Why Is Preaching Not Good Enough?

Preaching is being replaced in the churches of Christ with many other things. Preaching has been set aside for programs, entertainment, and a variety of other things.

Why is this? Well, at the heart of the matter is the fact that preaching no longer changes people. Have you thought about that? As Americans we are very pragmatic. We want to see results, and if there are no results- then why continue with a practice? Preaching is being replaced.

My question though is "Why is preaching not changing lives?" The Scriptures teach us that the preached Word is God's normal way for converting sinners and sanctifying them. Since it is God's normal means of conversion and change (See Romans 10)- then preaching should be good enough. Preaching should change lives. Preaching should be restored to the center of evangelical and reformed worship.

I believe that Sinclair Ferguson has answered the question well. He states that "One of the reasons that preaching doesn't do it anymore is that people have not heard preaching that humbles their hearts and fills them with the glory of Christ." Well said.

May the Lord Jesus Christ cause his ambassadors to fill their chapels and auditoriums with preaching that is powerful, bold, humbling, and richly filled with the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. This will make preaching "good enough."

The Westminster Larger Catechism says it best. Here is the way in which preaching can again be "good enough":

Q. 159. How is the Word of God to be preached by those that are called thereunto?

A. They that are called to labour in the ministry of the Word, are to preach sound doctrine, diligently, in season and out of season; plainly, not in the enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit, and of power; faithfully, making known the whole counsel of God; wisely, applying themselves to the necessities and capacities of the hearers; zealously, with fervent love to God and the souls of his people; sincerely, aiming at his glory, and their conversion, edification, and salvation.

You Talkin' To Me?

Preaching is not merely an academic exercise. Of course, preaching needs to be academic- but preaching also needs to stimulate the heart as well as the mind. The purpose of preaching is both an increase of the knowledge of the Word, as well as a greater love for THE Word. As preachers apply the Word and minister to the heart- the people of God should grow, not only in their understanding of the Scriptures, but in love for the Christ of the Scriptures.

Anthony Selvaggio wrote a great article today that points to the heart of the problem: are preachers preaching to people? Check out the article here.

When Preachers Know They are Being Used of God

Preachers have a number of different experiences in the pulpit. Sometimes they feel as though they are receiving no help from the Spirit of God in the pulpit- only to learn that their sermon ministered to someone heartily.

Other times they feel as though a sermon went very well- only to never hear about it again.

Of course these are both 'feelings', and and we do not judge God's use of His Word preached upon OUR feelings- we will never know the full scope of our preaching ministry until we are in glory with Christ.

But there is an experience, a feeling, if you will, in the pulpit that many of us have experienced and long to continue experiencing. R. Kent Hughes explains this experience like this:

"There are times when I am preaching that I have especially sensed the pleasure of God. I usually become aware of it through the unnatural silence. The ever-present coughing ceases, and the pews stop creaking, bringing an almost physical quiet to the sanctuary- through which my words sail like arrows. I experience a heightened eloquence, so that the cadence and volume of my voice intensify the truth that I am preaching.

There is nothing quite like it- the Holy Spirit filling one's sails, the sense of His pleasure, and the awareness that something is happening among one's hearers."

May God silence our pews.

May God stop the frequent restroom breaks.

May he silence the sighs.

May the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ fill His preachers with an intensity of power from on high that His Church is reformed, transformed, revived, and restored.

May the Spirit of God visit His preachers with his smiles and pleasures. May his fill our sails and send our words out like piercing arrows!

May His preachers bow in humble submission.

May His preachers hear.

May His people hear.

Introvert Preachers are Great! Or Introvert Preachers are Great?

Marvin Olasky recently interviewed Tim Keller for the May 8, 2010 edition of World Magazine. The title of the article is "A Wave Came In: How an Introvert Like Tim Keller Became a Great Preacher". I have never been an introvert or a great preacher, but I know that Tim Keller has a lot to teach us young preachers.

