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"How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of peace and
bring glad tidings of good things" (Romans 10:15).
Beautiful feet?! How many preachers do you know with beautiful feet? I can assure you, mine are not even attractive and certainly not what I would call beautiful! I'm sure by now you realize that this verse is a little figurative and emphasizing the importance of preaching—not feet! Preaching the Gospel is one of the most precious things a person can do. The Gospel is the only thing that will bring true peace to a lost and dying world. It brings a peace that only Christians can understand because the world does not possess it. It is through Jesus Christ that we have the peace of God, which passeth understanding (Phil. 4:7). Unless you are a Christian, it is hard to understand how a Gospel that sometimes splits families, frequently shuts down businesses and always disagrees with the world could bring peace. Man must understand that it's not God or His Word that causes heartaches or calamities, but it was the entrance of sin into the world and man's resistance to the truth. Paul told the Corinthian brethren, "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God" (1 Cor. 1:18). To the world, the preaching of the cross is against man's happiness because the world does not see the purpose of the Gospel. We should all ask ourselves, what is the purpose of the Gospel, God's Word? The Gospel of Christ is able to make man wise unto salvation (2 Tim. 3:15). It's the only thing that can take us from a lost state to a saved state and tell us how to stay there. Nothing in all of creation will give us a clue as to what we must do to be saved, except what is contained in the Word of God. If there were no preaching or teaching of the Gospel, most of us would be lost, not able to know the way. The Gospel supplies us with all of our spiritual needs (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:3). Man is a spiritual creature by nature. He has always felt a need to worship something, whether it was a deity, an object, money, or even himself. The Word of God alone tells us what we are to truly worship. The Word tells us that we are to worship God and Him only. It tells us of God's nature and how he is to be worshipped. Without the preaching of the Word many would not know how to worship, with the right attitude and in the proper manner. The Word is the original and only objective standard of morality that the world has. From it we learn what is right and wrong. The Bible tells us what we must and must not do in order to get to heaven. It is like a road map - always telling us which way to turn and which road to take. Even the world reluctantly uses it's code of ethics and morality as an objective standard of judgment. The preaching of the Word helps keep us in line and prevents us from turning to fables (2 Tim. 4:2-4). When one makes a wrong turn, the Bible is the only guide that will get us back to the strait path. The Word of God will not lead us away from our desired destination, but rather obedience to it keeps us on the path that leads to eternity. The Bible, the Word of God, will be the standard by which we are judged in the last day (John 12:48). We will not be judged by man's standards, man's desires, or man's intellect. Jesus made it plain that His Word would be the judge. Since all men will be judged by it, then we need to preach it to all men. This is the only way that some will ever know the Gospel message of salvation. There are souls out there who have never heard the Word. There are even more souls who have never heard the Word in its purity. How shall they hear without a preacher? Those who desire the truth, accept it and obey it will find true peace and the happiness of knowing the truth. Preaching is very beautiful to those who love the Lord and His Word, and it is the only way to lead others to this precious peace and eternal salvation. Everyone of us should have "beautiful feet" that are willing to take the pure and simple Gospel to a lost and dying world. |