The Priority of Proclamation
STATEMENT
Proclamation is the priority of the missionary task because the gospel message is the power of God for salvation. The priority of preaching, teaching, and personal evangelism was modeled and commanded by our Lord and the Apostles. Therefore, proclamation is the biblically-mandated central task of the church and missions (Mark 1:38, Romans 1:16, Romans 10:13-15, Matthew 28:16-20).
As a young ministry intern, my boss took me to a large Central Asian city. We participated in a missionary training conference for those who had served on the field for over ten years. We heard a challenging exposition of Romans 10 about the power of preaching God’s Word in Christian ministry, but it became clear that many in the room were upset with the speaker. During our small group time, I vividly remember some of the missionaries expressing their objections:
“What the people here need is not a message, but just our acts of care.”
“Preaching or teaching the gospel is a Western ideology! What they need is our listening, not our teaching.”
“We must reach people in culturally sensitive ways; in this culture, that’s not preaching and teaching.”
Their reactions were particularly puzzling because I am an Indian national living in the Middle East, and a group of missionaries taught me the gospel. The Word of God they shared convicted me, and I became a Christian.
A few days later, the conference organizers repeated the same training with several local pastors from the same region. They heard the same talk from the same person–but reactions couldn’t have been more different! One pastor stood up as soon as the preacher finished and remarked,
“We didn’t know ministry was this simple! Missionaries explained that people from our culture would reject the gospel message if we tried to teach it directly and that explaining what is in the Bible is only for mature believers. But if God promises to save people through His Word, we should have no other method but to obey what is in His Word and preach His gospel!”
I couldn’t agree more with that brother. Yet, I’ve only seen more and more missionaries and Christian organizations choose not to prioritize the proclamation of the gospel. The number one reason for doing so is how the culture will react. According to them, anthropology must shape missiology. The Bible begs to differ.
God’s Word should primarily shape our missiology. We see God communicating His truth throughout the Bible. From the beginning of creation, God speaks. In His speaking of creation and humanity into existence, we see firsthand the incomparable power of His Word. We also know the clarity of His judgments through His Word when He judges Adam and Eve for their sin and banishes them from the garden. We see His grace described as He makes a covenant with His people and promises to rescue not just the people of Israel but the world. Then we see the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ, come to fulfill the promise of God by ransoming a people unto God, paying the penalty for their sin by dying on the cross, and rising again to new life. In Jesus’ commission to the apostles we read the promised assurance of His presence and the command to teach the nations all He commanded. The teaching and proclamation of the gospel were never limited to a few nations!
The book of Acts records the first fruits of obedience to the Great Commission. Peter proclaims the gospel in Acts 2 and 3000 people believed. In Acts 4, the chief priests and elders charge Peter and John not to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. The two disciples respond,
“Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19-20)
The faithful response of any Christian is proclaiming the message of salvation accurately and clearly so that others may hear the good news, repent, and put their faith in Christ. We may be opposed–Peter and John were brought before the elders and rulers of the people–but we listen to God and not to human dictates.
So, we should seek to obey the command in God’s Word. The same God who worked through Peter, John, Paul, and many others in New Testament times and joined by faithful saints throughout the ages is the same God who saves through the preaching and teaching of the gospel today.
Romans 10:13-17 makes it clear that the gospel is a message that must be communicated in words to be heard by those who will respond in faith.
“For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
How then will they call on him in 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 what he has heard from us?’ So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ.”
This passage was so obvious that I once wondered why Paul included it in his writing. But the longer I follow Christ, the more I see its importance for all believers, particularly missionaries. Missionaries’ human tendencies can downplay the urgency of sharing the gospel ourselves; we can point to cultural anthropology instead of Biblical command or allow fear of government authorities to silence us or lack confidence in our ability to teach the gospel in a culturally relevant way. I do believe we should strive to be sensitive to the culture, wise as we consider the local governance, and hone our evangelism skills. However, I still hold that two phrases from this passage speak clearly and notably to missionaries: “How are they to hear without someone preaching?” and “How are they to preach unless they are sent?”. Missionaries are sent, and according to the Apostle Paul, we are sent because people can’t hear unless someone who knows the gospel message comes and preaches it to them.
The GCC statement at the beginning of this article begins with the sentence, “Proclamation is the priority of the missionary task because the gospel message is the power of God for salvation.” Proclamation is the priority because the Great Commission cannot be fulfilled without it. We must see people become Christians at the beginning of their discipleship, before baptism, before teaching them the commands of Christ, and before they come together to form a church–the ultimate goal in missions.
Missionaries can do many good things: hunger relief, healthcare, business development, supporting schools and education, etc. These things can point to the gospel and flow from the gospel, but they cannot save unless the gospel is explained to the people. Likewise, cultural sensitivity is invaluable, but when it precludes sharing the good news that Jesus offers forgiveness and reconciliation with God, we aren’t loving the people of that culture; we’re condemning them to eternity without Christ. Both sending churches and missionaries must make gospel proclamation a priority.
In closing, let me offer some practical recommendations on keeping gospel proclamation front and center in missions:
1. Emphasis on Evangelism
A missions-minded church best serves the missionaries they send by modeling what they desire to happen on the field (and because it’s an essential part of their own mission as a church!). Evangelism should be emphasized and encouraged by the church leadership. The gospel should be preached regularly and taught consistently. Members should be urged to share the gospel in their communities. [1]
2. Clarity on the Gospel
Missionaries sent out should know the gospel and how to communicate it. I know this seems obvious, but it’s often assumed. If you are considering missionary service, clarify what the gospel is (and isn’t) and how to communicate it. Become someone who regularly shares their faith, either one on one or before groups. Seek opportunities to reach out to internationals in particular. If you aren’t evangelizing in your home culture, you probably won’t do it in another culture when it’s much more complicated. Church leaders should look for people who are solid on the gospel and intentional evangelists before affirming them as missionaries to be sent. [2]
3. Like-Mindedness on the Team
Confirm that the team already on the field is committed to gospel proclamation. Joining a team that doesn’t share the desire to preach and teach the gospel will only be a hindrance, and your efforts may be opposed. [3]
4. Utilize Language Learning
In most situations, missionaries should commit to learning the language to communicate the gospel most clearly. But language instruction itself can become a gospel opportunity. I know a missionary who would tell his non-Christian teacher he wanted to practice Arabic by reading the Bible aloud during their sessions. Don’t wait to master the local language before sharing the gospel, but even through feeble attempts, entrust your efforts to God and look for ways to teach the gospel. [4]
One final encouragement: there will come a time when missionaries leave the country. What you leave those people with is what they will seek to emulate. Many have left my area with much clarity and joyful gospel preaching and teaching. There is a long legacy here of those following in the path of men like Samuel Zwemer, choosing not to change the gospel message to make it palatable to the local culture, nor hesitating from sharing the gospel because it doesn’t fit the local ideology. Instead, they have remained steadfast. Pray, train, send, and be faithful gospel proclaimers.
Footnotes:
[1] Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus by Mack Stiles is an excellent book to encourage churches is this effort.
[2] What Is the Gospel? by Greg Gilbert, Marks of the Messenger by Mack Stiles, and Personal Evangelism by Mark Dever are helpful books to read.
[3] See GCC article “Who’s Your Team? Navigating the Surprising Struggle for Missionaries”
[4] See GCC article “Trade Language or Local Language?”
