Preaching. Prepare for Service, Bristol Baptist College Assignment, 2008-02-28
The first part of the question leads me to a “No” answer; that is it seems, humanly speaking, unlikely that one could take any Christian and make a preacher out of them even with the best training. For can training transform a timid and shy person into a fearless preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Can an understanding of the technicalities of church liturgy, history and ecclesiology enable one to become a fruitful communicator of the risen Lord? While the second part of the sentence suggests a “Yes” answer; for with God all things are possible. For if God is God then He can surely take any unlikely, but willing, person and transform them into His servant messenger and preacher.
Let us now compare and contrast the role of training and calling. If we were talking about teaching in general then you must argue that a thorough grasp of all the fundamentals of the subject taught is essential. You cannot teach of which you have not first understood. However, as good as training and instruction are, is it sufficient? We have all suffered at the hands of poor communicators. I have heard it said that a poor teacher is poor because they do not understand their subject well enough. I have no doubt that in some cases this is true. However, it also true that some communicators do understand their subject but fail to make it live for their students. Thus, there seems to be a difference between knowledge of a subject and communication of that knowledge.
Now many educationalists at this point argue that teaching and communication require study in their own right. One can learn to appreciate that different hearer hear different messages. One may have to include various learning strategies, e.g. auditory, visual, and kinaesthetic, using interaction, repetition and cycles of learning etc. There is merit in some of this educational theory. Even with this can we take an apple and turn it into a pair; can we take a poor communicator and make them a good communicator?
I believe that good teaching does require knowledge of the subject and some educational training. However, good teaching is fundamentally conversing one to another. It cannot be reduced to a method; it is bound up with the personalities involved, i.e. both the speaker’s and the listeners’. Thus, a good teacher must have the right personality as well as all other requirements. So from a human perspective a “good preacher” is a peculiar individual that has these characteristics and they are certain not anyone!
Now let me get back to the subject of Christian preaching; for there are some important differences between that of teaching in general and preaching the word of God. In fact I believe these differences are so important that you may come to a completely different selection of characteristics of a “good preacher”.
While there is truth in many subjects, the truth in God’s word is of an entirely different and deeper nature. I believe it contains the living testimony of almighty and eternal God Himself. Its message of salvation has eternal consequences for the listener, whether to chose the way that leads to life or the way that leads to death[1]. All other knowledge will fade away[2], but God shall remain forever. Thus, the status of the message is pre-eminent; all other teaching, valuable as it is, is secondary.
Preaching is about encouraging people to become disciples of Jesus Christ. So it is fundamentally bound up with God Himself; His plans, His purposes, His providence, His love. It is complete unlike all other human teaching in this respect. It is fundamentally cooperation with and service of the living God. The wisdom required, the understanding required, the power required all begin and end with God. It is fundamentally a spiritual matter. Human reasoning and understanding will not avail us. We must seek the Lord’s provision and guidance here. For it is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh profits nothing[3]
Now let us consider who can be God’s preacher and who cannot. What are pre-requisites? What would you expect a preacher to be like? Now humanly speaking you may suggest someone with personal charisma, a certain amount of intelligence, the gift of the gab, and well schooled in biblical theology; this would fit the bill. But even this person, who is he that he should add to the work of God? What is his great understanding that he should be well qualified? Where was he when the foundation of the earth were laid?[4] Where was he when Jesus broke the power of sin and death with His death and resurrection? The part of the Christian preacher is always secondary to the living message of God. The power is God’s, the promises are His, the works are His, and all is His.
Accordingly, let us consider who God chooses to Preach. He chooses who He wills. It is not based on human reasoning. It should not be based on either human abilities or personalities. Though God can use human abilities he can also provide spiritual gifts of His own. And these spiritual gifts are far more precious. For God can take any Christian and make them a powerful preacher, yes any. For all power belongs to Him. This is a necessary and important point to appreciate, for until a man understands this can God use him? Martin Luther put it like this “God creates out of nothing. Therefore until a man is nothing, God can make nothing out of him”. For God to use a man he must not be wise in his own eyes, must not lean on his own understanding but in all his way acknowledge and reverence God[5].
This is where we see that human teaching and Godly preaching can be quite different. Human teaching requires study, training and a certain charisma. Godly preaching requires something quite different. It requires the presence of God.
Having said this are we any closer answering the question about who is called? If we are to answer this question then how are we to judge? There is some testing required. As the apostles Paul and John put it “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good”.[6], and “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world”[7] For how can we discern who is called and chosen and who is not? How can we discern who is following Jesus and who is not? How can we test who is letting God have His way and who is not? Is this not the vital question for the church today? For is it not enough to just say, repeatedly, “but I know the call of God to preach, I know God”?
The word of God is our guide. It is sharper that any two edged sword. It divides, it judges, it tests. And it is the Spirit of God who wields this sword[8]. It is the faithful and wise who listen to the voice of the Spirit. Knowing the word of God, the teaching of Jesus is vital. Believing in this revealed truth is vital. Being devoted to the Lord is vital. Demonstrating that God is real to you by the way you live is vital, obedience is vital. An inner spiritual life that is predicated on a humble and faithful heart is vital. I pray that those who are called will not harden their heart but will listen the voice of the Spirit.
References (NKJV)
[1] Deut 30:19
[2] 1 Cor 13:8
[3] Jn 6:63.
[4] Job 38:2
[5] Pr 3:6-7
[6] 1 Th 5:21
[7] 1 Jn 4:1
[8] Ep 6:17
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