Some time ago I mentioned that I had been asked by a magazine to submit an answer to this question: “What is the greatest hindrance to the gospel today?” Since the magazine has now been published, I can print the answer at my site. So here goes…
You know the oft-told story, I am sure. G.K. Chesterton, along with other prominent authors of his day, was asked by The Times to answer this question: “What’s Wrong with the World?” His answer was beautiful in its simplicity and brilliant in its profundity.
Dear Sirs,
I am.
Sincerely yours,
G. K. Chesterton
As I ponder the greatest hindrances to the gospel today, I can’t help but feel that Chesteron’s words are applicable to this question, too. And yet, at the same time, I feel as if they are wrong; dead wrong.
I Am
I, as a Christian, hinder the spread of the gospel and hinder its power in the world.I hinder the gospel when I lose confidence in the gospel—in the powerful simplicity of the good news that Jesus Christ has died to save sinners. Our age has seen more gospel innovation than any other. We have unprecedented access to programs, teachings and technologies that claim to be able to further the gospel’s spread. But how easy it is to find that my confidence is in the programs or in the teachers or in the technologies, rather than in the gospel message itself. How quick I am to prefer my own message and my own methods above those given to me by God.
I hinder the gospel when what I do fails to match what I say. When I claim to follow Christ but allow my actions to betray my words, a watching world scoffs at the gospel, and rightly so. When I claim to have been transformed by God’s grace but live as if God has made no change at all, I cause others to heap contempt on the gospel. Robert Robinson said this so eloquently in his great hymn, “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing:” “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love.” Living in the constant tension of being both saint and sinner, I am prone to wander away from the One I love; prone to live as if He is nothing to me. And in this I hinder the gospel.
I Am Not
From my human perspective, I am the greatest hindrance to the gospel. But the Bible tells me to look higher. It tells me with glorious clarity that nothing, no one, is able to hinder the gospel. It tells me to place my confidence in the God whose plans cannot be stopped. My lack of confidence in the gospel, my indifference to it, and my unfaithfulness in spreading it, cannot truly hinder the work of God. God reigns supreme over all.his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;
all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,
and he does according to his will among the host of heaven
and among the inhabitants of the earth;
and none can stay his hand
or say to him, “What have you done?” (Daniel 4:34b-35)
Not one person who truly seeks after God will be hindered from embracing Christ as Lord and Savior. Christ, the Good Shepherd, has sent His Spirit to gather a people to himself. Christ knows his own and his own know him. He will draw them to himself and not one will be lost; not one can be lost. Far be it from me to think that I can stand in the way of God, the Creator and Sustainer of all that was and is and ever will be.
What is the greatest hindrance to the gospel today? I am, but nothing is. God reigns supreme.
Comments (31) »
1. Chris Taylor
January 9, 2009
9:38 AM
I must say this is one of your best. Blessings my friend. Your answer has now become a part of a 10th grade Bible lesson in a Christian School in Arkansas. I will, of course, give you credit.
CT
2. Nick
January 9, 2009
10:05 AM
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Rom. 1.16).
You’re right on Tim. The gospel is God’s power.
3. Rachael Starke
January 9, 2009
11:18 AM
Your answer makes me wonder what the others said. Hopefully, they said pretty much exactly what you did, or, they’re certainly going to wish they had.
Best post ever, Tim. Thanks for the convicting and encouraging reminder.
4. sarah
January 9, 2009
11:19 AM
This is good.
But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. -Ps. 115:3
5. J.P.H.
January 9, 2009
11:29 AM
I think Chesterton’s answer can be expanded in a corporate sense to be, “We are”. Or “The Church is”. While each of us individually bears witness to “something”, which could be the Gospel or the lack thereof, depending on the situation and our actions, the church also has a corporate witness. At the moment, in my opinion, the American church is doing a poor job of bearing witness to the gospel message.
