him. Many a faithful servant proved utterly weak in the hour of trial; not a few were painfully inconsistent in detail, though sincere and honoured of God in the main. Paul stands well-nigh alone, according to his earnest expectation and hope that in nothing he should be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always so even to the end, Christ should be magnified in his body, whether by life, or by death (Phil. 1:20). Then it was his first imprisonment; and his desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better, was not yet to be gratified. To abide in the flesh was more needful for the saints; and, having this confidence, he knew that he was to abide and continue with all. Now it was his second imprisonment; and Christ was to be magnified by his death, but in nothing was he put to shame, least of all was he ashamed of the gospel or of the hardship in prison and in death which the gospel entailed.

First, he says, "It is the power of God to salvation". God is its source. It is not man coming to God with his works, but God approaching man with salvation. We can understand God's power to judge a guilty sinner, but the marvel of the gospel is that it reveals God's power to save a sinner who deserves to be judged.

Secondly, it is God's power to save "every one" that believes, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile. Man comes into the blessing of the gospel by faith, and "to have part in it by faith was exactly to share it without adding anything whatsoever to it, and to leave it wholly the salvation of God" (J.N.D).

The gospel is introduced as "concerning His son … Jesus Christ our Lord." First He is referred to as "come of David's seed." He, and He alone was capable of maintaining to the full the rights of the throne of God; He alone could give effect to the "sure mercies of David" (Isaiah 55:3). Then, too, He is "marked out Son of God in power, according to the Spirit of holiness" (v. 4). Perfect, spotless, holy in His pathway, manifesting a power over death itself "by resurrection of (the) dead," and establishing in His own resurrection the basis upon which death shall no more separate man from his God — He Himself "the resurrection and the life." Every hostile feature removed, Paul can rejoice in the gospel as "God's power to salvation, to everyone that believes." The word 'power' is dunamis, from which we derive our word "dynamic." No other power can withstand it, and hence Paul says "I am not ashamed of the glad tidings." The Greek idiom could equally be translated "I am proud of the gospel."