Romans 1:16-17 (NLT)
16 For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. 17 This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”

Paul speaks boldly to the Romans saying he is not ashamed of the message of Salvation which comes through Jesus Christ. For this good news comes from God. It is His plan of redemption for everyone who believes in His plan of salvation. The key to accepting this plan of salvation is faith, as it is said, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”

To be ashamed is to have a feeling of shame, guilt or disgrace. It is a thought of feeling inferior or unworthy in regards to something. Most people who are ashamed of something are restrained in their actions to express any thoughts about what they feel. Yet Paul boldly says, “I AM NOT ASHAMED OF THIS GOOD NEWS ABOUT CHRIST.” But there are many Christians today who are afraid of speaking up about Christ because they are ashamed of offending someone. Think about this, you probably have someone in your life that you love dearly. Can you imagine if you had the opportunity to say something good about them, but held back because of fear of what others might think? It should not matter what others think when you know the person you are talking about is one of your closest, dearly and most intimate friends. Jesus Christ gave His life for you that though faith in Him you could have eternal life and freedom from sin. That is not something to be ashamed about, but it is something to be proud of. When you have a chance to speak about Jesus, speak boldly of Him as a personal friend of whom you are not ashamed. As others observe your love for Christ they may also want that same relationship. Isn’t it sad we can be ashamed of the sins we commit, but we can also be ashamed of the one who freed us from those sins?