Sending Forth the Gospel

by Dr. Ken Matto

(Isa 52:7 KJV) 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!

Today’s verse is one of the most beautiful in the Bible. It speaks of the Christians who happily sends forth the Gospel to not only distant lands, but also to their neighbors. A few weeks ago I was in a room at our church and in there is a bookshelf full of books on missions. Many of these books focus on the history of missions. I was especially looking at a very good one entitled, “From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya.” I was looking at men like Adoniram Judson, William Carey and many others. When they went to the mission field, they had to pull up stakes, pack, take their whole family with them and sometimes the journey by ship would take two months, especially if they went to exotic places like China or India. Many times the journeys were so perilous that family members died on the way or even missionaries themselves did not make it. Just south of Edison, here in New Jersey is a town called “Cranbury” which was founded by David Brainerd. He died at the age of 29. I was thinking about how it was doing missionary work 200 years ago, just to bring the Gospel to a foreign nation and how it can be accomplished today. I specifically thought of the Internet. If I write an article or even publish the Bible, as I have on this site, it can be viewed by anyone in the world in a matter of seconds.

From South Africa to Australia in a matter of seconds. Christians need to publish the Good News. Even those Christians who are physically challenged can challenge the world with the Gospel without leaving their home. A few weeks ago we celebrated Christmas and those who celebrate it were singing about peace. The real peace that we need to bring to the world, is the peace that happens between God and man when a person becomes saved. There is always going to be wars on this earth as long as sin is present and as long as there is one unbeliever on earth, there will be thousands of sins present. The Gospel of Salvation is the eternal peace that the world is looking for. Unfortunately, here in the USA there is a war on Christianity and the Bible. This country wants every vestige of Christianity removed. Nevertheless, we are to continue bringing the Gospel until the last of the Elect is saved, but we have no idea what country that last one is going to be in. This is why it is beautiful to bring the Gospel, because until we get to the last one, many will be coming into the Kingdom and will be experiencing the peace. We must continue to be vigilant in our sending forth of the Gospel, whether it be by Internet, donations to mission organizations, or by going ourselves. The Great Commission is not over until it is over. Let us persevere the opposition and go forward in the name of the Lord.  (1/31/03)