It’s a question that’s haunted me for years. “How much do you have to hate somebody to believe everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?” the atheist magician Penn Jillette once asked. And it’s the first thing that came to mind when I saw a recent survey that indicated almost half of practicing U.S. Christians between the ages of 20 and 34 think evangelism is wrong. At the same time, almost all of them agreed that knowing Jesus is the best thing that could happen to someone. What accounts for the disconnect?

Maybe Rob Bell won. Years ago the former pastor raised doubts about Jesus’s teaching on hell. And Bell wasn’t alone. But the gospel is good news not only because we enjoy everlasting life with God. It’s also good news because we’re saved from the wrath we deserve for our sin. Joe Carter observes in this week’s featured article that perhaps we don’t evangelize because we don’t believe what Jesus warned about hell. It’s appropriate, then, that The Gospel Coalition’s 2019 national conference focuses on evangelism with our theme “Conversations with Jesus.” Register by February 28 and save $20 for this event, where you’ll learn from Tim Keller, John Piper, Trip Lee, and dozens more speakers in talks and workshops that will help you apply the gospel to all of life.