My Bible reading program had me in Romans 1 on Wednesday and the words of verses 11-15 kept rumbling through my head. Verse 15 maybe was the key nugget. It reads: So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
Typically, I think most of the time, we might think of the Gospel being preached as something that needs to happen because of unbelievers. And I do believe that is true. We do need to preach and share the good news of Jesus with people who do not know Jesus. I believe verses like 2 Corinthians 5:18-20 make it profoundly clear. But in writing the letter we call Romans, Paul was writing to people whom he referred to as saints in Romans 1:7. Paul was not writing to lost people. He was writing to followers of Jesus. So why does he want to preach the Gospel to people who are already followers of Jesus? They have already heard the message of the Gospel made possible by the Gospel event of Jesus’ death and resurrection. And they have responded to that message by repenting of their sins and trusting the Lord Jesus alone as their Savior. The Gospel has changed their lives. Why do they need to have the Gospel preached to them again?