By that I explicitly do NOT refer to the fact that individual church members aren’t “going out and witnessing enough”. I’m more referring to what people see when they look at the church as a whole. They see a group of people whose sin habits aren’t much different than theirs. They see a group of people who are largely ignorant of the most basic tenets of the faith they claim to profess. They see a group of people who seem more concerned with curbing the sin behavior of non-believers by political means than with their own sanctification. They see a group of people who, by and large, evidence the same racial hangups as those outside the church. They see a group of people who, by and large, are not characterized by love, and who do not show markedly more compassion toward the “least” in society than anyone else.
I think one could sharply contrast the American church with the church in, say, China or India, where it suffers much persecution. I’m not saying persecution is a good thing, but it does tend to filter out those for whom Christianity isn’t the vitally important. The church that results when these remaining individuals congregate is, in many ways, the opposite of what I described above. In a good way.
6. Scott Davis
January 9, 2009
11:33 AM
Tim,
Thanks for those very good words.
Sometimes there seems to be a “soft arminianism” in our belief that the we with our cleverness, creativeness, and innovations are building and growing the church.
Rather Christ is building the church.
Thanks,
Scott Davis
7. Michael Adams
January 9, 2009
11:43 AM
Good stuff! Very good!! Ephesians 1:11
8. Winston Waldemayer III
January 9, 2009
12:14 PM
Tim,
This is a beautifully written post! Such truth! Awesome. Any other words escape me.
http://www.reigningimmortal.com
9. Nick
January 9, 2009
12:15 PM
J.P.H.,
Thanks for that reminder!
10. Cliff
January 9, 2009
12:52 PM
This is what I’ve convicted of. It is the I that hinders the Gospel.
Simple words cut deep.
Thanks,
Cliff
11. Stephen
January 9, 2009
1:07 PM
“What is the greatest hindrance to the gospel today? I am, but nothing is. God reigns supreme.”
Well said! This is both convicting and encouraging at the same time.
12. Sarah
January 9, 2009
1:14 PM
Thank you for this post — I also agree it’s one of your best. I’ve been encouraged!
13. donsands
January 9, 2009
1:21 PM
“I am, and nothing is.” Amen.
I think the greatest hindrance “in the Church is twofold”: Preaching the Word of grace, and praying.
If the Body of Christ would pray focused on Christ’s glory, and preached and declared the Word of grace, then we’d see a great revival. It may take some time after the praying begins, maybe even years, but if we are faithful to pray to our Lord of the harvest, He will be faithful and send forth workers to gather the harvest for our joy and His glory.
So I am, because I don’t pray enough, and as I should.
14. Tm Irvin
January 9, 2009
1:32 PM
Very well written and spot on. Articles like this “Tune my heart to sing His grace.”
15. Kathy T
January 9, 2009
2:29 PM
A timely reminder for this wandering heart. Your words caused me to remember a Latin phrase I once heard from R.C. Sproul, “simul justis et peccator,” meaning, at once justified and a sinner.
16. Laurie
January 9, 2009
4:02 PM
Wow - the heart of reformed teaching, the great paradox, beautifull and simply stated. We are totally accountable for our behavior; and God is totally sovereign. Entirely biblical -fantastic!
17. mike
January 9, 2009
4:19 PM
O’ to grace how great a debtor,
Daily I’m constrained to be
Let thy goodness like a fetter
Bind my wondering heart to thee
Prone to wonder Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I Love
Take this heart, take and seal it
Seal it for thy courts above
This stanza is my prayer every morning and has been for the past few years, because it so stunningly expresses my own heart. I was however disappointed to learn recently that Robinson ALEGIDLY backslid and died in a backslidden state.
18. Demian Farnworth
January 9, 2009
4:48 PM
You got it. Keep writing like this and soon you’ll rival Lewis or Chesterton.
19. Deb
January 9, 2009
5:04 PM
Great post Tim! Very true and encouraging.
If I might even add one additional point, which is that I hinder the gospel primarily by pride. It is not only that “what I do fails to match what I say” or that “my actions to betray my words” or that I “live as if God has made no change at all.”
It is also when I fail to admit and confess when I have failed, not lived up to the gospel, and sinned against God and others that the gospel is greatly put to shame. When I actually live the redemptive story with others, that my life is reconciled with God and others.
