Romans 1 - The Power Of God...

16 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.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17, ESV)

I am focusing this morning here:

“for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes”

That word translated power is the Greek word from which we get the word dynamite.  The gospel is effective because it “carries” with it the omnipotence of God!  What came to my mind this morning as I read this was how strong must our sinful nature be if it takes the “dynamite” of God to overcome it and give us new life.

Remembering this ALWAYS brings relief to my heart and quiets my striving...I can’t overcome my old man but God who dwells in me can!

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. (Romans 5:6, ESV)

For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, (Romans 8:3, ESV)

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13, ESV)

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18, ESV)

since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; (1 Peter 1:23, ESV)

It helped my heart also to look at the word believes...it means to trust, rely on, or have faith in. John MacArthur said it was important to note that when used of salvation this word usually occurs in the present tense.  That was another good reminder for me.  Placing my trust in God is not and was not a one time event.  It is an ongoing, continual process.  The just shall live by their faith...true saving faith is a supernatural, gracious gift from God that HE produces in my heart.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, (Ephesians 2:8, ESV)