Would you turn back to Romans
chapter one? Verse 16, for I am not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ. I've entitled this message, I'm
not ashamed. of the gospel. I will not be saying anything
new this morning. And if that is what you're looking
for, you're going to go away disappointed. What I will say is what I've
already said many times, but I pray that someone will hear
this message this morning as news. Good news. That's the only way the gospel
is to be heard. As news. Something you've never
heard before. Something powerful. Something
glorious. The good news. The gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm not ashamed of the gospel. There is a lot I'm ashamed of
with regard to myself. And you know, if I didn't have
anything to be ashamed of with regard to myself, listen to these
words by our Lord in Luke chapter 17, verse 10. When you have done
all things which are commanded of you, say, we are unprofitable
servants. Even if you've done everything,
say, we are unprofitable servants. have only done that which was
our duty to do. Can anyone here say we've done
all things which are commanded of us? So yes, you and I have
plenty to be ashamed of. Everything associated with myself,
blank, whatever it is, if I have anything to do with it, I'm ashamed
of it. I'm ashamed of the weakness of
my love. I'm ashamed of the weakness of
my zeal. I'm ashamed of the unbelief that's
in me. I'm ashamed of just whatever
it is, I'm ashamed of it. And I have reason to be. but
I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Not only am
I not ashamed of it, I'm proud of it. Here's the one place where
pride is not misplaced. I am proud of the gospel of Jesus
Christ. It's a gospel worthy of God. That's a powerful thing, isn't
it? The gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel of Christ, according
to this scripture, is the power of God. Don't miss that phrase, the power
of God, the omnipotence of God. gospel of Jesus Christ is the
power of God into salvation. Now, I pray it's the power of
God to my salvation, and I pray that it's the power of God to
your salvation. It's not the power of God to
everyone, only those who are saved, only those who I pray
that everybody in here will leave this room, go out this door,
having been saved by the gospel. The gospel that is the power
of God unto salvation. There is no salvation apart from
hearing, believing, rejoicing in, knowing and not being ashamed
of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am not ashamed of the gospel
of Jesus Christ. It's the power of God into salvation
to the Jew first and also to the Greek. It's the power of
God to salvation to everyone that believeth. Now the incumbent
question is, what is the gospel of which Paul said, I am not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ? What is the gospel of which Paul
was not ashamed? I love the fact that he calls
it the gospel. The good news. Oh, I pray that every time I
hear the gospel, I hear it as if it were the first time I ever
heard it. I hear it as news, and I hear
it as good news, the best thing I've ever heard in my life. Pray that God would give me the
grace to preach the gospel like this, and pray that God would
give you the grace to hear the gospel like this. as the good
news of Jesus Christ. But notice he says, for I'm not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Let's stop there for just a moment.
I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Now you know that
Christ is the Greek translation of the Old Testament word Messiah. I'm not ashamed of the gospel
of the Messiah. The Messiah was God's anointed
office of prophet, priest, and king. If you look into the Old
Testament, there were three offices recognized. Only the Messiah
has all three. God's prophet, the one who brings
the word of God. The one that brings men a word
from God. God's priest, the one who brings
men to God. God's king, the one who rules. Christ Jesus, God's anointed
prophet. He is the Word of God. I love
the way he never said, thus saith the Lord. He said, I say to you,
he is God's Word. He is God's message. He's God's
priest. If he brings you into God's presence,
you must be saved. And he's like no other priest,
because other priests brought the blood of a sacrificial animal. He brings his own blood. And
not only is he the priest, he's the sacrifice. He's the altar
upon which the sacrifice was laid in his own body. What a
priest he is. And what a king he is. King of
kings. Lord, of lords. The gospel of Christ. Look in the first verse of Romans
1, 1. Remember, we're looking at what
IS the gospel of which Paul was not ashamed. What's the gospel
of Christ? Romans 1, 1, Paul, a servant
of Jesus Christ, called to be an Separated into the gospel
of God. Now the gospel of Christ is the
gospel of God. This is God's gospel. This is
not the gospel of man. This is not the gospel of some
denomination or some creed or some church. This is the gospel
of God. God's gospel. Look what he says next. Which
he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures.
This is the gospel of the Bible. You see, the gospel of God is
the gospel of the Holy Scriptures. If I can't show from the Holy
Scriptures that this is the gospel, I have no business preaching.
This is the gospel of the Bible, the Holy Scriptures of truth. Verse 3, this is the gospel concerning
His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. It's the gospel concerning His
Son. the Son of God. Let me read you
a passage from John chapter 5 verses 17 and 18. But Jesus answered
them, My father worketh, that's what the Son says. My father
worketh hitherto, and I work. Whatever he's working, I work.
Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because not
only had he broken the Sabbath, but he said also that God was
his father making himself equal with God. That's what the Son
of God means. He's equal with God. The only way you can be equal
with God is to be God. He's not like God. He is God. Equal with the Father so that
all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in his body. That's who
the Son of God is. Equal. God. Sovereign. Just. Holy. Omnipotent. Omnipresent. Independent. Immutable. Jesus Christ is God
the Son. I love that passage that says,
The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his
hands. He that hath the Son hath life. He that hath not the Son
of God hath not life. The Son. The Son of God is the
gospel concerning His Son. Concerning His Son, Jesus Christ,
look what He says next, Our Lord. Our Lord. Now He's the Lord.
I love His name and title is Lord. He's the Lord. That means
He created the universe. That means everything that is
in time, He controls. You and you woke up this morning
when He willed for you to wake up. That last breath you took,
it's because He willed it. He's in control of everything
in providence. Whatever it is, He's the first cause. Most especially,
He's the Lord of salvation. If you're saved, it's because
He willed you to be saved. That's the only reason. Not because
you willed it, because He willed it. But don't you love to be
able to say, Jesus Christ, our Lord? He's my Lord. Yes, He's the Lord,
whether I acknowledge it or not. But He is my Lord. What a blessed
thing to say, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Verse 3, concerning His
Son. This is the gospel. It's the
gospel of God. The gospel of the scriptures. It's the gospel
concerning His Son. And now look what He says concerning
His Son, which was made of the seed of David, according to the
flesh. Now this is talking about his
incarnation. He was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh. Now, man sinned. Man must die. That's why Christ
became a man. There's one God, one mediator
between God and men, the man. You hear that? The man Christ
Jesus. He was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh. A real man. The man Christ Jesus. The Word was made flesh. Great
is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. He was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh. and declared to be the Son of
God. Yes, he was the seed of David
according to the flesh, but he's the Son of God. He's God the
Son, the uncreated second person of the blessed Trinity, the Son
of God with power, with omnipotence. And here's three things that
demonstrate his omnipotence according to this passage of scripture.
The Holy Spirit. Declared to be the son of God
with power according to the spirit of holiness, the Holy Spirit. That's a small S. Well, make
it a capital S. He was endued with the Holy Spirit,
omnipotent. Here's the second demonstration
of his power, a holy life. the spirit of holiness. He is
the only man to ever live a holy life. One of the things I think
is so amazing is his brothers and sisters grew up with him
and they didn't know it. They didn't recognize it. His
father did. a holy life. Here's the third
point of his power. The first point is the power
of the Holy Spirit. That's how he was enabled to
live this holy life. And the third thing he says is
by the resurrection of the dead. How powerful he is seen in him
raising himself from the dead. His father raised him from the
dead. Why did he die? Sin. Why was he raised? He put away sin. was delivered
for our offenses. He was raised again for our justification. Now, this is the gospel. He's
made of the seed of David according to the flesh but declared to
be the Son of God with power in the Spirit of holiness by
the resurrection of the dead. Paul said in 2nd Timothy 2a,
remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised
from the dead according to my gospel. Now that's the gospel
he's speaking of when he says I'm not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ. It is the power of God unto salvation. Now, look at verse 17 of Romans
chapter 1. For therein, in the gospel, is
the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. Now, if you ask the average religious
person in Lexington, Kentucky this morning, what does the gospel
reveal about God, how would they answer it? You know as well as
I do, the love of God. The gospel reveals the love of
God. Now what I think is very interesting
is that's not what Paul spoke of. Now, there's no doubt the
love of God is behind the gospel. There's no question about that.
God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. But
when Paul talks about what's revealed in the gospel, what
does he speak of? Therein is the righteousness of God revealed
from faith to faith. Now, if my answer is the love
of God, I really prove that I don't even understand what the love
of God is. You don't understand the love of God if you don't
understand the righteousness of God. This is so important.
Therein in the gospel is the righteousness of God revealed
from faith to faith. Now turn with me for a moment
to Romans chapter 10 while you're in the book of Romans. Verse one. Brethren, my heart's desire and
prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved. Now this
is glorious. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. Peter was the apostle to the
Jews. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. But Paul was a national Jew.
