“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16)

Paul sets out this glorious theme. This tremendous declaration of good news. This call to be saved. And he does so like setting a sparkling diamond on the black velvet, as it were, of the condition of men and women outside of Christ. Indeed the gospel’s significance may only be understood and adopted and discovered when first we have been made to see by the Spirit of God the context of our own sorry state.

And the reason many of us are ineffective in proclaiming the gospel, and the very reason that some of us remain in our sins is because we only had half a gospel to proclaim, or is it only half a gospel that we have received, and only half a gospel makes half a Christian which is no Christian at all. Which is an explanation as to why some who are engaging in religious activity have no assurance that the wonderful good news of the gospel has been made applicable to my life or to yours.

So we must always start where the Bible starts. No matter how uncomfortable it may be. No matter how unappetizing it may be to the spiritual diet of modern man. We must start where the Bible starts.

- Alistair Begg