The Inclusive Gospel

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 and also for the Greek. 

Romans 1:16 

The gospel is ‘for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.’ As the Jews viewed the world, there were only two groups of people, the Jews and everyone else, whom they described as, ‘the Greeks.’ Thus, when Paul uses the phrase in our text he is, in effect, including everyone in the world regardless of their ethnicity, nationality, or origin. When he speaks of the Jew first, he is referring to the fact that the Jews received the revelation of Christ first. From Moses to Malachi, the Old Testament writers all pointed to Christ. The book of Acts details for us how the transition occurred of the proclamation of the gospel from the Jewish nation to the gentiles. Paul became the apostle to the gentiles. He proclaimed the gospel all over the ancient world up to and including Rome, the capital of the empire. Since those days, the gospel has gone out over the world with powerful effect. We know it succeeds everywhere by John’s description of who gathers around the Throne of Christ. He says, ‘After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, saying, Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ This tells us the gospel is for everyone to hear. Regardless of origin, ethnicity, nationality, or culture, everyone should hear the gospel message. We have the privilege to proclaim that message as far and wide as we can. It will succeed wherever it goes.  

Our Good and Gracious God, 
we rejoice at the gospel message. 
We praise You that You have sent it out 
over the whole earth. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning