Though it is traditional in some of our circles to preach on the triumphal entry of our Lord Jesus into Jerusalem on this day, I'd like to draw your attention today from the micro to the macro. I'd like for us to think not so much about the very specific act of our Savior and sitting on a beast of burden, a beast of peace, and entering that city at that time. But I'd like for us to step back and consider what he did in terms of the macro vision. I'd like for you to consider with me then, not a reading from the gospel, one of the evangelists, but I'd like for you to consider with me a reading from Romans chapter 1. Would you turn with me in your scriptures, please, to Romans chapter 1? Our focus this morning will be on Romans 1, 16. It's so rich, we won't even be considering much of that last phrase, speaking of the Jew first and the Greek. Wonderful teaching there. But hear God's Word, reading in Romans 1, 1 through 17, and focusing our attention then on verse 16, the Word of the Lord. Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning his son, who was descended from David according to the flesh, and who was declared to be the son of God in power according to the spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of His name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. For God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son. That without ceasing, I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. For I long to see you that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you. That is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. I want you to know, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you, but have thus far been prevented, in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. I am under obligation, both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, As it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. Thus far the reading in God's holy word. May he bless it to each of our hearts. Brothers and sisters, well loved by our Lord Jesus Christ. In thinking about these verses, particularly 16 and 17, Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones, the minister at Westminster Chapel in London, said, There are no two verses of greater importance in the whole of Scripture than the two verses which we are now considering. The pastor of 10th Prez in Philadelphia, Dr. James Boyce, said of these verses that they are the most important in the letter and perhaps in all literature. They are the theme of this epistle and the essence of Christianity. They are the heart of biblical religion. The reason this is so is that they tell how a man or a woman may become right with God. Beautiful, right with God. This year, 2017, we're celebrating the outbreak of the Reformation with Luther's nailing his theses to the Wittenberg church door. And these verses in front of us today were central in the conversion of Martin Luther. He said, this passage of Paul has become to me a gateway to heaven. This passage, this letter as a whole, has had an immeasurable impact on Christians throughout the centuries. John Calvin spoke of Romans and said in 1540 that if we have gained a true understanding of this epistle, we have an open door to all the most profound treasures of Scripture. So I'd encourage you, any time you can spend in Romans is time well invested. Now, of course, all of Paul's letters are written for particular occasions, and this is no exception. If you look at the last, or look through up to verse 15, you'll see, or if you look at chapter 15, verse 25. The apostle intends to go to Rome, and he's sending this epistle ahead of himself. He intends to go through Rome and on to Spain to preach the gospel there, and this is his setting forth the essential content of his teaching. And what is that? It is the gospel. It is the gospel. If you look at verse 1, he's been set apart for the gospel of God. Look at verse 9. He serves God with his spirit in the gospel of his son. And in verse 15, he's eager to preach the gospel to those who are in Rome. This word gospel, evangelium, evangel, this is something of a one-word summary of the teaching of the Apostle Paul. This is a word that appears 76 times in the New Testament, both in its noun form, gospel, and the verb form, to preach the gospel, and 60 of those times are used by the Apostle Paul. This is a synopsis of his essential message. And so then when we get to 16, if you know anything about the Apostle's life, he says there that he's not ashamed of the gospel. This strikes us at first as a little bit strange. Is there anywhere in the book of Acts where you see Paul ashamed of the gospel? Is there anywhere there where you see him hesitant to share it? Is he reluctant to talk about the gospel? Is he shy? Is he cowed or hesitant? And the answer I would say is not. So why is it that he speaks this way? Now that in itself, you'll forgive my coughing today, It seems like half of us are coughing today. All of your ministers are out, and they called me in at the last minute. Anyway, this is a large topic. Obviously, this text has its role to play in the larger purpose of Romans. