Sharing the Gospel Using the Romans Road

Photo of a road by Joshua Sorinto.

Have you ever wanted to share the good news of Christ, but didn’t know where to start? My last blog “Overcoming Concerns about Sharing the Gospel” encouraged people to tell others about Jesus, and now I want to equip you to do so. In my previous evangelism group, we always reviewed the “Romans Road,” a series of Scriptures from Romans that outline mankind’s depravity and how to be saved. I suggest marking these verses in your Bible and memorizing them to explain the gospel. We use God’s words instead of our own because His word is powerful and accomplishes His purposes (Isaiah 55:11).

The Romans Road

1. Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (NKJV)*.  
 
We are all sinners. No “good people” live on planet Earth. No human being is righteous (Romans 3:10). Every person (other than Jesus) to ever walk the earth had fallen short of perfection, which is God’s standard.
 
2. Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
 
God loved us when we were His enemies. Most people don’t try to show kindness to their enemies. At the clear opposite end of the spectrum is God. Even when we were still sinners, God sent Jesus to die for us. He loved us that much. God made a way to reconcile us to Himself by pouring out His wrath on Jesus instead of us. We deserved death because of our iniquities, but Jesus took our place.
 
3. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
 
The penalty of sin is death. The paycheck we earn for our transgressions equates to separation from God forever. Fortunately, God gave us a gift we could never repay by sending His Son so we can receive eternal life.
 
4. Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
 
We can’t save ourselves. We humans think we are independent. We don’t need anyone else and can do it all by ourselves. We are “good” people. However, because God’s standard is perfection, no amount of good works we do as humans will ever measure up to God’s requirements. We can’t brag about our actions and think we can save ourselves. Salvation is a gift from God. We are saved by grace through faith alone.
 
5. Romans 10:9-10, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
 
Confess and believe in Jesus to be saved. Our salvation includes both a verbal profession of Jesus as Lord and a heart belief that that God raised Jesus from the dead. I’ve had times when I knew in my head that something was true, but it didn’t “feel” accurate. Both our heads and our hearts must engage in requesting salvation. We have both a mental and spiritual agreement when we acknowledge that we can’t save ourselves and receive the free gift of God.
 
6. Romans 10:13, “For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”

God made salvation available for everyone. God loved people so much that He sent His Son to die for everyone. Jesus didn’t sacrifice Himself for a few chosen people, but for everyone to roam the earth: past, present, and future. The New Covenant He established was with all mankind, not just the children of Israel. God desires everyone to repent from their sins and come into relationship with Him.

How about you? Have you ever admitted that you were sinner and called on the name of the Lord to be saved? If not, what holds you back from receiving the gift of eternal life from the Father today? Call on Him and be saved.

If you have a relationship with Christ, have you ever memorized the Romans Road? Having Scripture in our spiritual backpack prepares us to share the gospel in all seasons (1 Peter 3:15). These verses show a logical progression of our sin that separates us from God how He made a way by sending Jesus to take the punishment we deserve. When we confess our sins and call on Him, we will be saved. Let’s share that good news today.  

• As the Christmas season approaches, we as believers have more opportunities to tell people about Jesus as we celebrate His birth. Please write the names of any friends, family, or strangers you want me to pray with you to share the gospel this year.

*All Scriptures are NKJV.