Romans 1:14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to
the wise and to the foolish. 15 So, for my part, I am eager to preach the
gospel to you also who are in Rome.[1]
This message has probably been the most impactful to me personally. The
word "under obligation" means to be a debtor. The question John Piper asks
is, "What is it about grace that makes me debtor? Who do I owe?"
The answer is: everyone. Because Christ had grace on me, (the word Grace
denotes that I didn't deserve anything I received) then I must give that
same grace to everyone else. Here is what Piper says about it:
The grace of God which calls us (verse 6) out of our darkness and bestows
eternal covenant-love on us (verse 7) creates what it commands. We don't
qualify for it beforehand.
So if you hold this grace back from others as if you are qualified and they
are not, you default on your debt to the world and prove that you have not
really known grace. Grace is precious beyond words. It is our only hope as
sinners. We don't deserve it from God. And no one can deserve it from us.
When it comes to us freely, we are debtors to give freely.
Because Grace came to Paul for free, he is free and indebted to give that
same grace away to everyone else.
Oh, to be gripped by the reality of radically free grace in our lives-past
and future! What a difference it would make! Dwell on this today, would you?
Ponder what it means about racism, ethnic slurs, and all kinds of
self-righteousness, demandingness in marriage. Ponder what it means about
how freely you share the gospel of grace. O Lord, open our hearts more and
more to feel the wonder of being called of Christ and the loved of God
(forever!)-not because he found something special in us, but because this
grace is utterly and absolutely free.
Piper continues to explain how grace isn't just for non-Christians. The
whole point of his opening remarks is that Paul is eager to preach the
gospel...to Christians. Here is what Piper says:
Consider verse 15 and see if this is not what Paul wants to do in Rome. He
says in verse 14 that he is debtor to every layer of gentile society, and
then he says, "So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also
who are in Rome." He is eager to preach the gospel to believers in Rome. We
don't usually think about preaching the gospel to believers. We preach the
gospel to unbelievers. But I just preached the gospel to believers. So I
hope you can see that this is not strange for Paul to say in verse 15-that
he wants to do this in Rome.... Our faith begins with the gospel of grace,
and our Christian lives are sustained by this same good news of grace over
and over again.
I love how John Piper reminds that the gospel is something to preached over
and over and over again:
It's the gospel of grace that converts and it's the gospel of grace that
sanctifies. We must tell people the gospel the first time; and we must
"remind" people again and again of the meaning and implications of the
gospel of free grace (15:15). So the gospel of grace (Acts 20:24) is what we
preach to unbelievers, and the gospel of grace is what we preach to
believers. That is what Paul says in Romans 1:15. "I am eager to preach the
gospel to you [believers!] also who are in Rome." Not to get them saved, but
to keep them saved through sanctification. Our faith feeds off the good news
of the grace of God. And our obedience feeds off of faith. Therefore, to
bring about the obedience of faith, we must hear the gospel of grace again
and again.
I am so encouraged by this sermon to continue to give away the grace I
receive, by feeding my faith from the grace so that I obey by faith.
Steve Allen
ACTION Zambia
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[1]Piper, J. (2007). Sermons from John Piper (1990-1999). Minneapolis:
Desiring God.
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