If you’re committed to the church you’re
in; if the pastor is not teaching heresy; if the leaders lead the church to
practice sound doctrine and you believe there is room to plug in and be
involved in a lay capacity, then there are some ways to encourage ongoing
growth in the preaching ministry of the church. Remember, no local church is
perfect and we each have a responsibility to input into the betterment of one
another’s lives. You cannot sit on the sidelines, but need to get in the game,
ministering your spiritual gifts and giving input into the lives of other
members of the body. One of your tasks is to encourage good preaching. There
are a number of ways to do this.[1]
First, pray for the preacher. Pray during
his sermon preparation time. Pray as he preaches. Pray that his own soul would
be transformed by the truths he’s communicating to others. Pray that the church
will share in that transforming process.
David Schlafer reminds us:
There is no more demanding task in ministry than preaching. Your
preacher wrestles not only with homiletical techniques, personal strengths and
weaknesses, rigorous exegetical requirements, a host of administrative hassles
and value conflicts, and only God knows what else—but also wrestles with
“principalities and powers” in standing to proclaim the Good News.[2]
John James and Gardiner Spring add to that
admonition: “O it is at a fearful expense that ministers are ever allowed to
enter the pulpit without being preceded, accompanied, and followed by the
earnest prayers of the churches.”[3]
Let’s commit to supporting our pastor in prayer.
Second, tell the preacher you’re looking
forward to the sermon. Let him know that you’re supporting him in prayer and
you’re greatly anticipating his message. Ask him questions of the text and
explain how the sermon is going to benefit you. Let him know that you need and
want regular challenge from the Word of God. You’ll encourage him greatly and
give him even more reason to prepare well.
Christopher Ash explains:
Not all poor preaching is entirely the fault of the preacher; the
congregation has a vital part to play. When a congregation makes it clear that
they are reluctant to hear faithful preaching, that they want the sermons to be
shorter and play a more marginal part in the meeting, when they listen
stony-faced and give no word of encouragement, it is very hard for even the
most faithful preacher to persevere (although they ought to, as Jeremiah had
to). By contrast, a congregation eager for faithful, challenging Bible
preaching is much more likely to get it.[4]
Third, make sure that your pastor has time
to pray, study and prepare for preaching. If he’s regularly putting together a
“Saturday-night special” then you and he together need to find ways to
reschedule his week. Your pastor needs to be sustained in his priorities and
you may be able to offer ways to relieve him of other less important tasks.
Protect him from the distractions of ministry—good causes though they may
be—just like the seven newly selected servants protected the Apostles so they
could devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word (Acts 6:4).
Fourth, make provision in the church budget
for your pastor to purchase the needed resources to sustain his preaching
ministry. The church should ensure he has sufficient reference books and
commentaries for his current sermon series. He should also own a good Bible
software program and computer to speed up his study efforts. The church should
make provision for the pastor to regularly attend conferences for pastors or
preaching workshops, and should also consider supporting him in any continuing
education he believes would be advantageous to his (and the church’s) personal
development.
Fifth, you should attend church faithfully.
Just being there week-in and week-out is a wonderful encouragement to your
pastor. Inconsistency in attendance can discourage and unsettle your pastor. He
can become confused, not knowing whether people have heard the previous sermon
or not and what amount of revision he needs to provide for people who missed
the last sermon or two. So be there, no matter what.
Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck advise:
Go to church. Don’t go for the coffee, the presentations, the music,
or the amenities. Don’t even go for the feelings you may or may not get when
you go because, no offence, these feelings may or may not be trustworthy most
of the time. Go for the gospel. Go for the preaching. Go to be near God’s Word.[5]
And Martyn Lloyd-Jones adds:
A number of people seem to go to a place of worship and to a service
in order to go home! Their main idea seems to be to get out and to get home.
Why do they go at all? That is the question, I think, that needs to be asked.
Why this great anxiety for the service, and especially the sermon, to finish?
There is only one conclusion to be drawn: these people need to be humbled.
These people are lacking in spirituality, in a spiritual mind and outlook, and
in spiritual understanding.[6]
Sixth, thank your pastor directly after the
service. Paul says, “Let the one who is taught the word share all good things
with him who teaches” (Gal 6:6). So thank your pastor
for what you’ve learned. Don’t flatter him or give vague comments about how
good it was (if it was). Try to be specific and focus on the biblical content
of the sermon rather than just stories, anecdotes, or illustrations. Tell him
what you intend to do as a result of the sermon. Report back to him with a
progress report, telling him what changes have come about in your life as a
result of his ministry.
