The Power of the Gospel |
by David A. DePra |
| In our modern world, few people grow up without hearing |
| about God, the Bible, and Jesus Christ. Even if they don't |
| become Christians, almost everyone has heard the message of |
| the gospel in some form. Many children are raised in families |
| who practice some form of Christianity. They are at least |
| exposed to proper Christian values, even if those values aren't |
| practiced. They are at least aware that there is a Bible, and that |
| there is a God. They HEAR the Truth in some form. |
| There is, however, a problem here. When a society becomes |
| extremely familiar with the gospel message, people tend to lose |
| the reality behind it. Christianity then becomes a crystalized list |
| of doctrines "to believe in," instead of a living relationship with |
| Jesus Christ. In short, instead of being the result of a revelation |
| from God, Christianity can become the result of tradition and |
| upbringing. And when that happens, Christians become "dull of |
| hearing." Nothing of what they believe seems real and living. |
| They have heard it all before. |
| Don't misunderstand. There is everything RIGHT about |
| growing up in a Christian home in a Christian country. Afterall, |
| would we prefer an alternative? No. Adopting Christian |
| doctrines and principles as our own is a good and right |
| beginning. The danger here is that tradition and upbringing |
| become a substitute for the REAL. The danger is that my faith |
| become a "religion" rather than a relationship with God. |
| The fact is, each individual, no matter the training or |
| upbringing, is still is sinner who needs to see his personal need |
| for a Saviour. Each person must repent and experience the |
| death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In effect, yes, it is |
| wonderful to be raised a Christian. But that is only a beginning. |
| All of that should POINT us to a personal, livng Saviour. |
| A Revelation of Jesus Christ |
| As mentioned, today most people have had some exposure to |
| the gospel. But in the first century, almost NO ONE had heard it |
| before. Such a thing was unheard of to the Gentile heathen to |
| whom Paul preached. Yet despite having no point of reference |
| for such a thing -- these people had NO Bible at all -- their |
| lives were changed. The POWER of the gospel came upon them |
| and did something to them. It revealed to them the Truth and |
| they were never the same again. |
| How did God do that? There was no Bible to point to. No |
| church organizations. No Christian television. There was, in fact |
| NOTHING which the original apostles could point to as proof that |
| what they were preaching was the Truth! |
| How could they PROVE their message was the Truth -- |
| then? Merely telling someone they had seen the risen Christ |
| wouldn't be enough, for even today people doubt that. What |
| proof could they offer other than their word? |
| If you read the epistles, and the Acts of the Apostles, the |
| general principle is that those who preached did not try to prove |
| their message. They did not try to devise clever arguments, or |
| verbally outwit their opponents. Why? Because none of that |
| accomplishes a thing. Proof, in the form of physical evidence, or |
| a good argument, isn't what was needed. A revelation from God |
| WAS. |
| Paul emphasizes this over and over again. He tells us that he |
| did not preach the gospel in the form of a clever argument. His |
| goal was never to corner someone with argumentative skills, or |
| to offer some irrefutable physical proof that Jesus was the Son of |
| God. The preaching of the gospel was NOT to be done in the |
| wisdom of man's words. It was to be left to God's power. |
| Have you ever realized how little physical evidence God left |
| behind of the resurrection of Christ? All God really left in the form |
| of evidence was eye witnesses. Think about what He could have |
| done if He had wanted to. He could have had Jesus march into |
| Jerusalem after His resurrection and stand in front of the |
| Sanhedren. He could have showed them his pierced hands and |
| side. How could they have then doubted Him? He could have |
| even had Jesus show Himself to the Roman authorities in a way |
| which would have assured it would be recorded by many |
| historians. But He chose not to do so. Instead, he left behind |
| witnesses in the form of believers. And He deliberately saw to it |
| that no physical evidence was presented. It was only through a |
| direct revelation of God that one could come to embrace Christ. |
| We need to remember this today. It is good and right to |
| preach the Truth. It is right to back up the Truth with logical |
| arguments and even proof. All of that is good. But in the final |
| analysis, words are nothing more than a vehicle. It is the Truth |
| BEHIND the words and the argument that must invade the |
| individual. |
| Salvation is never the result of a good argument. I am saved |
| because God has taken the initiative to reveal Jesus Christ to me, |
| and because I have believed and embraced that revelation by |
| faith. The words and message may have been used. But as |
| Jesus said, "No man can can come to Me unless the Father who |
| sent Me draw Him." (John 6:44) Again, without the "power of |
| God unto salvation," no one can be saved. |
| Dull of Hearing |
| Paul warns the Hebrews against becoming "dull of hearing." |
| (see Hebrews 5:11) But what does that term mean? |
| I become "dull of hearing" when the Truth I hear doesn't any |
| longer have an effect upon me. I have heard it so many times |
| that it is no longer fresh to my heart. I've heard all of it before. It |
| may even be sort of "boring" to me. |
| There is, however, more to this term in the sense Paul uses it |
| than just that. Paul is really talking about a condition of heart. It |
| is a condition where Christians have heard a Truth so often, and |
| are so familiar with it, that they mistake this familiarity with actual |
| experience. Or to put it another way, I think that because I know |
| a doctrine that it is the same as knowing and experiencing the |
| reality behind it. |
| Christianity, however, is NOT a list of doctrines to believe in. |
| Neither is it a life-style to adopt. It is not a bunch of traditional |
| teachings and practices which we should follow or believe in. |
| No. Christianity is a dramatic, dynamic, new birth, which will |
| shake the foundations of my being, and transform me into a new |
| creation in Jesus Christ. Christianity does not emerge from |
| doctrines. Doctrines emerge from REAL Christianity. |
| What we are seeing here is the difference between Christianity |
| as a "religion," and Christianity as an experience, based in the |
| POWER of God through Jesus Christ. According to the Bible, the |
| gospel is the "power of God unto salvation for those who |
| believe." (Rom. 1:16) In other words, the gospel isn't just a nice |
| message which is found in the Bible. It isn't merely a doctrine to |
| believe in. It is a dynamic Truth which cuts to the heart and core |
| of what makes everyone of us tick. It is an invading, disruptive, |
| disturbing, and yet FREEING reality. According to the Bible, |
| there is a POWER in the real gospel message which does not |
| allow a hearer to remain the same. * |