Romans 10:14-17

Please take a copy of God's word and turn to me to Romans chapter 10.

Romans 10 · chapter mention

Our text today is verses 6-21 and I'll be putting an emphasis on verses 14-17.

So let's read Romans 10 starting in verse 6 together.

But the righteousness based on faith says,

Do not say in your heart,

Who will ascend into heaven?

That is to bring Christ down.

Or who will descend into the abyss?

That is to bring Christ up from the dead.

But what does it say?

The word is near you, in your mouth, and in your heart.

That is the word of faith that we proclaim.

Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord,

and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead,

you will be saved.

For with the heart one believes and is justified,

and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

For the scriptures say,

Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.

For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek.

For the same Lord is Lord of all,

bestowing his riches on all who call on him.

For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

How then will they call on him whom they have not believed?

And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?

And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

And how are they to preach unless they are sent?

As it is written,

How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!

But they have not all obeyed the gospel.

For Isaiah says,

Lord, who has believed that he has heard from us?

So faith comes from hearing,

and hearing through the word of Christ.

But I ask,

Have they not heard?

Indeed they have.

For their voice has gone out to all the earth,

and their words to the end of the world.

But I ask,

Did Israel not understand?

Then,

First Moses says,

I'll make you jealous of those who are not a nation.

With a foolish nation,

I will make you angry.

Then Isaiah is so bold as to say,

I have been found by those who did not seek me.

I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.

But of Israel,

he says,

All the day long,

I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.

This is the word of the Lord.

Amen.

Amen.

Let us pray together.

Father,

Your word is powerful,

and it is sharper than a two-edged sword,

and it's living and active,

working in our hearts.

We ask,

As the word goes forth this morning,

You will humble us,

that we will hear from the living God in His word,

and experience His goodness.

And Lord,

we ask that my words would help make this word clear and understandable.

In Jesus' name,

Amen.

The name of today's sermon

is the Paradigm for Gospel Missions.

A paradigm is a model to be followed.

My aim,

by the end of this exposition,

is to provide all of you

with God's authoritative model

for doing biblical missions.

Before we get there,

though,

I'd like to show you the major contours and structures

of Romans chapter 10,

Romans 10 · chapter mention

as the main focus of missions is verses 14 through 17.

So my intention is to walk you through the major thoughts in chapter 10,

explain the teaching,

and then we'll hone the rest of our time in on verses 14 through 17.

So in Romans 10,

there is four major thoughts that are being developed.

The major thoughts are verses 1 through 5,

verses 6 through 13,

verses 14 through 17,

in verses 18 through 21.

So in verses 1 through 5,

Paul's desire is to see the Jews to be saved.

But the Jews have not placed their faith in Christ.

They've placed it in their own works.

And they're not seeing that all the law

in the Old Testament institution points to Jesus.

So then,

in verses 6 through 13,

Paul explains that saving faith

comes through Christ,

not our works.

In verses 14 through 17,

Paul teaches the only way for someone to believe in Christ

is through the preaching of the gospel.

And in verses 18 through 21,

Paul explains how the gospel has been proclaimed

throughout all of Asia Minor,

saving many Gentiles,

but the Jews still have heard and rejected Christ.

Last Sunday,

Nathan clearly laid out the gospel for us.

And he reminded us that we are saved by grace alone,

through faith alone,

in Christ alone,

not of any of our works.

Our hope is in Christ alone,

as the song we just sung reminds us so well.

So now,

let's look at the three last sections.

We're going to look at verses 6 through 13,

14 through 17,

and 18 through 21 together.

So in verses 6 through 13,

Paul explains that saving faith

only comes through Christ,

not our works.

Saving faith begins in our heart,

and it comes out in evidence itself

in outward action.

And it's here that he declares

that this outward action

is a confession of Jesus Christ as Lord.

His main assertion is in verse 9,

because if you confess with your mouth

that Jesus is Lord,

and believe in your heart

that God raised him from the dead,

you will be saved.

