2 Timothy 4:1-2 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
In my office at church, hangs a picture of a man preaching in a field to a group of settlers (the picture above). The man’s name is Shubal Stearns. Today, Mr. Stearns is known as “The Father of Baptists in the South.” Having been saved during the First Great Awakening, under the preaching of George Whitefield, Shubal went on to start the Sandy Creek Baptist Church on November 22, 1755. God miraculously blessed the preaching ministry of Shubal Sterns. In like fashion with Bible in hand, preacher boys from Sandy Creek Baptist Church fanned the flame of revival all through the southern frontier. Over five hundred churches were started out of that one church plant.
The legacy of Biblical preaching stems as far back as the pre-flood preachers, Enoch, Methuselah, and Noah. Moses, Joshua, and the Judges proclaimed God’s Word to the people. Solomon called himself “the preacher.” The Old Testament prophets preached against the apostasy of their day, expounded on the Law and prophesied of future events. The New Testament opens with John the Baptist, “the voice of one crying in the wilderness.” Our Lord had a preaching ministry. He trained his twelve apostles and sent them forth to preach. Jesus commanded His church to “preach the gospel to every creature!” The church, empowered with the Holy Ghost at Pentecost, was lead instantly to preaching. Even the deacons Phillip and Stephen had preaching ministries. Paul upon conversion immediately preached in Damascus. Paul passed the faith to Timothy by charging the young preacher boy to “Preach the Word.” From Genesis through Revelation, God’s plan has been preaching. The power of the New Testament church is equal to her obedience to follow her charge. Let’s look at this three-fold power.
1.) Bible Preaching Is Powerful In Its Authority.
“The Word” is the King’s Word not ours. To preach means “to herald” or to “cry out.” The town crier of Paul’s day would declare an edict passed down from the Emperor. In no way could the herald add to or take away from the message that he was commanded to give. “Don’t kill the messenger! ” The messenger is just passing along another’s orders. God said to Jonah, “Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.” (Jonah 3:2) Jonah was to give them God’s Word. His message was harsh, politically incorrect, and harmful to the Ninevites’ self-esteem, but its result was powerful. “So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.” (Jonah 3:5) Jonah gave them God’s message and the people believed God!
2.) Bible Preaching is Powerful In It’s Revelation.
“Preach the Word!” “The Word” is another name for Jesus (John 1:1). Biblical preaching reveals the person of Jesus Christ.
Acts 5:42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:5a For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord;
Titus 1:3a But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching,
Proclamation of the Word of God manifests the Lord Jesus Christ, His character, His power to save, and all His mighty attributes right in our midst. Do we want Christ in our midst? Then we must preach The Word.
Consider the rich man in the flames of hell as he pleaded with Abraham to send Lazarus back from the dead to warn his brethren not to come there. Look at the response of Abraham:
Luke 16:29-31 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
“Moses and the prophets” is a reference to the Old Testament. Abraham says, “They have the Bible.” The Word proclaimed holds more weight, evidence, and power than someone coming back from the dead. Preaching is powerful in its revelation.
3.) Bible Preaching Is Powerful In It’s Invitation.
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
The gospel has power to save peoples’ souls, give them victory over sin, give direction, and comfort the oppressed.
Preaching of God’s Word, “reproves, rebukes, and exhorts.” All true preaching calls for a verdict. “What shall we do?” (Acts 2:37), the three thousand at Pentecost cried out to Peter. Evangelist D. L. Moody would call for those who would receive Christ to stand up in their seat. Billy Sunday would call for those who decided for Christ to come down front and shake his hand. Charles Spurgeon would have inquirers about their soul to meet workers in a special room after the service. Charles G. Finney had the famous “anxious seat” on the front row.
The invitation is powerful because people always choose either “yes” or “no” to God’s Word. The clearer the Word is preached, the more profound the decision to receive or reject it will be. God when he gave Israel the law told them, “Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day:
And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God,” (Deuteronomy 11:26-28)
Preaching heralds the great invitation of all eternity… “The Spirit and the Bride say come!” (Revelation 22:17) May God help us to continue doing it with power and faith!