How Will They Hear?

This past Sunday was one of the most emotionally complex days I’ve ever experienced as a pastor. On one hand, we celebrated baptisms—young lives declaring their faith publicly. On the other hand, we mourned the loss of John Weber, an elder, a spiritual father, mentor, and friend.

And yet, as I stood to preach from Romans 10:14–21, it all came together.

Paul asks a chain of questions in this passage that confront every believer with a holy responsibility: How can people call on Jesus if they haven’t believed in Him? How can they believe if they’ve never heard? And how can they hear unless someone tells them?

That’s not just theory—that’s the Christian mission.

John Weber understood that. His life was a living response to Paul’s questions. John went. John told. John lived a life that made the gospel not only known but seen. He modeled faithfulness and urgency. Not in a frantic way, but in a consistent, intentional, Jesus-loving way. The kind of way that makes you want to follow Christ, too.

And that’s our charge now. If we believe the gospel is truly the power of God for salvation, then we must speak. We must send. We must open our mouths, step across thresholds, and share Jesus with those around us—because the message only saves if it’s heard.

That might feel daunting. You might think, “But what if they say no?” And Paul knew that too. “Not everyone welcomes the Good News,” he wrote (Romans 10:16). But we speak anyway. Because some will believe.

And we celebrate that fruit when we see it—like we did this weekend at Lifehouse, as those young people went down in the waters of baptism and rose again in Christ.

So church, let’s live on mission. Not tomorrow. Today. Let’s honor the legacy of saints like John and the command of our Savior: Go into all the world and make disciples.

Because how will they hear—unless someone tells them?