Plainly Speaking
 with Karl J. Forehand

 

 

Powerful Preaching

(1 Corinthians 2:1-5)

by Karl J. Forehand

 

 

And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God.  For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.  And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling.  And my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,  that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God  (I Cor. 2:1-5)

 

  There are many stereotypes attached to preachers.  Even preachers suffer from the confusion.  At a recent seminar I attended, a couple of pastors were labeled “preachers.”  This upset them, because of the negative stereotypes associated with modern preachers.  What are those stigmas?  Preachers often lecture instead of listen.  Preachers tend to impress instead inspire.  Many times, they condemn people instead of connecting with them.

 

  My wife has often told me to take off my “pastor’s hat.”  I know what she means.  She means, “Take off your preacher’s hat.”  In other words, her desire is not for me to lecture her; but to talk to actually communicate with her. 

 

  If you pastor said, “Next week you will be delivering the message, how would you react?  Would you suffer from shock, fear, or coma?  The truth is that, although we are not all pastors, we are all preachers.  The Greek word for preach means to “proclaim.”  Since we all have the job of proclaiming, in a sense, we are all preachers.

 

  The Goal of preaching can be found in verses 4 and 5.  They stress:

            By relying on the Spirit’s power,

            We should bring people to faith in God

            And not to the wisdom of man.

 

1.      Preaching does not have to be impressive

 

  Some common misconceptions.  The most common belief is that the quality of the preaching has something to do with the voice.  We assume that the preacher’s voice must sound like God, whatever that sounds like.  The problem, of course, is that a preacher may have a booming voice and still have a sinful heart. 

 

  We assume that a preacher must be a good orator.  Paul admits that he was not that, yet he was probably one of the greatest “proclaimers” of the New Testament.  They should be able to communicate; but may not be a good speech writer. 

 

  We also believe that preachers should be pretty.  Do you believe me?  Think of all the mega churches you know.  How many of them have ugly pastors?  I’m thankful that my congregation doesn’t have to contend with that sin here.

 

   Paul actually established the 1st century church without superior speaking ability or superior wisdom.  Can you believe it?  God actually let him do that.  Several of the great men of the Bible stammered and still were able to do great things for God.  One of my favorite preachers, Tony Evans, has a speech impediment. 

 

  Was Jesus even a great orator?  There is really no evidence for that.  He told stories.  He wrote in the sand.  Even after the Sermon on the Mount, when they were amazed at his teaching, the people were not necessarily impressed with his speaking ability.  He was a great communicator, a great connector and had great compassion.  But, he didn’t necessarily have superior speaking ability.

 

  The “testimony” has to be communicated, but sometimes it is told with a shaky voice.  Often it is said without all the right words.  Still, the average person to other average people must communicate it.  It doesn’t have to be impressive – it has to be real!

 

2.      Preaching must be focused

 

  Have you ever heard someone talk for 30 minutes and not say anything?  If many of the things we talk about are superfluous, what is the most important thing we could talk about?  Paul says the most important thing is “Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”  In other words, “Jesus and the cross” is the thing we must speak about first.  We must keep the main thing as the main thing. 

 

  If, as a pastor and preacher, I can teach you every intricacy of the Bible – If I can give you tools that help you live your life better – If I can make you feel better – If I can make you laugh, or cry, or even become angry – If I can bring you to the gates of heaven or to the pits of hell – and if I don’t proclaim to the you “the message of the cross,” I have failed as a preacher.

 

  Preaching must have a persistent focus on the cross.

 

  3.  Preaching must be present

 

  Someone taught me about the ministry of presence several years ago.  They taught me that often it was not the words I spoke or what I did, but that I should “be there” first.  This is important when I visit a hospital or a home that has lost a loved one.  It is also important in all our relationships.  Sometimes we just need to be there.

 

  Several weeks ago, I recorded a short message to be played while I was gone.  It was different and worked pretty well; but, ultimately it is not the way to do it.  In other words, a television preacher will never get the job done.  Paul says, “I was with you.”  Effective preaching requires that we be involved with the people we are proclaiming to.  We cannot proclaim effectively to someone we do not have a relationship with. 

 

  We use this principle in reverse often.  We assume, “I better hurry up and share the Gospel with them before I get to know them too well.”  We assume the rejection will be less severe if we haven’t invested too much in the relationship.   Of course, the reality is that if we had a closer relationship with them, our “preaching” might be more effective.

 

  We have to be “with them” in our fear, weakness and trembling.  We have to risk with people and take the chance that they will reject us.  We will gain confidence in the God and ourselves when we do what we are not physically equipped to do.  We can’t wait for Billy Graham or Chuck Swindoll to do it.  I don’t know about your town, but they don’t come around Stella, Nebraska often and they will never have a relationship with the people I do.

 

4.       Must be in the Power of the Spirit

 

  Who would you rather have speak to your friends – You or God.  For most of the us, the answer would be God.  How does God speak?  He uses the Holy Spirit.  As long as we stay dependent upon Him, the Spirit will help us speak.  When does God not speak through us?  Answer:  when we have become too proud to need Him.  Then, the formula is clear.  We must speak to our friends while we are still dependent upon the Lord, so that God can speak.  If we wait until we are eloquent and polished and knowledgeable, we my cut God right out of the picture.

 

Summary

 

  Are you condemning yourself?  Are you saying “I’m not eloquent or smart of smooth enough?”  If you are, I want to invite you to join the great missionary, Paul, in proclaiming the Gospel. 

 

  Are you focused?  Are you telling people about everything else except the cross?  Tell people about Jesus even before you tell them about your church.

 

  Are you present in people’s lives?  Do you worry that people will hurt you?  You have to risk that possibility.  You have to trust the Spirit’s power enough to risk the rejection.

 

   Let me close with a verse from Ecclesiastes:

 

I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise, nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all. (Eccl. 9:11)

 

    Why does God allow that type of randomness?  He wants you to depend upon Him.  Even a Doctorate in Ministry doesn’t guarantee anything genuine.  Your abilities, strength and reasoning will eventually reach an end.  Will you wait until you have exhausted your resources before you start depending on Him or will you depend on Him now?

 

 

                                                © Karl J. Forehand, 2003

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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