Miraculous Preaching!
Galatians 3:5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith
When you hear “powerful preaching” what comes to mind? A preacher who always seems to tap into your emotional world? One with a strong voice and a great stage presence. Maybe its a wordsmith who is able to craft powerful phrases that stick with you. Or if you’re like me, you find yourself captivated by the beautiful accent of a preacher like Alistar Begg.
All of those may make listening to a sermon an enjoyable experience but the real power of a sermon is not in the voice of the preacher, the structure of the sermon, the eloquence of speech, or even the conviction with which they preach. The power of preaching is the work done by God in the creating and nourishing of faith. More than simply being powerful we might call this miraculous. A miracle that comes not by sight, but by hearing (Galatians 3:5). Just as in creation, this work of God comes ex nihilo or “out of nothing”, meaning it is not something that is present in you and is awakened or brought to the surface. This is a faith that was outside you and is put into you. It is alien to you, but is gifted to you and becomes yours. And how does that happen? Through something amazingly special? Well, not really. It happens through the ordinary means of a preacher’s words to you week after week after week.
Consider then the work of the sermon– what is its function? Is it to instruct people how to act? To use the law to bend their will into obedience? Is it to light a fire under them to go out and obey God’s commands? The answer to all those is a resounding “No.” The primary function of the sermon is to build and supply faith to its hearers. The preacher does not have the power to supply that in himself (even if he does have an amazing Scottish accent), but he is the conduit through which the Holy Spirit does His work.
Understanding the function of the sermon helps us determine what the content of the sermon ought to be. If the sermon is about nourishing and giving faith, then it follows that the sermon’s content ought to be that which can accomplish such a task. And the law alone (or any instruction) will fail miserably in that task. The law plays a role in the condemnation of the sinner which is important, but it will not give faith. There is one message and one message alone that does the work to give faith to its hearers- you guessed it, the good news of the gospel. And by gospel, I mean the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus that has two very important qualities: complete and personal. Complete meaning there is nothing to add to it. “It is finished,” as Jesus said. Nothing more to accomplish. Nothing to carry out. No picking up where Jesus left off.
Secondly, it is personal, meaning it is for you. This is not something God merely did for his own glory and for his benefit. He did this for you, because he loves you. When I say “you” I mean “you”, the person reading this right now. And when the preacher preaches he must make it clear that this is not a general love that God has, but a specific one. It is a one way love directed right at you. You are in its crosshairs and God does not miss. He is compassionate to sinners and you are one of those. So would you like to receive his love? Well, you don't need to answer that, its coming at you whether you like it or not.
The sermon is always, therefore, moving toward the very same thing- the good news of the gospel. Not on “Evangelism Sunday’, not as an addendum, but as the entire point of the sermon. This, after all, is the entire reason the sermon exists- to proclaim forgiveness of sins and righteousness in Christ to sinners week after week, year after year, decade after decade.
Oh, and do you know what that will be? Miraculous- creating and nourishing faith in the hearts of desperate sinners like you and me. Hallelujah! Amen.
