The Task of Preaching

As the years have passed into decades and the decades into almost half a century, not too much stuff from those long ago seminary days is remembered.  Oh, the overall impact of those years is still lingering in the gray matter, but actual words said and remembered are few now.  However, one word which came from my preaching professor, John Brokhoff, has been remembered hundreds of times and has served as a guide in the pulpit since I first heard him utter, "People in the pews are not interested in what you think, they want to know what the Word of God is saying."

 

It has been an important word for this preacher all these years and it still has merit for anyone who wants to stand behind the pulpit and have a go at preaching.  The world has always been full of people who know how to say the people pleasing words, but such is not the task of the preacher.  The task of the preacher is to stand in the stream of proclamation in which the prophets like Elijah and Amos stood.  It is to stand in a stream in which walked Peter, the Apostle Paul, and even Jesus.  And, long after these Biblical preachers proclaimed the Word of God, there were others who bore names like Luther, Wesley, Spurgeon, Craddock, and Graham. 

 

Preaching the Word Sunday after Sunday to a congregation is an awesome way to spend a life, but it is also an experience which is humbling.  There are so many who would have done a better job of preaching than me.  There are so many who have deeper insight into theology and a greater grasp of how the Kingdom of God is breaking into the world.  But, longer than long ago, God in His gracious mercy called me to preach the Word.  I only pray I have been faithful in telling people what the Word of God said instead of letting them know what I think.