The previous article outlined the basic reason for reaching the unsaved with the gospel - love for and obedience to the Lord Jesus. Now some of the other reasons for reaching out with the gospel, including why such urgency is required, what the core message is, and who the main communicators of the message are, will be considered.
Individuals are in danger of the judgment of God
Do we really believe that God is righteous and that people have broken his laws and therefore are guilty? As believers we know that physical death is the outcome of the principle of sin for every soul (Ezek 18.20; Rom 6.23), but sometimes we live as if the second death is not the ultimate judgment of God against unrepentant sinners (Rev 20.14). The second death is the point of no return for the unsaved soul. Eternity will be spent separated from God and all that His grace supplies to those who believe.
If I could envisage hell and the lake of fire for what it is, and see the price of redemption that was borne by our Lord and Saviour, it would make me so much more passionate about reaching people with the gospel. It is a good practice to spend some time on a regular basis contemplating the work of salvation and the prospect of being eternally lost. It is said that William Booth wished all his Salvation Army officers could hang over hell for 24 hours prior to their commissioning. He felt this would stir them to a deeper commitment to evangelism. Doing this would certainly change my attitude to the value of my salvation and keep me conscious of the danger that unsaved souls are in.
Life is short and unpredictable
Life is fragile and individuals leave this life for eternity every minute. While I have been writing for the last five minutes approximately 540 souls have died and passed into eternity. That equates to 155,520 souls a day, 56.8 million souls a year leaving this life never to have another opportunity to get saved. Scripture teaches that the "Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins" (Mt 9.6). It is clear that salvation is only available on earth and that the day in which we live is the day of salvation (2 Cor 6.2). We therefore need to awake to the great danger that mankind is in and the "great salvation" that is readily available through faith in Christ.
Time is running out for the Lord is coming
The Apostle Paul wrote, "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light" (Rom 13.11-12). The vast majority of believers seem to have ignored Scriptures like this and are spiritually sleepy, dozy, and seemingly unaware of the danger facing unsaved people. Our salvation comes to its full and final fulfilment at the return of Christ for the church (1 Thess 4.16-17). This will open the door to God’s judgment on the world. Believers will be saved from the wrath of God (1 Thess 5.9), but the ungodly will be left for tribulation on earth (2 Thess 2.8-12) and judgment at the second coming of Christ to earth (2 Thess 1.8). If we really believe this we must then react to the words of Romans 13 and "cast off the works of darkness" – i.e. finish with everything that is characteristic of this sinful world system. It is essential that we are protected with the "armour of light". A Christ-like lifestyle is necessary if we are going to be good witnesses of the Lord and bear the light of the gospel in a dark world (Phil 2.15).
In summary, a genuine awareness of the coming of Christ and the impending judgment of God on the world will result in Christians seeking to be more like the Lord Jesus and more effective in their witness for the Saviour.
The Core Message
The message of the gospel is both simple and profound. We must keep in the forefront of our minds that the "the gospel" is "the good news". We could easily fall into the trap of emphasizing sin and depravity so much that we fail to emphasis the attractiveness of the Person of Christ and of the offer of salvation. Sin must be identified, as well as the effect of sin in the life, so that an individual will appreciate the need for God’s mercy and salvation. But "the good news" is the core of the message and must be preached clearly!
Key texts include the following:
1. "Preach the word" (2 Tim 4.2) – the Word of God must be the basis of all witnessing.
2. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Rom 10.17).
3. "We preach Christ crucified" (1 Cor 1.23) – the Saviour and the work of the cross is central to the message.
4. "If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain" (1 Cor 15.14) - resurrection must be preached, as without it there is no gospel.
I find the words of the Apostle Paul recorded in Acts 26 very helpful. He explains the message of the gospel as having the following effects:
• Opening people’s eyes (v.18).
• Turning them from darkness to light (v.18).
• Turning them from the power of Satan unto God (v.18).
• Providing forgiveness of sins (v.18).
• Securing an inheritance among the saints (sharing in all the eternal wealth of Christ - v.18).
• Bringing about repentance and turning people to God (a change of mind in respect of God and sin - v.20).
• New believers performing deeds in keeping with their repentance (v.20).
The Communicators – local churches and individuals
We did learn in the first article that the promotion of the good news of salvation was not restricted to apostles and evangelists. In general terms there are two main channels for communicating this great message - local churches and individuals.
Local churches
The communities of believers that God has called out of the world exist for the glory of God. This is where God chooses to dwell among men (Eph 2.22). The following passages all describe the church as the body of Christ - Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4. The local church is always seen as a miniature representation of the whole church, i.e. the body of Christ.
One of the things that God has called the church to do is to speak for Him on earth. The church of the Thessalonians was very effective in this respect. It is said of them, "For from you sounded out the word of the Lord" (1 Thess 1.8). They spoke for God, their reputation had gone as far as Macedonia and Achaia, and they were living testimony of the effectiveness of gospel in changing lives.
The saints in Philippi also keenly fulfilled this role. Paul thanks them for their "fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now" (Phil 1.5). He then encourages them to be found "striving together for the faith of the gospel" (Phil 1.27). When following references to the assembly in this epistle it is noticeable that gospel work is an essential part of assembly life. But the behaviour of the Christians impacted on the effectiveness of the gospel (Phil 1.27), and suffering was almost guaranteed to result (Phil 1.29). The assembly had a clear public witness both in lifestyle and in witness (Phil 2.15-16) and both women and men were involved in gospel work (Phil 2.25; 4.3).
Individuals
This point is fairly self-explanatory. The book of Acts is full of examples of individuals spreading the gospel. Remember that the instruction of the Lord Jesus was to make disciples and to teach them "to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Mt 28.19). In the early church we see souls being saved and added to the church (Acts 2.41; 9.19,28). Individuals were preaching to see souls saved and to see them in fellowship in a local church and walking with God. New converts are often the most effective in reaching out with the gospel. Being freshly saved they have lots of unsaved friends and are a living testimony to the effectiveness of the gospel.
Key Lesson
What we say and how we live must match or we make gospel testimony ineffective!
To be continued.
