Paul was not ashamed of the gospel, though it brought him much persecution and suffering. The word gospel means good news and comes from the Greek word from which we get the word “evangelize” and which is also related to the word evangelical. In other words, Christians evangelize with the gospel message and receptive people get saved through accepting and acting upon it (1 Cor. 4:15; etc.), but what is the real gospel, which alone can yield such wonderful results? 1 Cor. 15:1-4 give details, along with Acts 20:21:
Remember Acts 20:21
I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. (Acts 20:21)
The New Testament shows that when a servant of God preaches the all-important gospel (plan of salvation), the preacher often suffers some kind of persecution or trouble because of it (2 Tim. 1:8; etc.). Paul’s life centered around preaching and defending the gospel for the sake of SOULS, but his ministry was filled with physical beatings (2 Cor. 11:24,25; etc.), prison time, etc. because of it! Hence, the temptation would be to back away from the very thing which would bring such suffering and pain, but Paul remained faithful to God and wrote:
NOT Ashamed Of The Gospel
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. (Rom 1:16)
Paul suffered the various severe persecutions for the sake of others coming to salvation! He was faithful to the Lord Jesus and the gospel message, as is necessary:
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. (Mark 8:35)
Paul was not ashamed of the gospel, just as he was not ashamed of Jesus Christ. Such is a salvation issue:
“I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields–and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.” (Mark 10:29,30)
Don’t Be Ashamed of the Gospel
Dear reader, the questions for you are: Are you ashamed of the gospel (with its conditional security, 1 Cor. 15:2) or ashamed of the Lord Jesus? If so, you desperately need to repent and make a bold open stand for God’s truth. It will bless and help others spiritually, including yourself! People must hear the plan of salvation so they can get eternal life.