In these verses,

we see that God rejects,

in these verses,

God rejects that man could do anything

to earn or acquire salvation

apart from saving faith.

There is no tower

that we can build to grasp God,

and there is no sacrament

we can perform

to earn our salvation.

It is by believing in our heart

that Jesus rose from the dead.

Salvation is by grace alone

through faith alone.

But we see here

that faith is never alone.

This faith is a living faith,

and it produces good works,

or evidence is good fruit.

And here,

the evidence of faith

is a confession

that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Living faith,

saving faith,

submits to the Lordship of Christ.

This is a submission

that his will and purposes,

not our own,

are better.

It is to understand

that his way is better

and not our own.

It is to say,

as John the Baptist says,

he must increase,

and I,

I must decrease.

So then,

Paul goes on

in the next four assertions.

He uses the word four

to explain his argument

that in verse four,

saving faith provides justification,

or, sorry,

verse ten,

saving faith provides justification,

confession,

evidence,

salvation.

We see in verse eleven,

saving faith gives assurance.

Verse twelve,

we see that saving faith

is without distinction.

And in verse thirteen,

saving faith submits

to the Lordship of Christ.

So as he's worked out

this point,

he wants to hit home

that we are saved

by faith alone.

That's what he's hitting

in verses six through thirteen.

And then he hits home

that that saving faith

always produces fruit.

So in verses fourteen through seventeen,

Paul teaches that the only way

for someone to believe in Christ

is through the preaching

of the gospel.

And in this,

we see that God uses means

to bring salvation

to his people.

Paul,

building on his argument

in six through thirteen,

contends that

one cannot have saving faith

unless they hear the gospel.

And he summarizes this

in verse seventeen.

So faith comes from hearing

and hearing through the word

of Christ.

In verses fourteen through fifteen,

Paul lays out God's

ordained means for missions.

We could call this

the church planting strategy,

if you will.

And here is what I have called

the paradigm for gospel missions

or God's ordained model

for missions.

This text here serves

as a commentary

for the Great Commission

in Matthew twenty eight,

sixteen through twenty.

And for the church's

sending authority

in Acts thirteen,

one through three.

And if you are,

if you remember

in Matthew twenty eight

that Jesus Christ

has all authority

and then he commissions

his disciples

who then plant churches

and these churches

then spread the gospel

further.

Well here in our text

in Romans,

we have Christ

who has all authority.

He's Lord over all.

But no one will know Christ

unless someone goes.

So we have a,

almost a reassertion

of the Great Commission here

with the emphasis on

someone has to be sent,

which reminds us

of Acts thirteen.

So read verses fourteen

through fifteen with me.

How then will they call

on him in whom

they have not believed?

How are they to believe

in him whom

they've never heard?

How are they to hear

without someone preaching?

And how are they

to preach

unless they are sent?

As it is written,

how beautiful

are the feet

of those

who preach good news.

There's a very simple

logical argument here.

Paul argues

for someone to believe,

they must hear the gospel.

For someone to hear

the gospel,

they must be sent.

And for someone,

or they must be sent

and they must share it.

And for someone to share,

they must be sent.

Therefore,

Paul's contending

that the work

is spread in the gospel

through the ends

of the earth

is the church

sending missionaries

to preach the gospel.

By the preaching

of the gospel,

people come to faith

and churches are formed.

And Paul supports this

with quoting two

Old Testament passages

in our text.

He quotes Isaiah 52,

7 and Isaiah 53,

1.

I'm going to read

Isaiah 52,

7,

or 52,

7 through 10.

And I want you to listen

and hear the emphasis

of the gospel.

I want you to hear

the mission drive

of the text.

Isaiah 52,

7 through 10.

How beautiful,

how beautiful

upon the mountains

are the feet

of him who brings

good news,

who publishes peace,

who brings good news

of happiness,

who publishes salvation,

who says,

who says to Zion,

your God reigns.

