We read in Acts 8:4: “Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word.” The scattering refers to a Saul/Paul led round of persecution. Most of the Jerusalem church was scattered, with only the apostles remaining (8:1). Personal and church-wide calamity did not make the early believers mute. They took the gospel with them on their pilgrimage.
The word translated “preaching” means “gospelling,” or sharing the good news. It is not the word for “being a herald of the gospel,” what we normally think of as “preaching” or “preachers.” The emphasis is not on holding an office in the church but on declaring the gospel. The scattered believers went everywhere declaring and sharing the gospel. Circumstances and location did not make a huge difference in what they said and did. They were followers of Christ, so at home or displaced, walking or working, or looking for a new life outside of Jerusalem, they spoke to others about new life in Christ.
“Gospel” is the truth behind their “gospelling!” Their message was not about the political and religious climate in Jerusalem, much less in the broader Roman world. Sure, they talked about these things on occasion, as we do. The rise and fall, maneuverings and machinations of the kingdoms of men were not their gospel. Had they been scattered American believers; their gospel would not have been the upcoming elections or the line-up of the most likely villains. It was Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
Speaking for myself, this is what “gospelling” has come down to in my life. Sharing that Jesus Christ is the Savior, my Savior, the only One who delivers me from my sin and coming judgment. Sharing the gospel is not about trying to convert people to a different political system or to Presbyterianism or agitating them by my personal concerns and fraternal church battles. The gospel is the good news that God has given us righteousness and cleansed our sins through the person and work of his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. The gospel is not about sharing my experiences with people, as if my spiritual experience is normative for everyone else. It is about sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Perhaps this is an important truth that will help us with “evangelism.” The best way to share is perhaps to ask simple questions. To the other person: “Do you mind if I ask you a question that concerns you and me very much? Do you know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior?” Whatever the answer, the conversation will follow from here quite naturally, whether it is long or short, adversarial or friendly. As you speak, remember Jesus Christ is standing behind you – you are speaking for him. You have all the authority and power of your blessed Savior supporting your sharing.
This should be the most natural question for us to ask, for it is on our minds a great deal. “Am I knowing, loving, serving, and pleasing Christ my Lord?” We talk about what is important to us. If the Lord’s great salvation accomplished on the cross is our passion, we will be ready and look for opportunities to share him. Yes, we must overcome fear of man, natural and learned timidity. Many of us are plagued by indifference to the lost man’s pending disaster. He will soon stand before the just Judge, and we did not warn him. And then, who among us does not at times feel that we have lost wonder at our Savior’s love, grace, and cross? Let us fight these sins by the Spirit and go gospelling!
Indifference to the plight of the lost is encouraged by dividing men into their tribes or political loyalties rather into the Bible’s two divisions: sheep and goats. All the lost are goats, whatever their skin color or political views. Do we care about them? Are we thankful for the Lord’s mercy, motivated by his grace? “Freely you have received, freely give.” This was our Lord’s directive to the original seventy sent ones, and it remains his general directive to us. I have freely given life to you, everlasting life, reconciled life, new life. It is all of grace. Now, freely share this.
And this means that we must be ready to do so. When we leave our homes, it is easy to focus upon traffic and to-do lists. Then, inevitable delays cause us to complain, and we lose any other thought but getting home as quickly as possible. The same can be true with our neighbors – have as little to do with them as possible. This is wrong. If heaven has regrets, we shall regret this – that those around us are perishing, and we did little or nothing to warn them of the coming wrath or invite them to know the Savior. Do we love our neighbor? Perhaps his overgrown bushes and ridiculous Halloween decorations annoy us, but do we at least pray for him and ask the Lord to give us an opportunity to talk with him about Jesus Christ? We must love our neighbor, and love warns when the house of his life is on fire, and he does not know it.
Start near with your gospelling. Think about your neighbors, lost family members, and coworkers. These are your first mission field. Begin praying for them and continue praying for them. Pray for the Lord to reveal his power and grace by saving them. Pray for wisdom to engage them, to ask the first question: “Do you know who Jesus Christ? May I tell you what he has done for me and how much you need him?” Pray for a heart that fears the Lord more than it fears men. To be ashamed of Jesus’ words is to court personal and eternal ruin (Luke 9:26).
We should not be dismissive of this warning. I remember it gripping me when I was in high school and college. Is my unwillingness to speak of Christ because I am ashamed of him? Of his cross? Whatever our justifications for silence, gospelling reveals our boast – the truth in life that matters most to us. Our Lord’s warning does not mean that we are saved by the number of scalps/souls hanging from our belt. It is a strong incentive not to fear men, to own Jesus Christ and his words to those around us, to boast in him. His warning also teaches us that being a Christian is not accepting a set of propositions that answer life’s mysteries and give personal satisfaction or security. Being a Christian is commitment to Jesus Christ, to his words, to his gospel. He delivers us from fear and embarrassment. He does.
The warning lost its grip on me. Life. Family. Pride. Complacency. Coldness. I focused upon temporal differences between men that obscured the far weightier issues of eternity. But coldness to Christ seems to be the driver. A cold heart has lost its wonder before Christ’s love, and thus is becomes fearful of man, circumstances, the bogeyman of someone with different political views or hair color. Gospelling requires Christ’s love melting the iceberg of our hearts.
As we think about our times, with its specific concerns and fears and duties, let us remember we are gospellers. Not many are preachers and teachers in the formal, called sense – all of us are gospellers. All are not missionaries to foreign lands – all are gospellers to this land. Or should be. Begin with one person. Pray daily for him. Ask the Lord to help you love him by sharing the truth with him. Then obey the Lord by engaging him. See what the Lord will do. He has all power in heaven and earth. He rules over the lost soul with whom you share the everlasting gospel. He will use you. He never forgets where one gospel seed is planted. He blesses them all. Sow them widely. Go gospelling….
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