Audio commentary on this verse

Note 1 at Ro 10:14: Paul had just conclusively proven that salvation was not according to people's performance but according to their acceptance of God's grace by faith in Christ Jesus. This was great news! Yet this great news will not do people any good if they don't know it. The Gospel has to be heard to release its power (Ro 1:16).

Note 2 at Ro 10:14: Ro 10:14-15 shows a number of things that must happen in order for people to be born again. Individuals must believe, but they need to have something or someone to believe in. Therefore, ministers have to share the Gospel with them. But in order for that to happen, others have to send the ministers to the uttermost parts of the earth.

So there are three areas of responsibility for salvation: individuals have to believe, ministers have to preach, and others have to send. Satan works on all three of these areas to stop people from receiving God's gift of salvation.

Satan tries to harden people's hearts through the deceitfulness of sin (Heb 3:13) to the point that the Gospel will not penetrate. If people are faithful to the two other responsibilities, salvation still will not occur if the individuals reject the good news.

Yet many times, people are hungry and ripe for salvation, and still there is no one to share the good news with them. If Satan can stop people from preaching the Gospel through a lack of preachers or a lack of people who will send them, then he can stop people from being saved.

As Christians, we cannot take responsibility for people's reactions to the Gospel, but we must take the responsibility of preaching the Gospel and giving so that others can preach the Gospel.