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that there are some who are becoming ashamed of the gospel. We see in chapter 16, verse 17 and following that there's the beginnings of false teaching in the Roman church. Perhaps there's a particular temptation for the Roman Christians to be ashamed of the gospel. And if you know anything about your own heart, you know that you have been tempted to be ashamed of the gospel, as I have been. This is a universal temptation. Certainly, Timothy was tempted to be ashamed of the gospel, or Paul would not write to him as he does in 2 Timothy 1.8. Do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God. Flipping to the positive, Paul recognizes Onesimus as one who was not ashamed of my chains, as he says in 2 Timothy 1.16, when they were together in Rome. So this is a temptation for us. And if you've been a Christian for any significant amount of time, you sense that our Christian message is either incomprehensible, it's just bizarre, or it's very offensive at some fundamental level, despicable in the minds of unbelievers. Paul says that we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles. This Christian message simply does not scratch the world where it itches. And Paul says that Jews demand science and Greeks seek wisdom. That this is a foolish and this is a message that does not attract the power plays of the world. The 4th century preacher John Chrysostom underlined the contrast between what Romans expected and wanted and what Paul was offering in his teaching. Chrysostom put it this way. The Romans were most anxious about the things of the world because of their riches, their empire, their victories. And they thought that their emperors were equal to the gods. Let me note that there's a great temptation in powerful countries, even like ours, that we might be very self-satisfied. Chrysostom goes on. While they were so puffed up, Paul was going to preach Jesus, the carpenter's son. who was brought up and despised Judea in the house of a lower class woman, who had no bodyguards, who was not surrounded by wealth, but who died as a criminal among thieves and endured many other inglorious and shameful afflictions. As you identify, as you stand up and identify yourself with Christ, will you be looked down on? At some level, the answer is certainly, certainly yes. Wherever that is and exactly what that's like, I'm not sure, but it will surely be the case. The Apostle Peter tells us in 1 Peter 4, 12, Rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed because the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. Jesus himself says in the Sermon on the Mount, Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. There will be alienation. The more you stand up, the more you will take it. The more flack you will receive for your Christian testimony and for your Christian stance. So, admitting that I, that each of us, are tempted to be ashamed of the gospel. What's the solution then? How do we respond to that? My suggestion today to you is not subjective, but objective. I'm not going to turn your attention back on yourself this morning. I'm not going to tell you be more brave, be less embarrassed or something like that. Although we do need to be brave. But the solution as Paul presents it here in verse 16 is outside of himself. I love that phrase in the formula that we just read. It's outside of ourself, right? In verse 16, why is Paul not ashamed of the gospel? He says it as he continues. Because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. That's objective, and that's where I'd like to draw your attention this morning. Paul wants his original readers, and he wants us to be persuaded of just how powerful the gospel is. He wants us to see how effective and how beautiful Christ is, that we might be drawn to him and that we might be more proud of him. Matter of fact, I think this is exactly what Paul is saying here. I'm proud of the gospel. The Moffat translation has exactly this. I am proud of the gospel. Paul is a very skilled Greek writer, and he uses all kinds of literary devices to make his points. And if you'll let me use a nerdy comment, This is a construction called a litotes. A litotes is making an assertion by denying the contrary. He does the same thing in Acts chapter 21, verse 39. He says, I'm a Jew from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of, now catch this, no ordinary city. What did he do? I'm a citizen of no ordinary city. Negative, negative equals positive. And that's what he's doing here. He's saying, I'm not, negative, ashamed, negative, equals positive. I am proud of the gospel. I will boast only in the gospel. He says something here, he's saying in verse 16, something he says very similarly in Galatians 6, verse 14. He says, far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. What Paul experienced, what he's teaching, and what I hope will be your experience as you go through this week and the rest of this year is that you will see more and more and more just how awesome, just how jaw-dropping our Lord Jesus Christ is and what he's done for you and that you will be more fascinated with him and more proud of him. Not ashamed, but proud. I'd like for you to explore this with me under two headings this morning. I know that may not be traditional, but I think two headings according to the two phrases here. First, when will you be proud of the gospel? First, seeing that it is the power of God. And secondly, that that power of God results in the salvation for everyone who believes. So first, consider with me the power of God, that the gospel is the power of God. and secondly, that the gospel results in salvation for everyone who believes. Considering that the gospel is the power of God for salvation, we want to twist the Christian message to be something about what we do, but it is fundamentally about what God, who God is, what he has done for us in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the focus here of these early verses of Romans. In verse 2, he reminds us that throughout the Old Testament, God