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We live in a world of bad news. Shootings, knifings, smash and grab, illegals pouring across our southern borders, drug dealers, sex traffickers, Freudianism, Darwinism, and Marxism saturating our academic world, educators pushing sexual perversion, normalizing trangenderism, political deception and corruption, trillions of dollars wasted by our government ($6.82 trillion in 2021), and now 86,000 armed IRS agents headed for our doors! We have reason to be angry. We are in need of some good news!
That’s exactly what Paul introduces us to in the book of Romans. In verse 1 Paul told us he is separated to the gospel of God, God’s good news, the only good news that can bring hope and joy to a world of anger and hate, fear and anxiety. God’s good news gives forgiveness and assurance of eternal life to a world guilty and condemned in sin. From the moment Christ converted the apostle Paul on the Damascus Road, Paul invested his entire life to preaching God’s good news to a world filled with bad news. He preached God’s good news in synagogues, town squares, marketplaces, houses, halls of philosophy, jails, ships, all the way to Rome, where they finally chopped off his head. Paul had no other interest than to know Christ and to make Him known. This was his calling, his mission as an apostle sent by Christ. He told Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:8-10:
Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, 9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, 10 but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
Let’s go to the beginning of Romans. Paul introduced himself in verse 1 and could have gone straight to verse 7. This would have been a typical salutation. But when Paul thought about God’s good news at the end of verse one, it seems he can’t help but going on a rabbit trail to pack into these opening verses the main points of that good news from God. As we look at these verses, may God give us a fresh vision of how good His good news really is. Let’s hear it like those shepherds heard it when the angel appeared in Luke 2 and announced, Behold, I bring you glad tidings of great joy! And what great joy those good tidings were. “Good tidings” is the same word as gospel, which means good news. Every day is Christmas for believers. We have good tidings of great joy for a world of rebels and guilty sinners headed for a Christless eternity under the wrath of God. You don’t have to die in your sin. This good news is why we sing with joyful hearts like blind Fanny Crosby’s “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. Oh what a foretaste of glory divine” and “Redeemed how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb!” Let’s look at four great features of this good news that greatly excited Paul.
GOD’S GOOD NEWS ISN’T NEW NEWS
Romans 1:2, which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
Jewish leaders may have accused Paul of buying into some new Jesus cult, but Paul assures us the gospel he preached had its origin all the way back in the Old Testament. God promised this good saving news as soon as sin entered the world in Genesis 3. The seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent, the devil. God promised this good news to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You see this good news in that Passover lamb and every sacrifice Israel made in the Old Testament. God promised the good news through the prophets. MacArthur says there are 322 prophecies about Messiah and many were fulfilled literally in His first coming – born in Bethlehem, pierced his hands and feet, cast lots for his clothing, not to mention all the prophecies in Isaiah about his virgin conception and substitutionary atonement on the cross. So this good news, this message, is not some scheme created by Paul. Every book of the Old Testament somehow speaks of Jesus!
• In Genesis, He’s the Seed of the woman.
• In Exodus, He’s the Passover Lamb.
• In Leviticus, He’s our High Priest.
• In Numbers, He’s the Pillar of cloud by day and the Pillar of fire by night.
• In Deuteronomy, He’s the Prophet like unto Moses.
• In Joshua, He’s the Commander of the Lord’s army.
• In Judges, He’s our Judge and Lawgiver.
• In Ruth, He’s our Kinsman Redeemer.
• In 1st and 2nd Samuel, He’s the Seed of David.
• In Kings and Chronicles, He’s our reigning King.
• In Ezra, He’s our faithful Scribe.
• In Nehemiah, He’s the Rebuilder of everything broken.
• In Esther, He’s our Mordecai, our Advocate.
• In Job, He’s our ever-living Redeemer.
• In Psalms, He’s our Shepherd.
• In Proverbs, He’s our Wisdom.
• In Ecclesiastes, He’s our meaning for life.
• In the Song of Solomon, He’s the loving Bridegroom.
• In Isaiah, He’s the Prince of peace.
• In Jeremiah and Lamentations, He’s our weeping Prophet.
• In Ezekiel, He’s the Glorious Lord.
• In Daniel, He’s the fourth Man in the “fiery furnace.”
• In Hosea, He’s the faithful Husband.
• In Joel, He’s the Outpourer of the Holy Spirit.
• In Amos, He’s our Burden-bearer.
• In Obadiah, He’s our Judge and Savior.
• In Jonah, He’s the risen Prophet.
• In Micah, He’s the Ruler of the world from Bethlehem.
• In Nahum, He’s our Stronghold.
• In Habakkuk, He’s the Watchman.
• In Zephaniah, He’s the Mighty to save.
• In Haggai, He’s the Restorer.
• In Zechariah, He’s the One pierced for us.
• In Malachi, He’s the Son of Righteousness.
So God’s good news for the Romans isn’t new news. Remember Luke 24:27, Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures. And John 5:39, You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me. While we don’t find Christ in every nook and cranny of the Old Testament like some, if you take Christ out of the Old Testament you have an empty shell of human history. When you get on the Old Testament train, it will take you straight to the Good News of Jesus Christ in His first and second coming.
Next is the second and best feature of the good news which excited Paul.
GOD’S GOOD NEWS IS JESUS CHRIST
Romans 1:3-4, concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord.
These are two jam-packed verses about Jesus Christ. The good news isn’t a new law or a new religion or philosophy. It isn’t some new insight into human behavior. It isn’t about knocking down all the differences in the human race or some godless global “build back better” poppycock. It’s about this Person and Paul wants us to understand exactly who He is.
First, He is a human being, “according to the flesh,” but not any human being. God had promised the Messiah would come through the tribe of Judah in Genesis 49:10, The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. Then He would come through the offspring of David in Jeremiah 23:5, “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land.” So He had to be born through the seed of David, a descendant of David.
Sure enough, one day Gabriel the angel visited a young lady who was a descendent of David and spoke to her. Luke 1:31-33, And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end. Mary was thoroughly flummoxed. “How can this be? I’m a virgin!” Aha! Luke 1:35, The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.”
How did that happen? We have no idea. But we do know that by the power of God Almighty, Mary conceived and the holy little fetus in her very human womb was none other than the Son of God Himself, who humbled Himself to become a full-fledged but sinless human being, Jesus of Nazareth. Amazing! Never stop being thrilled at the marvelous incarnation!
But wait a minute. Mary’s genealogy came from David through Nathan, but the royal line had to come through Solomon. Exactly. That’s why we have two genealogies. In God’s amazing providence, He had Jesus born physically through Mary (Luke 3) and legally through Joseph, whose line goes back to David through Solomon (Matthew 1). Jesus was virgin-conceived through Mary and has the right to the throne of David through his legal father, Joseph! And like the angel said, He will one day sit on the throne of David ruling over Israel and the entire world.
Second in verse 4, His resurrection proved or declared to all mankind everywhere and for all time that He is exactly who He claimed to be: the victorious Son of God. They murdered Him by hanging Him on a cross. He died. They buried Him. They thought, “Good riddance.” But watch. Up from the grave He arose with a mighty triumph o’er His foes! This is the keystone truth that holds the entire redemptive story together. Remove the resurrection and all Christianity collapses into the dust heap of history. We celebrate Easter every day.
He was raised with power. This means with universal power Christ smashed Satan’s empire, destroyed death, and conquered sin’s curse on mankind once for all. The phrase “spirit of holiness” probably refers to Christ’s holy, sinless spirit. Christ was sinless so death could not keep its prey. Once He bore the sins of His people and drank the last drop of the wrath of God on that cross, nothing could keep Him in the grave. He arose, is perfectly holy, and is Jesus Christ our Lord!
This is Paul’s message in a nutshell. Christ was born as a man, but as the Son of God He was raised with power and now all authority has been given to Him. Whoever defeats death rules. Christ as our Savior defeated death. He rules. Don’t ever get over the resurrection. He told John in Revelation 1: 18, I was dead. But look, I am alive forevermore!
Paul rests the entire truth of Christianity on it. He’ll tell us in Romans 10:9-10, If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. That, friends, is not just good news. That’s the best news you’ll ever hear! And just like Paul, whatever you do, whatever your earthly calling, Christ and this good news must be central in your life too. You are a carrier of good news. Be prepared for God to use you.
GOD’S GOOD NEWS IS FOR ALL THE NATIONS
Romans 1:5, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name’s sake,
Here is Paul’s mission and ours. Paul received all grace and authority from Christ to go out into the world, eventually up to Rome and maybe all the way to Spain, to proclaim this good news and call people of every group and color to submit to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. “All the Gentiles” means everybody. This good news came for the entire world.
The mission of the church is to preach this gospel so people will bow their hearts to Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior in obedient faith. The “obedience of faith” could mean the obedience that faith produces or it could mean faith itself is obedience. When you respond by faith to Jesus Christ, you are obeying the gospel. The gospel is more than an invitation; it’s an ultimatum to the nations, whether they respond or not. Plus true faith always leads to obedience. Paul knew the purpose of the gospel is not just to get people to make decisions, pray a prayer, raise a hand, or go forward. The gospel’s purpose is to bring people into submission to Christ so they begin to glorify Him in their lives. This is our mission as well, and this message continues for all nations.
