This blog post is part five of a five-part series entitled “Four Areas of Growth for Sovereign Grace Churches.”
A recent report found that suicide rates are at an all-time high in the United States. Hopelessness, by nature, doesn't discriminate. It touches the young and old, the rich and the poor, the successful and the less successful. Not long ago, the headlines were filled with reports of a famous actor's successful attempt to commit suicide. While there's no way of knowing his thoughts or heart, it is likely that there was a thread of hopelessness lingering in his mind. And there are signs in our culture that people all around us are growing more hopeless.
Here is the irony: the truth found in God’s Word, and in the gospel in particular that offers true hope is the same truth that our world rejects and even opposes. We, as a family of churches, must not be discouraged the rejection and opposition to the gospel. Rather, this refusal and the resulting hopelessness must motivate us with greater urgency to advance the gospel. In fact, Scripture charges pastors to keep preaching sound doctrine, which includes the gospel, even when being opposed by false teachers.
In 1 Timothy 6, Paul charges Timothy “to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Tim. 6:13-14, ESV). The word “commandment” in v.14 is used in a more general sense, meaning that the commandment is the whole law of God, which includes the gospel and its moral implications. Pastors are charged to keep the Word of God and sound doctrine. In the presence of God, we are all called to proclaim and defend Scripture, unstained and free from reproach even when sound doctrine is opposed by false teachers.
After giving this charge, Paul immediately breaks out in a doxology, “he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of Lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen” (1 Tim. 6:15-16). And the doxology that follows the charge not only adds sobriety and weight to the charge itself but is filled with God-glorifying, gospel-centered truths. We proclaim these truths as a means to advance the gospel and to share hope to a hopeless world that increasingly dismisses these truths.
We Advance the Gospel by Boldly Proclaiming Truth
One God-glorifying, gospel-centered truth that this doxology declares is that God is the “only Sovereign” (1 Tim. 6:15). We know from this verse that there is only ONE God, and there is only one way to God for Jesus declared that only He is “the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6). Our pluralistic, confused, hopeless world desperately needs to hear and know the truth about Jesus, who came into this world to save sinners. We faithfully proclaim that God “alone has immortality” (1 Tim. 6:16 ESV), meaning that his rule and reign cannot be threatened by death. We offer hope to a world that fears death and is doing all it can to avoid death by showing them that only our immortal God can save them through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Pastors need to teach faithfully the Word of God that declares Him as the “King of Kings, and Lord of lords” (1 Tim. 6:15b), that only He has the authority to command all others, and therefore all authority on this earth is derived from him. We need to challenge the postmodern mind that dismisses His authority and reveals their need to reconcile to Him. Here is my point: we don’t reach the lost by softening the truth, we reach them by being faithful to teach the truth found in God’s holy Word. Let us be a family of churches that boldly proclaims the truth.
We Advance the Gospel With a Sense of Urgency
Scripture charges pastors to keep the commandment unstained “until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Tim. 6:14). This charge is to be kept until death or until the Lord returns. And because we don’t know when Jesus will return, keeping this charge is filled with a sense of urgency. As a family of churches, we must not only be bold in our proclamation of the gospel; we must do so with a sense of urgency. This charge to keep the commandment unstained is not only about preserving doctrinal fidelity in our churches, but it also has mission implications for every church in Sovereign Grace as we seek to reach every tongue, tribe, and nation with the good news of Jesus Christ. Let us be people who feel a sense of urgency to advance the gospel, and let us do that by boldly proclaiming the truth found in God’s Word for the glory of God alone.
Friends, we are called and commanded to share the hope of the gospel with a hopeless world. By God's grace, we will work together in this mission and see the fruit that is given only by His hand. We can rejoice because He is committed to saving the lost. Let's pray and proclaim with urgency and hope.
Mark Prater is the Executive Director for Sovereign Grace and serves as an elder at Covenant Fellowship Church. He and his wife, Jill, have three married daughters and a growing number of grandchildren.