How Beautiful the Feet

Introduction

The History of the Marathon

Around 450 BC, around the town of Marathon, Greece, a large battle took place. The Persians and Greeks fought, as Persia had invaded Greece. Greece, having some of the best warriors the world had ever known, defeated a much larger Persian army.

After the battle, the rest of Greece needed to know that the Greek army had one! So Pheidipplides, a messenger, ran quickly from Marathon to Greece. Not in the best shape, he arrived in Athens, relayed his message, and died.

So… today, people try to run a Marathon and not die.

Messengers in ancient times brought messages of loss or victory.

Christians share the gospel as messengers of hope, because they know the battle has already been won and Christ is victorious.

Body

English Standard Version Chapter 10

14 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? 15 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!”

Paul logically concludes, if we don’t go, they won’t hear.

They can’t call on God if they haven’t believed.

They can’t believe unless they have heard.

They can’t hear unless someone goes.

The local church isn’t God’s backup plan. God has called his church as the #1 cause for the spread of his message - the message of the love of Jesus.

Our church - flawed, weird, messy, broken, etc. God says, you!

You aren’t the last pick on the playground. You are the first pick!

Southern Baptists have consistently been committed to the Great Commission. The Southern Baptist convention was formed around taking the gospel to the world, which is something that could be done better together (cooperatively) than apart. If we lose our missional edge, we lose what God has called all Christians to be.

We need revival, because many of us don’t care.

Apathy

Fear

Any reaction goes one of three ways.

They are a Christian, and you get to talk to them about Jesus.

They aren’t a Christian, and you get to tell them about Jesus.

They won’t let you tell them about Jesus, and you get the privilege and honor of adding them to your prayer list.

Busy

Sin

We have to see sin as something to be annihilated, but these other emotions, we have to see them as obstacles to be overcome. Not a wall but a bump.

Beautiful Feet of those who proclaim

Does this mean that your literal feet are beautiful? No! All of Jim Elliot’s 6 pairs of tennis shoes rotted within six months in the Amazon rainforest.

Feet aren’t normally considered beautiful, are they? They are dirty. They smell. They are sweaty. In some cultures, feet are so disliked that to show someone the bottom of your feet is considered the graves of insult.

Beautiful feel carry the gospel message.

Think with me about Pheidipplides and Athens waiting for him to get home. You can tell by the way someone runs, what’s happening. Somber - we lost. Happy - we won! Frantic - there’s a bear.

A joy can be seen in the step of someone who takes the gospel message to others.

Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of Christ. God picks you, then he gives you the tools to do what you need to do. The Holy Spirit has to open one’s ears to the gospel.

God doesn’t rely upon your creativity. God gives you his word.

To fully understand this verse, we have to go to 10:15. We have to understand the word, “Preach.”

Preach, or “Kerusso,” means to herald something.

Preachers are “kerux.” or heralds.

To preach, means to herald something. You are telling news that has already been made. When you read the newspaper, you are reading something that has already happened. An event has taken place. You just have to share about that event.

Preaching is giving good news.

Imagine with me, the runner, Pheidipplides, going to Athens to tell them the news. He talks about his family, his breakfast, his favorite javelin thrower, his family drama. All the while, the bewildered king looks the runner and says, “Who won?” We do the EXACT SAME THING with our lives.

We have a better message and a sure word. We don’t have to doubt the message we bring. Christ will finish it. “hearing is through the word of God.”

WE HAVE WON. Christ has finished the work on the cross.

English Standard Version Chapter 10

19 But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,

“I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation;

with a foolish nation I will make you angry.”

20 Then Isaiah is so bold as to say,

“I have been found by those who did not seek me;

I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”

21 But of Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”

The message sometimes goes to those who do not want to hear it.

Can you imagine the thousands of conversations that had to happen so that you could know Jesus?

Not only the conversation when someone shared with you, but all of the conversations that someone had to share with someone.

“All of my family is a Christian.” Someone, at one time wasn’t, and your mom had a conversation with her mom, etc. etc.

I believe that is one of the reason’s the martyrs are so celebrated in the book of revelation. Many died so that many can hear. No doubt, someone died so that you could hear the gospel.

The firstborn was Christ. He died that we may live. Yet, others took up the mantle behind Him.