The Daily Gospel (Romans 1:15)
Manage episode 163554201 series 1258488
Timothy Brindle || The Restoration
In the opening to his epistle to the Romans, Paul expresses his wish to preach the gospel to the believers in Rome. But, Paul is writing to Christians. Why do they need to hear the gospel preached? This is a valid question and it needs to be asked. Is the gospel a one time message solely used to lead people to Christ and salvation? The answer is no. We need the gospel every single day of our lives and we need to preach it to ourselves.
While the gospel is something we first need to save us from our sins, that is not its only purpose in our lives. The gospel does more than forgiving our sins or giving us a golden ticket to heaven. The gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ and how it can transform our lives. The entire Bible is the gospel, and it teaches us how we can grow closer to our savior. Through the Bible we are given everything we need to live a life of godliness (2 Peter 1:4).
Beyond salvation, the gospel has much practical application for daily life. For example, we wrestle with the dichotomy of being a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) while still living in bodies that want to sin. The only way to win this daily battle is to turn to the gospel and rest in its promises. One such promise is found in Romans 8:1-2 where it says those who are in Christ are no longer under condemnation and are free from sin and death. Knowing this truth, we can then look to Romans 8:37 and see how we are more than conquerors in Jesus Christ. This passage also teaches that nothing in the created world can separate us from Christ’s love, which is life changing! Literally nothing can separate us from his love!
Now, there is one thing we need to know about preaching the gospel to ourselves. The power to stand firm in the faith does not come from within us. Just like we cannot save ourselves, we are incapable of keeping ourselves afloat in this Christian life. The Holy Spirit brought us to salvation, and he is the one who keeps us. It was God’s love for us that allowed him to send his son, Jesus, to die on a cross for our sins (1 John 4:10). And that same love allows us to love him in return (1 John 4:19). God’s love enables us to walk in the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and to be slaves to righteousness (Romans 6).
We need to study the Scriptures and find the gospel throughout its entirety (Luke 24:44-45). As we do, we will find a wealth of knowledge that will lead us to holy living. And, we do this, not because we are trying to earn anything from God, but because of what he’s already done for us.
Dig Deeper
- Read Romans 6. In what ways were we slaves to sin? In what ways can we be better slaves to righteousness?
- Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20). How does knowing this truth affect the way you live your life?
- Read Ephesians 1:7 and Colossians 2:2, 3. How can understanding the riches and blessings that come with Christ help us to daily live out the gospel?
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Background music: JustMe “Respect the Name (Instrumental)” from album Full Disclosure – courtesy of Illect Recordings
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