While there are several inhibitors related to communicating the gospel, there are 2 major barriers today undermining the rapid spread of the gospel: 

BARRIERS TO CHRISTIANS

There are longstanding spiritual, cultural and intellectual habits or traditions among many “Christians” and they have become barriers to their freely talking to people about Christ.

  • MISUNDERSTANDINGS ABOUT SALVATION 

    Many Christians have a shallow understanding about how radically sin separates us from God, what it cost God to save a person(see Luke 7.36-50 and why the woman anoints Jesus’ feet) and how much God loves mankind.  Others miss living in the joy of being saved!  And still others are unaware of the power they have through the Holy Spirit.  And some wrongly assume one’s salvation is a private matter, between the individual and God.

  • FEAR 

    For most, the very thought of talking about Jesus causes paralysis created by fear, inhibiting them for years, decades or a lifetime, from sharing the gospel with a family member, neighbor or coworker (even Paul asked for prayer to overcome fear – Ephesians 6.19 – 20).

  • LACK OF TRAINING 

    For many Christians, fear comes from not having not been trained on how to communicate the gospel or share about how Christ has impacted their life.

  • CHRISTIANITY “LITE”

    Many today have been raised in a Christian culture with little Bible reading, teaching, prayer, and serving others.  ‘Going to church’ was sufficient.  But like seeds on rocky soil, it leads to a shallow spiritual life.

  • WORLDLINESS

    Unfortunately, in an affluent culture many succumb to the enticements and distractions of the world, programmed by a culture that pursues fun, pleasure, and entertainment, instead of developing the discipline of a true disciple of Christ.

  • CULTURAL CHRISTIANS 

    There are people raised in a church - 3rd, 5th, or 8th generation ‘Christians’.  They have things in common with others: they share similar values/morals, live in comparable homes, vacation together, are of the same social strata, perhaps the same ethnicity.  Unfortunately, they don’t tend to grow in Christlikeness where their walk in Jesus is ever new and their life is…alive!  The Bible is a great book, but the culture is their ultimate authority.  They have a shape to their religion but miss its power. 

    A “cultural Christian” is someone who identifies with Christianity because of family background, traditions, values, or social identity but whose faith does not meaningfully shape the way they think, live, or follow Christ.

    They may attend church occasionally, celebrate Christian holidays, or appreciate Christian morals, yet Christianity remains more of a cultural label than a personal conviction.

    Many people in the West have grown up around Christianity while also absorbing the culture’s message that truth is subjective and faith should remain private. But the Christian life isn’t meant to be merely cultural or passive. As followers of Christ, we are called to live with clarity, courage, and conviction in every area of life.

BARRIERS TO NON-CHRISTIANS

There is an overlapping but different set of spiritual, cultural, and intellectual barriers non-Christians have, that keep them from hearing about, knowing, and trusting Christ. 

  • LOSS OF IDENTITY 

Because they don’t know Christ, they know (Romans 1) and at the same time don’t know (2 Corinthians 4.4): 

  • who they are 

  • where they’ve come from 

  • why they exist 

  • how to tell right from wrong, outside of their feelings 

  • where they are going when they die

  • SPIRITUAL LOSTNESS 

    While the unbeliever knows where he/she is physically, their soul is spiritually blind, deaf, lost and dead (Luke 15; 19.10). 

  • ‘DISCONNECT’ FROM ULTIMATE TRUTH 

    When people follow their own heart and not Jesus, they become disconnected from the Truth of the gospel and, like a ship untethered from its anchor, they find themselves adrift at sea (Romans 1.18, 25; 1 John 2.4).

  • LACK OF TEACHING 

    Many have not had fathers or mentors to teach them the way to live in Jesus, and the only models in their lives are those who exhibit a god-less lifestyle (Deuteronomy 6.5 – 9; Mark 7.7).

  • MISUNDERSTANDINGS 

    Many have basic misunderstandings about God, Jesus, the Bible, sin, why we need to be ‘saved’, how to be saved, what the church really is, etc. 

  • MORAL RELATIVISM 

    When there is a loss of identity and truth, people lose the framework on which to discern right from wrong, light from darkness.  And because individuals or communities want to retain their autonomy, they invent an artificial standard of right and wrong.  One of those standards is called ‘moral relativism’: an irrational belief that we can create our own standard, our own truth, and believe that What is true for others is not true for me.

  • LOSS OF MEANING 

    Being outside of Christ creates a loss of true meaning and purpose in life, where, as Francis Schaeffer said, ‘their feet are firmly planted in midair’. 

So, what must we do?

We need to:

Understand the barriers of lost people, 

Overcome our own barriers

and then…  

Do what Jesus told His disciples:

Go and make disciples of all nations.  

Matthew 28 

Overcoming barriers in order to restore the rapid spread of the good news

is what Breaking the Barriers is about.