Share the News
It is commonly said that bad news travels faster than good news, and I have often wondered why. I have also wondered why the news of the gospel has not been allowed to travel in this generation as fast as bad news travels. Even though the major focus of the gospel is good news, it equally addresses the bad news—death, hell, and eternal condemnation for those who reject its message. The Scripture says, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:15–16).
Before Christ came into the world, there was no message of salvation, and only Israel had access to the true God. Nevertheless, these messages where not gotten directly from God but through prophets.
However, today, we have a message that should have no reason not to spread. Yet, it has been fought on all fronts. Even Christians contribute to its restriction by failing to share it. The Church already lost over 1,000 years of not spreading the gospel during the Dark Ages, and the zeal to do so has still not been fully birthed in the lives of many believers. If we are to finish the main job Jesus Christ gave us, we must do it forcefully, because only the forceful will break through all obstacles to spread this news (Matthew 11:12–13). The Scripture says, “The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it” (Luke 16:16).
Every Christian's Duty
The task of preaching the gospel was given not to the world, but to all Christians. This is what the early believers did that made the gospel spread so quickly in their time. Today, however, most Christians wait for the institutional Church to do the preaching, not realizing it is the duty of every believer.
The basic principle of preaching the gospel does not require massive resources or hosting a giant crusade once in a while; it only requires our time and our mouths. Imagine if every Christian shared the news of the gospel with at least one person a day. That would be like a daily global crusade bigger than anything the world has ever experienced!
It is estimated that there are about 2.1 billion Christians in the world today. Imagine if just half of them—about 1 billion Christians—shared the news of the gospel every day. Within six days, the entire global population of roughly 7 billion people would have heard the gospel, and by this, they would be getting the job done much faster! The main job for any Christian is not just to attend church, but to turn the world into the church by the preaching of the gospel.
You don’t have to wait until you have been born again for 50 years before you start preaching the gospel. The very day you get born again, you are licensed to start sharing the news. Consider the demon-possessed man who, immediately after his deliverance, wanted to follow Jesus. Instead, Jesus told him, “Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel” (Mark 5:19–20).
This mirrors many Christians today whose focus is just to go to church. But as Jesus told this man, He is telling you today: you don’t have to wait a year to share your personal testimony of how Christ saved you; you can start immediately. That man’s obedience prepared the hearts of his whole city to accept Christ. Imagine what would happen to the world if every Christian got involved in sharing the news of the gospel!
Similarly, in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul was only a few days old in Christ when he started sharing what Christ did in his life, and he never looked back“. The Scripture says, “And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.” (Acts 9:20).
I believe Paul’s remarkable spiritual growth can be attributed to the zeal he had for sharing the gospel. You cannot share something with others without first having a revelation of it, and revelation is what births faith. Moreover, Christians who share the news of Christ are constrained to live as godly examples, because no one wants to be preached to by a liar or a fornicator. In this way, active witnesses tend to grow spiritually much faster than Christians who keep silent.
So let us all get involved with the preaching of the gospel today.
Today’s Reading:
Mark 16:15-20, Proverbs 14
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Nevertheless, if you are not born again you can do so today by saying this simple prayer below out with your mouth in faith, believing that Jesus Christ died and rose again for your sins.
Prayer for Salvation:
Dear Lord, I believe Jesus died and rose again for me. Forgive me my sins and come into my life. I confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. Thank you Father for doing this for me. Reveal yourself to me today. In Jesus name, Amen.
Congrats, your status has changed to that of a child of God, if you said this prayer in faith.