You can listen to the full interview here.

You can read what was printed in World here.

Fig Leaf Evangelists and Bloody Skin Evangelists

Since the time that Adam fashioned clothing out of a fig leaf, man has been doing all that is within his power to be made right with God. Man has disregarded certain theological and biblical truths that the Scriptures set forth, and as a result man has elevated pragmatism over theological accuracy and truth.

This pragmatic free-will-ism has never been more problematic than in American evangelicalism. Many evangelists have pushed the envelope of the means by which their message is delivered. The famous Pelagian evangelist, Charles Finney was known for doing all that was in his power to cause an emotional response from his hearers. Sometimes this included manipulation. But in the mind of the free-will evangelist, the ends justify the means.

Over the past several months evidence has arisen that the president of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary has been lying in order to minister to Muslims. The truth of his conversion, early life, and many other matters have been twisted and lied about in the name of reaching Muslims. And when the Seminary Board was confronted on these lies, do you know what their response was?

"Dr Caner has not done anything theologically inappropriate."

In this version of Christianity, the ends justify the means. You can read the latest article on this story here. It is a sad day when seminary presidents are allowed to get away with blatant deception because of pragmatic reasoning.

Friends, the Gospel of Christ is not something that we have to improve. We do not need to improve it with fancy testimonies, with emotional manipulation, or with other pragmatic means. We need to preach the Gospel as it is found within the Scriptures and know that the Spirit goes where He will. Brothers and sisters, God is big enough to call men to himself. He did it with Adam when he removed his man-centered fig leaves and replaced them with divinely appointed skins. Our God is big enough, and his will powerful enough where he does not need manipulative and lying preachers to accomplish his desires.

God desires faithful preachers; not fabricating preachers. Friends, pray for Liberty. Pray that they call their president to repentance and see the beauty of biblically Reformed Christianity.

The Gospel According to Marcel Duchamp

In 1917 the French artist Marcel Duchamp attempted to display a piece of art that he created under the psedonymn, R. Mutt. The title of the piece was "Fountain" and it was nothing more than a discarded urinal placed on it's side. What does this piece of ceramic trash have to do with the Gospel?

Well, in declaring this art- society found wisdom. People began to think about what it meant and how this piece was to be interpreted. Critics talked about how displaying it upside down actually made it take on new character.

That which was something for urine had turned into something that appeared in a way- like the Buddha, or the Madonna, or a shrine of some sort. People talked about how a urinal that was designed for men took on a sensual aesthetic in the way in which it was displayed. By displaying it this way it became phallic. A man's urinal now seen vaginally and sensually. They raved about it and a whole new wave of conceptual art was born thanks to Marcel Duchamp.

This piece also has been awarded an international award for the most important piece of artwork in the 20th century. Friends, we see clearly that the emperor has no clothes; but the world does not see it. We see that all of the perceived wisdom that goes into interpreting this piece (as well as much of modern and postmodern art) is nothing more than babbling and foolishness.

The wisdom of this world. It is foolishness.

Paul said to the Corinthian believers (I Cor. 3:9) that the wisdom of this world was folly to God- foolishness! The Apostle Paul also talks about another type of wisdom and another type of foolishness. In that same book he says that the world sees preaching as foolishness (Paul was even called a babbler), yet God sees it as the wisdom that he uses to save sinners, to draw sinners unto himself.

Friends, we have a choice. We have many counselors telling us what to believe. But as we consider all of the choices that we have as to which counselors we would listen to- remember this:

We can listen to the wisdom of this world, and exegete urinals, or we can listen to foolishness according to the world, and be saved. God has chosen that which is foolish to build his Church. Preaching is the wisdom of God unto salvation- and remember: It's a urinal. Period.

20/20 Vision and Open Pulpits

The RPCNA Home Mission Board has a goal to see 100 congregations by the year 2020. We are currently at 88 congregations and/or mission churches in North America. Please pray that the Lord would raise up 12 new church plants over the next 10 years.

