Are We So Hard Hearted

“These people honor Me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from Me”
(Matthew 15:8)

Moe Bergeron

Do you remember when churches would band together to bring Billy Graham to their cities? 

Churches who might not have always agreed on everything would unite for a common purpose: to spread the Good News of Messiah Jesus. 

These crusades were open to all, and never did anyone have to pay to enter. The churches footed the bill so that all sorts of people could come to Jesus freely, without barriers. People were willing to do whatever it took to prepare the way for others to encounter the Savior.

Why don’t we do the same today? What’s stopping us from pouring out our resources, time, and energy so that others might come to Christ. 

Maybe it's because we’ve become too comfortable. Perhaps we’ve grown too attached to our own interests. Is it possible that, in our abundance, we've become stingy when it comes to the things that matter most?Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). 

If we truly treasure Christ, our actions should reflect it. We should be willing to give generously, just as the churches of old did when they partnered to bring the message of salvation to their communities. But today, many seem to value convenience over sacrifice, comfort over commitment. 

Has our passion for the lost dimmed? Or have we simply forgotten the urgency of preparing the way for the Lord?

John the Baptist was called to "prepare the way for the Lord" (Matthew 3:3). His whole life was dedicated to pointing others to Christ. He wasn't concerned with his own status or comfort—he lived in the wilderness, eating locusts and wild honey. But his message was clear: repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven was near. Are we willing to be like John, preparing the way for Christ, regardless of the cost? 

The truth is, we can’t be cheap when it comes to the things of God. Jesus didn’t spare any expense when He gave His life for us. “You were bought at a price,” Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:20). That price was the precious blood of Christ. And just as Christ paid the ultimate price for our salvation, we are called to invest ourselves in His mission. It might cost us our time, our comfort, or even our money—but it’s a small price to pay for the souls that are at stake.

In the early church, believers sold their possessions and gave to anyone who had need (Acts 2:45). Their love for Christ and for each other was so great that they held nothing back. 

Shouldn’t we do the same? Shouldn’t our churches be places where the Gospel is freely offered, where people are welcomed without any obstacles, just as they were at those old crusades?

The Bible says, “Freely you have received; freely give” (Matthew 10:8). We have received grace at no cost to us, but at the greatest cost to our Savior. Now it’s our turn to extend that same grace to others, freely and without hesitation. 

Let’s not allow our hearts to grow cold or our hands to grow tight with what God has entrusted to us. Let’s treasure Christ above all else, and with that treasure, let’s prepare the way for the Lord to move in our midst. 

We may not have Billy Graham crusades anymore, but the message of the Gospel remains the same. The call to share it is just as urgent as ever. So let’s open our hearts, our hands, and our churches. Let’s unite once again to lift high the name of Jesus, and watch as He draws all people to Himself.

Consider for a moment the price that has been paid by those who came before us, those who proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ despite relentless opposition. The rulers of established religions, empires, and governments have often expended great sums to silence the voices of the faithful. Yet those voices could not be silenced. Men and women hid in caves, cellars, attics, and wildernesses, risking everything to declare Christ crucified and risen. In fields and barns, they gathered in secret, knowing that to preach the Gospel might mean imprisonment or death.

And what do we do today? We complain. 

We grumble about government overreach and the perceived intrusion into our daily lives. Yet, in many places, we can still gather freely, rent a stadium if we choose, and broadcast the message of salvation without fear of being dragged off to jail. We still have the freedom to worship openly, to share the Good News with our neighbors, and to live out our faith in the public square. But what are we doing with this moment? 

This brief window of opportunity—a precious, fleeting opening in time—what are we truly doing with it? The sad reality is that many of us are wasting it. Instead of pouring ourselves into the mission of Christ, we’re busy celebrating our preachers, our authors, and our musicians as if they were the pinnacle of our faith. We have turned Christian personalities into celebrities, elevating their status as though they are the end all and be all. We gather in beautiful buildings, sing moving songs, and speak words of worship. But what of our hearts? Jesus warned, “These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me” (Matthew 15:8, BSB). 

Are we any different today?

Our hearts are distracted, happily wandering down by-paths of comfort and entertainment while the world for whom Christ died remains in death. 

The Apostle Paul understood the urgency of the Gospel. He wrote, "Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!" (1 Corinthians 9:16). There was no time for distraction, no time for comfort when the stakes were so high. Paul faced persecution, imprisonment, and rejection, but nothing could deter him from the mission. He knew the Gospel was life itself, and without it, people were lost. How different is our attitude today? 

Do we carry the same sense of urgency?

Jesus told His disciples, “As long as it is day, we must do the works of Him who sent Me. Night is coming, when no one can work” (John 9:4). 

My friends, the time is short. We have a brief window, a very rare moment in the history of man, in which to labor for the Kingdom, but that window will not remain open forever. 

What will we do with this time of freedom? Will we squander it in self-indulgence, or will we be faithful stewards of the Gospel, proclaiming it with boldness and clarity to a dying world? 

The Bible speaks of a generation that, despite having heard the message, “did not combine it with faith” (Hebrews 4:2). 

They heard the Good News, but they did nothing with it. Let that not be said of us. Let us not be content to honor God with empty words while our hearts chase after other things. Instead, let us treasure Christ above all and seize this moment—this open window in time—to proclaim Him to the ends of the earth. 

The world is still in desperate need of the message of Jesus Christ. People are still dying in their sins, and we have been entrusted with the only message that can save them. “How, then, can they call on the One they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach?” (Romans 10:14). We are that "someone." Every Christian is to share Christ!

The question is, will we go?

Let us stop complaining and start proclaiming. Let us stop exalting men and start exalting Christ. The window is open, but it won’t be forever. We must not waste this moment. For the sake of Christ and the world He died to save, let us rise up, proclaim the Gospel with every breath, and give our hearts fully to the One who gave His life for us.

Christian, Stop squandering the time granted to you. 

Don't Waste Your Life.

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