GRATITUDE That ADORNS The GOSPEL-I—Romans 1:15-25
OR Gratitude That Graces The Gospel
Attention:
Per ‘The 1621 Thanksgiving’ @ mayflowerhistory.com
Written by Edward Winslow dated:Dec. 12, 1621 & first published 1622.
“Our harvest being gotten in, our governour sent foure men on fowling, that so we might after a speciall manner rejoyce together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labours ; they foure in one day killed as much fowle, as with a little helpe beside, served the Company almost a weeke, at which time amongst other Recreations, we exercised our Armes, many of the Indians coming amongst us, & amongst the rest their greatest king Massasoyt, with some ninetie men, whom for three dayes we entertained & feasted, & they went out & killed five Deere, which they brought to the Plantation & bestowed on our Governour, & upon the Captaine & others. And although it be not always so plentifull, as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so farre from want, that we often wish you partakers of our plentie.”
Need:
There is an undercurrent of Christian influence in American society, which causes a deep appreciation for the family that God has blessed them with. These openly recognize God’s provision for them. These realize that they have been abundantly blessed by the Lord their God.
Even those without Christ may recognize ‘a higher power’ as it were. Unfortunately this leads to sentimentality during otherwise Christian holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas , & Easter.
Our Thanksgiving holiday may not seem like much to some but for those of Christ, it is an opportunity to reflect on God’s love for them & to offer many heartfelt thanks for all they have.
Titus 2:9-10—“Exhort bondservants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well pleasing in all things, not answering back, not pilfering, but showing all good fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.”
1Pet. 3:3-4—“Do not let your adornment be merely outward--arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel-- rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle & quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.”
For the Christians in Rome, Paul delineated the relationship of gratitude to the Gospel.
Personal Gratitude must properly adorn the Gospel of Christ.
What manner of Gratitude properly adorns the Gospel of Christ?
OR...
How can your Gratitude adorn the Gospel of Christ?
8 consolations that your Gratitude is one that Adorns God’s Good News.
1—Gratitude adorns the Gospel thru...
SHAMELESS TRUST(:15-16)
Explanation: (:15-16)
:15—“So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.”
As a result of Paul’s sense of indebtedness, all of his energies are thus directed & expended toward his preparedness for & expectation of preaching the Gospel of Christ to those who are in Rome.
Christ makes us “ready” & willing ’self-starters’!
In the “preaching” of God’s word don’t let your experiences & predeterminations blind you to the fact of that word’s meaning. It simply means ‘To bring or bear Good News.’ No pulpit is required!
Thus it is not limited to only those with specific giftedness & calling as overseer, pastor, or teacher. All Christians are called upon to bear & share the Good News of Jesus!
“So, as much as is in me”—outwv[So] to[as] kat[to] eme[me]:
“So/Thus”—outw, OR(before a vowel)--outwv—Adverb—1) In this manner, thus, so. Strong—In this way(referring to what precedes or follows).
“As”—o,—OR—feminine--h, —OR—neuter--to—Definite Article—1) This, that, these, etc. Strong—The definite article; The(sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom).
“Much as/To”—kata—Preposition—1) Down from, through out; 2) According to, toward, along. Strong—a primary particle; prepositionally--Down(in place or time), in varied relations(according to the case [genitive case, dative case or accusative case] with which it is joined).
“Me”—eme—Pronoun Accusative—1) I, me, myself, etc. Strong—a prolonged form of me; Me.
“Ready/Eager”—proyumov—Adj.—1)Ready, willing. Strong—Forward in spirit, i.e. Predisposed; neuter(as noun)--Alacrity. Used 3X.?From—pro—1) Before. Strong—a primary preposition; “Fore”, i.e. In front of, prior(figuratively--Superior) to.—&—yumov—Passion(as if breathing hard).
“Preach the Gospel/Announce Glad Tidings”—euaggelizw—Verb—1) To bring good news, to announce glad tidings—1a) used in the OT--Of any kind of good news—1a1) Of the joyful tidings of God's kindness, in particular, of the Messianic blessings, 1b) in the NT--Used especially of the glad tidings of the coming kingdom of God, & of the salvation to be obtained in it through Christ, & of what relates to this salvation, 1c) Glad tidings are brought to one, one has glad tidings proclaimed to him, 1d) To proclaim glad tidings—1d1) Instruct(men) concerning the things that pertain to Christian salvation. Strong—To announce good news("evangelize") especially the gospel.?From—eu—neuter of a primary euv(good); adverbially--Well.—&—aggelov—A messenger; especially an "angel"; by implication--A pastor.
“Rome”—Rwmh—Noun Proper Locative—Rome = “Strength”—1) The famous capital of the ancient world. Strong—Roma, the capital of Italy. Used 14X.?From the base of—rwnnumi—prolongation from rwomai(to dart; probably akin to ruomai); To strengthen, i.e. Have health(as a parting exclamation--Good-bye).
“Also”—kai—
:16—“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 & also for the Greek.”
Paul is ready to preach the Gospel to those who are in Rome(:15). It is because he is unashamed of it.
Paul is ready to preach in Rome(:15) for the simple reason that he is “not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.” He is unashamed of God’s Good News. This tells us that it is ‘possible’ to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ.
Mk. 8:34-38—“When He[Jesus] had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, & take up his cross, & follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake & the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, & loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me & My words in this adulterous & sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
A thankful person(:21) is unashamed of God & His plan of salvation. These know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God has granted them absolute victory over sin & the grave.
Thus, Paul is unashamed of “the gospel” because this Good News is the “power of God to salvation.”
In other words, the Gospel is the singular design of God to bring about “salvation.” This salvation is offered to “everyone” but is only put into effect by those who believe. Non-believers have no salvation! Belief(in the Cross-work of Christ) is thus the key which unlocks salvation!
