July 15 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

The apostle Paul introduces himself to the church of Rome as a herald of the gospel of God. This means two things: the good news Paul proclaims comes from God, and it is about God. The gospel of God is the gospel that comes from Him and belongs to Him. That’s a reminder to all those who are called to explain God’s Word (preachers, parents, teachers, elders) that what we are talking about comes from the Lord. God has spoken to us in the gospel and He provides the content of what we speak.

We are heralds and messengers of the good news. Our task is to pass on God’s message—not to remove from it parts that we consider to be a bit embarrassing or old-fashioned, nor to add to it what we might consider a good idea. We may not take the liberty to change it because it is God’s gospel. His message is to be proclaimed, and not ours. Our thoughts of God are twisted and distorted by sin. That’s why we can be so thankful that the Lord in His infinite wisdom gave us the gospel. He has made Himself known through the gospel. If the Lord had not revealed Himself to us we would be without the gospel.

The Bible presents us with a message about God’s loving initiative to save people steeped in sin and misery and to deliver a people who cannot help themselves. The gospel is about Jesus who was born of the seed of David and who was declared victorious over sin and death by His resurrection (1:3,4). The gospel is entirely from the Lord. It is not man’s gospel. All religions and philosophies originate in the mind of man except for one: God’s gospel. The gospel is not some motivational talk encouraging you and me to believe in ourselves or to be controlled by the power of positive thinking. The gospel of God does not proclaim, “You can do it!”

The gospel of God is from God and about the mighty deeds of the Lord. That is why you do not need to be ashamed to talk about it with your family, friends and co-workers. It is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes. (1:16)