Not Ashamed
What really matters in this life? We all have a date with destiny…for it is appointed for all men once to die, and then comes the judgement. The question is, “will we be judged righteous?” Those of us who have accepted Jesus as Lord will be judged righteous, for Jesus Christ who knew no sin, became the perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf that we may be made the righteousness of God in Him.
Unless we are heavenly minded, we are no earthly good. 1 John 2:15-17 says, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” Everything that is of this earth will come to naught. That which is seen is temporal but that which is unseen, the things of the spirit of God, are eternal. As Jesus said, therefore lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Two things will last into eternity in heaven: those of us who have been born again and the Word of God.
According to Romans 1:16-17, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”
We who seek treasures in heaven are not ashamed of the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ashamed in the Greek literally means to “change our expression,” or to “disfigure our face.” Ashamed means “to dishonor.” The gospel of Christ belongs to Christ. Therefore we honor the Lord when we share his good news of salvation, repentance, and redemption. The power of the gospel is manifest in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. When we share the gospel of Christ we honor God as a witness of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
What endures? What really matters is what we have invested into eternity. Therefore, set your affection on things above, not on the things of this earth. The gospel of Christ is our witness. We are the only bibles some people will ever read. He has made us living epistles… His love letters of the love of God known and read of all men.
Jesus said, “the works that I do shall they do also. And greater works shall they do because I go unto my Father.” The greater works is salvation because of Jesus Christ’s finished work of redemption through his crucifixion, death, and resurrection. Therefore, let your light so shine among men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven. The light of the gospel of Christ breaks through the darkness of a fallen world.
The doctrine of this world says, “follow your heart.” This is a version of the devil’s original lie to Eve in the garden of Eden: “if you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you will be like God.” The gospel of Christ counters the devil’s lie that we should worship ourselves by following our own fleshly heart instead of worshiping God by following His Word.
The gospel of Christ is the power of God. The word translated “power” is from the Greek word, “dynamis.” This is the potential power of the Holy Spirit. This is God’s ability, his potential to work within us to will and to do of his good pleasure. This is not the “explosive” power of God which is like a flash in the pan. Instead, it is the sustaining “power from on high” that we received when we were born again of God’s Holy Spirit. It is the power of God that brings us to salvation.
The gospel of the good news of salvation reveals the righteousness of God from faith (the faith of Jesus Christ we received upon salvation) to faith (believing faith to activate the power of the Holy Spirit.)
We received the gospel of Christ when we confessed that Jesus is Lord and believed that God raised him from the dead. We are not ashamed of Christ’s gospel. It is the power of God unto salvation when we were born again of God’s spirit. The gift of God’s Holy Spirit is the faith of Jesus Christ that completes us at the moment of salvation. Therefore the just (we who have been justified through Jesus Christ) shall live by faith…believing action according to the gift of the Holy Spirit of Christ in us.
May we ever live to the praise of the glory of His grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael