Back in 1505 a young man, Martin Luther, was riding though a forest when a thunderstorm broke out. A bolt of lightning came so near to him that he was thrown from his horse. Fearful for his salvation, he cried out to the Catholic patron Saint of miners: “Help me, St. Anna, and I will become a monk.”
Luther believed that God was out to get him. He feared the wrath of God and thought he could earn God’s favour by becoming a monk.
However being a monk did not help Luther. He began to see that he could never achieve moral perfection before a holy God. He could not understand how a holy God could accept a sinful man.
However a change came when Luther studied the book of Romans and, by God’s grace, he discovered the truth that would change him forever.
The passage of scripture that took him from despair to delight was Romans 1:16-17.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.’
Luther understood that the righteousness in this passage was not the righteousness God displays in judgment, but the righteousness He gives to the person who places faith in Jesus Christ.
Luther realized that sinful man is not saved by his good works. Rather, righteousness is accredited or imputed to sinners on the basis of faith alone. Luther called this a “foreign righteousness,” meaning it is a righteousness that comes from God, and is freely given by God, to all who believe.
The writer of Romans had been abused, scorned, and beaten for preaching the gospel as it was, and is, a message that strips an individual of pride and deflates the ego.
The Gospel tells every individual:
- That all, without exception, have sinned – “For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:22b-23).
- That no one can earn a righteous standing before God. No amount of good works can achieve this – “Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20).
- That God has provided a means – faith in Jesus Christ – by which an individual can be regarded as righteous in His sight – “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it – the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction” (Romans 3:21-22 ESV).
The Gospel is God’s power for salvation.
When a sinner confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord and places their faith in Him as their Saviour a tremendous change takes place. They have an assurance of salvation in all its fullness and perfection. They know they have been saved from the penalty their sin deserved. They can know and experience freedom from sin’s power over them now, and one day they will be freed from the very presence of sin.
All who place faith in Jesus Christ are given a righteous standing, are justified, in God’s sight:
“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1).
Salvation from sin’s reign and power is promised as an ongoing experience. There is freedom from sin as the dominating power in life:
“But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life” (Romans 6:22).
Salvation is also promised from sin’s presence. There is future glorification that is so certain that Paul refers to this future prospect in the past tense.
“Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified” (Romans 8:30).
The message of the gospel is not just for one people group. Nor is it limited to one period of time or one area of the world. It is a message for all.
The gospel tells us that God's righteousness demands that sins be punished, and the penalty is eternal death. But God's love provided what His righteousness demanded. He sent His Son to die as a Substitute for sinners, paying the penalty in full. Now because His righteous claims have been fully satisfied, God can righteously save all those who avail themselves of (take advantage of, benefit from) the work of Christ.
The gospel is to be received by faith. The expression “from faith to faith” (1:17) means that God's righteousness is extended to us on the principle of faith, and it is to be received by faith. God states the terms, and we must accept them.
From the moment we do, we are forever treated, by God, as if we were righteous, because God sees us in all the perfection of Christ. Righteousness is imputed to our account.
The gospel transforms lives. It did in Rome some 2,000 years ago. It did in Germany with Martin Luther some 500 years ago. It still does today. It transforms all who come in repentance to God and faith in Jesus Christ.
