Therefore, let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles. They will listen.
– Acts 28:28
Now, there’s a lot in the context here in Acts 28. Right before this, there’s a long quotation from Isaiah talking about how the Jewish people, God’s old covenant people, would reject the gospel.
Acts 28:28 Promises Fruit of the Gospel Among the Gentiles
And then, you get to verse 28 and Paul says, “Therefore, let it be known that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles beyond just the Jewish people to the nations. They will listen.” Let those three words soak in. They will listen. The nations will listen to the gospel. No, implication there is not just listen with hard hearts and closed ears. No. The implication is they’ll listen with soft hearts and open ears to the good news of God’s salvation.
So, I read this and my mind goes in two different directions. One, let’s pray for soft hearts among the Jewish people. Let’s pray for the salvation of Jewish men and women and children, that God would open more and more eyes and hearts and ears of Jewish men and women and children to the good news of Jesus and God’s salvation through Jesus. And then, the other direction my mind goes is this is a promise. Just like Jesus said, the harvest is plentiful. They’re ready to hear, and they will listen when we take the gospel to them.
That’s what Acts 28:28 is saying. So, when we pray for unreached people groups in the world, let’s pray with confidence for them that when somebody goes to share the gospel with them, they will listen. Not everybody of course, will put their faith in Jesus, but they will trust in Jesus. The nations will respond. We know it’s guaranteed.
Acts 28:28 Encourages Us to Claim this Promise by Spreading the Gospel
Revelation 7:9–10 tells us, “In a multitude that no one can number from every nation, tribe, people, and language will gather around the throne and sing the praises of Jesus. They will listen.” The question is, will we speak? Will we give our lives, spin ourselves on this earth, spreading the good news of Jesus to them?
Oh God, we pray. Help us to realize how ready the nations are to hear the gospel. God help us to go boldly and confidently to them, the nations right around us. God help us not to be discouraged when we share the gospel and someone doesn’t respond to it to think, “Okay, that’s how everybody will respond.” God, we know the harvest is plentiful. You’ve told us they will listen, Acts 28:28. So, God help us to proclaim the gospel with confidence that people will listen, and people will receive it right around us in all around the world.
God, we pray for all 7,000 people, groups who have yet to be reached with the gospel. They will listen. You’re telling us in your words, so help us to go to them. Bless all those who are working to get the gospel to them. Send out more laborers into the harvest field and help us all, wherever you call us to live, to spend our lives and to pray, and to give our resources to get the gospel to them.
Prayer for the Akkin People
God, we pray specifically for the Akkin people of Russia. They will listen. 103,000 of them speaking the Chechen language in Western edge of Dagestan. God we pray knowing they will listen. These devout committed Muslims that they will listen to the gospel when it is proclaimed among them.
God, please cause the Akkin people to hear it and to respond to it to believe in your salvation. It’s your salvation. This salvation of God. It has been sent to the nation. So, God help us to faithfully take it to them. We pray for the salvation of the Akkin and all the people groups of the world. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Hallowed be your name everywhere we pray. Pray all of this according to your promise that they’ll listen in Acts 28:28. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
