The work of the Church and of the preacher is – in conjunction with the concomitant activity of the Spirit – the same as Christ’s, viz., to gather the sheep, the children, those whom the Spirit will transform by means of the Word (pp. 36-37), and who, hearing the Word, will understand it, believe in it, and live by it with perseverance for their salvation. For them is the prophecy of Isaiah (32:3-4) fulfilled, according to which, after the coming of the King who will reign in righteousness, “the eyes of those who see will not be closed, and the ears of those who hear will hearken. The mind of the rash will have good judgement…” The Gentiles will hear the Word of salvation (Acts 28:28). And Christ has prayed for each of them (John 17:20).
From: The Relevance of Preaching by Pierre Charles Marcel; translated from the French by Rob Roy McGregor; edited by William Childs Robinson (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1963), pp. 88-89. French original: 1952.
Pierre Charles Marcel (1910-1992) was a pastor and author in the Reformed Church of France. His book The Biblical Doctrine of Infant Baptism, translated from the French by Philip Edgecumbe Hughes, was very influential on that subject.