The voice of your watchmen,

they lift up their voice.

Together they sing for joy.

For eye to eye,

they see the return

of the Lord to Zion.

Break forth together

in singing,

you waste places

of Jerusalem.

For the Lord

has comforted his people.

He has redeemed Jerusalem.

The Lord has bared

his holy arm

before the eyes

of all the nations.

And all the ends

of the earth

shall see the salvation

of God.

How beautiful

are the feet

of those who preach

the good news.

Feet are not something

we think of as being beautiful.

My wife would agree

with that statement.

She does not like feet.

But in Romans 10,

they're pointed out

because they're useful.

It takes someone's feet

to bring a message

to someone.

It was the idea

of someone being sent

from somewhere

to go somewhere else

and bring a message.

The feet was the means

to bring that message.

So the point Paul's making

is that the feet here

were how the messenger

would travel

to publish peace,

to publish salvation,

and to bring good news

of happiness.

They were the means

of how the gospel

was heard.

He uses the proclamation

of his people

who are broken,

who are saved

by our Redeemer,

to then bring it

to broken people

who need to be saved

by our Redeemer.

The means by which

the gospel is heard

is through those being sent,

is through missionaries.

The task of preaching

the gospel

is not merely local,

but to the ends

of the earth.

Isaiah 52, 10 declares,

all the earth,

all the ends of the earth

shall see the salvation

of our God.

Jesus is Lord of all,

and he is spreading

his kingdom

through the gospel

to the ends

of the earth.

It makes me think

of Matthew 16, 18

when it says,

I will build my church

and the gates of hell

shall not prevail

against it.

Do you notice

that language?

Jesus will build

his church.

The gates of hell

will not prevail

against it.

Jesus is on the offensive.

It's militant language.

He's building,

he's working,

and the defensive

is the gates of hell.

Our king is Jesus,

and he is Lord over all,

and he will defeat

every power of hell

that is against him

in building his church.

Nothing,

no power,

institution,

king,

or governor,

or government

can thwart

the almighty power

of King Jesus

in expanding his kingdom

through the gospel.

Eventually,

in one day that we long for,

all the kings of the earth

will bow their knee

and confess Jesus Christ

as Lord.

He is ruler

of the kings of the earth,

Revelation 1, 5,

and he is

the king of kings,

Revelation 17, 14.

The church would do well

to see the importance

of this work

and the importance

in all the earth.

The quotation

from Isaiah 53, 1

harkens back

to Romans 9

that we just spent

a lot of time in

and reasserts

God's sovereign work

in calling sinners

to himself.

The gospel

is offered to all,

but all do not come.

Only those

whom Isaiah 53, 1

says,

the arm of Yahweh

has been revealed.

God will call

his sheep to himself

and be the shepherd

of all people.

He will lead his people

to green pastures

and cool waters

all of their life

and one day

he'll welcome

all of his people

into the paradise

of heaven.

Therefore,

that is verses

14 through 17.

Now in verses

18 through 21,

Paul explains

how the gospel

has been proclaimed

through all Asia Minor,

saving many Gentiles,

but the Jews

have still rejected Christ.

Paul's point

in verses 18 through 21

is summarized

in verse 21.

He says,

but of Israel,

he says,

all the day long

I have held out

my hands

to a disobedient

and contrary people.

While the gospel

has gone to the Jews

and Gentiles

without distinction,

the Jews

have continued

in their rejection

of Christ.

Paul emphasizes

this point

through quoting

Old Testament scripture

and you can see there

there's three or four

that are quoted in a row.

In verse 18,

he quotes Psalm 19, 4,

to compare the spread

of the gospel

to God's general revelation.

As God's majesty

has been universally revealed

in all creation,

as the sun rises

to its set,

the gospel has been out

to all of Asia Minor.

It's been universally

proclaimed there.

Thus far,

the gospel has been

universally reached

in that area.

