Sharing The Gospel Requires An Open Mouth

"Preach the gospel always and if necessary, use words." How many times have we heard that phrase? Probably too many. We like evangelism as long as we do not have to talk with one another. That is about crazy as trying to feed the poor without using food or using a telephone without the digits.

Some Christians want to share the gospel using their actions. While our actions do backup what we believe, they are not an excuse to become evangelistic mimes. In the book of Acts, we see how this played out with a deacon named, Philip:

Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:

“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opens not his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken away from the earth.”

And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him (Acts 8:26–38).

Philip opened his mouth to share the gospel with this Ethiopian Eunuch which resulted in the man receiving Christ as Lord and was baptized not long after that. We are to use words in communicating the gospel. Paul tells us in Romans:

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 (Romans 10:14-17).

Faith comes from our hearing of the word of God whether it is through preaching, speaking to someone, or even as one hears the Word as they read it themselves. Actions have never produced faith. It may produce curiosity, but never faith.

Sharing the gospel always requires an open mouth.