Theme: THE POWER OF KNOWLEDGE
Text: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” – Romans 1:16,17.
Comment: Salvation, which is complete freedom from sin and its consequences, including death, is the ultimate object of the Christian endeavour. However, for one to get life everlasting, one must believe the truth and practise it until the end. One should also be willing to spread the word to others. “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10:10) Jesus himself said: “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.” (Mark 8:38) Earlier, King David was inspired to write thus: “I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed.” – Psalm 119:46.
Due to the devil’s influence some believers are ashamed to profess their faith in public, hence St. Paul’s assertion in the text under reference. By the knowledge of God, the truth, one is able to counter errors or false doctrines created by the devil to exploit the ignorance of the people and make merchandize of them. It is the knowledge of God that enables us to overcome the problems that the devil places on our way. The knowledge of God is “the mark” by which the just shall be saved. – Ezekiel 9:4-6; Proverbs 11:9.