For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18
I read of an Assembly that came up with a new approach to spreading the Gospel: they were going to focus on personal witnessing and visitation rather than on Gospel meetings. To do this, they abbreviated their Gospel meetings to monthly half-hour sessions after the Sunday school, and they conducted workshops on how to effectively communicate the Gospel with their neighbours, relatives, and fellow workers. The project started out well, with plenty of excitement, and a good number of new contacts. But after awhile, they noticed two disappointing trends. Despite the renewed efforts, none of those who they convinced to come to the Assembly meetings attended regularly, and few showed any real interest in salvation. The second trend had to do with the Christians themselves. They quickly wearied of the workshops, or turned them into social events with more emphasis on gossip than the Gospel. In addition, the energy level of the Assembly slumped, with preparation, participation, and attendance all suffering. This should not be surprising; that assembly had abandoned the very source of their power – the preaching of the cross.
Preachers have long said that they can quickly gauge the spiritual condition of an Assembly by noting the attendance and participation at the Gospel meetings. If Christians have little interest in the spread of the Gospel, and if they have little love for lost souls, they will take little interest in the Gospel meetings. And if too many of the Christians feel that way, the Gospel meetings will be poorly supported in terms of attendance, encouragement, prayer, and fellowship. But where a deep burden for lost souls is, there will be dynamic participation at all levels. An Assembly that never schedules a series of Gospel meetings never experiences the infusion of power that such a series could inject into the company.
Why does the preaching of the cross produce evidence of the power of God? The preaching of the cross is the only message that can possibly bring change to hopeless and helpless sinners. And God has ordained that it be preached. Yes, it is good that we share the message personally in our witness to those around us, and souls are reached that way. But God has declared that preaching is the primary method for spreading the Gospel: it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe (1Corinthians 1:21). If we want to see souls saved – and who doesn’t want that – we need to take a keen interest in the primary process for accomplishing that. The preaching of the cross not only brings sinners to God, it also brings saints closer to God and to each other. Striving together in the faith of the Gospel is one of the most uplifting and uniting exercises for any Assembly.
Get excited about Gospel preaching; it’s the greatest source of power available to transform our lives. -Jim MacIntosh