Currently there are a few open pulpits in the RP Church. May the Lord also raise up men to labor in these areas of the country as well. (These are organized by presbytery.)

Open Pulpits in Organized Congregations

College Hill (Beaver Falls, PA) (Looking for a head pastor. They have an associate.)

Cambridge, MA

Westminster (Prairie View, IL) (They currently have stated supply.)

Hetherton, MI (They currently have stated supply.)

Orlando, FL

Second Indianapolis, IN (Looking for a head pastor. They have an associate.)

Mineola, KS

Washington, IA

Walton, NY (Will be open in June.)

Rochester, NY

Owego, NY (They currently have stated supply.)

Open Pulpits in Church Plants

Aurora, OH

Terre Haute, IN

Lafayette, IN (Looking for a resident in training.)

Saint Louis, MO

Christian Heritage (Endicott, NY) (Looking for a resident in training.)

Berkshire, MA (Currently have stated supply.)

Hutchinson, KS

Manhattan, KS

Bryan, TX (In the exploratory phase.)

Two Daughter Churches That May Be On the Horizon

Colorado Springs, CO

Shawnee, KS

Please pray for these pulpits, plants, and possibilities. Also consider where God may be calling your congregation to begin a church plant. May the Lord Jesus build up his Church.

That's Some Bad Preachin' Pastor

Last night I woke up with that awful feeling that follows a bad dream. As I lay in bed I tried to remember the content of the dream that bothered me so much. Here's what I remember:

I was asked to preach at Synod for the 2010 meeting of Synod (this has not happened by the way, but I would gladly accept an invitation in case there is anyone on the business of synod committee reading). As I approached the front of the room a desk was pushed to where the pulpit should be and a chair was placed on top of it so that I could stand on the chair. A very tall music stand would serve as the lectern.

I stood on the chair, and since I am a rather large man, the chair was a bit wobbly, and it took a lot of energy to properly stand in the make-shift pulpit. As I opened my notes to begin preaching, I noticed that they were not my sermon notes, but a compilation of magazine articles pasted onto printer paper and poorly copied textual notes in diverse colors, sizes, and fonts. It was so poorly printed that I could not make out what they even said.

Between the wobbly make-shift pulpit, the poor notes, and the overwhelming nervousness that abounded, I could not preach. I just stood there wobbling and flipping through these poorly prepared sermon notes. I was able to sputter out some word salad, but nothing of any value.

One by one the presbyters started to leave the Synod floor. Nothing that I said made any sense and the men obviously had better things to do. The numbers slowly dwindled and the last face that I saw was Pastor Ian Wise smile a heart-felt smile, and then he too walked away. (Ian is one of the kindest godly men that I know.)

I was asked to step out of the pulpit and then a nice young lady stood in my place and began preaching very powerfully to those on the Synod floor. Applause irrupted as her powerful sermon touched the hearts of the hearers. I was humbled and shocked for a number of reasons, as you can imagine.

Why such a bad dream you might ask? Well, it may have something to do with the fact that I read this article right before bed:

Joy From Above

Brothers, those of us who preach, must be moved by the sermon before we even enter into a pulpit. Our lives must be living testimonies of the grace of God working in our hearts. If our sermons are merely pious thoughts on things and stuff we will never have the blessing of the Spirit to move our people to greater holiness. We will never preach as one who has been transformed by grace. We must preach with passion and heart. We must preach with conviction and with power from on high!

The state of the Christian pulpit is in need of reform from the Word of God. And it is not just the words coming from the pulpit that are in need of reformation, brothers, our hearts are in need of reformation.

