Christians are called to share Christ. Just as a fish is designed to swim, so a Christian is made to share Christ. All of these may be natural but too often we as Christians can get caught up in the busyness of our own world and forget that we are commissioned to share the hope that is within us. We have a responsibility to share the message of the Gospel with others. But we must understand what the Gospel entails if we are going to share it.
What is the gospel? The Gospel is the good news of salvation. The very first thing we have to understand is how Scripture speaks of this message itself. We should turn to the most famous passage of all to consider this message. John 3:16 is a powerful verse in the Bible, and there is a reason it is one of the most often quoted in the Bible. The Lord Jesus said there, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Sometimes our familiarity with this text can be an obstacle in our proper understanding.
Let us observe two points from this text. First, the text does not say that everyone has eternal life in Christ Jesus. There is a requirement of faith. We are called to “believe” in Him. This is crucial today because the Gospel message of salvation by faith in Christ has been replaced with salvation without requirement. Some people have misunderstood this grace of God to be without demand, meaning that everybody is heaven-bound, pardoned from sin, and right with God regardless of creed or conduct. This may be popular and beloved by many; however, such an idea is entirely foreign to the Old and New Testament. In other words, it’s entirely unbiblical. According to God’s Word, if someone does not have faith in Jesus Christ, they do not have eternal life.
What is eternal life? Eternal life is another way of saying an eternal life of joy and bliss with God that begins here and now but continues forward into the New Heavens and New Earth. Eternal life speaks of all the benefits that are ours by our being united to Christ by faith such as spiritual rebirth, forgiveness, adoption into the family of God, the Holy Spirit, growth in holiness, and the promise of our resurrection in glory. In other words, true life.
The second point we observe from this text is that if people fail to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ then they will perish. Contrary to the false theology of some cults and portions of Christianity, to perish in this sense does not simply mean to be annihilated or cease to exist. Instead, the Old and New Testament paint this composite picture that “to perish” means to endure “eternal destruction.” (cf. Matthew 25:46; Revelation 20:10, 15) Though unpopular, the biblical doctrine of hell is precisely that, biblical. Christ Jesus spoke of hell more than anyone else in all of Scripture and so we too must not be ashamed of this biblical doctrine.
Even in this brief examination of John 3:16, we have observed that the simple Gospel message contains within it both the call to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and a sober warning of the danger that will befall anyone who fails to believe in Jesus Christ. This dual reality of faith and warning was foundational to Apostolic preaching in the New Testament. Jesus preached in this manner warning of His return in future judgment (John 5:22-29). The Apostle Peter preached both the need for faith and a warning of Christ’s future return in judgment (Acts 10:42-43). The Apostle Paul likewise did the same at Mars Hill in Athens (Acts 17:30-31). We too, must learn to see the call to faith and the warning of faithlessness as an ordinary component in our Gospel outreach.
How can we practically do this today? The first place to begin with is prayer. We cannot convince anybody to believe in Christ by our own effort. However winsome our personality, however persuasive our arguments, however sound our reasoning, unless God opens the eyes of the sinner they will never believe. We need a miracle akin to creation for God must, by His Word and Spirit, call forth His light from the darkness of their hearts. Therefore, we must be steadfastly given over to prayer for the lost in general.
Secondly, we must pray for ourselves to be bold if we are naturally timid or a coward. God can make us bold in ways beyond our natural disposition. You may be as frightened as a house cat but with the Spirit of God He can make you as bold as a lion.
Thirdly, we must pray for non-believers by name. Certainly, there are people in your world who are not following Christ. Pray for them by name, that God would open up their eyes and save them. Pray that God would provide you opportunities to share this message and then to have the boldness to press in saying, “What is keeping you from calling Christ your savior today?”.
Lastly, we must recognize the great privilege we have in being entrusted with the treasure of the Gospel. We are stewards of a glorious mystery revealed to us by Christ Himself. May we see this not as an obligation but an honor to participate in God’s plan of salvation in some way by sharing Christ. May God use you mightily precisely where He’s placed you as light in the darkness.