For the Scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! ( Romans 10:11-15)
" + "It's not at all difficult for us to recall the many times we've heard reference to Jesus Christ as our Savior, that is, the one, who redeemed us from the power of Satan, sin, and death. Unfortunately, there are far fewer references to Jesus Christ as our Lord; worse still, even when we do refer to Jesus as Lord, oftentimes we do not witness to Christ's lordship over our lives as evidenced by what we continue to think, say, and do (Luke 6:46). In short, many of us are content to bask in the perks of God's gracious blessing to us in and through Jesus Christ without recognizing the serious responsibility Christ's life, ministry, death, and resurrection all entail for us. We forget that the risen Christ lives unto to God so that we might be empowered to live unto God as well:
" + "And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. (Mark 16:20)
" + "This means that Jesus is both our source and example. Jesus Christ, or the Word of God, through the Holy Ghost, or the Spirit of Christ (1 Peter 1:11), quickens us and serves as our ensample, in effect changing us from the inside out in order that we all do the work of an evangelist (2 Timothy 4:5) and embody God's message of saving grace in everything we do (Ephesians 2:8-10).
" + "This begs the questions:
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! (Isaiah 52:7)
" + "Make no mistake, our active evangelism is the way in which God allows and empowers us to individually and corporately re-enact the salvation story and to shout our faith (Hebrews 11:6) from the rooftops. Here, we're not only referring to international and national evangelism, or missionary work, or even street witnessing. Rather, we're also referring to an evangelism, or ministry, of presence, namely, the way in which one thought, one word, one action inspired and motivated by the selfless and other-oriented love of God calms the most tempestuous storm (Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:35-41; Luke 8:22-25). For, as Christians, we must walk in this awareness: the power of our example is the example of our power (2 Corinthians 4:7; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10).
" + "This connection between Paul and Isaiah helps us to understand the power of what Paul is saying: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who do the work of an evangelist!' How beautiful are the feet of those who recognize that "we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12)! How beautiful are the feet of those whose feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace (Ephesians 6:15)! How beautiful are the feet of those who so intimate the love of God that they are willing to brave the seeming horrors of a lost and dying world to proclaim the righteousness of the living God (Ezra 7:10)! How beautiful are the feet of those who deny themselves, pick up their crosses, and follow Jesus Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life (Matthew 16:24; John 14:6)! How beautiful are the feet of those who proclaim "The Kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever" (Revelation 11:15)!
" + "See, we miss the fundamental mercy and grace of the gospel message if we think God desires for us to sit down on the tremendous task of being ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). No, God desires that we walk it out! And, this is why our understanding and declaration of Christ's lordship over our lives is so important. The salvation God makes available to us in and through Christ does not exempt us from trials, tribulations, persecutions, perils, or suffering. Rather, the crucible of suffering (2 Timothy 3:12) allows us to see that it is in and through our self-denial, or dying to ourselves, that we multiply, that is, edify the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-16).
" + "Brothers and sisters, a seed must not only and always be a seed. It must fall to the ground and die that it might take root and achieve new life. As Christians, we know that Christ is the answer that satisfies the fundamental yearning of every human heart. Luke 23:39-43 reads:
" + "And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise. (Luke 23:39-43)
" + "Here, Luke presents us with that which presents to us the lengths to which we should be willing to go to proclaim the Good News, the crucifixion. The crucifixion represents the culmination of Christ's walking out the path set before him by the Father; the crucifixion represents Jesus communion with a fallen humanity dead in sin. But, look: in the face of excruciating pain, debilitating blood loss, severed nerves and dislocated bones, Jesus prayed for God's forgiveness of those who sought his death (Luke 23:34). This self-deprecating and humbling love caught hold of one of the thieves and caused that thief to cry out to Jesus. Jesus heard the thief's cry not primarily because he saw the thief as a sinner in need of repentance and reconciliation with God, but because, hanging on the cross as Jesus was, when he looked upon the repentant malefactor, he saw himself.
" + "Likewise, we must decide to give all to Jesus for Jesus. Our being sent by God might result in our rendering the ultimate sacrifice, but a seed must not only and always be a seed. Take Stephen for instance in Acts 7:54-60. He was sent of God and he was martyred. Yet, in and through his sacrifice, a way was made for the conversion of Saul (Acts 7:58), who became Paul. So, brothers and sisters, what do we stand for? Do we stand for what Christ stands for? Stephen proclaimed that he saw Christ standing at the right hand of the God while he was laying down his life? What do we stand for? Arguably, Christ's standing in Acts 7:56-60 is doubly important: Christ stood in appreciation of Stephen's sacrifice (Psalm 116:15) and, moreover, Christ stood on tiptoe in anticipation of his encounter with Saul on the Damascus road. Is this how we view the lives God through Jesus Christ calls us to live, as seeds?
" + "Yes, we will suffer; we may even die. But, oh, we do not know who may be awaiting, watching for, listening for, and yearning for such a witness of utter Christian integrity and the transformation and transfiguration it brings (Hebrews 9:27-28). In order to work out our salvation with fear and trembling and service and rejoicing, we must walk it out (Psalm 2:11; Philippians 2:12). We must proclaim the goodness, that is, the righteousness and judgment, of God, all over and everywhere. We must go where God sends us and to whom God sends us. We must walk in God's will for our lives in Jesus Christ even at the cost of our lives. Like Jesus, we must never adopt the attitude that is us against them. Rather, loving our neighbors as ourselves means that when we look on others we see ourselves. In this manner, we bring the cosmic Christ to his feet at the right hand of God and hasten the day when we shall see him as he is. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all!
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