Our Presbyterian forefathers were asked the question, "How is the Word of God to be preached by those that are called to preach?" They answered in a way that needs to be seared into every heart that preaches the Word of God, and carved into the desk of every pulpit in this land:

Those who are called to labor in the Ministry of the Word are to preach sound doctrine:

-diligently, in season and out of season

-plainly, not in the enticing words of man's wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power

-faithfully, making known the whole counsel of God

-wisely, applying themselves to the necessities and capacities of the hearers

-zealously, with fervent love to God and the souls of his people

-sincerely, aiming at his glory, and their conversion, edification, and salvation.

Brothers. Preach the Word. Preach as a dying man to dying men. Preach as you have but one sermon left to preach. Preach as though you have first preached to your own soul.

Link to article here: http://www.worldmag.com/articles/16511

Sermon Audio

The Los Angeles Reformed Presbyterian Church has launched a Sermon Audio site. Sermons will be posted, Lord willing, soon after they have been preached. You can check it out here. You can also see a number of other RPCNA congregations here.

The Scottish Invasion of West Michigan

This past Lord's Day I had the privilege of preaching at Westminster Reformed Presbyterian Church. While I was away from my home congregation, some good things occurred: a couple from our congregation got married (congratulations to Aaron and Meg), Dr. David Murray of the Free Church of Scotland (continuing) filled our pulpit, and we had Rev. Bert Pohl, also from the FCS(c) visiting our congregation (might I add that Bert was the loudest typer while we were in seminary together- he could POUND those keys!). Why do all the good things happen while I am away?

Here are some links that address the above paragraph:

• Westminster Reformed Presbyterian Church
• Dr. David Murray sermon at First Reformed Presbyterian Church
• Free Church (continuing)
• Rev. Pohl's blog
  

Also, the newest congregation of the Free Church is right here in Canton, Michigan! Check out their site here.

Who Is To Blame: Preacher or Pew Warmer?

Many people ask what is wrong with Reformed churches? Why are so many not growing? Why do we receive the slander of 'the frozen chosen' or 'the dead orthodox'? Truthfully, if one is chosen- he will not be frozen. There are imperatives in the Scripture that move us to be anything but frozen. And if one is orthodox, then he will not be dead, because orthodoxy requires us to have orthopraxy (right practice). Sadly, preachers want to accuse many in the pews of being the problem. We hear, 'People want to be entertained, they do not want sound preaching and demands on their lives.' Martyn Lloyd-Jones saw the problem from the other end- he blamed the preacher first; and saw the preacher's problem finding its way into the pew:

The time has come when we must assess the whole situation . It is entirely wrong to take our problems to the people; we have got to preach what is most profitable for them, what is really going to help them. The main problem of evangelicalism today (apart from slipping away from truth) is the lack of power- what do our people know of 'joy in the Holy Ghost'? You will not win people to teaching if you are a dull teacher! The wife of a deacon said to me about someone she had heard, 'He is unlike so many of our Reformed preachers who are so dull.' If you preach without moving people, you have failed as much as others. If we do not know the joy of the Lord what is the value of what we say? We must start with ourselves. To hear of 'excellent lectures on doctrine' being given on a Sunday is truly appalling. Are you right in assuming those in front of you are enjoying the Christian life, and they are able to convict others? These two things go together. Arguing about niceties will not help us. What is the value of anything if we are not living epistles?

Lectures From the International Conference

Here are the lectures from the RP Conference held last month in Grand Rapids. For the record, there were 1617 in attendance and 95 who registered but did not show up.

If you can only listen to four of them, listen to: Denny Prutow, CJ William, Anthony Selvaggio, and Rick Gamble. (I was not there to hear Dr. O'Neill, so I cannot speak to his lecture... I will listen to it later.)

They say that recordings of the psalm singing will be up soon. Check back frequently.

Reformed Presbyterian International Conference

This week my family and I are at the RP International along with 1600 other Reformed Presbyterians from around the globe. There are people there from the US, Canada, Australia, Scotland, Ireland, England, Cyprus, Japan, the Sudan, and others.


