"Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in Heaven and on Earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'" (Matthew 28: 18-20)
All Christians have the responsibility to preach the Gospel. When we learned of and accepted it, we became responsible for sharing the good news of salvation with the people around us. Why do Christians have this responsibility to spread the Gospel, and how do they do it? An international Christian leader answered these questions at a meeting hosted by a house church in Shanghai.
The speaker noted that when Jesus was about to ascension, he said to his disciples "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned." (Mark 16:15-16). This proves the importance of the Gospel. "God is the God who proclaims the good news. The reason we are on this world is to hear His voice, accept His blessings, submit to Him with all our hearts, and fulfill the great mission (proclaiming the Gospel) that he has entrusted to us."
What is the Gospel?
To understand what it means to proclaim the Gospel one must understand what the Gospel is. Paul said, "It is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith." (Romans 1:16) "The Gospel is for us to listen, understand and confess our sins, repent, and submit to Christ." That is the reason as Jesus said "Your faith has made you well" when he healed miraculously. "Faith is the foundation of salvation. If we don't believe, then we don't have a share in the Gospel."
"Why do we spread the Gospel?
The speaker addressed why we share the Gospel with a simple example. "When we have tasty bread, we tell our family and friends how good it is so that they can try it!" The Gospel is the same. "When we taste the amazing Gospel and escape the power of sin, we want to share the good news with others so that they can experience it too." Just like it's written in Psalms 34:8, "O taste and see that the Lord is good; happy are those who take refuge in Him."
The Bible has a story where one man was given two talents and another five, and they each doubled their money. However, another man was given just one talent and hid it. "Today, God entrusted us with different talents, to do what we're good at. Why does God give people talents? The ultimate purpose is to use them to proclaim the Gospel so that more people may know God," the speaker stressed.
When do we proclaim the Gospel?
When we accept the Gospel of salvation, being set free from the power of darkness into the light is not the end. "We need to spread the Gospel. About when, the speaker said, "It's not when we are old or achieve success in our careers, that we can let go of everything else to proclaim the Gospel. It is every day that we receive an anointment we need to proclaim it."
The Lord Jesus asks us to proclaim the Gospel. Don't say, 'Lord, wait. Let me just make enough money to concentrate on spreading the Gospel for you' or 'Lord, I don't know how to proclaim your Gospel. I can't speak well.' Jesus said 'As for you, go and proclaim.'"
What the Lord Jesus requires of us is to go and proclaim. In John 9:4, Jesus said: "We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work." The speaker added, "Proclaiming the Gospel is not about time. We accepted the great mission to proclaim the Gospel the minute when accepted the salvation. We have a responsibility to proclaim the Gospel, which is the mission God has entrusted to man."
Translated by: Grace Hubl
