Proclamation and Power
Proclamation and Power
By Peter J. Bellini
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 miraculous signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. In this way, I have fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum. (Rom 15:17-19)
The gospel is never merely spoken. It must always be demonstrated.
In this pericope, Paul presents himself to the church at Rome by summarizing his ministry as he looks toward Rome and the completion of his mission. He encapsulates his work in Romans 15:18–19 with the phrase “what I have said and done,” which, more literally in Greek, is logo kai ergo, “word and deed.” This can be understood as proclamation and power. Verse 18 emphasizes this pairing, while verse 19 elaborates on the “deeds” as the “power of miraculous signs and wonders through the power of the Spirit of God.” In this way, Paul declares that he has “fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum.” The deeds, then, are not merely actions, but manifestations of the Spirit’s power, signs and wonders accompanying the proclaimed word. The key phrase in this passage is “fully presented,” which raises the question of its meaning.
One interpretation suggests that it refers to the geographic extent of Paul’s ministry, stretching from Jerusalem to Illyricum. However, a more compelling interpretation is that it refers to the nature and fullness of Paul’s proclamation itself. The phrase “in this way” (translated from the Greek hōste, meaning “thus” or “therefore”) points back to the preceding clause concerning signs and wonders performed through the Spirit, indicating that a conclusion is being drawn. Through both word and supernatural deeds, therefore, Paul has fully presented the gospel. In this reading, “fully presented” modifies the manner of proclamation, namely, through both word and deed. What emerges, then, is the understanding that to preach the gospel fully involves both proclamation and demonstration: the word declared and the power of the Spirit revealed. The pressing question for us, then, is whether we have likewise fully presented the gospel in proclamation and power, or whether we have demythologized and diminished it to mere words, devoid of the accompanying power of God.
Proclamation and Power
This pattern of proclamation and power is not an isolated feature of Paul’s ministry but is woven throughout the biblical narrative. It appears in the Old Testament prophetic tradition, stretching back to figures such as Moses, Elijah, and Elisha, and reaches its fullest expression in the ministry of Jesus Christ and his disciples in the New Testament. Consider Moses before Pharaoh: the command “Let my people go” was not sufficient on its own for Pharaoh’s hardened heart. The proclamation required the accompaniment of divine power, i.e., the plagues and signs that demonstrated God’s supremacy over Egypt’s political and spiritual powers. In Scripture, when God speaks, he acts: “Let there be light”; “Be healed”; “Peace, be still.” Conversely, when God acts, he is also speaking, revealing his character and authority. God’s word is never empty; it is active and effectual. Unlike human speech, which often lacks follow-through, God’s word is always accompanied by his power. Thus, prophetic calls to repentance, such as those issued to Ahab and Jezebel, are sometimes accompanied by dramatic demonstrations of divine power, as seen in Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. These moments underscore the inseparability of proclamation and power in the work of God.
Jesus’s Pattern
This pattern reaches its pinnacle in the ministry of Jesus. Throughout the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus’ work is marked by a fourfold pattern: preaching, teaching, healing the sick, and casting out demons. His ministry consistently integrates proclamation with demonstration: the announcement of the Kingdom of God alongside tangible manifestations of its power. This same pattern is extended to his disciples, whom he commissions not only to proclaim the nearness of the Kingdom but also to enact it through healing, deliverance, and restoration. As Matthew 10:7–8 records, “Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” The Gospel of John likewise emphasizes this dynamic, structuring its narrative around the signs of Jesus, which reveal his identity as the Messiah and Son of God so that people might believe and have life in his name (John 20:30–31). Jesus himself appeals to this union of word and deed, saying, “Even though you do not believe me, believe the works” (John 10:38). Once again, we see the inseparability of proclamation and power: the word spoken and the works that testify to its truth.
Acts of the Apostles
We observe proclamation and power in the Acts of the Apostles, beginning at Pentecost in Jerusalem and moving to Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. Chapter 1:8 serves as a kind of table of contents for the book of Acts: “You will receive power (dunamis—God’s power/ability) to enable you to be my witnesses… in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” In other words, God will speak through the disciples by his Word and through his supernatural actions. They will receive power to proclaim and power to act in the book of Acts, just as Christ did in Luke’s Gospel, because they have the same Spirit.
In Acts, Paul is a prime example of this ministry of proclamation and power. Following his supernatural encounter with the risen Christ, his ministry begins. Like the other disciples, Paul preaches the good news with signs and wonders confirming the word. These signs and wonders confirm both the message and the messenger, and they also reveal the content of the Kingdom: healing, deliverance, liberation, and salvation.