The singing is phenomenal and should be experienced if you are in the Grand Rapids area. It is actually overwhelmingly beautiful. I hope to get a video of it up tomorrow.

Today Dr. Dennis Prutow preached from Colossians 3.16 on how to meet Christ by 'letting His Words dwell in you richly'. The two main points (or moves as he would say) were by heeding the preaching (teaching and admonishing) and the singing of Psalms. Heeding includes hearing and making it change your life. It was a great sermon!


The children also have classes to attend which focus on the same topic. (There are over 150 preschoolers present!)

There are also 'break away sessions' which are attended later in the morning. I went to one on preaching (by Dr. Prutow as well) and Lydia, my wife, went to one on 'keeping our youth', which was led by Pastor Andy McCracken. Some of the others from our congregation attended sessions on 'dealing with conflict in the church' and 'the mercy ministries of Jesus'. Everyone had good feedback on what has been taught thus far.

What an opportunity to meet with like-minded Christians for fellowship, encouragement, and Christ honoring teaching!

The City of Angels

My family and I will be leaving for Los Angeles, California, at 6 AM Wednesday. We have been asked to come and visit the LA Reformed Presbyterian Church's members as a part of the candidating process. We will gone for two weeks. I will be preaching on the Lord's Days as well as having various teaching responsibilities. Pray for God's will to be made clear as to where He would have us to minister.

Redeemer Presbyterian Sermons

I have really enjoyed listening to Rev. Tim Keller lately. I was lent, on DVD, The Desiring God Conference, 2006, and really profited from his lecture "The Supremacy of Christ and the Gospel in the Postmodern World".

I have found that Redeemer Presbyterian Church has a number of his sermons here for free. (Boo to those for which they charge exorbitant amounts of money!)

I look forward to listening to some of these sermons. I would also like to read his latest book (which, of course, is whirling with controversy). But, I have little time for all of the reading that I would like to do.

The Christian's Identity Established Through Sonship

Tonight I heard a great sermon by Pastor Lanning on our adoption in Jesus Christ. It was called Establishing Your Identity. You can listen to it here. Some of the sermon incorporated the Reformed Confessions below:

Westminster Larger Catechism
Q74: What is adoption? A74: Adoption is an act of the free grace of God, in and for his only Son Jesus Christ, whereby all those that are justified are received into the number of his children, have his name put upon them, the Spirit of his Son given to them, are under his fatherly care and dispensations, admitted to all the liberties and privileges of the sons of God, made heirs of all the promises, and fellow heirs with Christ in glory.

Heidelberg Catechism
Q33: Why is He called God's "only begotten Son," since we also are the children of God? A33: Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of God, but we are the children of God by adoption, through grace, for His sake.

Q34: Why do you call Him "our Lord"? A34: Because not with silver or gold, but with His precious blood, He has redeemed and purchased us, body and soul, from sin and from all the power of the devil, to be His own.

On a side note, Pastor Lanning is my homiletics instructor as well as my pastor. As Professor Lanning, I do not think that he would allow me to get away with this quote, but he pulled it off quite well:

"Mr. Rogers taught us that all grows together because we are all one piece... that is good human biology as well as good Christian Theology".

It is worth spending the 40 minutes in meditation on our adoption as sons!

