What Do I Owe My Hearers?
As a preacher of the gospel, I am indebted to those who hear (Rom 1:14). I am firmly convinced that there is no greater task on the face of the earth, no job more rewarding, no avocation more vital than that of preaching the gospel. I would echo what Paul said in Ephesians 3:8. When I step into the pulpit each week, what do I owe those who will be listening?
I owe my hearers abundant preparation. Effective preaching requires that we put in the time. Sermons should never just be “thrown together.” The preaching of the gospel is far too important for me to give it a quick run-through. Paul encouraged Timothy to “give attendance to reading…” (1 Tim 4:13). He did not have in mind that Timothy spend his time in reading of the affairs of the world, but to read and study the things of God. Preachers, we must be fully persuaded of the truths we are proclaiming if we expect others to accept them! When I think I know the material I plan to present, I need to study some more (2 Tim 2:15). God’s word deserves my very best effort.
I owe my hearers Scripture saturation. We must fill our ser-mons with the word of God (Matt 4:6). Far too many who claim to be gospel preachers do not let God get a word in edge-wise. We must re-lay to those who listen what God says, not what we say or think! True, saving faith can only be produced by the hearing and believing of the gospel message (Rom 10:17). If we desire that our hearers be full of faith, then we must fill our sermons with that which produces faith!
I owe my hearers proper application. We must endeavor to handle the word of God correctly (2 Tim 2:15). The word of God is too powerful a weapon to misuse and abuse (Heb 4:12). I must remember to keep passages in context. It is all too tempting to lift a passage from its context to “prove” a point. Many times we know what the Bible says, but we have difficulty making proper application of it to our lives. We must study not only to know what such and such a verse says, but also how that should then be lived out everyday.
I owe my hearers balanced proclamation. All Christians need a balanced spiritual diet (Joshua 1:9). God’s word holds the key to every facet of our lives (2 Tim 3:16-17). As a gospel preacher, I must make sure I do not go to extremes in my preaching. I should avoid preaching only issues and/or hobbies. How can we as preachers make sure our preaching is balanced? “Preach the word” (2 Timothy 4:2). Some may ask, “But how do we present lessons that address the needs of the congregation?” The answer, “Preach the word.” The Bible has all the answers (2 Peter 1:3).
I owe my hearers sermons filled with passion. Those who hear you preach should be able to hear and see that you are convicted of the truth (2 Timothy 1:12). I remember one instructor in preaching school telling us, “If you can’t put some fire into your sermons, then put your sermons in the fire!” How true that is! Our hearers need to hear our compassion, concern, care, conviction in the message we proclaim. If we are truly convinced of the truth, it will come out in our preaching (Jer 20:9; Acts 4:20).
I owe my hearers a life worthy of imitation. The old adage still holds true, “I would rather see a ser-mon than hear one any day.” Many a great gospel ser-mon has been ruined by the character of the one doing the preaching. This is not to say that preachers are perfect. But we must live in such a way that our preaching and our practice are in harmony with one another. We need to remember the words of Paul, “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” (1 Cor 9:27).
I owe my hearers a heart of consideration. Again, the old adage is true, “People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.” We cannot be as effective as we need to be in our preach-ing unless we get involved in the lives of our hearers. People generally will listen more readily to one they know cares for them. We will have the ear of the people when we have their hearts. Again, consider the example of Paul toward the Ephesians. He warned them with tears, and upon his departure, knelt down and wept and prayed with them (Acts 20:25ff). He truly cared for his brethren (1 Thess 2:11). We must have the same heart of consideration.
–Patrick Morrison
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