Hear Hear!!
When I was in middle school, Mom’s parents needed their house painted, so they hired Allen, a member of the church, who painted houses for a living. Allen was up on a ladder painting the eaves of Nanny and Papaw’s house on a hot, muggy afternoon; it was sweltering. Allen hollered for Nanny and asked for coffee. Nanny thought it was a strange request for a man pouring sweat, but she wanted to be kind, so she went inside and made a pot of coffee.
When the coffee was ready, Nanny went back outside and asked Allen, “Do you want cream or sugar?” Allen said, “Just enough to go around the windows.” Allen had asked about caulking, not coffee.
How many of you have not heard something properly? Did you ever flunk a test in school because you misunderstood the directions? How many of you messed up at work because you didn’t hear your supervisor properly? How many of you have gotten into an argument with your spouse because you misunderstood something?
We might misunderstand each other sometimes, but “Everyone must hear the word of God to be saved.”
Body
Jesus explained the Parable of the Sower and said, “As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience” (Lk 8:15). Paul mentioned faith’s necessity and then asked, “How are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?” (Rom 10:14).
Hearing truth always proceeded faith and obedience.
- “Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’” (Acts 2:37).
- When the Ethiopian eunuch didn’t understand Isaiah 53, “Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus” (Acts 8:35).
- Jesus told Saul on the Way to Damascus, “Rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do” (Acts 9:6).
- “Now at Iconium [Paul and Barnabas] entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed” (Acts 14:1).
- At the Jerusalem Conference, Peter said, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe” (Acts 15:7).
- “Many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized” (Acts 18:7).
- In Ephesus, Paul “entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God” (Acts 19:8).
Notice Revelation:
- “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it” (Rev 1:3).
- “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22).
Application
What responsibilities do you have because “Everyone must hear the word of God to be saved?”
One: Speak
If people are lost without hearing, you must Speak the gospel to the lost. “Go . . . and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matt 28:19-20).
Jesus commands you to Speak. Sharing the gospel is not an option; it’s a command. How many people in Deer Park have heard? Only the smallest fraction! There are a lot of folks who have heard something, but a lot of what people have been told is not what Jesus commanded that they be told. Will you Speak the truth?
Two: Sweetness
Speak the truth in Sweetness. “Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” (Eph 4:15). God loved man so much that he sent his only Son into this world; therefore, every man should hear about God’s Son with great love.
How do you speak the truth with Sweetness? You speak the truth, not to be right, but because you love people deeply. The question really is: “Do I want to be right to score points or to save a soul from hell?”
Paul faced that challenge when he was in Ephesus:
- He preached the truth: “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27).
- But he did so with love: “Be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears” (Acts 20:31).
Three: Select
Select those with whom you will share the truth. The psychology of religion tells us that some people make better prospects than others: the unchurched, the suffering, and the poor, for example. However, God’s will was always for everyone to hear the truth. Jesus said “that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations” (Lk 24:47).
You can do your part to go to every nation. You share the gospel with everyone you possibly can. Whom will you Select to hear the gospel?
Four: Study
To help others know what God has said, you must Study to know what God has said. Paul told Timothy: “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Tim 4:16).
How closely are you watching the teaching? Could you explain to someone why baptism is indispensable to salvation? What about why women can’t serve as preachers or elders? What about why we don’t use instrumental music in New Testament worship? What about why we take the Lord’s Supper on the first day of the week? Can you explain the truth, or do you need more Study?
Conclusion
How would Deer Park be different if this congregation truly believed “Everyone must hear the word of God to be saved?” We’d know Scripture. We’d be sharing the truth with everyone who would listen. We’d be as sweet as honey when sharing the truth. And we’d speak the truth of God.
Do you need to come and respond to that truth this morning?
This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at Church of Christ Deer Park in Deer Park, Texas.