Iain Murray Gives a Great Rebuke to Theological Students

I love this picture! Blogger, Michael Dewalt, took it for me. Thanks Mike! It is my best friend since high school, Shawn and I listening to Rev. Murray tonight.
Tonight Iain Murray preached a great sermon that was directed to the heart of ALL ministers and theological students. He was scheduled to preach from 7PM to 8PM. He apologized, and asked to stop because he was half way finished. The crowd began to yell out 'preach!' ''continue!'. We stopped and sang and he invited us to stay if we wanted to and finished the sermon. It was great.
His title was 'Our Present Needs'. Here are the needs, according to Murray, for current ministers:
1. For less self-confidence
2. Increased persevering faith in God
3. For guidance on how to use our time
4. To not stop praying and looking for spiritual awakening
He had some great quotes that were knives to the spiritual heart: The Reformed Faith does not do well with showing the love of God to sinners. We give the impression that the faith is about knowledge only: "Our message is God's amazing love to sinners AS sinners!"
He also gave 5 applications for young ministers:
1. Have a regular time in which we look at our lives and eternity.
2. Watch your own temperament. Some men who are extroverts need to stop socializing so much and get in the study. Some men who are introverts need to come out of the study and be with people.
3. Read the best books and only the best! Also, have a way of recording as you are reading. This will help you to recall in 30 years.
4. Do not let email and websites control your time. You can lose hours on this.
5. We need to avoid losing time on controversies. We spend too much time here instead on the essentials and the Gospel going out.
6. Do not see in your church what you cannot change. It is better not to stir trouble on something that can wait a few years to address.

Email Banner and order this mp3! Incredible!

Banner Singing and Preaching

Here is a video of the singing at the Banner Conference. It is wonderful to hear all these ministers, elders, and students praising God and crying out to him for help on their ministries and the Church universal. It is worth hearing!

Here are some pictures from the conference:
Iain Murray talking with a pastor from New York.
Jered Olivetti getting pastoral lessons from Dr. Adjemian.
Ian Hamilton preached this AM on the 'The Minister's Calling'. What a message! His text was Romans 11.34-36. "If we are not bringing people to a place where they are captivated by Jesus Christ we are not doing our job. This supreme calling of a minister of the new covenant is to make rebel sinners into adoring worshipers!"
This was right before prayer time. The men gather for 45 minutes to pray for the church and for each others ministries and burdens. What a blessed event!

Banner of Truth: Day One

Today Iain Murray and Craig Troxel preached. Rev. Murray opened with a sermon on John 21.19-21. His points were: 1. Following is the Supreme Duty. 2. Following is our Sole Responsibility. 3. Following is not just duty, but earnest desire.

Rev. Troxel had a wonderful sermon on Fanning the Flame. It was from 2 Timothy 1.6. His points were: 1. The Gift 2. The Fanning 3. The Gift of the Spirit 4. The Gift of Christ's Ministry.

I will add some quotes from them later.
Here is the Puritan Paperback collection. They are all about $5. Good book prices.
This is the book room. All men who come get $30 to spend here.
The beginning of the Conference.
Shawn listening to Iain Murray.
Iain Murray preaching. What a blessing to be here.

Preachy Preachers and Gossipy Church Ladies

Who is to preach the Gospel? Is it the one who gets paid to preach the Gospel? Is it the one that is ordained and holds an office that some call Minister of the Word and others call Teaching Elder?

Can un-ordained men preach? How about women? How about 5 year olds or teenagers?

The answer, of course, is no and yes.

Does that sound like a postmodern answer to you? Well, it is quite ancient:

Acts 8:4-5 Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached to them the Christ.

Verse 4 says that those who were scattered were preaching the word. Our English translation for preach is from the Greek word which means 'spreading the good news' or 'gossiping the Gospel'. This is the duty of all whose hearts have been changed by the Lord Jesus Christ. A converted heart overflows with the love of God and there is a desire to 'preach' Christ to all who are around. This means that the un-ordained layman, the old church lady, the little kids, the teens.... all who have been redeemed have this obligation to preach, or gossip the good news of Jesus Christ and his death for sinners.

Verse 5 is a different story. This verse uses a different word for preach. The word is the same word as 'herald'. In verse 5 we see Philip preaching the Gospel in a commissioned, ordained, set apart for public ministry way. This is heralding of the good news that Jesus Christ died for sinners! All who are ordained to the task of Minister of the Gospel, or Teaching Elder, has this responsibility. Preach Christ crucified!

Remember though. None of us are off the hook. We are all verse 4 preachers or verse 5 preachers! Now preach Christ to those who are lost.