When the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “Never lose your sense of urgency” (Phillips), there must have been a reason, an importunity, which should carry over to the preaching of the Gospel today.
Why have so many lost their sense of urgency? Why do we seem unmoved when the number of Christians continues to dwindle in proportion to the total world population? What lies back of the widespread indifference to be found within the Church itself?
Are we listening again to the siren song of Satan, “Ye shall not surely die”? Are we engaged in wishful thinking, believing that after all the preaching of the Gospel is not so important, that there are other ways to eternal life?
Can it be that our Lord’s words to the Pharisees were in error?—“I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.”
There are many classes of people in the world. There are those who have never heard of God’s redemptive love in Christ, who will be judged in the light of the knowledge they have and the use they have made of that knowledge.
Then these are those who are indifferent to the claims of Christ. Surrounded by evidences of the Christian faith, they ignore them because other interests seem more worthy and more compelling.
And there are those who deliberately reject the truth, choosing the way of disobedience, sinning against the light.
In these circumstances the duty of the Christian is clear. We cannot ourselves convert sinners, but we are to witness to Christ, that he may forgive those who come to him with repentant hearts.
This witnessing demands urgency for a number of reasons—the nature of the message, the need of the world, and the shortness of the time. That the night will come when no man can work is a fact affirmed by our Lord himself. That duty is now is also attested by the Bible.
Somewhere along the line we have permitted the alternatives of the Bible to become blurred. No longer are there absolutes in right and wrong. For many these things have become relative. No longer do we realize the implications of eternal life and eternal separation from God. Heaven and Hell to entirely too many are mere figures of speech. Satan is no longer an evil personality ever active as the enemy of souls. Rather he is an evil influence which is a part of the world order.
Lostness is described as merely a matter of ignorance, not of a soul’s condition out of Christ. Our Lord’s words, “but he that believeth not is condemned already,” are rejected because “God is too good to damn anyone.”
Basic to the lost clarity of alternatives is an unwillingness to face up to the implications of the Cross. It seems too incredible that the Son of God should have come into the world, because of the alternative—that aside from his death for the sins of the world there is no hope; yet the Scriptures clearly teach this.
Furthermore, all through the New Testament there is found one condition to salvation—faith.
Luke tells us that after the Apostle Paul’s preaching in Antioch in Pisidia, “as many as were ordained to eternal life believed” (Acts 13:48b). Can there be any question but that there were those present who did not believe and who were therefore not saved?
Blurring of the distinction between man’s condition as a believer and his condition as an unbeliever is working havoc in Christian circles today. Why be urgent about something which does not require urgency?
“Whosoever” is a marvelous word—through it mercy, grace, and salvation are opened up to anyone who will believe. But “whosoever” involves the truth that man may reject the love of God in Christ, and it is obvious that many do just that.
It is impossible to escape from the clearly stated alternatives in the Bible—they are there to inform and warn us.
Furthermore, to note the danger in God’s alternatives is to be true to his revelation. No Christian can ignore these distinctions if he reads and believes the clear statements of the Scriptures. Coupled with the free salvation offered through faith in Jesus Christ there is the plainly stated alternative of eternal lostness for those who reject God’s way to eternal life.
“Ye shall not surely die” is a lie of Satan, the enemy of souls. It is one of his propaganda weapons against the redemptive work of Christ. It is a siren song which lures the unwary to the rocks of destruction.
But there are other barriers to the preaching of the Gospel, a Gospel which stresses the love of God against the background of his holiness and justice. Indifference is manifested in a lack of concern for those outside of Christ. As we rest secure in our own faith in him, there can arise a form of selfishness which does violence to the very faith we profess. When the fullness of what Christ has done for us sweeps over our souls, the first reaction should be one of sharing the good news with others. Once this sense of responsibility is silenced we find ourselves in the dangerous position of unfaithful stewards—failing to warn those less fortunate than ourselves.
But for many in the Church it is not a matter of indifference but of unbelief. We reject the clear statement of the Bible in favor of the cleverly projected hypothesis of those who piously say, “They shall not surely die.”
When confronted with this “gospel” which is as old as Eden itself, we need to stand firm in that which God has revealed. The alternatives of eternal life and eternal separation from God are made so plain that only the willful can reject them.
Daniel, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says: “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dan. 12:2). Who are we to deny this?
Our Lord, speaking of the last judgment, says: “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal” (Matt. 25:46). Who are we to question our Lord?
The Apostle John, writing in the Spirit, speaks of those who reject the Christ in favor of his evil antagonist: “And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name” (Rev. 14:11). Who are we to reject this picture of man’s eternal separation from God?
A subject such as this should bring us to our knees—we who have been so blessed. If men out of Christ are eternally lost, what are we doing about it? To denounce those who believe and teach otherwise has no reality of meaning unless we do and give all that we can to turn the tide.
Ours is a grave responsibility and a great privilege.
