WHY PREACHERS SHOULD USE A LOT OF SCRIPTURE Occasionally the complaint is heard that the preacher uses too many Scriptures in his sermon. This may be a polite way of saying the man is not much of a public speaker. Merely reading verses from the Bible and stringing them together with no obvious arrangement makes for a poor discourse on spiritual matters. On the other hand, it may be that some in the audience are not very spiritually minded. To them, two dozen Scriptures might be hard to endure in a thirty minute lesson. Their idea of a good sermon might be twenty minutes of political commentary, poems or flowery speech designed to make people feel good about themselves. Jesus commanded the apostles to preach the Gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15,16). He also taught them to teach the disciples to do what they had been taught (Matt. 28:19,20). Clearly, this means every Christian should be involved in preaching the Gospel in one way or another. Gospel preaching is also an act of worship which the church engages in on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7). Preaching the Word pleases God since it is part of his plan for saving mankind from sin (1 Cor. 1:21). Jesus clearly specified what he wanted proclaimed. It is the Gospel of Christ. It is not to be the opinions of man or speculations about religious matters. Paul reminded the church, “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus sake” (2 Cor 4:5). Preaching the Gospel means preaching Jesus Christ (Acts 5:42). When a preacher prepares his sermon, of what should it consist? Obviously, it should contain Gods Word since the Scriptures testify of Jesus (John 5:39). Faith is developed by hearing the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). If a person lacks faith, he cannot please God (Heb. 11:6). Must a lesson contain only Scriptures? No, this would be taking an extreme position. To communicate the saving message of faith means explaining it so the audience can understand and correctly apply it. At times this may mean giving the precise meaning of words as they are used in the Bible. Certain words in English have a broader meaning than the original Greek words. Some words actually convey un-Biblical concepts. One example is the word baptize. The Greek word means to immerse yet to many, baptize also conveys the idea of sprinkling or pouring a little water on a person. A preachers sermon should contain only the Truth of Gods Word -- never a corrupted form of the Gospel (Gal. 1:6-9). Paul expressed his concern that the Christians of Galatia were accepting a perverted message. Believing a lie does not make it the truth. Obeying a false Gospel cannot save a person. On the contrary, obeying any doctrine other than the pure Gospel will condemn souls to hell. This is why it is imperative that preachers make sure they are preaching “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” Since preachers are fallible men, they will make mistakes from time to time. They may accidentally misquote a verse of Scripture. In their study they also may come to an incorrect conclusion regarding some passage. Preachers who want to please God will admit and correct their mistakes when they are discovered. Unfortunately, some preachers want to please men more than God (Gal. 1:10). If you value your soul, you should always check out what a preacher is teaching to see if he is preaching only the Gospel of Christ or if he has added his own opinions and doctrines. Douglas Hoff 1019 E. Gordon Avenue Effingham, IL 62401
Posted on: Fri, 02 May 2014 08:00:20 +0000