The Gospel which is “The power of God to salvation” is manifested in God’s...
1)Bringing His only-begotten Son to mankind
&
2)Bringing that Son to the Cross
&
3)Bringing that Son to an all-encompassing, decisive, substitutionary & atoning death
&
4)Bringing that Son to eternal resurrection from the dead.
This Gospel(Good News), this “power of God to salvation”, under which Paul resides, operates, & lives his life, is foremost “for the Jew” but is nonetheless, just as importantly, “for the Greek.”
ALL people regardless of economic status, race, color, belief system, culture, language, number, or location, etc. are encompassed in the two ‘people groups’ Jew & Greek. One had the revelation of God, while the other did not.
“Ashamed”—epaiscunomai—Verb—1) To be ashamed. Strong—To feel shame for something. Used 11X.?From—epi—1) Upon, on, at, by, before; 2) of position--On, at, by, over, against; 3) To, over, on, at, across, against. Strong—Over, upon, etc.; of rest--At, on, etc.; of direction--Towards, upon, etc.—&—aiscunomai—To feel shame for something.—from—aiscov(disfigurement, i.e. disgrace); To feel shame(for oneself).
“Power”(See :20)—dunamiv—Noun Fem.—1) Strength power, ability—1a) Inherent power, power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature, or which a person or thing exerts & puts forth, 1b) Power for performing miracles, 1c) Moral power & excellence of soul, 1d) The power & influence which belong to riches & wealth, 1e) Power & resources arising from numbers, 1f) Power consisting in or resting upon armies, forces, hosts. Dunamiv denotes power, natural ability, general & inherent Strong—from dunamai[To be able or possible]; Force(literally or figuratively); specially--Miraculous power(usually by implication--A miracle itself).
“Salvation”—swthria—Noun Fem.—1) Deliverance, preservation, safety, salvation; 2) Salvation as the present possession of all true Christians; 3) Future salvation, the sum of benefits & blessings which the Christians, redeemed from all earthly ills, will enjoy after the visible return of Christ from heaven in the consummated & eternal kingdom of God. Strong—feminine of a derivative of swthr[Deliverer] as (properly, abstract)noun; Rescue or safety(physically or morally).
“Believes”—pisteuw—Verb—1)To think to be true, to be persuaded of; 2)To entrust a thing to one. Strong—To have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), i.e. Credit; by implication, To entrust (especially one's spiritual well-being to Christ).
“Jew”—Ioudaiov—Adj.—1) Jewish, belonging to the Jewish nation; 2) Jewish as respects to birth, origin, religion. Strong—Judaean, i.e. Belonging to Jehudah.?From—Iouda(in the sense of Ioudav as a country)—of Hebrew origin [hdwhy Yeh-hoo-daw' or perhaps hjy Yoot-taw'; or hjwy Yoo-taw']; Judah(i.e. Jehudah or Juttah), a part of(or place in) Palestine.
“Greek”—Ellhv—Noun Masc.—1) A Greek either by nationality, whether a native of the main land or of the Greek islands or colonies; 2) in a wider sense--The name embraces all nations not Jews that made the language, customs, & learning of the Greeks their own; the primary reference is to a difference of religion & worship. Strong—A Hellen(Grecian) or inhabitant of Hellas; by extension--A Greek-speaking person, especially a non-Jew. Used 27X.?From—Ellav—Greece = "unstable: the miry one”—1) a country in southern Europeof uncertain affinity; Hellas(or Greece), a country of Europe.
Argumentation:
Acts 17:30-31—“Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”
Lk. 9:23-26—“Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, & take up his cross daily, & follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, & is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me & My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, & in His Father’s, & of the holy angels.”
2Tim. 1:7-12—“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power & of love & of a sound mind. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us & called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose & grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death & brought life & immortality to light through the gospel, to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, & a teacher of the Gentiles. For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed & am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”
1Cor. 1:17-31—“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.” Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, & Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block & to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews & Greeks, Christ the power of God & the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, & the weakness of God is stronger than men. For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, & God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; & the base things of the world & the things which are despised God has chosen, & the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God--& righteousness & sanctification & redemption-- that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the LORD.””
Illustration:
Thanksgiving, I will have no qualms about driving into the Thanksgiving host’s driveway, parking my car on their property, opening their door without knocking & entering/Why?—I have a SHAMELESS TRUST that this particular property is mine for Thanksgiving! I would never do the same at anyone else’s house!/SHAMELESS TRUST
Our oldest daughter was always very concerned with fashion/Some years ago, she tried to modernize me with ‘younger looking’ jeans/The jeans came with the back belt loop turned 45°/The front pockets came with the edges partially frayed/The legs are flared slightly/She didn’t want me to have washed-out colors/Yet even if I don’t wear them or look silly in whatever I might wear, she is unafraid to tell others that I’m her ‘Daddy’/SHAMELESS TRUST
Our youngest son also prefers I wear ‘board shorts’ versus my usual—whatever I can find bathing suit trunks/He doesn’t want me to SHAME him by my clothing/Yet even if I don’t wear them or ‘look silly’ in whatever I might wear, he is unafraid to tell others that I’m his ‘Pops’/SHAMELESS TRUST
We might not understand some things God does but we Shamelessly Trust Him!
Application:
?Does Your SHAMELESS TRUST Adorn the Gospel of Christ?
?Does Your Gratitude Adorn the Gospel of Christ?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Edward Winslow’s short depiction of the first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Plantation, dated:Dec. 12, 1621.
Action:
Gratitude Adorns the Gospel thru...
1. SHAMELESS TRUST(:15-16)
Pt#1 only Presented 11/18/2018am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave.(Se Ave. A).
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts. 1-2 Presented 11/20/2011am to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