And the point

he's making there

is that the Jews

have heard.

In verse 19,

he quotes Deuteronomy

32, 21.

Paul quotes Deuteronomy

to demonstrate

that because of Israel's

rejection of the gospel,

God is making the people

jealous with the conversion

of the Gentiles.

In verse 20,

Paul quotes Isaiah 65, 1.

Because of Israel's wickedness,

God has made the Gentiles

his people.

In God's work of saving

a bribe from all peoples,

he has used this

as a judgment on Israel

for their stubborn

and disobedient heart.

In Romans 11,

we will explain more

of this relationship

of Israel and the church,

of God's working

amidst his people.

And in this time,

what will come clear

is God's purpose

of election,

making his name known

through Jesus Christ.

So,

stay tuned

for that exposition.

Now that we understand

the general contours

of Romans chapter 10,

Romans 10 · chapter mention

we're going to spend

the rest of our time

thinking about this paradigm

for gospel missions.

And we find that

in verses 14 through 17.

We will see this model

looking at three areas

of the text.

We're going to look

at the church,

the missionary,

and the message.

We are going to look

at the church,

the missionary,

and the message.

To introduce

this consideration,

though,

let us think about

the concept of authority.

Authority is the power

to influence

or command thought,

opinion,

or behavior.

This power

ultimately resides

in a person

and can be granted

to others.

The root of authority

is that which

authors life.

Authority is that

which authors life.

God Almighty

has all authority.

It ultimately rests

in him.

He is the author

of life.

He authored life

and creation

of all things,

and he's authoring life

now through his

providential power

and works.

God created man

in his image,

and man's design

was to praise God.

God gave him

authority to legislate

his just and loving commands

and to make his glory known.

He was to take dominion,

being fruitful

and multiplying,

and to spread

the glory of God

to the ends of the earth.

The whole earth

was to be filled

with the glory of God

as the waters

covers the sea.

Habakkuk 2.14

But,

instead of authoring life

and carrying forth

God's glory

to the ends of the earth,

Adam failed

in protecting the garden.

Adam rejected

God's authority

and his actions

authored death.

Romans 5.12

Instead of God's glory

covering the earth,

sin has marred the earth.

Sin has affected

every dimension

of our life,

and at the core

of Adam and his sin,

they asserted

personal autonomy

over God's authority.

Instead of following

God's commands,

they followed

Satan's deception.

They believed

falling their way

was the best way.

This is the same for us.

We often trust

in our own thoughts

and ways above God's.

We have been raised

in a culture

that is consumed

with self

and has made self

the greatest end

by which we live

and work.

The problem is,

when we begin

rejecting God's word

as authoritative

and his ways

as good,

we begin to reject

authority

for special preference,

for individual passions,

and personal sophistication.

With the rejection

of God's authority,

one begins to reject

his authoritative

institutions also.

Eventually,

autonomy,

novelty,

and pragmatism

are more relevant

than God's authoritative

word and institution.

So eventually,

autonomy,

novelty,

and pragmatism

are more relevant

than God's authoritative

institutions.

This is a sad reality

we live in today

where we see churches

without the gospel,

governments

without godly legislation,

and families

without family worship.

With significance

towards individualism

and pragmatism

in our modern culture,

the church,

then,

as God's authority

to spread the gospel,

has employed

individually focused

and pragmatically

motivated practices

to minister

locally and missionally.

The concern

with these employments

that we employ

individual motivated

and pragmatic

methods

is that

they are not

the way in which

God has ordained

gospel ministry.

And often,

they go against

gospel ministry

to emphasize

personal aspiration

and results

in the mission field.

Therefore,

my hope

in the next three points,

the next three areas

of focus,

is to show you

that the paradigm

for gospel missions

revealed in Romans 10,

14 through 17,

give us clear direction

on the authority

and means of missions.

The authority

to send missionaries

is the church.

The means

is the missionary.

The message

is the gospel.

