Sharing The Good News

If a research scientist were to discover a cure for cancer, we would expect the discovery to be shared with the world. Basic ethics requires that good news not be kept secret. For example, after years of research, Jonas Salk discovered a cure for polio and developed a vaccine that effectively protected people from the polio virus. When news of the discovery was made public on April 12, 1955, Salk was hailed as a miracle worker.

When the king of Syria laid siege to the city of Samaria, the food supply was cut off. Four men with leprosy, deciding it would be preferable to die at the hands of the Syrians than to starve to death, went to surrender to the enemy (2 Kings 7:3-4). But when they came to the camp, they found it deserted (2 Kings 7:5). The army had fled in the night (2 Kings 7:6-7).

As the men filled themselves with the food that was left (2 Kings 7:8), they were tempted to remain silent about the good news. But then the memory of Samaria with its famished inhabitants cam back to them. "we are not doing right," they told each other (2 Kings 7:9). They became evangelists in a sense, because they became bearers of good news.

Personal evangelism comes down to this fact — one spiritually starved person telling another spiritually starved person where to find spiritual food. 

Dear reader, as Christians, we are the bearers of "good news" (Acts 13:32 ESV), because we have discovered that salvation is found in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:10-12). It is a breakdown of basic integrity to keep this truth to ourselves.

If we have found the cure for a guilty conscience (1 Peter 3:21; Romans 10:9-10; 1 John 1:9). If we have the spiritual food [bread] of life (John 6:32-40,47-51,57-58; cf. 2 Timothy 1:10; John 14:6), we are obligated to share it with others (cf. Romans 16:25-26; Ephesians 3:1-6; Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16).

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets