I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes

[Reformed]

the gospel

You don’t mean to say you are for Paul and we are for Apollos (or Peter or James or John). Was either crucified for us? There is only one gospel. It doesn’t matter who brought the message. There is no gospel according to Paul, as if it were some separate thing. He is just a servant through whom we come to believe the *one *gospel.

But perhaps you only mean, what are some themes that come out clearly in Paul, or some scholarly question like that? Or, maybe you are talking about Paul’s use of the phrase “my gospel”? Though, I would have expected you to quote that if you specifically meant that. Here is an example

Romans 16:25 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 which has been kept secret for long ages past,

I guess I don’t really know what you mean. One gospel-related topic that I specifically associate with Paul is stuff about circumcision and uncircumcision (Jews and Gentiles) and how

*Ephesians 2:12 remember that you [Gentiles] were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ…
16 and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross…

*That is not to say Peter, James, and John do not agree with Paul or anything. Just that I especially associate this type of topic with Paul. Given that I am not Jewish, you can see how this plan/mystery/Gentile thing that has been manifested now might have struck me as something pretty nice to hear about.

Here’s additional insight from the Apostle Paul:

Romans 10

Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

together with

Romans 1:16-17

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. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

 

[Pixie_Dust]

I am simply asking you to post the gospel of God according to the Apostle Paul. I really think you cannot do it. Focus on the word “gospel”.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 10

1 Now I make known to you, brethren, **the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,

2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.
**
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

4and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and **His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. **

Verse 10 in particular outlines the Catholic view nicely.

 

[Reformed]

Is there a reason why only the Apostle Paul’s writings are fit for discussion? What about the words of Jesus?

Every tree: doesn’t eliminate “Christians” from the group. “By their fruit” - how we’re supposed to recognize other Christians. If they are not producing fruit, they are recognized as not belonging to Christ. Verse 21 says it just about as plainly as it can be said. ONLY he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Looks like works need to accompany salvation. Turning your back on the faith (or willfully sinning) is not the “will of my Father”, so it would follow that they will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

If I am a non-forgiving Christian, then I can’t expect to be forgiven by my Father. Looks like the sin of non-forgiveness can cancel my forgiveness by God.

Peter?

Ananias?

Are you a Paulician or a Christian?

We can talk about the writings of other Apostles on another thread. There is a reason to my madness. Remember, the Protestant Reformation was an apparent recovery of the biblical gospel of God’s grace proclaimed in the Scriptures. The foundational books of the Reformation was Paul’s Epistles to the Galatians and Romans.

Romans 1

Greeting

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,

To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Longing to Go to Rome

First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. I want you to know, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.

 

[ryanoneil]

Indeed, faith is essential to the gospel message.

**But without faith it is impossible to please him, for anyone who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Heb. 11:6 **

Paul also says:

eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works, but wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness. Yes, affliction and distress will come upon every human being who does evil, Jew first and then Greek. But there will be glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does good, Jew first and then Greek. (Rom 2:7-10)

Sorry I forgot to include the word gospel.

For it is not those who hear the law who are just in the sight of God; rather, those who observe the law will be justified. For when the Gentiles who do not have the law by nature observe the prescriptions of the law, they are a law for themselves even though they do not have the law. They show that the demands of the law are written in their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even defend them on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge people’s hidden works through Christ Jesus. (Rom 2:13-16)

 

[Reformed]

The gospel (good news) of Paul is that Jesus, the Son of God, lived, died, and rose from the dead so that those who believe and follow Him may have eternal life. This is God’s gift, a free grace, to those who accept it.

Is there some specific point you are trying to make? If so, would you be more clear about it.

Well, there is some that you stated above that can be supported by the Epistles of Paul. There are other things that you stated that cannot be supported by the writings of Paul. The Apostle Paul was extremely obsessed about the gospel of God’s grace. Would you mind posting the writings of the Apostle Paul in regards to the gospel to support what you stated? You might be surprised what you find. Paul wrote so much about the gospel, that this thread should reach the count of 1,000 if we really care what God reveals in His Holy Scriptures.

Romans 1:16-17 (OP) is considered the thesis statement for the book of Romans. The book of Romans is the most comprehensive book in the Bible to expound the gospel.

