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The Doxology: The Final Mountain Peak
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We've come to the climactic conclusion of Romans—a letter so complete, so brilliant, that Paul arrives at the end with nothing left to do but praise God. Romans 16:25–27 contains what's called the Doxology, the final proclamation of worship that closes the entire book.
Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him. To the only wise God, the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Paul has constructed the entire system and foundation of his faith and theology on one cornerstone: the person of Jesus Christ and the finished, sufficient work of the cross and the empty tomb. All the prophets, centuries of God's brilliant redemptive plan, His promise to humanity—it is finally, after all the ages, all the mystery, now revealed and established in Christ.
The gospel means good news, not good advice. You don't come to church simply looking for practical tips and strategies. No—this is good news. Something truly happened, recorded in history, documented thoroughly in ways that rival most historical references. It's credible, verifiable, real.
Christ was an actual man—raised in Nazareth, he began his ministry in Judea and moved into Galilee. He led a small group of 12 disciples. He introduced a brilliant, revolutionary kingdom ethic of love. He established a standard of grace. He performed astonishing miracles, using the weak to shame the strong, the foolish to confound the wise. He showed up in ways you would not expect—an infant born into poverty, hidden, gentle, humble, thorough.
Christ walked a life of perfection. He predicted his death. He predicted his resurrection. And then he pulled it off.
Anybody who can predict their death and resurrection and then accomplish it has a different level of credibility. Who else in your life has done that? He's set apart. If you can do that, you're God.
What this means is that Christ stared death in the face, evil in the face, the curse upon humanity in the face. He plummeted into the depths of hell, snatched the keys from Satan, defeated death once and for all. And he stands resolute, eternal, powerful, and whole on the other side of the grave.
That changes everything.
Paul writes in his other letters that if Christ has not been resurrected from the grave, all of Scripture should be considered rubbish—throw it out the window. What establishes this? What anchors this firm foundation? None other than the cornerstone: Christ himself. In his perfection, in his might, in his joy and grace, he endured the cross and stands independent as God on the other side of it.
You cannot come to Christ and walk away neutral. He is either God, or he is a lunatic who duped every single one of us. If he's not God, he's a con artist—someone who tricked us and developed an urban legend that created a global cult following of people participating in superstitious religious behaviors anchored in a lie.
You cannot say, "Oh, he was just some guy who was a good teacher and a rabbi." No. He was either the one and only begotten Son, the chosen Messiah, the fulfillment of all things—or he was nuts.
He shows up on the other side of the grave. He spends time with his disciples. He spends time with over 500 people who testify to his resurrection. And then Paul himself—someone who thought it was ridiculous to believe that anyone could come back to life, someone on his way to Damascus to persecute believers in such nonsense—meets Christ face to face. He personally discovers a man on the other side of the grave, and it changes his life.
That's why Paul comes to chapter 1 and declares: "I am unashamed of the gospel."
Here's the truth: You cannot appreciate the good news if you cannot acknowledge the bad news.
There is one thing every single one of us has in common—we will all die. At some point, we discover the fundamental question: Is there life beyond the grave? And if there is, do we meet our Maker?
When you look out at creation, you can understand there is a clear design. And that design has a designer. But at some point, we discover our wayward nature—our inconsistent nature, our prideful nature, our greedy, selfish nature. We are nature that is often tempted, nature that drifts toward toxic emotions. That nature in all of us places us at odds with our heavenly Father. There is a chasm, and there's nothing we can do. We are utterly depraved.
We stand with a nagging awareness that we are broken. And at some point, we will face a righteous God.
This is where Paul establishes the wrath of God—an idea that gets misinterpreted by most people. Most think God is shelling out threats. That's wrong. He's offering warnings that your decisions determine your direction, and the direction you're heading in determines the destination you arrive at.
God is saying: The decisions you're making are pointing you in a direction. At some point, you will either say to God, "Your will be done," or God will say to you, "Okay, thy will be done." You want a life without Me? You want eternity without a personal relationship with Me? Okay, here is an eternity without My limitless goodness. Welcome to hell.
The wrath of God is not God seeking to punish you. It is simply you and me walking into our decisions and discovering that the wages of sin is death. And we need a Savior.
That's the thing we all have in common—throughout the entire church—we all need a savior.
But here's the paradigm shift in the gospel:
This is not a wage. This is a gift. It comes by faith and is something we receive, not achieve.
If we are in this predicament with God, can we save ourselves? No. So who can save us? That's where everything changes.
There are probably five roles you can see God playing throughout the book of Romans:
Chapter 1 establishes the power of the gospel. Paul says, "I am not intellectually embarrassed about what I believe. I am not socially embarrassed about what I believe." This Jesus and this historical account of faith is set apart in ways others cannot make claims on.
Chapter 2 reveals God's righteous judgment.
Chapter 3 introduces justification by faith—trusting in the finished work of the cross that pardons us of our sin and grants us salvation. It's nothing you've done. It's all because of who He is.
Chapter 4 establishes Abraham as the prototype. Paul peels back the layers of history to the very beginning of God's story of redemption. He goes to the patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God said: "I'm going to start with a man. I'm going to pair him with a wife. I am going to raise up a family that will produce a tribe that will eventually become a nation. They will be a holy priesthood and they will be a blessing to the entire world."
