To Give His People the Knowledge of Salvation
Christian preachers follow in the legacy of John the Baptist (Jn 1:6–8, 19–37). As one, chosen by God, to prepare the way for His Anointed, John cried out in the wilderness (Is 40:3; Mt 3:3; Mk 1:3; Lk 3:4; Jn 1:23). He confessed that he was not the Messiah (Jn 1:20). He knew that he must decrease (Jn 3:30). His task was to give God’s people the knowledge of salvation (Lk 1:77). He pointed them to Jesus (Jn 1:29).
The Gospel that we preach, by the Holy Spirit, is not about us (Rom 15:19; 1 Cor 2:4; 1 Pet 1:12). We do not preach ourselves (2 Cor 4:5), but our message is Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor 2:2). God’s people must know Him, in order to know God the Father (Lk 10:22; Jn 8:19; 14:7).
The salvation that belongs to God, is an eternal salvation (Heb 5:9). It was planned, executed, and applied by the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, respectively. Those who are beloved by the Lord (Eph 1:6; Col 3:12), were chosen by Him for salvation from the beginning (1 Thess 1:4; 2 Thess 2:13).
We preach what we know of Him, and by His grace, we grow in our knowledge of Him (2 Pet 3:18). Knowing Christ is a product of the Spirit of truth (Jn 16:13), teaching God’s people the Word of truth, which is the 66 books of the Bible. This is the Word that was preached to us (1 Pet 1:25), and it is the Word of life passed on, from us to others (1 Jn 1:1–3).
Proclaiming the excellencies of Christ is a labor of love for the minister of the Word (Col 1:28; 1 Pet 2:9), who has a ministry of reconciliation to steward (2 Cor 5:18–20). Stewarding the mysteries of the Gospel is no easy task, however (1 Cor 4:1–2). There is much resistance because of the natural man’s disposition in sin (Rom 3:23; 5:12; 1 Cor 2:14; Eph 2:1–3).
Unbelievers walk in darkness, and they love it (Jn 3:19). They are deaf to the voice of Christ (Ps 115:6). They are blind from seeing the Light of truth (2 Cor 4:4). They are captives to the devil, the ruler of this world (Jn 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). They are subject to his dominion (Acts 26:18). They dwell in his domain of darkness (Col 1:13).
The Word of God that is preached to all people, promiscuously, is heard (Mt 24:14; Mk 16:15). Some hear and believe the preacher’s report (Is 53:11; Rom 10:16–17). Others hear and do not believe (Jn 10:26). The difference between believers and unbelievers is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:9, 11), sent from God (1 Pet 1:12).
The Holy Spirit, who is a gift from God (Acts 2:38; 10:45), Himself brings the gift of faith (1 Cor 12:9; Gal 5:22, Eph 2:9) and grants it to those God appointed to eternal life (Acts 13:48; Phil 1:29). In opening the ears of the spiritually deaf, the Spirit of Christ speaks God’s Word (1 Cor 2:4; 1 Pet 1:12), so that God’s elect will hear and believe. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ (Rom 10:17).
The Spirit and the Word give life (Jn 6:63), making the elect spiritually alive in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:5; Col 2:13). This life, in God’s only begotten Son, is abundant and everlasting (Jn 10:10; 17:3). Eternal life is knowing God and Jesus Christ, the Son of God whom the Father has sent (Jn 6:29; 17:3). Jesus was sent to save His people from their sins (Mt 1:21; Lk 19:10). Knowing Christ, therefore, is knowing salvation. He Himself is the Good News, by which we are saved. The Spirit of God fills the man of God, to preach the Word of God, so that the people of God may be manifest, as those who believe in God.
David Norczyk
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
November 16, 2020
