2013 is here and so another year of blogging...

For Christmas I received both Radical and Radical Together by David Platt.  I am working through Radical right now and have come across a great teaching that I want to share.

Here is the passage that he is dealing with:

Romans 10:13-16

English Standard Version (ESV)
13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14 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?[a] And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 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!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?”

The question he is dealing with is the one where people ask about the people who never hear the gospel, what about them?  David comes at is another way to stop asking that question and look at the process that God has set up for the gospel to be heard.

Here takes this passage and works backwards.


  • Working backwards - first there needs to be people sent by God - v.15 - this is where they come from
  • Second, those people sent by God need to preach - v.14c - this is what they do
  • Third, when they preach there are people who hear - v.14b - this is the immediate result
  • Fourth, of those who hear, some with believe - v.14a - verse 16 lets us know that it is not all
  • Fifth, of those who believe (call on the name of the Lord), are saved - v.13 - redemption occurs


Going forward - where can a breakdown occur?

Those who call on the name of the Lord will be saved - no breakdown here
Those who believe will call on their Savior - no breakdown here
Those who really hear will believe - no breakdown here
Those in the presence of preaching will hear - no breakdown here
God is still in the business of sending servants - no breakdown here

The only breakdown point is if the servants that God sends do not preach the gospel.  David goes on to talk about this being the reason for the lack of power in the church and effectiveness.  God has a lot of servants who are not doing what He needs them to do therefore people are not hearing and if not hearing than not believing and if not believing than not calling and if not calling than not being saved.  It all comes back to the church and its mission.

I think this is going to be a really good read.

Adam   (Happy New Year)


A simple man serving a great God and the local pastor of Stillwater Community Chapel (stillwater-chapel.org). We are in our 38th year of full time ministry. God directed us to this local body of believers on the Western Range of the Rockies to grow with them in mission and mindedness of Christ.

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