We are Not Expendable

“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:” 2 Corinthians 4:3

I’ve heard pastors say we are all replaceable, but I don’t believe that for one second. None of us are expendable because we are all different. There is no one just like me, and there is no one just like you either. We can do a lot for God as a church, but a church is made up of individuals. As church members, we are all part of a team, and God uses each of us in different ways.

God himself gave people the Gospel while he was walking this earth as Jesus Christ. He won people to himself when he was here as our example, and when he left, he commanded us to do it:

“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Mark 16:15

God does not appear to people today and give them the Gospel. As you continue reading the New Testament, you’ll notice that even when Jesus Christ appeared to the Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus, he sent him to Ananias. Another example like this is the story of Cornelius. When Cornelius had been praying and the Lord spoke to him in a vision, did God himself give him the Gospel? No. God sent Simon Peter. In order for Cornelius to be saved, Simon Peter had to be obedient and go and give him the Gospel.

God is not going to get the Gospel to everyone in Phoenix without Faithful Word Baptist Church and the few other soul winning churches in our area, and he’s not going to get the Gospel to everyone in your area without you. Yes, unbelievers are “without excuse,” but it is up to us to give them a clear presentation of the Gospel so they have a better chance of getting saved. God has put us on this earth for a reason. He has a plan for your life and my life, and there are people he wants each of us to reach.

I am often criticized for emphasizing man’s role in getting people saved, but the Bible emphasizes man. God is not going to knock on people’s doors, and if we don’t do it, it’s not going to get done. We need the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit in order to win souls, but don’t de-emphasize us to the point where you think God is going to somehow do it all himself.

“And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.” Ezekiel 22:30

Here is a sermon to go with this article.