To divert

from church authority,

missionary focus,

and gospel-centric

missions

is to divert

from God's

prescribed model

for missions

in his word.

Therefore,

let's look at these areas.

Number one,

the church.

In Matthew 28,

16,

Jesus has been given

all authority

on heaven and earth

from God the Father.

He has been coronated

and he's about

to take his throne

and his heavenly abode.

Before his enthronement,

he looks at his disciples

and he gives them

a charge,

a commission.

He says,

go therefore

and make disciples

of all the nations,

baptize them

in the name of the Father,

the Son,

and the Holy Spirit.

Teach them all

that I command you.

His commission

with all authority

on heaven and earth

to his disciples

was to make disciples.

And the work

of disciple-making

demands one,

go,

baptize,

and teach.

When we get to Acts,

we see a similar address,

a different perspective,

if you will,

and he commands

his apostles

to be witnesses

in Jerusalem,

Judea,

Samaria,

and to the ends

of the earth.

As the apostles preached,

churches were formed.

These churches then

sent missionaries

to preach Christ

where he has not

been made known.

And if you read

the book of Philippians,

you see Epaphras

who was someone

who came to faith

and went to another area

and preached Christ

and a church was gathered.

And now he's writing

to this church

that was gathered

because of someone else

going from a church.

So we see this

all throughout

the book of Acts.

We see this in the letters.

Missionary thinking

bleeds all throughout

the pages of the New Testament.

As you read the New Testament,

you see the thrust

of missionary movement

until one day

all people are before God

from every tribe,

tongue,

and nation.

In Acts 13,

one through three,

the church at Antioch

commissions Paul and Barnabas

to begin the task

of going to the ends

of the earth.

As Christ is building

his church,

he has legislated authority

to an institution.

That is the church.

The church is the means

and end of gospel missions.

As the father has sent the son,

the son sends his church now.

What I'm about to say

is very important to hear

in our age of individualism

and pragmatism.

The sending authority

in missionaries

is not individual desires

or aspirations

or a sending agency.

There is no such thing

as lone wolf missionaries.

Parachurch organizations

do not have authority

to commission missionaries.

According to the authoritative

word of God,

the sending authority

for missionaries

is the church.

God has instilled authority

to the church

to equip

to model missions

is not operating

according to the paradigm

for gospel missions

found in God's word.

And we see this

in Romans 10, 15.

How are they to preach

unless they are sent?

As is written,

how beautiful are those

who preach good news.

So let me highlight two ways.

I could do many more,

but I'd like to highlight

two ways in which

the church does this work

of sending.

The church trains missionaries.

The work of missions

is a command of our Lord.

The church is responsible

for discerning one's call,

evaluating their character,

and providing them education,

theological education,

and know God's word well.

In one's calling,

God works in the desires

of individuals

to move them

to gospel ministry.

It begins in the individual

saying,

I feel this deep desire

that people who don't know Christ

to know them.

And working in ourselves

to conform to how Christ

works in us.

It begins individually,

but individual desire

is not authoritative

without corporate affirmation.

One's desire for missions

does not qualify one

to do missions.

The authority has been given

to the church

to evaluate

and send missionaries,

to discern their call

and their giftings,

and say,

I believe, brother or sister,

you are called for this work.

The church is the bodyguard

of biblical missions

and ultimately responsible

for the work being done

by the missionaries

they send.

Paul describes requirements

for missionaries

in 1 Timothy 3.

A missionary needs to be

theologically robust,

able to teach,

and possess mature,

godly character.

Theology and piety

are the undergirding

of healthy mission work.

To lack theology

will lead to unhealthy churches

at best

and will lead to

unbiblical churches

at worst.

To lack piety

will lead to destroying

the work one does.

If someone goes

without godly character,

the work they're going

to do will eventually

blow up

because eventually

their teaching

will follow

what they live.

Listen to 1 Timothy 4.16.

Keep a close watch

on yourself

and on the teaching.

