Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believes; to the Jew first… I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ — I. Because of the heroic character of its witnesses. II. Because of the influence it has had on civilisation. III. Because of its adaptability to human necessities. IV. Because of the promise it gives of eternal life. I. THE HEROIC CHARACTER OF ITS WITNESSES. I think it is Thomas Carlyle who says that "the history of a nation is the history of its great men." On the same principle it may be said that the history of Christianity is the history of its heroes. For it is from them and by them that we have given to us practical illustration of the power and processes of the great God-sent religion. And first we turn to Him who was at once the Founder and Finisher of the faith, Jesus Christ, whose life may be said to epitomise the biography of mankind. But perhaps it may be said, "Time has lent a fascination to their labours; what they did perforce has been transfigured into something done for love." If it was done "perforce," it was the force of Christianity — the force of Jesus Christ, and that is the force of devotion and love. I do not know that history and the lapse of time have done anything to magnify their work. The gospel of Jesus Christ prompts men to acts of as great heroism today as it did in the darker times of history. II. BECAUSE OF ITS INFLUENCE ON CIVILISATION. So silently has this power been exercised, that we are very apt to lose sight of its influence upon the morals of men. And yet in its very secrecy has lain its strength. It began by enforcing the truth of universal brotherhood: the duties of each to all, and of all to each. It flung aside the superstitions of the age. Civilisation without religion! It is impossible. It is fire without warmth; it is motion without progress; it is existence, but it is not life. It becomes in time the very apotheosis of immorality. I have said that the influence of religion is spiritual. But all work which is spiritual eventually reveals itself in the natural, the material. So is it especially, I think, with the Christian faith. What has Christianity done for men in the mass? Each phase of its spiritual activity has its equivalent in the natural world, in society. III. BECAUSE OF ITS ADAPTABILITY TO HUMAN NECESSITIES. Herein lies the beauty and the blessedness of our religion. It is to this that what in the most sacred sense may be called its success is due. To go back to its earliest days, how did it attract men? It gave rest to the weary, and comfort to the sad; it cheered the mourning and raised the dead to life. Today its methods are the same. How are we to account for this power? Simply, I think, because its Founder was "the Man Christ Jesus." He knew what was in man. IV. BECAUSE OF THE PROMISE IT GIVES OF ETERNAL LIFE. It is not a reward; it is a development. And even if it were only a reward, I am too human to disregard its value as an element in the teaching of Jesus Christ. A religion which provides for this world only is no religion at all. (R. Barclay, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: 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. |
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