Preachers Proclamation Preaching can employ conversation and laid back chit-chat, but preaching cannot be typified by conversation and chit-chat because it is first and foremost declarative. The Bible does not come with fill-in-the-blanks. It is not Mad Libs. Preaching in essence declares, “Thus saith the Lord.” Because the gospel is good news, not good advice, we come proclaiming “It is finished,” not “Get to work.” Because the gospel is a GOD-authored story, we come proclaiming His wisdom revealed in Jesus Christ, not our wisdom revealed in fortune cookies. With our sermons we are to deliver what we have received, not what we have created: The soundest and safest Christian reflection consists in what you have received, not what you have thought up; a matter not of ingenuity, but of doctrine; not of private acquisition, but of public Tradition; a matter brought to you, not put forth by you, in which you must not be the author but the guardian, not the founder but the sharer, not the leader, but the follower. Preachers approach GOD’s Word as its recipient, its servant, and its deliverer, not its author, manager, or marketer. Because our GOD is Holy, infinite, almighty, and wise, we preach like He is. Preaching assumes authority from GOD and from His infallible Word. So.... we do not preach like unbelievers, as if every sentence ends with a question mark. And we preach like we are at a pulpit even when we are at a music stand while breaking bread or on the internet taking the message of the good news of the gospel to each person where ever they may be through out the world. Consider these words that offer powerful wisdom: GOD is not a subject for debate, because He is Who He is and What He is. We are told that the unbeliever, of course, does not agree with that; and this is perfectly true; but that makes no difference. We believe it, and it is part of our very essence to assert it. Holding the view that we do, believing what we do about GOD, we cannot in any circumstance allow Him to become a subject for discussion or of debate or investigation. I base my argument at this point on the Word addressed by GOD Himself to Moses at the burning bush: Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of GOD, even to Horeb. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, GOD called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And He said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is Holy ground. Moreover He said, I am the GOD of thy father, the GOD of Abraham, the GOD of Isaac, and the GOD of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon GOD. (Exodus 3:1-6 KJV) Moses had suddenly seen this remarkable phenomenon of the burning bush, and was proposing to turn aside and to examine this astonishing phenomenon. But, immediately, he is rebuked by the voice which came to him saying, “Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.” That seems to me to be the governing principle in this whole matter. Our attitude is more important than anything that we do in detail, and as we are reminded in the Epistle to the Hebrews, GOD is always to be approached “with reverence and with godly fear: for our GOD is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29 KJV). To me this is a very vital matter. To discuss the being of GOD in a casual manner, lounging in an armchair, sipping on a glass of iced tea or drinking a cup of coffee, is to me something that we should never allow, because GOD, as I say, is not a kind of philosophic X or a concept. We believe in the almighty, the glorious, the living GOD; and whatever may be true of others we must never put ourselves, or allow ourselves to put, into a position in which we are debating about GOD as if He were but a philosophical proposition. I do not believe we ought to forbid talking about GOD in any position, whether it be from an armchair or from a ditch on the side of the road, but as it pertains to preaching, my point is sound and important. We do not approach preaching casually unless we approach GOD casually. We can make jokes about ourselves and be self-deprecating when we preach, because we do not “preach ourselves.” In the preaching ministry, we take ourselves lightly and the Word of GOD heavily. We preach the terrors of GOD’s wrath as if they are terrifying, we preach the joys of GOD’s salvation as if they are joyful. We preach hell in serious, sober ways, neither being mono-tone about it nor speaking as if it is the only word. We preach the gospel in declarative ways, bold and certain and full of Christ’s glory. Seeking the face of GOD His Always Darrin Sparks Touching Heaven Ministries
Posted on: Sat, 29 Nov 2014 09:55:11 +0000
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