TO ALL THE NATIONS

INTRODUCCIÓN

In 1983 a Physicist by the name Lorne Whitehead demonstrated that a domino can knock over another domino up to 1.5 times its size. So, if you start with a small domino and keep increasing each one by 1.5x, by the time you get to the 13th domino, it could theoretically knock over something as tall as the Eiffel Tower!

Can you imagine that? Start with a small domino to knock down something as big as the Eiffel Tower. Well, I’m not here to talk about physics, but I want to tell you about a more powerful yet not-that-visible chain reaction.

I’m talking about a church’s participation in the witness of the Gospel to all the nations.

In the letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul open up his epistle talking about how God has commissioned him to preach the Gospel and call all the nations to obey the call of the Good News.

Romans 1:1-6 “Paul, a servant[a] of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David[b] according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,”

When we read the last chapter, we find the same idea Paul has mentioned at the begining.

Romans 16:26 reads “Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.”

I think Paul is making a point here. The Gospel has been given to us so that we proclaim it to all the nations and bring about the obedience of faith.

Now, this might be an impossible task. How can a church bring about the obedience of faith in all the nations of this world. Specially, when we live in a society that seems to be farther from God every day.

Well, that where I think our example of a chain reaction can help us.

See, our passage today is Romans 10:13-15 where read:

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (This includes all the nations)

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

Now, Paul will continue talking about Israel later in the passage but our focus today is in that chain reaction we see in this text.

The apostle starts by affirming that everyone who call on the Lord will be saved. And that word “everyone” is intentionally mentioned there as it is refering to all the nations. And Paul will now talk about the most powerful chain reaction in the universe: “The church’s witness of the Gospel to all peoples”

He is going backwards in the chain. He starts with the goal: “For all people to call on the Lord” and then, we see the chain:

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed?

And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?

And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

Dear brothers and sisters, this is the most powerful chain reaction in the universe. Powerful -not to knock the Eiffel Tower- but to change and transform the lives of sinners unto salvation.

Application - So I want to close quiclky with two thoughts:

For us to achieve that, we need the church however small it may seem to witness to Christ and participate in the task that it has been given: to proclaim the Gospel to all nations to bring about the obedience of faith. So, dear Trinity Congregational Church never understimate how God can use you to accomplish that.

And, finally, as believers, in a senses we have all been sent by God to proclaim this Gospel. You don’t have to be a missionary in a different country to participate. You can share the faith with others in your context. In the university, at work or in your neighbourhood. My prayers is that it can be said of you and I “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

Amen?

Let’s pray.