Question:  Dear Greg,

            I’m struggling to understand the truth about the gospel.  I don’t see in the Bible where God is saying for each individual to go out and preach.  Different gifts are made clear in people’s lives, and I’m sure I don’t have the gift of preaching, teaching or evangelizing.  I don’t even have any desire to do so.  Saving the lost may be a worldwide effort that will be ongoing, but really, when you look at it, haven’t millions already missed out?

            Tony

Answer:  Dear Tony,

            The Bible is clear that believers may have a part in the gospel.  What that part is exactly is not defined, and as you say, many do not feel nor perhaps do they have a gift of sharing the gospel with others.  Some churches may insist upon evangelism more as a way of increasing attendance than they do in sharing the precious gift of God’s grace.  You are free in Christ (Galatians 5:1) and do not need to have anyone coerce you into doing something you feel uncomfortable doing.

            What God is doing, when he is doing it, and how he is doing it, is not always clear to imperfect and fragile human beings.  We like to generalize and sometimes dogmatize, but at the end of the day God will do what needs to be done, when and how it needs to be done.  He often offers us the opportunity to be tools in what he is doing, but his plan does not rely upon human tools.  We are like little children who get to help Dad push the lawnmower—we think we are mowing the grass, but any effort that we are actually contributing (if we can even reach the handles of the lawnmower) is about .0000000001% of what is needed.  God does all the rest, and even if we are able to contribute something, it is because of his grace that he empowers us and lets us contribute.

            May God bless you Tony.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht