There’s nothing more disheartening to me than to have the expectation that I’m going to hear the Bible preached and then to hear a talk full of life principles and moralisms with a few Bible references thrown in for good measure.
This article goes on at length about what Gospel and Bible centered preaching should be.
It has a Lutheran emphasis on not using the Law in sermons as a direction about how Christians are to respond to the Gospel, but rather than dilute it with various qualifications, just take the article at face value and sort through the stuff you don’t like.
Many preaching sacred cows well and truly barbecued.
Quotes:
“As a wise pastor once said, “Any sermon can claim to be Bible–based. But the Bible wasn’t nailed to the Cross to pay for your sins.” The central message of the Bible is Jesus Christ crucified and risen for sinners. If a sermon is really Bible–based, it will preach that Gospel.
There is no conflict between Bible–based preaching and Christ–based preaching. Christian preaching should be Bible–based and textual. That means drawing Law and Gospel from specific passages from every part of Scripture. Moses’ and David’s “material” testifies to Christ crucified for sinners just as much as Matthew or Paul.
Christian preachers aren’t called to preach the Bible in general or truth in general; they are called to preach a very particular biblical truth. In Paul’s words, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” A sermon that lacks this truth can’t be called a good sermon, and it can’t be called a Christian sermon.
Often, the difference between good preaching and bad preaching is not in what is said, but what is left unsaid. More often, what is left unsaid is the Gospel itself.”
“The Gospel isn’t Jesus your example, educator, life–coach or therapist. The Gospel is Jesus, your crucified and risen Savior from sin and death. So, listen for the Scriptural verbs of salvation: The Jesus Who lived for you, suffered for you, was crucified for you, died for you, and rose again for you. The Jesus Who forgives you, redeems you, reconciles you and has mercy on you.
How often is Jesus mentioned? Is He the subject of the verbs? What are those verbs? This simple test doesn’t answer every question about good preaching, but it does answer the most important question: Is this a Christ–centered, cross–focused sermon? Is this sermon about what Jesus has done to save me, a sinner? Did this sermon proclaim the Gospel?
Finally, one last check for Law and Gospel. When you’re finished listening, step back and get the big picture. Ask yourself, “Did the preacher diagnose my problem as sin, or as something else? And did the preacher provide the solution to my sin in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ?”
If the sermons that you hear leave you thinking “What can I do for Christ” (or worse, “What can I get from what Christ has done for me”) instead of “What has Christ done for me”, then you’re either not hearing it properly or the wrong thing is being said.
HT: J.D. Greear.
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