Seventh, provide constructive feedback on
the sermon itself. Your comments can be critical as long as they’re designed to
be helpful. Ask your preacher to help you see where he got a particular point
from within the passage. This will help to sharpen him up. It will encourage
him to stick to the Bible next time, if that’s indeed what’s needed. Remember
to be humble and respectful in the way you do this. The manner in which you
approach your pastor and the directness with which you can speak with him, will
be determined in part by the longevity and intimacy of your relationship with
him. Don’t forget, it’s much harder to preach than it is to criticize
preaching. So be gracious.
Eighth, treat your pastor fairly. Relate to
him as a brother in Christ, a loving friend who cares for him and his family.
Mark Dever recommends:
Take care in how you propose change to your pastors. Pray, serve,
encourage, set a good example in your own life, and be patient. A healthy
church is less about a place that
looks a certain way, and more about a people
who love in the right way. And love is generally best shown when it’s given in
the face of circumstances we don’t like. Just think, Christian, of how we have
been loved in Christ![7]
David Schlafer says it even more plainly:
If you have a preacher who may not have had the benefit of good
training in homiletics, or who may be experiencing ‘homiletical burnout,’ it
is, of course, important to proceed with compassion and sensitivity. Your
preacher is a human being, who may well feel somewhat inadequate already. It
goes without saying that the opening line of a conversation on preaching is
not: ‘Last Sunday’s sermon was lousy!’ or even ‘I have some problems with your
preaching.’ Begin instead with a genuine comment on whatever has been preached:
there will always be something that can serve as an authentic point of
argument.[8]
Lastly, you should consider the future
preaching ministry of the church by encouraging up-and-coming preachers. Be on
the lookout for young men who show the signs of possessing the gift of
preaching and teaching. You may come alongside these men, tap them on the
shoulder, and encourage them to develop their spiritual gifts or consider
further training. If others in the church affirm their confidence in those same
individuals, you could even financially support a young preacher or two so that
they can attend Bible college or seminary. Your investment in them will
safeguard the future of the church for future generations of wanting
sermon-listeners.
Summary
As a sermon-listener you shouldn’t view
yourself as a powerless victim nor a bloodthirsty watchdog. You’re a member of
the family of God, responsible for your own spiritual growth and that of your
family. You’re a vital member in the body of Christ with spiritual responsibilities
towards every other member in the church, so don’t abdicate now. Good
expository preaching is yours to expect. You have much to contribute in
maintaining a solid Bible-teaching pulpit ministry. But a well-balanced
approach is necessary.
Be on your guard for false doctrine, but
don’t become pharisaic or mean-hearted over the non-essentials. You’ll need to
evaluate your own heart in these matters, search your motives, and know for
sure why you respond to the preaching in your church the way you do.
Be loving and tenderhearted toward your
pastor while he is still learning how to preach, but don’t be naïve if you see
him adulterating the Word of God. Your reactions must be based upon biblical
mandates, so choose your responses carefully and confidently.
Above all, remember, just because you’re a listener and not a preacher, doesn’t mean that you’re off the hook. We listeners are to create the demand for expository preaching in our churches. We must open the doors so that faithful Bible preachers can supply what we most certainly need.
Above all, remember, just because you’re a listener and not a preacher, doesn’t mean that you’re off the hook. We listeners are to create the demand for expository preaching in our churches. We must open the doors so that faithful Bible preachers can supply what we most certainly need.
[1] Some of the following suggestions come from Christopher Ash, Listen Up!: A Practical Guide to Listening
to Sermons (New Maiden, Surrey: The Good Book Company, 2009), 30.
[2] David J. Schlafer, Surviving the Sermon: A Guide to Preaching
for Those Who Have to Listen (Boston, MA: Cowley Publications, 1992), 117.
[3] John Angell James and Gardiner Spring, The Duties of Church
Members to Their Pastors. A Plea to Pray for Pastors (Vestavia Hills, AL:
Solid Ground Christian Books, 2009), 22.
[4] Christopher Ash, Listen Up!,
29.
[5] Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck, Why
We Love the Church: In Praise of Institutions and Organized Religion (Chicago,
Moody Publishers, 2009), 196.
[6] D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Preaching and
Preachers (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1971), 156.
[7] Mark Dever, What Is a Healthy Church? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway
Books, 2007), 123.
[8] David J. Schlafer, Surviving the Sermon, 115.
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