From the Morning Scriptures

I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another. Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. He gave me the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done—by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God.

—Romans 15:14-19a (TNIV)

Here we see Paul talking about how faith has manifested itself in his life. He has dared to remind the church at Rome what is their heritage and promise. He glories in being an apostle (apostle means “sent”) to the Gentiles so that God’s plan of reconciling the world to himself might be further accomplished (notice here how God uses human agency to help him accomplish his good will and purposes). Paul glories in Jesus Christ because Paul knows he owes his life to Jesus—literally. His faith in the saving efficacy of the cross is the one and only reason he labors so diligently for the sake of the Gospel.

This also explains why Paul was so willing and eager to suffer for the sake of Christ. First, when he suffered for Christ’s sake, he was imitating his Master. Second, when Paul suffered for the Gospel’s sake, he knew he was doing what Christ had called him to do and that brought great joy to Paul.

All of this, of course, is predicated on Paul’s faith. He could prove none of it but he knew it to be true nevertheless. This gave Paul joy, purpose, and meaning to his life, even in the face of the most daunting circumstances. The same joy, purpose, and meaning that was available to Paul is available to you too, and you don’t have to be an apostle to claim it. You simply have to live your life as an expression of your faith in the saving work of Christ and rely on his Presence in you to help you do just that.