PREACHING: WHAT'S THE POINT?

“All the people gathered together at the square in front of the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel. On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding. While he was facing the square in front of the Water Gate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law.” (Nehemiah 8:1-3 HCSB)

Multitudes will also gather this Sunday to sit in a pew and listen to a preacher in a pulpit.

What’s the point?

Tragically, for some, they will fail to get the point because the sermon has no point. The man on the platform may see himself as an entertainer—there to keep the people happy. He might see himself as an educator—dispensing information without any practical application. The preacher could be an elitist—too smart to believe what is in that old Book, as he subtracts from it based on his reason. He will comment on current events and speak against the injustice of society—as liberals do. The preacher could be an enthusiast—passionate about what he believes, but adding to what is in the Bible based on his opinion. He will scream about cultural evils and speak against the iniquities of society—as legalists do.

What’s the point?

For many, Sunday mornings at 11 AM, is about a group of people gathering with other people they already know, to listen to things they have already heard, about which they intend to do nothing about. That misses the point.

The Jews who had returned from exile got the point. We read in the eighth chapter of Nehemiah of preaching that was far from pointless. The first half of this book focuses on the reconstruction of the walls, and the second half on the reinstruction from the Word. It is that latter matter that we have come to in our study.

I shamelessly announce my intention to give you a reason to take the time to get up and come to the house of God, to listen to the sermon and experience the transformation that eternal truth brings. You will find one waiting for you who is not an entertainer, an educator, an elitist nor an enthusiast—but rather an expositor—one who takes the Word of God, reads it, explains it and applies it by the help of God.

THERE WAS A DESIRE FOR THE WORD OF GOD.

“All the people gathered together at the square in front of the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel. On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding. While he was facing the square in front of the Water Gate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law.” (Neh.8:1-3)

It wasn’t that the people came from duty, out of a sense of obligation, but with delight, out of a sense of passion. There was a heart hunger for the Word of God, and they assembled with anticipation and listened with attention.

Physically, from the time we enter this world, hunger is hard-wired into us. We instinctively know we need to be fed and demand it. We cannot survive and thrive without ingesting and digesting nutrition.

Spiritually, from the moment we are born again, the Spirit of God puts a hunger into us for the Word of God. This is the Bread of Heaven for our soul. We will not grow and be strong without being fed from Scripture.

I take my responsibility as a shepherd (for that is what the term “pastor” means) seriously—and a shepherd who does not feed the sheep has failed, whatever else he does. When you listen to me, you will be fed the Word of God. There will be the exposition of truth—explanation of what the text means, and exhortation of how the text applies. You can depend on it. As I have heard the late Adrian Rogers say several times, “Some may preach the Gospel better than I do, but no one preaches a better Gospel than I do.”

THERE WAS A DECLARATION OF THE WORD OF GOD.

“Ezra the scribe stood on a high wooden platform made for this purpose. Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah stood beside him on his right; to his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hash-baddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. Ezra opened the book in full view of all the people, since he was elevated above everyone. As he opened it, all the people stood up.

Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and with their hands uplifted all the people said, ‘Amen, Amen!’ Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah, who were Levites, explained the law to the people [as they stood] in their places. They read the book of the law of God, translating and giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was read.” (Neh.8:4-8)

I heard the gifted preacher, Alastair Begg, recall his boyhood days attending church in Scotland. He would watch, as a few minutes before the worship hour, the side door would open, and the beadle (an official in the church who oversees the order of the service) would come in with great dignity, holding an enormous Bible in front of him. He would proceed to the pulpit and up the stairs, where he would enter the pulpit and situate the Bible, placing the ribbons to mark the day’s texts, and then retreat back down the steps and out the door. Next, the beadle would open the door and the preacher would enter, the beadle would escort him to the pulpit and shut him in there. Begg, said that he thought, “Something special is about to happen—and whatever it is, it involves that Book!”

Indeed—that’s the point of preaching isn’t it? God has chosen this method to convey His message to the world. We might think there are better ways, but God says this is His way. A modern world might lean on video, dialogue, drama, and other technological advances to communicate the truth—and there is certainly a place for all of that in its proper place—but there is no substitute for preaching.

There was a reverence for the Word of God conveyed by the response of the people to its reading. As Ezra opened the Book, the people stood up, then Ezra offered, “a pastoral prayer” and all the congregation said, “Amen, Amen!” This is the Scriptural pattern I have followed Sunday after Sunday for over three decades of preaching. I announce the text, the people stand as the Scripture is read, and I call out to God.

