This isn’t a verse that one normally sees on a graphic. It’s just part of the opening of a letter where the writer is identified. But this verse…

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God – (Romans 1:1 NIV)

… is where my mind began to create an image (that I’ll tell you about below) as I pondered the first five verses of the book of Romans.

Way back in Paul’s day, news of the results of a battle were not posted on social media. There were no nightly news updates, or sharing of video shorts reacting to the situation as it unfolded.

There were letters, messengers, and message boards – like real boards where a message could be nailed up for all to read. 

I heard in one video, which I watched a month or so ago, that when a ruler conquered a land, there would be a proclamation of the good news of that event (a gospel) that would be sent out. 

So if, say, a fellow named Joe were to conquer the land of Not-Enough. The good news of his victory would need to be proclaimed so that everyone would know that they were now subjects of Joe.

To this end, messengers would be selected and tasked with the responsibility of delivering the message to the “whole world” (all of Joe’s domain). This good news was called a gospel, and Joe’s good news would be the gospel of Joe. 

When I was in France for a summer many, many years ago helping a missionary in a town in the Alsace-Lorraine region, I was told about how the area turned over between France and Germany so often that people would go to the town square and look to see who was the ruler that day. On Monday they might be French, but by Wednesday, they might be Germans. I kind of think the sharer of that information was exaggerating the frequency of the change of governments for emphasis or effect (It’s what we call a hyperbole when studying figurative language). But exaggeration or no, the fact stands that the news of who was in power was posted in the town square.

When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He paid our penalty. When He rose from the dead, He won the victory! He claimed the position of Conquering King. His kingdom is being  established, and the extent of His dominion is the whole world. 

Paul and the other apostles were tasked with taking this Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to the world – to the Jews and the Gentiles alike. 

The apostles were the ones declaring the good news both in person and through letters. They proclaimed Jesus as Lord and then outlined how the subjects of His kingdom were to live. The old way of living wasn’t something people had to keep doing. A new way was available. 

Their message was to believe in the new King, to obey Him, and to bring glory to His name (Romans 1:5). In other words, they set before those who heard them an opportunity to become one of Jesus’s faithful subjects.  

Of course this message also had to inform the listeners about who Jesus was, and I’m sure I’ll be writing about that as I work through the book of Romans.

However, today, I was just focusing on the first five verses of the book. As I pondered them, I saw a mental image of a herald, delivering the good news of a kind but holy Sovereign. He is a ruler who longs for all the people in His realm to willingly become His subjects. He is not a ruler who forcibly enslaves those within his realm. He is not cruel like other rulers might be. But He is fair, just, and holy, but He’s the sort of ruler who lays down His own life not just for his faithful followers but also for His enemies – to provide a way for them to escape the judgment they justly deserve, if they will accept His offer. 

But the sad truth is that not all will. 

Some will hear and happily welcome the new ruler. 

Some will eventually and reluctantly accept the new ruler. 

And then, there are those who will cling to their alliance with the defeated adversary and remain rebels against the new ruler. These will try to reclaim what has been lost by any means necessary. They will spread false news and hate. They will try to persuade the faithful away from their love of the new ruler. 

In some cases, they will succeed, but mark this… 

Jesus has won the victory, and the Enemy will not prevail. He has been dealt a fatal blow. His power is broken. His fate is sealed. He knows this, and he’s determined to not meet his ultimate demise without doing as much damage to Jesus’s kingdom and followers as he possibly can before he does. 

The question is: What will you do with the Good News of Jesus Christ? Will you accept it or reject it? 

Your decision, which God allows you to make and which He will respect, is step one in your relationship with the new ruler, Jesus, and through Jesus with God Himself. 

Will He be your King? Or will you remain a rebel against Him?

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The post The Proclamation of Good News appeared first on Annilee Nelson.