Paul’s Gospel of Grace

“So I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News. For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” – Romans 1:15-17 (NLT)

The Letter to the Romans is one of Paul’s greatest works.  He did not write this to correct the Romans, he had not established the Church. Instead he wrote to introduce himself before he traveled there.  In it, he summarized his Gospel and made his plans clear.

“If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.  As the Scriptures tell us, ‘Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.’ Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. “But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent?” – Romans 10:9-15 (NLT)

See how he clearly outlines his belief that salvation is for all who believe and that his mission is one ordained by the Lord to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

“For Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power.” – 1 Corinthians 1:17 (NLT)

To truly examine the aspects of Paul’s Gospel we can look at the two parts of the Christ Hymn from Philippians

Though he was God,    he did not think of equality with God     as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;    he took the humble position of a slave    and was born as a human being.When he appeared in human form,     he humbled himself in obedience to God    and died a criminal’s death on a cross. – Philippians 2:6-8 (NLT)
 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor    and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,    in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,    to the glory of God the Father. – Philippians 2:9-11 (NLT)

Verses 5-8 show a downward descent of Christ, from heaven to human form.  Jesus is God, but he cannot rely on his divinity, he chooses to live and be human throughout all of his human life. This makes his death a truly human self-giving act of love.  Notice this act is self-giving not self-denying. This descent mirrors the creation account. The original relationship between God and man is seen in the story of Adam and Eve. They wanted to be “like God” and for their act of prideful disobedience they distorted their relationship with God.  Jesus on the other hand, fulfilled the original relationship God intended with man.  A relationship characterized by total dependence on God, a humanity willing to follow the Divine Will.  Jesus real action overcame the selfish, prideful, nature of humanity. Allowing himself to be crucified, Jesus chose to follow God’s plan to his ultimate end without any disobedience, instead he permitted this to happen out of love for God and us.

Paul believes that Christ’s self-sacrifice fulfilled the original purpose of God and restored humanity to communion with God. The second half of the hymn is one that ascends.  Verses 9-11 show God exulting Jesus above all creation.  The crucifixion did what no other human act could do, it restored man with God.  The Resurrection gave hope to all who accept Christ. 

“So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News.  For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.  And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way of life and immortality through the Good News.  And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.” – 2 Timothy 2:8-11 (NLT)

How does this apply to us today? Are we accepting of Christ’s sacrifice for us? Do we accept his love in our “fallen” sinful state? Do we hope for the Resurrection and full communion with God?

Parts in this Series
1. Paul’s Gospel is about Gospeling
2. Euro-Centric Christianity
3. Legalism
4. Lawlessness
5. Paul’s Gospel
6. The New Perspective on Paul is Catholic

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Sources

• Dunn, James D. G. The Gospel and the Gospels. Durham: University of Durham, 2013.
• Hensell, Eugene, O. S. B. The New Perspective on St. Paul. n.d. http://www.biblicalcourses.com/workshops/introduction-to-saint-paul/the-new-perspective-on-st-paul/ (accessed March 15, 2015).
• Longhenry, Ethan. A Study of Denominations. n.d. http://www.astudyofdenominations.com/history/judaizers/#sthash.U5aqE3tS.dpbs (accessed March 13, 2015).
• Puskas, Charles B., and Mark Reasoner. The Letters of Paul: An Introduction. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1993.
• Rocca, Francis X. "Pope: Catholic educators must share Gospel with multicultural society." Catholic News Servce/USCCB, February 2014.
• Russle, Walt. Who Were Paul's Opponents in Galatia? Dallas: Dallas Theological Seminary, 1990.
• "The New Living Translation Bible, Catholic Reference Edition." Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. , 2001.