Romans 1:16 AMPC
[16] For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (good news) of Christ, for it is God's power working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance, to the Jew first and also to the Greek,
Paul was writing to the church in Rome, and he was referring to people who are loved by God, and called to be His Holy people. That distinction is very important, because it lays the groundwork for the rest of the letter that Paul wrote to the church in Rome. The focus of the letter started from the fundamental foundation of our faith, which is the death and resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Without that being a reality, our faith is in vain and our walk and work with and for God will be a waste of time. Paul refers to the Gospel of God, which is the good news about Jesus, the son of God. Think of the love of God that could make Him freely offer up Himself as an offering for sin, not because the people now deserved it, but because of the many that would come to accept the offering and put their total trust in Him. God considered the pain and hurt as worth it, even if it was one person who came to believe. That is the good news of Jesus.
This Gospel is all about Christ. There will be many channels and vessels that God will use to pass on the good news of Jesus to other people, but I must never forget the focus and message behind the good news, who is Jesus Himself. By Him, I have life eternal to look forward to. By Him, my past is forgiven and forgotten, and a new path to life has been laid out and secured for me. By Him, I walk in His steps and I am in line to also inherit after Him. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power that is at work in all who have come to accept the sacrifice of the cross. Anyone who has tasted of the power of resurrection will not settle for anything else or anything less than the original. It is also very dangerous, after having partaken of the power and grace, to then turn back from following Jesus. This is apostasy, and we know from the bible that God will not be pleased with anyone involved with that.
If you lose the essence of salvation, what else of eternal value have you got? This is the clear message in the verse above. Having tasted it, Paul knew the value of what he had now received. If someone has impacted your life and changed the trajectory of your journey to eternity, you will want to tell the world about it. The same Paul, writing to Titus, his son in the faith, that the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. God has made an offer to the world, so that His judgment can be right and fair. The power of resurrection has not lost its effect, impact or range. As it was then, so is it now. There is an end to all that we see or have now. A day will soon come that will mark the end of the earthly journey of salvation and the start of the heavenly reward of eternal redemption. It is a personal encounter with Jesus, and it does not matter what your origins are, or your tribal leanings; just make sure that your path leads you to Christ so that you are eternally secure. God's time of favour is here.
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