has promised the coming of the rescuer. He's on his way. And then in verse 3, that God fulfilled his promise to take one of David's descendants and to exalt him onto his throne forever. Verse 4, it was through the resurrection and exaltation of Jesus Christ that he was established as the enthroned son of God. This was promised in the scriptures, for example, in Psalm 2. And then having all authority on heaven and earth, that he was given the gift of the Holy Spirit, which 50 days after his ascension, he pours down on his church. And by that spirit, he powerfully now draws in his people. The offense and the glory of the Christian message is right here, that the focus is on Christ. Christ is the focus. The world loves to talk about God, but Paul wants to talk about Christ as the focus. The gospel is centered on these things that God has done through the incarnation, through the life, through the sufferings of our Lord Jesus, which we consider thinking about his triumphal entry. What a strange name. Is that not a strange name? A triumphal entry where the one who's in triumph is weeping and the ones who are rejoicing are not understanding what's going on. Strange day, lots of emotion. But even that, his humility, even that he would descend all the way to be misunderstood by everyone, betrayed by his own, and suffer and die. That this is all part of God's rescuing work focused in on Christ. And Paul sees it more clearly than anyone. Listen to how Christ-saturated Paul is, as he says in 2 Corinthians 5.17. If anyone is in Christ, he's a new creature. The oldest passed away, the new has come. All this is from God who, through Christ, reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you, on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. Is there ever a man whose very heartbeat was Christ? Here is one who is utterly fascinated and taken up with his theme, and that is Christ. He has seen Christ, and he is overwhelmed with Christ. He sees that Christ is the great Savior, and he can't wait to talk to people about it. The gospel, what God has done in Christ, is the very power of God. It's a wonderful, powerful thing. But I'd like for us to consider, secondly, as part of this, the gospel as the power of God, not only the content, this wonderful teaching about Christ's life, death, resurrection, but I'd like for us to consider also how the gospel is the power of God in the very preaching, in the present preaching of the gospel. This is a very strange thing, but this is a very important thing particularly for you to think about. Because like it or not, you are a ministerial training institute being so close to a good seminary. You are like a teaching hospital where doctors are trained and sent out. That you have a long tradition of people who are being trained, called and trained for gospel ministry. They live among you and they're discipled by you and loved by you, built up by you, supported by you, and sent out by you. So it's good for us to take a moment just to think about this preaching. This preaching, even what I'm doing right now. I am moving my vocal cords and my lips and articulating my mouth. And I'm speaking sounds which are going out to you. And you're understanding, this is a very weak, it's mysterious, it's wonderful, but it's a very weak thing. Where's the power in that? But somehow, this is precisely in this that God manifests his life-changing power in people's lives. Paul speaks in Romans 16.25 about him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ. There's a power in the communication. Now, those of you who do teach, those of you who do preach, we know that it's not our power. It can't be our wisdom. It's not our eloquence. No. It is accompanied by the, God uses this, the content of what he gives us to say and to change lives through it. Paul says that in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom. So it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men. This is strange, but the gospel is power, not only in terms of its content, but also in terms of its present impact through the preaching, which seems so weak, but God uses it very powerfully. The older I get, the more I see my own weakness, I see my own frailty, And singing that psalm earlier in the service, we feel it again, right? How weak we are, what dusk we are. The more I appreciate God's word through Ezekiel in 37. Here's this valley of dry bones. What hope is there? Death. No life. And what does God say to Ezekiel? Speak. And Ezekiel, what does he do? He bumbles his lips together. He moves his tongue. Very simple. But what does God do with that? God uses that by the power of his spirit. He uses that word to infuse life into an army. Into an army. And this is what he's doing here among you in Escondido and what he's doing around the world. He's doing exactly that. Those of us who were raised in the Cold War era, like myself, can certainly appreciate this story. A friend of mine recently was ministering in China, and he came back and told us about his work in the city of Wuhan and what the Lord is doing there. At Westminster Seminary, California, we graduated Psalm 54 students last year. It was a major milestone for us. This is the largest class we've ever graduated. This is a great thing, and no small achievement by God's grace. But in Wuhan, my friend saw the plans for the seminary that's being constructed, the South Central Seminary there. And the plans there is for a thousand preachers a year. A thousand. And if you're like me, it's like, communist China? Anti-God China? This is mind-boggling. It is not by might, it is not by power, it