Persist in this

for by doing so

you'll save both

yourself and your hearers.

Keep a close watch

on yourself

and your teaching.

Theology and piety

is in that text.

Number two,

the church

sends missionaries.

So the church

trains missionaries,

the church sends missionaries.

If there are men

who are theologically robust,

able to teach,

and has mature

godly character,

the man is qualified

biblically.

If there is no matters

of prudence

hindering the

possible missions,

the church should labor

to work to send them.

If they're not qualified

and the church thinks

that they'll be

a great missionary,

the church should labor

to work to get them

where they can send them.

The work of sending

missionaries

is a really hard task though.

When churches

send missionaries

that are qualified,

they are often

losing those

who they love.

Men and women

who desire missions

usually are doing

the work of missions

in their community.

They're usually going

and preaching the gospel.

They're sacrificing

their lives

to take care of kids

or to go out

at really bad hours

of the night

to share the gospel

or to counsel

a brother or sister.

Usually the people

that go to the mission field

are the people

who you don't want to lose.

They're the people

that it hurts the most.

But there is a greater unity

that we have in Christ

and a greater participation

we have in gospel work.

The sacrifice,

both financially

and relationally,

is worth it

to be faithful

to our King Jesus

and to see his name known

and to see the lost

come to Christ.

So, number one,

the church.

Number two,

the missionary.

Verses 14 through 15 say,

How then will they call

in him

whom they have not believed?

How are they to believe

in him

whom they've never heard?

How are they to hear

without someone preaching?

And how are they to preach

unless they are sent?

As is written,

How beautiful are the feet

of those who preach good news.

The missionary is sent

under authority

to a particular area

to then preach the gospel

so that the nations

would come to Christ.

The end goal

of a missionary being sent

is that churches

would be formed

that worship Christ

accurately,

that they have proper teaching

and that would develop

maturely,

have mature character

and that's why it says

their faith comes from hearing

and hearing through

the word of Christ.

Since the missionary

is sent under the authority

of the church

and their ploy,

whatever means,

work for them.

The missionary methods

are governed by the scriptures

and they represent

the church

by which sends them.

If we as Christ family church

send a brother or sister

to the mission field,

we are authorizing them

to do missions.

We're in our authority

given by God

sending them per se

and then we participate

in that work.

So if we are participating

in a mission work

that is producing

unbiblical means

or unhealthy means,

we're also responsible

for that work

because we are

the sending agency.

We are the ones

who have the authority

as a church

of Jesus Christ.

Problem is,

in modern times,

pastors and missionaries

have been influenced

by individualism

and pragmatism

in ministry.

Instead of gathering

as a church

being devoted

to God's holiness,

that we come

and worship Him,

we hear His word

proclaimed,

instead of gathering

in the church

for God's holiness,

church has become

a vanity fair

for all the seekers.

Instead of missionaries

working hard

to learn languages,

to raise up elders,

and to do the long-term work

of healthy church building,

church planning

has become

a fast food style

method of church building

where they spend

a few weeks

or months in an area

that's a church

and they move on.

And we've seen

in these practices

the damage it's caused

that pragmatism

doesn't produce

healthy churches

or healthy results.

It might give a number

but it doesn't give

what we're called to do.

Healthy,

mature churches

that will last long-term

to proclaim Christ's name

and to the uttermost

regions of the earth.

Our theology

always influences

the methods we employ.

So when missionaries

or pastors

employ pragmatic methods,

it reveals

what they believe.

So if we're in a church

that caters

to pragmatic methods,

we believe something

about missions

that governs

how we do church.

So as the church

and labors of the gospel,

we are bound

to the paradigm

for gospel missions.

God's word

authoritates,

authorizes

our methods

and sustains

our ministry.

J.H. Bawink,

he is the nephew

of Herman Bawink,

he was a professor

of missions

and he was a missionary

to Indonesia,

teaches that

when someone

has a question

concerning missions,

you should respond

in this manner.

