Sept. 3 | How the Gospel is Spread
Romans 10:14, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them.”
The gospel has been ordained by God to be spread by disciples preaching to the lost. The word “preach” in the Greek is, “kēryssō;” which means, “to proclaim or make known.” It’s the disciple’s duty to preach the gospel to all creation (Mark 16:15). Charles Spurgeon wrote, “I remember one who spoke on the missionary question one day saying, ‘The great question is not, ‘Will not the heathen be saved if we do not send them the gospel?’ but ‘Are we saved ourselves if we do not send them the gospel?’”
Every born again follower of Jesus is commanded to proclaim and make known the gospel of Jesus Christ to sinners.
Some people may think that preaching the gospel is only the job of paid pastors on Sundays. However, Jesus made it clear that all the disciples were to be preachers and that we are to always pray for God to raise up more laborers in the harvest of lost souls (Matthew 9:37-38). Everyone who participates in preaching the gospel to others is considered a “preacher or gospel proclaimer.”
Paul also wrote in Romans 10:15, “And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’” Paul reminds the Christians in Rome that the gospel preachers must be sent. This sending is in line with Jesus’ Great Commission to go into all the world and make disciples in Matthew 28:18-20. Every Christian should be trained and discipled in their local church to do the “work of an evangelist” as Paul taught in 2 Timothy 4:5.
The elders gifted in evangelism in the local church are to raise up every disciple to be an effective preacher of the gospel so the lost might be saved. Every time a new gospel preacher and disciple maker is mentored and sent out, the Kingdom of God is revealed and multiplied upon the earth. Gospel preaching and disciple making is the literal fulfillment of what Jesus meant when He taught us to pray to the Father, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).
Think about it, if all the angels in heaven rejoice over just one lost soul being saved, how important do you think it is for us as disciples to make new disciples to preach the gospel? That is why Paul said that the feet of the preachers are “beautiful” because they bring the “good news” to the lost! Life is short and eternal souls are in the balance. I challenge you today to be trained and sent out to preach the gospel!
Reflection
Action
- Do whatever it takes to be trained as a preacher of the gospel.
- Start sharing your faith with the lost as often as you can.
- Pray that God will use you to make disciples that make disciples so the gospel can be spread around the earth.