What I’m getting at is that failure is not the end of line for us. You’ve already shown how God’s soveriegnty reigns over that on the macro level. I would also add to that, at the micro-level of living life, how we respond toward God and others when we sin can be a truly powerful transmission of the gospel at a very practical level.
Just another thought..
20. michelle
January 9, 2009
5:56 PM
This is fantastic! Thanks for sharing it with us!
21. underdogtheology
January 9, 2009
6:36 PM
The disparity between ORTHODOXY and ORTHOPRAXY in a Christian can really confound.
Our hope is in Christ, who is the Author and Finisher of our faith.
http://underdogtheology.blogspot.com/
22. Cheri
January 10, 2009
5:45 AM
So true. Phillipians 1: 6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
23. Belinda
January 10, 2009
8:16 AM
Thanks for the good words, Tim. As a mother, I needed this encouragement today. “I am, but nothing is.” Yes. Amen. B.
24. drhill
January 10, 2009
10:14 AM
Good stuff! I might add - (hopefully without stating the obvious) that if we read the gospel to be the good news - or the truth according to Christ, then the greatest hindrance would be the devil and his works…as Christ came to defeat the works of the devil (truth VS lies), God certainly reigns supreme - but we still are in the middle of a war on the planet earth….the only reason I mention this is that though victory is won in Christ crucified - we still need to stay steady here in the trenches against a very real, (and according to scripture relevant) enemy who is busy hindering the gospel message in many ways (especially as an angel of light).
Here I reiterate ‘greatest hindrance’ .
This might not be a new or clever insight - but I do believe it is true.
Thanks for your blog - its really refreshing.
25. Susan
January 10, 2009
2:20 PM
Excellent post! Gave me an “ah-ha” moment. Thank you for reminding me that nothing can hinder God’s Word!
26. Grace
January 10, 2009
2:23 PM
Tim,
This definitely is one of your best posts…thanks for sharing it with us.
27. Kristy
January 10, 2009
4:59 PM
Excellent post, thanks for sharing. And Amen.
28. Lance
January 10, 2009
6:37 PM
Tim,
Thank you for this powerful reminder. Just what we need.
29. Randy Hurst
January 11, 2009
2:50 PM
” 7But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” Matthew 3:7-10 NIV
God can create Sons from Stones.
Witnesses from the Witless.
Jesus promises that his disciples would be his witnesses only AFTER the Holy Spirit had come upon them.
Nothing is hindering the Gospel. Any lack of repentance on our part only prevents our personal involvement…not God’s purposes.
As we are the salt of the earth, just because we are, the Gospel is the Good News of the Kingdom of God, just because it is. We should be awed that we we were ever invited to speak these words under the influence of the Holy Spirit. As we assimilate The Word into our lives the Holy Spirit will make us ready, give us opportunity, and make us instruments of God’s purpose.
I would lean more to the “nothing is”, Tim. If we think we are hindering the Gospel, God help us that we don’t end up like the Pharisees and Sadducees, thinking we are something we are not.
30. Lisa Nunley
January 11, 2009
3:52 PM
My pastor, Chris Taylor (your first commentor in this thread), apparently also used this post in his sermon this morning… as was told me by my husband, Jon.
I couldn’t go to church this morning because I stayed home with a couple of sick children, but Jon said it was excellent and I look forward to hearing the sermon on-line.
It is a wonder of Divine power and mercy that there are any saved… Thank you Lord that it is not up to our pitiful attempts to proclaim Your sacred Gospel. Thank you Lord for not giving us what we deserve, but for looking upon us with mercy through the work of Your Son. And Thank you Lord for allowing us to be used to spread the Good News. Not because we are worthy. No. But made worthy only because we are clothed in the righteousness of Christ. How amazing that you would look upon any of us with such Divine love. Even though we are but vapors… Our lives here on earth less than a blink in light of eternity. And yet you care for us. You know the length of our days, the number of hairs on our head, every thought, every dark corner. Your Word of Truth even claims to delight in us. These things I cannot comprehend.
31. tia
January 11, 2009
7:05 PM
“I am, but nothing is.”
Two reminders in one sentence. I’m convicted and deeply encouraged at the same time …