As a child, my parents were gracious enough to give me a choice when it came to attending church. I could go willingly or unwillingly! And I must regrettably report that more often than not I chose the latter. Even so, I am thankful for the opportunity to learn patient endurance at such a young age…especially when it came to the sermon. This was in the days before “junior church” so there was no escape from the prolonged musings of our preacher.
Of course, now I am on the other side of the pulpit, and while it may be tempting to project similar suffering on my listeners as retribution for my lost Sunday mornings, I’d rather not go there. Certainly, most pastors have no desire to torment their congregations either, and this may explain why so many of today’s sermons have incorporated all sorts of technology, are smattered with humorous anecdotes (many of which have nothing to do with the topic) and – if all else fails – are abbreviated to fit our ever decreasing attention spans.
I can appreciate the sensitivity to our human weakness, yet there is something about this approach that does not seem quite right. It may be a better alternative than that of the “old days”, but is this the kind of preaching that the Scriptures require? And is this the kind of preaching to which we should subject ourselves and our children? Whether pastors or parishioners, we all need to consider carefully how we must preach to our congregations, to our communities and even to ourselves.
ONE MESSAGE
The Apostle Paul, the foremost authority on preaching, says “we preach Christ crucified” (1 Cor. 1:23) and again “I resolved to know nothing except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” While there are many wonderful and helpful topics to study and discuss, there is only one message that we are commanded to proclaim: Jesus Christ! That is, the Good News that…
…the one true God has sent His only Son, Jesus Christ into this rebellious world to die for our sins and rise again victorious. And God has exalted this same Jesus and appointed him Lord of all. Now he offers forgiveness and eternal life to all who will repent of their evil ways and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior.
This of course is a brief summary, but our preaching must not stray from this Gospel. Every Sunday (and every day) we must hear again who Jesus is and what He has done for us.
TWO ESSENTIALS FOR DELIVERY
Getting the Gospel right is necessary for our preaching, but it is not sufficient in and of itself. Christ must be proclaimed in the right manner. In his prayer requests, Paul unfolds the two necessary elements for successful delivery of the Gospel.
Ephesians 6:19 Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel.
Colossians 4:4 Pray that I may proclaim [the mystery of Christ] clearly, as I should.
There you have it: BOLDNESS and CLARITY.
Paul is adamant that he is not ashamed of the Gospel (Romans 1:16) and Jesus rejects all who are ashamed (Luke 9:26) Throughout the book of Acts, boldness is the spirit-filled norm for all preaching, even in the midst of persecution and disinterest. (Acts 4:29-31; 9:28; 13:46; 14:3; 18:26; 19:8; 28:31)
As for clarity, Paul tells us that we are in a spiritual war (Eph. 6:10-17) and every soldier knows that in wartime you need clarity from your officers. “If the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle?” (1 Cor. 14:8) There is no place for ambiguity on the battlefield…and neither in the pulpit. This is why “God loves you” is not a sufficient description of the Gospel. It is far too vague and gives no direction to sinners in desperate need of salvation.
Ultimately, we must preach the Gospel with boldness and clarity because Christ deserves nothing less. Jesus did not suffer humiliation for us so that we might be his “secret pals”, and neither did He rise again in glorious splendor so that we might linger in a nuanced fog of intellectual obscurities (whatever that means). His work is to be shouted on the rooftops with joy to the glory of God and the eternal good of all who hear!