After many years of preaching, I’ve grown accustomed to the Holy Spirit prompting me to say things that make me uncomfortable. Usually, it’s something hard for me to hear myself or something that’ll likely offend some of my listeners or both.
I can’t count how many times I’ve prayed over and prepared notes a week or more in advance, only to have a circumstance arise in the church that the sermon seems to speak to directly. It’s uncanny how God prepares us to address specific situations before they occur.
In these instances, I face the challenge of saying what God’s laid on my heart or removing parts of the sermon considering the new developments. Leading up to the delivery of the message, God reminds me that sometimes how I say something is just as important as what I say.
I want to share a few things I’ve learned over the years about preaching, specifically, what it means to be faithful to the Word, the importance of spiritual discernment, and the ability not to allow secondary issues to set the tone.
Soapbox Rants
Typically, soapbox preaching is when one uses the pulpit to push a personal agenda. It involves the messenger endeavoring to prove themself right regarding a disagreement or a controversial topic. Soapbox preaching is a slippery slope—no pun intended.
For example, ranting about politics has proven to be a significant temptation today. The pulpit is set apart for clear biblical instruction and nothing else. We need more preachers who view politics through the lens of scripture over filtering scripture through their political leanings.
With that said, declining to preach politics doesn’t mean neglecting biblical topics hijacked by the political voices of our day. For example, cultural issues like abortion, racism, same-sex marriage, social injustice, etc., are all addressed in scripture. Thus, we shouldn’t avoid them in the pulpit.
On the other hand, some preachers find a way to insert a personal diatribe into every message. They make their entire ministry about condemning specific sins while ignoring others altogether. In preaching, it’s necessary to recognize that ranting about things that annoy you isn’t the same as faithfulness to scripture.
As shepherds, our hearts should be so soft toward the people we serve that when we preach on challenging subjects, we do so with tears in our eyes. Anyone who enjoys preaching people into hell needs to repent themselves. Again, what we say and how we say it are two different things.
Personal Convictions
Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit is essential in sermon preparation. Pastors who lack discernment preach their individual convictions as if they were gospel truth. Those who use the pulpit to air their personal grievances are at best insecure, and at worst manipulative.
Ministers betray themselves when they give lip service to the centrality of scripture yet preach personal standards. Often this happens in matters related to dress codes, musical styles, hair length, bible translations, movie attendance, etc. When preachers force their pet peeves from the pulpit, they reveal a lack of biblical fidelity.
Understand, I’m not arguing against high standards. The closer one gets to Jesus, the higher their standards become. What I am saying is that high standards don’t make one a good Christian. Preaching personal expectations lays burdens on people that some aren’t ready for. It’s like putting a toddler on a bicycle before they’re able to reach the pedals.
I admire people who are principled in their beliefs. I hold many personal convictions myself. However, we should be careful not to present our convictions as if they are the final word for everyone else—that’s the stuff cults are made of. All God needs is for us to be faithful to His Word, nothing more, nothing less.
For the record, this isn’t to say we shouldn’t implement high standards of accountability for those involved in ministry (i.e., pastoral staff, board members, church leaders, etc.). However, these discussions are better held privately, not aired from the pulpit.
Various Giftings
As ministers, we all have specific areas of passion. For example, some feel strongly about discipleship, while others focus on compassionate ministries. Some are more gifted in facilitating corporate prayer, while others are exceptional at evangelism and outreach. Additionally, some have a great heart for missions, church planting, counseling, works of justice, and so on.
Sometimes pastors make the mistake of thinking everyone should share the same passion they do about a specific area of ministry. This mindset often quenches the fire that God ignites in the hearts of others. Learning to celebrate the various giftings within the church is essential to the edification of the Body of Christ.
Regardless of what areas shine the brightest in one’s heart individually, there’s one thing we better all get right, no exceptions.
Preach the Gospel
Throughout the book of Acts, the disciples model the importance of preaching the gospel with clarity. Every single time they proclaim the good news, people’s lives are changed. When I read about the powerful displays of transformation under the disciples’ preaching, I wonder what they were saying that we aren’t.
Is our lack of fruit the result of preaching politics and individual preferences? Are we guilty of emphasizing secondary issues over the good news of Jesus Christ? Are we responsible for adding irrelevant matters that distract from the power of the gospel?
There’s so much theological nonsense floating around today that it’s easy to get caught up in adding or subtracting from the supremacy of the good news. Paul warns about the dangers of preaching another gospel when he says, “If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” (Gal. 1:9b)
In other words, God doesn’t need our creative input regarding the gospel. That’s not to say there’s no room for imagination in communicating biblical truth. However, preaching the good news of forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ doesn’t need any supplements.
Paul spoke to numerous issues related to his day, yet he never neglected the centrality of the gospel. Jews and Gentiles alike heard the message of salvation through Jesus. Every person Paul encountered got an opportunity to receive salvation through faith in Christ alone, and our commission is to do the same.
The gospel doesn’t need to be filtered through conservative talking points or propped up by progressive theological trends. There’s not one gospel for millennials and another for boomers. There’s not a rich man’s gospel and a poor man’s gospel. The gospel doesn’t vary depending on race and ethnicity. There’s only one gospel—and it’s for everybody. So, while times change and culture shifts, the good news of Jesus Christ remains the same yesterday, today, and forever!
Conclusion
Tragically, many today don’t directly deny the gospel; instead, they modify it to suit the appetites of modern society. While there’s nothing wrong with a church desiring to relate to its mission field, changing the gospel for the sake of relevance is a rejection of God’s divine wisdom.
Plainly stated, adjusting the good news to make it more palatable to culture is why we aren’t witnessing more life transformation. Remember that as you stand in the pulpit this week.
(Sources: “Fan the Flame” by Jim Cymbala; Share Faith Magazine: “Is the Pulpit a Soapbox?” by Daniel Threlfall)
Brian L Powell 