The Importance of Preaching

For those who drink the RickWarren CoolAid, here is a dose of biblical reality.

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Preaching—The Foundation of Unity (click here for entire outline)

As Christians, we probably all agree that preaching is important. But what's not immediately obvious is how the act of preaching—and the act of listening to preaching—contributes to the unity of a local church.

How exactly does preaching foster unity in the church? How we can be good stewards of the preaching we hear, not just for our own individual growth, but for the health and maturity of the church as a whole? These are some of the questions we'll consider today.

I. God Creates his People Through His Word

The first thing we must realize is that God's word and God's people have a unique relationship. The word of God is not just an optional add-on to the life of the church. Nor is it just one tool among many which will inform and benefit the people of God. According to Scripture, the Word of God is actually the source of our very life.

"Faith comes by hearing," Paul says (Romans 10:17). No one comes to faith in Christ simply by looking at the world and drawing their own conclusions. They come to believe in Christ when they hear the gospel message preached to them.

The point is that it is the power of God's Word that brings God's people to life. Because of that, God's Word is central to the identity and mission of his people. Christianity is not primarily about spiritual experience or warm community or even acts of service—though all those things are important in their way. First and foremost, Christianity is about God's people hearing God's Word and responding to it in faith. That is why we say that preaching is vital to unity in the church.

II. THE UNIQUE ROLE OF PREACHING

Many churches today would insist that they are Bible-centered, and yet they leave preaching as a secondary focus in their church life. Fellowship, music, small groups, or other activities take priority and set the direction of the church, while preaching becomes kind of an afterthought.

Relegating preaching to secondary status is simply not an option for any church that wants to pattern itself after Scripture. Throughout the Bible, the exposition of God's Word is central to the life of God's people.

We cannot claim that our church is founded on the Word of God unless our church is founded on the preaching of that Word. Individual Bible study is not sufficient; Bible studies in small groups are not sufficient; coffee hour Q&A's on Sunday morning are not sufficient. Only when our church is centered around the preaching of the Scriptures can we truly claim to be a Word-centered church.

So what is it that makes preaching so vital to the life and unity of the church? Why isn't individual Bible study or small group fellowship better, or at least just as good? Let me suggest two reasons:

First, preaching in the church carries unique authority.

Ultimately, the authority of preaching rests on the authority of Scripture itself. In fact, preaching that isn't rooted deeply in Scripture carries no authority at all! Not a few preachers seem to think that their authority flows from their great personality or knowledge, or even because they hold some church office. But none of that gives someone the right to speak with authority about God; to claim otherwise requires more than a little hubris! Whatever authority a preacher has is not his own; he has authority only so far as he is truly explaining the Bible.

But that brings up another question. Why should we trust a particular preacher's interpretation of the Bible? Any preacher can go wrong in his explanation, interpretation, and application of the Scripture. So what gives us any confidence that a particular sermon is a true and trustworthy interpretation of Scripture?

The answer is that preaching takes place in the context of a local congregation. Therefore, it is backed by the united testimony of an entire community of Christians, each indwelt by God's life-giving Spirit. When the church is healthy, the words the preacher says on Sunday morning are tacitly confirmed by the church's elders and ultimately by the congregation as a whole.

If the pastor starts preaching something the congregation believes is contrary to Scripture, then the church as a whole has a duty to say so—gently and respectfully to be sure, but firmly. That's exactly what Paul tells the congregations in Galatia: It is your responsibility to make sure the message being preached to you is the true gospel (Galatians 1:6-9). Final authority over the message preached is given to the entire congregation—not to a pope, a presbytery, or pastor, but to the church.

Thus we can have extra confidence in the truth we hear preached in a healthy church, because it is backed by the testimony of a community of Christians. That is one distinction between preaching in a church and our own personal study of the Bible. Preaching represents the unified agreement of Spirit-filled believers, and therefore we can have an extra degree of confidence in its authority.

Second, preaching is applied in the context of relationships.

Preaching is truth that confronts us from outside ourselves—outside our biases, our assumptions, and our sins. As Christians, we all know that our hearts are sinful and our minds are deceptive. Yet we often forget that sin affects even our ability to interpret the Word of God. Yes, God has given us the Holy Spirit to illuminate our understanding, but the presence of the Holy Spirit does not mean that our interpretation of the Bible is free from error.

If we are to understand God's Word rightly, we need other Christians to speak truth to us. Moreover, we need that truth delivered to us in the context of community—in the company of a group of people who know our lives and will confront us with the truth of God's Word.

Third, Preaching Promotes Unity in more ways:

1. Biblical Preaching Gives Us a Message Around Which to Unite
2. Biblical Preaching Builds Us Up in Christ
3. Biblical Preaching Applies God's Word to the Unique Needs and Characteristics of the Congregation

May/June 2008, ©9Marks