Two words, seemingly unrelated, are “shame” and “gospel.” Shame is defined by Noah Webster as “Reproach; ignominy; derision; contempt; dishonor; disgrace.” The gospel of Jesus Christ is defined by Paul the apostle in I Corinthians 15 as the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ – the message that brings salvation to a dying soul. The despicable, stomach-turning characteristic of shame should never be associated with a subject as glorious as the gospel of Jesus Christ. In spite of this, many have unapologetically mixed the precious elements of the gospel of Christ with their own shameful ideals. Allow me to expound upon this.
Some Are Ashamed OF the Gospel
Romans 1:16 – “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation; unto the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
By declaring that he was not ashamed of the gospel himself, Paul is also teaching us that it is possible for a person to be “ashamed of the gospel.” And it is clearly seen all around us that many professing Christians are ashamed of the gospel. The lack of soul-winning among Christians is evidence enough that professing Christians are ashamed of the gospel. The very souls who have been set free by the Bible message of salvation are ashamed to declare the very gospel that has made them free! One would think that deliverance from binding sins would in itself give courage and strength to the Christian to be a soul-winner. But, as I find often, many who have been delivered, are ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Why are people who have set free by the gospel ashamed of the gospel? Some are ashamed of the gospel because its message is unpopular. In our society of pluralism, multi-culturalism, and tolerance, Jesus’ words are not in sync with such ideals. Words such as “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me” rub the world the wrong way. Every Christian reader needs to understand this – the sick, perverted world in which we live will never accept your message. Those who are publicly against Christ and in alignment with this world absolutely HATE the gospel. Yes, they preach tolerance, and they themselves are the most hostile, intolerant people toward Christianity. They preach freedom of speech for perverts, cross-dressers, and those who are “transgender;” but they turn around and attempt to take away such freedoms from Christians. They want Christ removed from the public square; they want religion to stay within the four walls of the church; they want preaching that is against sin to be defined as a hate crime. Liberalism is, by definition, hypocrisy.
But Christians should not be surprised. Our Lord told us it would be this way, only promising that it would get worse! Look what He said:
John 15:18-20 – “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.”
John 16:2, 3 – “They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.”
Jesus told us it would be this way! When you take your stand for Jesus, you will be hated by this world! You will be an outcast! You will be falsely accused, cast into prison for the sake of the gospel, and even killed for the gospel of Christ. But remember this – Christ was rejected for you! Christ stood alone for you and me. He died alone and forsaken of the Father on Golgotha’s rugged brow. Whatever the cost to follow Him will surely be worth it. While Christ suffered, separated from the Father, He promised us that we would never suffer alone, for He promised, “I will never leave you, nor forsake you!” So, dear Christian, stand for Jesus! Say with Paul the apostle, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ!” He was not ashamed to suffer for us; may we never be ashamed to suffer for Him.
Mark 8:38 – “Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
Luke 9:26 – “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.”
Some Are a Shame TO the Gospel
Volumes could be written concerning the truth that some live in a way as to shame the name of Jesus Christ. His name is holy, righteous, and pure, and if you are going to declare it, you should live a lifestyle that backs up your words. Look at this:
II Timothy 2:19 – “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”
Plainly, the apostle states that if you name the name of Jesus Christ, then depart from iniquity! When a Christian sins openly before this world, he becomes a shame to the gospel with which he associates himself.
While it is true that the world will hate us, as we have already seen; while it is true that we will no doubt be falsely accused; DO NOT give the world a reason to accuse you! Professing Christians and ministers have brought much shame to the cause of Christ. I am told of ministers who contract debt and do not pay! I am told of Christians who borrow money and do not pay it back. I am told of Christians who, on the job, do not work their fair share. I know of professing Christians who will have their electricity to be shut off before they’ll get up off the couch and work for the money to pay the electric bill! All of these things bring shame to the name of Jesus Christ! I do not wish to be ashamed OF the gospel, but neither do I wish to be a shame TO the gospel!
Some Preach a ShameFUL Gospel
How glorious is the gospel of Jesus Christ! Dr. M.R. DeHaan said, “There are only two religions in the world – the DO religion and the DONE religion.” Man’s religion, or the DO religion, says that if you are to be saved, you must “do this,” “do that,” “perform sacraments,” “be baptized,” “keep laws,” “keep commandments,” “dress this way,” “dress that way,” and on, and on, and on. While I believe in living right (so that I am not a shame TO the gospel), “doing things” does not comprise salvation. “Doing things” to be saved is man’s false religion.
God’s religion, however, is the DONE religion. The final cry of our Saviour from the cross was “It is finished!” There is nothing left to perform for our salvation. There is nothing left for you and me to do. We must simply place all of our faith in what Christ has already completely done on Calvary’s hill. The songwriter put it this way:
It is finished; what a gospel!
Nothing has been left to do,
But to take with grateful gladness
What the Saviour did for you.
It is finished; Hallelujah! It is finished; Hallelujah!
Christ the work has fully done; Hallelujah!
All who will may have their pardon
Through the blood of God’s own Son.*
To preach anything less than salvation by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ is to preach a shameful gospel. There is a problem with preaching that salvation either attained or maintained by keeping laws and commandments. The problem is not that those who preach in such a way are too strict; the problem is rather that they are not strict enough! The act of keeping laws and commandments is not “going overboard;” it is actually “not going far enough!” Keeping laws and commandments, being baptized, performing sacraments, and all other efforts of mankind is not too much for salvation; it is not enough for salvation. Notice:
Matthew 5:20 – “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
The Pharisees, the religious leaders of Christ’s day who preached strict adherence to rules and regulations, had a problem. It was not that their rules went too far; it was that their rules DID NOT GO FAR ENOUGH! So many today have read the above verse and have preached that we need to be stricter than the Pharisees if we are going to be saved. But that is not what Jesus preached. The answer is not more rules, more strictness, more sacraments, and more works of man! These things were not sufficient for salvation to start with, and they’ll never be sufficient for salvation, no matter how much of them you have! The attempt to keep laws, commandments, baptisms, and sacraments is man’s DO religion. The righteousness that far exceeds the law-keeping of the Pharisees is the righteousness of Christ. Christ is all my righteousness. His work is absolutely complete, and brings full salvation with no work of man added to it whatsoever!
To preach any other salvation, one is preaching a shameful gospel. May every Christian declare with boldness the true gospel of Jesus Christ without shame, living a lifestyle that supports such a message, and testifying only the work of Jesus Christ for the salvation of this lost and dying world.
*M. Fraser