is by my spirit. God, by the weakness of preaching, the folly of preaching, God is raising up his, he's drawing people to Christ and raising up his church throughout the world and it is a wonderful, wonderful thing. Paul tells us in Romans 10, faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. It is this preaching that is the center of our life as Christians. Why do we have this pulpit right in the middle? Rather than an altar or something else. It is because it is the Word of God preached that is the center of your community life. And may it always continue to be the center of your community life. This is the central thing. The communication of the Word of God through the preaching. The exposition and application of the Word of God. This is the central thing. Praise God for that beautiful reality. The gospel is the power of salvation in its content, in its preaching. But consider with me a second reason that he says for this. And that is the gospel is to be boasted in because its saving power is for everyone who believes. I'd like for you to consider that with me secondly then. For everyone who believes. For everyone who believes. If you look at verse 17, you see here Paul is highlighting the role of faith. Now the word believe, Greek 101 lesson for all of us, which you probably know, the word believe and the word faith are the same idea. One is verb and one is noun. They're the same concept for the Apostle Paul. Now, as soon as we mention faith, faith, and believing, for Paul, that's always connected with his view of grace, or to put it in technical terms. For Paul, sola fide cannot be separated from sola gratia. These are not distinct, these are not inseparable matters, or separable matters rather. And the reason for this is that, is because of the bad news as we read it in the formula as well. And that is that we are sinful people, and that this world is a broken, sinful, rebellious place. That we are in great need and we are under the very judgment of God because of our rebellion. We have to be saved this way because it's not possible to be saved elsewhere. Listen to how the apostle summarizes his message and lays the groundwork for faith as he says it in Romans 3.22. He says, All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified, or put right with God, by His grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by His blood to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness because in His divine forbearance, He had passed over His former sins. And it was to show His righteousness at the present time so that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. One of the great differences between biblical Christianity and all the religions and philosophies of the world, it seems like everyone today has their own spirituality, and all these spiritualities, they have a certain view of what's wrong with the world and how to fix it. And the ways may differ based on what you think is wrong with the world. But I would say they have this in common, that the spiritualities that are made by man, human-made spiritualities, they ultimately come down to what? To you, what you have to do. You have to do this to fix things. You have to do that. You have to stop eating this. You have to do this, whatever it is. But the assumption behind verse 16, the assumption is that that shalom, that well-being that we are looking for, that we all desperately desire, that welfare, that it is beyond merely human achievement. You can't work it up. You can't do it. And so the more clearly, even as we had in the formula earlier today, the more clearly you see your guilt, just how messed up we are, and just how incapable we are of saving ourselves, the more clearly then you appreciate the gospel message. Christ becomes more precious to you because God himself, through Christ, has done what's necessary to rescue you. Faith, to say it is by faith, to say that there's a salvation for everyone who believes, is to say that God does the saving and we do the receiving. That faith is nothing in and of itself. Faith is what? Is the hand of the prisoner that reaches out to take the key that will open his door. Or faith is the hand that opens up the letter from the school and says, you've got a full-ride scholarship. Faith is, is my thumb a great thing? No, it's a gift, which I just use my thumb to open. That's faith. Faith itself is nothing. It's what God does. Faith receives. Faith receives. Even as we're preparing to receive the Lord's Supper on Friday, right? What is faith? Faith is the mouth that feeds on Christ. We receive Christ by faith, right? It's all about what God does and about us receiving. This is the focus of our Christian message, right? We're telling people that God has done things for you that you could never possibly earn. What if someone were to give you a $40 million house on the coast? Can you pay for that? No, but they give it to you, right? It's receiving it. And what God has done for you in Christ is much more better than a $40 million house, surely. It's the gift of God which we receive by faith. Let's keep this in mind, brothers and sisters, even as we communicate the Christian message to outsiders, as we communicate it to our children. What's our message to our children? Our message is not fundamentally, do this, don't do that, do this, don't do that. Our message fundamentally is to show them Christ, how awesome he is, how amazing is what he has done for them. And as he takes their hearts, as they're drawn to his beauty and attractiveness, then he will get their behavior as well. He will get their behavior as well. What I hope for ourselves, what I hope for those around us, is that we might respond to the offers of Christ in the gospel. Isaiah preaches us the gospel in making this invitation in chapter 55, verse 1. Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. He who has no money, come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk, without money and without price. He goes on, incline your ear and come to me. Hear that your soul may live. Those around us are so burdened. People are addicted by things they think will set them free, and it becomes a life circle once again, once again, once again. And it brings them deeper and deeper into bondage, whatever it is. We ourselves are burdened. We are weary. We expect to find our happiness in this, and it simply doesn't satisfy it. Or we're chasing after that, and it leaves us dry and unsatisfied. Again, even as we sang in one of the psalms earlier in the service. What we offer to people outside, what we offer to ourselves, is this wonderful invitation of our Savior, right? Who says in Matthew 11, 28, he says, Come, come, come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. I will give you rest. The gospel offers rest to those who believe. It offers rest. The gospel tells us that we can rest. We are secure and safe, and that we are more loved than we could ever possibly imagine. Not because we have earned it. Let me repeat that. You are loved, Christian believer, far more than you can possibly imagine. Not because you earned it, but because Christ earned it for you, in suffering for you, in living for you, and it's given to you as a free gift, which you rejoice in by faith. You receive and rejoice in by faith. This is the beautiful thing. Brothers, sisters, my prayer for you this day, this week, and as you go throughout the rest of the year, is that you will see more and more how beautiful Christ is. How wonderful what God has done for you in Christ is and what that means for you. And as you get more of a sense of that, the glory, you'll be more and more satisfied. That's how we can move beyond these addictions and these other things that call us again and again and again. Christ is more satisfying. Christ is more thrilling. Christ is more filling than these other things which end up leading towards death. I want you to listen to just how enthusiastic the Apostle Paul is speaking of Christ, how satisfied he is in Christ. As he says in Romans 5.1, he says, Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Is Paul ashamed of the gospel? No way. Why? Why? Because he discovered that the gospel is the very power of God. And because he discovered that that power of the gospel results in deliverance, in rescue, in salvation for everyone who believes. This is a man who is thrilled and confident and boasting in Christ. What a glorious thing. Let me close, even as Paul closes his letter, he closes this Romans with a word of doxology. What is doxology? A word of glory. A word of glory. And I close with Paul's pointing upward, and we'll have a doxology in a minute ourselves. And now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages, but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations according to the command of the eternal God to bring about the obedience of faith to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ. Amen. Isn't that glorious? Let's join our hearts together in prayer. Would you pray with me? Almighty God and Heavenly Father, we thank you for thinking of us before the foundation of the world. We thank you that you have our welfare more to heart than we ourselves have it to heart. That you loved us and gave your Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins, as a propitiation for us, to satisfy your just wrath against us. You are a just God, but a merciful God. And we delight as we look at Christ, and even perhaps this week in a focused way, as we consider his love for us and his obedience to you, what he did to set us right. Almighty God, we pray that you would take away the blinders on our eyes. We are too satisfied with little things. We are too often deluded by the siren calls of this world and think that our welfare consists in having this or that or doing this or that. Lord, open the eyes of our understanding that we might see what's the height and the depth. and the breadth and the length of the love that you have for us and what you've done for us in Christ, and that this might be our all and all. Lord, we pray that we might not be ashamed of the gospel. We pray that each of us here might experience, and from the littlest child amongst us, the saving power of this gospel in our lives. Oh, Lord, we pray for our children that this might not be just something of the family for them. Just something grandma talks about, having Christ as her all in all. But it might be something for our children. They might see the splendor of Christ and the glory of the gospel. Oh Lord, thank you for forgiving our sins. Thank you for making us to be born again. Thank you, Lord, for putting your spirit in us and joining us to a new community. Thank you for transforming us. Continue, Lord, we pray, to work amongst us through the preaching of your word week by week here. And as that word goes forth throughout the week in other various ways, as we read your word, Lord, continue to teach us and work in us and cause us to be amazed and to be satisfied and to be rejoicing at what you do and have done for us in Christ. And may we boast in him amongst all the people in the world. Lord, strengthen us, we pray, to that end. We ask in Jesus' name of the forgiveness of our sins. Amen. Amen.