“All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing.” Colossians 1:6
What movements seem to be growing in our world today? Do you sometimes get discouraged when you see certain ideas growing? It seems as if evil and danger expand daily. We hear more and more of people resorting to gun violence to “resolve” disputes or to release anger. Mass shootings almost seem to have become a regular occurrence. Or maybe you think of the rise in broken families and homes torn apart by those seeking their own selfish desires. Or perhaps those homes were torn apart long before it became public because of abuse that was endured. Incidents of depression leading to suicide, especially in the young, are more and more common.
Worst of all, the number of people who no longer believe in God, those who no longer follow Him or His word seem to be growing in number daily. I believe that this should be listed as the first example of evil encroaching in our culture. The others – the violence, the anger, the depression, the disillusionment – are growing because faith in God is shrinking.
Or is it shrinking? According to this passage, the gospel is growing. How do we reconcile this verse with what we seem to be seeing in our world today? First, we need to pay attention to the first four words, all over the world. It is true that evil seems to have gained a real foothold in our culture today but is that true across the whole earth? Or are there places where the gospel is growing, and growing at such a rate to even outpace the growth of evil in our own culture? Is it possible that others are seeing the fruit this verse speaks of even as we see the fruit of faithlessness here?
Does this mean we should give up on our culture in discouragement or frustration? Not at all! Think about where the gospel is growing. Of course, God can grow His word anywhere but it seems that quite often, the gospel grows in the midst of evil culture and even persecution of Christians. Every time a person chooses to not follow God or every time evil is perpetrated, we know that our enemy rejoices. But that’s because he tends to have a very short viewpoint. He looks at the “now.” But our God looks at the eternal. I’m not saying that God wants bad things to happen. I believe each time we choose to disobey God and follow satan, even for a minute, God is grieved. But that doesn’t mean He can’t use and work through it.
What, then, should our response be to the evil that is growing in our culture? First, the most important thing we can and should do is cling tightly to God. I picture us as being in a raging river, fighting against the current, hanging onto a tree branch for our very life. That’s how we should be clinging to God in the midst of the raging culture in which we find ourselves. Secondly, we continue to share the hope we have in Christ with those around us. We may be ridiculed or even threatened for our beliefs. Still, we can’t help but share the love of Christ with others. But most of all, we continue to grow in Him. The fruit of the Spirit continues to thrive in our lives, spilling over onto everyone we meet. When we’re living in the love of Christ, we can’t help but spread the gospel, bearing fruit for Him. We can have hope from knowing that the darker our culture becomes, the brighter His light will shine.