You can verify that promise has come to pass. There has been a uniqueness upon the nation of Israel. It is through this bloodline that all promises would be fulfilled—Jesus Christ would be the fulfillment of that promised blessing to the world.
Through the seed of Abraham comes the Savior of all people. That's the blessing to the world—that through Abraham came a universal promise to anyone and everyone: If you confess your sins and place your faith in Jesus Christ, you receive salvation and eternal harmony with your Maker.
Abraham is the very first prototype. He is given peace with God through Christ. And here's the revolutionary part: When you place your faith in Jesus Christ, you are credited—listen to this—the righteousness of God.
Folks, you have to have this in your theological tool belt: If you are in Christ, when your righteous, holy, almighty, all-powerful, all-knowing God looks upon your life, He sees Christ, not you. Not your brokenness, not your shortcomings. You live under an established law. You have received the credited perfect righteousness of Christ.
Your identity is in Christ. And your identity begins to shape your activity. Who you are determines what you do.
Chapter 6 establishes freedom from the power of sin.
Chapter 7 reveals the reality that we will all struggle with the flesh.
Chapter 8 establishes that there is new life in the Spirit and assurance of salvation and eternity found only in Christ.
These chapters trace God's sovereign choices throughout human history. He goes back through all the schisms, fractures, divisions, and household breakups—from Isaac to Ishmael, and on down. David had issues in his family. Joseph had issues in his family. There are broken families all throughout human history. But aren't we thankful that God can still get redemption through broken families?
When God made a promise to Abraham, He also made a promise to Sarah. God shows how He makes sovereign choices throughout human history that sometimes don't make sense to us, but if you understood all that He knows and looked at things with a fine comb, you'd discover He brilliantly gets the job done, even when humanity's hanging on by a thread.
Abraham and Sarah had a moment common to all humans—times when we decide to take matters into our own hands and get out ahead of God. They knew God had promised them a son. They knew Sarah was barren. So they assumed, "Abraham, you should have a child with our servant." It was a terrible moment. Abraham sowed a blessed seed into foolish soil.
Yet God was still good to Hagar, who was placed in a very terrible predicament. Ishmael went on to be a force in his own right, producing a line, a standard of people, and a community of faith in human history.
But which one is it? If you boil it down: God has integrity. God is true. He didn't just make a promise to Abraham; He made a promise to Sarah. What a gentleman. Now they have a son. That's why it becomes Isaac. That's why Jesus arrives through that seed.
God shows that salvation, because it is rooted in faith and not works, in faith and not bloodline, is available to the whole world. Even a person born and raised in a tradition on the side of Ishmael can realize: When I trace my story back to my broken home, I realize God was still good to my mother who was in a bad predicament. I realize He kept His word to a couple that existed before my situation came into play.
That's how so many people are turning to Christ from a Muslim background. They're realizing Christ is so set apart.
Chapter 12 enters the portion marking maturity—a transformed life of worship we now partake in, with themes of submission, honor, and living awake.
Chapters 14–15 emphasize unity. Paul talks about the community of faith, unity in theology and matters of conscience, and maintaining a healthy church family, understanding that we are spiritual siblings.
Chapter 16 highlights and celebrates gospel partnership. Paul shouts out key partners advancing the gospel around the globe and throughout the region. At the end of all his brilliant theology, he celebrates people who are serving and being generous, becoming gospel partners in the work.
Paul ends with the most influential letter ever penned. This is the number one most historically verified, influential, longest-standing faith in human history. It is no better, more concisely documented and articulated than the book of Romans.
In his final sentence, he writes: "And to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ. Amen."
He doesn't say, "And to the only loving God." He doesn't say, "And to the all-powerful God." He doesn't say, "And to the most peaceful, most joyful." Think of all the things you could say. He gets to the very end of his faith, the full explanation of what he believes, and he thinks:
"Holy cow, He's brilliant. He's mesmerizing. He's so sophisticated, so thoughtful, so intentional, so supernaturally wise."
Remember this: The gospel can be summed up in two words: grace and peace. Grace is the vehicle. Peace is the destination. Grace is how we get there. Peace is where we're going.
Why do we have peace? Because we can rest knowing that our God is perfect, that He's faithful, that the cross was enough. And even when I don't understand things, even when I don't have all the answers, I can rest at peace knowing He does. Knowing He's wise. Knowing I can trust His decision-making. Knowing He has my best interest in mind.
Listen carefully: You do not have to check your brain at the door.
It's not to say a litmus test is required to enter heaven. No. It is a blood test—because of what Christ did on the cross. Because His blood was shed, our sins are forgiven.
As people grow in Christ, there's a development that takes place in your life. There comes a point in your development where you can have good intentions but not good instincts.
A lot of new people are coming into the faith. You're excited about Christ. You're getting your feet under you. Chances are you're discovering you have some good intuitions. You're sensing conviction, that prompting from God, that inner awareness that says, "This isn't right," or "Something is off." You're developing discernment. You have good intuition.
But you're just developing the instincts. If intuition is awareness, instincts are how you navigate it. As we move forward, our focus will be on continuing to develop those Christ-centered instincts—not just having good intentions, but moving with the wisdom and discernment that comes from deep faith in Christ.
