It is Friday morning, and pretty much all of us find ourselves in the heat of sermon preparation. In the midst of this frenzy to complete a sermon that is accurate to the text, theologically sound and relevant, we are constantly praying for God through His Spirit to grant us passion and boldness when we preach it on Sunday. We do not desire to deliver dry head knowledge. No, we want the hearts of our hearers to be grabbed by the Word of God, for it to bring deep conviction, to produce change, to provide encouragement, a passion for holiness and most of all a greater love for Christ.
How is it possible to preach God’s Word in such a manner? Most certainly, through a dependence upon power of the Holy Spirit, He is the only one that can produce change. Definitely through time spent in prayer and the Word, studying the text and preparing to the best of our ability. Allow me to now, suggest a third “tool” that lies in the toolbox, at the bottom and most often is neglected, seldom is it taken up and used. It is the tool of our very own conversion and calling!
How is our conversion, our coming to Christ a tool in sermon preparation? Brothers, let us not forget that there was a time when we could not call upon God as Father, in fact, we had no desire to call Him Father, never mind submit to His authority. There was a time that God’s Word seemed foreign to us, made little sense and held no interest for us. In those dark days, if we entered into a church, we could not understand what all the fuss was about, why people felt compelled to sing songs of love, adoration and worship to this “Jesus” who they believed in. No, we were our own gods, we ran after the idols of this world, we were on the path to destruction, unaware of what lay ahead of us if we continued in our rebellion.
Then that glorious, sweet day came, when the in words of Charles Wesley, “Thine eye diffused a quickening ray – I woke, the dungeon flamed with light; my chains fell off, my heart was free, I rose, went forth, and followed thee.” God by His grace and through His power broke through the sin and darkness, shone the Gospel of Jesus Christ into our hearts, removed the veil and brought us into the light. On that day, He clothed us with the perfect righteousness of His Son, adopted us as His very own children and filled us with His Spirit. Do you remember how the Word of God gripped your heart on that day? Can you recall how joy filled your soul as you sang those hymns of worship with all your heart in those early days of your Christian life? How you were amazed by the grace you had received and the new hope that now lived within you, the hope of heaven?
To then think that not only has God taken us as His enemies and made us His own, He has also then given us His Word and called us to spend our lives proclaiming it. Oh, what privilege and joy is ours every Sunday, as we declare the wonders of God’s Word! As we take to the pulpit on Sunday, as we preach God’s Word, let us look upon the people who sit before us. Know that among them are those who are still on the path to destruction, there are believers living in sin, believers shattered by hurt and suffering, and we can proclaim to them; “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.” (Isaiah 61:1-3)
Let us remind ourselves of how God’s Word has changed our very own hearts, in fact how God’s Word continues to change our hearts. Let us remind ourselves of the hope that lives within us, the eternal joy and peace that is ours both today and forevermore. Remembering that there was a time when we knew none of this, we were lost, hopeless and helpless. Until that God appointed day, when God transformed our hearts through His powerful Word, when He said to us “Look unto Jesus and be saved!”
Our conversion, the continual work of God’s Spirit within us, and our calling, should fuel our preaching, and make our preparation a delight and joy. Why? Because as we proclaim God’s Word we can do so with confidence knowing it has the power to change, to convict, convert, comfort, build up and encourage. This confidence comes to us because not only does God’s Word promise it, but also because we know it is true, for it brought salvation to us, the worst of sinners!
“I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:12-17)
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