“Paul…separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord…through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name” (Romans 1:1-5).
“Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith…” (Romans 16:25-27).
Like matching bookends, the beginning and conclusion of this great epistle declare two timeless truths about the gospel.
The gospel of God is not man-made. It was promised before through God’s prophets in the Holy Scriptures. This mystery was revealed after having been kept secret since the world began, but now it is made manifest by the prophetic Scriptures and made known to all nations.
The gospel of God has a singular measure of success. It is “obedience to the faith (16:26) among all nations” (1:5). All humanity is divided into two categories—the obedient and the disobedient.
The gospel of God forever glorifies God through Jesus Christ. It will have no updates or amendments. It will have no replacement. It is the everlasting gospel (Revelation 14:6) which brings glad tidings of good things until the end of the age, when time is no more.
As Paul so cogently demonstrates between these bookends, the gospel is the only thing which sufficiently addresses the guilt, slavery, and stain of sin. Therefore, this “commandment of the everlasting God” is to be believed and obeyed.
