THE REALITY OF THE FALLEN HUMAN CONDITION
“It depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy” (Rom.9:16)
In sharing the gospel of the Lord, we need to stress on the wretchedness of fallen man; we need to convey the tragic predicament of fallen humanity in Adam. Man was the noblest of God’s creation, made for fellowship with God, endowed with great moral and intellectual potentials – now spiritually ruined: he had lost his uprightness, the image of God in which he was made. His condition became so perverse as to be proud, vainglorious, and self-satisfied. In such a state, he does not need, nor desire God.
He who thinks himself good at heart, still free to do good and please God, will trust in his own works for salvation and never learn to look to Christ as his righteousness. No doubt, ultimately it is the Spirit who convicts fallen man of sin and the need to repent and accept Christ by faith, but if we fail, in dependence on God, to communicate this truth about the true state of fallen man before God in our sharing of the gospel, we may in fact communicate that the fallen creature is doing God a favour by accepting the gospel. We only need to see the condition of sinful men and women today in this world to affirm the seriousness of the moral decay in fallen humanity.
CONTENT AND MESSAGE OF THE GOSPEL
The content of the gospel must be communicated, and one must ensure in getting the message across.mAnd what is the content and the message?
The content should diagnose the hearers’ state and needs before God, and reveal the life they live as compared with that which might be theirs (i.e. setting the stage for the Spirit to convict the hearer of his/her sins and to point the hearer to repentance before God).
It is a call to judge themselves, to acknowledge the gracious approach and invitation of God in Christ, and to respond with a commitment more radical and far-reaching than any they will ever made The gospel is not fully communicated unless this comes over.
The sharer must identify with God’s concerns and express the mind and heart of God, how He hates sin and loves sinners, and what He had done, is doing, and will do for the salvation of those who turn to Him by faith and receive His grace.
But we must always remember that it is the Spirit who regenerates the hearer and joins him/her to Christ in converson. The sharer, in dependence in God, prayerfully, communicates the message.
Whatever evangelistic methods and technical skills a Christian may command, what will count ultimately is what he is in himself, whether or not his manner backs up his matter in making God’s mind and heart known.