Bible in a year: Romans 1-2
Devotional passage: Romans 1:16 NRSV
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."
This text appears at the beginning of Paul’s letter to the Romans following his greeting and desire to join them to share spiritual gifts and support. Paul is clarifying his willingness to spread the gospel everywhere and at all times.
When have you known someone in the everyday world beyond church to live the gospel in a visible way in his or her daily life? It is perhaps easier for pastors to project that image since much of their daily lives actually focus on ministry. But, think about the teachers, engineers, farmers, and laborers you know.
I knew an obstetrician whose daughter went to school with me years ago. I often return to my perception of him as a youth and young adult because he seemed to represent so much of God’s good news. As a doctor, he made a good living and lived with his family in a large home in an affluent neighborhood. However, he often opened his home for meetings and church gatherings. His home was well lived in and worn with use rather than the staged showcase of many of his neighbors. For decades, he was the music director at our church and instead of accepting the budgeted pay he asked for it to be donated to church missions. He would also leave for a month at a time to volunteer with “Doctors Without Borders.”
Curt is who I envision when I think of living the gospel fearlessly. With all of his personal wealth and position, he used all of his gifts to serve the church and others without pridefulness or constraint.
How do you live out the gospel each day, what more can you do to be even more fearless about sharing? I challenge you to prayerfully consider the possibilities and then implement them. Let us pray.
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