Paul describes this ministry of proclamation and power in 1 Corinthians 2: “I came not with persuasive words of human wisdom but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” In other words, he came demonstrating the Kingdom. First Corinthians 4:20 proclaims that the kingdom comes “not in word but in power,” and 1 Thessalonians 1:5 declares that “our gospel came not only in word but also in the power of the Holy Spirit.” When the Kingdom comes, the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are healed, and the dead are raised. This demonstration of proclamation and power is what Paul is referencing in our pericope in Romans.
Ministry Today
Move 2,000 years forward to our scientifically minded world today. With our causally closed universe and hyper-rationalistic worldview, we often deflate, disenchant, and flatten the Gospel narrative, its miracles, signs and wonders, and especially exorcisms. We demythologize them or remove them entirely from our proclamation. And in the end, we don’t have enough power to blow our nose.
Today in the church, I like to think of our ministry as proclamation and power in the Holy Spirit, a proclamation of holiness and a demonstration of God’s power to heal, deliver, and transform. As Wesleyans, we are attempting to hold onto the holiness aspect, but we have often bifurcated the flame, as my former mentor Howard Snyder states. We have separated the two (holiness and power), holding on to the former and neglecting the latter. But as Snyder, others, and I have written, this is not scriptural. First Corinthians 12:7 reminds us that each member is given a gift or manifestation of the Spirit.
Why are we reticent to follow the ministry of Christ, the disciples, and Paul (and even our own John Wesley) regarding the demonstration of the Spirit? Perhaps we fear it may puff us up. But the gifts are not for us, nor do we define ourselves by them. We walk in the Wesleyan way, which offers a corrective to the excesses found in some expressions of the charismatic movement. We stress fruit over gifts, holiness over power, and character over charisma. I struggled with what I witnessed as a young Christian in ministry. I saw the misuse of the gifts in the church. They were often flaunted as badges of merit rather than worn humbly as gifts of grace.
God impressed an image on my heart one day. I had received a package, and God drew my attention to the unassuming, plain brown UPS van and the plainly dressed driver. He was not the package, the sender, or the recipient, just the messenger. That’s all we are. We are not the gift, nor the giver, nor the recipient. It’s not about us. We are simply the unassuming, plain-brown dressed UPS driver, faithful messengers.
Conclusion
Now, from Acts 29, I want to share a story. Around forty years ago, I was a young, zealous Christian who wanted to do the will of God no matter what. I told the Lord that I was completely at his disposal, whatever, whenever. One night, God took me seriously. I sensed him waking me up. It was 3 a.m. The thought came clearly: remember when you told God you would do anything he asked? Well… here we are. Mind you, I was not a morning person, but God was clearly waking me for an assignment. I could feel it.
When God speaks to me, it is not in an audible voice but as a still, small voice in the deep recesses of my spirit. God uses my own vocabulary, thoughts, memory, and personhood, imprinting his will so that I clearly know what he wants. Sometimes it is an intuition, a knowing, even a green light. That is how I heard him that morning, like a friend speaking to a friend.
“Get your car keys,” he said. “Where are we going, Lord?” I asked. “You are on a need-to-know basis—and you don’t need to know.” “Get your guitar.” What am I going to do with the guitar? Still, I obeyed. I sensed him leading me south toward downtown, then to a park by the river. I parked and was led to a concrete bench in the middle of the park. It was 3:15 A.M. No cars, no people, no one.
“Okay, Lord, what do you want me to do?” I wondered if I was supposed to play something simple, “Smoke on the Water,” maybe. But suddenly, the Spirit came upon me like a fresh breath, and I felt filled. I strummed a G chord and began to sing. It was prophetic, almost bluesy. Now, those who know me know I have a deep bass voice, but not for singing. I’m what you might call a “prison singer,” as in I am behind a few bars, looking for the right key.
Still, I sang. I sang about a man who had lost everything—his job, money, wife, children, friends—because of alcohol. He wanted to end his life. Toward the end of the song, I sensed someone behind me. I turned and saw an African American man in his early seventies, weeping uncontrollably. Through tears he said, “You sang my life… You don’t know me, but that song, that was me. I lost everything. I came here to jump off that bridge, but I heard a voice say, ‘Just wait one more day.’ I waited. And tonight, I came back to die. But I heard you singing…”
I told him I had not finished the song. “The song goes on,” I said, “to tell you that Jesus loves you, and you don’t have to die tonight. He wants to save your soul and restore your life. He wants you to live and not die. Do you believe me?” He prayed with me through tears, and I led him to the Lord, taking him by the hand into his first steps toward eternity.
What about you? What will you do when God wakes you up at your metaphorical 3 a.m.? Will you respond? Will you do as he says, even if it seems preposterous or absurd? Will you proclaim the good news wherever, whenever, and to whomever he sends you, not just in proclamation, but in power? That night, I needed both, and so will you. At 3 a.m., God’s heart was broken for a broken man. He was looking for someone crazy enough to obey. Next time, he may call you.
