Sharing Jesus without Fear: (Part I)

THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL

Romans 1:14-17

One week from today, starting July 5, our medical mission in the Philippines will commence. According to the list of Pastor Ed, we have about 87 people from our church that will be going to the Philippines to physically participate. However, I don't want you to feel that you are not involved in this endeavor. Many of you have committed yourselves in supporting through your prayers and finances. So, this is a mission endeavor of our entire BCI family. I am truly grateful to God for the privilege He has given us to extend the love of Jesus to others.

As we get involved in mission, we must be reminded of a significant truth so as not to fall into the trap of believing that sharing the Gospel of Jesus is only to be treated as a special event, rather than a lifestyle among us. Let me clarify. You see, it is very clear in the heart of Jesus that all of His followers preach or share the Gospel to other people. He commanded this before He went back to heaven:

But, how many of us really share the Gospel to others consistently. According to statistics, there are only as few as 5 to 10 percent of Christians in an average church who would share the Gospel. In other words, 90 percent are choosing to be silent about it. And because of this silence, evil continues to thrive and overshadow righteousness in the world. Worst is the reality that many who die are going straight to face God's judgment in hell.

Many years ago, the Radio Bible Class has published a booklet entitled, "The Silent Majority." In here, they identified the three major reasons why Christians would choose to be silent:

• Ignorance - Some Christians are afraid because they don't know enough. They might be asked to explain other doctrines besides the Gospel. There are also others who say they don't know how to share the Gospel to others.
• Indifference - There are those who don't care about what will happen to others after they die. As long as they know, their personal destiny is secured. They don't have to worry about other people.
• Inferiority - These are people who are too conscious of what other people might say if they share Jesus to them. They are afraid to be laugh at or mocked for sharing Jesus.

Possibly, you have been giving some of these excuses as well. And probably, Satan has successfully convinced you that God would buy in to these excuses. At the outset, I want to emphasize that our failure to share carries with it grave consequences. Consider what Jesus often declared:

Can you imagine being disowned by Jesus before the Father in heaven? It is so easy for us to read this and ask, "Will Jesus really disown me before the Father if I am a believer?" If you examine the context of Matthew 10, you would find that Jesus was giving these words to His own disciples at the time when He sent them to the Jews to begin preaching about Him being the Messiah. Clearly, the text applies to believers.

For our specific study this morning, I want to highlight the apostle Paul because of his example in being a believer who was never afraid or embarrassed to share the Gospel of the Lord. Without question, he is one of the greatest preachers and missionaries who have ever lived. Looking at our text, what made him extraordinary was his healthy perspective that the Gospel is the power of God to salvation. I believe this is the secret we all need to discover. Perhaps, the very reason why we are not actively sharing the Gospel is because we have failed to appreciate our message first and foremost. Let's take some time to understand the power of the Gospel?

I     THE ABILITY OF THE GOSPEL:

When Paul referred to the almighty power of God, which He exercises through the Gospel, he used the Greek word dunamis. This word can be displayed negatively and positively. Notice:

• Dynamite (Blows things to pieces) - The power of God can tear down the old sinful life that reigns in human lives.
• Dynamo (Produces power) - The power of God can build the new life that comes through the Holy Spirit.

This passage in Galatians, which was also written by Paul allows us to see the dynamic power that provides victory over our sinful tendencies and produces the virtues through the Holy Spirit. This is the power of the Gospel. It is the power that breaks the power of sin and produces the new life in Christ. We often call this transformation.

The Romans were people who appreciated power. They often prided over their power. But Paul knew they were powerless in changing their lives. Only God can bring the change that Paul himself had experienced.

Let me quickly make a comment on verse 14 where Paul mentioned about his obligation. In other translation, Paul refers to himself as "a debtor." To whom was Paul a debtor to? Although he stated it as if he owed men (Greek and non-Greeks. . .). Evidently, he was a debtor to God because of the salvation he has received from Him. But he understood that the way he would pay his debts to God was to share the Gospel to others. Gratitude should motivate us to share the Lord Jesus to others. I remember the great missionary to China, Hudson Taylor, when he was asked, "Why did he give his life to China? He said, "No, not because I loved the Chinese, but because I loved God."

We who know Jesus Christ are under the same obligation. We have debts to pay, and we must pay them while we have the opportunity. Our opportunity is today:

Since you came to know the Lord, you have experienced His grace. God doesn't want us to waste the grace by withholding it from others. Help other find the same grace today.

II    THE APPLICATION OF THE GOSPEL:

The world is filled with discrimination, but God is not a respecter of person. He wants everyone to come to the knowledge of the Gospel.

Another powerful truth about the Gospel is the fact that it is for everyone. There were two major worlds that Paul tried to reach for the Gospel:

A. The World of the Jews - Since the Messiah came from the Jews, there is a clear priority in the preaching of the Gospel - First to the Jews (16). Unfortunately, despite their privilege, many of them have turned their backs to the Lord Jesus.

Paul, being a Jew was deeply burdened for the salvation of the Jews, despite their hard-heartedness to the Gospel. Sometimes, the Lord brings us to people who are not as responsive. Let us not easily give up on them, but continue to desire and pray for their salvation.

B. The World of the Gentiles - Paul seems to breakdown the Gentiles between two categories:

• Greeks or the wise - Those who belong to the Greco-Roman culture or the educated and intelligent Gentiles.
• Barbarians or the foolish - The uncivilized, unsophisticated, and uneducated Gentiles.

The Gospel is powerful because it has the potential of saving anyone regardless of the race, color, language, and education. It is trying to reach all because all have sinned:

Let us all be reminded that God loves everyone, and that He does not wish anyone to go to hell. But, salvation only lies on Jesus, He is the only mediator between God and man.

This passage is so clear; there is no other Gospel in our world except that which involved Jesus Christ. Regardless of who we are; white, brown, black, there is only one savior for all of us - Jesus Christ.

III   THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE GOSPEL:

In verse 17, Paul includes another important truth concerning the power of the Gospel. You see, our rejection from the presence of God was brought about by our sin. This is demonstrated by the removal of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden:

How can we be right with God? How can God accept us into His heaven? Can a just and holy God let a sinner enter heaven? The answer to these questions is the righteousness of God given through faith in Jesus. Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:21 explains this beautiful doctrine.

Let's carefully understand this. All of us are sinners without righteousness. Therefore, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to the cross to be our substitute, so He can place upon us His righteousness when we receive Him into our life by faith. This is the same teaching we find in verse 17 of our text. In a way, the basis of our acceptance to God is Christ's righteousness. Without it we will be rejected in the presence of God and go to eternal punishment in hell. The question is: have you received this already? Let's us not be confused; our own righteousness without Jesus is not enough.

It is truly good news (Gospel) to know that we don't have to worry whether or not we have done enough good works and religious deeds to be saved. We know we will be accepted by God because of the promise and gift of righteousness in Jesus.

Should we be afraid to share Jesus when we know that the salvation of our friends and loved ones rest only in Him. If we don't share, they will perish. Queen Esther was such a hero in the Old Testament because of her willingness to risk her life in order to save the lives of the Jews from the evil plot of Haman. Her resolved was, If I perish, I perish (Esther 4:16). It is worth risking everything for the eternal salvation of the people that we can win for the Lord.