 

[Kscrawler]

You write as if you believe there is some discrepancy between what Paul wrote and what the Catholic Church believes. What is that error in your opinion?

 

[Reformed]

Indeed, faith is essential to the gospel message.

**But without faith it is impossible to please him, for anyone who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Heb. 11:6 **

Paul also says:

eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works, but wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness. Yes, affliction and distress will come upon every human being who does evil, Jew first and then Greek. But there will be glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does good, Jew first and then Greek. (Rom 2:7-10)

Thank you! This is what I was hoping for. Should we include the book of Hebrews as written by Paul? I’m okay either way. Romans 2:7-10 seems to be a very popular bible passages by Roman Catholics, but it is taken out of context of the rest of the Epistle of Romans. When Paul systematically reveals the gospel, he first brings the bad news to us in Romans chapter 1 and chapter 2. The gospel or good news is explained in Romans 3 on. Do you see how you seem to use Rom 2:7-10 out of context from the rest of the theme of the Epistle to hold on to the Roman Catholic gospel?

 

[JudieK]

Reformed- remember that the Church doesn’t need to be validated by Paul. The Church received her authority from Jesus Himself, to go and preach and teach and baptize. Jesus didn’t tell the Church to wait and see what Paul says and then conform to it. Paul exists within the greater framework of the Church, not the Church existing to fit within the framework of Pauline preaching. What Paul says is not all-inclusive. We can’t dismiss whatever he may have omitted. He spoke to specific audiences for specific purposes. He was of the Church. The Catholic Church, in her authority, chose to include the letters of Paul into the Canon of Scripture. Yes- the Catholic Church cannonized the same Bible that you are using to discredit the Catholic Church! Why would they include letters that invalidated themselves? The answer is: they didn’t. The Bible was never intended to replace the teaching authority of the Church, it was meant to be used within the context of the Church… not all-inclusive, but as complement to what was constantly taught and understood by all believers. When Churches went a bit astray, Paul dashed off a letter to bring them back in line in the area they needed to be corrected in. He didn’t mention that which wasn’t a problem for them. 1 Tim 3:15 says the CHURCH is the pillar and foundation of truth… not Paul.

 

[Reformed]

continued:

Thank you for quoting the Catechism of the Catholic Church. However, this thread is not about the gospel according to Catholic tradition. Take the Scriptural challenge and try to understand why the Protestant Reformers left the Catholic Church for the gospel of Christ revealed in the Scriptures. If the truth is with you, then you have nothing to fear or lose. Heck, maybe through this thread, you guys might enlighten me and I will have to come home to Rome? Please…let’s stick to the OP and stay on course. We are trying to understand the gospel of God’s grace according to the Apostle Paul

2 Timothy 2:8

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel,

1 Corinthians 15

Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

 

[Reformed]

In order to understand exactly what the Apostle meant, you have to understand what the word “gospel” meant in the Roman Empire.Contrary to popular belief, gospel dose not equal “good news”. It’s a nice way of describing the gospel, but it’s not the correct definition.

Gospel was the words that the Roman Emperor spoke. Basically, he would speak to the people of glad tidings (this is where we get “good news” from) and it was believed that, because he was a god and the savior of mankind, his words changed the world for the better. Whether he spoke of ill or of good things, it didn’t matter: His words were glad tidings and they changed the world for the better. His words were not simply viewed as speech but as action, as power, as saving power.

When Jesus preached the gospel of God, or when the Apostles speak about the gospel, they mean precisely this: the saving power of God, the redemptive work of Christ. God, NOT the Emperor of Rome, is the true God and Savior of mankind and His Word is the true power of salvation. That is, Jesus is the Salvation of mankind: He, the Word, is the Redeemer of man, which the whole ancient world was waiting for and which God had promised to man after the fall from grace.

Thanks for the information. However, what you have posted may or may not be supported by Holy Scriptures specifically within the Epistles of the Apostle Paul (1/2 of the New Testament). We can all explain away our beliefs outside of the Scriptures. LDS Christians are very good at doing this. However, when I confront LDS Christians with the letters of Paul, there is nothing they can say. LDS Christians as you know, believe the Bible cannot be trusted. The difference here is that we (Protestants and Roman Catholics) believe the Bible to be God-breathed.

 

[Reformed]

1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 10

1 Now I make known to you, brethren, **the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,

2 by which also you are saved, if** you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

4and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.

