And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His Name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Luke 24:47
All of my life, I have heard it said that John 3:16 is the Gospel in a nutshell. It is, of course, when we consider the vastness of the Gospel that is contained within those 25 words, so much contained within so little. Today, we are going to look at another nutshell. Our text is Gospel preaching in a nutshell. Within the 20 words of this verse, we learn what to preach, how to preach it, where to preach it, and even where to begin to preach it. And we know that it is right, because, just like John 3:16, it comes directly from the lips of the Lord Jesus Himself.
What do we preach? Repentance and remission of sins! Anything else is not the Gospel. Much of what passes as the Gospel at many of the so-called evangelical churches today fails to pass this test. Very little of repentance is mentioned, and very little of sins is emphasized. Those who define salvation as ‘making a commitment to Christ’ or ‘giving your heart to Jesus’, despite no mention of these in the Scriptures, wonder why their ‘converts’ show so little evidence of divine life. Only the clear teaching of repentance and remission of sins will produce saving faith among those who hear the Gospel. That is what the Lord Jesus taught us to preach.
How are we to preach the Gospel? Jesus said it should be preached in His Name. We hear of the Gospel being preached in the name of an evangelistic association, or the name of a famous evangelist, or the name of a specific religious organization. Is that what the Lord Jesus asked us to do? If any of those other names are of any worth, why do the Scriptures declare that there is none other name under Heaven given among men whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:12)? The power that is in the name of Jesus Christ is the only power that can produce results for God in the preaching of the Gospel. That is how the Lord Jesus taught us to preach.
Where are we to preach the Gospel? We might better ask where we are not to preach the Gospel; it would be a shorter answer. Jesus tells us in our text that we are to preach it among all nations. Granted, there are many nations where it is illegal to preach the Gospel. To do so publicly in North Korea, for example, would be a capital crime. And yet, the Gospel is being preached there, because hundreds of thousands of North Koreans are being reached through the underground Gospel, as brave saints in that enslaved land willingly share the Gospel with their neighbours in peril of their lives. Similar perils exist in Muslim lands and others. There are no such restrictions on us sharing the Gospel with our friends and neighbours here, so why don’t we share it? This is where the Lord Jesus taught us to preach.
So where do we begin? Begin where the Lord Jesus told His disciples to begin. They were in Jerusalem; begin there. They did so, and eventually saw the Gospel spread throughout the known world. We must do the same, because it is only those who are near to us who we can share the Gospel with, before we find ways to share it in the support of preachers and missionaries who carry the message to the world.
Preaching the Gospel will result in sinners being saved; if we make sure it is preached as the Lord Jesus taught us. -Jim MacIntosh