Forget Jesus?

16 For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! ~1 Corinthians 9:16, ESV

Do we preach the gospel with the kind of passion and urgency with which Paul did, or are we more concerned with making a favorable impression and larger crowds when given the opportunity to proclaim Jesus? Paul reminds his young protege to Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal (2 Timothy 2:8-9a, ESV).

How prone we are to forget Jesus when he should be the cornerstone of any gospel presentation since he is essentially the gospel.

The reality is that we haven't preached the gospel if we have treated Jesus merely as a side bar—that is, preaching Jesus as a clever get rich quick scheme, a role model on steroids, a perfect big brother, or a hip dude. Jesus must be the way, the truth, and the life—otherwise we haven't preached the gospel (John 14:6). Now, I am aware of what we might call the social gospel. I'm all for acts of compassion, mercy ministries, and causes which promote and protect justice, but that isn't to replace the preaching of the gospel which Paul was willing to suffer for. Only Jesus can save a man's soul. And to be sure, we haven't preached Jesus if we have preached condemnation either (John 3:17).

If I were a betting man, I'd put my money on Paul advising us to go and join the circus or to take up a career in marketing if we are not committed to preaching the gospel, no matter how popular we are.