Musings092009,Preaching

Emil Williams, our pastor preaching from I Corinthians 1 today, brought out a number of good thoughts about effective preaching of the cross. The one that stood out most in my mind was that we can ruin the effectiveness of our message by too much eloquence. Paul was eloquent, but quite obviously not too much to ruin his preaching of the cross. (Emil also brought that out).

Musing about this caused me to move with this thought into other areas. I've experienced some complex speeches made by people with vast amounts of education that were hard for me to understand. When I looked about, I could see others with puzzled looks on their faces. That always troubles me. What's the point of speaking? Isn't it to communicate? If a speech is in a foreign language you don't know, do you listen to it?

I deal with Greek and Hebrew a lot because it is the original language of the Bible. I am not a Greek or Hebrew scholar. If asked, my seminary professors would have told them I was not. I studied Greek two years in seminary and Hebrew one, but I have only a rudimentary knowledge. My point is, I wouldn't care to listen to a speech or a sermon in either one. My wife loves the sound of fluently spoken Hebrew, and my mother sang Psalms in Hebrew at our local synagogue, but I don't think my wife would want to listen to either very long.

Communication is the key word when speaking. Paul communicated well in all of his writings, and I believe he spoke just as he wrote. I wonder why we can't do the same today?

I think Paul's admonition to the Corinthians in his first letter to them, chapter 14, verse 28, is excellent. "If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God." By the way, another good point in that verse is that preachers should take their own preaching to heart! I Peter 4:17 says, "For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?" God gives the church pastors to be examples of the way to live, to speak the unvarnished truth as God has given it, and to display God's love to others. Pastors are given much by God, and much will be required of them/us. Jesus said in Luke 12:48, "...From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked."
God's gifts are given with His expectation of their serving a good purpose and of their accomplishing the end He intends. As pastors, we should keep that in mind. It is not something to make us fearful. God is our Father, and He loves us. We respond in love to Him. We try to use His gifts wisely. We communicate His messages with the results He desires in mind.

During the many years I preached, I constantly watched the congregation's response. I noted those who were disinterested, some slept! That spurred me to make my messages more interesting. I saw those perplexed looks on people faces sometimes. I did not hesitate to explain what I was saying using different words, different metaphors and different illustrations. I want to communicate!

The message we have is the most important the world has ever known or will ever receive. God loves all of us. We all have failed to respond to that love as we should have. Many of us have even rejected any mention of God! But Jesus came to earth as a baby, lived as we all live, except that He never sinned. He died as none of us could, or can. Oh, we could be put on a cross as He was, but He carried the sins of every human being who ever lived, or ever will live, as He died on that cross! None us could do that for even one person! Then on the third day, He arose. Death could not hold Him, and it cannot hold any of us who have placed our trust in Him. He is coming again, and when He does, all who trust in Him will spend eternity with Him!

There is no greater message. It doesn't take eloquence. It doesn't even require the messenger to be a Christian himself. It is God's Word, and His Word cannot be broken. When Aaron threw down his rod and it became a serpent, the Egyptians sorcerers did something similar. Later with the plagues God sent, the sorcerers' acts only increased the Egyptians misery. Conversely, an atheist can hand another lost person a Bible. That person can read it and be saved for eternity. All the atheist did was take away a candidate for hell and increase the Kingdom of God.

Eloquence is a unique and wonderful gift, but it must be used with love to carefully communicate God's truth!