Some Seed Thought reflections on Preaching ministry and the activity of listening to what is preached.
Preaching is Biblical. Jesus preached (Matt.4:23; 11:1,5; Mark 2:2; Luke 4:16-21; 42-43; 5:1). So did John the Baptist (Matt.3:1; Mark 1:4; Luke 3:18) and Christ's first disciples (Luke 9:2,6; 16:16 20:1; Acts 5:41-42; 8:4,25; 14:24-25; 15:35). The Apostle Paul said: "Woe to me if I preach not the Gospel!" (1 Cor.9:16b).
Preaching is a function of the Christian Church (1 Cor.1:21; 1 Tim.4:13; 5:17; 2 Tim.4:2,17). Christian preaching is commanded by God (Tit.1:1-3).
The eternal Gospel of Christ is to be preached (Rev.14:6). The Gospel and Person of Christ must remain central to Christian preaching (Rom. 16:25-27; Gal.1:6-9). The preacher's overall agenda is the glory of God (Ps.115:1).
No verse in Scripture mandates a particular sermon delivery or technique; neither do we encounter any passages demanding personal magnetism as a requirement for preaching ministry.
Preaching is, in essence, persuasive public proclamation. Public proclaimers can preach either righteousness (Jonah 3:1-5; 2 Pet.2:5) or wickedness (Prov.9:13-17). Individuals or groups can either preach the Gospel (Rom.10:14) or preach immorality and self-centeredness (Jude 4, 17-19).
People are preached to over and over again, throughout the course of each day. Massive amounts of preaching occur on Talk shows and the Internet. If a politician or advertiser publicly makes a compelling argument for you and others to spend money or cast a vote, then the activity of preaching has taken place.
People can legally spurn and ignore what is preached to them, but they have no God-given right to reject Divine truth; furthermore, the ongoing rejection of Divine truth can prove disastrous for persons and nations (see Prov.1:20-33; 2 Chr.33:10-11; 36:15-19; Jer.25:1-11; 2 Thess.2:9-10; Heb.4:6).
Some preaching is right, but unpopular (Ezek.3:4-9); Some preaching is popular, but wrong (2 Tim.4:3-4). The important thing is not whether a message might be evaluated as 'preachy', but whether a preached message is true and should be listened to.
The people of God have a responsibility to listen to Divine truth as it is proclaimed. Jesus declared: "He who has ears to hear, let him hear" (Matt.11:15; 13:9) and "Hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev.2:7,11,17, etc).
There is nothing virtuous about ignoring the Person and Work of Jesus Christ (see Matt.11:20-24).
The Christian preacher challenges people to listen. Paul said: "Men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me!" (Acts 13:16).
Christian preaching encourages Christians to do ministry and to BE the people of God. "That the word may become effectual to salvation, we must attend thereunto with diligence, preparation and prayer, receive it with faith and love, lay it up in our hearts, and practice it in our lives."
---Westminster Shorter Catechism statement #90 [1]
Christian preaching is a part of corporate worship and is an act of worship. Worshipers gather, in part, to hear the preached Word of God. The purpose of listening to the sermon is not to worship the preacher, nor to breathlessly revere the message, but to 'lay it up in our hearts' so that we can love God more and serve Him better.
The Gospel can be preached with wrong motives (Phil.1:15-17); the message preached can be audibly heard yet routinely dismissed (Ezek.33:30-32). The ideal, according to Scripture, is for biblically faithful messages to be absorbed by the listeners and put into action (James 1:22). Read and meditate upon Luke 8:4-15.
The viewpoint "I don't like what the preacher says" is often a mask for one's rebellion against Divine truth. Granted, if a preached message is without a grain of Biblical truth, then that message should be ignored by the assembled worshipers. If, however, the preached message is Gospel-driven and agreeable to bedrock Christian faith, then the professed 'dislike' is probably with the written Word of God and the God of the Word.
Defiance toward Bible based preaching is a failure to worship God in spirit and in truth (see John 4:23-24). Defiance toward those who accurately present God's truth is defiance toward Christ Himself. Contemplate Christ's words to His disciples in Luke 10:16-- "He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."
Those called to preaching ministry are to devote themselves wholeheartedly to the preaching task. Preaching the truth of God is not to be taken lightly, and preparation for preaching is imperative ( 2 Tim.2:15). Time, effort and prayer are all part of this preparation. For the Church of Jesus Christ, 'the ministry of the Word and prayer' (Acts 6:1-7) is a high priority, not a whimsical afterthought.
As indicated above, the people of God are not to sneer at Biblically based preaching. At the same time, though, churchgoers and church officers should do all they can to make certain that sermons preached are indeed Biblical (see Acts 17:11; Tit.1:9).