Answers can be given

solely on the basis

of scripture.

For the work of missions

is the work of God.

It is not lawful

for us to improvise.

At each step,

we must ask,

what does God demand here?

Although it is not always

easy to find

the right course,

our search must lead us

to what God has said

in his word.

Our convictions

and methods,

our strength

and work

come from God's

authoritative

and imperishable word.

This is our church

planning methodology,

is the word of God.

The work of the messenger

is a precious work though.

We see that here

in Romans 10.

How beautiful

are the feet

of those who preach

the good news.

The task

is ultimately motivated

by Jesus Christ

and the aim

is seeing all people

praise God.

The believer's

deepest motive

is that Christ

would be glorified.

The missionaries

is a herald

of the most glorious person,

the greatest victory

and the best news.

The work that the missionary

does is an honorable calling

and we should seek

to love and support

our missionaries well

as they make

all these different sacrifices

to see Christ known

to the uttermost regions

of the earth.

To give a good example,

currently right now,

we have brothers and sisters

that we dearly love

in various parts of the world

who are seeking

to learn languages

so that once they learn

a language,

they can then

go to a different region,

a more remote region

where there isn't a church

and learn another language

and then after learning

that language,

then they start translating

the Bible

and they start teaching

in that language.

It's a long-term,

heavy-demanding exercise.

While we get to be here,

we enjoy our family,

we enjoy the benefits

of our society,

we can get anything

we want at a moment's notice,

whether it's DoorDash

or whether it's going

to the supermarket.

We have so many benefits

here in the U.S.

Our missionaries

are sacrificing

all those benefits,

a lot of those relational

things they dearly love

so that Christ would be known.

Important work

because we want to see

their task come to fruition.

We don't want to see

the task become harder

because they don't have

the support per se.

But this is what we see

as Paul's motive

here in Romans.

Romans 15, 20-21 says,

Paul's aim

and what he was zealous for

is see that those

who don't have a chance here,

those who have never heard,

to know.

And that's why

when he went to all

Asia Minor,

he didn't stay in Asia Minor,

he then went to Jerusalem

so that he could go to Spain.

His aim was to get to Spain

where the gospel's not gone

so that everyone would know,

so that this idea

of universal

revelation of the gospel

in Asia Minor

would appear

to the ends of the earth.

But obviously,

we see God's sovereignty

in him not completing

that work.

So we need to be those

who support missions

zealously

because of the command

of our Lord,

or who would be willing

to offer ourselves

as a priestly service

as a minister

or a missionary.

There's one or the other.

We can either serve

in a more active role

or we can do our best

to support

the activity of the church.

And I don't know

if there is a middle ground there

as I've wrestled

with this sermon

and thinking through it

is to be faithful

to God's missionary command,

we should either support

or go,

what it seems like.

Matthew 9, 37-38 says,

There he said

to his disciples,

The harvest is plentiful,

but the labors are few.

Therefore,

pray earnestly

to the Lord of the harvest

to send out laborers

into his harvest.

So let us as a church

pray for laborers

because the need

for missions is so great.

Without hearing

the gospel of Jesus Christ,

how will one believe?

This is Paul's argument.

There are millions of people

who have never heard

the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This means that

there are millions of souls

that are living

enslaved to sin

that are worshiping idols

that are working

for their salvation

that are living

for themselves

who will spend

eternity in hell.

The reality of

eternal suffering

is the fate of those

who don't hear

and believe in the gospel.

They'll spend all eternity

where the unquenchable fire

will not end

and the gnashing of teeth

will continue

and they currently

have never heard

the good news

to save them.

Do you believe?

There should be

a weight here

that burns in our souls

to see the nations

know Christ.

So for some statistics,

there are 3,000 language groups

that currently have

no church in their language

and most of them

do not have the scriptures.

Chances are

there is not a single believer

in this language group

and chances are

they'll never hear the gospel

before they die

unless someone goes

to that language group.

Some national statistics.

Morocco has 38 million people.

0.1% of the people

are Christians.

Iraq has 43 million people.

1% are Christians.

Iran has 88 million people.

0.02% are Christians.

And India has

1,428,000,000 people

and 2.3% are Christians.

Do those numbers?

Do you feel the weight

of those numbers?

Brothers and sisters,

the harvest is plentiful,

the laborers are few,

and the task is needed.

So I pray that this text,

Romans 10,

and the eternal reality

will stir us all individually

and corporately

for gospel missions.

If you look at the back

of your bulletin,

Spurgeon has a wonderful quote

regarding missions.

It says,

If sinners be damned,

at least let them leap

to hell over our dead bodies.

And if they perish,

let them perish

with their arms

wrapped around their knees,

imploring them to stay.

If hell must be filled,

let it be filled

in the teeth

of our exertions

and let no one go

unwarned

and unprayed for.

Briefly,

we're going to talk

about the message.

I think Nathan did a great job

explaining this last week,

so I'm not going to belabor

the point.

Romans 10, 15, and 17.

How are they to preach

unless they are sent?

As is written,

how beautiful are the feet

of those who preach good news.

So faith comes from hearing

and hearing through

the word of Christ.

The prescribed message

for missionaries

is the gospel

of Jesus Christ.

The gospel,

as Romans 1 tells us,

is the power of God

for salvation.

In it,

we hold up

our crucified

and resurrected Lord

so all may see.

And we say,

Behold him

who died

and who lived

for thee.

It is by Christ's

active and passive

obedience

that we stand

before God.

And without his act

and passive obedience,

we can't stand

before God.

In this wonderful message,

we declare

that Christ perfectly

obeyed God's law

and sacrificially

died for sin.

By repentance

and faith,

this salvation

is applied to us.

We are clothed

in Christ's righteousness

and sin is no more.

We stand justified

and redeemed

by the blood of Christ.

There is great

and unmeasurable hope

in the gospel.

Unbeknownst to me,

I didn't know

we were singing

His Robes for Mine,

but my next line

is a quote

from that song.

So listen to this quote

as we sang earlier.

His robes for mine,

oh wonderful exchanged.

Clothed in my sin,

Christ suffered

neath God's rage.

Draped in his righteousness,

I'm justified.

In Christ I live,

for in my place,

he died.

Missionaries do not

have success

in fast and innovative methods.

Their task is unashamedly

to preach the gospel

of Jesus Christ.

Their success

is in the Lord

of the harvest

calling sinners to himself.

Romans 9

is the theological undergirding

for evangelism and missions.

We sow and plant,

we plea,

we beg,

we labor,

but God causes the growth.

Jesus Christ

is the one

building his church

and his spirit

is the one

who opens the eyes

to the blind,

to seeing the king

for all of his beauty.

The gospel is offered

freely to all

and the Lord

works freely to save.

The missionary task

is an empowered task.

The messenger

is the herald.

God is the one

who works.

Praise God

that evangelism

and missions

does not depend

on our own efforts

and our own words,

but on him.

In conclusion,

the church missionary task

is great,

but we aren't

individual in it.

We join with all

the other churches

that are healthy,

that know the gospel

of Jesus Christ

and labor

that Christ

might be known

to the other

most ends of the earth.

There are organizations

that train missionaries

to go to the

unreached areas now.

We are in a task

with a collection,

with numerous churches

to see this mission,

this task happen.

So we labor

that the 3,000 language groups

would have the gospel

proclaimed in their language,

that the scriptures

would be translated

in their language,

and that churches

would be planted.

In this work,

God gave us

a prescribed model

in his word.

This is the paradigm

for gospel missions.

In closing,

let me read Isaiah 6,

8 to you.

And I heard the voice

of the Lord saying,

Whom shall I send

and who will go for us?

And then I said,

Here I am.

Send me.

Let's pray together.