This morning I felt like I should read from Paul's letter to the Romans, which is such a great letter. Although a bit longer than his other letters, it lays out very clearly Paul's understanding of our faith and when reading it through, you can see the flow of His logic much clearer than if you just read parts.
Anyway, here are the verses I am reflecting upon today - Romans 10:9-15 NIV:
[9] "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. [10] For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. [11] As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” [12] For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile---the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, [13] for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
[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? [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!”
These verses come from a section where Paul starts reflecting on the fact that not all the Jews (Israelites is what Paul calls them) accepted Jesus. He is reflecting on the Gospel of grace through faith (belief). The verses above are considered some of the core salvation verses, for Paul boils it down to 2 basic steps; belief in your heart and then profession with your mouth that Jesus is Lord! This forms the foundation of what is sometimes called the sinners prayer, which adds the recognition of our sinfulness and need for forgiveness, but it starts with a belief that Jesus is Lord.
My reflection today is not so much on the basics, but on the next two verses where Paul lays out the foundational principles of evangelism. These verses tie back to the great commission that Jesus gave to all the disciples in Matt 28:18-20, and again in Acts 1:8, calling us go to all the world. The message is simple, the call to action is clear, and Paul boils it down as follows (in reverse order) we are sent to preach about the Lord Jesus so that they might hear and believe.
The word Paul uses that is translated preach is the Greek word Kerusso and it is basically defined as follows:
1) to be a herald, to officiate as a herald
2) to publish, proclaim openly: something which has been done
The first definition calls to mind the old town heralds or news hawkers, that stand on the corner and proclaim to those who can hear their voice the relevant news that affects them all. This is exactly what Jesus called the apostles to do when He sent them out, they were to proclaim the news that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand, and then demonstrate that reality (Matt 10:7-8). The people would hear their message and then believe their message because of the demonstration of the Kingdom reality in their midst.
Paul knew that the people needed proclamation coupled with demonstration for them to truly believe. He was well versed in the scriptural proofs that Jesus was the Messiah and he would proclaim that in simple terms, but then always demonstrate that through signs and wonders, and not rely on his words. He said it this way - 1 Corinthians 2:3-5 NIV: "I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. [4] My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, [5] so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God's power."
I think we are selling ourselves, and those who hear our proclamation, short if we just stick to the verses in Romans (quoted above) and think that just saying the words is enough to move someone from unbelief to belief. Jesus demonstrated proclamation and demonstration, had the apostles proclaim and demonstrate, and taught Paul to do the same. Thus, to effectively evangelize we must proclaim and demonstrate, which enables the people to believe not in our words, but in the power of God demonstrating the truth of our words and then profess their belief.
I think that we too often shy away from the demonstration part because of our own lack of faith. Healing and signs and wonders are clearly not in our human abilities to produce, and too many of us fear failure. I think it is important to look at logic and faith here and recognize the goodness and faithfulness of the Lord. If He calls us, and sends us to those that He loves, who at present are lost, and has demonstrated to us how to reach them and bring them towards belief (Jesus' ministry) would He not back up His command to preach with real power so that we could do as He did? That is like me being sent out to my customers by my company without any real knowledge of the products nor any actual products for the customer to try and buy. Why would they believe what I say if I can't demonstrate the truth of my claims.
This is exactly what Jesus told the disciples to do, to proclaim AND demonstrate. They were called to go through all the nations and proclaim that the whole world would know that He is the savior, and then demonstrate this reality, that they might believe and be saved.
Amen Lord, help us to fulfill Your Commission!
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