Ministers Blogs
“Pass on The Written Word”
Categories: Evangelism
“The printed word is, in the end, the greatest temporal power in the world. The guns of a dictator can wreck a fortress at fifty miles, [now many missiles and jets that the
This quote puts into perspective the power of the written word. Every day in America we are faced with the reality of the influence of the printed word from newspapers, billboards, magazines, and the internet. All types of people have found the power of persuasion in the written word. The written word has had influences in politics, business, raising families, and even in religion. Why do you think you get so much “Junk Mail?” People in our world know that you or someone you know will be swayed by their ideas, information, and promotions.
It is sad though that often these powerful words, which found their way into our everyday life, are misguided. It also seems that the things that are false are circulated more than what is true. For example, the Jehovah Witness’s magazine The Watchtower has a circulation of over 25 million copies in 148 languages and their other magazine the Awake has a circulation of over 22 million copies in 87 languages as stated in the August 8, 2004, Awake magazine. Not to mention the publications of other religious groups which seem to bombard our mailboxes and our e-mail’s inbox daily.
As I said earlier the reason people use the written word is that it works. If the written word works shouldn’t we as restorers of New Testament Christianity be diligent in using it to proclaim the True Word, Jesus Christ?
In the 1962 November issue of the Gospel Light, M. Norvel Young wrote an article challenging the readers of the Gospel Light to put a Christian journal in as many homes as possible. It has been a dream of many in the brotherhood of the churches of Christ to do this very thing. One journal that is making this a reality is the House to House Heart to Heart paper. This publication is an evangelistic paper sponsored by the churches of Christ since 1994, it has a circulation of 2,309,000 in forty-seven states, and is probably the most circulated paper in the churches of Christ. There are also many other good Christian journals in circulation such as the Gospel Light, Gospel Advocate,
Although the challenge is great to combat the errors of the religious world with the written word, I believe it can be done. What if every member of the church would use the power of the written word to the advantage of Christ and His Church? What if every member would subscribe to one or more of the many journals put out by brethren of the church? What if every member would pick up some of the brotherhood journals pass them to a friend? What if we would buy gift subscriptions to be sent to our friends and family?
If we did this we could use the power of the written word to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to combat the un-Christian literature that inundates our world daily. But we must be willing to pass the written word on, “Just as the Sword of the Spirit must not remain in the sheath, all gospel papers must be used to be of greatest value—and that is what all gospel papers must depend on their friends to do. Truth is powerful—when people use it” (Flanoy Alexander, Editor of Gospel Light, 1962).
Written by: Mark T. Tonkery
