Privilege and Responsibility

Read Romans 1:1–3:20

5. Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority as apostles to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name.
6. And you are included among those Gentiles who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ.
7. I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
8. Let me say first that I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith in him is being talked about all over the world.
9. God knows how often I pray for you. Day and night I bring you and your needs in prayer to God, whom I serve with all my heart by spreading the Good News about his Son. Romans 1:5-9

Whether or not you are a sports fan, you are undoubtedly familiar with braggadocio, or empty boasting. Many in our society—in particular athletes and their rabid fans—have made this an art form. “We’re Number 1” signs and childish antics pop up everywhere. Even those who can back up their words are often full of hot air.

For those who think they are the greatest, Paul has some sobering news: You are not as great as you may think. Paul reminds us that we are all great at one thing: sinning. But that is not all that Paul has to say. The good news of Paul’s letter to the Romans is that God has a great message of hope and forgiveness. Now that is something to really brag about!

Paul knew how thoroughly kind God had been to him. He called himself and everyone else in need of Christ’s forgiveness “terrible people” (Romans 2:1). That’s why he had no trouble obeying God’s call to travel all over the Roman Empire preaching and spreading the good news about Christ. It only made sense to him that he would share the message of God’s forgiveness with others after all God had done for him (1:5).

Being a Christian is a privilege. God has taken away more of our sin than we can realize, more sin than we deserve to have forgiven. The more we appreciate the depth of this, the more we’ll understand Paul’s gratitude here.

If you have received Christ’s forgiveness, you have an important story to tell. You don’t have to be a clone of Paul, just motivated by the same gratitude, driven by the same love, committed to the same end: God’s greater glory. In what way can you share the news about God’s goodness today?