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Urgency of the Gospel Task

The prophet Ezekiel declared the word of the Lord, “When I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 Yet if you have warned the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered yourself” (Ez 3:18-19). The call from Ezekiel pierces to the heart of the urgency of the task of evangelism. There is a sense of spiritual urgency to reach the lost before it’s too late. No one is guaranteed tomorrow, so we must live with intentionality today. The challenge lies in keeping an eternal perspective amid the deadlines and demands of life. This perspective can only be maintained through continual renewal of faith. Scarborough stated, “Faith in God through Jesus Christ is not only the initial factor in obtaining life for the soul, but is also the mightiest lever of power for service. Without faith it is impossible to please God.”[1]  Greater faith in Christ helps us to capture the redemptive heartbeat of the Father. The more our focus of faith is upon Christ, the more compelled our hearts will be to the urgency of the task of evangelism.

The primary call upon the church is to proclaim the gospel. Perkins understood the implication of the spiritual state of his various listeners when he asserted, “Those who are unbelievers are both ignorant and unteachable. These must first of all be prepared to receive the doctrine of the word. . . . This preparation should be partly by discussing or reasoning with them, in order to become aware of their attitude and disposition, and partly by reproving any obvious sin, so their consciences may be aroused and touched with fear that they may become teachable.”[2] Perkins knew that the soul-winner must be aware of the call to repentance, whether from the weight of judgment from the law of God or the grace of divine mercy from the gospel. Believers must reason with unbelievers to help them come to grips with their spiritual needs.

Believers are Christ’s chosen means through which His Kingdom advances. But we are not alone in the task, he assures us that he “. . . for he himself has said, I will never leave you or abandon you” (Heb 3:5b). We can have confidence that Christ empowers us through the  He could have accomplished this without us, but has chosen believers as His vessel to propagate the good news of the Gospel. As such, we must see the spiritual urgency to reach the lost before it’s too late. God could have accomplished this without us, but He has chosen believers as His vessels to propagate the good news of the Gospel.

The Eternal Stakes

The urgency in the task of evangelism is serious because sin is serious and the consequences are eternal. Mark McCloskey asserted, “We are not to confuse fellowship and the good works that comprise compassionate service with evangelism per se.”[3] The soul‑winner must feel the weight of eternity hanging in the balance of the task. Evangelism matters because human souls are on the table: eternity with God or eternity separated from God. Consequences of sin are real, lasting, and costly. Scripture is clear that without Christ, there is judgment, separation, and tragic loss. Jesus referred to the impending judgment of sin as Gehenna (Matt 5:22), outer darkness (Matt 8:12), weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 13:42), and even eternal punishment (Matt 25:46). We must see that the results of evangelism lie in Heaven or Hell.  

The Joy of Seeing God Save

The greatest joy we can see in this life is participation in heaven’s rejoicing through evangelism.  The evangelist experiences the joy of obedience and fruitfulness. Charles Spurgeon noted, “The joy of the harvest is what we have a right to expect. He is bound to rejoice in a harvest who has sorrowed in plowing, in sowing seed, in watching his crop when it was in the ear, and when frost, blight, and mildew threatened to destroy it. Many of us here can rejoice in the joy of harvest, because . . . we see the fruit of our soul’s travail.”[4] There is no greater joy in the life of the believer than a soul turned from death to life by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Hope of Harvest

God is always at work. God’s timing in the harvest is perfect. The soul-winner can find hope in the efficacious nature of the gospel in the lives of believers. Greg Gilbert wrote, “If we understand the gospel rightly, we will long not so much for the kingdom as for the King. The gospel has brought us to know him and love, and therefore to long for him.”[5] Our hope then lies in the reality that Christ is King and his perfect timing. Jesus’s last commission began with his declaration that “All authority has been given” (Matt 28:18).  

Conclusion

 At the heart of the Christian life lies a divine commission—rooted in the gospel, spoken by Christ Himself, and entrusted to every believer without exception. Soul-winning is not a task reserved for the few, but a sacred responsibility borne by all who claim the name of Jesus. The message we carry is one of eternal consequence, and the time we have to share it grows ever shorter. In view of heaven and hell, the call to proclaim the gospel cannot be met with passivity. It must stir within us an urgency fueled by obedience, compassion, and a deep reverence for the One who sends us. To delay is to forget what’s at stake. To go is to honor both the command and the Christ who gave it.


[1] Scarborough, With Christ After the Lost, 22.

[2] Perkins, Art of Prophesying and the Calling of the Ministry, 63.

[3] Mark McCloskey, Tell It Often-Tell It Well: Making the Most of Witnessing Opportunities, 63.

[4] Charles Spurgeon, Following Christ: Losing Your Life for His Sake, 53.

[5] Greg Gilbert, The Gospel, 121.

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