Think of all the missionaries we’ve heard of and read about who took this very gospel message to the far corners of this planet, to all the Gentiles. John Paton took the good news to the wild savages of the New Hebrides Islands. James Chalmers took the good news to the cannibals of Papua New Guinea, and they ate him. Adoniram Judson took the good news to Burma for nearly 40 years. Millionaire William Borden of Yale headed for China as a missionary, but died in Egypt at age 25 of spinal meningitis. Jim Elliot took the gospel into the jungles of South America. He and his missionary buddies were cut down with spears. In all these cases, God’s good news finally made progress among the former murdering savages.
GOD’S GOOD NEWS BRINGS RICH BLESSINGS
Romans 1:6-7, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; 7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
But how do we know anyone will receive this good news? The world is in darkness and rebellion against God. What confidence do we have that any will respond in obedient faith to the gospel? Manipulating people, pressuring people, beating them over the head with the Bible, or even making them feel bad or getting them emotionally excited may make them say a prayer, but those things are human attempts for what only God can do. Our confidence in bringing people to Christ is not in our methods or abilities, but in God’s power. Paul knew this and stated in 2 Corinthians 4:7, We have this treasure in earthen vessels that the power may be of God. It is God’s work, not ours. We tell others the gospel message and God uses that message to draw His own to Himself. We give out the message and He does the regenerating. Paul reminds us of several reasons we can have confidence that some will respond to the good news.
Effectual Call – Jesus Christ calls people to believe in Him, “you, even you, are the called of Jesus Christ” or called by Jesus Christ. This is the sovereign, glorious work of divine grace. John 10:27, My sheep hear my voice, I know them, they follow me. This is the effectual call that actually brings people to Christ. Two men can hear the same good news. One will sit there and think about that project he’s working on or how much money he has for that new car or maybe what he did last night and wonders when the sermon will be over and leaves as an unregenerate man. That’s the general call. The other sits there blown away by the promises and assurances of the good news and when convicted in his heart of his sins, he reaches out in faith to Christ, affirming that he truly does believe in Christ. He leaves a different person. He has been effectually called. He may try to run away like Jonah, but God can send wind and storms and fish and almost anything to bring that man to Himself.
Loved by God – God loves those whom He has chosen in eternity past and makes sure they come to His Son. They are beloved by God. God didn’t give us this good news just hoping some would receive His Son. He loved His own with an everlasting love. Imagine those believers in Rome, many no doubt slaves, loved by God, cared for by God, delighted in by God. In a few years some of them will be turned into torches for Nero’s ridiculous parties or sewn into animal skins and thrown to mad dogs for entertainment. But nothing will separate them from the love of God. This is God’s good news. Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote, “We are Christians for one reason only and that is that God has set His love upon us.” We are in Christ and God loves us in the same way He loves Christ.
Called Saints – God calls sinners, loves sinners, and then through faith in His Son God instantly turns them into saints. Every believer is a saint. Alva McClain, founder of Grace Theological Seminary, wrote, “God never goes to a sinner and tells him to try to attain to sainthood. He picks us out of the mud, and He says, ‘You are a saint.’” Instant sainthood. Saint means holy one or set apart. Everyone in this church who is a genuine believer in Christ is a saint.
Grace and Peace – Finally in a world of bad news, of suffering and abuse and worse, God’s good news brings grace and peace into your life. Every desire you have to please God is fueled by grace. He is the God of all grace. So whatever you are dealing with, no matter the guilt, trial, or hardship, you need to look to God, the source and fountain of grace to empower your walk with Him. Search His Word for strength and grace.
And what does grace bring with it? Peace. The meaning here is the experience of peace knowing all is well with your soul as you cast your cares on Him. Keep your heart focused on Christ and like Isaiah 26:3-4 says, You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. 4 Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock (ESV).
This is God’s ever fresh good news promised in the Old Testament, secured by Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection, provided for sinners through the obedience of faith. You are blessed beyond measure with His calling you, loving you, turning you into a saint, and pouring His enabling and assuring grace and peace into your heart. In a world of bad news, the ultimate good news is all found in Jesus Christ. This is the good news that motivated the apostle Paul and it should be the good news that motivates you to live every day in the grace and peace that only Jesus Christ can give. Is this good news at the very center of your life? Or are you feeding on bad news and living a miserable, defeated, hopeless life? We’ve had enough bad news. With Paul, let’s go out into our world ready with this good news in our hearts and on our tongues.