He was a physical Jew, and he loved his brethren. Although
he realized that they had rejected the gospel, what does he pray
to God for? My heart's desire. This is my
desire. My prayer to God for Israel is
that they might be saved. Now, in that statement, he makes
two very powerful statements. They're not saved. They're not saved. And my heart's
desire is that they would be saved. Now look what he says
next. For I bear them record. They
have a zeal of God. They're very zealous toward the
God of the Bible as they understand it. They read the Bible. They study the Bible. They try
to live by what the Bible says. They're very zealous. These people
are not apathetic. They're not indifferent. They're
not cold hearted. Now he's talking about what the
world would call good people. Good people. They have a zeal
for God, but not according to knowledge, for they being ignorant of God's
righteousness. Now remember, the gospel reveals
What? The righteousness of God. Therein
is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. Now these
people, the Jews, and all of us by nature, are ignorant of
God's righteousness. Now somebody says, how can you
know everybody's ignorant of God's righteousness? Because
everybody by nature believes in salvation by works. And if
I believe in salvation by works in any way, if you believe your
salvation is dependent upon you doing something, That works. That simple. If you believe your
salvation is dependent upon you asking Jesus into your heart,
I hate that phrase. Accepting Jesus Christ as your
personal Savior, I hate that phrase. You must first accept the offer
of forgiveness as if God wants to forgive you, but it's up to
you to accept it or reject it. If your salvation is dependent
upon you stopping committing some sin before God will save
you, I don't care what it is, if there's something you must
do before God can do something for you, that's salvation by
works. And here's what I demonstrate
if I believe in salvation by works. I demonstrate a complete
ignorance of God's righteousness, so I think he could accept something
that I did. Oh, I'm completely ignorant of who he is. I'm ignorant
of his righteousness. If I think that there's something
I could do that he could respond to and accept, I'm ignorant of
my own sinfulness. Now, the belief in salvation
by works is a complete ignorance of his righteousness. It's an
ignorance of his righteous character. It's an ignorance of his righteousness
in my condemnation. As soon as we start saying, well,
how could that be fair for God to elect some and pass by others? How could this be fair? How could
that? That's a failure to submit to his righteousness in my condemnation. Would God be righteous if he
sent you to hell? Yes, he would. Yes, he would. No excuses. that it's also an
ignorance of His righteousness in my salvation. You see, if
I'm saved, it's because of His righteousness being my righteousness.
I love what Paul said, but now the righteousness of God without
the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the
prophets, even the righteousness of God, which is by the faith
of Jesus Christ. That's the righteousness of God
I'm saved by. I'm not saved by my own righteousness, I'm saved
by the righteousness of God being my personal righteousness. Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Turn back to Romans chapter one. For therein, verse 17, is the
righteousness of God, His righteous character, His righteousness
in my condemnation, His righteousness in my salvation, how He's made
the way to be just and justify the ungodly. For therein is the
righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. Now what in the world does that
mean? From my faith to your faith? I don't think so. We read in Romans chapter three
of the faith of God. From his faith, giving us faith. From faith to faith. And then we have this glorious
statement, as it is written. You know, it's written four times.
As it is written, the just shall live by faith. The just, the righteous, that
word is translated that way quite often, the righteous. I will
repeat, there are only two kinds of people in this world, the
righteous and the wicked. All the righteous believe themselves
to be wicked. All of the wicked believe themselves
to be righteous, or at least have the potential to be righteous
if everything is in good order. They live before God, they have
life before God. Paul said, I live, yet not I,
but Christ liveth in me. And the life that I now live
in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me
and gave himself for me. The just shall live by faith. Not by works. Not by works. The just shall
live by faith. What does that mean? Does that
mean that the act of faith gives life? No. You don't believe,
then live. You live and believe. Faith is
not the cause of life. It's the product of life. It's the evidence of life. The just shall live by faith. Now, Habakkuk 2.4, behold, this
is the first time this word is mentioned, behold, The soul which
is lifted up is not upright in him, but the just shall live
by faith. Faith is opposed to all human
pride. That soul that's lifted up is
not upright. The just shall live by faith.
