Someone Told Me

When was the last time you learned something that excited you? Do you remember that feeling of being a little kid and learning something for the first time? It seems that the first thing any child does upon receiving new information is run to share their newfound knowledge with others. I see it firsthand in the work I do, teaching others to hunt and fish. Kids rush over to their parents and boldly exclaim, “Did you know that deer eat acorns? Did you know that they can see at night? Did you know that they can smell a thousand times better than people?” 

You get the point. Kids love to share their knowledge with the world. I think it’s because everything is still so new to them. There is so much wonder when you are experiencing things for the first time. I know that I was no different. To my family’s dismay, I’d rush home from school to ask “did you know” questions all evening long. My siblings would always offer the same rebuttal in response, “you only know that because someone told you.” 

No one likes to discredit you more than siblings, this was definitely true in our house growing up. I am very fortunate to have close relationships with both my brother and sister, but we were by no means immune to sibling rivalries. We fought, argued, and debated like any other family, especially when one of us wanted to share some new information we learned. I guess we thought it was our duty to try and knock each other down a peg, to keep one another humble.

I have been on both sides of the “you only know that because someone told you” argument, but looking back I realize it never made much sense. Of course I only know something new because someone told me. That is how learning and growth works, one person tells another and then that idea forms roots inside the person receiving new information and they learn to use and apply it through time.

I know that 2+2=4 because someone told me long ago. I know that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West because someone told me and showed me how to use a compass. I know where to hold the crosshairs on a broadside deer because someone told me. I know what it means when bucks start rubbing trees and leaving scrapes in old roadways because someone told me about the rut. Sure, there’s things that I might have learned on my own through experience, but I suppose the only reason I know much of anything at all is because at some point someone told me something. 

When I examine my faith, I see this to be increasingly true. I know Christ because someone told me about him. They told me of my need for him and that he is mighty to save. They told me of his love and mercy. They told me of his sufficiency and providence. They told me that he works all things for the good of those who love him. They told me that if I just believe in his name that I would spend eternity with him in a place called paradise. They told me how he suffered and died and rose from the dead to make all this possible. They told me that he is faithful and just and will complete all the good works that he has started. 

Romans 10:14-15 reiterates the power of what happens when someone tells another something. 

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

The thing I love most about these verses is that it all leads back to God. Generations of believers preaching the gospel and telling others of this good news all started with someone being sent. Christ made himself known, manifested himself to us, and then sent out his disciples to continue the work of making him known. The steps below are a helpful way to summarize and visualize this passage further.

Sent - Preaching - Hearing - Believing - Call on Christ 

I have been a Christian the majority of my life, but I still need to hear the gospel. I still need someone to tell me of his faithfulness and kindness. I still need to be reminded of the hope we have in his name. It’s not because I don’t already know these things, but because I am prone to forget. I want to believe deeper and if believing comes through hearing then I need to hear the gospel preached again and again over my soul.

Though Christ tells me who he is and who I am, there are still many voices that try to tell me something different. Jesus gave us warnings to be careful who we listen to because not everyone tells us the truth (Matthew 7:15). There are wolves among the sheep and they love to twist the truth of Christ into something altogether different, destructive, or sometimes just more palatable. 

The enemy doesn’t usually attack us with “you only know that because someone told you” statements, rather he asks questions like, “Are you sure? Can Jesus be trusted? Is he good? Who told you he was able to save you?” So, pay close attention to who tells you what. Know that when Christ speaks, he does so through his word and it is true. 

The apostle John reminds the church in 1 John 4:1:

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

As you learn to grow and walk with Christ, receive his truth with abounding joy. Like a child with new information, don’t be ashamed or afraid to share his gospel with the world around you. When the world stops, stares, and tries to discredit you by asking, “where did you learn that?” you can answer boldly, “Someone told me! His name is Jesus Christ!” 

Let us never lose the wonder of the gospel!

Lord, someone told me about your love, but now I have been changed by it. Someone told me about your grace, but now I have felt the burden of my sin lifted. Someone told me that you were good, but now I have seen it. Someone told me about your patience, but now I have tested it. Someone told me about you, Lord, but you have made yourself known in my heart. Open our mouths that we would proclaim your name to the world, so that generations to come would find faith in Christ and say it’s all because someone told me…

Amen