Verse 10 in particular outlines the Catholic view nicely.

Check out what I highlighted in red.

 

[Claire_from_DE]

Thank you! This is what I was hoping for. Should we include the book of Hebrews as written by Paul? I’m okay either way. Romans 2:7-10 seems to be a very popular bible passages by Roman Catholics, but it is taken out of context of the rest of the Epistle of Romans. When Paul systematically reveals the gospel, he first brings the bad news to us in Romans chapter 1 and chapter 2. The gospel or good news is explained in Romans 3 on. Do you see how you seem to use Rom 2:7-10 out of context from the rest of the theme of the Epistle to hold on to the Roman Catholic gospel?

There is no Roman Catholic gospel. Catholics accept all of the writings of Paul as inspired, that is why the Catholic church made them part of the canon of scriptures.

What do you mean by the Roman Catholic gospel? What is your gospel? I think you are talking about interpretation of the scriptures. Please make clear to us what you think is the Catholic interpretation and how yours differs from it.

 

[Reformed]

Sorry I forgot to include the word gospel.

For it is not those who hear the law who are just in the sight of God; rather, those who observe the law will be justified. For when the Gentiles who do not have the law by nature observe the prescriptions of the law, they are a law for themselves even though they do not have the law. They show that the demands of the law are written in their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even defend them on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge people’s hidden works through Christ Jesus. (Rom 2:13-16)

That’s good my friend. You are a grounded RC Christian! Let’s work in your bible passage in context with the entire book of Romans and see if it means what you are trying to make it mean.

 

[Reformed]

You write as if you believe there is some discrepancy between what Paul wrote and what the Catholic Church believes. What is that error in your opinion?

I’m not going to make it that easy for you. With the exception of the Book of Romans, the other Pauline Epistles are quite short. Do you at least agree that the Protestant Reformers broke from the Roman Church since they believed in another gospel grounded in Scripture alone? Does that imply that the Roman Catholic gospel is dependent on Sacred Tradition to support the gospel proclaimed by Rome? Here is the apparent contrasting theme:

The Roman Catholic gospel is dispensed by the Roman Catholic Church through the many Roman Catholic sacraments. This sacramental way of salvation is different than Paul’s gospel.

I think you will find Paul does not support salvation through the Catholic Sacraments. Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s why we are on this thread.

 

[water]

Why should we be ashamed of the Word of God?

 

[Pixie_Dust]

Romans 1:1-5 1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,
4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name’s sake,

Romans 6:12-17 12 Therefore, sin must not reign over your mortal bodies so that you obey their desires.
13 And do not present the parts of your bodies to sin as weapons for wickedness, but present yourselves to God as raised from the dead to life and the parts of your bodies to God as weapons for righteousness.
14 For sin is not to have any power over you, since you are not under the law but under grace.
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? Of course not!
16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
17 But thanks be to God that, although you were once slaves of sin, you have become obedient from the heart to the pattern of teaching to which you were entrusted.

Romans 8:13-17; 24-25 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, “Abba, Father!”
16 The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

24 For** in hope we were saved**. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees?
25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance.

Romans 12:1-8; 11-13 1 I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship.
2 Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.
3 For by the grace given to me I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than one ought to think, but to think soberly, each according to the measure of faith that God has apportioned.
4 For as in one body we have many parts, and all the parts do not have the same function,
5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ and individually parts of one another.
6 Since** we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us exercise them**: if prophecy, in proportion to the faith;
7 if ministry, in ministering; if one is a teacher, in teaching;
8 if one exhorts, in exhortation; if one contributes, in generosity; if one is over others, with diligence; if one does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

11 Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit,** serve the Lord.**
12** Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer.**
13 Contribute to the needs of the holy ones, exercise hospitality.

Romans 13:1-4 1 Let every person be subordinate to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been established by God.
2 Therefore,** whoever resists authority opposes what God has appointed, and those who oppose it will bring judgment upon themselves.**
3 For rulers are not a cause of fear to good conduct, but to evil. Do you wish to have no fear of authority? Then do what is good and you will receive approval from it,
4 for it is a servant of God for your good. But if you do evil, be afraid, for it does not bear the sword without purpose; it is the servant of God to inflict wrath on the evildoer.

