Paul's Thesis Statement — Andrew Forrest

Romans 1:16-17

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

Romans 1:16-17 is Paul’s thesis statement for the entire letter:

• The Gospel has power to save anyone, regardless of ethnic status;
• The Gospel came first to the Jews, God’s people. Many Jews believed in Jesus, and they were saved;
• Then, in God’s plan, the Gospel came to the Gentiles, and any Gentiles who believed were likewise saved;
• The Gospel shows God’s righteousness. Righteousness is an important idea for Paul, and it’s a word that has a whole range of meanings.
• Righteousness is the “rightness” of God, rooted in God’s identity; it is also God’s “making right” the wrong things of the world; it is also characteristic of someone whom God has “made right”and is conforming to God’s standard. God’s righteousness is revealed and attained through faith, i.e., through trusting God.

This is a dense theological statement! Paul will spend the rest of his letter explaining and unpacking these two verses.

In the meantime, it’s worth remarking on that beautiful word in v. 16: everyone.

Paul says that the Gospel has power to save everyone.

It is THE most powerful thing in the world—the Gospel.

Do you know someone who seems lost?

Pray specifically for that person today to be saved by the Gospel.