It is instructive that the people are said to be worshipping. We may have heard this thought, “In our services, we have about thirty minutes of worship, followed by the preaching.” God have mercy! I know what they mean by that—a half hour of songs, followed by a half hour of sermon. That misses the meaning of worship and the point of preaching! Worship isn’t just confined to singing—the sermon is an act of the pastor offering himself, poured out as a living sacrifice to God and calling for the congregation to do the same. As the singing is meant to also present truth and the music leader to direct our hearts to join together in response, so the sermon is meant to do likewise as the preacher directs us to God and calls for a response of faith and obedience. Amen? Amen!

They read the Scripture. It wasn’t a text meant for a pretext. Some preachers imply by their manner that the reading of the Scripture is a preliminary ritual to get to the important things they want to say. The reality is that the sermon is in subjugation to the Scripture. It is more important to hear what God says than what the preacher says about what God says. When the Scriptures speak, God speaks!

They explained to all who could understand. Babies and the very young need to be provided for—so the little one can learn that the church is a place of warmth and love, while the congregation can then concentrate on the message without distraction. A baby doesn’t have to be crying to cause a distraction—cooing will do. Naturally, you had rather gaze into the cherubic face of a smiling infant than look at the weathered face of an old preacher! But, when children are old enough to understand, they should hear the preaching. The teenagers don’t need to be segregated either—they can learn to listen, even in this age of video games. It is a challenge for both the pastor and the people—adults included—in this sound-bite culture to really hear what is being said. But, we need that guidance.
The Ethiopian eunuch was reading the Word of God, but had him puzzled as to its meaning. Notice what was needed:

“The Spirit told Philip, ‘Go and join that chariot.’

When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, ‘Do you understand what you're reading?’

‘How can I,’ he said, ‘unless someone guides me?’ So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

Now the Scripture passage he was reading was this:

He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before its shearer, so He does not open His mouth.

In His humiliation justice was denied Him. Who will describe His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.

The eunuch replied to Philip, ‘I ask you, who is the prophet saying this about—himself or another person?’

So Philip proceeded to tell him the good news about Jesus, beginning from that Scripture.” (Acts 8:29-35)

That is the preacher’s task, but is he hitting his target?

How often do people sit in the pew and wonder, “What’s the point?” The preacher sounds like Charlie Brown’s teacher, “Waaah, waaah, waaah, waaah…” and the congregation becomes comatose through the skills of the anesthesiologist in the pulpit!
If the pastor isn’t excited about what he says, then we may be sure the people will not be.

We do not have to make the Bible relevant. Its truths are as timeless as the eternal God who inspired them. But, it is the task of the preacher to accomplish two things:
1) To say, “This is what the text means”—interpretation—so the authority of the sermon rests in an accurate understanding of what God has said;
2) To say, “This is what we need to do about it”—application—so the practicality of the sermon challenges the listener to submit to what God has said.

Paul instructed the young preacher, Timothy, “Until I come, give your attention to public reading, exhortation, and teaching.” (1 Tim.4:13) God has not rescinded that command.

THERE WAS THE DYNAMIC OF THE WORD OF GOD.

“Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to all of them, ‘This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep.’ For all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, ‘Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your stronghold.’ And the Levites quieted all the people, saying, ‘Be still, since today is holy. Do not grieve.’

Then all the people began to eat and drink, send portions, and have a great celebration, because they had understood the words that were explained to them.” (Neh.8:9-12)

The preaching of the Word had powerful effect on the people. They were broken by conviction—the weight of their sin was felt as they compared the standard God had set, and their failure to measure up. But, the Word was meant to be “the message of His grace” (see Acts 14:3, 20:32). Grace is the power of God to do for us what we could never do ourselves. It is His effective work in us.

Bible preaching heard and heeded will change your life! I have seen it. It’s happened—and is happening to me. The seed of Scripture is broadcast across the soil of the souls of men and women. Some is snatched away by Satan as soon as it strikes the person. Some brings an emotional response but is quickly forgotten as soon as they walk out the door. Some leads to an outward commitment, but becomes choked out by the weeds of the world. But, others receive the Word and fruit is produced—a soul is saved, a marriage is put back together, a call to service is embraced, a grief is supplanted by peace, and in many other ways a life may be changed.

That’s the point!

It was Saturday night, November 11, 1992, that I was struggling with how often I had preached and yet people seemed to be unaffected. I prayed this prayer, and it is still written down inside my Bible:

Lord,
May my preaching provide more than information—more than cold, sterile truths to be mentally agreed to, only to be filed away and forgotten;
May my preaching cause more than inspiration—more than superficial, sentimental truths that merely arouse emotions, only to be lost when the feelings fade;
May my preaching bring transformation—living truth energized by the unction of the Holy Spirit,
A burning fire that cannot be quenched,
An irresistible force that cannot be stopped,
Truth that penetrates like a two-edged sword to the very heart,
Bringing a mortal blow to our wicked wills,
Yielding deep, lasting, genuine change to the glory of God!

Would you join me in that heart cry? If we do, then we will get the point!