You see, there's nothing to glory and be proud about if you're
saved as far as your works. Faith is opposed to all human
pride. And then in our text, it's only
faith that receives the righteousness of God, but now the righteousness
of God without the law is manifested. being witnessed by the law and
the prophets, even the righteousness which is of God by the faith
of Jesus Christ. Only faith receives the righteousness
of God. Do you receive the righteousness
of God as the only righteousness you have? And then Paul said in Galatians
chapter 13 verse 11, but that no man is justified by the law
on the side of God. It's evident. for the just shall
live by faith. Faith is opposed to works. It's an enemy to salvation by
works, by law. It's an enemy. And then in Hebrews
chapter 10, verse 38, now the just shall live by faith, but
if any man draw back, my soul shall have no. Pleasure in Him. The only way I persevere is by
faith. That's it. Looking to Christ only. If you
leave that, you've left Christ. You look to Christ only. The just shall live by faith. Perseverance only comes by continuing
to look to Christ. Now in conclusion, Paul said,
I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. How do I know that
the gospel I believe is, in fact, the gospel of Christ? Number one, have I given you what the scriptures
teach? You say, I don't know. Well,
you haven't been listening then. Yes, this is the gospel of Holy Scripture. Is my gospel the gospel of Holy
Scripture, not some church or denomination or creed or man-made? No. Is my gospel the gospel of
Holy Scripture? What I just preached is. I appeal
to the Scripture. That's the only appeal I make.
So the first mark is the gospel I believe. The same gospel Paul
believed. Well, is it the gospel of scripture?
Here is the second reason I know that my gospel is the gospel
that I'm glorying in is because my gospel gives all the glory
to God and none of the glory to man. All the glory. Every bit of it. I can't take
glory in anything. He did it all. God forbid that I should glory. saving the cross of the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's how I know my gospel is
the gospel. It really does give God all the glory. And I'll tell
you what, I'm glad it gives God all the glory. Not only because
I love Him, because if it doesn't give God all the glory, that
means there's some work I need to perform to be saved. I've
even got selfish motives in that. I mean, yes, I want Him to get
all the glory, but I don't want to have any glory, because that
means it's up to me. And I know I'll fail at that.
I have to have a gospel. For me to be saved, I have to
have a gospel where He gets all the glory. Here's the third mark. My gospel magnifies all of God's
attributes. If the gospel you hear is contrary
to any of God's attributes, if it's contrary to His sovereignty
or His immutability or His independence, if there's something you need
to do before He can do something for you, if it's contrary to
His righteousness and absolute justice and holiness, go on and
on. If God's attributes are violated,
if we whittle down God with our doctrine in a false gospel, it's
not the gospel of God. It's not the gospel of which
Paul was not ashamed. Does it make the way for God
to be just and justify the ungodly? Somebody says, well, is that
even an issue? Yes, it is. It's actually the message of
the whole Bible. I know to some people it's not an issue, but
to God's people it is. My gospel magnifies all of the
attributes of God. Now here's the fourth reason
I know my gospel is the gospel. This is the gospel that comes
to me where I am, not where I should be, but where I am as the chief
of sinners and saves me. The only gospel that'll do me
any good is the gospel that'll come to me where I am, dead in
sins, and give me life. This gospel saves the chief of
sinners. And I know my gospel's the gospel because it keeps him
saved. Kept by the power of God. through faith unto salvation. Keeps them saved. You know the
reason I'm still saved? Because God keeps me saved. I'm
completely saved by the gospel and I keep being saved by the
gospel. I'm not ashamed. No, I'm proud of the gospel of
Christ. For it is the power of God into
salvation to everyone that believeth. Would that describe you? Do you
believe the gospel? I'm not asking you if you know
you're saved, but I'm asking you this, do you believe the
gospel? It's the power of God into salvation
to everyone that believeth. To the Jew first, also to the
Greek, for therein, in the gospel. is the righteousness of God revealed
from faith to faith as it's written, the just shall live by faith. Let's pray. Lord, how we thank you for the
gospel of Christ the gospel of your son who was made of the
seed of David according to the flesh and declared to be the
son of God with power by the spirit of holiness and the resurrection
of the dead. Lord, how we thank you for our
gospel. Your gospel is our gospel if
we're saved by it. Lord, I ask in Christ's name
that everybody in this room by your grace, might be able
to say from their hearts, I'm not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Lord, make this your power unto
salvation for every one of us. Give us saving faith. We pray
for our children that you'd reveal yourself to them. In Christ's
name we pray, amen.