"Now to Him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: to God only wise, be glory through Christ Jesus for ever. Amen. " Romans 16v25-27
Paul now summarizes all that he has said in the Roman epistle. "Now to Him .........God only wise, be glory through Christ Jesus forever." The gospel is all about God, about the only wise God, who through Jesus Christ, has, and will, accomplish His purposes. Those purposes are stated in these verses to be twofold: to establish believers in the faith (verse 25) and to bring glory to Himself (verse 27). These two cardinal aspects of the gospel are not unrelated. Through the full salvation of sinners, God will bring eternal glory to Himself. The establishment of believers (putting them on a firm footing) is the very essence of the work of God which will result in God's ultimate purpose, glory to God through Jesus Christ. This amazing truth, that our salvation and God's glory are indivisibly linked together, is made clear in other scriptures, notably Ephesians 1v18-19 "The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power." There we have precisely what Paul is saying here; to paraphrase it, God's powerful saving and preservation of His saints will result in the untold riches of glory to God. In the Old Testament, thirty eight times God speaks of His people Israel as His inheritance. In Ephesians 1 he speaks of the Gentile church in the same way! This is the highest, noblest aspect of the gospel. The late F.F. Bruce put it like this; "We must not overlook the fact that God's people constitute an inheritance for God, His own possession in whom He will display the untold riches of His glory. We can scarcely realize what it must mean to God to see His purpose complete, to see the creatures of His hand, sinners redeemed by His grace, reflecting His glory." All too often we think of our salvation, for what it does for us; Paul is speaking here about what it will do for God! Bruce continues, "that God should set such high value on a community of sinners, rescued from perdition and still bearing too many traces of their former state, might well seem incredible, were it not made clear that He sees them in Christ, as from the very beginning He chose them in Christ." The justification, and sanctification, and ultimate glorification of believers is behind this word "stablish" and it is this which will bring eternal glory to God. This elevates the preaching of the gospel and the teaching ministry, and the prayer efforts (in short, the whole life of the believing church) to a level beyond this earth altogether. The grace of God will issue in the glory of God, and as we have seen in the reports of individual lives that have been saved, even the smallest contribution will be noted and eternally rewarded. We are most privileged to be involved in even the minutest part of this!
Paul captures the beauty of this by a threefold use of the Greek preposition "kata." This is translated "according to" and means "on the basis of." This word presents foundational truths upon which God's gospel is based.
- "According to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ." When Paul says "my gospel" he is referring to the subject matter of Galatians chapter 1 where he says two things about it. Firstly, that he received it as a direct revelation from Jesus Christ, it is not the concoction of any man. Secondly, he says that it is the only message of salvation for the world, and all who teach otherwise will be "accursed" that is separated from God forever. So Paul's gospel, that he had made his own, that he proclaimed over three continents, and which he has just expounded in this letter to the Romans is the very foundation for saving faith for all people for all time. The essence of the gospel is not just the doctrine of it (the details of it) but he clearly says it is "the preaching of Jesus Christ." Thus the proclamation of Jesus Christ is fundamental to the gospel as he said back in chapter 1v1 - 3 "The gospel of God ...... concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord."
- "According to the revelation of the mystery which was kept secret since the world began but is now made manifest." This gospel which will fully establish believers and issue in eternal glory to God, was conceived before the world began, was kept secret in former ages but now is revealed in this present age. This gospel is part of an eternal plan, which God only revealed in part, but has now fully revealed for the everlasting blessing of all who believe. This was no emergency plan by God, this was known from eternity, and revealed in time, when God was ready to reveal it. God has kept the best until last, and now has revealed it through the prophetic scriptures (by which we understand the New Testament). The secret is now out!!
- "According to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith." The die is cast, the time has come. Jesus Christ has died and risen again to give God the basis on which He could save sinful men and women, and bring them to His glory. This gospel is God's final word to mankind. It is presented not as any optional extra, it is presented as a Divine command. To believe it is to be blessed and ultimately glorified. To reject it is to disobey the command of the everlasting God in the context of an incredible offer of mercy to the entire human race. In chapter 1 of Romans he refers to "the obedience of faith" in chapter 16 he says the same thing. Faith in God in His provision in Jesus Christ is obedience and blessing. Rejection, indifference, procrastination is just disobedience which will have eternal consequences. Paul captures the weight of this in Acts 17 when preaching to the Greeks on Mars Hill. There he said "the times of this ignorance God overlooked, but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent; because He hath appointed a day in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained;" whereof He hath given assurance unto all men in that He hath raised Him from the dead." Acts 17v20-21 A Divine command, to all men everywhere, a day appointed, a man ordained, assurance given to all the world by the now historical resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. There is no middle ground. Men either believe or don't believe. Heaven or hell for eternity that is the issue before us all, choose heaven!
In summary, the establishment of believers. which will result in eternal glory to God, in which all believers will share. is fundamentally based on three foundational principals;
- The proclamation of Jesus Christ as the only Saviour.
- The revelation by the Holy Spirit of the eternal plan of God.
- The commandment of the everlasting God for all peoples to repent and believe.
This is the message to "all nations" there is no difference, for all have sinned, there is no difference for all can be saved in Jesus Christ. There is no other way. For those who believe, it will be everlasting glory. What a wonderful message from the courts of heaven to fall on the ears of men. What a wonderful occupation for all believers to share with their fellow human beings this greatest of all stories which alone brings hope to a doomed human race.
"TO GOD ONLY WISE BE GLORY THROUGH CHRIST JESUS. AMEN.
Seven times over in this epistle, Paul says "Amen: seven times over "so let it be"; we all say "Amen",
- IT WILL BE-
A NEW STUDY UNDER THE HEADING OF "THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST" WILL BEGIN 1ST MAY 2016; THE TITLES ARE "END OF TIME PROPHECIES."
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