Muting the Gospel by Minimizing Missions

When Paul mentions in Romans 1 that God has clearly revealed Himself through creation so that man is without excuse, he is not trying to make a case for the saving knowledge of General Revelation (God revealing Himself in creation Ps. 19:1-6). Instead Paul wants to portray how people without the Special Revelation of God (God revealing Himself in Scripture Ps. 19:7-11) are justly condemned for not worshiping the creator of the universe. He wants to show that Gentiles (all non-Jews), like Jews, sin but in a different way. Jews sin because they disobey the Special Revelation God has given them in the Law. On the other hand, Gentiles sin when they disobey the created order that has been revealed through creation.

But some will ask what if a people group who has never heard of Christ acknowledges God through creation and starts to worship Him? Paul goes on in 3:11-20 to show that universally all Jews and Gentiles are under sin (held captive by its power) in such a way that they without exception do not seek God. And lest we think these people are just universally neutral toward God, Paul says they have "all turned aside." So does this mean that those who die apart from the Special Revelation of God found in the Gospel will eternally perish? I admit that this is a tough question, but it's a question that implies that God would not be fair if it were true. And if fairness is what you want from God, you’re begging Christ to undo what He did on the cross. Because when Christ bore our sins on the cross, He paid for our fair and right penalty and purchased eternal everlasting grace for those who believe. So let us not mute the cross by trying to maximize fairness.

But this still leaves the question “Do people need to hear the gospel to be saved?” In Romans 10:13-17, Paul addresses this same question after showing that the gospel message is for all people, whether Jew or Gentile. He starts in verse 13 by citing Joel 2:32, which says "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Then, Paul poses a problem by asking four rhetorical questions: (1) How are they to call on Him in whom they have not believed? (2) And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? (3) And how are they to hear without someone preaching? (4) And how are they to preach unless they are sent? In these questions Paul not only poses a problem, but he also proposes the solution by mapping out the process for the spreading of the gospel.

First, someone needs to be sent to preach Christ. Second, that preacher needs to preach Christ so they can hear Christ. Third, when they hear Christ they need to believe in Christ. Finally, they need to believe in Christ by calling on Christ. There is no other way around it. And that is why Paul says at the end of v. 15, after all his rhetorical questions, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!" The feet are beautiful because they bring what is missing! The feet are beautiful because they bring the news of Christ.

If after this we still say that it is possible for people to get saved apart from the gospel being preached, we are entertaining the thought that there are people out there who are neutral toward God and on their own have the ability to seek God and gain a righteousness the earns them Heaven. But if this is true, then missions isn't really all that essential. And then it turns out that the American church has got it right after all; we can just stay home and relax because we don't need to go. And if we do go and try to reach people who have never heard about Christ with the gospel, we will actually be doing them a disservice. Because if we bring the gospel of Christ to them and ask them to believe in Christ but they reject it, we have now brought judgment upon them, whereas before we came and preached they were neutral with God. With this perspective, by preaching the gospel to them, we have just become the instrument that sent them to Hell.

My point is this: if we believe that people can be saved apart from the gospel, this is absurd at best and destroys missions at worst. The gospel of Christ is good news to everyone because everyone is opposed to Christ. The gospel of Christ is good news to everyone because everyone is in need of Christ. Missions is essential because sin is universal. Missions for Christ is necessary because Worship of Christ is non-existent. The message of the gospel is good to everyone because the work of Christ is glorious for everyone. We need to be ignited in our passion for missions because the gospel is the power of God to turn Hell-bound haters of God into Grace-bound lovers of God.

I end with this admission by Lecrae:

"You hold the truth that saves so run and shout it to the world;
They can't believe in something they ain't never heard;
Go and run with those beautiful feet."