Romans 10:13-15
Thoughts from Josh Talbot
Dive Deeper
For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
Romans 10:13-15
Behind the Scenes
These verses were penned by one of history’s greatest missionaries – Paul the apostle. In his letter to the church of Rome, Paul details God’s plan for salvation – a beautifully simple plan. “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” THAT is the gospel message. We see this affirmed in the ever-popular passage of John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
As we explore this week’s I AM statement, we see that Jesus is the only way to forgiveness and eternal life. “I AM the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) God made forgiveness so attainable; His redemptive method so simple; and yet out of the billions of people living on earth, so few seem to be accepting of this free gift. “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Matthew 7:13-14)
We live in a sin-filled world and because of the Fall of Adam and Eve, we are born with a sin-nature. For this reason, as Matthew 7 states, the gate to destruction is wide and easy to find. To enter the narrow gate, we must come to know Jesus Christ as our Savior. But just as Romans 10 asks us, how are those living in darkness to call upon someone in whom they don’t believe or have never heard of? “How are they to hear without someone preaching?” This is our charge, as ones who have heard the gospel and chosen to believe in it, to spread the message far and wide and to “preach the good news” so that all may have a chance to enter the narrow gate!
Make it Real
One night during my senior year of college, I found myself questioning the entire trajectory of my life. I was studying to become a CPA and had a good job waiting for me with a Big Four accounting firm for when I graduated that spring. My future looked optimistic from a career standpoint as well as a financial standpoint, and all of a sudden, my senior-self panicked. Am I pursuing a selfish ambition? Why do I feel like God is calling me to make lots of money and chase corporate dreams? Shouldn’t I be feeling compelled to go preach the gospel in a third world country where people haven’t heard of Jesus?
For those of us living in community with believers, it is difficult to imagine never having even heard the name Jesus. However, for far too many this is the case. The Joshua Project estimates that 41.8% of the world’s population – or 3.28 billion people – have not heard the gospel message. In the United States alone, it is estimated that 15 million people are unreached – that’s 15 million of our neighbors, friends, and colleagues who have never heard that Jesus is waiting with arms open wide to receive them with grace and love! Friends – it is time that we live out our Matthew 28:19 commission “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.”
Disciples are made not just in third world countries – as we have seen, there are people here in the United States as well who need the gospel just as desperately as our friends in Zimbabwe. This is the message that God impressed on my heart that night in my college dorm room as I started to question everything about my decision to become a CPA. Matthew 28:19 commands us to make disciples of ALL nations – for me this meant ministering to the men and women who had turned to their corporate titles and financial success for their happiness and purpose rather than to God. For another one of my friends, it meant moving to Guatemala for ministry. For my childhood best friend, it meant fostering children and showing them God’s love during whatever time she had with them.
The execution of our ministry will look unique to each of us as we work together to carry out to the ends of the earth the good news of Jesus’ resurrection. However, what will remain constant and true is the message that we bring to our people groups, that “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved!”
Kristen Krimmel
ACF Devo Team
End in Prayer
Heavenly Father,
I commit my life to the ministry of serving you and taking the Good News of your death on the cross and resurrection to the ends of the earth. I pray that you would show me opportunities each day during which I can spread the message of your love. Thank you for putting people in my life who led me to everlasting life with you; I pray that I can be that bearer of good news for others now as well. Thank you for your unconditional love and redemption!
In your holy and perfect name I pray,
AMEN!