Not Ashamed- Part 37- Faith Comes by Hearing

Introduction-Romans 10:14-21

The last time we were here in the book of Romans we considered the fact that salvation is by faith and all that a person must do to be saved is to believe.

We also saw that salvation is universally available to anyone who will turn to Christ is faith.

Tonight we will consider the responsibility of those who have believed to proclaim the gospel and then the responsibility of those who are yet lost to respond in faith to the message.

There can be no doubt that God is willing to save any man and yet so many are yet unsaved. Tonight we will learn why this is true.

Let us first consider...

The Responsibility of the Saved (Vs. 14-15)

Let us begin by returning to Vs. 13 here where we learn that anyone that will call upon the name of the Lord in faith shall be saved.

This is a true statement but it also leads to an indictment of those who have received salvation.

There are many in our world today who have not yet called upon the name of the Lord simply because they have not yet heard.

It would be utter foolishness to expect a man to believe on Jesus when he has never so much as heard His name.

We are willing to admit there are people in the jungles of South America or in the rugged mountains of the Middle East or in the closed regions run by Communist Regimes who have never heard.

Yet I submit to you tonight that there are people right here in Clovis, NM and the surrounding communities who have not heard the truth of the Word of God concerning Jesus Christ.

Though they may have heard His name and they may have some basic acquaitance with the story of the cross they have never had someone clearly explain to them how they can be saved through faith in Him.

What then is our responsibility to these who have not yet heard? It is very simple: to do all that we can to make sure that they do hear!

We must be the preacher (one who proclaims and persuades) who will tell them of Jesus and His power to save.

God has chosen to use people like you and I as His ambassadors to the lost.

2 Corinthians 5:18–20 KJV 1900

And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.

The final question in the indictment in the line of questioning is “how shall they preach, except they be sent?”

This simply means that if we are to deliver the message we must go, we must go down the street to those who are lost, we must go across town to reach those who still need to hear, and if we cannot go ourselves to those who have not heard in the regions beyond we must endeavor to send others who will proclaim the message to them.

Isaiah 52:7 KJV 1900

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; That bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; That saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!

The final statement is a quotation from Isaiah, in this particular instance the good news was deliverance from Babylonian captivity, how much greater then is the news that JESUS SAVES!

We have the good news and yet so often we silently sit by rather than going and telling as we have been commanded.

Let us not shirk our responsibility to deliver the message.

“Oh, my brothers and sisters in Christ, if sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies; and if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay, and not madly to destroy themselves. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for.” -C.H. Spurgeon

The Responsibility of the Lost (Vs. 16-21)

In the world today there are two distinct groups of people who are yet lost.

There are those who simply have not heard and then there are those who have heard but who have rebelled against God and rejected the truth they have received.

We may go and tell all the lost in Clovis, NM that Jesus saves and yet this does not in itself guarantee that all men will be saved.

Every person who hears the truth must then choose how he/she will respond to the truth.

Tragically not everyone will obey the gospel and turn to Christ for salvation. Sadly some will continue to go their own way and will refuse to believe.

As we proclaim the Word of God (not our own opinions or ideas) every individual who hears will respond, either in faith believing on Christ as savior or in unbelief rejecting Him.

In this passage Paul uses the nation of Israel as an example of this response. The Israelites had heard the truth about Jesus.

They were not ignorant of the means of salvation that God provided in Jesus.

It should not have come as a shock to them that the Gentiles were being saved because it had been foretold by the prophets that this would take place.

Yet they continued to resist God and they continued in defiance seeking to establish their own righteousness rather than submitting to the righteousness of God.

This portion of the inspired scriptures firmly establishes the fact that men are personally responsible for how they respond to the truth.

It is not God that determines who shall be saved or lost but men as they respond to the truth determine their eternal destiny.

Conclusion

Tonight if you are a recipient of salvation, may I implore you to consider the responsibility that you have been given.

It is up to you and me to go and tell those who have not yet heard and even to continue to pray for and implore those who have heard to believe on Jesus.

Paul had not given up. He was still deeply burdened for the Israelites who had not yet believed and he continued to proclaim the gospel to them and to pray for their salvation.

May we determine to do all that we can to get the message out so that all may hear.

If you are here tonight and you have heard but you have not yet believed, I beg you to respond tonight in faith to the truth of the gospel of Christ.

Jesus died for you, He took the punishment that you deserved, He rose again the Third day conquering death, hell, and the grave and He will save you today if you will trust Him as your savior!

You must respond and if you choose to do nothing you have made your response and you will face eternal condemnation and separation from God if you die without Christ.