Romans 15:15-19 - 15 But I have written to you rather boldly in some respects to remind you, because of the grace given me by God
16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in performing the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering up of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the holy Spirit.
17 In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to boast in what pertains to God.
18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to lead the Gentiles to obedience by word and deed,
19 by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit (of God), so that from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum I have finished preaching the gospel of Christ.

Romans 16:17-20 17 I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who create dissensions and obstacles, in opposition to the teaching that you learned; avoid them.
18 For such people do not serve our Lord Christ but their own appetites, and by fair and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the innocent.
19 For while your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, I want you to be wise as to what is good, and simple as to what is evil;
20 then the God of peace will quickly crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

 

[Reformed]

There is no Roman Catholic gospel. Catholics accept all of the writings of Paul as inspired, that is why the Catholic church made them part of the canon of scriptures.

What do you mean by the Roman Catholic gospel? What is your gospel? I think you are talking about interpretation of the scriptures. Please make clear to us what you think is the Catholic interpretation and how yours differs from it.

Thanks for the post. I hope you will continue to participate on this thread. I will need to go back to work and will check later. I’m sure there are Catholics who know what we are talking about. I hope they will join us to give us light to our thread. I hope other Protestant Christians will help us by posting the gospel according to the Apostle Paul.

 

[Pokedaughter]

Romans 1:16-17

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. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

What is the gospel of God’s grace according to the Apostle Paul?

http://christianmystics.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/sunrisecross.jpg

The Light of the Gospel

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
2 Cor 4

My handy dandy Greek Dictionary says the “the gospel” tranlates into meaning “The Good Message”.

Paul later talks about his submission to God’s call that he is “determined not to know any thing among; you, save Jesus Christ, and him Crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2) and then in 1 Cor. 9:16

“For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!”

This to me means Paul’s message of the “gospel” is the good message of God’s grace by sending us Jesus Christ; that he was crucified that we might be reconciled to our Heavenly Father and have eternal life.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (The words of Christ)
(John 3:16)

 

[Pixie_Dust]

Check out what I highlighted in red.

Catholics (ALL Catholics, not just Latin-Rite aka Roman Catholics) profess that Christ died for our sins every time Mass is celebrated. Did you think I was unaware that Christ died for our sins?

 

[Reformed]

Romans 1:1-5 1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,
4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name’s sake,

Romans 6:12-17 12 Therefore, sin must not reign over your mortal bodies so that you obey their desires.
13 And do not present the parts of your bodies to sin as weapons for wickedness, but present yourselves to God as raised from the dead to life and the parts of your bodies to God as weapons for righteousness.
14 For sin is not to have any power over you, since you are not under the law but under grace.
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? Of course not!
16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
17 But thanks be to God that, although you were once slaves of sin, you have become obedient from the heart to the pattern of teaching to which you were entrusted.

Romans 8:13-17; 24-25 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, “Abba, Father!”
16 The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

24 For** in hope we were saved**. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees?
25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance.

Romans 12:1-8; 11-13 1 I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship.
2 Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.
3 For by the grace given to me I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than one ought to think, but to think soberly, each according to the measure of faith that God has apportioned.
4 For as in one body we have many parts, and all the parts do not have the same function,
5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ and individually parts of one another.
6 Since** we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us exercise them**: if prophecy, in proportion to the faith;
7 if ministry, in ministering; if one is a teacher, in teaching;
8 if one exhorts, in exhortation; if one contributes, in generosity; if one is over others, with diligence; if one does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

11 Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit,** serve the Lord.**
12** Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer.**
13 Contribute to the needs of the holy ones, exercise hospitality.

Romans 13:1-4 1 Let every person be subordinate to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been established by God.
2 Therefore,** whoever resists authority opposes what God has appointed, and those who oppose it will bring judgment upon themselves.**
3 For rulers are not a cause of fear to good conduct, but to evil. Do you wish to have no fear of authority? Then do what is good and you will receive approval from it,
4 for it is a servant of God for your good. But if you do evil, be afraid, for it does not bear the sword without purpose; it is the servant of God to inflict wrath on the evildoer.

The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you…

Thanks for posting Paul and following the theme of the thread. Although you quoted Paul, I’m not sure this is part of the proclamation of Paul’s gospel. Maybe you can help explain what you posted in regards to the gospel of God’s grace according to Paul?