Preachers themselves need to do some listening. It has been said: "Some young men enter the preaching ministry because it's easier to stand up and yell than to sit down and listen."
Preachers need prayer coverage from God's people in order to preach with courage and resolve (Eph.6:19-20).
Preachers should care about the people they preach to. William Willimon expressed it in these terms: "Unfortunately, our social concern has sometimes led to unconcern about the state of the congregation...I remember a pastor who was [so] busy being socially concerned for the whole town that his own parish membership dropped from 700 members to 300...His sermons were poorly prepared..and he couldn't remember the names of his own parishioners...Our pastoral authority primarily relates to edification of God's people, not running around doing nice things for the town." [2]
Snobbery and prideful posturing are inappropriate for those behind the pulpit; Apathy and a refusal to listen are inappropriate for those sitting in the pews.
Disputable and interpretive matters vary from preacher to preacher and from denomination to denomination. Conservative, Bible-believing preachers have differed on issues such as the correct mode(s) of baptism, form of church government, speaking in tongues, long-term prophetic details and so forth. These legitimate, interpretive differences have been debated for centuries and Bible scholars and preachers continue to disagree on these topics.
Some preachers pour themselves into excessive preaching about these secondary differences--- and periodically do so with considerable venom. How does this honor the Lord Jesus Christ and promote His glorious Gospel?
Every preacher should be dedicated to preaching the essentials of the Christian faith, such as: Salvation by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, the reality of human sin and the provision of God's Son as the atoning sacrifice for human sin, the ministry of the Holy Spirit, the truthfulness and reliability of God's written Word, the importance of personal evangelism and discipleship.
God does not summon preachers to compete with each other or to be compared with one another (see 2 Cor.10:7-18; 12:11). What do petty comparison games really accomplish? After all, Jesus Christ is superior to all preachers. Read Rev.1:12-18; 5:1-14; 19:10-16.
Christian preaching is about truth rather than entertainment, about God-reliance instead of self-reliance. "The minister should aim to make the Word of God understandable to the people, and not to entertain, impress or please them by his own words, so that their faith might rest in the power of God and not in the wisdom of men."
---ARP Directory of Public Worship.
[1] The Westminster Shorter Catechism is part of the Confessional Standards of the ARP Church as well as many other Reformed and/or Presbyterian denominations. These Standards communicate our understanding of what the Bible teaches about a variety of topics, but these Standards are not perceived as equal to the Bible.
[2] William Willimon, What's Right with the Church, p.71
Preaching is Biblical. Jesus preached (Matt.4:23; 11:1,5; Mark 2:2; Luke 4:16-21; 42-43; 5:1). So did John the Baptist (Matt.3:1; Mark 1:4; Luke 3:18) and Christ's first disciples (Luke 9:2,6; 16:16 20:1; Acts 5:41-42; 8:4,25; 14:24-25; 15:35). The Apostle Paul said: "Woe to me if I preach not the Gospel!" (1 Cor.9:16b).
Preaching is a function of the Christian Church (1 Cor.1:21; 1 Tim.4:13; 5:17; 2 Tim.4:2,17). Christian preaching is commanded by God (Tit.1:1-3).
The eternal Gospel of Christ is to be preached (Rev.14:6). The Gospel and Person of Christ must remain central to Christian preaching (Rom. 16:25-27; Gal.1:6-9). The preacher's overall agenda is the glory of God (Ps.115:1).
No verse in Scripture mandates a particular sermon delivery or technique; neither do we encounter any passages demanding personal magnetism as a requirement for preaching ministry.
Preaching is, in essence, persuasive public proclamation. Public proclaimers can preach either righteousness (Jonah 3:1-5; 2 Pet.2:5) or wickedness (Prov.9:13-17). Individuals or groups can either preach the Gospel (Rom.10:14) or preach immorality and self-centeredness (Jude 4, 17-19).
People are preached to over and over again, throughout the course of each day. Massive amounts of preaching occur on Talk shows and the Internet. If a politician or advertiser publicly makes a compelling argument for you and others to spend money or cast a vote, then the activity of preaching has taken place.
People can legally spurn and ignore what is preached to them, but they have no God-given right to reject Divine truth; furthermore, the ongoing rejection of Divine truth can prove disastrous for persons and nations (see Prov.1:20-33; 2 Chr.33:10-11; 36:15-19; Jer.25:1-11; 2 Thess.2:9-10; Heb.4:6).
Some preaching is right, but unpopular (Ezek.3:4-9); Some preaching is popular, but wrong (2 Tim.4:3-4). The important thing is not whether a message might be evaluated as 'preachy', but whether a preached message is true and should be listened to.
The people of God have a responsibility to listen to Divine truth as it is proclaimed. Jesus declared: "He who has ears to hear, let him hear" (Matt.11:15; 13:9) and "Hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev.2:7,11,17, etc).
There is nothing virtuous about ignoring the Person and Work of Jesus Christ (see Matt.11:20-24).
The Christian preacher challenges people to listen. Paul said: "Men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me!" (Acts 13:16).
Christian preaching encourages Christians to do ministry and to BE the people of God. "That the word may become effectual to salvation, we must attend thereunto with diligence, preparation and prayer, receive it with faith and love, lay it up in our hearts, and practice it in our lives."
---Westminster Shorter Catechism statement #90 [1]
Christian preaching is a part of corporate worship and is an act of worship. Worshipers gather, in part, to hear the preached Word of God. The purpose of listening to the sermon is not to worship the preacher, nor to breathlessly revere the message, but to 'lay it up in our hearts' so that we can love God more and serve Him better.
The Gospel can be preached with wrong motives (Phil.1:15-17); the message preached can be audibly heard yet routinely dismissed (Ezek.33:30-32). The ideal, according to Scripture, is for biblically faithful messages to be absorbed by the listeners and put into action (James 1:22). Read and meditate upon Luke 8:4-15.
The viewpoint "I don't like what the preacher says" is often a mask for one's rebellion against Divine truth. Granted, if a preached message is without a grain of Biblical truth, then that message should be ignored by the assembled worshipers. If, however, the preached message is Gospel-driven and agreeable to bedrock Christian faith, then the professed 'dislike' is probably with the written Word of God and the God of the Word.
Defiance toward Bible based preaching is a failure to worship God in spirit and in truth (see John 4:23-24). Defiance toward those who accurately present God's truth is defiance toward Christ Himself. Contemplate Christ's words to His disciples in Luke 10:16-- "He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."
Those called to preaching ministry are to devote themselves wholeheartedly to the preaching task. Preaching the truth of God is not to be taken lightly, and preparation for preaching is imperative ( 2 Tim.2:15). Time, effort and prayer are all part of this preparation. For the Church of Jesus Christ, 'the ministry of the Word and prayer' (Acts 6:1-7) is a high priority, not a whimsical afterthought.
As indicated above, the people of God are not to sneer at Biblically based preaching. At the same time, though, churchgoers and church officers should do all they can to make certain that sermons preached are indeed Biblical (see Acts 17:11; Tit.1:9).
Preachers themselves need to do some listening. It has been said: "Some young men enter the preaching ministry because it's easier to stand up and yell than to sit down and listen."
Preachers need prayer coverage from God's people in order to preach with courage and resolve (Eph.6:19-20).
Preachers should care about the people they preach to. William Willimon expressed it in these terms: "Unfortunately, our social concern has sometimes led to unconcern about the state of the congregation...I remember a pastor who was [so] busy being socially concerned for the whole town that his own parish membership dropped from 700 members to 300...His sermons were poorly prepared..and he couldn't remember the names of his own parishioners...Our pastoral authority primarily relates to edification of God's people, not running around doing nice things for the town." [2]
Snobbery and prideful posturing are inappropriate for those behind the pulpit; Apathy and a refusal to listen are inappropriate for those sitting in the pews.
Disputable and interpretive matters vary from preacher to preacher and from denomination to denomination. Conservative, Bible-believing preachers have differed on issues such as the correct mode(s) of baptism, form of church government, speaking in tongues, long-term prophetic details and so forth. These legitimate, interpretive differences have been debated for centuries and Bible scholars and preachers continue to disagree on these topics.
Some preachers pour themselves into excessive preaching about these secondary differences--- and periodically do so with considerable venom. How does this honor the Lord Jesus Christ and promote His glorious Gospel?
Every preacher should be dedicated to preaching the essentials of the Christian faith, such as: Salvation by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, the reality of human sin and the provision of God's Son as the atoning sacrifice for human sin, the ministry of the Holy Spirit, the truthfulness and reliability of God's written Word, the importance of personal evangelism and discipleship.
God does not summon preachers to compete with each other or to be compared with one another (see 2 Cor.10:7-18; 12:11). What do petty comparison games really accomplish? After all, Jesus Christ is superior to all preachers. Read Rev.1:12-18; 5:1-14; 19:10-16.
Christian preaching is about truth rather than entertainment, about God-reliance instead of self-reliance. "The minister should aim to make the Word of God understandable to the people, and not to entertain, impress or please them by his own words, so that their faith might rest in the power of God and not in the wisdom of men."
---ARP Directory of Public Worship.
[1] The Westminster Shorter Catechism is part of the Confessional Standards of the ARP Church as well as many other Reformed and/or Presbyterian denominations. These Standards communicate our understanding of what the Bible teaches about a variety of topics, but these Standards are not perceived as equal to the Bible.
[2] William Willimon, What's Right with the Church, p.71
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