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Romans 15:20-21: And Thus I Make It My Ambition To Preach The Gospel, Not Where Christ Has Already Been Named


Romans 15:20–21
[20] and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation, [21] but as it is written, “Those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand.” (ESV)

We need to be reminded continually that the message of the Gospel is intended to move all across the world. Jesus said that his followers were to preach the Gospel, starting in Jerusalem, and continue preaching the Gospel to the whole world. Christians have not always been good at delivering the Gospel message as far and as often as they should.

In the first century church it took intense persecution to motivate the disciples in Jerusalem to bring the Gospel to Judea and Samaria. Once the disciples fled to new regions they shared the Gospel wherever they went. Would the disciples have preached the Gospel without the persecution? We may never know. Some probably would have stayed in their comfort zones in Jerusalem.

The Apostle Paul was one of a kind. He knew that the heart of God was for all peoples of the Earth to hear the good news that mankind can be redeemed by the free gift of God's wonderful grace. He wanted to be faithful to the commission that God had given him specifically. Paul refers to himself in several of his epistles as an "Apostle to the Gentiles"

Paul preached the Gospel in an area and then, as God led, he moved on to another area to bring the message of God's great news. Notice the great care he takes to preach in new territories where the Gospel had not yet been preached. Not only did Paul fulfill what God had called him to do, but he set for us a wonderful example to be careful to bring the Gospel to new territories.

Where is God commissioning you to bring the Gospel message? A shady part of town? A foreign land where a missionary needs your support? Pray that God will show you people who have never heard His message of good news.

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